Elaine Mordoch

Use of social commitment robots in the care of elderly people with dementia: A literature review

Globally, the population of elderly people is rising with an increasing number of people living with dementias. This trend is coupled with a prevailing need for compassionate caretakers. A key challenge in dementia care is to assist the person to sustain communication and connection to family, caregivers and the environment. The use of social commitment robots in the care of people with dementia has intriguing possibilities to address some of these care needs. This paper discusses the literature on the use of social commitment robots in the care of elderly people with dementia; the contributions to care that social commitment robots potentially can make and the cautions around their use. Future directions for programs of research are identified to further the development of the evidence-based knowledge in this area.

Successful recruitment strategies for prevention programs targeting children of parents with mental health challenges: An international study

AbSTRACT Research substantiates children of parents with mental disorders including substance abuse face increased risk for emotional and behavioral problems. Although evidence suggests that support programs for children enhance resiliency, recruiting children to these groups remains problematic. This study identifies successful recruitment strategies for prevention programs for children of parental mental illness. The participants were recruited from an international network of researchers. E-mail invitations requested that researchers forward a web-based questionnaire to five colleagues with recruitment experience. Forty-five individuals from nine countries practicing in mental health responded. Descriptive statistics and qualitative content analysis techniques were used. Results: Schools, adult, and youth mental health services were recruitment sources. Nine themes were identified: Relationships, diversified information output, logistics, program consistency, family involvement, recruitment through adults, stigma, recruiting locations, social media. Recruitment barriers were: stigma, inadequate knowledge about parental mental illness and limited time. Transportation to programming was an essential component of successful recruitment.

Nurses’ Perspectives on the Care of Adults with Mental Health Problems and Histories of Childhood Sexual Abuse

Despite growing awareness and evidence linking childhood sexual abuse (CSA) to numerous ongoing health problems in adulthood, the integration of this knowledge into nursing practice remains inconsistent. This article reports the results of a study that explored nurses’ perspectives on, and experiences with, providing care for adults with mental health problems who may also have histories of CSA. Nurses’ views underscore the challenges and complexities involved when providing care for this population. The themes of nurses’ knowledge and comfort levels, ethical practice, patient care considerations, and system issues are used to discuss nurses’ understandings, perspectives, and experiences.

Factors in facilitating an organisational culture to prevent pressure ulcers among older adults in health-care facilities

OBJECTIVE Despite the availability of high-quality clinical practice guidelines, pressure ulcers (PU) continue to develop among older adults in acute and long-term health-care facilities. Except during acute medical crisis or near end-of-life, most PUs are preventable and their development is a health-care quality indicator. The aim of this study was to understand which factors facilitate pressure ulcer prevention among adults over 65 years-of-age receiving care in health-care facilities. METHOD A critical literature review from three scholarly databases examined components of organisational culture associated with PU prevention. Research papers involving adults >65 years-of-age who were admitted to acute and long-term health-care facilities with PU prevention programmes between 2010 and 2017 were included. A secondary manual search included literature discussing health-care organisational culture, with a total of 41 articles reviewed. RESULTS Based on a synthesis of this literature, the Factors Facilitating Pressure Ulcer Prevention Model was developed to depict five multilevel factors for PU prevention among older adults in health-care facilities. These five factors are: senior leadership, education, ongoing quality improvement, clinical practice, and unit level champions. CONCLUSION Ongoing prioritisation of these factors sustains PU prevention and assists health-care facilities to redefine their culture, expand education programmes, and promote accountability to improve health outcomes of older adults receiving care.

Development of an emergency department violence intervention program for youth: an integrated knowledge translation approach

Abstract:Background: Violent interpersonal injury is a common presentation to emergency departments (EDs) and is increasingly being treated as a preventable condition. Given the complexity of the issue, it is key to ensure interventions are feasible and acceptable within the communities that are affected by violence. Our team consists of ED staff, community members who work with youth affected by violence, people who were affected by violence in their youth, and researchers.Objectives: We describe how an integrated knowledge translation (KT) process was used to develop an ED violence intervention program (EDVIP) for youth affected by violence.Methods: We used the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Guidelines for integrated KT (iKT) to develop an EDVIP. Specifically, we report the Knowledge to Action process which involves both knowledge creation and an action cycle.Results: Our team determined the research question, the research approach, assessed feasibility and determined outcomes for our study. Using the iKT approach facilitated initiation of a funded trial that is now active.Conclusions: This paper highlights the benefit of including community experts at the beginning of and throughout the research process.

339 Wraparound care for youth injured by violence: a pilot randomised control trial

Background Youth injured by violence is a major public health concern in Canada. It is the fourth leading cause of death in youth and the foremost reason youth visit an emergency department (ED). In Winnipeg, 20% of youth who visit an ED with an injury due to violence will have an ED visit for a subsequent violent injury within one year. Youth injured by violence are in a reflective and receptive state of mind, rendering the ED setting appropriate for intervention. Methods We completed a pilot randomised control trial in November 2015 comparing wraparound care for youth age 14 – 24 who were injured by violence to standard ED care. Youth were excluded if their injury was due to child maltreatment, sexual assault or self-harm. An adapted pre-consent randomization methodology was used. The intervention was developed using a community based participatory research approach. Wraparound care was delivered by a support worker with lived experience with violence. Support workers were on call 24/7 in order to start the intervention in the ED and take advantage of the “teachable moment.” Care continued in the community for approximately one year. Results A total of 133 youth were randomised (68 intervention, 65 control) in one year. There was no difference in age, gender, or severity of injury between the two groups. Patients randomised to the intervention spent a median of 30 minutes less in the ED than those receiving standard care (p = 0.22). Youth are safely housed, have enrolled in education opportunities, and are engaged in addictions care. Results of a chart review examining repeat visits to the ED for violent injury, substance use and mental health will be completed in late 2015 and will be presented. Conclusions There were no differences between standard care and intervention groups on baseline characteristics reflecting effective randomization. The introduction of an intervention at bedside in the ED did not have a negative impact on patient length of stay.