Interventions for children of parents with cancer: an overview.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The purpose of this overview is to analyze existing reviews on psychosocial interventions for children of parents with cancer and synthesize implications for further practice, interventions, and research in this field. The aim of this overview is therefore to generate systematic knowledge about what can be classed as evidence-based knowledge in this field. RECENT FINDINGS: The literature search in MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, PSYNDEX, and PsycARTICLES resulted in three systematic reviews, which were evaluated by the AMSTAR-2-tool for quality assessment and the PRISMA-checklist for reporting. Results were analyzed through narrative synthesis due to the heterogeneity of the studies. The three systematic reviews were evaluated by the AMSTAR-2-tool for quality assessment and the PRISMA-checklist for reporting. AMSTAR-2 revealed critically low quality for all three reviews but taking into account the study situation of this scientific context, a more optimistic quality assessment can be suggested. The PRISMA checklist revealed good results. Positive evidence was found for the effect of psychosocial interventions concerning depressive symptoms, children's behavior, communication within the family, and quality of life. A comparison of the interventions is not possible due to the high degree of heterogeneity of the studies. SUMMARY: Following the principles of evidence-based medicine, this overview, together with clinical-practical expertise and the needs of those affected, could contribute to evidence-based care and stimulate future guidelines in this important field. The valuable engagement with questions around evidence-based practice invites professionals and researchers to enter into a common discourse to ultimately contribute to an improvement of the life situation of children of parents with cancer.

Adolescent and parental perceptions about asthma and asthma management: a dyadic qualitative analysis.

BACKGROUND: Considering that asthma management is a family affair - with specific challenges in adolescence - a better understanding of both adolescent and parental perspectives on asthma and its treatment are needed as these constructs may substantially account for variation in illness-related behaviour and functioning. The present study aimed to (1) explore adolescents' and caregivers' perceptions about asthma and asthma management and (2) examine congruence and dissimilarities within the adolescent-caregiver dyads. METHODS: Data collection was conducted separately for adolescents and caregivers using a focus group approach for the adolescents and telephone interviews for parental data collection. In total, dyadic data from n = 15 adolescent patients with asthma (aged 11-17 years, M = 14.9) and their mothers (aged 37-55 years, M = 46.3) were considered in the study. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed in a dyad-focused multistep qualitative content analysis procedure using the software. RESULTS: The results demonstrated high complexity in the perceptions among adolescents and mothers and reflected 113 specific themes that could be assigned to four main topics: asthma beliefs, representations of asthma treatment, perceptions about individual asthma management and perceptions about family asthma management. Dyadic analyses revealed congruence in the adolescent-caregiver dyads in most of the themes. However, we also found issues where divergent perceptions became evident including, for example, perceptions of asthma's general impact on adolescents' life or the question of who takes the main responsibility in asthma management. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents' and caregivers' perceptions were found to reflect a great variety of beliefs regarding the adolescents' illness and illness-related behaviour on both the individual and the family level. The study adds to the illness perceptions literature by providing a systemic perspective that was rather rarely presented in prior research.

Measurement of stable changes of self-management skills after rehabilitation: a latent state-trait analysis of the Health Education Impact Questionnaire (heiQ™).

PURPOSE: To assess stable effects of self-management programs, measurement instruments should primarily capture the attributes of interest, for example, the self-management skills of the measured persons. However, measurements of psychological constructs are always influenced by both aspects of the situation (states) and aspects of the person (traits). This study tests whether the Health Education Impact Questionnaire (heiQ™), an instrument assessing a wide range of proximal outcomes of self-management programs, is primarily influenced by person factors instead of situational factors. Furthermore, measurement invariance over time, changes in traits and predictors of change for each heiQ™ scale were examined. METHODS: Subjects were N = 580 patients with rheumatism, asthma, orthopedic conditions or inflammatory bowel disease, who filled out the heiQ™ at the beginning, the end of and 3 months after a disease-specific inpatient rehabilitation program in Germany. Structural equation modeling techniques were used to estimate latent trait-change models and test for measurement invariance in each heiQ™ scale. Coefficients of consistency, occasion specificity and reliability were computed. RESULTS: All scales showed scalar invariance over time. Reliability coefficients were high (0.80-0.94), and consistency coefficients (0.49-0.79) were always substantially higher than occasion specificity coefficients (0.14-0.38), indicating that the heiQ™ scales primarily capture person factors. Trait-changes with small to medium effect sizes were shown in five scales and were affected by sex, age and diagnostic group. CONCLUSION: The heiQ™ can be used to assess stable effects in important outcomes of self-management programs over time, e.g., changes in self-management skills or emotional well-being.

