Method evaluation
Project Title: Quality of Life, Health, Activity, Functioning, Falls, and Injuries Caused by Falls in Elderly People Living at Home.
Objective/Research Question:
1) To chart the quality of life, health, activity, functioning, occurrence of falls and fall-induced injuries amongst elderly people living at home in Norway.
2) To chart the predicators for falls and fall-induced injuries
3) What are the connections between high quality of life, health, activity and functioning?
4) What do the elderly understand by the concept of life quality?
5) Validation of a 5-year life -quality questionnaire
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Senior lecturer Gun-Britt Jarnlo, University of Lund, Professor Torgeir Bruun Wyller, UllevålUniversityHospital.
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Project Title: Problems of Balance and Life Quality in Patients with Mild Traumatic Head Injury (MTBI) Four Years after Injury.
Objective/Research Question: The objective of this study is to follow up patients with mild traumatic head injury four years post-injury in order to obtain more knowledge of their subjective experience of problems with balance. The project seeks to address the following questions:
-How may the self-reported experience of balance four years after mild head injury compare with the equivalent reporting one year after the injury?
-What are the connections between self-reported balance measurements, performance-based balance measurements and quality of life measurements four years after mild head injury?
-What are the differences between those reporting balance problems and those reporting none, in relation to the performance-based tests and life quality four years after the injury?
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Ingerid Kleffelgård, UllevålUniversityHospital
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Project Title: ‘Active and Steady – Even Though You Are Brittle’. Do physical training and fall-prevention interventions result in increased mobility, life quality and fewer falls for clients with osteoporosis?
Objective/Research Question: The main objective with this clinical randomised study is the assessment of the effect of physiotherapy as part of the interdisciplinary interventions made at the osteoporosis outpatients clinic, ØstfoldHospital. Sarpsborg .
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Hilde Thorsen, Rannveig Kåresen, Specialist Centre, ØstfoldHospital. Sarpsborg, Laila Brøndbo, ØstfoldHospital Health Area
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Project Title: ‘Steel Your Legs, Stay Upright’ . Does physical training help prevent falls and promote better balance and life quality in the elderly? (This is a randomised controlled study of treatment.)
Objective/Research Question: The main objective is to develop a proposition for the elderly who have been admitted to geriatric wards at UllevålUniversityHospital. This project will investigate whether physical training has the effect of improving balance, reducing the number of falls, increasing activity in everyday life and giving a better life quality.
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Therese Brovold, Karin Halsa, UllevålUniversityHospital
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Project Title: Berg’s Balance Scale: Reliability Testingof the Norwegian Version
Objective/Research Question: Reliability testing of the Norwegian version in order to assess whether the Norwegian version has a reliability corresponding to results published in international research.
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Karin Halsa and Therese Brovold, UllevålUniversityHospital
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Project Title: Mastering Stress Through Movement and the Experience of Connection: Is the Salutogenic Principle Useful as an Overall Perspective in the Movement Group?
Objective/Research Question: The objective is to investigate and describe the effects of physical movement based on psychomotoric principles. The focus is on mastery of stress through movement and consciousness raising. The aim is to discover good tools for working with movement groups.
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Ingvild Raudstøl, Inner Østfold Psychomotoric Physiotherapy, Askim
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Project Title: Compliance With – and Effect of – Soft Hip Protectors Compared to Hard Hip Protectors in Preventing Hip Fracture in Nursing Homes
Objective/Research Question: The main objective is to find out whether soft hip protectors provide as good protection as hard protectors, especially at night and in other situations with extended bed-rest. The consequence of this would be increased compliance regarding the use of these protectors in order to reduce the incidence of hip fractures.
Partial objective: Prevention of hip fractures in the nursing homes involved in this study by addressing these topics:
a) Optimal compliance, ie as many patients using the protection for as many hours throughout the day as possible
b) Optimal registration of information on their use, and on falls, necessary for the subsequent work on the primary objective of the study. Relevant topics are:
-How much better compliance would be achieved with soft protectors than with rigid ones?
-To what degree would a soft protector function almost as adequately as hard protection in the event of a fall?
-Would the use of soft hip protectors lead to a reduction of incidents involving hip fractures to the same extent as the use of hard protectors?
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland (co-supervisor), Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Hege Bentzen (doctoral fellow), Lisa Forsen ( main supervisor) Institute for Public Health, and Clemens Becker, StuttgartHospital
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Project Title: A Health Service with Memory. An analysis of incident reporting on patients in hospital
Objective/Research Question: What information is conveyed by accident reports on patient falls in hospital with regard to the incidence, patient characteristics, type of activity, conditions in the locality and the personnel’s assessments of the incident?
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Cand. San. Elisabeth Østensvik, Akribe Publishing, Oslo
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Project Title: Experience of physical treatment over en extended period of time in patients who have received psychomotoric physiotherapy.
Objective/Research Question: Gaining insight into how psychomotoric physiotherapy is experienced by those who have benefited from this treatment. Foci for the project are:
1) The first encounter with Norwegian Psychomotoric Physiotherapy
2) Massage as experienced as interaction and source of information
3) The role and importance of respiration in body therapy
4) Body therapy and exercises; activity and relaxation
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Kirsten Ekerholt, Kirsten.Ekerholt@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Associate Professor PhD Astrid Bergland, Astrid.Bergland@hf.hio.no
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Project Title: Follow-up of Premature Babies: development of postural control up to school age
Objective/Research Question: Are there differences between premature and full term infants? Can this explain later developmental deviation?
