Home-Based Reiki by Informal Caregivers: A Mixed-Methods Pilot Study.

This pilot study explored whether Reiki delivered by family caregivers to cancer patients in a home setting was feasible in reducing cancer symptoms and enhancing health-related outcomes. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods study design was applied using pre-/post-Reiki questionnaires and post-Reiki interviews. Six patient-caregiver dyads from an outpatient clinic and cancer support facilities in northeast America performed daily Reiki at home for 3 weeks. Differences with symptoms, mental well-being, health-related quality of life, and satisfaction with at-home Reiki as well as qualitative content analyses were evaluated. Positive feedback was reported after at-home Reiki practice. Large statistical effects were identified for improving fatigue, memory, mood, nausea, and emotional well-being ( P < .10, r = 0.51-0.59). All participants were satisfied and 83.3% of them would recommend self-practice home Reiki. High involvement and adherence to the intervention protocol illustrated intervention fidelity. The qualitative data revealed 2 major categories, perceived benefits and barriers. Overall Reiki benefits outweighed barriers in relation to time commitment and place distractions/positioning. Our preliminary findings support that the at-home Reiki protocol had potential benefits and was feasible and acceptable by both community-dwelling patients and their family caregivers in promoting cancer-related outcomes. Further studies with larger samples are warranted to examine the effectiveness of home-based Reiki for a patient-centered cancer care modality.

Parental relationships beyond the grave: Adolescents' descriptions of continued bonds.

OBJECTIVE: Many people experience an ongoing relationship with a deceased loved one. This is called a "continued bond." However, little is known about the adolescent experience with continued bonds once a parent has died. This study describes three ways that adolescents continue their relationship with a parent after that parent's death. METHOD: Individual semistructured interviews were conducted with nine adolescent children of deceased hospice patients from a large hospice in northeastern Ohio as part of a larger grounded-theory study. The interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using a conventional content analysis approach. RESULTS: Adolescents continued their bonds with deceased parents in one of three ways: experiencing encounters with the deceased parent, listening to the inner guide of the parent, and keeping mementos to remind them of the parent. SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS: The ways that the adolescents continued their bond with a deceased parent assisted them in creating meaning out of their loss and adjusting to life without that parent. Our results can be used by health professionals and parents to help adolescents after a parent has died.

Proximal antecedents to violent events in adolescent dating relationships.

Dating violence affects 25-60% of adolescents. This study developed a typology of proximal antecedents to violent events in adolescent dating relationships. Descriptions of 307 dating violence events were extracted from transcribed interviews with 87 young adults who experienced dating violence as adolescents. Verbatim text preceding the description of each violent event was identified as a proximal antecedent. Cross-case analysis was used to develop a typology of five antecedent categories: "pulling away,"  "demanding obedience," "discovering involvement with a rival," "defining the relationship," "demonstrating disrespect." Practitioners can use this typology to engage teens in discussions of factors that precede dating violence events.