Meaningful Service Research Articles

The Impact of Service-Learning (SULAM) On Civic Attitudes and Skills of Uthm Students

Service-Learning Malaysia –University for Society (SULAM) is a teaching pedagogy that combines academic learning with meaningful community service. This study aims to identify the effect of the service-learning program (SULAM) on the attitudes and civic skills of UTHM students. The objectives include assessing students' attitudes and civic skills before and after participating in the program and analyzing the differences that exist. A quantitative survey design was employed, utilizing pre-test and post-test to measure attitudes and civic skills changes. In this study, students taking the Sociology of Education course from the Faculty of Technical and Vocational Education participated. The Civic Attitude and Skills Questionnaire (CASQ) was used as a measuring tool. The findings reveal that after participating in the SULAM program, students' attitudes and civic knowledge significantly improved. This study demonstrates that service learning (SULAM) effectively enhances students' attitudes and civic skills, contributing to the holistic development of students and providing empirical evidence to support the integration of theoretical learning with practical applications in higher education.

Service-Learning And Community Partnerships With High Societal Impact

ABSTRACT Service-Learning (SL) is a teaching method utilizing experiential learning and meaningful community service. Although SL is proven to be an effective high-impact teaching strategy, more research is needed to illustrate how SL marketing courses can provide high societal impact. Based on student reflection activities and in-depth interviews with 20 community partners, this paper offers a means for maximizing societal impact. The findings identify seven core components of SL pedagogy: commitment, customized offerings, clear and consistent communication, collaboration and transformation, community compassion, critical reflection, and continuous improvement. Building upon these “7 Cs of SL,” two additional Cs of service learning deliver high societal impact: (1) co-creation of value for all constituents and (2) cyclical partnerships. The findings are discussed with specific applications for marketing courses.

Building a programme theory of a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme: development process and methodological reflection

BackgroundPaediatric palliative and hospice care aims to improve the quality of life of children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions and their families. The number of these patients has risen significantly in recent years, resulting in an increased need for palliative care for this population. Although the need for paediatric palliative and hospice care is growing, meaningful outcome evaluation to demonstrate its effectiveness as a complex healthcare intervention is in its early stages. For complex interventions (programmes), theory-based evaluations have grown in prominence in recent years. They seek to understand how and why an intervention works by uncovering its underlying mechanisms by means of programme theory. To support both outcome evaluation in paediatric palliative care and a reflective practice of programme theorizing, we aimed to describe the construction of a programme theory for a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme in Austria and to offer a reflective account of its development process.MethodsWe drew on a combination of theory-based evaluation frameworks to construct a programme theory consisting of an action and a change component. Through multiple iterations, incorporating different stakeholders’ perspectives and drawing on different sources of knowledge and theory, we theorized how and why the programme likely achieves its intended outcomes.ResultsThe programme theory outlines the proposed chains of events, causal mechanisms and outcomes of a specialist paediatric palliative and hospice care programme for children and families in several areas corresponding to its main conceptual tenets. Through a range of activities and interventions, the programme triggers coping and adaptation mechanisms that ultimately contribute to family and child wellbeing in physical, psychological, social, and spiritual dimensions. Established trust and partnership between children/families and healthcare professionals as well as a person-centered and family-centered approach were identified as enabling factors.ConclusionsOur findings provide insights into how a specialized paediatric palliative and hospice care programme works to achieve its intended outcomes for children and families. This helps demonstrate its impact, contributing to meaningful outcome evaluation and service improvement.

Research on optimization design of intelligent customer service in e-commerce platform based on natural language processing and data mining

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning, intelligent customer service systems have become a crucial component of automated customer service and intelligent management. This study conducts an in-depth investigation into the current status of intelligent customer service systems, highlighting the challenges faced by intelligent systems. Of particular concern is the significant challenge in generating meaningful, long-lasting, and information-rich customer service responses, despite the tremendous progress of artificial intelligence in many fields. To address this issue, based on a literature review, this study selects leading natural language processing technology (NVIDIA NeMo) and data mining tools (RISELab Ray). By combining these cutting-edge technologies, we propose innovative improvements and solutions aimed at enhancing the quality and efficiency of intelligent customer service systems.

