ABSTRACT
The aim of this research is to describe the use of telemedicine applied to patients characterised by a particular state of illness, which often drives them toward a frail and chronic status, in a systematic manner. This work employed the Tranfield approach to carry out a systematic literature review (SLR), in order to provide an efficient and high-quality method for identifying and evaluating extensive studies. The methodology was pursued step by step, analysing keywords, topics, journal quality to arrive at a set of relevant open access papers that was analysed in detail. The same papers were compared to each other and then, they were categorised according to significant metrics, also evaluating technologies and methods employed. Through our systematic review we found that most of the patients involved in telemedicine programs agreed with this service model and the clinical results appeared encouraging. Findings suggested that telemedicine services were appreciated by patients, they increased the access to care and could be a better way to face emergencies and pandemics, lowering overall costs and promoting social inclusion.Copyright © 2022 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.
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The measure of physical isolation adopted during a pandemic affected the daily routine of the whole world, including in the sports environment. Therefore, the study sought to compare the coping strategies used by Paralympic boccia athletes during the pandemic period. The sample consisted of 43 athletes (30 men and 13 women) aged 29.95-11,76 years. To identify and measure coping strategies, the ACSI-28 (athletic coping skills inventory) questionnaire was used in its version adapted to Portuguese and added to an electronic form. In data analysis, normality was verified by the Shapiro-Wilk test. After that, all inferential comparison analyzes were measured via nonparametric statistical tests with paired post-hoc DSCF tests. Thus, the results showed that there were significant differences between comparisons in terms of experience, "+10 years", "5 to 10 years", and "1 to 3 years" on the subscales "goals and mental preparation" (6.00+or-1.75 vs 5+or-1.50 vs 5+or-1.50;p<0.05;ES: 0.26) and "trainability" (9.00+or-3.25 vs 6.00+or-0.500 vs 8.00+or-3.00;p<0.05;ES: 0.19). More and less experienced athletes in the boccia modality showed superiority in facing the pandemic period, as they obtained better indices in the "goals and mental preparation and trainability" dimensions of coping strategies compared to their peers with less experience.
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BACKGROUND: The participation of children with disabilities in leisure activities is a key determinant of their physical and mental health. The COVID-19 pandemic has limited participation in leisure activities for all children, particularly those with disabilities. As a result, children with disabilities may be less active while feeling more isolated and stressed. Web-based communities and activities have become increasingly important. Understanding how web-based activities include or exclude children with disabilities can contribute to the development of inclusive communities that may support participation after the pandemic. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to identify factors that may facilitate or prevent the participation of children with disabilities in web-based leisure activities. METHODS: We adopted a qualitative descriptive interpretative methodology and conducted interviews with 2 groups of participants: service providers offering inclusive web-based leisure activities and parents of children with disabilities who have engaged in web-based leisure activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. A semistructured interview format was created based on the Theoretical Domains Framework. The questions focused on the description of the web-based activities offered by the service provider (eg, age range, frequency, cost, target population, and type of activity offered) and any adaptations to make the web-based activity accessible to children and youth with disabilities, and their perceptions and beliefs about what supported or deterred participation in the activities. RESULTS: A total of 17 participants described their experiences in participating in and creating web-based leisure programs and the factors preventing or facilitating children's participation in web-based activities. Environment and context factors included accommodations, the format of activities and the web-based setting, stakeholder involvement, and materials and resources available. Activities that had flexible schedules, both recorded and live options for joining, and that provided clear instructions and information were perceived as more accessible. Beliefs involved the characteristics of the child and the family environment, as well as the characteristics of the organizations providing the activity. Activity facilitators who were familiar with the web-based environment and knew the specific characteristics of the child facilitated their participation. Engagement in community champions and respect for children's individual preferences were perceived as positive. Access to technology, funding, and caregivers' ability to facilitate child engagement are crucial factors that must be considered when offering web-based programs. CONCLUSIONS: Web-based environments offer an accessible and safe option for leisure participation when public health conditions prevent children with disabilities from participating in in-person activities. However, to make web-based activities accessible to children with a variety of disabilities, there needs to be a clear plan toward universal web-based accessibility that accounts for individual needs and collective approaches to web-based leisure. Future work should consider developing and testing guidelines for web-based accessibility, equity, public policy, and programming considerations in offering these activities for all children.
