Impacts of Touch massage on the experience of patients with chronic pain: A protocol for a mixed method study

Feasibility of implementing a remote system for lymphoedema conservative therapy: a case study

BACKGROUND

Poor access to lymphoedema specialists and communication between them and patients prevents appropriate lymphoedema management. Therefore, development and dissemination of remote systems is necessary to improve care in rural areas with limited medical personnel or access to medical coordination.

AIMS

The authors evaluated the elements required for providing patient education on conservative therapy for lymphoedema, to determine the feasibility of remote management.

METHODS

The study involved connecting a health professional in a local clinic (point A) treating a patient with lymphoedema, who was present alongside the clinician, with a specialist certified lymphoedema therapist (CLT) located remotely in a university (point B).

FINDINGS

The CLT was able to greet, interview and provide guidance to the patient on conservative therapy. Direct contact with the patient was not possible, which limited visualisation, palpation, leg circumference measurement, and lymphatic drainage management.

CONCLUSION

The findings suggest that remote a lymphoedema management approach involving conservative therapy benefits both patients and health professionals, particularly in rural regions. Future studies are needed to confirm the effectiveness of this approach to confirm adequate treatment.

Is massage a legitimate part of nursing care? A qualitative study

INTRODUCTION

The use of massage therapy has received increased attention in the treatment of chronic pain. However, barriers can hinder its use in nursing care. This study uses a qualitative methodology to explore professionals' experiences regarding touch massage (TM) and identify barriers and facilitators for the implementation of this intervention.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study is part of a larger research program aimed at investigating the impact of TM on the experiences of patients with chronic pain hospitalized in two units of an internal medicine rehabilitation ward. Health care professionals (HCPs) were trained either to provide TM or to use of a massage-machine device according to their units. At the end of the trial, two focus groups were conducted with HCPs from each unit who took part in the training and agreed to discuss their experience: 10 caregivers from the TM group and 6 from the machine group. The focus group discussions were tape-recorded, transcribed and analyzed using thematic content analysis.

RESULTS

Five themes emerged from thematic content analysis: perceived impact on patients, HCPs' affective and cognitive experiences, patient-professionals relationships, organizational tensions, and conceptual tensions. Overall, the HCPs reported better general outcomes with TM than with the machine. They described positive effects on patients, HCPs, and their relationships. Regarding interventions' implementation, the HCPs reported organizational barriers such as patients' case complexity, work overload, and lack of time. Conceptual barriers such as ambivalence around the legitimacy of TM in nursing care were reported. TM was often described as a pleasure care that was considered a complementary approach and was overlooked despite its perceived benefits.

CONCLUSION

Despite the perceived benefits of TM reported by the HCPs, ambivalence arose around the legitimacy of this intervention. This result emphasizes the importance of changing HCPs' attitudes regarding a given intervention to facilitate its implementation.