Incorporating equity into transit performance measures: A disaggregated bus route level approach

Marginalized communities usually experience inadequate public transport services in North America. Within these communities, buses play a vital role in everyday activity participation. Unfortunately, transport services that may advance equity by improving coverage and service for disadvantaged population groups and areas are often overlooked in transit planning since they usually underperform in ridership-based metrics.To address this problem, the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) introduced an equity service policy in 2019 to enhance bus services in vulnerable neighbourhoods known as Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs). This policy involves augmenting observed ridership counts for buses serving NIAs to improve or protect services for these communities. Although this proposed measure can improve bus services in NIAs, its current form might exclude other equity-deserving riders (EDRs) living outside NIAs, increasing their accessibility barriers.Our study uses quantitative and spatial analytical methods to better understand the equity impacts of this service policy change. We propose moving from the aggregate neighbourhood-based approach using NIAs to a more comprehensive and disaggregated person-based approach. First, we create an alternate method that identifies EDRs at the bus stop level using a fusion of census and travel survey data. We then explore the differences in augmented ridership levels created by the two approaches and evaluate whether the augmented ridership levels are likely to result in meaningful service changes using existing TTC service standards.We found that 2 out of 3 transit riders in Toronto are equity-deserving, with 72% residing outside NIAs. Our approach reveals increased ridership on routes with many EDRs, which receive minimal augmentation under the NIA-based method. Conversely, if all riders in NIAs are considered EDRs, our approach shows a 19% ridership overestimation equivalent to 35,245 users. Based on these results, we recommend creating a dedicated equity tool with an individual-centric focus, identifying areas with low transit service and high EDR percentages. This tool could then be integrated as an equity perspective into annual bus service planning.

Patient engagement in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and cell therapy: a survey by the EBMT patient engagement task force & transplantation complications working party.

The EBMT (European Blood and Marrow Transplantation Society) aims to connect patients, the scientific community, and other stakeholders to improve hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and cellular therapy outcomes. We performed a cross-sectional online survey to understand the perceptions regarding Patient Reported Outcomes (PROs) and Patient Active Involvement in Research (PAIR) in over 800 stakeholders (n = 813). Patients (n = 278) and health care professionals (HCPs) (n = 351) were compared. We observed high openness for EBMT PRO collection (n = 680, 84.5% across stakeholders' groups; patients n = 256, 93.1% versus HCPs n = 273, 78.4% [p < 0.001]) and PAIR (n = 702, 87.3% across stakeholder groups; patients n = 256, 92.4% versus HCPs n = 296, 85.8% [p = 0.009]), with a significantly higher proportion of patients expressing interest compared to HCPs. Priority domains for PROs data-collection identified were the assessment of symptom experience, psychosocial and cognitive functioning. The most important issues for patients specifically were the data-collection of PROs reflecting cognitive function, the option of reporting data at home, the importance of identifying actionable targets to improve their recovery, and receiving feedback on their input when participating in research projects. Our multistakeholder approach suggests an added value to embracing patient engagement in the development of meaningful research and service design within the transplantation and cellular therapy community.

Measurement Scale Reliability for a Rehabilitation Service Excellence Culture

The purpose of this empirical service research is to analyse the reliability of the dimensions and items of a new measurement scale for community-based rehabilitation service excellence culture. This survey research employed the quantitative approach with structured questionnaire survey and a total of 1029 questionnaires were collected for analysis. The empirical research discovered six dimensions (thirty-eight items) for the rehabilitation service excellence culture, namely: Trainee, Competitor, Inter-functional Coordination, Excellence-driven, Long-term, and Employee orientations. The multi-sample reliability analysis was done and the scale reliability was found to be consistent. This reliable multi-item scale is potential for effective and meaningful service excellence culture management to care for people with special needs.

