Factors promoting health empowerment of young people: a qualitative pre-interventional study

Background

Angata, an intervention research project led by the regional instance of health education and promotion (Ireps) of Burgundy-Franche-Comté, aims to strengthening the autonomy and decision-making ability of vulnerable youth regarding their health. It is implemented in several facilities. The goal is to improve well-being and quality of life of young people benefiting from socio-educational measures by working with them and the professionals in their living environments. The objective of the study presented was to analyze the factors promoting health empowerment of young people, prior to this intervention, in the Employment Integration Facility (Epide) of Belfort.

Methods

Interviews were conducted with 8 young people and 13 professionals to explore their representations regarding well-being, nutritional health (eating habits, nutrition, physical activity), self-esteem and physical appearance. The determinants of health, lifestyles and organization in the living environment as well as the biographical pathways of young people were also collected.

Results

The Epide, structured on a military model, welcomes young people out-of-school, without qualifications and with complex life courses. The Epide can be seen as a functional community whose whole effort is dedicated to the goal of young volunteers leaving for a job or professional training. The support provided by educators (professional social or former military) is focused on building skills and restoration of self-esteem. Critical consciousness develops over time spent within the structure. The factors promoting empowerment within this strict framework are numerous, but young people’s participation in the decisions taken within the structure remains at the solicitation stage.

Conclusions

The framework provided at the Epide allows an environment conducive to the process of individual empowerment. These leverage can be mobilized to reinforce health empowerment of youth during the Angata project.

Key messages

An empowering educational environment, even strict, can foster the health empowerment of young people subject to vulnerabilities. The allowed level of participation remains an important factor to consider in order to fully promote health empowerment of young people.

Identification of resources and skills developed by partners of patients with advanced colon cancer: a qualitative study

PURPOSE

Family caregivers play an important role in caring for patients with advanced cancer. To become competent, individuals must draw on and mobilise an adequate combination of resources. Our goal was to identify the skills developed by caregivers of patients with advanced cancer and the associated resources mobilised. We chose to do it with partners of patients with colon cancer.

METHODS

The study used a cross-sectional qualitative design based on 20 individual interviews and a focus group. Partners were recruited from patients treated in three hospitals of France. Semi-structured interviews were conducted until data saturation was achieved. Each interview was transcribed verbatim, and thematic analyses were performed to extract significant themes and subthemes.

RESULTS

Results from the individual and focus group interviews showed that the skills implemented by the partners (in domains of social relationships and health, domestic, organisational, emotional and well-being dimensions) were singular constructs, dependant on if resources (personal, external and schemes) may have been missing and insufficient. In addition, partners may have had these resources but not mobilised them.

CONCLUSION

The identification of the skills and associated resources could allow healthcare professionals better identifying and understanding of the difficulties met by partners in taking care of patients. This could enable them to offer appropriate support to help the caregivers in their accompaniment.