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A REGISTER OF COMPLETED AND ONGOING RESEARCH BY HEALTH ADVISERS
TopicsDevelopmental Psychology; comparison of the risk perceptions between genders in late adolescence Provider Referrals: Experience and Attitudes of Sexual
Contacts Some Peoples’ Psychological Experiences of
Attending a Sexual Health Clinic and Having an STI Working Together: meeting the needs of the Black African clients in a UK HIV clinical service A literature review to explore the knowledge and
attitudes of health care workers to HIV and AIDS
Name:
Address: Gum Dept., Telephone: Title
of research:
Stigma and Sexually Transmitted Infections: Are attitudes towards people
with sexually transmitted infections as punitive Summary of research topic Previous research has identified
perceptions of social stigma as a main barrier to attendance for sexual health screening.
Although published research surrounding the psychology of social stigma in relation to
common sexually transmitted infections is lacking, a wide body of evidence has accumulated
suggesting that only a minority of people hold highly negative views of people suffering
from HIV, within which gender differences have been found (eg Yong & Miller 1993).
This is in direct contrast with the felt stigma of those infected (Green 1995). As
negative attitudes among the general public towards stigmatised people are important
sources of enacted stigma, the current study employed a simple survey design to
investigate participants own attitudes towards people with STIs in comparison to their
perceptions of others attitudes and to identify any attitudinal differences between
genders. 30 (15 male/15 female) members of
Name:
Address: Gum Dept., Telephone: Title of research: "That's the whole thing-to get rid of it": Stigma, Sexually Transmitted Infections and Attendance at the GUM Clinic Summary of research topic Abstract Previous research has identified
many barriers that inhibit the uptake of sexual health screening which include fears of
embarrassment, perceptions of stigma and perceived invulnerability as a function of
stereotypical beliefs surrounding the risks of contracting sexually transmitted infections
STI's (Holgate & Longman 1998, Meyer -Weitz et al 2000). However little is known about
the health seeking behaviours of those at risk as psychological research in this area is
lacking. Employing a theoretical sampling technique, this qualitative study utilised a
phenomenological interpretative approach to interview ten patients (5 female/5 male) with
an age range of 18-28 years (mean age: 22 years) attending a Genito-Urinary Medicine
clinic. The aim being to explore their perceptions of sexual health screening, to
ascertain whether these perceptions are endorsed by the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB)
(Ajzen 1985, 1991), and to identify any gender differences. Burnard's (1991) stage method
of thematic analysis identified seven salient themes which were all dominated by
perceptions of stigma; 1) stigma surrounding STI's, 2) fear of exposure, 3) isolation, 4)
reluctance to attend, 5) contamination, 6) relationship issues and 7) perceived
invulnerability. The findings suggest that perceptions of contamination seemed to underlie
motivation to attend despite the perceived barriers. Significant gender differences were
also identified. The TPB cannot account for these findings.
Name:
Address: Gum Dept., Hartlepool General Hospital, Holdforth Rd. Hartlepool. Telephone: Summary of research topic or problem and any findings or conclusions: The transitional period of adolescence from childhood
to adulthood has been characterised as a relatively high-risk stage of life which makes
them vulnerable to the adverse biopsychosocial consequences of risk. However, adolescent
experimentation has been viewed as psychologically adaptive, as experimentation
facilitates social and psychological development, autonomy, self-regulation and
independence. As a result of these complex developmental processes, adolescent risk taking
is multifactoral involving such factors as social conformity and peer influence, together
with personality factors including extraversion/introversion and high sensation seeking
traits. Furthermore, risk taking has also been linked with the concept of "optimistic
bias" whereby individuals hold a sense of invulnerability as they unrealistically
assess their own risks as less than the risks of others. Risk appraisals have also been
found to be modified by prior experience. Knowledge of these factors is of particular
importance for practice for both clinic based one to one and broader community based
behavioural interventions. A wide body of evidence exists that supports the theory that
adolescent's perception of risk predicts subsequent behaviour. More specifically,
perceptions of the beneficial consequences of risky activities have been found to be a
significant predictor of intentions to participate in them. Significant gender differences
in risk perceptions have also been consistently found. In order to build upon previous
research and to gain further understanding into the risk perceptions of adolescents, the
current study utilised an independent groups design to investigate the relationship
between the perceived positive consequences (the benefits), perceived negative
consequences (the costs), and intentions to participate in a variety of risky activities.
This was combined with an investigation into the gender differences between risk
perceptions. Utilising a purposive quota sampling technique, 56 adolescents (25-male/31
female) with a mean age of 16.8 years (age range 16-18 years) were selected from a College
of Further Education in the North East of England. They were instructed to complete the
three part Cognitive Appraisal of Risky Events Questionnaire which reflects six common
risk factors; illicit drug use, aggressive and illegal behaviours, risky sexual
activities, heavy drinking and academic behaviours. Independent samples t-tests revealed
statistically significant gender differences between perceptions of negative consequences
of the risky activities (t=2.938; df 54; p= .005; < 0.05) and between perceptions of
positive consequences of risky activities (t= 2.056; df 54; p= .045;
Name:
Chris Faldon Address:
Department of GU Medicine
Newcastle General Hospital
Westgate Road
Newcastle NE4 6BE Telephone:
0191 219 5011 Summary of research topic or problem and any findings or conclusions: Chlamydia trachomatis is a significant threat to
the sexual health of a large proportion of the sexually active UK population. Asymptomatic
cases of infection are frequently detected through partner notification. It has been a key
component of controlling sexually transmitted infections. Few
studies have attempted to examine the acceptability of partner notification to patients,
partners and health care workers. Health Advisers working in Genito-Urinary Medicine (GUM)
clinics take the lead responsibility in tracing sexual contacts. A
qualitative study was performed to address the following areas: 1. Examine the impact on an
individual of being informed by a health professional of a specific sexual infection risk.
