Sociological Analysis of the Quality of Life among Young People on the Island of Hvar: Challenges and Perspectives

The Island of Hvar is part of Split-Dalmatia County and it is surrounded with a group of islands in Central Dalmatia. The island's dependence on the rest of Croatian mainland is inevitable and islanders' lives are still connected with the mainland. The trend of emigrating and abandoning the island is visible. Transport connections and infrastructure between the Island of Hvar and the mainland are unsatisfactory. At the moment, there is not an adequate pier for catamarans intended for a fast island-mainland travel in the area of Hvar Port. Therefore, the topic of this project and research is to present the importance of building infrastructure and the importance of a quality work of fast shipping lines between the town of Hvar and the mainland in order to enhance life quality of people who live on islands.

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Early identification and treatment of young people at high risk of recurrent mood disorders: a feasibility study

Disability as a social problem is one of the most pressing phenomena of modern Russian society. The article analyzes young disabled people as a specific social group and the problems they face in their lives. Young disabled people are quite an active social group, they participate in youth activities, reveal their talents. But because of the barriers in the environment, they cannot fully realize themselves. A study has been carried out showing the problems of young people with disabilities that need to be addressed immediately. Problems such as access to health services and medicines, employment problems, lack of equipment and lack of barrier-free environment, education and information accessibility have been identified. Particular attention is paid to the issue of accessibility as one of the factors preventing young people with disabilities from interacting actively with the environment. The longitudinal nature of the study allowed us to analyze what has changed in solving the problems of this social group. The results of the study showed that in St. Petersburg and other cities, much more attention to this category of people began to be paid, but often problem-solving is still point-by-point rather than complex.

To systematically compare, via ranking and best worst tasks, the relative importance of key dimensions of quality of life for younger and older people. A web-based survey was developed for administration to two Australia-wide community-based samples comprising younger people aged 18-64years and older people aged 65years and above. Respondents were asked to rank 12 quality of life dimensions. Respondents also completed a successive best worst task using the same 12 quality of life dimensions. The relative importance of the quality of life dimensions differed for younger and older person samples. For older people, the ability to be independent and to have control over their daily lives were particularly important for their overall quality of life whereas for younger people, mental health was considered most important. Many interventions accessed by older people in geriatric medicine and aged care sectors have a broader impact upon quality of life beyond health status. The findings from this study indicate that a focus on broader aspects of quality of life may also be consistent with the preferences of older people themselves as to what constitutes quality of life from their perspective.

Several necessary restrictions and measures were implemented across the Nordic region to protect the population during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many children and young people have suffered because of these restrictions. In most Nordic countries, schools and cultural and recreational activities have been entirely or partially closed for long periods, and many services related to healthcare and welfare have become less accessible. These activities and services are important for children and young people’s quality of life. In some areas, however, the restrictions may have also made everyday life simpler for some. The experiences of the first few lockdowns seem to differ from those that came later. There are differences between children and youth based on their age, gender, ethnicity, and their socioeconomic status. This report explores the situation of children and young people during the pandemic and their place within different Nordic countries’ governmental strategies, both at the central and regional levels. The purpose is to gain new comprehensive knowledge on what strategies and measures the Nordic countries implemented during the pandemic to ensure children and young people’s participation and influence in school and leisure time, consistent with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 12). Another report will follow by the same research team on the current research being conducted concerning the participation in education and leisure of children and young people during the COVID-19 pandemic (Helfer et al., forthcoming 2023). Both reports focus on school-aged children and young people up to 25 years of age. The primary research question was: What measures and strategies for ensuring the participation and influence of children and young people have been used in the different Nordic countries during the recent pandemic? Several interviews were conducted to answer the research question, supported by collecting material, including official statements, online. The aim was to investigate the decision-making process during the pandemic to see whether children and young people were consulted and involved when the authorities implemented strategies and measures in connection with the pandemic. Particular attention was paid to whether any assessment of children’s rights had been carried out by the authorities and at what stage. Close consideration was also given to whether institutions representing children and young people’s interests and rights in school and leisure were consulted and whether children and young people were directly involved in these discussions. The research timeframe was from the start of the pandemic in March 2020 until late spring 2022. This report explores the relevant national authorities’ measures and strategies concerning education and leisure during the COVID-19 pandemic in Nordic countries, including Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Iceland. In almost all countries, children’s voices were ignored to some degree or another in decision-making processes. In many cases, children and youth were consulted, but only after decisions were made. To some extent, the institutions working for and with children and youth were unprepared for the crisis. The lessons learned for ensuring that the best interests of the child are highlighted at the end of the report, together with other issues arising from the research questions. Clearly documenting the challenges encountered and other hindrances can help to identify and address these problems more effectively in the future. The Finnish Youth Research Society and VIVE, the Danish centre for Social Science Research compiled these reports. This report was commissioned by The Nordic Welfare Centre and financed by The Nordic Committee on Children and Young People (NORDBUK), and The Nordic Council of Ministers. The report is part of a four-year project that aims to increase knowledge and cooperation in the Nordic region concerning Children and Young People’s Opportunities for Participation and Development During the COVID-19 Pandemic. The project falls under the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Action Plan for 2021–2024. The goal is for the Nordic region to become the world’s most sustainable and integrated region. A central objective of this goal is to ensure equal opportunities for the development and participation of all children and youth in the region.