Air India pee gate case – need for comprehensive SOPs in customer management

Learning outcomes This case study allows students to appreciate the value of standard operating procedures in customer management. This case study emphasises the role of employees in delivering superior customer experience. This case study explores many facets of customer experience, reputation, social class membership and standard operating procedures (SOPs). Students will be able to apply theories of customer experience, behavioural psychology and service dimensions relevant to the airline industry. After completing this case study, students will be able to do the following:1. Evaluate the value of SOPs in Customer ManagementThis case study refers to the need for adhering to SOPs to deal with complex situations. Students will be able to evaluate whether compliance to SOPs could have helped Air India avoid the crisis or was it possible that a culture of absolute commitment to customer wellbeing could have prevented the crisis.2. Apply the theory of defensive attribution in customer grievance handling. Discuss if reducing customer effort in getting their problem solved can result in superior customer service.The victim had attributed the blame for not insisting on filing a complaint to the crew. Air India crew had defended their actions or lack of it by stating that they had followed the rule book. Students will be able to appreciate the need for a swift redressal mechanism to protect the self-image and self-esteem of the person/group involved. They will also understand that customer service interactions designed to solve customer problems swiftly and easily can be a very simple dictum to guide all employees in their decision-making while handling a customer complaint. 3. Evaluate the relationship between customer satisfaction and customer experience and examine the value of net promoter score (NPS) to study customer satisfaction. Air India Airlines was catering to varied customer groups such as the Indian diaspora, large student population pursuing education abroad, first-time flyers and the rising middle class with travel aspirations. Customer expectations vary across segments and change over their lifetime. Airline staff must trace customer corridors and deliver on customer expectation across the touch points that matter to them to ensure meaningful and relevant service delivery. Students will have an opportunity to evaluate the NPS in measuring customer satisfaction and debate whether it is a sufficient metric to guide the organisation on delivering and monitoring customer experience. 4. Examine why reputation risk management and not crisis management should be the focus of Air India in delivering superior customer service because nearly 70%–80% of market value for a company comes from its intangible assets such as brand equity and reputation. Students will discuss crisis management i.e. handling the threat to reputation after it has occurred and reputation risk management i.e. proactively managing potential threats to its reputation by taking timely actions to avoid or mitigate it. There are three factors (reputation reality gap, changing beliefs and expectation and weak internal coordination) that determine reputational risks. Students can evaluate this model to determine if Air India should address these three factors to manage its reputation proactively. Case overview/synopsis This case study is set around an incident that happened on 26 November 2022, on Air India flight bound for Delhi from New York when an inebriated 34-year-old man had peed on a 72-year-old woman. The perpetrator of the crime had walked free, and the victim was left dissatisfied with how the cabin crew had handled her ordeal. Air India Airlines was launched in 1932 by industrialist JRD Tata and nationalised in 1953. In 2021, Tata Group acquired the 90-year-old Air India from the Government of India for $2.4bn (INR 18,000 crore) and appointed Campbell Wilson as chief executive officer and managing director. The incident brought to the fore the customer management issues that Wilson had to address. First on the list of Air India’s turnaround plan was delivering “exceptional customer experience”. How was it going to achieve it because the Indian aviation ecosystem lacked infrastructure such as airports, airspace, competition and customer preference-based services? There was also shortage of pilots, engineers, technicians, air-traffic controllers and technocrats to occupy positions within security agencies and regulatory bodies. With Air India’s acquisition, the Tata Group had to find innovative solutions to deal with decades of internal neglect, non-performance and labour union problems. This case study is relevant to address real issues of customer experience, consumer psychology, reputation risk management and standard operating procedures in service management. Complexity academic level This case is suitable for both undergraduate and postgraduate level students of business management. It can also be used for training service personnel of aviation industry. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 8: Marketing

Designing Empathetic Service Experiences Using Storytelling Approach: A Case Study

Storytelling is a well-known technique to emphasize emotions. This paper explores the integration of storytelling techniques into service design to cultivate empathetic service experiences. Emphasizing the significance of emotional connection in social service contexts, we designed services for Adolescents Living with HIV (ALHIV) in India. Due to a lack of awareness and social stigma, ALHIV are unable to make timely and responsible life decisions around intimacy and HIV status disclosure. We designed services that disseminate essential information and enable ALHIV to make informed life decisions. The solution is an interactive story media where users make decisions around in-design encounters that parallel with possible real-life encounters. As a result, they get to explore multiple possibilities in a safe space, leading to improved real-life decision-making. This paper demonstrates the replicable framework of orchestration of human and technology touchpoints through multiple dynamic and choice-based scenarios. The study examines the synergy between service design and narrative frameworks. Through a detailed case study, the research underscores the pivotal role of storytelling in fostering genuine user engagement by infusing empathy-driven narratives into service encounters. Overall, this research contributes a novel perspective on designing empathetic services, demonstrating the role of storytelling in crafting meaningful service experiences.