Psychological and pharmacological interventions for depression in patients with diabetes mellitus: an abridged Cochrane review.

AIMS: To summarize and critically evaluate the effectiveness of psychological and pharmacological interventions for depression in patients with both diabetes and depression. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials investigating psychological and pharmacological interventions for depression in adults with diabetes and depression were included. A comprehensive search of primary studies according to Cochrane were conducted. Primary outcomes were depression and glycaemic control. Further, treatment adherence, diabetes complications, mortality, healthcare costs and quality of life were investigated. Two reviewers identified primary studies and extracted data independently. Random-effects model meta-analyses were conducted to compute overall estimates of treatment outcomes. RESULTS: The database search resulted in 3963 references, of which 19 trials were included. Randomized controlled trials of psychological interventions showed positive effects on short- and medium-term depression severity [standardized mean difference short-term range -1.47; -0.14, n = 7; medium-term standardized mean difference -0.42 (95% CI -0.70 to -0.14), n = 3] and depression remission [odds ratio short term 2.88 (95% CI 1.58-5.25), n = 4; odds ratio medium term 2.49 (95% CI 1.44-4.32), n = 2]. Effects on glycaemic control in psychological intervention trials varied substantially (standardized mean difference range -0.97 to 0.47, n = 4). Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors showed a moderate beneficial effect on short-term depression severity [standardized mean difference -0.39 (95% CI -0.64 to -0.13], n = 5) and depression remission [odds ratio 2.52 (95% CI 1.11-5.75), n = 2]. Glycaemic control improved in randomized controlled trials comparing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors with placebo at the end of treatment [standardized mean difference -0.38 (95% CI -0.64 to -0.12), n = 5]. CONCLUSIONS: Psychological and pharmacological interventions positively affect depression outcomes in patients with diabetes at the end of treatment. Furthermore, short-term glycaemic control improved moderately in pharmacological trials. Most outcomes have not been investigated sufficiently. Moreover, there is a lack of follow-up data for pharmacological trials limiting the evidence on the sustainability of treatment effects.

[Professional self-perception, resources, stress and job satisfaction of psychologists in rehabilitation centres]. / Berufliches Selbstverständnis, Ressourcen, Belastungen und berufliche Zufriedenheit von Psychologen in rehabilitativen Einrichtungen.

OBJECTIVE: Psychologists from rehabilitation centres were surveyed about their current job situation. Following areas were included: (a) professional self-perception, (b) occupational resources and stress, (c) job satisfaction. METHODS: A nationwide survey of psychologists of all rehabilitation centres in Germany was conducted. Overall, 1,461 rehabilitation centres of all specialties were contacted in writing, of which 623 psychologists participated in the survey. Some of the results can be compared with reference data from previous surveys. RESULTS: The professional self-perception has hardly changed over the last 10 years. Counselling and psychotherapy in one-to-one sessions and group interventions still play an essential role. Overall, job satisfaction and resources are high. General job satisfaction can be best predicted by career opportunities and opportunities for qualification. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the study indicate which resources should be strengthened in order to enhance job satisfaction of psychologists in medical rehabilitation. Particular thought should be given to improving career opportunities for psychologists in rehabilitation centres.

[Validity and responsiveness of the Scales for the Assessment of Functioning at Work]. / Validität und Änderungssensitivität der Skalen zur Erfassung der Funktionsfähigkeit im Beruf (SE-FFB).

The Scales for the Assessment of Functioning at Work (SE-FFB) allow for an ICF-oriented assessment of patient reported work performance and symptoms at work. The aim of the study is to test convergent end discriminate validity through correlations with measures that are typically applied in rehabilitation and responsiveness by means of description of the change in the course of rehabilitation (t0=beginning of the rehabilitation, t1=3 months after rehabilitation). The sample comprises 249 rehabilitation patients with musculoskeletal diseases. The correlations of the SE-FFB with the criteria of convergent and discriminate validity are in accordance with the expectations. For women medium effects were found, indicating better work performance and fewer symptoms 3 months after rehabilitation, for men the effects were small. The SE-FFB allows for a reliable, valid and responsive assessment of the working situation.