Job insecurity and precariousness lead Young Italian people to stop in their paths of life and life plan. The effect is to lead them in a spiral of marginality and demotivation typical of NEETs (young people who do not work, do not study and are not in a period training), with a serious impairment of the quality of life. The aim of this work is to show the impact of the occupational condition on the well-being of young people, both from a static and dynamic point of view, by using the database of the “Rapporto Giovani” longitudinal survey, a representative sample of Young Italian people. The entrance and the exit from the NEET condition have a significant impact on well-being and quality of life of Young Italian People. The Life Satisfaction acts not only as an effect of the change of occupational status, but also as a predictor. Finally, a new project, LikeYouth, is presented. It aims at improving the current understanding of the conditions in which young Italians find themselves during the acquisition of autonomy and in the active job search via Social Media Data, by using a new Facebook application, LikeYouth, that gathers information regarding Facebook profiles and Likes on Facebook Pages of each user.

To review the literature on inflammatory bowel disease in older and younger people and to identify whether they included a nursing or psychosocial perspective, or were informed by theories of ageing. Inflammatory bowel disease, manifested as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, affects younger and older people and is associated with a range of psychosocial factors. Nurses have an important role to play in caring for people with inflammatory bowel disease. A systematic review of literature related to inflammatory bowel disease and older people was carried out using the MEDLINE, CINAHL EMBASE and Cochrane databases between 1990-2006. Generally speaking, the clinical features of inflammatory bowel disease are similar in younger and older people, as are indications for surgery, survival and the usual wide spectrum of severity of disease. Corticosteroid treatment carries additional risk for older people. The studies used both retrospective and prospective designs, with the former using patient records, and the latter using follow-up of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Sample sizes were adequate for statistical analyses but there was no reference to reliability or validity of data collection methods. None of the studies considered psychosocial aspects, or the role of nurses in caring for people with inflammatory bowel disease. A specific gerontological perspective was lacking from the papers reviewed. While the clinical features of inflammatory bowel disease are similar in younger and older people, with the bimodal distribution of age of onset of inflammatory bowel disease, the possibility exists that quality of life and adjustment in older people depend on age of onset. This has not been investigated. Future lines of enquiry taking psychosocial aspects of inflammatory bowel disease into account in older people are explored. Nurses play an increasingly important role in the assessment and management of inflammatory bowel disease patients. Little is known about factors which could predict poorer psychosocial health and the impact non-intestinal manifestations may have on this in older people with inflammatory bowel disease.

AimsDysfunctional breathing (DB) has significant impacts on the quality of life, emotional well-being and functioning of children and young people, with the most common symptoms reported being shortness of breath...

