46 research outputs found
It is like ‘judging a book by its cover’: An exploration of the lived experiences of Black African mental health nurses in England
No full text© 2021 The Author. Published by Wiley. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence.
The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1111/nin.12436The aim of this paper was to explore the experiences of perceived prejudices faced in England by Black African mental health nurses. Purposive sampling was used to identify five nurses from sub-Saharan Africa. They were interviewed using face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). The findings were reported under two superordinate themes: Judging a book by its cover and opportunities. The findings showed that Black African nurses experience deep-rooted discrimination and marginalisation. Aside from that, because of their ethnicity and the fact that they speak English as a second language, they face discrimination and have difficulty achieving leadership roles. These findings provide key stakeholders, such as nursing trade unions and professional associations, as well as NHS employers, with the opportunity to act to counter hegemony in the NHS and recognise that discriminatory and racially related barriers hinder Black African nurses from reaching their full professional potential
'They tried to evil me': an explanatory model for Black Africans’ mental health challenges
No full text© 2023 The author. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1111/nin.12602This paper explores the explanatory models of mental challenges among Black Africans in England. It argues that understanding these models is critical for providing culturally appropriate care to this population. The study employed qualitative methodology, and Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). 12 mental health service users who are living in England and self-identified as first or second-generation black Africans were purposively selected. The data was gathered using face-to-face semi-structured interviews. Data was manually analyzed in accordance with IPA concepts of searching for common, unique, and idiosyncratic themes across transcripts. The findings revealed three themes black Africans associated to their explanatory model of mental health challenges: complexities of migration, African-centred worldview, and negative life experiences. To help alleviate the Eurocentric nature of mental health practice in England, it is hoped that this explanatory model will become an integral part of mental health practice in the England and around the world
Reflections of a black African insider researcher
No full textBackground: There is a growing body of literature providing reflective accounts and critical examination of the challenges faced by insider researchers. However, there is little research about the specific challenges that black African insider nurse researchers face.
Aim: To reflect on the complexities black African insider nurse researchers face in the context of research sites, participants and the interpretation of data.
Discussion: Insider researchers are susceptible to various entanglements and dilemmas. Belonging to the same racial and cultural backgrounds as participants is advantageous, although caution is needed. Adoption of the emergent reflective model as an archetypal template can help future
insider researchers considerably.
Conclusion: Being an insider researcher comes with advantages and disadvantages. Entanglement and role ambiguity are some of the disadvantages. However, unspoken understandings with the participants provide insightful meanings into their experiences.
Implication for practice: Reflectivity is crucial to the quality and rigour of qualitative studies. The challenge for future insider researchers is to show explicit awareness, tactfulness, sensitivity, commitment and rigour in their research
‘There is anointing everywhere': An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the role of religion in the recovery of black African service users in England
No full textIntroduction
Religion is an important impetus for recovery. However, there has been little work examining the role of religion in recovery for black African service users (BASUs) in England.
Aim
The aim of this study is to explore how religion influences recovery from mental illness for BASUs in England.
Method
12 black African service users were purposively selected and interviewed using face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews. Data was analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).
Results
The study generates fascinating insights that BASUs views about mental illness and recovery are influenced by Pentecostalism and traditional African healing systems.
Discussion
The participants' perceptions of their mental illness experiences and recovery which are characterised by the pragmatism of Pentecostalism and cultural beliefs are consistent with what is reported in the literature.
Implications for Practice
The findings of the study show that broad changes are needed to accommodate the religious coping of BASUs in their recovery journey
The concept of recovery and its practical application
No full textRecovery is a contested concept and definitions of it are scattered across various contexts and disciplines, contributing to the confusion that surrounds it. This article explores various conceptualisations of recovery and proposes a pragmatic way of viewing it as distributed across a continuum of clinical, social and personal domains. It also suggests the need to conceptualise recovery from the perspectives of different cultures
A critical overview of interpretative phenomenological analysis: a contemporary qualitative research approach
No full textContext: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) has become a dominant qualitative research methodology in many academic disciplines. The desire to understand the theoretical underpinnings of this research approach is evident.
Objective: This paper is aimed at providing an overview and limitations of IPA. This paper will hopefully equip researchers when deciding on the appropriate research methodology to their research topic.
Methods: A range of literature on qualitative research approach and phenomenology is reviewed. The relevant literature on the theoretical underpinnings of IPA are examined.
Results: The article illuminates that IPA represents a highly useful methodology in providing a rich and nuance insight into the experiences of research participants.