[Education, advanced and further training in the field "psychology in rehabilitation"]. / Aus-, Fort- und Weiterbildung "Psychologie in der Rehabilitation"

The commission for vocational training, training and further education of the German Society of Rehabilitation Science tends to discuss and to give recommendations for various professions in rehabilitation. The working group, which is led by J. Bengel/Freiburg and M. Morfeld/Magdeburg-Stendal created an inventory of Rehabilitation Psychology. The training programs for Rehabilitation Psychology at universities and universities of applied science in Germany are based on a job profile of psychologists in medical and vocational rehabilitation. The different universities have diverse priorities focusing on Rehabilitation Psychology. The offer changes because of the adaption of requirements and implementation of Bologna Reform. The training and further education offers are specific and available for large indication areas. Finally outstanding issues and problems are pointed out.

[Examination of calibrated item banks for the assessment of work capacity in an outpatient sample of cardiological patients]. / Überprüfung kalibrierter Itembanken zur Erfassung der beruflichen Funktionsfähigkeit an einer Stichprobe ambulanter kardiologischer Rehabilitanden.

BACKGROUND: Work capacity is a major outcome variable in cardiological rehabilitation. However, there is a lacks of capacious and economic assessment instruments for work capacity. By developing item response theory based item banks a first step to close this gap is done. The present study aims to validate the work capacity item banks for cardiovascular rehabilitation inpatients (WCIB-Cardio) in a sample of cardiovascular rehabilitation outpatients. Additionally, we examined differences between in- and outpatients with regard to their work capacity. METHODS: Data of 283 cardiovascular rehabilitation inpatients and 77 cardiovascular rehabilitation outpatients were collected in 15 rehabilitation centres. The WCIB-Cardio contains the 2 domains of "cognitive work capacity"(20 items) and "physical work capacity"(18 items). Validation of the item bank for cardiological outpatients was conducted with separate Rasch analysis for each domain. RESULTS: For the domain of cognitive work capacity 10 items showed satisfying quality criteria (Rasch reliability=0.71; overall model fit=0.07). For the domain of physical work capacity good values for Rasch-reliability (0.83) and overall -model fit (0.65) could be proven after exclusion of 3 items. Unidimensionality and a broad ability spectrum could be covered for both domains. With regard to content, outpatients evaluate themselves less burdened than inpatients for the domain of cognitive work capacity (‾X outpatient =-2.06 vs. ‾X inpatient =-2.49; p<0.07) similarly for the domain of physical work capacity (‾X outpatient =-3.68 vs. ‾X inpatient =-2.88; p<0.01). DISCUSSION: With the WCIB-Cardio II there is a precondition to develop self-report instruments of work capacity in cardiological in- and outpatients.

[Addiction counselling in the surgical emergency room. Implementation of a brief intervention for alcohol-intoxicated patients]. / Suchtberatung in der unfallchirurgischen Notaufnahme. Implementierung einer Kurzintervention bei alkoholintoxikierten Patienten.

INTRODUCTION: The primary care system, especially emergency rooms, seems to be an ideal location for the implementation of brief interventions for secondary prevention of alcohol use disorders. The present study examines whether a brief intervention can both lead to a reduction in alcohol quantity and consumption frequency as well as to an increased contact with alcohol counselling services. METHODS: The brief intervention for patients with alcohol consumption consisted of an interview about the alcohol drinking patterns and the delivery of a flyer from the local counselling services. One month later a follow-up interview was conducted. RESULTS: A total of 64 patients participated in the study; 37 patients gave their consent for follow-up. Patients with harmful/dependent alcohol use significantly reduced their alcohol amount (p<0,001) and consumption frequency (p<0,02). Patients who linked the injury to the consumed alcohol reduced their drinking frequency significantly more than those who did not (p=0,01). The intervention had no influence on the contact rate with counselling services. DISCUSSION: Promising evidence was found, which needs confirmation in the form of randomized controlled trials with focus on long-term effects.

[Intention to use and use of treatment due to psychological distress of patients in somatic rehabilitation]. / Inanspruchnahmebereitschaft und Inanspruchnahmeverhalten von Behandlungen aufgrund psychischer Belastungen bei Patienten der somatischen Rehabilitation.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Somatically ill patients in somatic rehabilitation often show comorbid psychological distress and mental disorders. In the framework of the implementation of a stepwise psychodiagnostic procedure, the present study investigated the intention to use and the use of treatment due to psychological distress. METHODOLOGY: Cohort study with a 6-months follow-up in 5 orthopedic, cardiologic and oncologic inpatient rehabilitation clinics (n=1 374). Psychological distress, sociodemographic data, intention to use psychotherapeutic or psychiatric treatments and the use of health care offers due to psychological distress were assessed by means of questionnaires. RESULTS: Every third patient (34%) was psychologically distressed at the beginning of rehabilitation. A positive intention to use psychotherapeutic or psychiatric treatment was reported by 79% of the psychologically distressed patients. 6 months after the end of rehabilitation, 26% of the patients who were psychologically distressed at the beginning of rehabilitation, had received treatment for mental health reasons. Reasons for non-utilization of treatment included lack of subjective need (45%) and lack of interest in treatment despite a perceived need (30%). Further 25% were considering treatment or were seeking appropriate treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Psychologically distressed rehabilitation patients show a high intention to undergo treatment. However, they show a clearly diminished use of post-rehabilitative treatments due to mental health problems. Hence, the promotion of motivation as well as the management of treatment barriers for improving post-rehabilitative use in psychologically distressed rehabilitants are of particular importance.