While it has been suggested that there are no differences in the occurrence of risk-taking behaviours in young people with chronic conditions compared with healthy peers, young people with chronic conditions often face the dilemma of balancing twice the amount of risk to that of other young people, owing to their condition and treatment. For example, young people with juvenile idiopathic arthritis taking methotrexate face the risks of alcohol consumption plus the increased risk of toxicity from consuming alcohol while taking methotrexate. However, such issues are often ignored or overlooked (1).Research has suggested that a lack of experience with, and not worrying about serious health consequences may desensitise young people with chronic conditions to potential health risks (2). It is also recognised that young people”s perceived focus of health and wellbeing can often be on short-term goals; which is often paradoxical to the focus of families and healthcare professionals thinking about longer-term outcomes and prognosis. It has been demonstrated that young people with chronic conditions value interventions that enable them to live a “normal” life – extending beyond the clinical management of their condition (3). The emotional, social, and vocational consequences of condition management can be profound (4). When this is coupled with the challenges of accessing accurate, trusted and individualised information and support, it can often leave young people and their families feeling as though they are looking for a ‘needle in a haystack”. Finding the best evidence requires knowledge of the best quality and most appropriate sources, as well as the ability to use and navigate such resources appropriately (5). In an era where health information is easier and faster to find than ever before, it is often a challenge for young people to be able to filter the ‘good” from the ‘not so good”. There are significant amounts of unreliable and irrelevant content on the internet, which ultimately places the responsibility for interpretation of information and advice onto young people and their families. Therefore, age- and developmentally- appropriate opportunities to discuss health, wellbeing and the effects of treatment need to be provided early and regularly, across the lifecourse, in multiple formats to suit individual needs and circumstances. Attempts have already been made to make health information more accessible, for example, with the introduction of the Accessible Information Standard within the National Health Service (6). However, this is not necessarily enough to engage and support young people with chronic conditions in making sense of evidence-based healthcare. Information needs to be taken, in the right formats, to where young people are interacting, such as on certain social media platforms. This needs to be multifaceted, using peer- and community-driven approaches to enhance engagement. Furthermore, periodic consideration of the long-term risks and benefits of health and wellbeing interventions needs to happen across the lifecourse, both as a prompt for young people to air their concerns, but to also check their understanding. Only through understanding young people”s values, preferences, and concerns can a sustainable balance between condition control, treatment burden and quality of life be achieved.

IntroductionChronic pain is a common health problem that can have a significant impact on children and young people's daily life. Although research on pediatric chronic pain has been a priority globally, little is known about young people's experience of chronic pain in Saudi Arabia. Thus, this article reports on young people's experience of chronic pain and the impact on their lives in Saudi Arabia which forms part of a larger study.MethodsMultiple case study design following Yin's (2018) approach was used. Purposeful and theoretical sampling were used to recruit young people aged 12 to 18 who had experienced chronic pain for at least three months, their parents, and their school personnel. The young people and their parents were recruited from a tertiary hospital located on the western side of Saudi Arabia while school personnel were recruited from the schools that young people attended. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured face-to-face (n = 15) and telephone interviews (n = 25) from 40 participants (10 young people, 10 parents, and 20 school personnel). Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and translated from Arabic to English. Data were analyzed following two phases: (1) constant comparative analysis; and (2) cross-case analysis based on the work of Charmaz (2014) and Yin (2018) respectively.FindingsYoung people's experiences of chronic pain were categorized into three themes: (1) experiencing chronic pain; (2) impact of pain on quality of life; and (3) everyday strategies to manage chronic pain. All young people reported that their pain was caused by a chronic condition, where the most prevalent pains were musculoskeletal/joint pain, abdominal pain, and headache/migraine. Most young people had encountered challenges with misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis as to the cause of their chronic pain. They described how their chronic pain interfered with their physical, psychological, and social functioning. They primarily managed their pain with medications and through self-care techniques. The findings also indicated that young people's generally positive attitude to their pain reflected their beliefs in Allah's power and the belief that such suffering should be borne according to their Islamic culture.ConclusionChronic pain is a significant health phenomenon that tends to restrict the participation of young people in everyday life. However young people used a range of strategies to normalize the pain so that they could continue with their everyday activities like their peers.

