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Biomedical subjects

Z Ben-Sira

Publications and source records attributed to Z Ben-Sira.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Status inequality in the social worker-nurse collaboration in hospitals.

An Israeli pilot study among 34 social worker-nurse teams (team members working in the same hospital ward) was aimed at elucidating the conditions for promoting a milieu of collaboration between them. The data suggest that this collaboration is characterized by status-inequality, the nurse's dominance prevailing with respect to meeting the patient's psychosocial needs. Nurses view social workers mainly as fulfilling chores relating to the patients' instrumental needs that emanate from outside the hospital, while social workers, though overtly objecting to the nurses' dominance, still view the milieu as collaborative. Explanations are offered for this apparent contradiction. Possible implications are suggested regarding the consequences both for effectively meeting the patients' psychosocial needs and for the social workers' professional status in hospitals.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Primary care practitioners' likelihood to engage in a bio-psychosocial approach: an additional perspective on the doctor-patient relationship.

On the basis of a comprehensive study among Israeli primary care practitioners a multivariate framework aimed at furthering the understanding of salaried physicians' likelihood to engage in a bio-psychosocial approach has been developed and empirically verified. The framework augments earlier work on physicians' behavior by further specifying the concept of bio-psychosocial approach and the incentives and preconditions for such an approach. Multivariate analysis highlights the weight of the motivating, facilitating and impeding factors in shaping the primary care practitioners' likelihood to engage in a bio-psychosocial approach. Conclusions are drawn regarding implications for the organization of care providing organizations.

Affect↗
PubMed1990

The structure of readjustment after heart attack.

A comprehensive multivariate framework aimed at predicting the factors that enhance or impede readjustment after a heart attack, has been developed and empirically supported by a study among convalescents after heart attack. Application of multivariate techniques of data analysis revealed a 'structure' highlighting the relative weight of various 'demands' in impeding readjustment, and the relative significance of the individual's self-controlled resources in coping with these demands and thus enhance readjustment. The data further show the crucial role of the spouse in both enhancing resources and furthering readjustment. By distinguishing between three dimensions of readjustment--the affective, the instrumental, and the cognitive--the data further the understanding of the differential effects of various demands, resources, and spouse support on readjustment. The herein theoretically justified and empirically supported structure expands the earlier developed structure of readjustment of traumatically irreversible disabled persons, taking into consideration the peculiar situation of the convalescents after heart attack, the trilateral conceptualization of readjustment.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1988

Practice compatibility and type of framework: essential dimensions in the salaried primary care practitioners' approach to practice.

A multivariate paradigm, aimed at furthering the understanding of the factors underlying the devotion to practice of salaried primary care practitioners, has been developed and subjected to empirical verification. A study among a sample of Israeli primary care practitioners (N = 134) revealed an empirical structure of "Practice Compatibility', suggesting that the devotion to practice is conditioned by the clinical and professional role compatibility. Compatibility in turn is contingent on the practitioners' conviction in the sincerity of manifest health care oriented goals of the care-providing-framework. The herein developed notion of "Practice Compatibility' facilitated the distinction between types of employing frameworks according to the factors predicting the salaried primary care practitioners' devotion to practice. In this respect the contribution of the present study is in identifying the factors underlying the salaried practitioners' motivation to practice. However, contrary to the expected, practice compatibility does not predict the primary care practitioners' likelihood to demonstrate affective behavior. Thus the data were unable to repudiate earlier evidence regarding the significance of the private fee-for-service framework in predicting affective behavior.

Helping Behavior↗
PubMed1987

Social work in health care: needs, challenges and implications for structuring practice.

A structured multivariate practice model is proposed for improving social workers' capabilities to effectively satisfy patients' psychosocial needs. The model bases practice activities on an explicit theoretical framework. Using this approach may enhance the professional authority social work needs but which the biomedical framework of existing health care delivery systems frequently threatens: to autonomously make informed decisions to meet the psychosocial needs of populations at risk. The approach can also contribute to the development of an indigenous professional body of knowledge.

Health Services Needs and Demand↗
PubMed1986

The plight of primary medical care: the problematics of 'committedness' to the practice.