[Documentation of comorbid mental disorders in medical rehabilitation: an analysis of discharge reports]. / Dokumentation komorbider psychischer Störungen in der medizinischen Rehabilitation: Eine Analyse ärztlicher Entlassungsberichte.

OBJECTIVES: Patients with chronic somatic -diseases often suffer from psychological distress and mental disorders, which remain unrecognized in somatic rehabilitation. The present -study aimed to investigate whether the implementation of a stepwise psychodiagnostic procedure improves the documentation of psychological distress and mental disorders as well as of the -related inpatient treatments and aftercare recommendations. METHODOLOGY: Implementation of a stepwise psychodiagnostic procedure in 5 orthopaedic, cardiologic and oncologic inpatient rehabilitation clinics. The 4 steps comprised (1) screening, (2) in-depth psychodiagnostic assessment, (3) diagnosis and treatment, (4) documentation. Implementation efficacy in terms of a better documentation was evaluated by comparing the discharge reports of every fifth screening-positive and screening-negative patient (n=146) with historical discharge reports of the last 3 months preceding baseline assessment (n=161). RESULTS: Mental disorders (26,0% vs. 21,7%), general psychological treatment (75,3% vs. 66,5%), specific psychological treatment (32,9% vs. 31,7%), as well as psychologically relevant aftercare recommendations (41,1% vs. 34,8%) were more frequently documented in the current post-implementation discharge reports compared to the historical discharge reports. A significant difference was found only for the documentation of general psychological treatment. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the implementation of a stepwise psychodiagnostic procedure improves the documentation of psychological distress and mental disorders as well as related inpatient treatments and aftercare recommendations. Continuous staff training and quality assurance relative to the discharge reports may contribute to further enhancing the documentation of psychological distress and mental disorders.

[Transfer of research findings into medical practice]. / Transfer von Forschungsergebnissen in die medizinische Praxis.

AIM: Description of central factors for a successful implementation of research findings into practice. METHODOLOGY: A comprehensive literature search on "research transfer" was undertaken in the databases PSYNDEX, PsycINFO, MEDLINE, CINHAHL and EBMR for the years 1980-2009. RESULTS: The transfer process is influenced by a variety of factors across four levels: Level 1) the implementation strategy, 2) the individual, 3) the organisation as well as 4) the society, respectively, the politics. The factors and levels interact with one other. A detailed description of each factor is provided. CONCLUSION: For optimal patient care, the timely transfer of research findings on the effectiveness of interventions and measures into clinical practice is of central importance. To advance this process, research and practice should be increasingly interlinked with each other. The consideration of the factors referred to in the present review increase the likelihood of a successful implementation.

[Patients as customers? The term "customer" in the perception of medical students at the end of their university training]. / Der Patient als Kunde? Zur Perzeption eines marktwirtschaftlich geprägten Begriffs bei Medizinstudierenden am Ende ihres Studiums.

