Aid Groups Research Articles

Dietary Inflammatory Index and Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease and Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract Objectives Inflammation is associated with several chronic diseases, including chronic kidney disease (CKD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Because dietary choices may impact chronic inflammation, the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) was developed to assess the inflammatory potential of the diet. Using the DII, this study examined the association of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and diet in patients with CKD and T2D. Methods Baseline three-day food records were obtained from 241 participants in a lifestyle intervention study, and analyzed using Nutrition Data System for Research (2014). DII scores were calculated, with higher scores suggesting a more pro-inflammatory diet. Participants were dichotomized into an anti-inflammatory diet (AID; DII < 0; n = 118) or pro-inflammatory diet (PID; DII ≥ 0; n = 123) group, based on DII score. CVD risk factors included estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), C-reactive protein (CRP), systolic blood pressure (BP), diastolic BP, pulse wave velocity, fasting lipids (total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides), and hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C). Independent two sample t-tests assessed differences in CVD risk factors between groups. Results Participants were 50% male, 88% non-Hispanic, 66% white, and 65 ± 9SD years of age with a mean body mass index of 33.7 ± 5.1SD kg/m2. Approximately 51% of the participants followed a diet that would be considered pro-inflammatory. Participants in the AID group had a higher eGFR (AID: 75 ± 21SD mL/min/1.73m2, PID: 68 ± 20SD mL/min/1.73m2; p = 0.017) compared to the PID group. No significant differences were found between groups for the other CVD risk factors (CRP, systolic BP, diastolic BP, pulse wave velocity, fasting lipids [total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides], and HbA1C). Conclusions Participants reporting an AID had a higher eGFR than those reporting a PID. Contrary to expectations, other CVD risk factors did not differ between groups. Additional research should examine the role of an AID, emphasizing whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fatty fish, nuts, and legumes, for disease management in patients with CKD and T2D. Funding Sources Supported by NIH RO1 DK100492.

Covid-19 and mutual aid: Prefigurative approaches to caring?

With over 2,000 support groups listed in Britain at the time of writing at the beginning of 2021, the growth of mutual aid has been among the more positive outcomes of the Covid-19 pandemic. So much for the neoliberal view of humans as rational individuals focused on the pursuit of their own self-interests, whatever the needs of others. For Marxists, though, the recent growth of mutual aid groups needs to be set within the framework of critical understandings about civil society, the respective roles of civil society, the market and the state, and the potential for building alternatives within capitalist societies. The Covid-19 pandemic has been highlighting the failures of market-led approaches to meeting people’s needs, demonstrating the need for more rather than less public provision, including the need for a national care service. Meanwhile, the voluntary and community sectors have been struggling to fill the gaps between shrinking public services on the one hand and growing social needs on the other. This has been the context for the emergence of the mutual aid groups that are the focus of the final section of this article, exploring their potential contributions, promoting values of mutuality, cooperation and care within these contemporary constraints. The article concludes by reflecting on the implications of such prefigurative community-based initiatives more generally, their contributions as well as their inherent limitations as component parts of social justice movements.

Housing is not a crime: Madrid’s post-crisis squatters’ movement tell our story through activist research

Since the financial crisis the rate of squatting in Madrid has increased eightfold, a structural response to waves of evictions affecting upwards of 75 000 households in the region and the proliferation of vacant housing. But – predictably – squatters have been criminalised and persecuted by local and national authorities, the courts, the media and the banks who own the vast majority of their homes. Since 2015, Laura Barrio and Tom Youngman have co-ordinated a movement research project by and for the Coordinadora de Vivienda de Madrid, the assembly bringing together Madrid’s thirty or so neighbourhood housing mutual aid groups. Centred around a book published in 2017 and follow up interviews carried out in 2019, the project tells the story of Madrid’s post-crisis squatting in the first person plural as another tool in the squatters’ struggle for their right to housing. We tell the story through four lenses: speculation, poverty, criminalisation and legalisation. In this article we share the conclusions of our five year research project in English for the first time, unravelling the challenges of realising a research project as part of a social movement. We reflect on the complex emotions of sharing the project at academic conferences in Lisbon, London, Brighton and Stockholm, often finding ourselves feeling outsiders as activists doing research rather than researchers studying movements.

English

BACKGROUND Oral hygiene maintenance is a crucial factor for successful orthodontic therapy. Oral hygiene compliance is a must to maintain better oral hygiene and plaque control in orthodontic patients. To get good oral hygiene compliance the information has to reach the patients in a proper way. The purpose of this study was to determine whether audio - visual aids help in improving oral hygiene status in orthodontic patients. METHODS A prospective randomized control trial study was done on 30 subjects, who underwent fixed orthodontic appliances selected from the out-patient department of Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopaedics, Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals, (SIMATs), Chennai. They were divided randomly into two groups based on a computer - generated randomization chart: group 1 – experimental group (audio - visual aids group), group 2 – control group (verbal instruction) respectively. Group 1 subjects received oral hygiene instruction through videotape instructions and group 2 received verbal and written instructions. RESULTS The results were assessed with respect to plaque index scores of both groups. A parametric intragroup comparison (paired ‘t’ test) was done to compare the before and after plaque score of each group and student independent sample ‘t’ test to compare both groups. The plaque score for the verbal group was found to be 0.666 + / - 0.417 and for the audio - visual group it was 1.211 + / - 0.261. A statistically significant P - value (< 0.05) was found between the groups. CONCLUSIONS Patients who were given instructions through audio - visual aids had better improvement in plaque scores than patients who were given instructions verbally. KEY WORDS Audio - Visual Aids, Dental Plaque Index, Oral Hygiene, Oral Hygiene Index, Orthodontic Appliance

Turning boxes into supportive circles: Enhancing online group work teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic

ABSTRACT This paper reflects the collective experiences of fourteen internationally based social group work educators who met weekly and virtually for seven months during the transition to online teaching necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic. The meetings functioned as a mutual aid support group sponsored by the International Association of Social Work with Groups (IASWG). The paper discusses the group’s perceptions of the essential components of effective online group work education. It begins with a review of the history of online social work education. It then outlines the key components instrumental in the planning and developing of engaged online group work classes. Topics include pre-course preparation, norm setting, and building community in the online classroom. Considerations related to the video conferencing platforms, course formats, activities, managing online fatigue, screen sharing, handling chat features, cameras, and break out rooms are interspersed throughout. The paper concludes with a discussion of the use of mutual aid groups as online teaching tools and highlights the online group work teaching experiences of two members in New Zealand and Namibia. Despite initial hesitancy to teach group work virtually, the authors recognize that this can be done effectively but requires additional planning and, ideally, peer and institutional support.

The impact of mutual aid on mental health and perceived isolation among the single elderly: An examination of economic status.

This study aimed to identify patterns in mutual aid relationships between older people living alone and their relatives and neighbors, and to examine the impact of mutual aid relationship patterns on mental health and perceived isolation through the mediating effect of subjective economic status. We conducted a survey with 5000 randomly selected adults aged 65 years or older, from the five official senior care service areas of city A in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. Valid responses were received from 3941 participants (78.8%), of whom 436 participants from single-person households constituted the study sample. Latent class analysis revealed four types of mutual aid: family; family and intra-generational neighbors; no mutual aid; and family and multi-generational neighbors. Regression analysis showed that the interaction effect between family and neighbors' mutual aid and subjective economic status was a significant predictor of depressive symptoms. Simple slope analysis clarified that subjective economic status had a negative effect on depressive symptoms for the non-family/neighbors group, but not for the family/neighbors group. Furthermore, the interaction term between no mutual aid and subjective economic status was negatively associated with the fear of future isolation. Finally, the significantly negative effect observed was greater for the no mutual aid group than for the non-no mutual aid group. Mutual aid relationships are effective in improving the mental health and decreasing the fear of future isolation of older adults living alone who experience low economic status. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 555-560.

Planetary Confinement: Bio-Politics and Mutual Aid.

Michel Foucault’s modes of power (sovereign, disciplinary and bio-politics) have dominated both our understanding of power and norm. It is pretty impossible to think of the organisation of life outside his thinking. Here I argue that the idea and practice of mutual aid, articulated by Peter Kropotkin in his 1902 book Mutual Aid (2009) stirs us towards a different understanding of the management of life, bereft of hierarchies and bestowed with co-operation and care. Moreover, as I argue, the existence of mutual aid groups and practices challenges the very idea of the norm. This has become even more apparent during the Covid19 pandemic with the surfacing of mutual aid groups globally. It is therefore rather misleading to understand our present as generator of the ‘new normal’; such claims are mere rhetorical devices aiming at keeping us in our place.

The Advancing Understanding of Transportation Options (AUTO) study: design and methods of a multi-center study of decision aid for older drivers

BackgroundDecision-making about when to stop driving for older adults involves assessment of driving risk, availability of support or resources, and strong emotions about loss of independence. Although the risk of being involved in a fatal crash increases with age, driving cessation can negatively impact an older adult’s health and well-being. Decision aids can enhance the decision-making process by increasing knowledge of the risks and benefits of driving cessation and improve decision quality. The impact of decision aids regarding driving cessation for older adults is unknown.MethodsThe Advancing Understanding of Transportation Options (AUTO) study is a multi-site, two-armed randomized controlled trial that will test the impact of a decision aid on older adults’ decisions about changes in driving behaviors and cessation. AUTO will enroll 300 drivers age ≥ 70 years with a study partner (identified by each driver); the dyads will be randomized into two groups (n = 150/group). The decision aid group will view the web-based decision aid created by Healthwise at baseline and the control group will review information about driving that does not include evidence-based elements on risks and benefits and values clarification about driving decisions. The AUTO trial will compare the effect of the decision aid, versus control, on a) immediate decision quality (measured by the Decisional Conflict Scale; primary outcome); b) longitudinal psychosocial outcomes at 12 and 24 months (secondary outcomes); and c) longitudinal driving behaviors (including reduction or cessation) at 12 and 24 months (secondary outcomes). Planned stratified analyses will examine the effects in subgroups defined by cognitive function, decisional capacity, and readiness to stop driving.DiscussionThe AUTO study is the first large-scale randomized trial of a driving decision aid for older adults. Results from this study will directly inform clinical practice about how best to support older adults in decision-making about driving.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04141891. Registered on October 28, 2019. Located at https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04141891

The marvellous life of a Haitian refugee: James Noël’s Belle merveille

This article examines the marvellous realism of two Haitian writers, past and present. Building on earlier schools of literary and socio-ethnographic thought, including Haitian indigenism, French surrealism and the Cuban writer Alejo Carpentier’s ‘marvellous real’, Jacques Stephen Alexis theorized marvellous realism at the first Congress of Black Writers and Artists in 1956. Some 60 years later, James Noël published Belle merveille, a novel that depicts a refugee who survives the earthquake of 2010 and embarks on a journey to understand his place among international aid groups that proliferate in the aftermath. The article suggests that Noël’s novel is both a tribute to and a creative rethinking of Alexis’s ideological commitment to the intersection of literary and social realism. It argues that by filtering events through the imaginary of the refugee, Noël interrogates the very categories of the marvellous and the real undergirding Alexis’s aesthetic and political project. After providing theoretical and historical context for Noël’s work, the article carries out close readings of Belle merveille to illuminate the ways in which its redeployment of marvellous realism delivers a critique of humanitarian aid.

Mathematical analysis of a delayed HIV/AIDS model with treatment and vertical transmission

None can underestimate the importance of mathematical modelling for their role in clarifying dynamics of epidemic diseases. They can project the progress of the disease and demonstrate the result of the epidemic to public health in order to take precautions. HIV attracts global attention due to rising death rates and economic burdens and many other consequences that it leaves behind. Up to date, there is no medicine and vaccine of HIV/AIDS but still many researches are conducted in order to see how to mitigate this epidemic and reduce the death rate or increase the life expectancy of those who are infected. A delayed HIV/AIDS treatment and vertical transmission model has been investigated. The model took into account both infected people from the symptomatics group and asymptomatic group to join AIDS group. We considered that a child can be infected from the mother to an embryo, fetus or childbirth. Those who are infected, it will take them some time to get mature and spread the disease. By using mathematical model, reproduction number, positivity, boundedness, and stability analysis were determined. The results showed that the model is much productive if time delay is considered.

Time Effects of Supportive Interaction and Facilitator Input Variety on Treatment Adherence of Young People with Chronic Health Conditions: A Dynamic Mechanism in Mutual Aid Groups.

This study aims to examine the mechanism of how supportive interaction and facilitator input variety in mutual aid groups impact treatment adherence of young people with chronic health conditions, with consideration of time effects, which have been rarely studied in the existing literature. A stratified random sample of 391 individuals aged 12–45 years with chronic health conditions were recruited from mutual aid groups in Hong Kong and completed both the baseline and 12-month follow-up surveys. The results of the structural equation modeling indicated that supportive interaction and facilitator input variety positively predicted treatment adherence in a delayed condition, whereas members’ treatment adherence in the baseline survey had reversed effects on members’ supportive interaction in the follow-up survey. The findings of this study shed light on the dynamic mechanism of the mutual aid groups and provide important implications to promote better rehabilitation outcomes of young people with chronic health conditions.

Community Responses to the Coronavirus Pandemic: How Mutual Aid Can Help

The beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic caused panic over job losses, food and toiletry shortages, and social isolation, over and above the health impacts of the virus. People wanted to help on a mass scale and there was a huge community response. The pandemic brought energy into neighbourhoods and communities, leading to the rapid formation of mutual aid groups in many different forms all over the country. At the same time, existing community groups and many service enterprises – particularly food outlets – redirected their activities to helping the NHS, families that were struggling, and vulnerable people. Since March 2020, LSE Housing has been researching a sample of these mutual aid groups. In this paper, findings will be presented on the makeup of volunteer groups, the contributions of volunteers, the people they helped, and how; also, what potential longer-term benefits there may be. Exploring social problems that the groups address shows that more than mutual aid is needed to remedy the deep-set inequalities that the pandemic has highlighted. The need for community and a sense of belonging is a message that comes out most strongly from this research, reinforced by financial need and social isolation. Mutual aid can bind communities and neighbourhoods together and create a sense of belonging to a degree, but there is also a need for stronger and wider social infrastructure, of which the NHS is maybe the most shining example. Schools have a big role to play as part of this social infrastructure, but more housing, training, and jobs in new sustainable fields are needed in order to under-pin basic social infrastructure. Mutual aid on its own is not enough.

“People like You and Me”: The Korean War, Humanitarian Aid, and Creating Compassion

AbstractDuring the 1950s a number of private and voluntary aid organizations (PVOs) in the United States mobilized to address the humanitarian crisis caused by the Korean War. However, the activities and roles PVOs played in both providing humanitarian relief in South Korea and shaping American perceptions of the country are poorly understood. This article examines the strategies PVOs employed in their campaigns to convince Americans to contribute aid. The existence of need was a necessary but not sufficient condition. As scholars of humanitarian aid have argued, potential donors might view images of suffering with pity and sympathy but then quickly turn away. Donors must feel a sense of solidarity to move beyond sympathy and act in compassion. This work demonstrates that PVOs tried to create narratives of commonality between Americans and South Koreans. However, a reliance on images of poverty—which were critical to raise money—conflicted with the message that South Koreans were, like Americans, independent and hardworking people. The aid groups’ strategic attempts to mitigate this dissonance by focusing on the supposedly weak (elderly, women, children, and amputees) had the unintended consequence of casting South Korea as an emasculated nation needing to be “saved.”

A personal perspective on the role and efficacy of participation in Alcoholics Anonymous: an interview with a longtime member of AA

In the United States, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is the best known and the longest running mutual aid group for persons who want to address their problems with drinking. Begun in 1935, it is a major...

Politics against individualism?

Politics against individualism?

Social workers helping each other during the COVID-19 pandemic: Online mutual support groups

Social workers not only help service users, they also help each other, and they know the group as a space through which opportunities to give and receive help multiply. In Italy, the initiative ‘Social Workers Helping Each Other’ was launched to help practitioners stay resilient and mutually supportive during the COVID-19 pandemic. In these unprecedented and turbulent times, social workers have been called on to face new challenges and new concerns for service users and for themselves. The initiative consisted of online mutual support groups for social workers conducted through a virtual platform. Participants were 45 social workers divided into three groups on the basis of the social workers’ area of intervention. The author facilitated the groups, encouraging the development of reciprocal support dynamics typical of self-help and mutual aid groups. Group sessions were very rich in content, and the discussion focused on several topics following the participants’ needs. The content analysis revealed that the mutual support conversations among social workers focused on three main categories: practical and organizational; methodological and ethical; and personal and emotional. The groups offered supervision and mutual support based on experiential learning processes. The article presents the rationale, methods and outcomes of the experience. This initiative could inspire the development of online mutual support groups for social workers.

