One of them was Sandra Lukic, from Lund University.
How were the days in Gothenburg?
– Absolutely fantastic, good lectures and fruitful discussions, as well as very good organization. We felt very welcomed by course leaders Per Bjälkebring and Mahwish Naseer. I have taken another SWEAH course, 'Ageing and social change' at Linköping University, last fall and I know some SWEAH PhD students from there. It was fun to meet them again. Of course, there were also some new people for me, and some newly admitted PhD students taking their first SWEAH course. It is always rewarding to meet students from other universities and hear about their projects and experiences.
Why did you choose to take this particular course?
– I wanted to learn more about ageing from the different perspectives: the biological, medical, physiological, psychological, social and cultural perspective. I am interested in the multidisciplinary and integrative view of ageing and health. As a nurse and district nurse, I have previously taken courses mainly in geriatrics that were more focused on pathology and disease and less on healthy ageing. We also work with mind mapping to help us integrate the different perspectives.
What do you bring with you home from the course?
– What left a big impression on me was Maria Edström's lecture 'Media and Ageing. I have never before reflected on this, how older adults are portrayed in the media and how rather small space they have in media reporting. Also that prejudices can be both negative, but also positive. Per Bjälkebring talked about the emotional aspects of ageing in his lecture 'Emotional aspects of ageing (or why are older adults so happy?'. Research that shows that older adults regret their mistakes less compared to younger people, was new to me. That life experience gives strength to face all problems that arise with great resilience. That ageing can be a superpower.
Life experience gives strength to face all problems that arise with great resilience.
What are you looking forward to further in the course?
– What remains is to write the exam which consists of a mind map that we create ourselves based on the knowledge we have gained during the course. We are expected to explain and reason about our mind map with the help of relevant course literature. I am looking forward to the examination seminar, says Sandra Lukic.
On May 8 it is time for examination. Then the PhD students will have the opportunity to take part in each other's reflections on different perspectives of ageing and health.
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