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The first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic strengthened the “strong” and weakened the “weak” ones /
No full textThe aim of this study was to explore how the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, during which contact communication was severely restricted, changed psychological health indicators, such as subjective assessment of health and depression, impulsivity, stress and emotional intelligence (EI) and how that depended on age, gender, physical activity (PA), sports specificity and body mass index (BMI).We surveyed 6369 before and 2392 people during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants were aged 18–74 years. Participants completed the Danish Physical Activity Questionnaire (DPAQ), the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10), the Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence Test (SSREIT), Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11), subjective depression and health self-assessments. One-way and two-way analyses of variance (ANOVA) were performed to assess the effect of independent variables on the dependent variables of MVPA (METs). Statistical analysis showed that restrictions during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic did not alter moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), except for a significant decrease in MVPA in women aged 18–25 years, or body mass index in women and men of different ages. An increase in depression and impulsivity was observed, especially an increase in unplanned or spontaneous activity. The restrictions during the first wave increased stress in women of all ages and, rather unexpectedly, improved health self-assessment in men.The study showed that the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic affected people’s subjective assessment of health, depression, stress and impulsivity in two ways: it “weakened the weak ones” and “strengthened the strong ones”
A European evaluation of the patients’ role in clinical education: a six-country cross sectional /
No full textAim The aim of this study was to analyse the patients’ role in clinical education in terms of facilitative student-patient relationship in Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Lithuania and Spain and factors promoting a more facilitative relationship in clinical education. Background Nursing students’ bedside learning is reliant on patients and the establishment of a person-centred approach develops from the relationships with patients. Design A multi-country, cross-sectional design was implemented. Methods Survey data were collected from graduating nursing students and patients between May 2018 and March 2019. The survey consisted of a 13-item facilitative sub-scale of the Student-Patient Relationship Scale as the main outcome measure, which was identical for both populations. In addition, background factors were surveyed with single questions and other scales. Associations between facilitative relationship and background factors were studied with linear models. Results Altogether, 1,796 students and 1,327 patients answered the survey. Overall, both students and patients regarded their relationship as facilitative, but students’ (median 4.23, 95% confidence interval 4.15–4.23) evaluations were higher than patients’ (median 3.75, 95% confidence interval 3.69–3.77). The students’ and patients’ evaluations differed from each other significantly in all other countries except in Ireland and Lithuania. Corresponding associations for both populations were found in terms of the country and students’ cultural confidence. Conclusions Results signal favourable grounds for students’ bedside learning and patient participation in clinical education with the potential to foster a person-centred approach
Opinion about the use of physical restraints among nurses in intensive care units.
No full textPhysical restraint is a procedure aimed at preventing unwanted events – ensuring the safety of the patient. Nurses are health workers who spend most of their time with the patient, so it makes sense know their opinion about the use of physical restraints. Aim of the work - to analyze opinion about the use of physical restraints among nurses in intensive care units. Methods. Quantitative survey – written questionnaire. The instrument used is a questionnaire. The questionnaire data was processed and analyzed using statistical data collection and analysis packages IN SPSS for Windows 21.0 (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) and Microsoft Excel. Free text comments have been analyzed using the content analysis method. The sample consisted of: 192 nurses. The investigation was conducted in accordance with ethical principles. According to the results of the study, nurses feel a lack of knowledge and a need for training on the topic of physical restraint. Poor knowledge of the documents regulating the use of physical restraint has also come to light. In the opinion of nurses working in intensive care units, physical restraint and its use should be discussed together with the doctor and the patient's family in order to ensure the patient's quality of care. In the opinion of nurses with a higher degree of education, physical restraint is used only after the appointment of a doctor and is a last resort to help ensure patient safety. Nurses with less work experience did not have a clear opinion on the use of physical restraint. The study showed that nurses working in intensive care units feel the need for training on the use of physical restraint and acknowledge the lack of information on the subject. In their opinion, in order to reduce the use of physical restraint, it is important to cooperate not only with medical personnel, but also with the patient's relatives
Relationship between nurses' experienced stress and sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic.
