24762 research outputs found
Sort by
Boys under 6 months presenting with their first febrile urinary tract infection
Get PDFBACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION: Urinary tract infections are common in children and can cause morbidity. International and local guidelines differ in their recommendations for the investigation of infants following a first febrile UTI, especially for those under 6 months of age. In particular, most medical guidelines do not offer any recommendation for early surgical referral. We looked at a cohort of boys less than 6 months of age presenting with their first UTI and sought to determine whether any features in the investigation paradigm should alert a paediatrician to consider early referral to paediatric surgery.METHOD: We performed a retrospective analysis of all boys less than 6 months of age presenting with their first febrile UTI to the emergency department of Mater Dei Hospital in the period between January 2020 to December 2021.RESULTS: 38 boys were included. All underwent a renal US: 13 (34%) had an abnormal US. An MCUG was abnormal in 72.7% of boys with an abnormal US vs 32% of those with a normal US, but this was not statistically significant. DMSA was more likely to be abnormal in those with an abnormal US and abnormal MCUG; all boys with a normal US and normal MCUG had a normal DMSA scan. Twelve boys underwent cystoscopy: 11 had abnormal findings. Only 1 boy had previous normal US and MCUG; all the rest had an abnormal MCUG with/without an abnormal US. 9 boys with positive findings on cystoscopy were aged 2 months or less with a median age of 7 weeks at presentation.CONCLUSION: For this cohort we determined that one should proceed to an MCUG even if the US findings are normal; a DMSA scan is not helpful in deciding whether to proceed to cystoscopy; the ‘top-down’ approach for investigation should not be advocated for boys less than 2 months of age; boys with first febrile UTI aged 2 months or less should be referred for consideration of cystoscopy.peer-reviewe
The transition from student to midwife : uncovering the meaning of early practice experiences
Get PDFAbstract Οverview: The transition from a student to newly qualified midwife
(NQM) is a formative and often challenging period that
significantly influences professional development and care
quality. Experiences in high-intensity environments such as
the Central Delivery Suite (CDS) play a key role in shaping the
new midwife’s confidence, competence, and identity.peer-reviewe
Modelli educativi a confronto : analisi dei curricula di formazione degli insegnanti di scuola primaria in Italia e Malta per lo sviluppo dell'identità professionale nei contesti scolastici inclusivi
Get PDFThis study compares the Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programs for future
primary school teachers in Italy and Malta, analyzing similarities and differences
in curricula, course content, and teaching methodologies (MIUR; MIM). The data
collected outlines how in both countries the courses combine a theoretical and
practical approach, with an interdisciplinary perspective and a focus on inclusion
(Pace & Aiello, 2018). Programs are focused on responding to the social and
cultural changes, considering education as an essential public service for holistic
well-being (Faculty of Education, UOM). Additionally, internships play a central
role in developing practical skills for entering the job market, albeit differences
in the implementation of teaching practices (Calleja et al., 2017). The
presentation will provide insights into how professional identity is strengthened
in the two ITE systems with the aim of improving teacher preparation to teach in
inclusive classrooms.Questo studio confronta i programmi di formazione iniziale degli insegnanti
(Initial Teacher Education - ITE) per futuri docenti della scuola primaria in Italia e
a Malta, analizzando somiglianze e differenze nei curricula, nei contenuti dei corsi
e nelle metodologie didattiche (MIUR; MIM). I dati raccolti evidenziano come, in
entrambi i Paesi, i corsi combinino un approccio teorico e pratico, con una
prospettiva interdisciplinare e un’attenzione particolare all’inclusione (Pace &
Aiello, 2018). I programmi sono orientati a rispondere ai cambiamenti sociali e
culturali, considerando l’educazione come un servizio pubblico essenziale per il
benessere olistico (Faculty of Education, UOM). Inoltre, i tirocini svolgono un
ruolo centrale nello sviluppo delle competenze pratiche necessarie per l’ingresso
nel mondo del lavoro, sebbene vi siano differenze nell’attuazione delle pratiche
didattiche (Calleja et al., 2017). La presentazione offrirà spunti su come l’identità
professionale venga rafforzata nei due sistemi di ITE, con l’obiettivo di migliorare
la preparazione degli insegnanti a operare in classi inclusive.peer-reviewe
The introduction of podiatric telemedicine for wound care management - an alternate model of care
No full textTelemedicine has been a fundamental component of healthcare for many decades, although its
widespread adoption significantly accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. This unprecedented global
health crisis compelled healthcare institutions to rapidly innovate and shift to remote care options,
highlighting the potential of virtual healthcare delivery. This article seeks to look at the emergence of
podiatric telemedicine for the management of high-risk feet as an alternate model of care to help reach
more high-risk patients in a timely manner. By concentrating on this specific field, we aim to put forward
the implementation of podiatric telemedicine as a viable supplementary service for high-risk patients.
