Journal of Qualitative Research in Health Sciences
Volume:7 Issue: 2, 2018

Pregnancy is a challenging period for any woman; it is a more sensitive and challenging time for women living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). HIV-infected women are facing a sense of stigma, discrimination, and social exclusion during pregnancy. However, little is known about the experience of pregnancy in HIV-positive women. The present study aimed to explore the lived experiences in HIV-positive pregnant women. This was a qualitative study with hermeneutic phenomenological approach. 12 HIV-infected pregnant women who referred to counseling center for behavioral diseases in Imam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran, Iran, in 2014, were recruited through purposive sampling. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, and the richness of data was achieved after 16 interviews during 40 to 90 minutes with participants. The data were analyzed using Diekelmann method. Participants were between 22-39 years of age. After data analysis, the main theme (renewal of stigma) and 2 subthemes (blame and rejection) emerged. Although the experience of pregnancy in HIV-positive women was associated with renewal of stigma, pregnancy provides for blame and rejection. The findings of this study emphasize on the necessity of integrating training and education programs to reduce the stigma of HIV and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)

Evidence indicates that despite the importance of exercise and physical activity on the health of elderly, the amount of physical activity (exercise) among this vulnerable class of society is declining. This study was conducted with the aim of identifying the determinants of the implementation of physical activities among older adults in Tehran City, Iran. This was a qualitative study with Grounded theory methodology. Data was collected via semi-structured in-depth interviews and field notes during the years 2015-2016. Thirty elderly and 10 sport experts were interviewed. Data analysis was carried out using Corbin and Strauss approach. Concepts of the study were identified using micro- and macro-analysis. In during of data analysis, 350 free codes related to elderly physical activity were extracted and classified into three categories of environmental, interpersonal, and intrapersonal factors, 200 of which were assigned to barriers and 150 to motivators. The determinants of physical activity in elderly were as motivators which included positive impression of physical activity, positive self-perceptions, and habits of physical activity, and inhibitors that included negative self -perceptions, health problems, lack of willingness to work, and time management problems. Providing sports services to the elderly can facilitate their participation in physical activities by exploiting the motivators and removing the barriers, and improve the physical and mental health of the elderly

Multiple sclerosis (MS) disease has side effects on the quality of life of married people. Moreover, the quality of life and marital adjustment of the patients would impact on their disease process. The purpose of the study was to determine psychological components on marital adjustment among married patients with MS. This was a qualitative and phenomenological research using targeted sampling. Semi-structured interviews were done with 15 married patients with MS (at least one of them suffered from the disease) who came to Sina hospital, Tehran, Iran, until reaching to data saturation. Assessment of effective psychological components on marital adjustment among married people with MS revealed 8 main themes and 18 subthemes. The main themes were as “spirituality”, “resiliency”, “coping with stress skills”, “conflict-resolving strategies”, “schemas”, “intimate spouse relationships”, “life stresses”, “openness to change”, and “responding to forgiveness”. Participants in the study ranked the psychological components as first to ninth as spirituality, resiliency, coping with stress styles, conflict-resolving strategies, schemas, intimate spouses relationships, life stresses, openness to change, and responding to forgiveness

  Middle age is one of the most important periods in women's life, due to experiencing age-related physical changes. Women's perception of the physical changes that are socially constructed, play a crucial role in their health behaviors. According to importance of the issue, this study is part of a broader study that aimed to understand the women's experience and perception of subjective meaning of physical changes and health in the middle age. This study was conducted using qualitative approach and grounded theory method. Using theoretical and purposive sampling, 22 women aged 40 to 60 years were selected. The data were gathered by using deep and semi-structured interviews. Then, data were analyzed according to 3 procedures of open, axial, and selective coding. 7 main categories and 29 subcategories were emerged. These main categories included “changes in the quality of health”, “menopause as a sign”, “mystique body changes”, “feeling threatened midlife inhabitancy”, “natural assume of pain”, “legitimized neglecting”, and “ambivalent of resistance/passivity”. In general, middle-aged women understand and experience "threatened inhabitancy". Social processes that shape this perception can be preventing to health and successful aging programs. So, to attract women's attention and their participations in the health-based programs, it is necessary first, to change the social and mental beliefs of women to make participate in projects actively and responsibly

