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Construction project performance in Zambia : a case study of public high schools
No full textThe study considers construction project performance in Zambia, through a case study of public high schools, constructed between the years 2006 to 2016. The quality of the built infrastructure has been in question for years, where resources spent do not match up with the life span. The cycle of replacing rapidly deteriorating infrastructure for the country is not sustainable.The study aimed at establishing a framework to improve quality management of school infrastructure projects. In its objectives, it investigated the relationships between certified quality management systems and performance levels in project environments: the state of building elements in constructed schools by looking at defects, the overall project performance, by assessing quality management systems of stakeholders, and the role each played towards quality achievement.Data was collected through: (i) the questionnaire, where 33 of the target 50 school administrators participated, (ii) observation, where 33 of the target 50 schools were observed, and (iii) structured interviews with key stakeholders, involving 3 client institutions, 2 consulting architects, and 5 contractor representatives.Triangulation of data collected from end-users and through observation confirmed the presence of defects in the ‘sub-surface’, ‘construction’, and ‘materials’ deficiency categories.Other findings included incomplete quality management systems in some construction firms, fragmented application of quality management at project level by key stakeholders, and a lack of or weak application of existing regulation.In its contribution to knowledge, the study has proposed a remedial framework which addresses noted gaps by recommending a ‘review process’ of stakeholder QM input in the high school projects. Information obtained should be used to fill up gaps in stakeholder participation in project life cycle QM. It should equally be used to set up a National QM data base aimed at enhancing efforts to define, plan and implement QM in project life cycles
Communication patterns in nurse-led chemotherapy clinics: A mixed-method study
No full text•Nurses were more able to attend to patients’ verbal cues of their needs for information than patients’ cues for psychosocial issues.•Long consultation time with patients has no impact on how nurses respond to patients’ verbal cues and concerns.•Priorities for medical information and clinical tasks may reduce nurses’ focus on psychosocial support.•Continuity of care was important for nurses although patient care was sometimes fragmented.
To determine patterns of nurse-patient communication in fulfilling patients’ informational/psychosocial needs, effects of longer consultation/operational aspects on person-centred care experiences.
Mixed-method design; secondary analysis of transcripts of nurse-patient communication within nurse-led chemotherapy clinics in UK [3]. Purposive sampling (13 nurses); non-participant observations (61 consultations). Qualitative content analysis of audio-recorded transcripts. Quantitative analysis using the Medical Interview Aural Rating Scale [14] to compare mean differences in the number of cues and level of responding using one-way ANOVA, and correlational analyses of discursive spaces.
Nurses responded positively to informational cues, but not psychosocial cues. Longer consultations associated with more informational and psychosocial cues (p < .0001), but not nurses’ cue-responding behaviours. Four main themes emerged: challenges/opportunities for person-centred communication in biomedical contexts; patients’ “life world” versus the “medical world”; three-way communication: nurse, patient and family; implications of continuity of care.
The challenges/opportunities for cue-responding in nurse-led chemotherapy clinics were evident for informational and psychosocial support of patients. Shifting from a biomedical to biopsychosocial focus is difficult.
