‘Really there because they care’: The importance of service users’ interpretations of staff motivations at a crisis intervention service in New Zealand

Author(s):  
Rowan Magill ◽  
Gabrielle Jenkin ◽  
Sunny Collings
1991 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Farrelly ◽  
Amy Joseph ◽  
Amy Joseph

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Ker ◽  
Gloria Fraser ◽  
Antonia Lyons ◽  
C Stephenson ◽  
T Fleming

© 2020 CSIRO Publishing Journal Compilation © Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners 2020 This is an open access article licensed under a. INTRODUCTION: Primary health care providers are playing an increasingly important role in providing gender-affirming health care for gender diverse people. This article explores the experiences of a primary care-based pilot clinic providing gender-affirming hormone therapy in Wellington, New Zealand. AIM: To evaluate service users' and health professionals' experiences of a pilot clinic at Mauri Ora (Victoria University of Wellington's Student Health and Counselling Service) that provided gender-affirming hormones through primary care. METHODS: In-depth interviews were conducted with four (out of six) service users and four health professionals about their perspectives on the clinic. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three themes were identified in service users' interviews, who discussed receiving affirming care due to the clinic's accessibility, relationship-centred care and timeliness. Three themes were identified in the health professionals' interviews, who described how the clinic involves partnership, affirms users' gender and agency, and is adaptable to other primary care settings. Both service users and health professionals discussed concerns about the lack of adequate funding for primary care services and the tensions between addressing mental health needs and accessing timely care. DISCUSSION: The experiences of service users and health professionals confirm the value of providing gender-affirming hormone therapy in primary care. Models based in primary care are likely to increase accessibility, depathologise gender diversity and reduce wait times.


2016 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Beresford ◽  
Sarah Carr

Reviewed by Jude Douglas, Open Polytechnic of New Zealand.


2016 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-26
Author(s):  
Anita Gibbs

In New Zealand, social work students often undertake social work research training as part of their first qualification in social work. The focus of this article is to consider what social work students think social work research is and whether they think social work research should be part of normal, everyday practice or not. Forty-three social work students from Otago University participated in a small research project during 2009 aimed at exploring their constructions of social work research. They emphasised that social work research should be compatible with social work values like empowerment and social justice, and bring about positive change of benefit of service users. 


2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S178-S178
Author(s):  
Ann-Catherine Lemonde ◽  
Ridha Joober ◽  
Ashok Malla ◽  
Srividya Iyer ◽  
Martin Lepage ◽  
...  

Abstract Background During a psychotic episode, patients frequently suffer from severe maladaptive beliefs known as delusions. Despite the abundant literature investigating the simple presence or absence of these beliefs, there exists little detailed knowledge regarding their actual content and severity at the onset of illness. Investigating delusions in early clinical samples is critical, because their relatively young, treatment-naïve presentations are less likely to be confounded by the effects of long-term illness or previous interventions. Furthermore, a more detailed view of the association between clinical factors and delusion severity, both globally and per theme, in a larger and more representative sample may improve psychological models and ultimately treatment options. This study reports on delusions during the initiation of indicated treatment for a first episode psychosis (FEP). Methods Data were systematically collected from a sample of 637 service users entering an early intervention service for FEP. The FEP service provides a comprehensive standardized assessment battery with longitudinal follow-up for two years of treatment. The average severity and frequency of each delusional theme at baseline was reported using the Scale for Assessment of Positive Symptoms. Delusional severity, both globally and per theme, was examined across a number of sociodemographic and clinical variables. Results Delusions of a moderate severity or higher were present in the vast majority of individuals experiencing onset of a FEP (94.0%), with persecutory (77.7%), reference (65.5%), and grandiose (40.2%) being the most common themes. Eighty-one percent of service users presented with two or more delusion themes. Persecutory delusions remained consistent in severity across diagnoses, but were more severe with older age of onset (r = .144). No meaningful differences in delusional severity were observed across sex, affective versus non-affective psychosis, or presence/absence of substance abuse or dependence. Global delusion severity was associated with anxiety (r = .205) but not with depression (r = .052), with specific relationships emerging per theme. Delusions commonly referred to as passivity experiences and/or thought alienation, mind reading delusions (r = .242) and delusions of control (r = .247), were related to hallucinatory experiences. We will also examine delusions longitudinally by investigating their relationship to the duration of untreated psychosis and outcomes, along with the stability of delusional content across episodes. Discussion Unlike the more selected samples, confounded treatment effects, and/or varying levels of chronicity seen in previous reports, this community representative sample offers a rare clinical lens into the severity and content of delusions in FEP. While delusional severity remained consistent across certain sociodemographic and clinical variables, this was not always the case. Future work may wish to investigate the evolution of delusions over time, including focusing on specific themes and/or their overlaps, including with smaller samples and in-depth, phenomenologically oriented interviews.


2021 ◽  
pp. 002202212110398
Author(s):  
Christina Fa’alogo-Lilo ◽  
Claire Cartwright

As with minority groups internationally, Pacific peoples in New Zealand (Pasifika) experience higher rates of mental health problems than the general population, and are less likely to access mental health services. This study investigated the barriers and supports for Pasifika accessing and using mental health services with participation of 25 Pasifika (10 service-providers, 11 ex-service-users, and 4 ex-service-users/providers) in order to gain their key informant perspectives. A Pasifika-appropriate Talanoa approach was used to guide the data-collection process and the qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Barriers included stigma among Pasifika regarding mental health problems, commitment to finding solutions within the family, and both mistrust and lack of knowledge of services. Within the services, non-Pasifika providers often lacked understanding of the collectivist cultural values and practices of Pasifika, including spiritual beliefs. They were more likely to use services if the providers were respectful of Pasifika practices and paid attention to developing relationships in a culturally appropriate way. This included involvement of the Pasifika family, when possible. Service-users often benefited from contact with Pasifika providers within mainstream services. These results support previous cross-cultural research that indicates the importance of offering evaluation and intervention services grounded in an understanding and respect for the cultural significance and meaning of mental health problems for the person, the family, and their community. While efforts are made to address these issues in New Zealand, change is slow and ongoing cultural training for service-providers along with psychoeducation for Pasifika about mental health services is strongly desirable.


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