Conference Proceedings - School of Nursing & Midwifery - Trinity ...

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin: 8 th Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference
Transforming Healthcare Through Research, Education & Technology: 7 th – 9 th November 2007
Conference Proceedings
Table 2 clearly demonstrates the importance attached to physical
activities with agreement / strong agreement only falling below one
in two respondents in the final question regarding cutting ones’ own
toenails. The ability to ‘go about their work’ attracted a very high
level of agreement as being a vital element in their concept of
health. Evidently for this sample the capacity to undertake a range
of what able bodied people take for granted, physical activities, is
important to their concept of health.
Table 3 displays responses to items related to social aspects of
health.
Table 3 Social aspects of health.
Health is; SD D U A SA N/Ans
Maintaining contact with my
family
1.9 15.1 1.9 34.0 47.2 0.0
Having a good support network 1.9 5.7 11.3 47.2 34.0 0.0
Being able to socialise with my
friends
5.7 9.4 15.1 60.4 9.4 0.0
Being able to socialise 3.8 11.3 15.1 49.1 20.8 0.0
Having friends I can trust 5.7 13.2 13.2 49.1 18.9 0.0
Having lots of friends 7.5 24.5 9.4 47.2 11.3 0.0
Health is visiting friends 1.9 18.9 22.6 47.2 9.4 0.0
Being in an intimate relationship 7.5 26.4 11.3 43.4 11.3 0.0
Going out to the cinema 11.3 30.2 26.4 30.2 1.9 0.0
Health is being visited often by
friends
3.8 37.7 28.3 28.3 1.9 0.0
Being able to go out to the pub 24.5 28.3 17.0 26.4 3.8 0.0
Note; SD=Strongly Disagree, D=Disagree, U=Unsure, A=Agree, SA=Strongly
Agree, N/Ans=No Answer
Table 3 demonstrates that social aspects play an important role in
respondents’ views of health particularly the role of the family and
having a good support network. While having lots of friends I can
trust was deemed to be important, having lots of friends attracted
some disagreement indicating the significance of having intimates
perhaps rather than having lots of acquaintances. Somewhat
surprisingly -given Ireland’s pub culture- being able to go out to the
pub, while of importance to more than one in five of the
respondents, more than half, 53.8 per cent either disagreed or
strongly disagreed with this statement. This is a somewhat higher
number compared to those who disagreed that going out to the
cinema was an important element of social health. Nevertheless
the pattern is quite clear and unmistakable that social aspects as
outlined above are a vital component of what respondents think of
as part of what health means. Table 4 outlines the responses to
well-being as an element of health.
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