2. Search out any changes to
their feelings and reactions to this life experience over a period of time. 3. Identify factors that may influence coping strategies and thus inform professional practice. ‘In-depth’
interviews were selected as the method of choice. Recruitment proved to be extremely difficult.
Five men agreed to be interviewed by the lead researcher and only one went on to a second
interview 3 months later. Sufficient data however was collected to address the study aims.
Three
key issues emerged from the data;
The men were broadly supportive of the intervention of partner
notification and articulated views on how it had impacted on their lives. A range of professional implications, recommendations for
further work and research was proposed.
Post:
Health Adviser If the research has been published, please give
details: The research was presented as a poster at the AIDS Impact Conference in
Ottawa, Canada, July 1999. Summary of research topic or problem and any
findings or conclusions: Pre-test counselling provides a unique opportunity for health
education and planned behaviour change. The research hypothesis is that knowledge about
HIV is increased by pre-test counselling (following DOH guidelines 1996) but motivation to
change risk behaviour is not significantly changed. Preliminary
results showed initially variable knowledge about HIV, with low knowledge scores amongst
some clients. Some improvement in knowledge was achieved in most cases by second testing.
Confidence in efficacy was high however in the majority of respondents. Pre-test
counselling did not significantly alter the profile of motivation for change scores.
Telephone:
If the research has been published, please give
details: Published in SHASTD newsletter Spring 1999 and the Journal of the Royal
Society, Vol 118, No.2 April 1998 Summary of research topic or problem and any
findings or conclusions: This study considers aspects of the experiences of a group of
people attending a sexual health clinic and receiving the diagnosis of a sexually
transmitted infection (STI). The study was conducted in the form of action research using
a qualitative approach. Participants consisted of eight attenders at a sexual health
clinic who had been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection. Counselling skills
and techniques were used throughout semi-structured interviews to explore
participants’ feelings about these issues. Thematic analysis was used to generate
themes of importance to the participants.
Telephone:
If the research work is complete, when was it
completed? June 1997
Name:
Sandra Smith
Ynysmaerdy
Llantrisant
South Wales CF72 8XR Title
of research:
A literature review to explore the knowledge and attitudes of health care workers to HIV
and AIDS If the research has been published, please give
details: Submitted as part fulfilment of the M.Sc. in Sexual Health and Reproductive
Studies. Summary of research topic or problem and any
findings or conclusions: The dissertation describes a review of the literature on the
impact of knowledge and attitudes of health care professionals in relation to HIV and AIDS
and the barriers affecting the quality of caring for people with the disease. People with
AIDS (PWA) not only have to face the biophysical consequences of a terminal disease, but
also the social impact or stigma, associated with this illness. This paper found that
health care professionals’ knowledge is increasing over time, as they become more
familiar with treating people with AIDS. However, there remain gaps in education and
training, which clearly need to be addressed, as HIV and AIDS remain the epidemic of our
time. The dissertation concludes with implications for practice.
Telephone:
Summary of research topic or problem and any findings or conclusions: Evaluation of how a voluntary community based project, Africare, which offers advocacy and an outreach service to black African people affected by HIV/AIDS in the community, is incorporated into a local clinic based service.
Royal Glamorgan Hospital
Ynysmaerdy
Llantrisant
South Wales CF72 8XR Post:
Health Adviser Summary of research topic or problem and any
findings or conclusions: The aim of the literature review is to analyse the
information currently available about the attitudes and opinions of adolescents to safe
sexual practices. It is evident that there has been little research into teenagers’
opinions about safe sex. For this reason it was decided to design a qualitative research
study. The research proposed will use a grounded theory approach to explore the opinions
of teenagers who volunteer to share their views on safe sex, in relation to their own
sexual behaviour and sexual health.
Name: James Monteith, Jo Greenaway, David Owen. Post:
Health Adviser Title
of research:
How do we do what we do with patients and how can we do it better? Summary of research topic or problem and any findings or conclusions: "Is Health Advising just a job or does it have the characteristics of a profession? Are Health Advisers merely ancillary workers for the medical profession carrying out a delegated range of tasks, or do they have a coherent way of conceptualising their role in a way that relates theory to practice, and which betokens a distinct professional identity and role"? i) What
knowledge, skills and attitudes inform a Health Adviser interaction with a patient in a
HIV/GUM centre? ii) How
can we better define and characterise our patient interactions? iii)
What implication do these findings have for the professional development of Health
Advising with particular Full poster presented at SHASTD conference 2000
last updated 11-02-03 |
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