The purpose of this study was to explore how physiotherapists working in stroke care understand their role(s) in the context of clinical practice and how this is mediated by their post-licensure educational experiences. Specifically the study focused on their experiences with the Bobath Concept, a well-developed post-licensure neurology physiotherapy program. This study was oriented within sociocultural theory as a way to understand how the experiences and interactions of physiotherapists mediate their professional practice and their sense of professional identity in a way not previously studied in physiotherapy literature. In order to honour the voices of the participants, this study drew on hermeneutic phenomenology and used a principled data analysis tool to present an understanding of the interrelationships involved in stroke care from their perspectives. Four physiotherapists participated in this study by responding in writing and orally to a clinical case and participating in an in-depth interview regarding their professional roles and experiences. The findings suggest that these physiotherapists understand the Bobath Concept as a professional stance which informs their practice and contributes to an ethos of caring, which is reflected in the ways they understand their roles in clinical practice.

Acute myocardial infarction is a serious diagnosis. Both the patient and the loved ones experience an immediate uncertainty. To be able to emotionally support the patient´s spouse, the nurse in the coronary care unit must be prepared to also encounter the world of the spouse. The aim of this study was from a nursing perspective to illuminate how life was experienced during the first two months by the spouse of someone, who was stricken by a first time acute myocardial infarction. Interviews with six spouses were conducted. The methodological approach was phenomenological-hermeneutic, based on the French philosopher Paul Riceour. The result of the qualitative text analysis showed four themes: To lose one´s foothold, To be exposed to the medical and nursing staff, To get a changed relationship to one´s partner, To wish to make the most of one´s life. The first theme highlighted the spouse’s strong feelings of uncertainty concerning the outcome of the patient. The second theme showed the spouse’s confidence in the medical care. It also showed the spouse’s sense of being insulted by the nurses, who did not acknowledge the spouses´ need of obtaining information and emotional support. The third theme demonstrated how the partner cared for and felt responsible for observing the former patient´s health condition. The fourth theme showed that the spouse realized that life has to come to an end and therefore wanted to realize his/her plans for the future before it was too late. The findings from this study emphasize the importance of the medical and nursing staff to show interest in the spouses´ experiences. Thereby the spouses can experience a support in congruence with their needs, and their life situation might thereby be improved. It would be of great interest to study how nurses regard the spouses´ life situation during the patients´ stay in hospital. Further research could also highlight which factors could minimize the sufferings of partners to seriously sick patients, regardless of the patients´ diagnosis.

<p>Acute myocardial infarction is a serious diagnosis. Both the patient and the loved ones experience an immediate uncertainty. To be able to emotionally support the patient´s spouse, the nurse in the coronary care unit must be prepared to also encounter the world of the spouse. The aim of this study was from a nursing perspective to illuminate how life was experienced during the first two months by the spouse of someone, who was stricken by a first time acute myocardial infarction. Interviews with six spouses were conducted. The methodological approach was phenomenological-hermeneutic, based on the French philosopher Paul Riceour. The result of the qualitative text analysis showed four themes: To lose one´s foothold, To be exposed to the medical and nursing staff, To get a changed relationship to one´s partner, To wish to make the most of one´s life. The first theme highlighted the spouse’s strong feelings of uncertainty concerning the outcome of the patient. The second theme showed the spouse’s confidence in the medical care. It also showed the spouse’s sense of being insulted by the nurses, who did not acknowledge the spouses´ need of obtaining information and emotional support. The third theme demonstrated how the partner cared for and felt responsible for observing the former patient´s health condition. The fourth theme showed that the spouse realized that life has to come to an end and therefore wanted to realize his/her plans for the future before it was too late. The findings from this study emphasize the importance of the medical and nursing staff to show interest in the spouses´ experiences. Thereby the spouses can experience a support in congruence with their needs, and their life situation might thereby be improved. It would be of great interest to study how nurses regard the spouses´ life situation during the patients´ stay in hospital. Further research could also highlight which factors could minimize the sufferings of partners to seriously sick patients, regardless of the patients´ diagnosis.</p>