In the preceding decades a new perspective on the role of patients in the health-care system has gained ground, considering patients not merely as "suffering persons" but additionally as "customers". Physicians, however, tend to disagree with this approach because of the economic connotation of the term customer. Until now, there is only poor evidence of whether students of medicine - who are going to work as physicians in the future - agree or disagree with that approach and whether they are ready to accept patients as customers. In the following study students of medicine were interviewed on their perspectives towards that approach, in particular on their attitudes towards the idea of "the patient as customer", the appropriateness of the term consumer in different clinical settings and sectors of health care, the implementation of consumer orientation in clinical routine, and their favoured model of physician-patient relationship.As the study could not build upon data of prior similar studies, a quantitative and qualitative cross-sectional study with a descriptive-explorative design was conducted. Using a semi-standardised questionnaire, 313 medical students (response rate: 95%) were interviewed in Spring 2010. At the time of the survey, the students were enrolled at the faculty of medicine at Freiburg University, Germany, and were in their last semester which immediately preceded their exam.The future physicians do not consider patients primarily as customers. More than 80% of the respondents "absolutely" or "largely" supported the idea that patients are considerably more than customers. The analysis of the qualitative data of the study shows different results. Here, more statements were made that patients could equally be seen as customers (449 students supported this idea, 298 did not). Statements contradicting the customer approach referred mostly to the asymmetry of the physician-patient relationship and the special role of the patient. The highest level of acceptance of the customer approach was found in classical service settings such as pharmacies, the lowest level in emergency medical aid. According to medical students, a consumer orientation has been realised in different health service areas in correspondingly different degrees: On top of the list are plastic surgery clinics, followed by private health insurances and homeopathic clinics. A minority of medical students predict the implementation of consumer orientation in the emergency medical aid. Future physicians consider their relationship to patients largely as a relationship between a healing person and a person seeking help rather than a relationship between a service provider and a customer.Considering recent developments in the organisation of medical services and health services in general, it becomes increasingly important to know what kind of 'service behaviour' patients expect from their doctors and other health providers. Obviously, it is not self-evident for medical students to perceive their future patients as customers and to act as customer-oriented 'service providers'. In view of this, the faculties of medicine at universities - which provide professional training to students of medicine - should be aware of the challenge to 'socialise' their students so that they can keep up with patients' expectations.

[Somatic-psychiatric comorbidity. Definition and basic concept]. / Somatopsychische Komorbidität. Definition und Verständnis.

Patients with a complex history of illness and multiple diseases are increasingly the rule rather than the exception. To describe these patients, the term comorbidity is frequently used. The present overview provides a definition and description of the construct comorbidity. Thereby, the overview focuses on specifics of somatic-psychiatric comorbidities. The description of comorbidity comprises definition of the term against the similar constructs multimorbidity, burden of illness, and patient complexity as well as a subcategorization of types of comorbidity. With regard to measuring comorbidity, possibilities of aggregating comorbidities into a single sum score are presented. Finally, specific aspects of somatic-psychiatric comorbidity are critically discussed.

[Research on psychological resilience. Relevance for prevention and health promotion]. / Resilienzforschung. Relevanz für Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung.

Research on resilience and protective factors revolves around the question "What keeps people healthy?" Protective factors in the person, family and social surroundings contribute to resilient development of children and adolescents. The effects of these factors depend on risk constellations and environmental conditions. Although sufficient evidence is not yet available for all factors discussed in the literature, results suffice as starting points to develop preventive interventions meant to strengthen protective factors. This paper proposes a classification of interventions based on the age of the children and adolescents. In addition to personal factors it is important to target protective factors in the family and social surroundings. Successful prevention strategies begin early on and support children over the long term, in a systematic and development-oriented manner.

[Implementation of a routine gradual psycho-diagnostic programme in somatic rehabilitation centres - results of a pilot study]. / Implementierung eines psychodiagnostischen Stufenplans in der medizinischen Rehabilitation - Ergebnisse einer Pilotstudie.

STUDY AIM: A pilot study was conducted to implement and evaluate a routine gradual psycho-diagnostic programme to improve diagnostics and treatment of mental disorders in somatic rehabilitation centres. First of all, implementation strategies were acquired in trainings together with psychologists and physicians. The psycho-diagnostic programme consists of a screening instrument (PHQ-9) designed to permit time-effective detection of comorbid mental disorders. Besides evaluation of the training, the aim of the study was to analyze the extent to which it is possible to implement the routine gradual psycho-diagnostic programme in practice. Additionally, it was intended to identify beneficial and obstructive conditions for implementation. METHODOLOGY: The pilot study was conducted in two orthopaedic and one cardiological rehabilitation centre. The training was evaluated directly after its completion using a questionnaire. Three months after its implementation, the introduction of the psycho-diagnostic programme was evaluated using interviews with n=11 physicians and psychologists. RESULTS: The training was rated positively by the participants . Implementation of the entire gradual psycho-diagnostic programme was possible in one centre and to some degree in the other two. Beneficial for implementation were a frank organisational climate, sufficient time resources, and physicians' biopsychosocial understanding of disease. A dismissive attitude towards psycho-diagnostics, little communication between staff members, little perceived advantage for one's own work and fear to stigmatise patients by psychiatric diagnoses were obstructive. CONCLUSION: Essential for a successful implementation are sufficient time and personal resources, a motivation for change in staff and centre management, and a positive attitude regarding psycho-diagnostics in clinic staff. Furthermore, flexibility in implementation strategies and the opportunity to participate in the implementation process are important.