#1204 Measuring needling experience: development and validation of the Needling Patient Reported Experience Measure (NPREM)

Abstract Background and Aims Most people on haemodialysis rely on having reliable access to their vascular system, often via surgically created arteriovenous fistula or graft. At the beginning of each dialysis session, needles must be inserted. While ‘needling’ is a key step, an annual UK survey shows that needling is one of the lowest scoring areas of reported experience for individuals receiving haemodialysis in a kidney centre or satellite unit. Qualitative research indicates that needling can be painful and cause anxiety. Although an emerging area of research, no validated measures exist which assess patient reported experience of needling. We aimed to develop a questionnaire which reliably measures needling experience. The Needling Patient Reported Experience Measure (NPREM) was developed over multiple phases consisting of qualitative interviews with patients, item generation involving a multidisciplinary expert group including experts by experience, cognitive interviewing and pilot testing. Here we report the results of the final validation phase. Methods Seven NHS kidney centres participated in the validation phase (aiming for 500 participants). Between February-April 2023, participants completed either online or paper versions of the questionnaire. A subset of participants (aiming for 80-120) completed a follow-up questionnaire pack (NPREM, Change of Circumstances) 2-4 weeks after the first to assess the reliability of the scale over time. Analyses included a full evaluation of the scale psychometric properties and factor analyses to assess dimensional structure. Correlations with other validated measures (Vascular Access Quality of Life [VASQoL], EuroQol 5 Dimension [EQ5D-5L], and Patient Activation Measure [PAM]) were used to assess the convergent and divergent validity of the NPREM. Results 468 people participated (sample characteristics: male 66%, mean age 66 years (SD 14), White 75%, access via fistula 95%, first access 76%), of which 99 completed the follow-up. Overall, the NPREM showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.94) and moderate to strong inter-item correlations. Factor analyses indicated that needling experience was a unidimensional construct, with one strong, main factor. Follow-up scores were strongly correlated (r = 0.89) with participants’ initial NPREM responses, demonstrating high reliability. Evidence of convergent validity was seen in the strong correlations between the NPREM and 1) the VASQoL (r = 0.60) and 2) the Overall Needling Experience question (r = 0.79). NPREM did not correlate with the EQ-5D (r = −0.31), the EQ-5D overall health (r = 0.24) or PAM (0.17), demonstrating divergent validity. The research team reviewed all items and themes reaching a consensus on items included, resulting in the validated 28-item NPREM (v 1.0), across five themes of care (Communicating with the Team, My Fistula/Graft and Needling, Steps in Needling, Working Together, My Personal Experience) plus Overall Needling Experience. Conclusion These results indicate that the NPREM offers a robust needling-specific tool to measure patient experience in those receiving haemodialysis. It addresses a gap by offering a way for kidney care providers to assess needling experience, both as a whole and across themes of care, which may facilitate meaningful service improvements. When published, the NPREM will be publicly available and free to use.

An Analysis of Service-Learning Projects by Preservice Teachers at a Higher Education Institution in South Africa

Service-learning (SL) as an extension of an academic course, in addition to providing tangible and meaningful service to the community, also connects to a course’s curriculum and allows students to reflect. Therefore, the researchers considered it essential to analyse the nature of service-learning projects conducted by pre-service teachers. Using the experiential learning theory of David Kolb, this study examined pre-service teachers’ experiences with SL projects in various KwaZulu-Natal communities in South Africa. Using a case study qualitative research design and collecting data through written reflective journals, project reports, and course outlines, the research sought to prove that by presenting students with real-world situations and structuring a curriculum around social and civic issues, SL contexts provide students with a challenging situation comparable to what Dewey termed forked-road dilemmas. The study’s findings imply that the relationship factors between higher education institutions and communities should be analysed in depth and will likely influence the planning of service-learning programs. The study recommends that future research be expanded to include SL as it is practised in other South African institutions, as well as other factors, such as students’ expectations and frustrations, that could play a significant role in the implementation of the SL program. Keywords: Service-learning, Service-learning Projects, Pre-service Teachers, Tertiary Institutions, and Experiential Learning Theory.