ABSTRACT Spirituality has been recognized as a positive factor in the lives of older adults, especially as it influences their emotional, mental, and physical well-being. This convenience sample study included 17 older adults residing at a faith based continuing care retirement community in Florida. The sample was represented by Caucasian older adults with an average age of 84 years, highly educated, majority Protestant and mostly female. Spiritual life reviews were conducted using spiritual life maps (Hodge, 2005) and semi-structured interview questions. Erikson's epigenetic stage of ego-integrity was used along with Butler's life review process and Tornstam's gerotranscendence as a conceptual framework for understanding late life development and spirituality in older adults. This mostly qualitative study used a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to analyze the responses to the open-ended interview questions about spirituality across the life-time. Ego-integrity was measured at the beginning and end of the spiritual life review study. Paired t-tests found that participation in the spiritual life review did not influence the ego integrity scores of participants. Specifically, there were no statistically significant difference between the pre ego integrity score (M=82.94, SD= 8.235) and the post ego integrity score (M=84.47, SD= 7.551); t (16) = -.769 p= .453. However, in comparison, the qualitative analysis revealed that the spiritual life review does influence ego-integrity in some participants. Additionally, the spiritual life review confirms gerotranscendence and contributes to information about spiritual development in the lives of older adults. The conclusion offers a discussion about the study's limitations, strengths, implications for future research, and suggestions for clinical practice.

This study explored adult women’s lived experiences with body dissatisfaction. Using a multi-methods qualitative approach incorporating in-depth semi-structured interviews and arts-based projects, women between the ages of 20-39 engaged in a critical exploration of their body experiences in order to deepen understanding of the psychological construct of body dissatisfaction and its ongoing influence in their lives. Ten women from diverse social and ethnocultural backgrounds took part in the study, completing 1-2 interviews, an in-session drawing exercise, and a creative project. Interview transcripts, drawings, and creative projects were analyzed for themes using an hermeneutic phenomenological approach. Four core categories emerged from the data. The first category contained the women’s understanding of the experience and meaning of body dissatisfaction. The second category captured the external reinforcement of body dissatisfaction and related body beliefs. The third emergent category delineated the impact of body dissatisfaction on daily life, including body-self relationships and interpersonal relationships. The final category captured the difficulties the women encountered as they attempted to overcome their feelings of body dissatisfaction and their negative body beliefs. This research highlighted the complex and multidimensional meaning of body dissatisfaction in adult women’s lives.

This study explored adult women’s lived experiences with body dissatisfaction. Using a multi-methods qualitative approach incorporating in-depth semi-structured interviews and arts-based projects, women between the ages of 20-39 engaged in a critical exploration of their body experiences in order to deepen understanding of the psychological construct of body dissatisfaction and its ongoing influence in their lives. Ten women from diverse social and ethnocultural backgrounds took part in the study, completing 1-2 interviews, an in-session drawing exercise, and a creative project. Interview transcripts, drawings, and creative projects were analyzed for themes using an hermeneutic phenomenological approach. Four core categories emerged from the data. The first category contained the women’s understanding of the experience and meaning of body dissatisfaction. The second category captured the external reinforcement of body dissatisfaction and related body beliefs. The third emergent category delineated the impact of body dissatisfaction on daily life, including body-self relationships and interpersonal relationships. The final category captured the difficulties the women encountered as they attempted to overcome their feelings of body dissatisfaction and their negative body beliefs. This research highlighted the complex and multidimensional meaning of body dissatisfaction in adult women’s lives.

The purpose of this study was to explore how physiotherapists working in stroke care understand their role(s) in the context of clinical practice and how this is mediated by their post-licensure educational experiences. Specifically the study focused on their experiences with the Bobath Concept, a well-developed post-licensure neurology physiotherapy program. This study was oriented within sociocultural theory as a way to understand how the experiences and interactions of physiotherapists mediate their professional practice and their sense of professional identity in a way not previously studied in physiotherapy literature. In order to honour the voices of the participants, this study drew on hermeneutic phenomenology and used a principled data analysis tool to present an understanding of the interrelationships involved in stroke care from their perspectives. Four physiotherapists participated in this study by responding in writing and orally to a clinical case and participating in an in-depth interview regarding their professional roles and experiences. The findings suggest that these physiotherapists understand the Bobath Concept as a professional stance which informs their practice and contributes to an ethos of caring, which is reflected in the ways they understand their roles in clinical practice.

