[Loan of services developing palliative care skills based on the apprentice model]. / La mesure de prêt de services. Le développement des compétences en soins palliatifs basé sur le modèle d'apprenti.

For over 25 years, the Maison Michel-Sarrazin, a private palliative care institution in the Quebec City region, has had an original agreement with other establishments in the healthcare network (hospitals, long-term residential centres and CLSCs), in the form of the loan of nursing services. Based on the findings of a study as part of a research program, this article describes the loan of nursing services and qualitatively assesses its effects on the development of nurses' palliative care skills. An evaluative descriptive approach based on two conceptual frameworks (Giddens; Patton) was used to compile the views of 79 players. The findings demonstrate the innovative nature of the loan of nursing services and its considerable influence on the development of nursing skills, thanks to training based on the apprenticeship model (learning through observation and imitation), and on nursing practice at the Maison Michel-Sarrazin. Nevertheless, the controversy surrounding training using the apprenticeship model and the lack of recognition of this training on the part of the lending institutions raise questions despite the general satisfaction with the loan of nursing services.

The benefits of a palliative care network: a case study in Quebec, Canada.

This article aims to present the beneficial effects associated with the local implementation of an integrated network in palliative care, as perceived by diverse constituency groups. A case study was conducted in the province of Quebec, Canada, using individual (n=16) and group (n=16) interviews, with a total of 106 participants (i.e. managers and formal and informal caregivers). From a content analysis, two categories of beneficial effects emerged: those associated with professional practice and those with patient services. The most important effects of this organisational initiative were found to be the recognition of the palliative care domain necessitating specialized competencies, an improved interdisciplinary collaboration, and more efficient circulation of information between care settings, as well as improved accessibility, continuity and quality of care and services to patients at the end of life.

Living in the community while waiting for an admission in long-term care: satisfaction with a transitional nursing home project.

This qualitative study took place in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The main objective was to evaluate satisfaction with a transitional program aimed at keeping seniors in the community while waiting for admission to a public long-term care facility. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 4 types of informants: seniors, family members, facility managers, and hospital or community care coordinators. Results show that satisfaction varies according to groups of informants but seniors are the most satisfied of all.

[Social representation of pregnancy in adolescence: appraisal of dominant attitudes and others of negative impact]. / Les représentations sociales de la grossesse à l'adolescence: des prises de position dominantes et d'autres...déstabilisantes.

This study was undertaken to gather information on the social representations of teenage pregnancy among adolescents, aged between 15 and 17. Eighteen focus groups were conducted among 150 boys and girls. The data were subjected to a qualitative content analysis. Results show that youths did not form homogeneous groups. The points of view expressed gave rise to 4 dimensions (emotive, reflexive, psychobiological, economic-social) and 4 positions (negative, positive, ambivalent and dynamic). From these dimensions and positions, 4 representations of teenage pregnancy were identified: pregnancy as a problem, pregnancy as a project, pregnancy as a source of tension, and pregnancy as a source of power. This study illustrates the importance of educative strategies such as going beyond alarmist preventive messages, opening dialogue with and between youngsters, and promoting social support and mutual aid.