The world's most remote community service? Partnership working and building community capacity on the British Overseas Territory Island of St Helena

Measuring just 47 square miles and 1950 km from its nearest neighbour, St Helena is a British Overseas Territory in the South Atlantic with a population of approximately 4500. Working in this remote setting is one of the world's smallest probation services delivering a range of interventions including community service. In this practice note the authors explore the sustained, successful partnership between St Helena Island Probation Service and the St Helena National Trust. This partnership not only provides meaningful community service placements which support vital conservation work, but simultaneously contributes to an individual's journey towards desistance through enhancing employability and supporting positive community reintegration.

Integrating academic service learning into higher education business curriculum

This paper discusses an Academic Service Learning (ASL) approach as a teaching method to combine meaningful service to the community and core academic requirements for learning accounting. The Academic Service-Learning approach offers an opportunity for the students to enhance what they are learning in the classroom and combine it with the benefit of providing a service to the community. This study shows how service learning offers a unique opportunity to bridge the gap between academic accounting core curriculum requirements and the need of society to have individuals willing to give their time and effort to benefit others in need. This article aims to understand the benefits of High-Impact practices (HIPs) for students in the classroom, particularly, using Academic Service-Learning as a pedagogical tool. The goal is to understand the benefits of using a Service-Learning approach to teach accounting. As part of the course learning requirement, students engaged in a project whereby a not-for-profit organization's income statement was forecasted and evaluated using a vertical analysis. A post-survey was administered, which focused on how the Service-Learning project helped the students connect what they were learning in class with the actual accounting practice meaningfully.

Exploring the application of college student role models in service-learning pedagogy

PurposeService-learning (SL) is a widely accepted pedagogy that can enrich the learning experience for students in higher education while they apply their skills in a meaningful community service. This research is part of a larger project that aimed to motivate educational achievement among youths living in a priority neighborhood through SL. Toward this goal, this study investigated the impact of SL on the college students from a college information technology programmer-analyst (ITPA) program, who were deployed as role models to youths in a priority neighborhood on the east coast of Canada.Design/methodology/approachThe overall project used the design-based methodology. Seven college students were deployed in two phases to a community center as role models for the delivery of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (or STEAM) programs to youths living in a priority neighborhood. Data were collected using open-ended survey, journal entries and focus groups and was qualitatively analyzed by drawing on two frameworks: the experiential-learning framework by Kolb (1984) and the conceptual SL framework by Ash and Clayton (2009).FindingsThe findings describe the outcome of the college students' experiences in SL with respect to the development of skills and capacities needed by employers. Specifically, their experiences mirrored all aspects of the two frameworks applied. Therefore, the study validates the use of SL pedagogy in higher education. In addition, the study identified the role of SL as an integration strategy for international students. While the research contributes to the wider SL conversation for policymakers, faculty and administrators of higher education, it also promotes development opportunities for college students.Originality/valueThe integration of SL pedagogy is widespread among programs in higher education. However, there are no common SL frameworks used in literature. The study is novel in that it combines two theoretical frameworks – Kolb (1984) and Ash and Clayton (2009) in explaining the outcomes. In addition, it uses two high-impact educational practices – SL and role modeling to improve educational attainment for college students.

VOLUNTEERISM AND PURPOSE IN LIFE IN A NATIONAL SURVEY OF COMMUNITY-DWELLING MIDDLE-AGED AND OLDER ADULTS

Abstract Volunteerism has been shown to provide physical, psychological, and functional health benefits as people age. Volunteers are able to participate in meaningful service, develop social connections, and exercise their abilities. In this study, we examined whether engaging in various types of volunteer engagement (e.g. charitable, political, religious, environmental, animal welfare, support group) was associated with self-perceived change in purpose in life (PIL) over a five year lookback period, controlling for demographic and health variables. Data were drawn from the AARP Social Engagement and Brain Health Survey, which included a nationally representative sample of adults aged 40-75+ (mode=55-64 years) across the United States who completed an online survey (N=2,585). Hierarchical linear regression was used. People who were younger (β=-.06, t=-2.55, p=.01), Black (β=.23, t=10.50, p&amp;lt;.001) or Hispanic (β=.12, t=5.20, p&amp;lt;.001), married (β=.05, t=2.65, p=.01), and had better health (β=.16, t=7.09, p&amp;lt;.001) and cognition (β=.18, t=7.69, p&amp;lt;.001) reported greater increase in PIL over the last five years (ΔR2=.13, p&amp;lt;.001). After controlling for demographic and health variables, people who valued PIL (β=.15, t=7.49, p&amp;lt;.001; ΔR2=.02, p&amp;lt;.001) and participated in volunteer work through a religious organization (β=.05, t=2.38, p=.02) or support groups (β=.07, t=3.10, p=.002) were more likely to report greater levels of PIL over the last five years (ΔR2=.02, p&amp;lt;.001). These results suggest that changes in experienced PIL may depend on physical and cognitive health, importance placed on PIL, and type of volunteer engagement, all of which may be points of potential intervention.

