Visualism and technification—the patient behind the screen

At stake in this study is the patient's credibility. The Cartesian philosophical standpoint, which holds sway in western thinking, questions with scepticism whether the reported symptoms are “real.” Do they reside in the body, or are they mentally concocted. However, from the caring perspective any symptom must be both listened and attended to in its own right, not just scrutinized as evidence for an accurate diagnosis

Knowledge of heart disease risk in patients declining rehabilitation

Background: Participation in cardiac rehabilitation programmes (CRPs) allows patients to increase their knowledge of the importance of established risk factors to help them maintain healthy lifestyle changes after coronary heart disease (CHD).Aim: To explore perceived importance and knowledge of known risk factors for CHD among non-attendees in CRPs.Method: Consecutive non-attendees in CRPs (n=106) answered a questionnaire focusing on patients' attitudes towards risk factors and cardiac rehabilitation.Results: The non-attendees lacked knowledge of non-physical characteristics such as depression and social isolation. They also had poor knowledge about biological causes and hereditary factors. However, those who said they knew enough about CHD to prevent recurrent illness did have sufficient knowledge about the established risk factors.Conclusion: There is a lack of knowledge about social isolation and depression and their importance in the development of CHD among the non-attendees. They show greater knowledge about biological risk factors than the importance of companionship, joy and happiness. CHD and loneliness are intimately correlated, so creating a sense of belonging must not be underestimated as a measure to prevent CHD.</p

Caught in an Artificial Split : A Phenomenological Study of Being a Caregiver in the Technologically Intense Environment

A symbiotic relationship exists between technology and caring, however, technologically advanced environments challenge caregivers. The aim of this study is to uncover the meaning of being a caregiver in the technologically intense environment. Ten open-ended interviews with intensive care personnel comprise the data. A phenomenological analysis shows that ambiguity abounds in the setting. The act of responsibly reading and regulating instruments easily melds the patient and the machinery into one clinical picture. The fusion skews the balance between objective distance and interpersonal closeness. The exciting captivating lure of technological gadgets seduces the caregivers and lulls them into a fictive sense of security and safety. It is mind-boggling and heart-rending to juggle ‘moments’ of slavish mastery and security menaced by insecurity in the act of monitoring a machine while caring for a patient. Whenever the beleaguered caregiver splits technique from human touch, ambiguity decays into ambivalence. Caring and technology become polarized. Everyone loses. Caregiver competence wanes; patients suffer. The intensive care unit should be technologically sophisticated, but also build-in a disclosive space where solace, trust, and reassurance naturally happen. Caring professionals need to balance state-of-the-art technology with integrated and comprehensive care and harmonize the demands of subjectivity with objective signs.</p

Inorganic arsenic in food products on the Swedish market and a risk-based intake assessment

Inorganic arsenic (iAs) and total arsenic (tAs) were determined in common food from the Swedish market. Special focus was on rice, fish and shellfish products. For the speciation of iAs the European standard EN:16802 based on anion exchange chromatography coupled to ICP-MS was used. The two market basket food groups cereals (including rice), and sweets and condiments (a mixed group of sugar, sweets, tomato ketchup and dressings), contained the highest iAs levels (means 9 and 7 mu g iAs/kg), whereas other food groups, including fish, did not exceed 2 mu g iAs/kg. Varying levels of iAs were found in separate samples of tomato ketchup, 2.4-26 mu g/kg, and is suggested to be one reason of the rather high average level of iAs in the food group sweets and condiments. Some specific food products revealed iAs levels much higher, i.e. lice crackers 152 and Norway lobster 89 mu g iAs/kg. The intake of iAs via food was estimated by data from two national consumption surveys, performed in 2010-11 (1797 adults) and 2003 (2259 children). The estimated median iAs intakes in adults and children were 0.047 and 0.095 mu g/kg body weight and day, respectively. The iAs intake for rice eaters was about 1.4 times higher than for non-rice eaters. Validation of the consumption survey-based iAs intake, using food purchase and market basket data mainly from 2015, resulted in a per capita intake of a similar magnitude, i.e. 0.056 mu g/kg body weight and day. The estimated cancer risk for adults using low-dose linear extrapolation is <1 per 100,000 per year. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved