Desire For Social Support Research Articles

Abstract B051: A qualitative exploration of prostate cancer treatment and survivorship advice from employed prostate cancer survivors

Abstract Introduction: Prostate cancer is the most common and second most deadly non-skin cancer among American men. Prostate cancer outcomes are especially detrimental for African-American men. While prostate cancer treatment can prolong life, it can also produce debilitating results that can impact men’s ability to perform some jobs/work-related tasks, cause decisional regret, and affect their overall quality of life. Objective: To improve prostate cancer treatment decision-making and survivorship experiences of actively employed prostate cancer survivors, we asked survivors with jobs to provide advice for men facing prostate cancer treatment and their families/friends, employers/co-workers, and healthcare providers. Methods: African-American and White prostate cancer survivors were recruited primarily from support groups and two southeastern cancer centers: Inclusion criteria included having (1) had a prostatectomy or radiation therapy less than 36 months ago, (2) worked for pay within one month prior to treatment, and (3) expected at time of treatment initiation to be working 6 months later. Survivors were engaged in 60-to-90-minute in-depth interviews. Interview transcripts were analyzed using a content analysis approach to ascertain prominent themes within and between races. Results: Forty-five prostate cancer survivors (44% black and 55% white) had a mean age of 61. Over half of men from either racial group had a bachelor’s degree. Approximately 63% and 47% from both racial groups had undergone a prostatectomy or radiation therapy, respectively. Prominent themes related to advice for prostate cancer survivors included the importance of: conducting thorough research on treatment options and gaining awareness of the treatment side effects; identifying survivors or survivor support groups; and informing family, employers, and others about support needs. Advice for family and friends emphasized the significance of providing instrumental and emotional support to survivors. Employer and co-worker advice most often related to providing work-related accommodations/support (e.g., additional time or adapted work tasks) and avoiding stigmatizing treatment of the survivor. Most advice for healthcare providers focused on presenting survivors with honest, thorough, and plain-language communication about treatment options and side effects. No major differences existed in themes by race. Conclusion: Overarching needs of employed prostate cancer survivors commonly relate to the need for detailed information about their treatment process and their desire for social support from family/friends, employers/co-workers, and healthcare providers. The most vital concern for survivors is understanding how, and to what extent, side effects can affect them personally and professionally. Future research should determine what strategies might be effective for preparing these stakeholder groups to support employed prostate cancer survivors. Citation Format: Otis L. Owens, Joanne Sandberg, Andy Mayfield, Emily Dressler, Melyssa Foust. A qualitative exploration of prostate cancer treatment and survivorship advice from employed prostate cancer survivors [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 15th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2022 Sep 16-19; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr B051.

The Who, Why, Where, and How of Moving into Assisted Living: Older Adults’ Decision-Making Process for Relocation

The aim of this study is to understand older adult decision-making processes and feelings regarding moving into assisted living facilities. Residents of assisted living facilities in Southern California (n = 46) were interviewed about why they moved, who was involved in the process, what factors they considered, and how they feel about their decision. Participants reported that changes in health, desire for social support, and anticipation for future needs were factors for moving. Most participants were involved in the decision, and focused on factors such as affordability, proximity to family, familiarity, amenities, and access to activities when choosing a facility. Overall, most participants shared positive or ambivalent feelings and very few participants shared negative feelings about their decision.

Sex, Gender, and Equity in Cardiovascular Medicine, Surgery, and Science in Canada: Challenges, Successes, and Opportunities for Change

BackgroundA previous review of sex, gender, and equity within cardiovascular (CV) medicine, surgery, and science in Canada has revealed parity during medical and graduate school training. The purpose of this study was to explore sex and gendered experiences within the Canadian CV landscape, and their impact on career training and progression. MethodsAn environmental scan was conducted of the Canadian CV landscape, which included an equity survey using Qualtrics software. ResultsThe environmental scan revealed that women remain underrepresented within CV training programs as trainees (12%–30%), program directors (33%), in leadership roles at the divisional level (21%), and in other professional or career-related activities (< 30%). Our analysis also showed improvements of career engagement at these levels of women at over time. The thematic analysis of the equity survey responses (n = 71 respondents; 83% female; 9.7% response rate among female Canadian Cardiovascular Society members) identified the following themes reported within the socio-ecological framework: desire to report inequities vs staying the course (individual level); desire for social support and mentorship and challenges of dual responsibilities (interpersonal level); concerns over exclusionary cliques and desire for respect and opportunity (organizational level); and increasing awareness and actions to overcome institutional barriers and accountability (societal level). ConclusionsAlthough women face challenges and remain underrepresented in CV medicine, surgery, and science, this study highlights potential opportunities for improving access of female medical, surgical, and research trainees and professionals to specialized cardiovascular training, career advancement, leadership, and research.

Masculinity, Mental Health, and Desire for Social Support Among Male Cancer and Infertility Patients.

By surveying men who are currently infertile (N = 251) and men who are potentially infertile (i.e., men with cancer; N = 195), the mental health consequences of reproductive masculinity, or the cultural assumption that men are virile and should be fathers, were investigated. There was no difference in depression levels between these two groups when controlling for demographic variables, suggesting that both groups of men have similar mental health needs. Since gendered notions of masculinity also suggest that men do not want to discuss their fertility health, their desire for online fertility-related social support was assessed. These findings suggest that most men do want to talk to others about fertility, which indicates that there is a need for more fertility-related social support. This research challenges some conceptions regarding masculinity, as men revealed an interest in accessing online social support related to fertility.

Barriers and Facilitators of Healthy Diet and Exercise Among Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Survivors: Implications for Behavioral Interventions.

This study uses qualitative methods to identify barriers to and facilitators of exercise and healthy eating among adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors (survivors currently aged 18-39 years and diagnosed with cancer anytime in their lives), as reported by survivors and their primary supporters. Survivors (M(age) = 27.6 years, SD = 6.6 years) had completed active cancer therapy. Survivors and supporters (i.e., nominated by survivors as someone who was a main source of support) attended separate focus group sessions (five survivor focus groups, five supporter focus groups) and were asked to complete a self-reported questionnaire assessing demographic and cancer history and engagement in exercise and healthy eating. In total, 25 survivors and 19 supporters participated. The three overarching themes identified were barriers to exercise and healthy eating (e.g., lack of resources, negative thoughts and feelings, negative social and environmental influences), facilitators of exercise and healthy eating (e.g., cognitive motivators, tools for health behavior implementation, social relationships), and intervention implications (e.g., informational needs, desire for social support). AYA cancer survivors and their supporters identified barriers to and facilitators of healthy lifestyle behaviors, which should be considered when designing interventions to improve the long-term health of survivors.

Using a Daily Diary Approach to Understand the Psychological Experiences of Making Weight

Making weight refers to the process of reducing body weight to compete in weight-categorized sports. The current study explored judo athletes’ psychological experiences of making weight. Six international standard judo athletes participated for the length of time they required to make weight. An unstructured diary was used to collect data daily, supported by a follow-up interview. Data were analyzed using a holistic content analysis. Emergent themes included initiating the making weight process, competing demands of dual roles, temptation, impacts of restricted nutrition, and the desire for social support. Athlete stories provided rich descriptions of their experiences, revealing the extent to which difficulties were concealed and the process of making weight was normalized. Their accounts highlight the challenges associated with social support but the value of emotional disclosure. Future research should explore the potential uses of diaries as a form of disclosure.

Maternal Stress and Birth

Aim: In this study we investigated, if there were any differences in stress management between mothers of preterm babies and mothers of term babies.Methods: In the first three days after delivery, mothers of preterm babies (born between 28 and 33 weeks of gestation) and mothers of term babies (born >37 weeks of gestation) were given the stress management questionnaire SVF 120 (Janke, Erdmann, Kallus und Boucsein, 1997) to assess their individual stress management strategies. This questionnaire is designed to recognise positive and negative strategies of stress management, to assess mothers' desire for social support, avoidance of stress and also aggressive behaviour in stressful situations.Results: So far we have recruited 23 mothers (age: 29.9±5.1 years) of preterm babies (gestational age: 32.6±2.8 days; birth weight: 1911±558g) and 23 mothers (age: 30.2±5.1 years) of term babies (gestational age: 40.1±0.9 days; birth weight: 3464±347g) to participate in the study. Mothers of preterm babies had significantly lower levels of aggressive behaviour and of negative stress management strategies (avoidance, social withdrawal, resignation, self pity and self blame) (p< 0.05) in stressful situations in comparison to mothers of term babies. There was no difference between the two groups in regards to positive strategies, desire for social support and avoidance behaviour.Conclusion: This is the first study to show that there is a difference in stress management between mothers of preterm and term babies. This is important information when dealing with and considering support for mothers of term and preterm babies.

ATTITUDE AND PREFERENCES OF NIGERIAN ANTENATAL WOMEN TO SOCIAL SUPPORT DURING LABOUR

SummaryThis was a hospital-based cross-sectional study of 224 randomly selected antenatal women receiving care at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. The study aimed to seek the attitude and preferences of respondents about social support during childbirth and also identify variables that may influence their decisions. Seventy-five per cent of respondents desired companionship in labour. Approximately 86% preferred their husband as companion while 7% and 5% wanted their mother and siblings as support person respectively. Reasons for their desire for social support were emotional (80.2%), spiritual (17.9%), errands (8.6%) and physical activity (6.8%). Socio-demographic variables found to be statistically significant on logistic regression analysis for the desire of a companion in labour were nulliparity (OR 3.57, 95% CI 1.49-8.52), professionals (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.22-7.94) and women of other ethnic groups besides Yoruba (OR 2.90, 95% CI 1.02-8.26), which is the predominant ethnic group in the study area. Only those with post-secondary education were found to want their husbands as doula (OR 2.96, 95% CI 1.08-8.11). More than half of the respondents wanted information about labour prior to their experience. It is important that Nigerian women are allowed the benefit of social support during childbirth, particularly as there is a lack of one-to-one nursing care and other critical services, including epidural analgesia in labour, at many of the health care facilities in Nigeria. Men could play a pivotal role in the process of introducing support in labour so as to improve the outcome for both the mother and her newborn.

Desired and Perceived Social Support from Family, Friends, and Health Professionals

Abstract In a panel study of 125 patients in Hong Kong suffering from nasopharyngeal carcinoma, the patients reported their desire for and satisfaction with the types of support they received throughout the course of their illness from family members, friends, and health professionals. The measures designed for the study proved to be highly reliable. The results of the study showed that the patients' overall desire for social support was not strong during the diagnostic phase of the illness, but it became moderately strong during the treatment and posttreatmenl phases. Among the three sources of support, the patients consistently sought support most often from health professionals, followed by family, then friends. The patients' satisfaction with four types of support-informational, emotional, instrumental, and affiliational support-from the three sources was moderately high in all three phases of the illness. Health professionals, particularly oncology social workers, should continue providing support to...