Perceptions and values of care professionals are critical in successfully implementing technology in health care. The aim of this study was threefold: (1) to explore the main values of health care professionals, (2) to investigate the perceived influence of the technologies regarding these values, and (3) the accumulated views of care professionals with respect to the use of technology in the future. In total, 51 professionals were interviewed. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was applied. All care professionals highly valued being able to satisfy the needs of their care recipients. Mutual inter-collegial respect and appreciation of supervisors was also highly cherished. The opportunity to work in a careful manner was another important value. Conditions for the successful implementation of technology involved reliability of the technology at hand, training with team members in the practical use of new technology, and the availability of a help desk. Views regarding the future of health care were mainly related to financial cut backs and with a lower availability of staff. Interestingly, no spontaneous thoughts about the role of new technology were part of these views. It can be concluded that professionals need support in relating technological solutions to care recipients' needs. The role of health care organisations, including technological expertise, can be crucial here.
The realization of human rights standards depends in part on the commitment of local actors. It can be argued that local public service professionals such as social workers can also be regarded as key players. The possible role of social workers becomes imperative if these professionals are working in a policy context that is not congruent with human rights. If existing laws or policies cause or maintain disrespect for human rights, social workers are in a position to observe that this is having an adverse impact on clients. When social workers are regarded as human rights actors, the question arises how they can or should respond to law and policy that impedes them in carrying out their work with respect for human rights. This article adds to existing theories on social workers as human rights actors by examining the practices of social professionals working in such a challenging policy context. The research took place among professionals in social district teams in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands. Following a series of decentralizations and austerity measures the social care landscape in the Netherlands has changed drastically over the last few years. As a result, social workers may find themselves on the one hand trying to realize the best possible care for their clients while on the other hand dealing with new laws and policy expectations focused on self-reliance and diminished access to specialist care. The article explores how social professionals’ responses to barriers in access to care affect human rights requirements. In doing so, this socio-legal study provides insight into the ways in which everyday social work relates to the realization of human rights at the local level.
The guidance offered here is intended to assist social workers in thinking through the specific ethical challenges that arise whilst practising during a pandemic or other type of crisis. In crisis conditions, people who need social work services, and social workers themselves, face increased and unusual risks. These challenging conditions are further compounded by scarce or reallocated governmental and social resources. While the ethical principles underpinning social work remain unchanged by crises, unique and evolving circumstances may demand that they be prioritised differently. A decision or action that might be regarded as ethically wrong in ‘normal’ times, may be judged to be right in a time of crisis. Examples include: prioritising individual and public health considerations by restricting people’s freedom of movement; not consulting people about treatment and services; or avoiding face-to-face meetings.
MULTIFILE
Manual labour is an important cornerstone in manufacturing and considering human factors and ergonomics is a crucial field of action from both social and economic perspective. Diverse approaches are available in research and practice, ranging from guidelines, ergonomic assessment sheets over to digitally supported workplace design or hardware oriented support technologies like exoskeletons. However, in the end those technologies, methods and tools put the working task in focus and just aim to make manufacturing “less bad” with reducing ergonomic loads as much as possible. The proposed project “Human Centered Smart Factories: design for wellbeing for future manufacturing” wants to overcome this conventional paradigm and considers a more proactive and future oriented perspective. The underlying vision of the project is a workplace design for wellbeing that makes labor intensive manufacturing not just less bad but aims to provide positive contributions to physiological and mental health of workers. This shall be achieved through a human centered technology approach and utilizing advanced opportunities of smart industry technologies and methods within a cyber physical system setup. Finally, the goal is to develop smart, shape-changing workstations that self-adapt to the unique and personal, physical and cognitive needs of a worker. The workstations are responsive, they interact in real time, and promote dynamic activities and varying physical exertion through understanding the context of work. Consequently, the project follows a clear interdisciplinary approach and brings together disciplines like production engineering, human interaction design, creative design techniques and social impact assessment. Developments take place in an industrial scale test bed at the University of Twente but also within an industrial manufacturing factory. Through the human centered design of adaptive workplaces, the project contributes to a more inclusive and healthier society. This has also positive effects from both national (e.g. relieve of health system) as well as individual company perspective (e.g. less costs due to worker illness, higher motivation and productivity). Even more, the proposal offers new business opportunities through selling products and/or services related to the developed approach. To tap those potentials, an appropriate utilization of the results is a key concern . The involved manufacturing company van Raam will be the prototypical implementation partner and serve as critical proof of concept partner. Given their openness, connections and broad range of processes they are also an ideal role model for further manufacturing companies. ErgoS and Ergo Design are involved as methodological/technological partners that deal with industrial engineering and ergonomic design of workplace on a daily base. Thus, they are crucial to critically reflect wider applicability and innovativeness of the developed solutions. Both companies also serve as multiplicator while utilizing promising technologies and methods in their work. Universities and universities of applied sciences utilize results through scientific publications and as base for further research. They also ensure the transfer to education as an important leverage to inspire and train future engineers towards wellbeing design of workplaces.