Researchers and healthcare professionals should work towards implementing such services aimed at
preventing complications in the high-risk foot by offering timely care and advice.peer-reviewe
The impact of project manager compensation and methodology alignment on IT project effectiveness in large organizations
No full textPURPOSE: This study investigates the relationship between project management effectiveness
and project manager compensation, as well as between project management effectiveness
and methodology alignment in IT projects.DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Through a survey of 130 project management
professionals, we explore how these factors influence project outcomes and organizational
success.FINDINGS: Our findings suggest that while project managers associate effectiveness primarily
with achieving organizational benefits and goals, there is a significant relationship between
project manager compensation, methodology alignment, and perceived project success.PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The study contributes to the ongoing debate on project effectiveness
definition and offers practical insights for optimizing project management practices in IT
organizations.ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Despite extensive research in project management, there remains a lack
of consensus on how to define and measure project. Moreover, while the importance of both
compensation structures and methodology selection has been acknowledged separately, their
combined impact on project effectiveness is under-explored, especially in the IT sector. This
article aims to address these gaps.peer-reviewe
Scaling new heights : the unpublished herpetological drawings and notes of Guido G. Lanfranco (1930–2021)
No full textThis paper presents a unique collection of previously unpublished herpetological drawings and
associated notes by the distinguished Maltese naturalist and educator Guido G. LANFRANCO (1930–
2021). Derived from manuscripts now housed at the National Museum of Natural History, Malta,
these materials comprise meticulous illustrations of various species, including endemic lizards and
snakes, complemented by original ecological annotations and behavioural observations. This body
of work constitutes a significant historical dataset, providing invaluable insights into the Maltese
herpetofauna through the perceptive lens of an avid naturalist.peer-reviewe
Examining refugee children's experiences through the resettlement model
Get PDFThe purpose of this study is to explore refugee children's experiences of online education during the COVID pandemic. A phenomenological study was conducted with thirty Syrian refugee children. Semi-structured interviews were held to get an in-depth understanding of the participants’ experiences of online education during the pandemic. Findings reveal that during online education, the participants had to deal with multiple challenges in their home lives and their educational environment. As they struggled to access basic needs such as food, clean water, and warm houses, the lack of internet connection and electronic devices, along with the language barriers, further disrupted their education. Listening to the voices of refugee children and exploring their unique experiences during online education provided insights for policymakers and educators in creating a more effective and inclusive learning environment for refugee children.peer-reviewe
Tangible and intangible loss and damage related to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Mauritius
Get PDFThe ‘cultural heritage–climate’ nexus is relatively less studied compared to climate related loss and damage that accrues to economic activities, human lives and physical infrastructure. This article investigates the impacts of climate change on the Outstanding Universal Value of two coastal UNESCO World Heritage sites on the small island state of Mauritius: Aapravasi Ghat and Le Morne Cultural Heritage. Tangible and intangible loss and damage are assessed by quantitatively modelling the sites’ vulnerability arising from a confluence of multiple climate hazards, including inland flooding, storm surge and sea level rise. In addition, the impacts of climate change are reported based on observations of extreme events. A number of response strategies are proposed. Present and future detrimental climate impacts on the intangible value of the two sites are discussed in light of enhanced preparedness to better manage and protect the sites’ inscription as UNESCO World Heritage. Finally, by interrogating the ‘cultural heritage–climate’ nexus from the broader perspective of national climate governance, policy-induced resilience building is discussed.peer-reviewe
From Dennett to transformers : emergent properties, Kolmogorov complexity, and the Turing-computability of human intelligence
Get PDFThis paper explores the Turing-computability of human cognition through the lens of the
late philosopher Daniel Dennett’s computational functionalism, Kolmogorov Complexity, and recent
advances in large language models (LLMs). We compare the high complexity and capacity of the
human brain to the deliberate scaling of LLMs, noting that emergent properties—such as zero-shot
reasoning—arise when models reach critical thresholds in parameter count and training data. By
analyzing whether these emergent capabilities can approximate human-level intelligence, we shed
light on the debate concerning the algorithmic replicability of human consciousness. We suggest that
capacity, complexity, and scaling play pivotal roles in shaping advanced cognitive behaviors, offering
preliminary insights into artificial general intelligence (AGI). Although the emphasis is primarily
theoretical, we briefly note that transformer models have the potential for unlocking new analytical
capabilities in fields such as astrophysics and cosmology, highlighting the broad impact of scaling laws
beyond natural language alone.peer-reviewe
Deep learning approaches for battery capacity and state of charge estimation with the NASA B0005 dataset
Get PDFAccurate capacity and State of Charge (SOC) estimation are crucial for ensuring the safety and longevity of lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles. This study examines ten machine learning architectures, Including Deep Belief Network (DBN), Bidirectional Recurrent Neural Network (BiDirRNN), Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU), and others using the NASA B0005 dataset of 591,458 instances. Results indicate that DBN excels in capacity estimation, achieving orders-of-magnitude lower error values and explaining over 99.97% of the predicted variable’s variance. When computational efficiency is paramount, the Deep Neural Network (DNN) offers a strong alternative, delivering near-competitive accuracy with significantly reduced prediction times. The GRU achieves the best overall performance for SOC estimation, attaining an of 0.9999, while the BiDirRNN provides a marginally lower error at a slightly higher computational speed. In contrast, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Radial Basis Function Networks (RBFN) exhibit relatively high error rates, making them less viable for real-world battery management. Analyses of error distributions reveal that the top-performing models cluster most predictions within tight bounds, limiting the risk of overcharging or deep discharging. These findings highlight the trade-off between accuracy and computational overhead, offering valuable guidance for battery management system (BMS) designers seeking optimal performance under constrained resources. Future work may further explore advanced data augmentation and domain adaptation techniques to enhance these models’ robustness in diverse operating conditions.peer-reviewe