Contact at FHS: Associate Professor PhD Bjørg Fallang, Bjørg.Fallang@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Mijna Hadders-Algra, University Hospital Groningen, NL
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Project Title: Rehabilitation – Stroke Research in Early Phases of Rehabilitation
Objective/Research Question:The study targets stroke patients who are unable to walk independently on admission for rehabilitation. It will determine the efficacy of treadmill walking with partial weight support via an overhead harness on the establishment and quality of independent walking. Furthermore, by reassessing the subjects six months later, it will evaluate the longer-term effect of this physiotherapy intervention.
The experimental hypotheses are:
In patients who have recently suffered a stroke and are unable to walk, ambulatory training using a treadmill with partial weight support via an overhead harness will be more effective than assisted walking on the ground. Benefits include:
-reducing the time taken to achieve independent walking,
-improving the quality of walking and
-producing a better quality of walking 6 months later.
A randomised controlled trial. A prospective multi-centre study, in cooperation with various institutions in Australia and Norway
Contact at FHS: Assistant Professor Birgitta Langhammer,
birgitta.langhammer@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Dr. Louise Ada l.ada@fhs.usyd.edu.au , Physiotherapist Ellen Høyer Ellen.Hoyer@sunnaas.no
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Project Title: Rehabilitation in Stroke Research - the Acute Phase
Objective/Research Question: Our broad aim is to improve outcome for the upper limb after stroke. Specifically, we will develop protocols for physiotherapy intervention to prevent secondary musculoskeletal problems in the upper limb after stroke. In doing so, we will design better supportive devices that will not only reduce the incidence of subluxation, but will also hinder the development of contractions and pain. The proposed study will determine the efficacy of an innovative intervention to prevent subluxation of the affected shoulder (using a modified lapboard while seated and a triangular sling while standing) compared with current physiotherapy intervention (using a hemisling) in patients after stroke. The experimental hypotheses are:
Patients who have recently suffered a stroke and are unable to move their arm, benefit from using a modified lapboard while seated and a triangular sling while standing . This is more effective than using a hemisling in the
-prevention of subluxation of the affected shoulder
-prevention of pain in the affected shoulder,
-maintenance of range of motion in the affected shoulder, and
-improvement of function of the affected upper arm
both after 4 weeks of intervention and after the 6 weeks follow-up.
A randomised controlled trial. A prospective multicentre study, in cooperation with various institutions in Australia and Norway
Contact at FHS: Assistant Professor Birgitta Langhammer,
birgitta.langhammer@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Dr Louise Ada l.ada@fhs.usyd.edu.au , Physiotherapist Audhild Tørstad, Audhild.Torstad@sabhf.no
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Project Title: Rehabilitation: Stroke Research in the Rehabilitation and Post-stroke Phase
Objective/Research Question: What results from regular physical stamina, weight lifting and training balance may be gained by people who have suffered a stroke? Results are measured by recording motoric functioning, mortality and I and P-ADL at 6 and 12 months’ follow-up, and compared with results from people who have had a stroke and received today’s follow-up as practiced in healthcare already.
A blind experimental longitudinal randomised stratified controlled study. Randomisation and stratification using dice to divide the two groups; one control group and a treatment group upon discharge, ‘blinded’ with the envelopes remaining sealed until the last treatment of the last patient is completed two years post-stroke. The treatment group receives training in relation to stamina ( max. VO2), weight lifting and training balance four times per year, 20 times for one hour’s duration, altogether 80 hours. The other group receives functional training: walking, moving from place to place at home, according to individual need, as practiced in social healthcare today. The training begins one month after admission to hospital and continues for one year.
Contact at FHS: Assistant Professor Birgitta Langhammer, birgitta.langhammer@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Professor Johan Stanghelle Johan.Stanghelle@sunnaas.no , Professor Birgitta Lindmark Birgitta.Lindmark@sjukgym.uu.se , Asker og Bærum hospital, Physiotherpaist Audhild Tørstad audhild.torstad@sabhf.no , Bærum kommune: Head of rehabilitation Physiotherapist Gerd Bjerkaas gerd.bjerkaas@baerum.kommune.no , Head of rehabilitation Physiotherapist Aud Karlsrud Aud.R.Karlsrud@baerum.kommune.no , Head of rehabilitation Occupational Therapist trine.arvidsen@baerum.kommune.no Asker kommune Head of rehabilitation Physiotherapist Gerd Kaasa gerd.kaasa@asker.kommune.no and private practicing physiotherapists i Asker og Bærum.
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Project Title: Evaluation and Programme Quality
Objective/Research Question: Evaluation has become a prominent method used to ensure quality or promote development in our society. The focus of this project is the way in which evaluation may be used as a tool to develop a better quality of teaching for students attending the dental technician programme at OUC.
Contact at FHS: Lecturer Trude Myhrer, Trude.Myhrer@hf.hio.no
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Project Title: Assessment of Function Related to Work Ability
Objective/Research Question: The relationship between self-reported and measured functioning in a selection of back patients, assessed with the help of Norwegian Functioning Questionnaires and the Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire.
Contact at FHS: Assistant Professor Yngve Røe, Yngve.Roe@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: Søren Brage, Senior Researcher at the Institute for General and Human Medicine, UiO
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Project Title: Good Versus Bad Respiration, Patterns of Movement and Posture in Relation to Personality and Distress
Objective/Research Question: Are there differences in respiration, patterns of movement and posture in people with psychosomatic conditions with a significant degree of personality problems and distress when compared to people with psychosomatic conditions not showing such symptoms?
Contact at FHS: Assistant Professor Slawomir Swavek Wojniusz, Slawomir.Wojniusz@hf.hio.no
Cooperating in the project: ProfessorUlrik Malt, RikshospitaletUniversityHospital, Dr. Toril Dammen, UllevålUniversityHospital
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