Wikipedia as an academic service-learning tool in science and technology: higher education case from Siberia.

Wikipedia, the open crowdsourced encyclopedia that anyone can edit, ranks among the top ten most-visited websites globally. Its integration into university curriculum as an innovative educational tool is a slowly growing trend; however, many higher education institutions have yet to fully grasp its potential. In response, a specific optional module for Wikipedia editing, designed for the selected undergraduate science courses at the School of Advanced Studies, Russia, was implemented as an optional extra credit service-learning activity, a teaching methodology combining meaningful service to the community with curriculum-based learning. Students who chose to participate and those who preferred not to participate in the activity were invited to participate in a research project to explore their perspectives and experiences. In total, five sessions of focus group discussions were conducted with participants (12 females and 2 males) in one set and non-participants (5 females and 4 males) in another to identify students' perspectives on themes such as their interest in science, reasons for their choices, and their expectations before the activity while post-experience focus group discussions were used to identify the perspectives of participant students on themes, encompassing contribution of the service-learning activity, acquisition of new skills, and the development of prosocial behaviors. Students' opinions on integrating social responsibility topics into the curriculum were also explored. The results extracted from these focus group discussions, analyzed through consensual coding, revealed factors promoting student participation, like interest in the subject, novelty of the activity, and grade improvement opportunities, as well as factors deterring participation, such as concerns about academic benefits, workload, and time constraints. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that Wikipedia editing serves as a novel teaching methodology, promoting student learning and development in digital literacy and information literacy, which are among the twenty-first-century skills. Interestingly, at the same time, not all students could address the value of contributing to open, crowdsourced knowledge for public service or interpret this activity as an academic service-learning. These suggest that Wikipedia editing is an innovative teaching approach, fostering students' learning and development while also indicating its potential to enhance students' understanding of responsible citizenship and public service in the digital age.

LEVEL OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION OF SOCIAL SECURITY MEMBERS ON THE SERVICES OF SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM SAN PABLO BRANCH

The objective of this research endeavor is to assess the level of satisfaction that Social Security Services in San Pablo has among its members. This study employed both quantitative and qualitative research designs. To determine the level of satisfaction of SSS members, quantitative inferential research was utilized, which not only permitted responses to pre-formulated queries but also encouraged respondents to candidly recount their personal experiences. The proposed methodology will be executed by administering a questionnaire survey to members of the SSS, utilizing a convenience sampling approach. The first section comprises the demographic profile of the participants. The subsequent section employs a Likert scale to evaluate the respondents’ comprehensive experience with SSS services, including promptness, convenience, reliability, meaningful service, and related aspects. The data result presents the frequency and percentage of SSS members belonging to each age category. In addition, the majority of study participants fall within the age range of 31 to 40 years. Regarding gender, the majority of respondents are female SSS members. Regarding coverage status, the majority of participants are SSS members by employment. The majority of members express contentment with regards to the significance and dependability of the service. However, the least content with regard to convenience and timeliness. Limited research has been conducted on the manner in which SSS members perceive and satisfy their customers. This study acknowledges certain implications that may extend to encompass additional branches and services of SSS. Due to the paucity of research examining the degree of consumer satisfaction among SSS members

Identifying prioritised actions for improving dysphagia services in Singapore: Insights from concept mapping with patients and caregivers.

