Generations and intention to leave current job : Belgian nurses in the workplace

This master thesis aims to identify work-related factors making Belgian nurses consider leaving their job voluntary and to compare the work-related factors across different generations. The purpose of this master thesis has a descriptive nature of research. The research approach chosen is a deductive approach and the research design chosen is a quantitative research design. Cluster sampling in combination with simple random sampling was used as sampling technique. 128 nurses were surveyed from April to May 2016. Nurses who reported to leave the organization due to retirement reasons, temporary employment contract or maternity leave were excluded from the study as this study investigates the voluntary turnover intention. A total of 68 nurses were included in the study which indicates an overall response rate of 53 %. Numerous of the findings in this master thesis are consistent with previous studies on turnover intention of different generations in other western-countries than Belgium. The work-related factor workload was most often reported by Belgian nurses with no intention to leave their job. Belgian nurses with an intention to leave their job indicated most often the work-related factor (non-)financial benefits. The generation-specific findings indicated both similarities and differences between the work-related factors selected. It was observed that Baby Boomers with an intention to leave their job selected most often variables related to the work-related factors (non-)financial benefits, supportive organization and workload. The variable lack of recognition appeared among Baby Boomers with an intention and no intention to leave their job. Surprisingly was the often selected variables lack of direct and/clear feedback on performances and unsupportive supervisor among Baby Boomers with professional turnover intention. Further, it was observed that Generation Xers with an intention to leave their job selected most often variables related to the work-related factors supportive organization, communication, (non-)financial benefits, work content and workload. The variables inadequate opportunity for advancement/professional growth and imbalance work-life appeared among Generation Xers with an intention and no intention to leave their job. Generation Yers with an intention to leave their job selected most frequently variables related to the work-related factors (non-)financial benefits, workload and commitment. The variables inadequate salary and opportunities elsewhere appeared among nurses with an intention and no intention to leave their job. Surprisingly was the often selected variable inadequate salary among Generation Yers with professional turnover intention.

Tio steg för lyckad amning : En granskning av en BB-avdelning i Mellansverigeoch hur de uppfyller UNICEF/WHO´s mål för en amningsvänlig vård

Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka om en BB-avdelning i Mellansverige uppfyllde UNICEF/WHO´s kriterier för en amningsvänlig vård, samt att jämföra resultaten med tidigare utvärderingar från åren 1996, 1997, 1998 och 2002. Syftet var också att undersöka vad som påverkat mammorna i beslutet att vilja amma. Amningsvänlig vård utgår från ”Tio steg till lyckad amning” och är en global amningsstrategi. Studien genomfördes i form av intervjuer med 40 nyförlösta mammor samt 22 intervjuer med personal. Vidare gjordes observationer på BB-avdelningen samt genomgång av avdelningens skrivna material angående amning, riktat till personal och mammor. Kriterierna för att amningsvänlig vård bedrivs är att, åtta av tio steg i amningsstrategin ska vara uppfyllda. Den undersökta avdelningen uppfyllde fem av de tio stegen. Genomgående i studien framkom att personalen hade goda praktiska amningskunskaper. Mammornas kunskap om hur de upprätthöll amningen var inte tillräckliga. Vidare hade inte mammorna fått tillräcklig kännedom om var de kunde vända sig för att få råd och stöd angående amning efter hemgång. Resultatet var jämförbart med studierna från 1996 och 2002, men en försämring jämfört med studierna 1997 och 1998 då de klarade åtta respektive nio av de tio stegen. Mammorna tillfrågades också om vad som påverkat dem mest i sitt beslut att amma. För förstföderskorna var det rådgivningen de fått på MVC och för omföderskor betydde tidigare erfarenheter mest.

