rkh.sePublications from Swedish Red Cross University
Planned maintenance
A system upgrade is planned for 10/12-2024, at 12:00-13:00. During this time DiVA will be unavailable.
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • harvard-anglia-ruskin-university
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
Home care assistants' perspectives on detecting mental health problems and promoting mental health among community-dwelling seniors with multimorbidity
Karolinska Institutet / Sophiahemmet Högskola.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-5923-8764
Sophiahemmet Högskola.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-6109-1992
Karolinska Institutet.
Karolinska Institutet / Sophiahemmet Högskola.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-0971-5283
2016 (English)In: Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare, E-ISSN 1178-2390, Vol. 9, p. 83-95Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Introduction: Elderly people with multiple chronic conditions, or multimorbidity, are at risk of developing poor mental health. These seniors often remain in their homes with support from home care assistants (HCAs). Mental health promotion by HCAs needs to be studied further because they may be among the first to observe changes in clients’ mental health status.

Aim: To describe HCAs’ perspectives on detecting mental health problems and promoting mental health among homebound seniors with multimorbidity.

Methods: We applied a descriptive qualitative study design using semi-structured interviews. Content analyses were performed on five focus group interviews conducted in 2014 with 26 HCAs.

Results: Most HCAs stated that they were experienced in caring for clients with mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, sleep problems, and high alcohol consumption. The HCAs mentioned as causes, or risk factors, multiple chronic conditions, feelings of loneliness, and social isolation. The findings reveal that continuity of care and seniors’ own thoughts and perceptions were essential to detecting mental health problems. Observation, collaboration, and social support emerged as important means of detecting mental health problems and promoting mental health. Conclusion: The HCAs had knowledge of risk factors, but they seemed insecure about which health professionals had the primary responsibility for mental health. They also seemed to have detected early signs of mental health problems, even though good personal knowledge of the client and continuity in home visits were crucial to do so. When it came to mental health promotion, the suggestions related to the aim of ending social isolation, decreasing feelings of loneliness, and increasing physical activity. The results indicate that the HCAs seemed dependent on supervision by district nurses and on care managers’ decisions to support the needed care, to schedule assignments related to the detection of mental health problems, and to promote mental health.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2016. Vol. 9, p. 83-95
Keywords [en]
Home care assistants, Mental health promotion, Municipal care, Older people, Sweden
National Category
Gerontology, specialising in Medical and Health Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:rkh:diva-2476DOI: 10.2147/JMDH.S99388PubMedID: 26966371OAI: oai:DiVA.org:rkh-2476DiVA, id: diva2:1155051
Available from: 2017-11-06 Created: 2017-11-06 Last updated: 2024-07-04Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

No full text in DiVA

Other links

Publisher's full textPubMedFulltextPMC Full text

Authority records

Hillerås, Pernilla

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Grundberg, ÅkeHansson, AnnaHillerås, Pernilla
In the same journal
Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare
Gerontology, specialising in Medical and Health Sciences

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn
Total: 156 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • harvard-anglia-ruskin-university
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf