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Music therapy with preterm infants and their families after hospital discharge : an integrative review
No full textAfter discharge from a neonatal unit, families of preterm infants may require therapeutic support to address challenges related to their infant/s’ development, changed family circumstances, and/or parent wellbeing. This integrative review (IR) sought to examine the impact of music therapy on preterm infants and their families post-hospital discharge. A systematic search encompassing seven databases resulted in 83 citations, with six studies initially meeting the inclusion criteria. A further six studies were evaluated and selected upon their publication during the review process. Each study was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT), followed by the identification of major themes and sub-themes. Our results suggest that music therapy contributed to creating supportive physical and metaphorical environments for preterm infants and their families, in which they could acquire essential skills, tools, and resources for fostering communication and connection with one another. Preterm infants and toddlers may have also enhanced their developmental skills through music therapy sessions post-discharge. Further investigation into the impact of music therapy on preterm infants and their caregivers at different timepoints after hospital discharge is recommended, as well as a comparison of individual and group music therapy outcomes on infant development and parent health. Future research should include a broader spectrum of family members, along with caregivers from diverse family structures and gender identities, reflecting practices already established in some clinical settings
Islamic principles and UAE policies regarding protecting senior citizens' rights and safety
No full textIslam influences Muslim societies through rules, regulations, and legislation. This paper highlights Islamic principles and legislation that protect the rights and dignity of older adults and compares them to policies and laws that have been applied and implemented in the United Arab Emirates. A comparative method was utilised to conduct this study, relying on sources that present the rights of older adults in Islamic Sharia, as well as official sources from the United Arab Emirates, where information on laws and regulations related to older adults is published
The persistence and endurance of blood family
No full textFamilies of choice is an important framework used to think about non-heterosexual people’s attachments. This means the family of origin has received limited attention when theorising their relationships. This group has often been considered in relation to coming out, which centralises the importance of sexuality for understanding kinship ties. This paper extends the limited, but growing scholarship on non-heterosexual people, and their families of origin. It does this by drawing on a larger project on the lives of gay men of South Asian descent, in Australia. Results demonstrate that attachment through blood, shared history, emotions, and obligations, firmly embed gay South Asian men in their families of origin, even when there is disapproval of their sexuality. More broadly, the study resists framing the respondents and findings in culturally essentialist terms, premised on an ‘East’ versus ‘West’ binary. It argues that by resisting such orientalism we can see similarities pertaining to families of origin across different contexts, and in doing so, produce queer scholarship able to speak across divides
Learning about social work research through field placements as a stepping stone to a career in academia
No full textField placement is a milestone in every student's journey towards degree completion. The experience influences career choices, professional identities and emergent practices in the dynamic social work field. While there is a growing body of knowledge regarding this development, as well as research-as-placement for students, there remains a paucity of documentation on what this experience is like, especially regarding the outcomes for students post-placement. To address the gap our team of authors offer a reflective and reflexive autoethnographic account of our experiences as social work students (and supervisor) undertaking research field placements. Our aim is to offer readers a critical perspective of research-as-placement that highlights the potential to enhance academic aspirations post-placement. We promote the benefits for students when supervised/mentored by a social work academic, particularly the personal and professional opportunities that come from the experience that help students locate placement success, research skills development and an academic career pathway. A key finding is the need for further research regarding the experience of students requiring ready-made skills in self-directed and self-paced learning. Ultimately, through this work we propose that research-as-placement creates avenues to build symbolic and social capital in the lives of students and ultimately enrich their social work education
Compensation and carbon assurance : evidence from the United Kingdom
Get PDFThis study investigates the influence of compensation on companies' decision to undertake carbon assurance. Using a sample of 1326 firm-year observations from the United Kingdom between 2010 and 2018, this study finds that firms that include corporate sustainability incentive terms in executive compensation packages, firms that have higher director compensation and firms that have been involved in compensation controversies are more likely to undertake voluntary carbon assurance. Additional analyses show that the United Kingdom's mandatory greenhouse gas emissions reporting mandate, industry and gender diversity of the board of directors play significant moderating roles in the relationship between compensation and voluntary carbon assurance. The results of this study will help investors, managers and regulators better understand the factors that influence the growing carbon assurance market
Looking beyond organisational approaches to advance communication practice : an examination of development projects in India