Internet- den nya barnmorskan? : En enkätstudie om hur gravida kvinnor söker information om graviditet och förlossning via Internet

Bakgrund: Internet används globalt inom många områden och aktuell forskning visar att gravida kvinnor använder Internet till att söka information om graviditet och förlossning. En graviditet innebär många frågor hos kvinnan och kvinnor söker efter information för att få en trygghet och försäkran om att allt är normalt med deras hälsa och barnet i magen. Syfte: Syftet är att undersöka gravida kvinnors informationssökning via Internet avseende graviditet och förlossning. Metod: Beskrivande tvärsnittstudie. Datainsamling skedde via en enkätundersökning och data analyserades med deskriptiv och jämförande ansats. Resultat: Nästan alla kvinnor i undersökningen använde Internet för att söka information om graviditet och förlossning. Kvinnorna söker information om barnets utveckling, kost/näring och graviditetslängd i hög utsträckning. Högutbildade kvinnor har andra kriterier för trovärdighet på hemsidor än kvinnor med lägre utbildning. Slutsats: Barnmorskor bör vara medvetna om gravida kvinnors användning av Internet samt själva skapa sig en uppfattning om informationen som de gravida kvinnorna läser på Internet. Vår studie visar att barnmorskors rekommendation av hemsidor på Internet har stor betydelse för gravida kvinnor.  

Mammors upplevelse av att drabbas av HELLP syndrom och samtidigt mista sitt väntade barn : En kvalitativ fallstudie

Bakgrund: Det finns begränsad kunskap om hur mammor upplever att drabbas av HELLP syndrom och samtidigt mista sitt väntade barn. Ytterligare kunskap kan bidra till ökad förståelse och leda till bättre vård. Syfte: Att beskriva mammors upplevelser av att drabbas av HELLP syndrom och samtidigt mista sitt väntade barn. Metod: En kvalitativ fallstudie med djupintervjuer som analyserades genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultat: Studien påvisade det kaos och den overklighetskänsla mammorna upplevde då insjuknandet och händelserna skedde i snabb takt. Det fanns ingen tid för reflektion, tillståndet var livshotande och en katastrofkänsla uppstod. Temat overkligt kaos formades. De svårt sjuka mammorna klarade inte att delta vid första omvårdnaden av sitt döda barn men kunde under vårdtiden vara tillsammans med barnet vid flera tillfällen vilket gav känslor av både glädje och sorg. Mammorna upplevde restsymtom av HELLP syndrom ett halvår efter händelsen. Slutsatser: Det snabba insjuknandet och händelseförloppet resulterade i ett overkligt kaos för mammorna. Det är viktigt att vårdpersonalen är tydliga i sin kommunikation och hela tiden närvarande hos mamman. Barnmorskan har en central roll i att hjälpa mammorna att möta och vara nära sitt döda barn så mycket som möjligt.

Fyrtiotalisterna och äldreomsorgen : massmediala konstruktioner av en ny sorts omsorgstagare

Baby boomers and elderly care: expectations in print media about a new kind of care users The Swedish baby boomer generation – known as the forties generation – has been characterized as youthful and powerful. At present, members of this generation are entering the category of old age and in about ten years they will start reaching ages where the likelihood of encountering elderly care increases significantly. The present study reports on how this expected meeting has been discussed in Swedish newspapers. Data consisted of 481 articles during the period 1995–2012 and was analyzed through qualitative content analysis. Results show that the generation was predicted to become a new type of demanding and self-conscious care users. Claims were backed by descriptions of formative events and typical characteristics that were projected onto a future as care user. Such projections tended to portray care users of present time as passive and submissive, and partly responsible for problems associated with elderly care 

‘Being in a womb’ or ‘playing musical chairs’ : the impact of place and space on infant feeding in NICUs

Background: Becoming a parent of a preterm baby requiring neonatal care constitutes an extraordinary life situation in which parenting begins and evolves in a medical and unfamiliar setting. Although there is increasing emphasis within maternity and neonatal care on the influence of place and space upon the experiences of staff and service users, there is a lack of research on how space and place influence relationships and care in the neonatal environment. The aim of this study was to explore, in-depth, the impact of place and space on parents’ experiences and practices related to feeding their preterm babies in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) in Sweden and England. Methods: An ethnographic approach was utilised in two NICUs in Sweden and two comparable units in England, UK. Over an eleven month period, a total of 52 mothers, 19 fathers and 102 staff were observed and interviewed. A grounded theory approach was utilised throughout data collection and analysis. Results: The core category of ‘the room as a conveyance for an attuned feeding’ was underpinned by four categories: the level of ‘ownership’ of space and place; the feeling of ‘at-homeness’; the experience of ‘the door or a shield’ against people entering, for privacy, for enabling a focus within, and for regulating socialising and the; ‘window of opportunity’. Findings showed that the construction and design of space and place was strongly influential on the developing parent-infant relationship and for experiencing a sense of connectedness and a shared awareness with the baby during feeding, an attuned feeding. Conclusions: If our proposed model is valid, it is vital that these findings are considered when developing or reconfiguring NICUs so that account is taken of the influences of spatiality upon parent’s experiences. Even without redesign there are measures that may be taken to make a positive difference for parents and their preterm babies.