Conclusion: IPA is a forward-looking research approach that adopts a flexible and versatile design to understand people’s experiences
Let's talk about the negative experiences of black mental health service users in England: now is the moment to consider watchful waiting to support their recovery
No full textThis is an accepted manuscript of an article published by Wiley in Nursing Inquiry on 28/12/2021, available online: https://doi.org/10.1111/nin.12484
The accepted version of the publication may differ from the final published version.Watchful waiting is a concept that is traditionally not associated with severe and enduring mental illness. This paper, however, boldly argues that the concept could be used as a ground-breaking and accessible antidote to the perceived inequality experienced by black service users experiencing both mild and severe mental illnesses in England. The novel concepts proposed in this paper are not intended to be consensual, but rather uncompromising to provoke critical thinking in mental health practice. A conceptual framework for watchful waiting in mental health is suggested
Modulatory Effects of Deacetylated Sialic Acids on Breast Cancer Resistance Protein-mediated Multidrug Resistance and Receptor Tyrosine Kinase-targeted Therapy
No full textMultidrug resistance (MDR) remains a major challenge in cancer treatment, accounting for over 90% of chemotherapeutic failures. Cancers utilize sugar residues to engage in multidrug resistance. The underlying mechanism of action involving glycans, specifically the glycan sialic acid (Sia) and its various functional group alterations, has not been explored. ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter proteins, key proteins utilized by cancers to engage in MDR pathways, contain Sias in their extracellular domains. Modulating the expression of acetylated-Sias on Breast Cancer Resistance Protein (BCRP), a significant ABC transporter implicated in MDR, in lung and colon cancer cells directly impacted the ability of cancer cells to either retain or efflux chemotherapeutics. Acetylation was modulated by the removal of CAS1 Domain-containing protein (CASD1) and Sialate O-Acetyl esterase (SIAE) genes via CRISPR-Cas 9 gene editing. Using a variety of cell and molecular based approaches, we confirmed that deacetylated Sias regulated a MDR pathway in colon and lung cancer in early in vitro models. When deacetylated Sias were expressed on BCRP, colon and lung cancer were able to export high levels of BCRP to the cell’s surface, resulting in an increased BCRP efflux activity, reduced sensitivity to the anticancer drug Mitoxantrone, and high proliferation relative to control cells. These observations correlated with increased levels of cell survival proteins, BcL-2 and PARP1. Further studies also implicated the lysosomal pathway for the observed variation in BCRP levels among the cell variants. RNAseq data analysis of clinical samples revealed higher CASD1 expression as a favorable marker of survival in lung adenocarcinoma. Using same in vitro models, we further explored the role deacetylated Sia plays in the EGFR targeted therapy. Specifically, we investigated how deacetylated Sia modulated the activity of three characterized novel Cucurbitacin-Inspired Estrone analogs (CIEAs: MMA 294, MMA 321, and MMA 320) with potent anti-proliferative and dual inhibitory activities, targeting the EGFR and MAPK pathways. Compared to control cells, the CIEAs elicited a ˜2 to 17 -fold sensitivity, induced a G2/M cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in deacetylated Sia-expressing knockout cancer cells. Further studies implicated overexpression of CIEAs’ cognate protein target, phosphorylated EGFR, in the chemosensitivity of the deacetylated Sia-expressing knockout cells. This observation correlated with significantly decreased levels of key downstream proteins (phosphorylated ERK and mTOR) of the EGFR pathway in knockout cells compared with controls when treated with CIEAs. Collectively, our findings indicate that deacetylated Sia is utilized by colon and lung cancers to engage in MDR via overexpression and efflux action of BCRP and renders lung and colon cancer cells susceptible to EGFR therapeutics. This study provides great insights for future therapeutic interventions
Using feedback from nursing students to co-create teaching and improve the learning experience
No full text© 2023 The Authors. Published by Innovation Forever Publishing Group Limited. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://www.innovationforever.com/article.jmnpr20230064Objective: To use feedback from students in mental health nursing as a step towards co-creating teaching and to improve learning experience. Methods: During a teaching session, feedback was obtained from a group of 20 final year mental health nursing students. The data were analyzed using interpretive description methodology. Results: The students were enthusiastic and eager to engage in the co-creation project. Students indicated co-creation strengthened their agency and learning experience. Conclusion: The students’ feedback showed that in a collaborative and non-hierarchical classroom setting, self-confidence and learning experiences are improved. There is a need for nursing academics to change their mindsets and have the confidence in the classroom to bring about pedagogical innovations