Individuals are increasingly confronted with ‘diseases of modernity’, such as stress and burnout. While insights from the work-family interface have mainly pointed towards demands and resources coming from the work and nonwork domains, the proposed multi-method PhD research project aims to contribute to contemporary scholarly and societal work-life and burnout debates by presenting an alternative theoretical lens on the development of mental health complaints in today’s society, especially among the younger Millennial generation. The project aims to shed light on how and why Millennial employees engage in a so-called ‘work/nonwork image (re)construction process’.The project will reflect on the following questions:How, why and when do individual workers engage in a process in which they construct their image(s) in the work and nonwork domains? What are the relationships, if any, between the image (re)construction process individuals engage in and potential positive- and negative consequences?The findings are expected to have important implications not only for preventive measures for individuals and organizations, but also for possible avenues for future studies. Project Partner: Nyenrode Business Universiteit
Jaarlijks sterven in Nederland ongeveer 165.000 mensen. Kanker, orgaanfalen en dementie zijn de meest voorkomende doodsoorzaken. Ongeveer 80% van de mensen overlijdt verwacht, dus na weken tot jaren leven in de palliatieve fase van hun ziekte. Vrijwel allemaal hebben zij en hun naasten in de laatste levensfase behoefte aan palliatieve zorg: interdisciplinaire, multidimensionele, proactieve zorg gericht op kwaliteit van leven van mensen met een levensbedreigende aandoening of kwetsbaarheid—en hun naasten. Pas sinds eind vorige eeuw wordt structureel en op verschillende manieren gewerkt aan het verbeteren van de kwaliteit van leven voor mensen met palliatieve zorgbehoeften en het verbeteren van de toegankelijkheid ervan. HBO-professionals als verpleegkundigen, social workers en paramedici spelen in het verlenen van palliatieve zorg een cruciale rol. Er ontbreken echter kennis, hulpmiddelen en handelingsperspectieven om alle mensen in de palliatieve fase met vertrouwen hulp te bieden. De stappen die al gezet zijn in de driehoek onderwijs, onderzoek en praktijk vragen om meer samenhang, bekendheid en aandacht. De hogescholen willen daarom in dit nieuwe Landelijk Lectorenplatform Palliatieve Zorg samenwerken om meer (gezamenlijk) praktijkgericht onderzoek uit te voeren, de praktijk toe te rusten en het onderwijs te voeden en te ontwikkelen. Ook gaan we bouwen aan een infrastructuur waarop samenwerking met lokale gemeenschappen en het openbare leven (lokale overheden, religieuze organisaties, werkgevers, scholen, kunst en cultuur) geïnitieerd en bevorderd wordt. Door het bundelen van krachten en het praktijkgerichte karakter van de samenwerking zal juist de palliatieve zorg in de eigen leefomgeving verbeterd worden. Het platform sluit aan bij de vanuit Health Holland ontwikkelde Kennis- en Innovatieagenda 2020 – 2023 ‘Gezondheid en Zorg’. Ook past het bij het Nationaal Programma Palliatieve Zorg – II en het programma PALLIANTIE – II (ZonMw). De bestaande samenwerking van lectoren en andere hogeschoolonderzoekers met de Stichting Onderzoek Palliatieve Zorg Nederland (PALZON) wordt verstevigd.
