Making Sense of Memorable Messages About Infertility: Examining Message Valence by Theme and Sender

Fertility problems, often called infertility, have been defined as the inability to conceive or maintain pregnancy throughout one year of trying (World Health Organization, 2020). Because fertility problems can present unique medical, emotional, relational, and identity challenges, they are often difficult to talk about, and even well-intentioned messages can be perceived negatively. This study uses Communicated Sense-Making (CSM; Kellas & Kranstuber Horstman, 2015), particularly its mechanism of memorable messages, to explore what types of support-related messages people experiencing infertility find memorable. Results from semi-structured interviews (N = 54) indicate five supra-themes of memorable messages: (a) communicating solidarity; (b) attempting to minimize participants' stress; (c) communicating investment or interest in the patient's experience; (d) sharing expertise; and (e) absolving the patient of responsibility; we identify several sub-themes within each. We also explore patterns between message types, senders, and message valence: message themes were perceived as either positive, negative, or neutral based on the combination of sender and perceived intention. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Bearing Witness to Joy and Sorrow: Narrative Medicine and Reproductive Endocrinologist and Infertility (REI) Providers' Journeys in Infertility Treatment

This study examines providers' perceptions of provider-patient communication in reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) practices. Grounded in narrative medicine, we interviewed six REI providers about their experiences providing fertility care. REI providers crafted a narrative of bearing witness by (1) situating personal and professional self in REI narratives, (2) sharing news as important medical moments, and (3) cultivating affiliation between provider and patient. These findings offer insight into the power of narrative medicine in fertility care, the role of emplotment in narrative sense-making, and the emotional labor associated with information delivery in REI treatments. We offer several recommendations for how patients and providers can improve communication experiences in REI.

Telehealth readiness and its influencing factors among Chinese clinical nurses: A cross-sectional study

AIM/OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to assess telehealth readiness among clinical nurses in China and explore the factors that affect their telehealth readiness and the relationships of telehealth readiness and telehealth practice-related variables.

BACKGROUND

Telehealth is a new service model that uses information and communication technology to provide professional health care services for resource-poor areas. With the global spread of COVID-19, nurses urgently need to adapt and apply telehealth technology to replace conventional face-to-face treatment. However, nurse-led telehealth services in China are currently only in the pilot phase and the readiness of clinical nurses needs to be assessed to facilitate successful telehealth implementation.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional, multicentre study was undertaken with the questionnaire survey method.

METHODS

Data were collected in October-December 2020 used online questionnaires. A convenience sample of 3386 nurses from 19 hospitals in China completed the Chinese version of Telehealth Readiness Assessment Tools.

RESULTS

The mean score of the telehealth readiness was in the category between 61 and 80 points (mean 61.23, SD 11.61). The percentages of nurses meeting the following levels of telehealth readiness were as follows: low (49.9%), moderate (42.0%) and high (8.1%). Significantly higher domain scores were recorded for nurses in the unmarried, head of responsible nursing group. Moreover, there were positive correlations between telehealth readiness level and service experience, service willingness, mode cognition, manpower allocation and policy guidance.

CONCLUSIONS

There are still many factors hindering the successful implementation of telehealth. Nursing educators should formulate telehealth education curriculum and service standards to improve the telehealth readiness of nurses.

Communication between infertile women and nurses: facilitators, barriers and requirements for improving

Nurses working in infertility clinics need to know effective ways of communicating with infertile women to help them experience their treatment period comfortably. However, they can face various stressors which can reduce the motivation. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate communication between nurses in infertility clinics and infertile women from the perspective of both groups. The qualitative study was conducted in an InVitroFertilization clinic, in Turkey with five nurses and seven female patients. Data obtained from semi-structured interviews were thematically analyzed. Three main themes were identified: facilitators of communication (verbal and nonverbal facilitator), barriers to communication (related to nurses and women), and requirements for improving communication. Factors such as appropriate tone of voice, smiling, provide eye-to-eye contact are expressed by women and/or nurses as facilitators. The high tone of voice, yelling, etc. for women, stress and the low education level of women for nurses were barriers. The requirements expressed by women were nurses receiving training to improve their communication skills, and not having prejudice, while requirements for nurses were enough time, women being sincere, taking psychological support. This paper may provide nurses recognize facilitators and barriers to effective communication with women and include in their care plans.

Social representation of reproductive biotechnologies among nurses working in sexual and reproductive health

OBJECTIVES

to compare the social representations of reproductive biotechnologies among sexual and reproductive health nurses, and their links with professional practice.

METHODS

an analytical, comparative, qualitative research, supported by the Theory of Social Representation, carried out in May/2014-February/2015, with 32 nurses from the city of Rio de Janeiro. Semi-structured interview, analyzed by ALCESTE® software.

RESULTS

nurses not active in assisted human reproduction represent reproductive biotechnologies as unnatural methods of human reproduction, assessing the practice in this field as generalist and bureaucratic. Those who work represent as auxiliary and supporting nature for heterosexual couples, considering the innovative and specialized practice.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

each group presented specific contents and dimensions about reproductive biotechnologies. The representations are centered on moral, normative and ideological personal values, anchored in the traditional conceptions of human and family reproduction, but also collective, acquired in the professional routine, showing group identity and its distinct practices considering reproductive biotechnologies.

#ttc on Instagram: a multimodal discourse analysis of the treatment experience of patients pursuing in vitro fertilization

While searching the Internet for health information is now commonplace, giving and receiving medical expertise on social media platforms such as Instagram (IG) is underexplored. In order to investigate the ways in which social media platforms are a resource for seeking medical expertise, we employed a multimodal discourse analysis; specifically, we focused on the hashtag #ttc and the engagement of the IG community it comprised. We examined three main themes around medical expertise during treatment indexed by the hashtag: treatment protocol choices, treatment side effects and pregnancy diagnosis/confirmation. Our findings suggest that social media platforms provide a new arena in which patients can challenge medical expertise by circumventing it or adopting lay expertise instead of practitioner suggestions. We close with research implications and suggestions for further research.