43867 research outputs found
Sort by
An analysis of the AHPCSA telehealth and telemedicine guidelines published during COVID-19 in 2020 for chiropractors
Get PDFAbstract: Background: In 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Covid-19 as a pandemic. In South Africa, on 24 March 2020, the president of the Republic of South Africa announced that the country would be placed in a total lockdown from 27 March 2020 in which no persons were allowed to operate businesses unless they were healthcare workers or in some other essential business concerns. As set out in an extraordinary policy decision of the executive committee of the Allied Health Professions Council of South Africa (AHPCSA) of 25 March 2020, AHPCSA-regulated practitioners and therapists were able to receive patients using a telehealth/ telemedicine modus, this decision suspending a previous AHPCSA 2011 decision which disallowed the practice. In clarification of the AHPCSA executive committee extraordinary policy decision, the AHPCSA Registrar issued a notification on 26 March 2020 indicating that patients could be received, but in essential cases only, namely in emergencies only, at the registered place of practice on a face-to face basis. In all other cases, the reception of patients was required in terms of the telehealth/telemedicine modus according to the AHPCSA published Telehealth and Telemedicine Guidelines. The restriction on receiving patients in cases of emergency only was lifted on 1 May 2020 pursuant to a subsequent extraordinary AHPCSA executive committee policy decision on 29 April 2020, but the AHPCSA Telehealth and Telemedicine Guidelines remain in force for AHPCSA-regulated practitioners and therapists to receive patients. The research question must then consider whether these AHPCSA Guidelines included similar recommendations to those of other countries, and if these Guidelines could be supported by published literature. It remains important that, despite the method of practice used, Chiropractic care is required to ensure that the fundamental rights of patients were still respected, namely those of dignity, privacy, confidentiality and informed consent.M.Tech. (Chiropractic
Electronic effects of inorganic perovskites in heterogeneous catalysis
Get PDFAbstract: In this work, LaMO3 (M = Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Zn) perovskites were synthesized using solgel method. These catalysts were fully characterized using various techniques and then applied as heterogeneous catalysts in oxidation, reduction, and hydrogenation reactions. The d-orbitals of a transition metal in ABO3 perovskite system are in BO6 octahedral coordination environment. When this system undergoes Jahn-teller distortions it can lead to orbital splitting namely eg and t2g orbital sets. The eg orbital occupancy has been used as activity descriptor in many catalytic reactions. Herein, we focus on sub-orbital (dz 2) of eg orbital set which has proved to be the main descriptor for catalytic activity in oxidation of morin. The kinetic experiments were carried using Plate reader fluorescence with morin showing its absorption peak intensity at λmax= 400 nm and decreases over time until reaction reach its completion. Electronic properties of synthesized structures were studied by DFT calculations then correlate with kinetic experimental data to explain the activity. The depletion of fossil fuels has raised many concerns. Biomass which is abundant serves as an alternative to overcome this crisis. Biomass derived compounds such as furfural can be converted into value-added chemicals and fuel additives using hydrogen gas or hydrogen donor compounds. In this work, the LaMO3 (M = Co, Fe, Mn) perovskites were used as heterogeneous catalysts in hydrogenation of furfural to furfuryl alcohol. The hydrogenation of furfural is one of the important catalytic reaction which take different conversion pathways leading to valueadded chemicals which have found applications in industrial processes. Oxygen vacancies of La-based inorganic perovskites deduced from XPS analysis were used as main activity descriptor. Herein, we found that the catalysts with the most oxygen vacancies gave higher conversions than the one with the least amount of oxygen vacancies. Catalytic reductive degradation of 4-nitrophenol and catalytic oxidative degradation of methylene blue over LaMO3 (M= Cr, Fe, Mn) perovskites were investigated using kinetic analysis. These reactions can be easily monitored by spectroscopic techniques such as UV-vis spectrometer. In the 4-nitrophenol reduction reaction, NaBH4 was used as a reducing agent while in the oxidation reaction of methylene blue H2O2 was used an oxidizing agent. The catalytic activity trend was explored by XPS analysis of the perovskite catalysts using electronic structures and oxygen vacancies as descriptors. We observed that the amount of oxygen vacancies has minimal influence on the activity trend in these redox conversions.M.Sc. (Chemistry
Environmental and socioeconomic impact of copper slag : A review
