Lived Experiences

Posted on July 17, 2019 in Journal Article, tagged as Cultural Differences, Gender Employment, Ideological Structures, Labor Market Attachment, Language Barrier, Lived Experiences, Social Organization.

This paper examines the experiences of Indo-Canadian and Greek women employed in the lower echelons of the Canadian labour force, the majority of whom are unable to communicate fluently in English. The paper begins with a phenomenological description of the circumstances surrounding the lives of women, and proceeds to locate women’s experiences within the broader social structure. It is argued that the problems experienced by immigrant women should be understood not only in terms of their “cultural” differences, but also in the context of the larger social organization and ideological structures which generate particular types of experiences.

Posted on July 16, 2019 in Journal Article, tagged as Challenges, Lived Experiences, Mental Health, Opportunities, Peer Support Workers, Supports.

OBJECTIVE:This study aimed to identify the various challenges encountered by peer support workers in Western Australia in the course of their work and to identify possible solutions to those challenges.

METHOD:
We used the nominal group technique to collect and analyze the data.

RESULTS:
The main challenge encountered by participants was a lack of understanding of the peer support worker role which caused them to experience a sense of exclusion. The main solution focused on strategies to educate consumers, managers, and health professionals about the peer support worker role.

CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE:
Managers have a responsibility to be informed about the peer support worker role and communicate role related information to other team members to ensure that peer support workers are included as part of the health team. Implications for practice therefore center on training for managers and inclusion of the peer support worker role in orientation programs. Further, if these steps are not undertaken, a valuable resource could be lost to a health service to the detriment of persons with a mental illness.