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The need to provide education for all has continued to be at a high level even now when access to education is easier and considerably wider than in the previous historical periods. There is a general causality as well as a specific one supporting this necessity. The latter includes an additional set of reasons which connect defining characteristics of disadvantaged learners with the limitations of the pandemic crisis and its effects on communication. They also continue to manifest themselves after the health restrictions have been lifted and further hinder communication and educational counselling, thereby imposing additional barriers to inclusive education. This study is a literature review through which we aim to make a synthesis of current communication and educational counselling new strategic approaches suitable for use in the post - COVID context for facilitating access to education for disadvantaged students. The objectives of the study are as follows: O1: to identify a set of strategies which correspond to the specific communication pattern and information needs of the children and teenagers nowadays;O2: to identify current educational counselling strategies which can be successfully used in the post -COVID context to enable well-informed career decisions for disadvantaged students;O3: to develop a formative intervention model for social inclusion of students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The study findings may be useful in school and career counselling in pre-university education, but also in collaborative approaches between pre-university and academia in order to facilitate the inclusion of the disadvantaged students.
ABSTRACT
Realised by /Area G in conjunction with the Municipality of San Maurizio Canavese during the Covid-19 emergency, "a sweet SMS" was a journey in inclusion towards a resilient community through the activation of an ability to take care of each other. The demands dictated by the pandemic made a change of setting possible, shifting from the "public home" to private homes for a common project. In a circular process, those participating first benefitted from the intervention and then became protagonists and promoters in their turn. Biscuits were the vehicle for emotions and solidarity that, passing from house to house through screens, transmitted a message of closeness and sharing during a time when distance between people was the order of the day. Creativity was channelled to produce the reciprocity of dialogue, giving, exchanging and nourishing, thereby fostering repeatable forms of involvement promoting wellbeing and social inclusion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved) (Italian) Un dolce SMS, realizzato da Area G con il Comune di San Maurizio Canavese durante 1'emergenza da Covid-19, e un percorso di inclusione verso una comunity resiliente con 1'attivazione della capacity del prendersi cura. Le esigenze dettate dalla pandemia hanno reso possibile un cambiamento del setting: dalla casa pubblica alia casa privata per un progetto comune. I partecipanti sono diventati beneficiari dell'intervento e a loro volta protagonist! e promotori in una dimensione circolare. Il dolce e stato lo strumento portatore di emozioni e solidariety che, passando di casa in casa, attraverso lo schermo, ha trasmesso un messaggio di vicinanza e di condivisione in un tempo in cui la distanza interpersonale si e resa protagonista. Attraverso la creativity si e prodotta la reciprocity del dialogo, del dono, dello scambio e del nutriment© favorendo replicabili interventi di benessere e di inclusione sociale. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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The quest for lifelong learning has been enacted in many forms over the years through online distance education and Open University programmes. These have subsequently led to newer innovations such as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) run by a number of universities worldwide. MOOCs offer free or low-cost educational opportunities to millions worldwide. MOOCs are considered by many as having the potential to provide quality education, enhance social inclusion by including individuals who were traditionally excluded from higher education and provide equal access to learning. The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, has further altered the nature of lifelong learning by facilitating greater use of MOOCs across the globe. Millions have used MOOCs for professional development, career transitioning and corporate training amongst several others. This chapter reviews the contributions of MOOCs to lifelong learning. It highlights the social, economic and pedagogical objectives of MOOCs and their role in transforming education through quality, scale and access. It expands the literature on the effectiveness of MOOCs in enhancing lifelong learning and contributes to the literature on adult education, training and lifelong learning. © 2023 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic caused major disruption in community support for vulnerable older people and is thought to have exacerbated existing issues within UK adult social care. This study aims to examine the legacy of that disruption on how meeting centres for people affected by dementia have been impacted in continually evolving circumstances. Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were conducted at three meeting centre case study sites. Ninety-eight participants, including people living with dementia, family carers, staff, volunteers, trustees and external partners, were asked about the impact and legacy of the pandemic upon meeting centres. A thematic analysis was carried out on the data. Findings: Ten themes were identified: ability to re-open venues;increased health decline and loss of members due to isolation;closure or halting of linking services and dementia community support;disruption to diagnosis and referrals;increase in outreach, building communities and overall reach;digital access and use of technology (boom and decline);changes to carer involvement and engagement;continued uncertainty and changes to funding, resources and governance;staff and volunteer recruitment issues;and relief at/wish for return to pre-pandemic norms. Originality/value: This paper offers new insight into a still-developing situation, namely, the legacy effects of the pandemic upon third-sector community support for people affected by dementia and the health and social care services that support it. The reduction in maintenance of pandemic-era technological innovations is a key finding. © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited.