Further evaluation is needed to integrate biopsychosocial elements into communication education/training. Careful planning is required to ensure continuity and effective use of time for person-centred care
Interference-Free Space-Time Block Codes with Directional Beamforming for Future Networks
No full textAs the evolving communication standards would leverage on high data rates and low power consumption, future communication systems must be able to demonstrate these strengths. Space-time block codes (STBC) and quasi-orthogonal STBC (QO-STBC) including beamforming are multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) system design techniques used to improve data rates and reduce bit error ratio (BER). STBCs for larger antenna configurations use QO-STBC schemes which suffer from self-interference problems. The self-interference in QO-STBC systems diminishes the data rates and worsen the BER. In this study, we present three (3) methods of overcoming the self-interference problems in QO-STBC systems. We implement the interference-free QO-STBC systems with directional beamforming to improve the data rates and also reduce the BER. The results show significantly improved BER performance when the interferences are eliminated. An additional 3dB gain is achieved at 10(-4) BER when the interference-free QO-STBCs are operated with directional beamforming. In terms of data rates, up to 6 bits/s at reasonably low power consumption are realized when the Hadamard-based QO-STBC is operated with directional beamforming
An exploration of how social media use impacts the mental health of young people : a review of literature
No full textSocial media has been shown to have an impact on young people's mental health in numerous contemporary studies. This dissertation sought to establish how social media use impacts the mental health of young people; given that social media has become more ubiquitous in young people's lives in contrast to other age groups. The objectives proposed to meet this aim were: to discover young people's views, to establish the impact of social media use on mental health and to identify support strategies that assist in addressing the issues encountered online.A literature review-based approach was implemented to draw on a wide range of evidence. Electronic searches were conducted using the following databases: Discover@Bolton, Google Scholar and the Journal of Adolescent Health. The search terms included: "social media and young people's mental health" and "social media and adolescent mental health*". The inclusion criteria included peer-reviewed journals, published between 2010 and 2020 to maintain both relevance and appropriateness. Studies from other disciplines, including law, engineering and economics were excluded. Following this, data was analysed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme. Overall, the 16 studies revealed that young people viewed social media mainly negatively due to its associated implications, including addiction, inadequate sleep, and social comparisons. Correlations between social media usage and mental health were discovered, including increased depressive symptoms, low self-esteem and body image worries. It was also discovered that there is a gap in the literature which considers strategies, which could be addressed by future studies looking to propose potential models for solution management. Other recommendations included training for professionals, parental awareness through national campaigns, and interactive sessions within schools
Investigation of Durable Bio-polymeric Antimicrobial Finishes to Chemically Modified Textile Fabrics Using Solvent Induction System
No full textNew technologies and materials required for developing antibacterial textiles have become a subject of interest to the researchers in recent years. This study focuses on the investigation of the biopolymeric antibacterial agents, such as neem, aloe vera, tulsi and grapeseed oil, in the trichloroacetic acid-methylene chloride (TCAMC) solvent used for the pretreatment of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) polyester fabrics. Different PET structures, such as 100% polyester, polyester/viscose, polyester/cotton and 100% texturised, are treated with four different concentrations (5%, 10%, 15% and 20%) of biopolymeric antibacterial finishes. The antibacterial activity of the treated samples is tested against both the Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive) and Escherichia coli (Gram-negative) bacteria. Taguchi mixed orthogonal array Design L16 (43 22) is chosen for an experimental plan to determine the optimum conditions. Among all the fabric samples, the 100% polyester fabric treated with 20% grapeseed oil registers the highest antibacterial activity of 86%, and 73% against S. aureus and E. coli respectively. However, the antibacterial effect is reduced to 37%, and 34% respectively after 10 machine launderings
The impact of coronavirus in education : some personal perspectives
No full textThis is the accepted version of the article by Joanne Smith, Associate Teaching Professor, Divisional Lead for Health, Community and Early Years, and Patricia Donovan, Practice Trainer, both at Faculty of Health and Wellbeing, University of Bolton. Published in British Journal of Healthcare Assistants,© 2020 MA Healthcare Ltd. The published article can be found at the link above
A comparison-based study on titanium and zirconia dental implant restorations in the anterior region
