[Potentials of the capability approach for the reflection of participatory health research with older people]. / Potenziale des Capability Approach für die Reflexion partizipativer Gesundheitsforschung mit älteren Menschen.

The capability approach (CA) in the tradition of Martha Nussbaum identifies the presence of 10 fundamental capabilities (personal and structural) as prerequisites for a good life. To promote the participation and health of older people through participatory health research, the expansion of these capabilities and the possibilities to realize them must be focused on. Using a reflective secondary analysis of two action research projects in the neighborhood and a nursing home it will be shown how different forms and intensities of participation in participatory projects can be understood by considering existing capabilities, and how the scope and limits of developing collective and individual capabilities can be explored.

[Roles and their dynamics in participatory research communities]. / Rollen und Rollendynamiken in der partizipativen Forschungsgemeinschaft.

The participatory research approach results in changes in roles and relationships for researchers and coresearchers compared to traditional research concepts. In the form of a workshop report, this article describes reflections and findings on the question of how roles are perceived and filled in participatory health research (PHR). Researchers and practitioners from two subprojects in the research consortium PartKommPlus evaluated their experiences from several years of cooperation and developed insights into which dynamics were important for the design of roles and what should be considered for a productive development of roles.Five important elements were identified: the significance of the scope for action resulting from the ties of the participants to their respective institutions; the change of roles and relationships over the course of the project time; the significance of trust for functioning cooperative relationships; the problem of information confidentiality for scientific exploitation; and the political character of the cooperation, which is based on the claim for change of participatory research and which presupposes shared basic attitudes and goals. Finally, the importance of joint reflection on role design, which contributes to the success or failure of participatory research cooperation and the quality of its results, is highlighted.

[Involving the seldom heard in participatory health research: challenges and strategies]. / "Selten Gehörte" für partizipative Gesundheitsforschung gewinnen: Herausforderungen und Strategien.

BACKGROUND: Participatory health research is gaining increasing recognition in the public health sector. The people whose lives or work are central to wicked issues around health inequalities are integrated into the projects. Including diverse forms of knowledge and perspectives has the capability of strengthening health equity in specific settings. That proffers agency to the voices of those who are seldom heard. Often, participatory health research (PHR) is done with communities. Finding the truly isolated - those who are not connected to others or to services, the seldom heard - presents a challenge for research. Without hearing the voices of those most distanced from mainstream discourse we run the risk of misunderstanding issues pertinent to their lives. This narrative overview highlights this problem and aims to contribute a solution approach for research practice. METHODS: An extensive literature review for participatory research references in the German language was used and the international literature was also screened. Furthermore, the processes of three participatory research projects were evaluated. RESULTS/DISCUSSION: The specified strategies to involve the seldom heard refer to lowered systemic barriers and improved local capacity for their participation. For example, before research can start, time should be given for a preparatory phase. This can be used to invest in relationships and co-operation to bridge the distance to research.

[Assistance, nursing and participation in old age : Future of domestic care in cases of care dependency]. / Hilfe, Pflege und Partizipation im Alter : Zukunft der häuslichen Versorgung bei Pflegebedürftigkeit.

The future development of home care services for older people in need of care is associated with great challenges. This article begins with a brief summary of the most urgent care problems from the perspective of people requiring care and that of caring relatives. The problems exhibit social and spatial inequalities and are characterized by coordination problems within a fragmented organizational system. Calls for a viable "care mix" are nothing new but have recently gained considerable traction under the label of "caring communities". This model is prioritized by the German government and addressed in its Seventh Report on Older People (Altenbericht). It seeks to assign neighbors and unpaid volunteers a more central role in the provision of care and assistance. In relation to "caring communities" a differentiation between cure and care is also proposed. The article discusses this model and the assumptions about the potential of neighborhood and civic engagement upon which it is based, and analyzes its impact on the nursing profession. It concludes with a critical discussion of the model's prospects of contributing to a resolution of the outlined problems.

The importance of knowledge transfer between specialist and generic services in improving health care: a cross-national study of dementia care in England and The Netherlands.

Knowledge transfer (KT) between specialist and generic services is widely seen as an important strategy for improving the quality of integrated dementia care. This article elaborates on intra- and inter-organizational features associated with successful KT. A provisional conceptual framework is suggested, based on literature about inter-organizational networks and knowledge management. Professional and organizational cultures, domain perceptions, perceived dependency and the availability of resources are suggested as significant influences upon the motivation and perceived capacity to engage in KT. Personal and organizational continuity is identified as an important process quality. Data from four local case studies in England and The Netherlands are used to develop and specify the provisional framework. A conceptual model is built to explain the relative success or failure of KT.

Integrating dementia care in England and The Netherlands: four comparative local case studies.

The article presents a cross-national comparative study of the implementation of integrated dementia care at local level in England and The Netherlands. Four local case studies (Amsterdam Nieuw West, Leeds West, Maastricht, York) focus on the interaction between the respective national policies with local contexts and policy processes, in order to explain the variety of local outcomes regarding integrated dementia care. Localities are shown as entities with particular institutional contexts and histories (i.e. local configurations), which have specific impacts on processes of policy implementation within the respective national health and social care systems.

A comparative study of dementia care in England and the Netherlands using neo-institutionalist perspectives.

In this article, the authors compare dementia care in England and the Netherlands. They used qualitative methods to explore recommended standards of service provision and perceived achievements in mainstream care. They found some similarities in recommended standards and in major shortcomings in mainstream services: notably, weaknesses of generic services in supporting patients and carers, and failure to achieve integrated care. Priorities regarding service provision differed. Whereas in England, a social model of care was used to encourage empowerment of both the person with dementia and the carer, Dutch care professionals focused more on "warm care concepts" and on support of the carer rather than the patient. The balance between community care and institutional care also differed. The authors used neo-institutionalist concepts to explore these similarities and differences as embedded in the (historically developed) structural and cultural contexts of the respective health and social care systems.