Get PDFOrganisation-centric approaches in development communication and public relations that privilege the organisation can restrict communication to organisational mandates and goals. Organisation-centric approaches can reflect a modernist view of development or communication and have been critiqued for favouring technocratic development rather than serving marginalised groups. Currently, scholars in development communication and public relations place greater emphasis on publics or community participation and the processual nature of communication to overcome adverse organisational influence and propose better solutions. This article recognises theoretical advances in development communication and public relations and adopts the Collaborative Communication Approach, integrating current concepts from these two fields. The Collaborative Communication Approach facilitates an examination of communication in development in relation to five elements of power, context, participation, agency, and profession. This article shows how the five elements prove useful in addressing communication challenges in development through primary research and offers eight distinct categories to advance practice
Smart control of flutter of suspension bridges using optimized passive tuned mass damper
No full textSuspension bridges are particularly vulnerable to dynamic loads, such as wind, due to their long span. Among the wind effects on bridges, arguably the most detrimental is flutter. If the flutter velocity of the bridge is insufficient, more instruments are required to raise it. The tuned mass damper, or TMD for short, is a mechanical passive device that is frequently used to control flutter. The mass ratio, damping ratio, and tuning frequency are the three primary parameters. It is extremely susceptible to tuning errors, which significantly reduces its performance. As a result, its parameters should be set to their optimal values. The improved TMD is used to regulate the flutter of the Vincent Thomas suspension bridge in this study. To get the optimal values, a meta-heuristic population-based optimization method called sun and leaf optimization is used. Simultaneously, optimization is carried out to achieve the maximum velocity possible given the parameters of each span. The results suggested that the center span's TMD had a lower mass ratio and a higher damping ratio than the side spans. Furthermore, optimizing TMD can significantly enhance flutter velocity
Influence of rework on construction project performance in Nigeria
No full textOne of the key reasons for setbacks in construction projects in Nigeria is rework. In order to create efficient containment and reduction strategies, this study examined the causes of rework in construction projects, its influence on construction project performance, and proffer solutions to the causes of rework based on extant studies. A total of 140 questionnaires were distributed to the stratified population of various construction professionals. One hundred and eight questionnaires were duly completed and returned. Data were analysed using mean weighted value and regression analysis. The data analysis results revealed that poor coordination of design, the lack of effective quality management practices and alteration made at the clients' request were the topmost causes of rework. In addition, poor morale, time overrun and disputes were the first three most rated impact of rework inimical to construction project performance. It was concluded that the incidence of rework influences projects performance as it brings about poor morale of the workforce and dissatisfaction among end user. It was recommended that adherence to the solutions proffered to the topmost causes of rework will go a long way in improving construction project performance
Utility of multigene panel next-generation sequencing in routine clinical practice for identifying genomic alterations in newly diagnosed metastatic nonsmall cell lung cancer
No full textBackground: The standard of care in newly diagnosed metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is to test for aberrations in three genes for driver mutations – ALK, ROS1 and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) – and also for immunohistochemistry to be performed for programmed death-ligand 1 expression level. Next-generation sequencing (NGS), with or without RNA fusion testing, is increasingly used in standard clinical practice to identify patients with potentially actionable mutations. Stratification of NGS mutation tiers is currently based on the European Society of Medical Oncology Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets (ESCAT) Tiers I–V and X. Aim: Our aim was to analyse NSCLC tumour samples for the prevalence of Tiers I–V mutations to establish guidance for current and novel treatments in patients with metastatic disease. Methods: NGS was performed employing the Oncomine Precision Assay (without RNA fusion testing) that interrogates DNA hotspot variants across 45 genes to screen 210 NSCLC tissue samples obtained across six Sydney hospitals between June 2021 and March 2022. Results: In our cohort, 161 of 210 (77%) had at least one gene mutation identified, with 41 of 210 (20%) having two or more concurrent mutations. Tier I mutations included 42 of 210 (20%) EGFR mutations (EIA) and five of 210 (3%) MET exon 14 skipping mutations (EIB). Non-Tier I variants included 22 of 210 (11%) KRAS G12C hotspot mutations (EIIB), with a further 47 of 210 (22%) having non-G12C KRAS (EX) mutations. NGS testing revealed an additional 15% of cases with Tier II ESCAT mutations in NSCLC. Forty-six percent of patients also demonstrated potential Tier III and IV mutations that are currently under investigation in early-phase clinical trials. Conclusions: In addition to identifying patients with genomic alterations suitable for clinically proven standard-of-care therapeutic options, the 45-gene NGS panel has significant potential in identifying potentially actionable non-Tier 1 mutations that may become future standard clinical practice in NSCLC
Exploring the phenomenology of shopping as social practice : an inquiry into the multimodal and linguistic repertoires in markets in Sydney
No full textThis chapter investigates how semiotic resources, practices, and spaces are intertwined and interwoven in the process of cultural and interactional exchanges in a busy marketplace in Sydney, Australia, known as Parklea Markets. Based on photographic, video, and audio data, the chapter analyzes the interactions taking place at the cash registers, which are considered exemplary sites for observing transactional and interactional exchanges among customers and sales assistants. The chapter demonstrates that cash register interaction encompasses local diversities evidenced by the use of local artefactual practices and by the cultural differences associated with participants’ different histories. Central to the study are the meaning potentials of resources used and made relevant by the participants involved in the shopping activities. Getting a sense of these mundane everyday interactions reveals how national and international structures, discourses, and politics filter down to the local level, and how they impact upon and are negotiated by everyday diverse actors in their relationships to one another