"It is my destiny as a woman": on becoming a new mother in Indonesia.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study was to provide a greater understanding of the experience of the new Indonesian mother. DESIGN: This study was a hermeneutic phenomenological study. Data were obtained from 13 first time Indonesian mothers through semi-structured interviews. FINDINGS: Two main themes were identified: "trying to be a good mother " and "confirming my destiny as a woman." A number of subthemes were identified to understand of how women in rural West Java perceived the meaning of being a new mother. These themes and subthemes described the woman's responsibilities as a new mother and some of the challenges that she accepted as a part of her destiny. CONCLUSION: This study provides nurses and others with insights into the experiences of Indonesian women with early motherhood, their feelings about taking on the mothering role, and some of their needs during this period.

Understanding the role of communities of practice in evidence-informed decision making in public health.

In this article we report on qualitative findings that describe public health practitioners' practice-based definitions of evidence-informed decision making (EIDM) and communities of practice (CoP), and how CoP could be a mechanism to enhance their capacity to practice EIDM. Our findings emerged from a qualitative descriptive analysis of group discussions and participant concept maps from two consensus-building workshops that were conducted with public health practitioners (N = 90) in two provinces in eastern Canada. Participants recognized the importance of EIDM and the significance of integrating explicit and tacit evidence in the EIDM process, which was enhanced by CoP. Tacit knowledge, particularly from peers and personal experience, was the preferred source of knowledge, with informal peer interactions being the favored form of CoP to support EIDM. CoP helped practitioners build relationships and community capacity, share and create knowledge, and build professional confidence and critical inquiry. Participants described individual and organizational attributes that were needed to enable CoP and EIDM.

The lived experience of fathers who have children with asthma: a phenomenological study.

Asthma is a common chronic illness of childhood and a major cause of school absenteeism and hospitalization. When a child is diagnosed with asthma, parents become responsible for the long-term management of a chronic condition that is characterized by unpredictable and irregular episodes. Much of the research concerning parenting children who have asthma had focused on mothers. Paternal experiences in caring for a child with asthma have received little attention. In this phenomenological study, van Manen's (Researching Lived Experience: Human Science for an Action Sensitive Pedagogy. The Althouse Press: London, ON) method of inquiry was used to explore the lived experience of fathers who have children with asthma. Eight fathers with children aged between 7 and 11 years who had been diagnosed with asthma were interviewed. Five themes were identified: feeling relief in knowing the diagnosis, learning the ropes, being vigilant, living with concern, and being comfortable with asthma management. Understanding the experience of fathers who have children with asthma and gaining insight into their needs and concerns are essential first steps to providing supportive nursing care.

A comparison of the mental health of employed and unemployed women in the context of a massive layoff.

The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of unemployment on the mental health of women in the context of massive unemployment. Comparisons were made between the level of mental distress experienced by unemployed and employed women, in two areas of Newfoundland, Canada that were affected by the northern cod moratorium. In addition, the relationships between women's mental distress and a number of variables were explored. Questionnaires were administered to 112 unemployed and 112 employed women three years after the moratorium began. The unemployed women reported significantly poorer mental well-being in the year prior to data collection. At the time of the study, however, both groups of women were experiencing high levels of distress. The moratorium, financial problems, and feelings of uncertainty were identified as key stressors for all the women, but especially for those without work. Among the working women, past experience with unemployment and level of education had significant correlations with their mental well-being.

Struggling to understand: the experience of nonsmoking parents with adolescents who smoke.

Smoking among adolescents is a major public health concern. Most parents would not want their children engaged in this risk-taking behavior. Although a majority of parents of smokers are themselves smokers, many are nonsmokers. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to understand what nonsmoking parents experience due to their adolescent children 's smoking behavior. The purposive sample consisted of 25 parents. The interview data generated the theory that nonsmoking parents struggle to understand their adolescents' smoking. They experienced four stages: discovering the smoking, facing the problem, reflecting, and waiting it out. Their experience can be examined from a stress paradigm. Programs are needed that provide parents with the knowledge and skills required for effective prevention and intervention strategies.