Get PDFAbstract: Copper slag is generated when copper and nickel ores are recovered from their parent ores using a pyrometallurgical process, and these ores usually contain other elements which include iron, cobalt, silica, and alumina. Slag is a major problem in the metallurgical industries as it is dumped into heaps which have accumulated into millions of tons over the years. Moreover, they pose a danger to the environment as they occupy vacant land (space problems). Over the past few years, studies have been conducted to investigate the copper slag-producing outlets to learn their behavior, as well as properties of slag, to have the knowledge of how to better reuse and recycle copper slag. This review article provides the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of slag, as well as a characterization of copper slag, with the aim of reusing and recycling the slag to benefit the environment and economy. Recycling methods are considered an attractive technological pathway for reducing waste and greenhouse gas emissions, as well as promoting the concept of circular economy through the utilization of waste. These metal elements have value depending on their characteristics; hence, copper slag is considered as a secondary source of valuable metals. Some of the pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical processes to consider are physical separation, magnetic separation, flotation, leaching, and direct reduction roasting of iron (DRI). Some of the possible metals that can be recovered from the copper slag include Cu, Fe, Ni, Co, and Ag (precious metals)
Social skills of pupils with Mild Intellectual Disability : do peer tutoring, storytelling and gender play a role?
Get PDFAbstract: Background: This research examined the significant main effect of peer tutoring, storytelling, and gender, on the social skills of pupils with mild intellectual disability. Using the Social Development Theory of Lev Vygotsky as the rationale for this study, the acquisition of social skills is viewed as based on a social constructivist view of learning. Methodology: The study sample consisted of thirty-four pupils with intellectual disability, purposively selected from three schools in Ibadan Metropolis, and randomly assigned to one of the peer tutoring, storytelling, or control groups. Thirty sessions were held over ten weeks with the peer tutoring and storytelling experimental groups only. A social skills performance scale was administered before and after the intervention to collect data from these three groups. An analysis of covariance was used to examine the data collected. Results: Findings based on the analysed data revealed that there was a significant statistical difference between pre-test and post-test results of the three groups. The effect of gender on social skills of participants was significant, as was the interaction effect of treatment and gender. Conclusion: Recommendations based on the finding of this study are that peer tutoring and storytelling be adopted for teaching social skills to pupils with mild intellectual disability, and that pictorial illustration be used to enhance their reading skills
Preparation, storage, and utilization of Mahewu (a non-alcoholic maize meal beverage) in Ntambanana, South Africa
Get PDFAbstract: Maize is among the top three grain crops in the world. In Africa, especially Southern Africa, maize is the basic ingredient in fermented soft porridge known as Mahewu. Mahewu is a refreshing drink, produced at the household level using various practices and ingredients as a fermentation enhancer. The underprivileged consume Mahewu as the main meal of the day and hence, Mahewu is a source of dietary nutrients for many populations in Africa and South Africa. The ingredient and practices of making Mahewu differ from one ethnic group to another. However, some of the indigenous practices are not well reported. These practices are fading away, hence, there is limited information on some indigenous practices. This paper reports some traditional practices of making Mahewu in Zulu-based households in Ntambanana, a rural municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. An ethnographic research approach was adopted for the study to gain insight into the traditional practices of making Mahewu. Probing of key informants, interviews, and observations were complemented by four focus group discussions, within the range of 10-12 regular consumers of Mahewu. Four focus group discussions were conducted in Buchanana and Luwamba in Ntambanana; findings consistently reveal that Mahewu is popularly known as “umdokwe” and is consumed by all age groups beginning from four months to the aged. Irish potatoes (Solanum tuberosum), imbiliso, inserting a saucer, or a spoon deep down into the Mahewu container were mentioned and identified as fermentation enhancers which are lacking in other studies. Therefore, indigenous practices are diminishing while some practices are being lost between generations. Inadequate transfer of these practices might make the drink, to soon be accessible only commercially. To prevent this dilemma, the retention of traditional techniques of making Mahewu with sweet potatoes could promote food and nutrition security while retaining the indigenous practices. This study reports the preparation, storage, and utilization of Mahewu, a non-alcoholic maize meal beverage in Ntambanana, South Africa. It is recommended that campaigns promoting indigenous food consumption should form part of health, social development, as well as welfare, hence, food and nutrition interventions should be implemented in rural communities