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Labour insertion is an area of socio-educational intervention that can contribute to the social inclusion of different individuals and groups. Based on a literature review on protective elements in socio-occupational integration processes, and taking into account especially the situation experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic in the years 2020-2022, in this study we have identified, through 109 questionnaires and 21 group interviews with socio-educational agents, which of these elements are present in integration projects currently being developed in 4 Latin American countries, and we have explored how they define 'good practices' in this area and what effective actions exist. The results, explained by country (Brazil, Spain, Colombia and Mexico), indicate that three types of protection elements are considered in the different socio-educational projects: development of personal and professional competences;support from the family and social context;and institutional elements related to socio-occupational intermediation and social support interventions. In relation to good practices, the technical agents working in insertion projects associate this term with methodological characteristics of their intervention (accompaniment, empathy, personalisation) and/or with the achievement of results (quality of life, empowerment, employability). They identify new challenges that have arisen during the pandemic, such as digital literacy or mental health, and illustrate with some examples of successful practices they are developing. The article ends with a mention of the socio-educational approach in socio-labour insertion programmes and the presentation of two proposals for further study. © 2023 Sociedad Iberoamericana de PedagogÃa Social. All rights reserved.
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Lampedusa is a remote Italian island, known as a border zone and European point of entry for many asylum-seekers coming by boat from North Africa. This research seeks to understand the value of sport in Lampedusa for its local and migrant population, in the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with experts from the local community. Results show that sport in Lampedusa is often synonymous with football. Football has always been informally practiced in the island but has proved to be of practical social value to both asylum-seekers and the local population. The pandemic has however interrupted the playful interactions occurring between asylum-seekers and the local youth. Findings show that the interactions and connections enabled through football can be fundamental for asylum-seekers to find direction in their journey but since the start of the pandemic, these interactions have become limited, and serve exclusively as temporary moments of relief. These changes have also impacted the local population, anxious about the transition occurring within the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in worries about the condition of the asylum-seeking population who are proceeding in their European journey without the assistance of the locals.
ABSTRACT
Immigrant groups are often adversely affected by the social exclusion process, which promotes a lack of opportunities, choice, and not being part of the democratic process that promotes social inclusion. In the USA, immigrants, particularly the undocumented, work at higher rates in essential critical infrastructure sectors than native-born citizens. COVID-19 has exposed the systemic undervaluing of work that is now clearly understood to be essential for societal survival. During the COVID-19 pandemic, immigrants are risking their health to keep Americans safe, healthy, food secured, and contributing to the US economic recovery. The need to promote social inclusion measures for immigrant essential workers is a global concern. This chapter addresses the COVID-19 pandemic, a relational conceptualization of social exclusion, essential workers, and the significance of undocumented immigrant contributions during the pandemic. It acknowledges the divestment of immigrant populations by the Trump administration, and the lack of responsiveness by the US Senate to the needs of undocumented immigrant essential workers. Future directions include a reconstruction of social inclusion measures through a call to action. A partnership among government, employers, and essential workers is necessary for the undocumented to come out of the shadows and become part of the social fabric through a pathway to citizenship. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
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The COVID-19 outbreak globally created an unparalleled need for mental health services that can be remotely delivered. The pandemic has largely brought to the forefront the importance of digital health technologies increased its utilization. Digital mental health interventions present opportunities to lessen mental health disparities among populations in the peripheries by putting quality mental health services in the palm of one's hand. They are already changing mental health care in unpredicted and exciting ways, each accompanied by an early but promising evidence base. These digital health technologies offer the potential for accessible and measurable interventions. It also presents a feasible route towards augmenting traditional mental health care and bridging the gap between the need for treatment and the capacity to deliver it. Even after the pandemic receded, telehealth is increasingly becoming the new normal in mental health care. We are at the commencement of an era that may offer new knowledge and evidence-based tools to advance mental health diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, and recovery. Digital health platforms will considerably improve mental health services and, in turn, the quality of life and social inclusion of people with mental illness and their care givers globally. On the flip side, critics foresee a chance for technology to replace the human element, rather than complementing and enhancing the invaluable contribution of clinical knowledge in patient care. The technology is neither a panacea nor an alternate for personal care. As we move toward a post pandemic world, we can facilitate earlier and more accurate diagnoses, and connect people with the most suitable and effective treatment and care, by developing patient-centric digital solutions. This sudden shift to tele-health during the pandemic has also highlighted the necessity to study the ethical challenges presented by digital mental health tools. It is crucial to guarantee that the implementation of digital mental health tools is guided by ethical principles and abides by professional codes of conduct. Researchers have highlighted the gaps in the literature pertaining to the ethical concerns about monitoring mental health from digital traces. This symposium aims to highlight how we can transition into the next phase of digital and technological research and interventions in making mental health care more accessible, affordable and effective globally with a focus on challenges, opportunities and ethical concerns in this field.
