Attitudes Towards Older People in Croatian and Slovenian Nursing Students.

BACKGROUND: Croatia and Slovenia are neighboring countries with marked differences in high school and undergraduate nursing curricula. The aim was to assess and compare attitudes toward the elderly among undergraduate nursing students in Croatia and Slovenia and identify factors associated with positive/negative attitudes. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional survey conducted between September, 2017 and July, 2018 among undergraduate nursing students at five higher education institutions: three in Slovenia and two in Croatia. The following data were gathered: age, sex, year of study, previous education, employment status, previous education in gerontolgy, desired professional role after graduating, previous experience with the elderly. Kogan`s Attitude Towards Old People Scale (KATOPS) score was the primary outcome measure. Pairwise comparisons were conducted between Croatian and Slovenian students. KATOPS score was dichotomized with values above the 3rd quartile considered excellent - the dichotomized score was used as the dependent variable in a binary logistic regression model. RESULTS: Overall, 825 students completed the questionnaire, 85.5% were women, 417 from Slovenia, 408 from Croatia, and 80% were under 22 years of age (80%). The average score on the KATOPS was 127.4, 95% CI 126.6-128.2. Variables associated with excellent scores on the KATOPS, based on the binary regression were: studying in Slovenia (OR=2.05, 95% CI 1.39-3.03), age group 28-32 years (OR=3.9, 95% CI 1.53-9.98); previous education gerontic nursing (OR=2.45, 95% CI 1.34-4.47), and full-time study (OR=2.12, 95% CI 1.38-3.55). Variables not associated with excellent scores were: being married (OR=0.44, 95% CI 0.22-0.92) and having previous experience in working with the elderly (OR=0.5, 95% CI 0.3-0.86). CONCLUSION: Attitudes toward old age are mildly positive in Slovenian and Croatian nursing students. Slovenian students have significantly more positive attitudes toward old age and these differences are most probably due to marked differences in undergraduate nursing curricula between the two countries.

Mental health inequalities in Slovenian 15-year-old adolescents explained by personal social position and family socioeconomic status.

INTRODUCTION: Mental health inequalities are an increasingly important global problem. This study examined the association between mental health status and certain socioeconomic indicators (personal social position and the socioeconomic status of the family) in Slovenian 15-year-old adolescents. METHODS: Data originate from the WHO-Collaborative cross-national 'Health Behavior in School-aged Children' study conducted in Slovenia in 2010 (1,815 secondary school pupils, aged 15). Mental health status was measured by: KIDSCREEN-10, the Strength and Difficulties questionnaire (SDQ), a life satisfaction scale, and one question about feelings of depression. Socioeconomic position was measured by the socioeconomic status of the family (Family Affluence Scale, perceived material welfare, family type, occupational status of parents) and personal social position (number of friends and the type of school). Logistic regression and a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) were performed. RESULTS: Girls had 2.5-times higher odds of suffering feelings of depression (p < 0.001), 1.5-times higher odds of low life satisfaction (p = 0.008), and a greater chance of a lower quality of life and a higher SDQ score than boys (p = 0.001). The adolescents who perceived their family's material welfare as worse had 4-times higher odds (p < 0.001) of a low life satisfaction, a greater chance of a low quality of life, and a higher SDQ score than those who perceived it as better (p < 0.001). Adolescents with no friends had lower KIDSCREEN-10 and higher SDQ scores than those who had more than three friends. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the fact that Slovenia is among the EU members with the lowest rates of social inequalities, it was found that adolescents with a lower socioeconomic position have poorer mental health than those with a higher socioeconomic position. Because of the financial crisis, we can expect an increase in social inequalities and a greater impact on adolescents' mental health status in Slovenia in the future.

Effectiveness of Health Promotion Interventions in Primary Schools-A Mixed Methods Literature Review.

School-based health promotion interventions (HPIs) are commonly used in schools, but scientific evidence about the structures of effective interventions is lacking. Therefore, we conducted a mixed methods systematic literature review to recognize the HPI structures related to their effectiveness. Based on the inclusion criteria, 49 articles were selected for the literature review. The articles, published in 2011-2022, described 46 different school-based interventions conducted in 20 different countries. The average duration of the interventions was 12 months, and they were implemented mostly with an RCT study design (61.2%) and by targeting children (69.4%). Three main groups of interventions were identified and explained: (1) extensive and long-term interventions; (2) school policy-changing interventions; and (3) highly effective interventions. Effective school-based HPIs included multiple target groups, multiple providers with external experts, and an efficient duration and timing of follow-ups. The implications for educational research and school practice are presented. Evidence on the effectiveness of health-related interventions is still lacking and needs to be addressed in further studies.

Associations between Physical Activity and Academic Competence: A Cross-Sectional Study among Slovenian Primary School Students.

Physical activity has beneficial effects on overall academic performance in children. However, there is a lack of evidence regarding how the individual characteristics of physical activity interact with other confounding variables of academic competence. Leisure-time physical activity with potential confounders-such as developmental, behavioral, family, and school factors, predicting overall, mathematical, and reading academic competence-was studied in a random sample of 1520 Slovenian primary school students in grades 4-6 (51.9% female; mean age = 10.4 years; SD = 0.93). A structured self-reported questionnaire was used to gather data on the children's leisure-time physical activity and social-demographic variables, while academic competence was measured by teachers using the SSRS Academic Competence Evaluation Scale. The findings showed that children engage in physical activity most days a week, with moderate-intensity and unorganized activities. It was predicted that engaging in physical activity would lead to an increase in academic performance by 4.2% in males (p = 0.002) and 3.2% in females (p = 0.024), but after fully adjusting the model for controlling confounding variables, the prediction increased to 81.1% in females and 84.1% in males (p < 0.001). The frequency and intensity of physical activity, the absence of digital games, and attending sports clubs seem to have the most beneficial effects in terms of academic competence in school children, among other relevant confounders mediating in this complex relationship.

The motives of people who delay retirement: An occupational perspective.

BACKGROUND: Increasing numbers of people are delaying retirement. Studies of their motives are scarce and biased to Western contexts. AIMS: The aim was to explore internal and external motives of older Slovenians who continue to work after becoming eligible for retirement. METHODS: Nine workers, aged 59-72, were interviewed. The interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Three main themes were extracted. The 'Foundations' described the prerequisites for continued work engagement that were often non-negotiable. The 'Rewards' included the benefits of working and suggested a strong pull towards the non-material aspects of work. 'Negotiating occupational challenges' summarized an internal crisis that was experienced when faced with a potential occupational void of retirement. CONCLUSIONS: Although the participants' motivations were not homogenous, we identified a pattern in the way they constructed their motives in relation to the occupational life trajectories and contextual factors. Based on our findings and multidisciplinary theories, we proposed a hierarchy of motives for prolonged work activity. SIGNIFICANCE: The study offers an occupational perspective of the phenomenon of delayed retirement and argues that the efforts of the discipline of occupational therapy should be directed at different levels of motives, including empowering people to nurture higher level occupational motives.