Assessing the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge of Pre-Service Science Teachers at a South African University
Get PDFAbstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate preservice science teachers’ proficiency levels regarding their practical knowledge of technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK-P). A sample of 103 third- and fourth-year participants from a South African university were surveyed on their TPACK-P proficiency levels using a 17-item questionnaire developed by Yeh, Lin, Hsu, Wu, and Hwang. Rasch analysis was employed to analyse the data. The findings of the study showed that the great majority of preservice science teachers have a proficiency level of 3 for their knowledge on TPACK-P. A proficiency level of 3 demonstrates the infusive application, where the teacher makes use of ICTs to guide learners to self-explore and independently construct their science knowledge. These baseline findings could inform higher education institutions in reviewing their teacher development programmes for pre-service science teacher preparedness in harnessing the affordances of ICT in their teaching
Surface and corrosion properties of Type 430 ferritic stainless steel in parsley (Petroselinum Sativum) essential oil-containing sulphuric acid solution
Get PDFAbstract: This study examined the corrosion inhibiting properties of parsley (petroselinum sativum) essential oils, for Type 430 ferritic stainless steel in 0.5 molar sulphuric acid solutions. In this study, weight loss, electrochemical and scanning electron microscope techniques were used in gaining a detailed understanding of inhibition effects of parsley (petroselinum sativum) essential oils(PEO) on Type 430 ferritic stainless steel corrosion. The inhibitor studied exhibits good anti-corrosion performance with 98.65% inhibition efficiency. This result could be ascribed to the adsorbed PEO on the surface of the stainless steel, and this was verified by surface visualization using optical and scanning electron microscope techniques while the crystallographic variation of the inhibited sample is studied by x-ray diffraction (XRD). The adsorption of PEO onto stainless steel surface is controlled by Langmuir adsorption isotherms. Optical images of non-inhibited specimens showed a severely corroded surface with a visible macro pit on the stainless steel from sulphuric solutions. The inhibited sample shows improved surface owing to the surface protection effect of PEO molecules. The corrosion inhibition performance of PEO is due to the presence of active constituents which enhanced the film formation over the surface of the metal, thus, mitigating corrosion
Enhancing Good Governance in South Africa Through Youth Protest : A Catalyst for Social Change
Get PDFAbstract: Please refer to full text to view abstract
How economic inequality affects prosocial behavior in children across development
Get PDFAbstract: Research has linked economically unequal environments to lower prosocial behavior in adults. However, we know little about how inequality affects children’s prosociality. Here, 4- to 9-year-old children (N = 128) played a series of games with several puppets where points were awarded. The distribution of points was characterized by either high inequality or low inequality. Children’s donation behavior (i.e., the number of stickers they donated to a poor child), resource division behavior (i.e., how they divided extra points among poor and rich puppets), and fairness perceptions (i.e., how fair they perceived the game to be) were measured in response. Although the experimental manipulation of inequality did not affect children’s donations, exploratory analyses revealed that higher inequality in children’s home suburb was linked to lower donation rates. Furthermore, with age, children distributed points with increasing concern for poorer individuals, and negative judgments of the inequality were linked to distributing resources to poorer individuals. Here we present the first comprehensive analysis of children’s prosocial reactions to high and low inequality across development
Dimensions of students’ satisfaction with residential housing and its impact on their loyalty – A South African study
Get PDFAbstract: Please refer to full text to view abstrac
Data sources:
Access Repository Dashboard
Do you manage University of Johannesburg Institutional Repository? Access insider analytics, issue reports and manage access to outputs from your repository in the CORE Repository Dashboard!