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Summary: Individuals with intellectual disabilities who might have been previously placed into segregated institutions now live independently in the community, supported by the necessary community care services. Nevertheless, social inclusion can be deemed successful only if they can positively interact with the various microsystems of the community. The disruption of social service provision due to the COVID-19 pandemic allowed us to evaluate other systems of support in the community. By adopting a bioecological perspective, qualitative methods are used to examine the interactions between people with intellectual disabilities and their social environment during the pandemic primarily based on focus group sessions with 17 social workers and 12 caregivers. Findings: Three overarching themes are identified through a thematic analysis: (1) limited social ties with the community that could provide support;(2) professional support as the main source of assistance;and (3) limited resources on how to care for people with intellectual disabilities. Applications: The results show that unilateral systems of support with limited participation of other systems lead people with intellectual disabilities to live segregated lives, even though they reside in the community. To fully realize the right of inclusion in society of all people with intellectual disabilities, further efforts are required to promote informal social care for people with intellectual disabilities. There is a need for a shared-care model that provides care in the community by the community through the establishment of neighborly relations and expansion of the social networks of people with intellectual disabilities. © The Author(s) 2023.
ABSTRACT
Inclusive employment opportunities for individuals living with disabilities have been an ongoing issue in society, creating barriers and challenges for this community. Digital assistive technologies (DAT) are, and continue to be, helpful tools in aiding in this inclusivity, but they have not always been accessible to all. The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, where online work became the "new normal", has bought this into sharp focus, giving individuals access and the ability to utilize different online tools that support individuals living with various disabilities in doing work. To better understand the current context concerning DATs and remote working for individuals living with disabilities, we conducted a scoping review in 2021/2022. We identified relevant papers that aided in identifying validated digital assistive technologies. Our study aims to continue supporting individuals living with disabilities to access the technology needed to join, or remain within, the workforce and work towards dismantling barriers that prevent this. © 2023 Owner/Author.
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Background: Community-based inclusive development (CBID) acknowledges society's critical role in supporting the active participation of persons with disabilities. However, research on how this approach relates to the context-sensitive socially situated barriers of disability stigma is underexplored. Objectives: This study aimed to understand the drivers and experiences of disability stigma in Ethiopia, from the perspective of persons with disabilities engaged in CBID programmes, and to establish how disability stigma acts as a barrier to participation. Methods: An inductive methodological approach guided the research design. Mixed methods were used including a narrative review of disabilities studies literature, 16 semi-structured interviews with persons with disabilities, and a quantitative survey of 970 persons with disabilities across three communities in Ethiopia. Results: Informed by theories of epistemic justice, this study identified specific indicators of meaningful participation and examined how these relate to experiences of disability stigma. The study found that the participation of adults with disabilities in society is restricted across different areas of life. Misconceptions about the causes of disability and social perceptions regarding the capacities of persons with disabilities are found to exacerbate stigma and act as a barrier to participation. Conclusion: Targeted efforts to challenge internalised norms and harmful beliefs within CBID approaches are required to address disadvantages arising from embedded disability stigma. Contribution: This study makes conceptual, empirical and practical contributions that advance insights into the relationship between disability stigma and participation in Ethiopia and the dimensions of epistemic justice relevant to understanding the nature and drivers of disability stigma.
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Why Public Space Matters examines how public space contributes to individual and societal flourishing. Based on thirty-five years of ethnographic fieldwork on plazas, walkways, parks, markets, and beaches in the United States, Costa Rica, Argentina, India, Kenya, and France, it presents a new understanding of the role of social contact, public culture, and affective atmosphere in the creation of places essential to everyday urban life. This multimethod inquiry emphasizes the importance of public space to social justice and democratic practices sustained through people's experience of representation, recognition of difference, inclusion, and care, as well as opportunities for contestation and resistance. Cases studies demonstrate how public space provides a context for socialization of children and improves physical and mental well-being by encouraging walking and sports as well as access to natural landscapes. Sidewalks, parks, and plazas offer business opportunities through public markets and informal selling, and locations for festivals and celebrations that promote a sense of belonging and place attachment as well as transmit cultural practices. Parks, urban gardens, and waterways construct sustainable greenways for water retention and wildlife and improve ecosystem services. During disasters, public spaces become locations of social solidarity and support. In New York City, public spaces expanded to accommodate almost all needs and services during the COVID-19 pandemic. This book aims to realign urban priorities by highlighting the importance of public space for socially just cities and encouraging local activism with an ethnographic methods toolkit (TESS) for undertaking community research to address public space problems. © Oxford University Press 2023.