A multivariate paradigm, aimed at furthering the understanding of the factors underlying the problematics of practising primary medical care, has been developed and empirically supported. A study among a sample of Israeli primary care physicians and a comparison group of hospital physicians revealed an empirical 'structure of committedness', ascertaining that the committedness to practice primary care is contingent on the 'intrinsic' satisfaction and rewards as well as the 'extrinsic' rewards from the professional community (namely, prestige), derived from bio-medical (but not psycho-social) intervention activities. The data ascertain that salaried general practitioners and specialists employed in Sick Funds primary care clinics perceive themselves the least rewarded both intrinsically and extrinsically, and consequently the least committed to their field of practice. Specialists in family practice perceive themselves more rewarded, both intrinsically and extrinsically, the general practitioners (i.e. enjoy higher prestige), and hence are more committed to their field of practice.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed1986

Disability, stress and readjustment: the function of the professional's latent goals and affective behavior in rehabilitation.

The paper focuses on the factors which may possibly explain why rehabilitation agencies' assistance may eventually result in maladjustment--a conclusion inferred from recent studies on the readjustment of disabled persons. Multivariate analysis of data from a study among Israeli disabled war veterans ascertains that the rehabilitant's perception of the rehabilitator as pursuing a predominant though latent goal of promoting his/her own interests, constitutes a major factor in the intervention's detrimental outcomes. The rehabilitator's demonstration of 'affective' (sincerely humane) behavior, on the other hand, counteracts the eventually deleterious consequences. The study renders further support to the frequently emphasized significance of the rehabilitant's subjective assessment of the demands confronting him in their becoming stressors. The data ascertains that it is not the severity of the impairment itself, but rather the subjective assessment of its implication that may have stress-arousing consequences. The present study contributes a further development of the previously established paradigm of 'Readjustment of Disabled Persons', contributing to the understanding of the factors facilitating and impeding readjustment.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1985

Primary medical care and coping with stress and disease: the inclination of primary care practitioners to demonstrate affective behavior.

A study carried out among a sample of Israeli primary care practitioners ascertained that doctors are less inclined to demonstrate affective (humane) than instrumental (medical treatment) behavior toward patients. Data ascertain the contradiction between these components of behavior which is inherent in the primary care practitioner's frame of reference. Affective behavior, in the doctor's frame of reference, constitutes to a great extent both an impediment to medical performance as well as a possible threat to his dominance. Family medicine is not an exception in this case; in fact, it rather aggravates the contradiction between affective and instrumental behavior, and the threat to the family practitioner's dominance is even stronger. Data allude that only the enhancement of the practitioner's profit may further his inclination to demonstrate affective behavior. The importance of this study has to be understood in the light of accumulating evidence stressing the importance of the practitioner's affective behavior in alleviating anxiety and possible promotion of recovery.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1985

Potency: a stress-buffering link in the coping-stress-disease relationship.

A study carried out among a representative sample of Israeli adults was aimed at elucidating the factors which facilitate maintaining an individual's emotional homeostasis despite occasional failures in initially coping with stressors due to resource inadequacy. A feeling of potency, comprising confidence both in one's own capacities and in society which is perceived as basically ordered, predictable and meaningful, has been suggested as a stress-buffering intervening mechanism in the coping-stress-disease relationship. Data support the hypothesis that potency fulfils a tension-bounding function by weakening the association among the components of the coping-stress-health relationship, thus moderating the deleterious effect of occasional failures in coping on homeostasis and health. Data further alluded to potency being enhanced both by accumulation of successful coping experiences, and by social support.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1984

Chronic illness, stress and coping.

The study investigated the factors that may alleviate the emotional distress of chronically ill persons, enhance their coping capacity and prevent further acceleration of the deterioration in their condition. Based on recent approaches to breakdown and stress, the seriousness of a chronically ill person's situation was hypothesized as resulting from the inadequacy of the individual's and his primary group's coping resources and inexpediency of the professional emotional support. A study carried out among a representative sample of Jewish Israeli adults gave support to the hypothesized insufficiency of individual resources. Data highlighted the significance of the physician's emotional support as the most sought for yet least attainable resource in alleviating distress. The study lends further support to previous evidence of the importance of the physician's affective behavior in the patient's wellbeing. It also ascertained the role that primary groups' emotional support may have in the readjustment of the chronically ill.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1983

Loss, stress and readjustment: the structure of coping with bereavement and disability.

