Background

Nurse migration impacts global healthcare, which has a shortage of nurses, as many nurses move from lower-income to higher-income countries for better opportunities, working conditions, and salaries. Internationally educated nurses (IENs) have often been seen as a crucial solution to this issue. However, policies and regulations have been set in place to protect the public, including the recertification process and training to ensure educational comparability and competence. IENs’ contributions to the nursing workforce are significant, underscoring the importance of these policies and regulations.

Aim

The aim was to describe the demographic and social characteristics of IENs who had completed recertification for nurses’ licenses in Sweden and to compare these characteristics among those who completed recertification through the National Board of Health and Welfare (NBHW) or bridging programs.

Methods

A cross-sectional design using a survey and 818 questionnaires was sent to IENs with an identified postal address who had undergone the recertification process in Sweden. Of them, 296 (38%) were completed. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, Fischer's exact tests, and independent sample t-tests.

Results

Most IENs who had participated in a bridging program were women, commonly aged between 31 and 40 years of age who had immigrated mainly from Asian or Middle Eastern countries for family-related reasons. The average time to obtain a nursing license was 5.9 years, starting from the year they immigrated until recertification. IENs who received recertification by the NBHW were significantly younger (p < .001), had been in Sweden for a shorter time (p < .001), and the time to license was shorter (p < .001). Significant differences were also shown for origin (p < .001) and reason for immigration (p < .001).

Conclusions

The findings can be used by decision-makers and authorities when developing higher education strategies for legalization and immigration policy to contribute to IENs’ career advancement opportunities.

Aim: To elucidate the meaning of being a close relative of a critically ill person cared for in intensive care during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design: A narrative inquiry design following the COREQ guidelines.

Methods: Individual interviews with fifteen close relatives of patients critically ill with COVID-19 were analysed using phenomenological hermeneutics.

Results: The surreal existence of not being allowed to be near was emotionally difficult. While distancing due to restrictions was challenging, physicians' phone calls served as a connection to their relatives and brought a sense of security. Keeping notes helped them remember what happened and brought order to a chaotic situation.

Conclusion: Close relatives feel secure when they receive regular information about their critically ill relative, not just when their condition worsens. They wish to be physically near to their critically ill person; when this is impossible, digital technology can provide support, but further accessibility developments are needed.

Introduction: Studies of older women’s life transitions is rare but gains relevance as the aging population, with older women as the majority, expands.

Purpose: To explore the meaning of a good life for older widows with extensive home care needs.

Materials and methods: Semi-structured interviews were carried out with eleven women, aged 80 and over (82–95 years, mean 90) residing at home with extensive care needs (≥4 daily sessions, averaging 2.5–6 hours, mean 3). Data were analysed by reflexive thematic analysis.

Results: The theme “This Day in My Home, the frame of my life” reflects the women’s experience of a good life. A good day imbued them with hope, trust and security, carrying them forward with the assurance that night would usher in a new day. However, there were moments when life was merely about navigating daily challenges. During such days, the women felt trapped in time, unsafe and lonely.

Conclusion: A day at home may seem static, yet it mirrors life’s dynamism, evolving with shifting circumstances. Older widows navigate challenges while maintaining their sense of self, independence, and connection to home. These findings have implications for aged care, recognizing the multifaceted aspects of life and the centrality of home.

IntroductionBeing critically ill in need of intensive care, lead to a challenging way back after survival, so also for survivors of COVID-19. The process to recovery can be long.ObjectivesThe aim of our qualitative study was to elucidate meanings of recovery for people who were once critically ill with COVID-19.MethodWe conducted qualitative individual interviews with 13 individuals who had been critically ill with COVID-19, following a narrative approach. The data collected from the interviews, were analyzed according to phenomenological hermeneutic interpretation.ResultsThe participants, although feeling alone in the process of recovery, had willpower to return to normal life but struggled to keep pace with others. They strived for balance in everyday life and to regain strength despite being exhausted after having COVID-19. The participants were grateful for their survival but displayed a need to understand what had happened. They longed for social contact, expressed feelings of abandonment, and wished for follow-up dialogues with healthcare professionals to better understand their situation. However, because support from healthcare was insufficient, the participants ultimately needed to develop their own strategies to cope with their questions, fears, and weakness.ConclusionMeanings of recovery for people once critically ill with COVID-19, is to strive for balance in everyday life. In their recovery process, healthcare professionals should seek to understand what the illness means for the ill person, and in mutual understanding support them based on their needs.

Stress-related illness is a common and increasing cause for sick leave in Sweden. Spending time in nature reduces stress and promotes health and well-being. Accordingly, nature-based interventions (NBI) for people with stress-related illness have been developed and implemented in southern Scandinavia; however, such interventions are uncommon in the Circumpolar North. Previous studies have examined the effects and experiences of participating in NBI, but research about different stakeholders’ perspectives on NBI is lacking. The aim of this study was to explore different key stakeholders’ perceptions of the value of NBI in promoting health in people with stress-related illness. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 11 persons with stress-related illness experience, 14 healthcare professionals, and 11 entrepreneurs offering NBI. Qualitative content analysis resulted in four categories: Providing opportunity for recovery, Offering new perspectives and opportunity for reflection, Empowering balance and control in life, and Enabling one to overcome barriers. Although the study was conducted in a region where NBI is not widely implemented, the different stakeholders expressed similar perceptions of the value of NBI, indicating that NBI may be a valuable complement to health care which reaches people with stress-related illness needs and promotes their health. 

Purpose

This study explored the experiences of people with stress-related illness participating in a nature-based intervention programme in a northern natural setting.

Methods

A longitudinal case study was conducted with two women participating in a nature-based intervention programme on a farm. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews, diaries, rating scales, and self-assessment. Qualitative data were analysed by qualitative content analysis and quantitative data are presented descriptively.

Results

The theme of finding a source for recovery and well-being permeates all categories. The participants perceived the farm and nature to be a calming refuge; they learned to be in the present and could manage the tasks. In togetherness with each other and the facilitator on the farm they felt understood and confident, experienced joy, and found opportunities for change. They gained knowledge and positive memories and found new approaches in life. Self-assessment questionnaires indicated improvements of functioning in everyday life and reduced stress-related exhaustion at the end of the NBI programme.

Conclusions

Nature-based interventions lasting for a relatively short period seem to promote health and may be a complement to other treatments of stress-related illness. Further research is needed with a larger number of participants and in various natural settings.PurposeThis study explored the experiences of people with stress-related illness participating in a nature-based intervention programme in a northern natural setting.