Although day laborers are highly visible, as they seek employment, in public street corners or storefronts, their life struggles, including their mental health and social service needs, remain largely unknown to local officials or service providers. This is one of the first studies to directly examine the risk and protective factors impacting Latino Day Laborers’ (LDLs) well-being and substance use and abuse. The study utilized a mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) design. Specifically, this study used risk and protective variables identified by LDLs in the initial qualitative phase of the study to quantitatively examine the impact on these factors on LDLs’ well-being and substance use and abuse. Based on a sample of 147 LDLs, the quantitative results indicate that risk factors for well-being include psychological distress, social isolation, and older age; while factors protective of well-being include higher levels of religiosity and sending remittances to family members. In addition, psychological distress was found to be a risk factor for substance abuse. A member checking focus group was conducted to contextualize and validate the quantitative findings with the lived experiences of LDLs. Implications for practice and policy are discussed. / text

M.Cur. / The aim of this study is to describe a quality improvement programme for nursing education in the private health care services. In the present economic climate of South Africa everybody strives towards quality service and as a result it has also became a customer demand. The learning accompanist is thus faced with the challenge to create a service which accommodates the expectations of the student as the customer. In the dynamic interactive relationship between the learning accompanist and the student, the student has the right to receive quality education which would enable him/her to function as an independent practitioner with critical and analytical thinking skills and able to provide quality nursing. The paradigmatic perspective that guides this research is based on metatheoretical, theoretical and methodological assumptions. The metatheoretical assumption utilised the Nursing Theory for the whole person, whereas the theoretical assumption utilised three sources:- the Nursing Theory for the Whole Person, the Quality Improvement Model of Muller (1986) and the Adult-Learner proposed by Knowles (1980). The methodological assumptions of this study are based on Botes' research model (1992), which imply a functional approach to practice of nursing science. The expectations of students regarding quality nursing education in the private health care services were initially explored by means of focus group interviews and these ideas are supported by literature searches. The sample population was N = 76 and the sample realization was N =12 for the focus group interview. Trustworthiness was ensured using the strategies proposed by Lincoln and Guba (1985: 290). A questionnaire based on this data was constructed to confirm these expectations as well as to explore-the theological dimension ("how") of the identified expectations. Analysis of the resultant data enabled the generation of specific statements which embodied the expectations with respect to the learning accompanist, nursing education and the system (N=9). In chapter four the conceptual framework is described based on the identified concepts.. relevant national and international literature. Trustworthiness was ensured by means of sound literature scrutiny and literature analysis (N=64). From the analysis of the description of the conceptual framework, six main and related concepts which resulted in concise and clear statements on nursing care could be generated (N =30). The contents of a desirable quality improvement programme were drawn up by means of deductive and inductive reasoning from these statements. The resultant programme focuses on the actions which should be carried out in order to improve quality in nursing education in the private health care services.

published_or_final_version / Medicine / Master / Doctor of Medicine

D.Cur. (Community Nursing Science) / The purpose of the study was to develop a strategy to assist community nurses facilitate the mobilization of resources for meeting the basic needs of the elderly in the peri-urban and rural communities within the Hhohho region in Swaziland. Qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual research designs were used to explore and describe the basic needs and the resources for meeting the needs of the elderly. In order to achieve the study objectives and be logical, this study was organized into two phases namely: phase one and two. Phase one focused on the first objective namely: to explore and describe the basic needs and resources of the elderly in the peri-urban and rural communities in the Hhohho region in Swaziland. The second phase focused on the second objective namely: to develop and describe the strategy for mobilizing the resources meeting the basic needs of the elderly. Purposive sampling was utilized to select participants who met the inclusion criteria. Data were collected using focus groups and individual indepth face-toface interviews. Tesch method of qualitative data analysis was utilized to identify themes. From the study findings the researcher and the independent coder identified the following themes from the focus groups and individual indepth face-to-face interviews with the elderly and the key informants in the peri-urban and rural communities in the Hhohho region: • Theme 1: Need for resources because of poverty • Theme 2: Need for support because of burden for caring for others • Theme 3: Need for health care because of health challenges • Theme 4: Need for company because of loneliness • Theme 5: Need for protection because of abuse of the elderly persons The study highlighted a lack of resources including food security, housing accommodation, clothing, water supply and basic sanitation, electricity supply and lack of financial resource. The burden of caring for grandchildren who were orphans due to HIV/AIDS related illnesses and others as well as chronic illnesses were also reported...

