Health as expanding consciousness with families with a child with special healthcare needs.

Families have health experiences that become enfolded within their life patterns. Based within Newman's conceptualization of health as expanding consciousness, the purpose of this study was to develop knowledge about the nurse-client process of facilitating health in families who have a child with special healthcare needs. The research as praxis method was used to answer the research question, What is the evolving pattern of the nurse-client process that facilitates health as expanding consciousness in families who have a child with special healthcare needs?

The well-being picture scale: a revision of the index of field energy.

This paper reports the development and psychometric properties of the Well-Being Picture Scale, a 10-item non-language based pictorial scale that measures general well-being, based on Martha Rogers'view of human beings as energy fields in continual mutual process with their environment. The Well-Being Picture Scale was designed for use with the broadest possible range of adult populations, including persons who are unable to respond to English-based text or lengthy, complex measurement instruments. Psychometric properties were established in a sample of more than 2,000 individuals from the United States, Taiwan, Japan, and Africa.

Supporting older adults living with multiple chronic conditions.

This qualitative study was conducted using focus groups to explore the strategies commonly employed by older adults (N = 37) to manage multiple chronic conditions. Key strategies identified were relating with health care providers, medicating, exercising, changing dietary patterns, seeking information, relying on spirituality and/or religion, and engaging in life. Although social support was not mentioned as a discrete strategy, the participants' social networks were embedded in all of the categories.