Blekinge Institute of Technology
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Nurses' experiences of planning for palliative care at the end of life in residential care settings
No full textBakgrund: Många äldre som flyttar in på särskilt boende är multisjuka med stora vårdbehov vilket leder till att de inte hinner bo så länge på boendet. Studier visar på brister kring planering inför livets slutskede där samtal inte har hållits med patient eller anhöriga och att samtalen inte dokumenterats. Syfte: Studiens syfte var att belysa sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av planering inför palliativ vård i livets slutskede på särskilt boende. Metod: En meta-etnografi baserad på tio vetenskapliga artiklar som analyserades med hjälpav Noblit & Hares metod. Resultat: I resultatet framkom fyra teman; planering inför livets slutskede sätter fokus på personens egna preferenser, planering inför livets slutskede är emotionellt utmanande, planering inför livets slutskede kan bidra till en gemensam förståelse, arbetsplatsens rutiner skapar förutsättningar för en optimal planering. Slutsats: Planering inför livets slutskede ger patient och anhöriga möjligheter att berätta om önskningar och tankar gällande vård och behandling, detta är också en stor del i en personcentrerad vård. Planering inför livets slutskede ger också en möjlighet i att skapa en gemensam förståelse för hur den sista tiden kan komma att se ut, vilket skapar en samsyn som i sin tur minskar risken för konflikter och oro. Denna samsyn leder också till en tryggare arbetsmiljö. Hur arbetsplatsen arbetar med planering inför livets slutskede, att den dokumenteras och kan ses av alla vårdinsatser är viktigt för den personcentrerade vården. Det är också viktigt med kunskapshöjande åtgärder som reflektion och teamarbete och här har organisation och ledarskap en central roll. Abstract: Many elderly who move into residential care settings have multiple illnesses with significant care needs, which means they do not live long in the facility. Studies show deficiencies in planning for end-of-life care where conversations have not been held with the patient or their relatives, and these conversations have not been documented. Aims: The aim of the study was to highlight nurses' experiences of planning for palliative care at the end of life in residential care settings. Method: A meta-ethnography based on ten scientific articles that were analyzed using Noblit & Hare's method. Results: Four themes emerged in the results: planning for the end of life focuses on the person's own preferences, planning for the end of life is emotionally challenging, planning for the end of life can contribute to a shared understanding, and the workplace routines create conditions for optimal planning. Conclusions: Planning for the end of life provides patients and relatives with the opportunity to express wishes and thoughts regarding care and treatment, which is also a significant part of person-centered care. Planning for the end of life also provides an opportunity to create a shared understanding of how the final period may look, which creates a common view that in turn reduces the risk of conflicts and anxiety. This common view also leads to a safer working environment. How the workplace manages planning for palliative care at the end of life, ensuring it is documented and visible to all care interventions, is essential for personcentered care. Additionally, knowledge-enhancing measures such as reflection and teamwork are important, where the organization and leadership play a central role
Investigating subgroup alignment in organizational transformation: The role of hierarchical levels and work experience
No full textThis thesis investigates how employees align with organizational change initiatives, focusing on the variations in attitudes based on hierarchical levels and work experience. A structured survey was designed and implemented, consisting of three parts: organizational-level changes, team-level changes, and employees’ characteristics. The survey assessed employee responses to initiatives such as remote work options, continuous learning programs, and diversity efforts, as well as modifications in team roles and job responsibilities. The goal was to identify patterns of alignment and misalignment across different employee groups and to understand how these alignments are influenced by job level and tenure within the organization. The findings reveal variations in employee responses based on their hierarchical level and tenure. Newer employees generally showed more support for flexible remote work and agile methodologies, whereas those with longer tenure exhibited higher resistance to changes disrupting established structures. Consistency in attitudes across different subgroups was noted, with high correlation coefficients suggesting a shared perspective on change initiatives. However, discrepancies between perceived and actual alignment, as highlighted by prior research, suggest that traditional survey methods may not fully capture deeper misalignments within organizations. The study underscores the need for change management strategies that consider employee characteristics to effectively manage resistance and foster adaptability. By aligning change initiatives with employee perspectives and experience levels, organizations can enhance engagement, drive positive outcomes, and ensure successful implementation of change processes. This research contributes valuable insights into the dynamics of organizational change and provides a foundation for future studies aimed at refining change management approaches
Samverkan mellan kommuner och Arbetsförmedlingen : från samverkansarrangemang till att ”vi bygger vägen samtidigt som vi kör”
No full textVi undersöker i två delstudier samverkan mellan kommuner och Arbetsförmedlingen i tio kommuner. I delstudie 1 analyseras samverkan utifrån gruppintervjuer med chefer och handläggare i syfte att ringa in innehållet i samverkan. Vi genomför även en kvalitativ innehållsanalys av samverkansöverenskommelser. Delstudien fokuserar på tidsperioden strax innan Januariavtalet 2019, ett avtal som förändrade Arbetsförmedlingens roll i flera viktiga dimensioner. I delstudie 2 undersöker vi om samverkan har förändrats efter Januariavtalet genom gruppintervjuer som genomfördes 2021. Flera intressanta resultat framträder i rapporten: Vi identifierar exempelvis i delstudie 1 tre av fyra teoretiskt tänkbara samverkansarrangemang i kommunerna: kooperativ, komplementär och konfrontativ samverkan. Kooperativ samverkan återfinns bara i en av tio kommuner. I delstudie 2 finner vi att samverkan har försvårats efter Januariavtalet till följd av stängda lokalkontor, användning av privata utförare av arbetsmarknadspolitik samt ökad digitalisering av tjänster. Kommunala företrädare upplever att Arbetsförmedlingen har blivit mer svåråtkomlig. Intervjuade från Arbetsförmedlingen är mer positiva och anser att en stor del av problemen handlar om ”barnsjukdomar”.
Blockchain Enabled Metaverse : Development and Applications
No full textThe metaverse has gradually come into the public eye and has become a hotspot in cyberspace, but it still faces many technical difficulties to be solved. Blockchain is a key component of the metaverse, enhancing the development of the metaverse by connecting the real and virtual worlds seamlessly and solving some of the difficulties faced by the metaverse. Our paper comprehensively studies the development and application of blockchain technology in the metaverse. First, there is an introduction to blockchain and the metaverse, followed by a discussion of why blockchain should be integrated into the metaverse. Second, an overview of the main blockchain technologies is provided to evaluate blockchain's role in the metaverse and the value is summarized. Third, the development of future integration of blockchain and metaverse is presented from the perspective of social life and technology. For social life, how to use blockchain in the metaverse to enhance and improve social life is discussed. Then, from the technical perspective, it discusses how blockchain shapes the metaverse. Finally, challenges associated with the integration of blockchain into metaverses are analyzed and some promising research directions and solutions are proposed
Corporate Change Agents for Sustainability : Exploring Employee Agency within Company Change towards Sustainability
No full textAs the urgency to act towards sustainability increases, the role of employees as sustainability change agents has gained attention but remains conceptually fragmented across disciplines. This licentiate thesis explores how employees contribute to sustainability transformations within corporate settings, aiming to clarify terminology, understand enabling and hindering conditions, and evaluate capacity-building mechanisms for sustainability agency via corporate training. A pragmatic action research approach was taken for this research, with the first study being a systematic literature review to situate the research within the contemporary academic discourse, followed by two empirical studies. Predominantly qualitative methods were chosen to capture the complexity of the phenomenon under study, including interviews, focus groups, surveys and observations. The first study identified a wide range of terms—such as change agent, champion, activist, and intrapreneur—used to describe employees who act in support of sustainability. We observed a lack of consistency in these labels, particularly regarding whether the employees in question actually self-identify as change agents or if it was just the authors who labelled them so. Also, no consistency in terminology use and employee seniority or formalised roles was found. All this highlighted the need for clearer conceptual frameworks that can bridge across disciplines and allow for more nuanced supports for employees in their given circumstances. To address this, a typology of individual employees who deliberately contribute to improved corporate sustainability performance was proposed to support both academic research and practical application. The typology differentiates between change agents according to their seniority and role and defines three main types: embedded, senior, and formal change agents for sustainability, and is intended to promote an improved collective understanding of the various types, including similarities and differences, how they operate, and what support they need. The second study, a case study within a family-owned holding company system, revealed that while top management support and owner commitment to sustainability exist, significant barriers persist to employee action towards sustainability. These include the complexity of transforming organisations within value chains, limited sustainability and complexity literacy, and challenges in navigating trade-offs and unforeseen outcomes. Corporate culture and softer less tangible organisational elements emerged as key enablers of employee action. Finally, our findings showed that even within a company group who actively seeks to empower its employees to act towards sustainability, there is a lack of knowledge and knowhow on how to lead participatory transformative action. The third study, an investigation of the impact of a corporate sustainability leadership training program designed around the concept of action competence, showed that the action competence of managers increased and that an agency culture was fostered. A core mechanism for this seems to have been the focus on empowerment pedagogies, and the underlying action competence approach to education design. Significant elements were the train-the-trainer design, the collaborative organisation wide setting and the frames used as boundary objects to create common language. Together, these studies underscore the importance of empowering employees as active participants in sustainability transitions. The thesis calls for more consistent terminology, deeper understanding of organisational dynamics, and the integration of agency-based elements in corporate training to support transformative action
Leaflet, OpenLayers 3.0. A comparison of marker rendering : Experiment on mapping libraries performance on marker rendering
No full textWeb mapping libraries have become essential tools for visualizing, analyzing, and interacting with geospatial data across diverse applications, from urban planning and transportation to environmental monitoring and real-time analytics. However, their performance varies substantially depending on dataset size, rendering strategy, and the frequency of dynamic updates. Efficient handling of large datasets is crucial for ensuring smooth and responsive user experiences, making it important to understand the performance characteristics of different libraries. This thesis investigates the performance differences between two widely used open-source mapping libraries, Leaflet and OpenLayers, with a focus on marker rendering efficiency, dynamic update handling, and responsiveness during interactive operations such as panning and zooming. Controlled experiments were conducted using real-world GeoJSON datasets ranging from a few hundred to fifty thousand markers. Key performance metrics included total load time, frame rate during continuous interactions, and responsiveness under dynamic updates. The results show that Leaflet performs efficiently for small datasets but experiences noticeable frame-rate drops and rendering delays beyond roughly 5,000 mark-ers. In contrast, OpenLayers consistently maintains higher performance across alldataset sizes, sustaining smooth interaction and rendering even in dynamic scenarios. These findings indicate that OpenLayers is generally better suited for high-volume, performance-critical mapping applications, while Leaflet remains an effective choice for lightweight use cases. This work provides practical guidance for developers and researchers selecting appropriate web mapping libraries based on dataset size, interactivity needs, and performance requirements. Conclusions. OpenLayers is generally better suited for applications that require high-volume marker rendering and frequent dynamic updates, owing to its optimized rendering architecture and efficient handling of vector data. Leaflet, while less capable for very large datasets, remains a choice for lightweight applications with smaller numbers of markers and lower interactivity requirements. These findings provide practical guidance for developers and researchers in selecting the appropriate mapping library based on application requirements, dataset size, and the expected user interactions
Predicting Application Load in Private Cloud Environments : A Comparative Study of Machine Learning Models in Private Clouds
No full textEvaluating Short Forward Error Correction Codes for Avoiding Detection in Airborne Networks
No full textWe evaluate Forward Error Correction (FEC) codes in the context of a novel routing protocol HDARP+ for airborne networks. HDARP+ uses directional antennas and dynamic FEC coding to avoid detection by adversaries. The use of FEC coding is dynamic in the sense that different FEC codes, or no FEC code, will be used depending on the relative position of friendly and adversary aircraft. Due to the real-time restrictions in airborne networks, encoding and decoding must be fast and done through table lookup. Since we use table lookup, the FEC codes must be short. We evaluate two types of short FEC codes: Reed-Solomon (RS) codes, and FEC codes found using greedy search (called GS codes). The results show that the RS codes are better than the GS codes at handling error bursts. However, the GS codes are more flexible when it comes to finding attractive trade-offs between the code's ability to increase the number of the cases when hostile detection can be avoided (related to the coding gain), the code rate and the amount of memory required for implementing lookup tables.Tillförlitliga Flygande Ad-Hoc Nätverk för Civil-Militär Uppdragskritiska Applikationer (FANET-MCA
Electric mobility initiatives in Kisumu : enablers, progress, barriers and impacts in a secondary African city
No full textThis paper examines the transition to electric mobility (e-mobility) in Kisumu, Kenya’s third-largest city, focusing on the enablers, progress, barriers, and impacts of e-mobility initiatives in a secondary African city. In alignment with Kenya’s commitment to a green economy, Kisumu has emerged as a key site for experimenting and implementing e-mobility solutions aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions while addressing critical transportation and energy challenges. These interventions are essential in the city’s transition towards sustainable urban mobility. The study evaluates key projects which have introduced electric motorcycles and off-grid solar-powered charging hubs in urban and peri-urban regions. The overall goal of these initiatives is to mitigate the adverse environmental footprints of fossil-based vehicles while providing socioeconomic benefits to local operators such as cost reductions and job creation. Using a mixed-method approach of systematic literature review, data collection, and case study evaluations, the paper outlines the progress of e-mobility initiatives in Kisumu highlighting successes, challenges and impacts. It reveals that e-mobility has made some contribution to emissions reductions and financial gains for boda operators while significant hurdles include inadequate infrastructure, high upfront costs, and regulatory shortfalls. The paper concludes with recommendations on how to enable the scale-up of e-mobility initiatives in Kisumu, offering important lessons for secondary cities across sub-Saharan Africa that aspire to integrate e-mobility in their sustainable urban development efforts
Jordbruksmark i kommunal planering : en kvalitativ innehållsanalys av hur kommuners översiktliga planering balanserar avvägningen mellan exploatering och bevarandet av jordbruksmarken.
No full textDenna studie undersöker hur Tomelilla, Hörby och Sjöbo kommun behandlar jordbruksmark inom deras fysiska planering genom att analysera deras översiktsplaner. Jordbruksmarken ses som en värdefull resurs för både livsmedelsförsörjning, biologisk mångfald, rekreation och andra viktiga faktorer. Dock varierar kommunernas inställning till exploatering. Trots hänvisningar till lagar och dokument saknas konkreta lösningar för att säkerställa bevarandet av jordbruksmarken. Klimatförändringar har en betydande påverkan på jordbruket, där ökad temperatur och förändrade väderförhållanden kan påverka odlingsförutsättningarna. Ett varmare klimat kan ge längre växtsäsonger men även öka risken för torka och skadedjur. Samtidigt kan intensiva nederbördsperioder påverka markens kvalitet och skördar negativt. En ökad efterfrågan på odlingsbar mark kan göra den svenska jordbruksmarken mer betydelsefull i framtiden. Studien bekräftar att hanteringen av jordbruksmark är en komplex fråga som kräver balanserade strategier för att säkerställa långsiktig markanvändning