Juan M. Leyva-Moral

Implementation of evidence on the nurse-patient relationship in psychiatric wards through a mixed method design: study protocol

BackgroundPsychiatric nurses are aware of the importance of the therapeutic relationship in psychiatric units. Nevertheless, a review of the scientific evidence indicates that theoretical knowledge alone is insufficient to establish an adequate therapeutic alliance. Therefore, strategies are required to promote changes to enhance the establishment of the working relationship. The aims of the study are to generate changes in how nurses establish the therapeutic relationship in acute psychiatric units, based on participative action research and to evaluate the effectiveness of the implementation of evidence through this method.Methods/DesignThe study will use a mixed method design. Qualitative methodology, through participative action research, will be employed to implement scientific evidence on the therapeutic relationship. A quasi-experimental, one-group, pre-test/post-test design will also be used to quantitatively measure the effectiveness of the implementation of the evidence. Participants will consist of nurses and patients from two psychiatric units in Barcelona. Nurses will be selected by theoretical sampling, and patients assigned to each nurses will be selected by consecutive sampling. Qualitative data will be gathered through discussion groups and field diaries. Quantitative data will be collected through the Working Alliance Inventory and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Qualitative data will be analysed through the technique of content analysis and quantitative data through descriptive and inferential statistics.DiscussionThis study will help to understand the process of change in a nursing team working in an inpatient psychiatric ward and will allow nurses to generate knowledge, identify difficulties, and establish strategies to implement change, as well as to assess whether the quality of the care they provide shows a qualitative improvement.

Living with constant suffering: a different life following the diagnosis of HIV.

&NA; We used grounded theory in semi‐structured interviews with 32 persons living with HIV (PLWH) in Barcelona, Spain, and found that PLWH live with constant suffering, a core category combining four realities: I need help; My life is constantly controlled; I have a new imposed life; and I have an uncertain reality. Participants described being constantly controlled by health policies and medications. They thought their lives were in the hands of others and that a new life, characterized by the constant fear of stigma, had been imposed on them. They felt they were losing freedom and vitality, as many questions remained unanswered, causing uncertainty related to health and public life. Emotional help was obtained mainly from peers and social networks. Our emergent theory shows a disruptive experience, with serious consequences to individual and social development. Health care has to focus on the real needs of PLWH to reduce suffering and uncertainty.

The Experience of Pregnancy in Women Living With HIV: A Meta-Synthesis of Qualitative Evidence

&NA; The lived experience of pregnancy from the perspectives of women living with HIV (WLWH) is not well understood. We aimed to understand the meaning of pregnancy for WLWH. A meta‐synthesis was conducted to review and integrate qualitative studies about the phenomena; 12 databases were used to perform the search in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Articles using qualitative methods published in peer‐reviewed journals were included. Data were analyzed using the meta‐synthesis method. We found that, for pregnant WLWH, pregnancy evolved as a mediated experience of commitment and dedication. The vital life experience of pregnancy was defined as an interplay of emotions, coping strategies, and feelings of satisfaction. Pregnancy in WLWH was experienced and impacted by societal beliefs, as the women focused all their efforts to take care of themselves and their babies.

Participants’ safety versus confidentiality: A case study of HIV research

Background When conducting qualitative research, participants usually share lots of personal and private information with the researcher. As researchers, we must preserve participants’ identity and confidentiality of the data. Objective To critically analyze an ethical conflict encountered regarding confidentiality when doing qualitative research. Research design Case study. Findings and discussion one of the participants in a study aiming to explain the meaning of living with HIV verbalized his imminent intention to commit suicide because of stigma of other social problems arising from living with HIV. Given the life-threatening situation, the commitment related to not disclosing the participant’s identity and/or the content of the interview had to be broken. To avoid or prevent suicide, the therapist in charge of the case was properly informed about the participant’s intentions. One important question arises from this case: was it ethically appropriate to break the confidentiality commitment? Conclusion confidentiality could be broken if a life-threatening event is identified during data collection and participants must know that. This has to be clearly stated in the informed consent form.