Violence against women is a universal phenomenon experienced in public and private areas. Assessing the experiences of domestic violence and determining its causes is essential to identify, prevent, and control it. This study was performed to designate married men's experiences of domestic violence on their wives in Sabzevar City, Iran. In this descriptive qualitative study, participants were selected using purposive sampling, and it continued based on snowball and theoretical sampling. A face-to-face semi-structured interview was used to collect the data. A total of 20 participants (15 men, 2 spouses, 2 consultants, and 1 mother-in-law) were interviewed in 8 months. Interviews were analyzed using Graham and Landman’s content analysis method. To ensure consistency and accuracy of data, credibility, transferability, dependability, and conformability criteria were assessed. Three main categories were conceptualized including “unfriendly interaction”, “lack of complying couple’s emotional needs”, and “lack of complying husband’s sexual needs”. Based on results, designing interventions to establish friendly interaction between couples, helping couples to identify each other's emotional and sexual needs, and couples’ effort to meet each other's emotional and sexual needs can be effective in prevention of violence on women

Marital relationship affects not only individuals’ physical and mental health in marriage and married life, but also contexts and relationships inside and outside the family. The present study, therefore, was an attempt to identify the components of marital relationship. In this qualitative and content analysis-based study, 22 married couples were selected using purposive-voluntary sampling method, and semi-structured interviews were done until data saturation. Data analysis led to a key subject titled “marital quality” which its framework included ten components of “marital commitment”, “religious beliefs”, “marital relationship”, “conflict resolution/problem-solving skills”, “financial resources management”, “having a purpose in life”, “lack of interferece by others”, “recreation/leisure times”, “equity”, and “forgiveness”. The results of this study help educational and therapeutic centers to establish necessary programs, based on the identified factors, concerning families. Teaching these factors to couples helps them to prevent breakdowns in life, and to promote their satisfaction and quality in marital life

Infidelity, as a main cause for marital maladaptiveness and divorce, has important effects on victim’s family and mental health. This study aimed to identify and explain the cognitive reactions and experiences of women victims of infidelity. The present study employed a qualitative approach along with the interpretative phenomenology method. The study population consisted of women victims of infidelity in Tehran (Shemiranat), Iran, in year 2016. To do so, 18 women who were victims of infidelity were selected through purposive sampling, and investigated by a semi-structured interview. The data elicited from the interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis method. The data analysis resulted in two main themes, 11 subthemes, and 61 initial concepts. As the first theme, “maladaptive cognitive reactions” consisted “porous religious beliefs”, “suspicion”, “obsession”, “damage in the meaning of life”, “maladaptive decision-making”, “thinking to punish the guilty”, “negative self-evaluating, and “thought disorders” as subthemes. The second main theme was “adaptive cognitive reactions” consisting “positive defensive thoughts”, “appeal to religious beliefs”, and “peace-seeking thoughts for the decision-making” as subthemes. From cognitive aspect, the infidelity is not experienced homogeneously by all women victims, and the effects of infidelity can be either maladaptive or adaptive. Personality, religious beliefs, having children, and spousal relationship quality contributed to the women victims’ reactions. Given the fact that the findings have been elicited out of a native study, they may play a vital role in developing the intervention packages

Outsousing is a key strategy toward improving performance and financial system of hospitals. The aim of study was to determine the obstacles of outsourcing in university hospitals in Ahvaz City, Iran.

This qualitative study was performed to determine the obstacles of outsourcing in university hospitals affiliated with Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, in year 2016. Research population included all hospital managers, employees, and contracting experts. 23 participants were selected as samples purposefully. Data were gathered and concluded using framework analysis method; and were analyzed using content analysis method.

The obstacles of outsourcing were extracted and reported in format of 4 themes and 16 subthemes. Main themes were as “legal obstacles”, “financial obstacles”, “organizational/structural obstacles”, and “managerial obstacles”. Moreover, participants mentioned the benefits of outsourcing as “increasing the quality of services”, “organizational downsizing”, and “increasing the profit”.

The results of study showed that the hospitals’ outsourcing faced serious problems in legal, financial, organizational/structural, and managerial aspects. Identification of these problems could be useful in solving them