Person-centred services are inherently related to patients/caregivers' needs. However, the extent to which dysphagia services within Singapore meet consumer needs is largely unknown. Involving patients/caregivers in service evaluation/redesign deepens the understanding of consumer needs. This process also increases the success of implementing service enhancements through relevant and meaningful change. This study aimed to identify aspects of dysphagia services, within acute and subacute settings in Singapore, perceived as highly important and easy to change by patients/caregivers. Using concept mapping methodology, 5 patients and 11 caregivers reflected on their experiences of receiving dysphagia care and proposed 59 unique suggestions to improve dysphagia services within Singapore. Then, each individual sorted the suggestions into groups based on similarity and rated each statement for its perceived importance and changeability for service enhancement. Data were analysed using multidimensional scaling, hierarchical cluster analysis, and bivariate analysis to generate clusters of conceptually similar suggestions and a prioritised list of suggestions for service enhancement. Twelve clusters were identified, with most rated as more important than changeable for service improvement. Participants prioritised 23 (39%) of the suggestions as highly important and easy to change, and these focused on ensuring effective communication among consumers and healthcare team, enhancing patients and carers' access to support at home, increasing patients and carers' access to educational resources, and improving service quality and access through technology. These findings provide future directions on how to develop and implement dysphagia services in Singapore to better meet the needs of patients/caregivers. What is already known on this subject Little is known about patients and caregivers' experiences and expectations of receiving dysphagia services in Singapore. Consulting them in service review and improvement deepens understanding of their needs and increases the success of implementing meaningful service enhancements. What this study adds to existing knowledge This study shows that patients and caregivers in Singapore identified a wide range of dysphagia service issues and prioritised a list of suggestions for service improvement. They prioritised four key areas for service optimisation: ensuring effective communication among consumers and healthcare team, enhancing patients and carers' access to support at home, increasing patients and carers' access to educational resources, and improving service quality and access through technology. What are the clinical implications of this work? This research highlights the importance of considering the consumers' perspectives in service review and redesign. Patients and caregivers in Singapore identified four prioritised areas for service enhancements. These findings provide future directions on how to develop and implement dysphagia services in Singapore to better meet the needs of patients and caregivers.

Consumer participation in homelessness service delivery in Australia: What is it for?

AbstractThe involvement of people with lived experience is broadly recognised as beneficial, and possibly essential, to effective service and policy planning. However, in the field of homelessness service delivery, this has not been thoroughly researched. To build a greater understanding of participation activities and identify opportunities for lived experience contributions in addressing homelessness, this study investigates the representations of consumer participation by a homelessness service network in Victoria over 10 years (2011–2020). This study found that the homelessness services appear to have actively aspired to meaningful service user participation however tensions for policy and practice remain. These include whether lived experience contributions are valued as “experience” or “expertise”; whether participation is available for those with “living” (current) or “lived” (past) experience; and whether feedback can translate into influence, affecting services and policy change.

Meaningful Sports Consumption Behavior Influences the Production of Individual Eudaimonic Well-Being: The Chain-Mediated Role of Perceived Social Support and Perceived Self-Esteem

Well-being is an ordinary life goal that many people strive to achieve. Recently, there has been a growing interest in academic research on how consumption can enhance well-being. Hedonic sports consumption, which is associated with positive emotions, can positively impact an individual’s subjective well-being by providing both physical and mental enjoyment and relieving the stresses of everyday life. However, there is a need for more comprehensive research on the mechanisms that connect meaningful sports consumption behaviors, which may also be accompanied by negative emotions, to the mental health of individuals. Therefore, the primary objective of this study was to explore the potential mechanisms of meaningful sports consumption behaviors and eudaimonic well-being in individual mental health. Based on the SOR theory, this study develops a comprehensive conceptual model to examine the impact of sports consumption behavior on individuals’ eudaimonic well-being. The study’s results indicate that engaging in meaningful sports consumption behaviors can positively influence individuals’ eudaimonic well-being. Additionally, the study finds that perceived social support and perceived self-esteem among sports consumers significantly and positively impact their eudaimonic well-being. Finally, the study reveals that perceived social support and perceived self-esteem mediate the pathway through which meaningful sports consumption behaviors affect eudaimonic well-being. These findings contribute to our understanding of how to enhance sports consumers’ eudaimonic well-being and promote meaningful sports consumption behaviors. Therefore, it is recommended that sports marketers focus on providing meaningful sports service offerings, fostering consumer–society connections, and increasing respect and appreciation for consumers. These marketing insights can be valuable in promoting positive sports consumption experiences.