On the basis of recent developments in the study of readjustment, a comprehensive formal theoretical framework was suggested, predicting the factors enhancing and impeding readjustment after a traumatic irrevocable loss (bereavement and disability) and empirically supported. Empirical investigation and application of multivariate techniques of data analysis revealed an identical structure of the content universe of readjustment for three groups: war widows, bereaved parents and disabled army veterans. The structure ascertained the hypothesized predominance of individual resources--and particularly those which facilitate affective interaction relationship--as well as of primary groups' emotional support in enhancing readjustment, compared to the limited efficacy of formal rehabilitation agencies. In the realm of instrumental coping assistance, data ascertained the efficacy of 'resource enhancing' support (e.g. vocational training) in advancing readjustment. Data also ascertained that the weight of individual resources and primary group support in facilitating readjustment is greater than the effect of the severity of the disability, and plays a greater role in readjustment than lapse of time since the loss. The significance of the study is in the development and empirical verification of a formal comprehensive and testable framework of readjustment to change following a traumatic loss. Though the universal validity of the framework needs further proof, there seems to be sufficient basis for assuming such validity until empirically verified. It is suggested to view this study as a first step toward a general model of readjustment. The study seems particularly contributing to the body of knowledge in the realm of stress and coping in light of the difficulties in arriving at a valid empirical verification of the stressful life events leads to coping leads to homeostasis relationship.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Societal integration of the disabled: power struggle or enhancement of individual coping capacities.

Recently critique has been published against the Movement for Independent Living (ILM) as an effective mechanism for improving disabled persons' chances for integrating into normal social life. This critique highlighted a crucial issue which up to now has not received a satisfactory answer, namely, what are the factors that enhance or impede disabled persons' integration? In the present paper doubts have been raised as to whether the obstacles to successful integration should indeed be viewed as a political issue requiring political activity as a solution. It has been suggested rather to pry into the types of assistance which may enhance or impede integration. The analysis suggested to conceive of the actual problem as the difficulty of establishing an effective and acceptable criterion differentiating between resource enhancing and resource compensating activities. It is suggested to view the difficulty of motivating resource enhancement and of establishing a limit beyond which resource compensation be conceived hazardous to successful integration as the crucial problem of the rehabilitation of disabled persons.

Community Participation↗
PubMed1983

The structure of a hospital's image.

The study is intended to elucidate the factors that affect the creation of a hospital's image in the eyes of the patient and their relative weight in producing that image. The image of a hospital is important for enhancing the patient's reassurance and relief from possible anxiety that is hazardous to the health, which may result both from the patient's subjectively perceived seriousness of his condition and from his inability to judge the efficacy of the medical treatment in promoting recovery. A study was carried out among a representative sample of expatients of one of Israel's most prestigious university hospitals. Data ascertain the centrality of the physicians' and nurses' affective behavior in the creation of the image. They also show that the crucial factors that predict that image in the patient's eyes are the nurses' affective behavior and the hospital's perceived competence level, which is based predominantly on the patient's satisfaction with the medical treatment given by the physicians. That, in turn, is, to a great extent, predicted by the extent of satisfaction with the physicians' humane attitude toward the patient.

Consumer Behavior↗
PubMed1982

Stress potential and esotericity of health problems: the significance of the physician's affective behavior.

The study examines the assumptions and the interpretation of data from recent studies that were intended to identify and explain patients' inclination to assess the efficacy of medical treatment on the basis of physicians' affective behavior toward them. It was hypothesized that this manner of assessment is specific to the doctor-patient relationship due to the uniqueness of the patient's problem, which is characterized by a relatively high stress potential and esotericity requiring professional help. Empirical investigation of four types of problems that varied in the level of their stress potential and the need for professional help ascertains that a) the stress potential of a problem and the need for a professional solution affect separately the propensity of assessing the content of the agent's assistance on the basis of the mode of its presentation; b) judgment of the mode indeed determines the assessment of the content of the professional solution; and c) this manner of assessment may apply also to other roles of the medical setting.

Adult↗