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic has become a challenge to the health care system around the world. Nurses play an important role in the management of the pandemic. Working conditions that have changed and are unknown, increased responsibility, fear of infection, all of which cause anxiety and stress for nurses. Quality sleep is very important for the emotional state, work efficiency and productivity of nurses. For this reason, it is important to investigate and assess how work-related stress during the COVID-19 pandemic affects the quality of sleep for nurses. Objective of the research: to analyse relationship between nurses' experienced stress and sleep quality during the COVID-19 pandemic Research methodology. Quantitative research method, using the method of an anonymous written questionnaire, has been selected for the thesis. Two standardised questionnaires Pittsburgh sleep quality index and HSE Management Standards Indicator Tool have been used to draw up the research questionnaire. Internal consistency of these two scales with data is acceptable, because the Cronbach's alpha values are greater than 0.6. Thus, these scales can be used in the research because questions inside the scales are sufficiently strongly interrelated. The analysis of the data obtained has been carried out using Excel 2019 and SPSS 25.0 software. Research results. The sleep quality of younger nurses and those with shorter length of service is most related to their role at work, work control, that is, they experience more stress due to uncertainty in their responsibilities and functions, lack of work control. The sleep of younger nurses and those with shorter length of service is poorer compared to older nurses who work for a longer time. The sleep quality of nurses who experience more stress at work is poorer. Requirements at work, lack of support from colleagues and relationships with others are the factors that most determine the sleep quality of younger nurses. The sleep disorders of older nurses are the most associated with stress caused by work control. Conclusion. The sleep quality of nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic depends on the stress experienced. The more stress is experienced, the lower is the quality of sleep
Land cover changes in selected areas next to lagoons located on the Southern Coast of the Baltic Sea, 1984-2021 /
No full textThe aim of the study is the evaluation of land cover changes in selected areas next to three lagoons (the Curonian Lagoon, the Vistula Lagoon and the Szczecin Lagoon) located on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea (in Lithuania, Russia, Poland and Germany) from 1984 to 2021. The changes are evaluated using multispectral (visible light—RGB and near infrared—NIR) satellite images from the Landsat 5 and Sentinel-2 sensors. Due to their high importance for ecosystem services, two main land cover types are evaluated, i.e., forest area and inland water reservoirs. The classification of the images is performed using a random forest algorithm. Areas of water bodies and forests are evaluated for the years 1984 and 2021. During period 1984–2021, positive changes in land cover are observed in all three regions included in the study. In almost all parts, with the exception of the Polish part of the area located next to the Szczecin Lagoon, of these regions, an increase in forest area is observed. The increase ranges from 0.1% (Poland, area next to the Vistula Lagoon) to 1.2% (Germany, area next to the Szczecin Lagoon). The area of inland water reservoirs has not changed significantly in the long term. Despite the global warming, no reduction in the area of these water reservoirs is observed, even new seminatural reservoirs have been created in some parts of the study area
Sustainability drivers of small and medium sized firms: a review and research agenda /
No full textWhile increasing awareness of issues such as raising energy prices, increasing customer concerns about the safety of products and services, and the reduction of carbon emissions influence firms, scarce studies focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SME). This study seeks to systematically analyse the literature focused on sustainability of SMEs. Bibliometric analysis of 220 articles included in the WoS database (Clarivate Analytics) database and visualization with VOSviewer software let us reveal the cooccurrence of author keywords, bibliographic coupling sources and references, leading journals, and countries. The second step of the research is based on a systemic review of 25 articles with the purpose of reviewing empirical findings in the field of firm-level sustainability of SMEs. The analysis has led to thematic commonalities considering resources and capabilities, strategy, stakeholders, human capital, and innovations. The paper fills the literature gap on systematic analysis of SME and sustainability and develops recommendations on how to address prevailing research gaps
Sustainable cross-linkers for the synthesis of cellulose-based aerogels: research and application /
No full textCellulose aerogels with polyester resin as cross-linkers have attracted much attention. This study describes the route to produce a fully bio-based aerogel with high added value from waste paper and starch, cellulose acetate and starch–cellulose acetate mixture as cross-linkers for oil adsorption, instead of the environmentally harmful polyester resin. The manufacturing process is simple, sustainable and cost-efficient, without releasing harmful by-products into the environment. The effects of different cross-linkers on the oil adsorption, dynamic oil retention, reusability and morphology of the aerogels were studied in detail. Experimental results show that these environmentally friendly recycled aerogels have a very low density, i.e., —0.0110–0.0209 g cm−3, and highly porous structures, with a porosity of 96.74–99.18%. The synthesized hydrophobic aerogels showed contact angles of ∼124–129°. The compression moduli are lower than that of an aerogel with polyester as a cross-linker, but the compression modulus of the mixture of starch and cellulose acetate especially shows a higher value than expected. The sorption capacity of the aerogels with bio-based cross-linkers was significantly increased compared to the aerogels with polyester; it is now up to 56 times their own weight. The aerogels also have good oil-retention properties
Functions of public libraries in the context of COVID-19 pandemic: the case of Šiauliai region libraries.
No full textThe article analyzes the functions of public libraries during crisis, putting emphasis on the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis of the scientific literature reveals that during the COVID-19 pandemic in addition to such libraries’ functions as providers of informational resources and cultural services (book loans, organizing cultural events), partners (collaboration with other organizations) and internal planners (maintenance of successful functioning of libraries) the functions of information disseminators (dissemination of trustworthy information, fight against infodemic), community supporters (care for and support to community members) and educators and trainers (development of competencies relevant during crisis) are particularly significant. The article presents the results of the survey conducted in Šiauliai region public libraries, which allows to examine the functions of public libraries during COVID-19 pandemic from the empirical perspective, to assess the situation of implementation of different functions, to compare them with the results from studies conducted in other countries, and to provide insights to strengthen the most prominent functions in the pandemic context. This research is important not only in the context of COVID-19 pandemics, but any crisis situation
Influence of liming intensity on fractions of humified organic carbon in acid soil: a case study /
No full textSoil pH influences the composition and activities of microbial communities, which are driving the transformations of soil organic carbon (SOC). However, the effect of liming on SOC sequestration remains controversial. Evaluation of the effect of liming on SOC and humified carbon fractions was one of the most important tasks of this work. Studies were carried out in the long-term field experiment using slaked-lime rates of 0.5 or 2.0, depending on the soil hydrolytic acidity. It was determined that liming did not increase SOC content, but led to redistribution of SOC. The amount of mobile humic acids in the soil decreased while the intensity of liming increased. When liming at the 2.0 rate, the lowest HA1 level (0.251 g kg−1 C) and highest amount of HA2 (0.21 g kg−1 C) were found. It could be stated that soil liming, as a measure, allows the stabilization of HA and FA by the cation bridging mechanism. Liming resulted in slower mineralization of SOC and at the same time it also resulted in carbon sequestration in the form of valuable humic acids. An important consistent pattern of carbon transformation was identified in this study and can be applied in selecting of the most suitable combination of agricultural practices, promoting carbon sequestration and soil fertility