No full textTitanium has been used in dental implantology for over 50 years, however, metal-free implant restorations are becoming increasingly popular. Zirconia is trending as a possible alternative implant material due to its favorable material properties. Despite conflicting evidence, studies suggest zirconia is likely to replace titanium as the preferred dental implant material in the future. This study aims to determine which is the best dental implant material in the anterior region. Furthermore, this study will critically analyse and compare the two materials in regards to their biocompatibility, osseointegration, mechanical properties, aesthetics and clinical success rates. This study was conducted by using various search engines to retrieve sufficient data which ranged from PubMed, Discover @ Bolton, MDPI and Science direct. The major keywords used in this report was; ‘titanium implants’, ‘abutments’, ‘zirconia dental implants’, ‘dental implants’, ‘osseointegration’, ‘aesthetics’ and ‘mechanical properties of zirconia and titanium’. In order to retrieve sufficient data to evidence this report, 43 searches were conducted. There were a total of 2131 articles produced through these searches, although after applying ‘inclusion and exclusion’ criteria multiple sources were eliminated. A total of 288 abstracts were read for the purpose of this comparison-based study, however on applying the exclusion criteria 216 were dismissed. The inclusion criteria determined the use of 70 online journal sources and 8 manual journal sources and books, totaling 78 sources for this report. Overall, it is difficult to conclude which biomaterial is superior, as each case is patient-specific with unique requirements. Zirconia is a suitable alternative to titanium for implants in the anterior region, as its osseointegration is equally effective. In comparison to titanium, zirconia has better aesthetics and biological properties, making it a good alternative. However, zirconia has much weaker mechanical properties in comparison to titanium. Zirconia ages and has lower fracture strength and resistance therefore producing lower survival rates. In addition, zirconia, as a relatively new alternative lacks long term clinical success. Therefore, more research is required in this area to allow a full assessment of which material is superior for dental implants in the anterior region
Advances in business management: The incorporation of sustainability in software engineering projects and the potential impact on project success in the context of Jordanian public Universities
No full textThe move towards more sustainable outcomes under the triple bottom line (TBL) theory of sustainability (economic, environmental, and social) is one of the greatest challenges for organisations. Projects may have a pivotal role in the achievement of sustainability, as they are an ideal tool for bringing about change. Over the last decade, there has been growing attention to the incorporation of sustainability into projects (project sustainability). However, there are some criticisms regarding this incorporation, and one of the most important criticisms is that this incorporation may have a negative impact on project success, which is crucial and directly linked to the success of organisations as a whole. A systematic literature review revealed that to date, the relationship between project sustainability and project success has been inadequately researched in both developed and developing countries. There is an evident lack of research about this relationship in developing countries of the Arab world in particular. Further, it has been found that most of the few relevant contributions are conceptual in nature and focus mainly on manufacturing and construction projects. There is a lack of research which explores this relationship in some important projects such as information systems and technology (IS&T), services, and telecommunications projects. One of the most important of IS&T projects is software projects where this research focuses.Currently, there is no recorded contribution which focuses on the relationship between project sustainability (PS) and project success in the software industry. This gap in the literature is the main basis of the current thesis. Therefore, this study aims to make a novel contribution to the literature by investigating the potential impact of software project sustainability (SPS) on project success. To achieve this aim, the author has developed a conceptual framework that helps in the empirical examination of the relationship between these two concepts. The proposed framework consists of six constructs which have been developed based on the analysis of the best contributions in the relevant literature. The first four constructs, which are independent variables (IVs) and represent SPS, are economic considerations (ECCs), environmental concerns (EVCs), social responsibilities (SRs), and TBLrelated quality requirements (QRs). These constructs encompass a unique combination of TBL-related aspects for incorporating sustainability into processes and products of software projects and form a significant part of the contribution of this thesis. The fifth construct, project success (PSCS), was positioned as a dependent variable (DV), and the sixth construct, project complexity, was set as a control variable in the proposed framework. The development of the framework is affiliated with the triple bottom line (TBL) theory, the ISO/IEC 25010:2011 product quality model of systems and software, the Sustainability Checklist of the International Project Management Association (IPMA), the contingency theory, and the multidimensional model of Shenhar and Dvir (2007) for measuring project success.An empirical study was conducted to validate the proposed framework and test the research hypotheses. A quantitative methodology was applied using a hand-delivered selfadministered questionnaire as the data collection technique. 172 questionnaires were distributed randomly, targeting key stakeholders of internal software projects of the ten Jordanian public universities. Out of the 153 returned questionnaires, 140 were considered valid, after examining for missing data, suspicious response patterns, data distribution, outliers, response rate, and non-response bias. This constituted a high response rate of 81.4%.The final data set was then analysed using the partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The conceptual framework was validated as a model by establishing the internal consistency reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. The results showed a good level of commitment towards the economic considerations (ECCs), social responsibilities (SRs), and TBL-related quality requirements (QRs) of SPS in the surveyed sample, while it was found that the environmental concerns (EVCs) were barely considered.The analysis revealed a significant relationship between the four constructs of SPS and project success. The relationship of ECCs, SRs, and QRs to project success was positive, while it was negative for EVCs. However, it was found that the overall relationship of the four constructs “combined” with project success is significant and positive. Also, the analysis revealed that project complexity has