Victims or Burdens?: Angolan Refugees and Humanitarian Aid Organizations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1961-1963

The onset of the Angolan war of independence in 1961 set off a humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo. By the summer of 1962, the number of Angolans refugees rose to nearly 150,000. The UN High Commission for Refugees [Caritas], the League of Red Cross Societies [LRCS], the Catholic charity Caritas, and Protestant church aid groups all provided aid to Angolans. However, the UNHCR and LRCS quickly viewed the Angolans as overly dependent on humanitarian assistance. Echoing colonial anxieties about unsettled African populations, secular and Catholic organizations tried to resettle refugees. UNHCR and LCRS staff blamed Angolan nationalist leaders for coercing refugees to stay in exile rather than return to their homeland, ignoring how refugees themselves described how Portuguese troops had indiscriminately tortured and murdered civilians. Protestant aid groups actively collaborated with the FNLA Angolan rebel movement, to the displeasure of other aid organizations who contended the Protestants violated the humanitarian ideal of neutrality. This case indicates tensions between humanitarian organizations that considered refugees as a burden in need of continued oversight with others who considered the Angolans as victims of colonialism deserving of help.

Encontrando mi enfermedad. Producción de las relaciones sociales en el grupo de autoayuda Nuevo Atardecer de cuarto y quinto paso

El objetivo de este artículo es comprender el proceso de producción del mundo social que construyen las y los participantes del grupo Nuevo Atardecer de San Cristóbal de Las Casas, Chiapas. A partir de la antropología del poder, se construyó una radiografía etnográfica para conocer más a fondo cómo operan este tipo de grupos de ayuda mutua y cómo la historia muestra una dinámica de rupturas en la formación de los mismos. Se pretende mostrar los múltiples conflictos, tensiones y negociaciones que se desarrollan al interior de este, para dar a conocer un espacio social que no es sistemático ni cuenta tampoco con una visión o unos intereses comunes. Además, se propone visibilizar diversos fenómenos que se construyen durante el proceso de producción, por ejemplo, la invención de una enfermedad.

Visual teaching aids improve patient understanding and reduce anxiety prior to a colectomy

BackgroundInformed consent forms consist of large blocks of written information that may be difficult for patients to understand. Visual teaching aids are promising, however, they have not been studied as a pre-operative educational tool for common surgical procedures. We pilot tested the use of a visual teaching aid during the informed consent process for a colectomy. MethodsA randomized pilot study was performed. Participants were randomized into the visual teaching aid group or standard care. Following the consent process, participants were questioned about potential surgical complications, anxiety, satisfaction, and understanding. Results30 participants were enrolled. Potential complication recall and patient-reported understanding were improved in the visual group (p = 0.01, p = 0.03). Anxiety levels were reduced in the visual group (p = 0.02). No statistically significant data were found for satisfaction (p = 0.75). ConclusionsUtilizing a visual teaching aid during the consent process for colectomy increases patient recall of risks, reduces anxiety, and improves understanding.

Birth choices after caesarean in Taiwan: A mixed methods pilot study of a decision aid for shared decision making

BackgroundTaiwan has a high national caesarean rate coupled with a low vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) rate. Studies suggest that women do not receive sufficient information about birth choices after caesarean in Taiwan and shared decision making (SDM) is not an expectation. This pilot study aimed to test the feasibility of using a birth choices decision aid to improve women's opportunity for engagement in SDM about birth after cesarean. MethodsA two-phase sequential mixed methods pilot study was conducted in a regional hospital in northern Taiwan. Phase I involved a randomized pre-test and post-test experimental design. Participants with one previous caesarean section (CS) were recruited at 14-24 weeks. A total of 65 women completed a baseline survey and were randomly allocated to either the intervention (birth choice decision aid booklet) or usual care (general maternal health booklet) group. A follow up survey at 37-38 weeks measured change in decisional conflict, knowledge, and birth mode preference. Birth outcomes and satisfaction were assessed one month after birth. Phase II consisted of postnatal interviews with women at one month after birth, to explore women's decision making experiences, using a constant comparative analytic technique and thematic analysis. ResultsDecisional conflict was relatively low at baseline for all women. Although there were reductions in decisional conflict at follow up, differences between groups were not statistically significant. Women's early preferences regarding mode of birth influenced their knowledge-seeking behaviors and expectations or intention for engaging in SDM during pregnancy. Improvements in knowledge for the decision aid group were larger than for the usual care group, although differences between groups were not statistically significant. Four themes related to key factors in decision making were clarity, safety and risk, consistency, and support. ConclusionA cultural shift is needed to align expectations and relationships towards SDM for birth in Taiwan. Simulation-based strategies and tailored communication skills should be explored to enhance skills in decision coaching for providers. Use of interactive multimedia technology may provide opportunities to increase engagement with tools and support women during decision consultations. Midwife-led continuity of care models may also be beneficial in empowering women to actively share decisions and achieve the birth that is best for them.