M.A. / Currently there is great emphasis on community development. The researcher was motivated to do the study due to the community centre in Krugersdorp that concentrates on community development. The main goal of this dissertation is to prmulate criteria which community centres can use to function successfully. For the purpose of this study the fallowing objectives were identified: To gather information regarding the functioning qf the community centre in Krugersdorp; to compare this information with the literature on community and social development; from these findings to compile a guideline in connection with the functioning of a community centre based on the development paradigm; and to determine the role of the social worker at the community centre. The role of the social worker at the community centre is determined from information that has been received from interviews as well as a literature study. The community centre works according to R 17 P principles

D.Cur. / The purpose of this study was to formulate clinical guidelines for critical nursing actions in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Currently each NICU has their own set of policies and standards for various procedures relevant to NICUs. There is thus no standardisation of nursing methods between the increasing numbers of NICUs. Uniform standards are of significant importance with regards to the nurses working in the units on a freelance basis through nursing agencies. The nurses often work in more than one unit and are thus subjected to various methods of performing one task ...

Master of Philosophy / As Australia’s leading agency for funding health research (expending over $400 million in 2006), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has a major responsibility to improve the evidence base for health policy and practice. There is an urgent need for better evidence to guide policy and programs that improve the health of Indigenous peoples. In 2002, NHMRC endorsed a series of landmark policy changes to acknowledge its ongoing role and responsibilities in Indigenous health research—adopting a strategic Road Map for research, improving Indigenous representation across NHMRC Council and Principal Committees, and committing 5% of its annual budget to Indigenous health research. This thesis examines how these policies evolved, the extent to which they have been implemented, and their impact on agency expenditure in relation to People Support. Additionally, this thesis describes the impact of NHMRC policies in reshaping research practices among Indigenous populations.

Master of Philosophy / As Australia’s leading agency for funding health research (expending over $400 million in 2006), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has a major responsibility to improve the evidence base for health policy and practice. There is an urgent need for better evidence to guide policy and programs that improve the health of Indigenous peoples. In 2002, NHMRC endorsed a series of landmark policy changes to acknowledge its ongoing role and responsibilities in Indigenous health research—adopting a strategic Road Map for research, improving Indigenous representation across NHMRC Council and Principal Committees, and committing 5% of its annual budget to Indigenous health research. This thesis examines how these policies evolved, the extent to which they have been implemented, and their impact on agency expenditure in relation to People Support. Additionally, this thesis describes the impact of NHMRC policies in reshaping research practices among Indigenous populations.

This thesis analyses the state of health care in South Africa with particular reference to a clinic and the Provincial Hospital in Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape. The complexities of health care provision in a diverse sociolinguistic environment where certain languages are emphasized over others, forms the cornerstone of the research. The research focuses on health care in a complex multi-cultural environment. The goal of the research is to present a coherent and robust translation framework for the development of suitable materials to enhance communication across language and cultural barriers in the health care sector. A model (based on research completed in the USA) is presented as a possible alternative in the final chapter of the thesis.

M.Cur. / Managed healthcare was introduced in South Africa largely in order to control the rampant increase of medical costs, more especially in the private healthcare industry. Managed healthcare is a system of healthcare delivery, which ensures that cost effective quality care is provided to patients without jeopardising the health of the patient. Positive working relationships are necessary among the role players in the provision of cost effective quality care within the managed healthcare context. Role players experience problems in the delivery of healthcare, affecting their working relationships, which in turn affects the quality of care provided to patients. Because managed healthcare is a new concept in South Africa, little is known about the problems. As a result, there are no guidelines for the formulation of a strategy to enhance positive working relationships among the role players within the context of managed healthcare. Understanding the problems experienced by the role players will provide guidelines to the researcher to formulate a strategy to enhance positive working relationships, hence the reseacher sought to explore and describe these problems in the study. The purpose of the study is to formulate a strategy to enhance positive working relationships among the role players within the managed healthcare context in Gauteng. The specific objective is to explore and describe the problems experienced by the role players, as well as the possible solutions within the managed healthcare context in Gauteng. The relevant research questions are: * What are the problems experienced by the role players within the managed healthcare context in Gauteng, and what are the recommended solutions to counteract these problems? * What strategy can be formulated to enhance positive working relationships among the role players within the managed healthcare context in Gauteng? A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual design was followed to answer the research questions. Focus group interviews and a workshop were conducted to collect data and a content analysis was conducted as described by Tesch (1990). The results were analysed in two phases: the problems experienced and the suggested solutions to counteract these problems. A strategy to enhance positive working realtionships was suggested. The strategy, which is based on role player empowerment, staff development, staff recruitment and selection, use of advanced information technology and standardisation of methods across managed healthcare industry, was derived from a synthesis of solutions suggested by the participants. Guba and Lincoln's (1983:290) principles of trustworthiness were employed by the researcher and the ethical standards as set by DENOSA (1998) were adhered to by the researcher to facilitate the quality of the study. It was recommended that the strategy be implemented and evaluated for its effectiveness by evaluating the quality of working relationships among the role players and that ethical standards be formulated in managed healthcare.