no significant effect on the relationship between SPS and project success. Therefore, it was concluded that SPS can impact project success significantly and positively, especially if SPS is considered as a net of the four constructs’ relationships with project success, and not the solo relationship of each.This study may contribute towards a more sustainable orientation in the software industry, as it provides empirical evidence of a significant positive relationship between SPS and project success. This is considered important due to the present contradictions in the relevant literature regarding the relationship between project sustainability, in general, and project success. Also, this study gives academics and practitioners a better understanding of how software projects can be managed sustainably; and it provides them with a validated model for measuring whether the incorporation of sustainability supports or impedes the success of these projects. Moreover, software companies – or other relevant organisations – may use the proposed model as a measurement tool to evaluate environmental and social impacts of their current products and project management practices. Consequently, these organisations may pay more attention to incorporating sustainability into their projects.Finally, it can be argued that the findings of this study, along with the methodological approach used, constitute a valuable contribution to knowledge and provide a good basis for relevant works in future. It is hoped this research will contribute to the sustainability and success of organisations and society at large
Development of the META model in relation to compassion in nursing
No full textIntroduction Compassion is an important part of nursing practice and the way in which care is delivered to patients. A number of high profile reports have highlighted the consequences of the failure to demonstrate compassionate care, with others calling for the introduction of compassion into nurse training.Background The recent reports into compassion recommend a need to create education programmes for nursing students so that they can continue to show compassionate care in practice. However, while the general literature explains the background to compassion and various ways in which this virtue can be demonstrated, it is not clear what type of training has been developed for nursing students or how effective such programmes are at teaching compassion.Aims and objectives The aim of the study was to develop a model of learning that would help nursing students understand and demonstrate the practical and emotional elements of compassion in practice. An additional aim was that the Measure Explore Try Apply (META) model would help bridge the gap between education and practice by preparing nursing students for compassion in the workplace. The main objectives were; (1) to investigate the characteristics of compassion in nursing, how compassion is taught and measured, (2) explore and validate these findings further with a series of stakeholder groups, (3) use the results of the study to create a compassion strengths model for nurses’ compassion, (4) using the compassion strengths model as a foundation develop a psychometric scale and online learning intervention to measure and teach compassion strengths, and (5) validate both interventions with a cohort of nursing students, and assess them for their individual and combined effectiveness in relation to the META model.Methods A systematic review of the literature highlighted a dearth of empirical research to support the identification of teaching and measurement of the characteristics of a compassionate nurse. As the study aimed to develop a new psychometric questionnaire, and an online scenario based learning course to help teach nursing students about compassion, a mixed methods approach underpinned by pragmatism was used. A variety of methods were included in the design of the studies. Directed content, and thematic analysis were used to explore the qualitative data. In addition, classic scale development statistics and confirmatory factor analysis methods were used to analyse the quantitative data.Findings Two major findings from this study were the development of the META model and Compassion Strengths model to support nursing students in the understanding and demonstration of compassion in practice. The Compassion Strengths model suggests that compassion is a multifaceted concept comprised of eight strengths, (1) Character, (2) Self-care, (3) Communication, (4) Connection, (5) Engagement, (6) Competence, (7) Interpersonal skills, and (8) Empathy, which are key factors in the development of a compassionate nurse. The META model proposes that nursing students can first Measure themselves on their own unique compassion strengths. Next, using the online course they can access and Explore information about each of the compassion strengths to increase their knowledge and understanding of compassion. Then, Try out what they have learned through a series of reflective scenarios. Last, students can take what they have learned and Apply it to their practice. Nursing students who engaged in the META model using the compassion strengths as a framework, developed a new understanding of how to demonstrate compassion that they were able to implement into their clinical practice with patients.Conclusion The META model, and Compassion Strengths model are two novel approaches to teaching compassion in nursing. While nursing curricula undoubtedly cover some of the compassion strengths included in this research, this study provides further empirical evidence for their importance and ways in which they can be implemented into nurse education and practice using the META model. The findings can be used to explore new avenues in the pursuit of producing nursing students with the strengths of compassion along their educational journey. The META model adds a unique contribution to knowledge. It is a novel approach to teaching that can be used as a learning tool to help students improve on specific compassion skills and help track progress over time.The results of this will not only have a positive impact on their own health and wellbeing, but that of their patients too. While this study explored the impact of both models on nursing students, the research could be applied to other healthcare students and professionals