Dreaming Diversity: Second Generation Australians and the Reimagining of Multicultural Australia

A number of psychological perspectives have been offered to account for social, emotional, behavioural difficulties (SEBD) and the legislation and sociocultural context continues to depict a rather concerning trajectory for this group of young people. It appears that the views of children and young people with SEBD are discussed at length, but researched relatively little. Research that has sought their views has been predominantly retrospective in focus, with very little research encouraging them to look towards the future. In the small body of research that has asked young people with SEBD about the future, the psychological concept of ‘possible selves’ has been applied. The findings suggest that young people with SEBD lack agency, and are more pessimistic about their futures compared with their mainstream peers. The current research drew on positive psychology in order to extend the literature and offer a more useful and optimistic way of conceptualising SEBD. Positive psychology places emphasis on: the future, strengths, resources and potential, and suggests that negative experiences can build positive qualities. It is therefore in direct opposition to a pre-occupation with risk. This research also draws on a social constructivist epistemology, placing the voice of the young person with SEBD at its centre. It seeks to better understand their experiences and accepts that meanings are varied and multiple. This research employed a narrative methodology in an attempt to impose less structure, in order to seek the stories young people with SEBD tell about themselves in the future. Within the qualitative design, unstructured interviews were used in order to maximise the potential for capturing individual meaning. The Quality of Life (QoL) literature was drawn on to facilitate the young people’s narratives, and the life path tool was used to structure their thinking. Eight young people were interviewed, across the school and home contexts. Narrative Oriented Inquiry (NOI) was used to analyse the narratives; a sjuzet-fabula analysis was carried out to reconstruct the young people’s stories, followed by a categorical-content analysis to explore themes relevant to the current research. Finally, the tone of the young people’s narratives were analysed to explore how they presented themes of potential and growth in their stories. The findings indicate that when asked the right questions, young people with SEBD can identify a range of strengths and resources in their lives. Many of the young people also identified qualities that they had built as a result of earlier negative experiences. Overall, the young people’s narratives are progressive in tone and reveal their hopes and aspirations for the future. A number of implications for future research and practice are identified but ultimately, by offering these young people the opportunity to tell their stories, this research permitted them a sense of agency over their lives and allowed them to focus on where they were going, rather than where they had been.

AimTo explore the role of primary care pharmacists in the management of chronic illnesses in young people aged 10–24 years.MethodsSystematic search of four databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library and CINAHL...

This study aimed to explore adolescents and young adults' experiences of symptoms related to their eczema in order to determine their psychosocial needs. A secondary qualitative analysis of two data sources collected through semi-structured interviews for two different projects, SKINS project and Eczema Care Online project. In total, there were 28 transcripts with adolescents and young adults with eczema having a mean age of 19.5years available to analyse. Interview data were collected from face-to-face interviews that were recorded and transcribed. Inductive thematic analysis explored data about symptoms and organized according to psychosocial needs. Adolescents and young adults with eczema experience both visible symptoms (such as flaky, dry, and inflamed skin) and invisible symptoms (such as itch, pain, exhaustion, and mental distress) that elicit different psychosocial needs. These psychosocial needs are to (i) be understood; (ii) be perceived as normal; and (iii) receive emotional support. Interviewees described a struggle between wanting their peers and family to understand but take their eczema seriously whilst not wanting to stand out and instead to be perceived as 'normal', which they would define as being perceived as other adolescents. This has implications on behaviours, such as seeking support, avoiding going out, hiding their skin, as well as emotional implications, such as social isolation and feeling anxious and low. Having a better understanding of young people's experiences and psychosocial needs will provide a framework on how best to support adolescents and young adults when managing symptoms related to eczema. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Eczema has a high impact on children and is considered a burden by children and adults with eczema. However, it is unclear what impact eczema has on adolescents and young adults. Adolescents and young adults with chronic conditions are known to be vulnerable to negative psychosocial outcomes but psychosocial needs and how to best support this age group with eczema are unknown What does this add? Three psychosocial needs were developed from evaluating the impact of visible and invisible symptoms of eczema: The need to feel understood (mostly reflective of invisible symptoms such as itch and pain and visible symptoms such as scratching). The need to be perceived as 'normal': visible symptoms such as flaky, inflamed skin make them stand out in comparison with their peers and a need emerged to blend in. The need for emotional support: adolescents and young adults searched for this from their health care providers, from shared experiences and from online resources. Adolescents and young adults with eczema appear to feel ambivalent about wishing the impact of the condition to be acknowledged whilst wishing the condition to be invisible to others. This ambivalence had further impact on feeling self-conscious, seeking support, and dealing with unsolicited advice.