Mother’s experiences and perceptions of a continuous caring model with fathers after caesarean section : a qualitative study

Background: In Chile, mothers and newborns are separated after caesarean sections. The caesarean section rate in Chile is approximately 40%. Once separated, newborns will miss out on the benefits of early contact unless a suitable model of early newborn contact after caesarean section is initiated. Aim: To describe mothers experiences and perceptions of a continuous parental model of newborn care after caesarean section during mother-infant separation. Methods: A questionnaire with 4 open ended questions to gather data on the experiences and perceptions of 95 mothers in the obstetric service of Sótero Del Rio Hospital in Chile between 2009 and 2012. Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: One theme family friendly practice after caesarean section and four categories. Mothers described the benefits of this model of caring. The fathers presence was important to mother and baby. Mothers were reassured that the baby was not left alone with staff. It was important for the mothers to see that the father could love the baby as much as the mother. This model of care helped create ties between the father and newborn during the period of mother-infant separation and later with the mother. Conclusions: Family friendly practice after caesarean section was an important health care intervention for the whole family. This model could be stratified in the Chilean context in the case of complicated births and all caesarean sections. Clinical Implications: In the Chilean context, there is the potential to increase the number of parents who get to hold their baby immediately after birth and for as long as they like. When the mother and infant are separated after birth, parents can be informed about the benefits of this caring model. Further research using randomized control trials may support biological advantages.

Kangaroo Mother Care in a Mozambican perinatal ward : a clinical case study

Kangaroo mother care (KMC) was first introduced in Mozambique in 1984. The aim of this study was to describe Mozambican mothers’ experiences of going through admission, passing from an intensive care ward to a nursery ward with their premature baby, undergoing KMC training before early discharge. A clinical case study was conducted, involving naturalistic observations and a face-to-face interview with 41 mothers participating to complete a questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and manifest content analysis were used in this study. The results show that the mothers were of low socio-economic standing and felt that they did not have enough information on KMC. The hierarchical organization within the hospital setting as well as communalistic behaviours influenced the mothers’ support of KMC, including information, communication, relationships and actions. The conclusion is that there is an important challenge for trained neonatal nurses to improve the guidelines for KMC and to empower mothers and their families to adopt KMC.

Women's experiences of two different self-assessment methods for monitoring fetal movements in full-term pregnancy : a crossover trial

Background: Low maternal awareness of fetal movements is associated with negative birth outcomes. Knowledge regarding pregnant women's compliance with programs of systematic self-assessment of fetal movements is needed. The aim of this study was to investigate women's experiences using two different self-assessment methods for monitoring fetal movements and to determine if the women had a preference for one or the other method. Methods: Data were collected by a crossover trial; 40 healthy women with an uncomplicated full-term pregnancy counted the fetal movements according to a Count-to-ten method and assessed the character of the movements according to the Mindfetalness method. Each self-assessment was observed by a midwife and followed by a questionnaire. A total of 80 self-assessments was performed; 40 with each method. Results: Of the 40 women, only one did not find at least one method suitable. Twenty of the total of 39 reported a preference, 15 for the Mindfetalness method and five for the Count-to-ten method. All 39 said they felt calm, relaxed, mentally present and focused during the observations. Furthermore, the women described the observation of the movements as safe and reassuring and a moment for communication with their unborn baby. Conclusions: In the 80 assessments all but one of the women found one or both methods suitable for self-assessment of fetal movements and they felt comfortable during the assessments. More women preferred the Mindfetalness method compared to the count-to-ten method, than vice versa.