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The World Wide Web has become an important platform for sharing a wide array of information within the world community. In the post-COVID-19 scenario, the web become a primary source of information in the context of healthcare information dissemination. Healthcare institutions, such as hospitals and clinics, utilize this platform to provide services to reach their target users. It is essential to evaluate the web pages of healthcare institutions and compute their accessibility score for people with disabilities or special needs. This paper presents a variable-magnitude approach to compute the accessibility score of healthcare web pages, considering several requirements of people with disabilities. To compute the accessibility score through the proposed approach, we considered two different components and integrated them to compute the accessibility score through the proposed algorithm. The proposed approach was experimentally applied to sixteen healthcare institutes' web pages in Hungary. Based on the experiment's results and the received feedback from an accessibility specialist, a set of suggestions is provided to minimize the accessibility barrier and improve the accessibility score for people with disabilities to access web resources without difficulty. The main contribution of this work is in enhancing awareness of web platform accessibility for web practitioners to improve accessibility, so that people with disabilities can effectively access web resources. © 2023 by the authors.
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Social work practice is a helping profession that adopts skills and theories of human behavioral and social systems in resolving social problems. The Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) as a pandemic have ravaged the world causing millions of infections and close to two million deaths globally. This article has the objective of exploring the role of social workers in the outbreak of a pandemic thereby preparing the social work profession for future outbreaks. The social work profession plays huge roles in providing awareness, psychosocial support, and advocating for social inclusion for the most vulnerable population. Also design and implementation of interventions that will positively impact the lives of the vulnerable population and the society at large are the hallmark of social work profession. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: To evaluate a dog-walking program (called "Dog Buddies") designed to address the need for evidence-based programs that create opportunities for people with cognitive disabilities to be more socially included in mainstream society. The research question was: Does community dog walking foster social interaction for people with cognitive disabilities? MATERIALS AND METHODS: Single-case experimental design was used with four individuals (three with intellectual disability; one with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)) recruited via two disability service providers in Victoria. Target behaviours included frequency and nature of encounters between the person with disability and community members. Change was measured from baseline (five community meetings with a handler but no dog) to intervention period (five meetings minimum, with a handler and a dog). Semi-structured interviews, audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim, provided three participants' subjective experiences of the program. RESULTS: Dog Buddies increased the frequency of encounters for all participants. The presence of the dog helped to foster convivial encounters, community members were found to be more welcoming, and some participants were recognised or acknowledged by name over time in the intervention phase. CONCLUSIONS: The dog-walking program offered a simple means of influencing the frequency and depth of community-based social interactions for people with cognitive disabilities.IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONThe co-presence of people with disabilities in the community with the general population does not ensure social interaction occurs.Both disability policy, and the programs or support that is provided to people with disabilities, needs to have a strong commitment to the inclusion of people with disabilities in mainstream communities.Dog Buddies is a promising example of a program where the presence of a pet dog has been demonstrated to support convivial, bi-directional encounters of people with cognitive disabilities and other community members.Dog-walking offers a simple means of influencing the frequency and depth of community-based social interactions for people with cognitive disabilities.
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BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic triggered rapid and unprecedented changes in the use of digital technologies to support people's social inclusion. We examined whether and how co-resident and non-co-resident family carers of people with dementia engaged with digital technologies during this period. METHODS: Throughout November 2020-February 2021, we interviewed 42 family carers of people with dementia from our DETERMIND-C19 cohort. Preliminary analysis was conducted through Framework analysis, followed by an inductive thematic analysis. FINDINGS: Digital technologies served as a Facilitator for social inclusion by enabling carers to counter the effects of the differing restrictions imposed on them so they could remain socially connected and form a sense of solidarity, access resources and information, engage in social and cultural activities and provide support and independence in their caring role. However, these experiences were not universal as carers discussed some Challenges for tech inclusion, which included preferences for face-to-face contact, lack of technological literacy and issues associated with the accessibility of the technology. CONCLUSION: Many of the carers engaged with Information and Communication Technologies, and to a lesser extent Assistive Technologies, during the pandemic. Whilst carers experienced different challenges due to where they lived, broadly the use of these devices helped them realise important facets of social inclusion as well as facilitated the support they provided to the person with dementia. However, to reduce the 'digital divide' and support the social inclusion of all dementia carers, our findings suggest it is essential that services are attuned to their preferences, needs and technological abilities.