The purpose of this study was to explore whether and in what ways an intensive eight-week Mindfulness-Based Symptom Management (MBSM) program might shape the therapeutic experiences of therapists. I used a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to interview and develop in-depth descriptions of four therapists’ experiences in relation to mindfulness and their therapeutic practices. The data collection consisted of: (1) a telephone screening interview; (2) pre-mindfulness training interview; (3) post-mindfulness training interview; (4) field notes based on my observations, subjective experiences, and beginning analyses; (5) and member-checks to verify the accuracy of my interpretations of participants’ interview responses. The results pointed to several common themes indicating the changes therapists described after participating in the mindfulness program. Themes denoting the reported changes were organized into three categories: (1) personal relationship with mindfulness; (2) relationship between mindfulness and therapeutic experiences; and (3) mindfulness-oriented interventions performed in therapy. The findings indicated that mindfulness training is associated with the enhancement of important relational attitudes and skills of therapists, including more acceptance of where clients are at, more presence in therapy, increased capacity to listen, openness and curiosity, and more compassion and empathy. In addition, mindfulness training may be linked to improved reflexive abilities, which has implications for more intentional and ethical decision-making in therapy. Further, the findings also indicated that mindfulness training may be linked to improvements in emotion regulation by decreasing stress, increasing feelings of relaxation and calmness, improving awareness of negative emotional and cognitive states as well as the ability to interrupt these negative cycles. As such, this study pointed to several potential benefits for the inclusion of mindfulness training in therapists’ self-care practices as well as in therapist education.

This study explores the phenomenon of dilemma in paediatric practice. Using a hermeneutic phenomenological method informed by the writings of Heidegger [1889-1976] and Gadamer [1900 -2002] this study provides an understanding of the meaning of ‘being in dilemma’ from the perspective of predominantly paediatric health care professionals but also families in New Zealand. Study participants include four families who had a child requiring health care and fifteen health care practitioners from the disciplines of medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, play specialist and occupational therapy who work with families and children requiring health care. Participants’ narratives of their experiences of ‘being in dilemma’ were captured via audio taped interviewing. These stories uncover the everyday realities facing health professionals and families and provide an ontological understanding for the notion of dilemma. The findings of this study suggest that experience of dilemma for health professionals reveals a world that is uncertain and questionable where they are thrown into having to make uncomfortable choices and must live with the painful consequences of their actions. The consequences of being in such dilemma have to find ways of living with the angst, or risk becoming too sensitive or desensitizing. For families the experience of dilemma reveals a similar phenomenon most evident in circumstances where they feel totalized by the impact of heath care encounters. This study has uncovered that the perspectives that health professionals and families bring to the experience of dilemma reveal different concerns and commitments and may be hidden from each other. This thesis proposes that health professionals and families need support in living with their own personal encounters of enduring experiences of dilemma.

The New Zealand education system has undergone some two decades of substantial reform. There can be little doubt that this has brought significant change to the nature of what is expected of people occupying positions of leadership in schools and educational institutions (Ball, 2007; Bottery, 2004; Codd, 2005). Against this contextual backdrop, and in the researcher’s experience as a teacher and former holder of a position of leadership, there is an observable phenomenon of educational leaders stepping aside from position and yet continuing to work as teachers within the same workplace. Despite claims of a leadership ‘crisis’, and international acknowledgement of concern over the retention of educational leaders (Brooking, 2007; Brundrett & Rhodes, 2006; Fullan, 2005), the human experience of this phenomenon appears unrepresented in current research literature. The present study has sought to capture this experience through addressing the central research question “What is the lived experience of the voluntary relinquishing of the position of leader, yet choosing to remain within the same educational workplace?” In order to gather rich qualitative data, a descriptive multiple case study design was employed. In-depth unstructured interviews were carried out with eight educational leaders who had relinquished position within the contexts of New Zealand State Secondary Schools and Private Training Establishments, and chosen to continue working in these same contexts. The subsequent analysis drew on the tradition of hermeneutic interpretation (van Manen, 1990) to arrive at interpretations of the uniqueness of individual experiences, and offer understandings of the shared meanings of the experience in the form of essential themes. The key findings which emerged in this study were those of a sense of the ‘a-lone-ness’ of leadership, the ‘ready-suddenness’ of the decision to step aside, a seeking of ‘balance’ in the relinquishing of position, a powerful sense of ‘re-turning’ to the call of teaching, and varying degrees of ‘ease’ and ‘dis-ease’ in the experience of ‘letting go and holding on’ following positional relinquishment. These findings serve to extend aspects of those of earlier leadership and role exit studies, and offer previously undocumented understandings. Thus, a major contribution of this study is in the bringing-to-voice of the stories of those who step aside from leadership position yet remain in the workplace, and in the opening of avenues for further research.