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5 Iterative co-design to surface older peoples’ safety experiences of artificial intelligence (AI) at home: in search of new understanding
Get PDF“I just can’t do that anymore”: a qualitative exploration of symptoms and function in patients living with abdominal wall hernia (AWH)
Get PDFBackground: Abdominal Wall Hernia (AWH) is a structurally and functionally disruptive condition often assessed through objective clinical variables such as position, size, reducibility, skin changes, and symptoms of obstruction suggesting the need for urgent treatment. However, little attention has been given to explore all the symptoms experienced. Many Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) tools fail to capture the nuances of lived experience, especially around pain, restriction, and behavioural response. This study provides a qualitative examination of the symptomatology and functional impact of AWH as described from the patient’s perspective. Methods: This phenomenological study draws on 15 semi-structured interviews with patients living with AWH. Participants were sampled purposively across a spectrum of hernia complexity (VHWG grades 1–4). Transcripts were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to generate superordinate and subordinate themes concerning symptoms and functional impact. Data analysis was triangulated between qualitative and surgical researchers. Results: The analysis revealed a superordinate theme of “Symptoms and Function,” with three distinct but overlapping subordinate domains: management of pain, freedom of movement, and restriction and adaptation. Participants described persistent background pain, episodic sharp exacerbations, and visceral sensations (e.g., bloating and urinary urgency). Anticipatory vigilance shaped movement planning, with participants choreographing basic tasks and progressively surrendering valued activities across both leisure and employment. Restriction triggered inventive adaptations, including custom abdominal binders and adjusted routines. Conclusions: AWH imposes a diffuse, dynamic and difficult burden on patients’ bodies and lives, extending far beyond the anatomical boundaries typically measured in clinical practice. Participants described a constellation of physical symptoms, including pain, visceral discomfort, and movement restriction. Our findings highlight that functional limitation in AWH is a biopsychosocial phenomenon. These experiences resonate with pain-psychology frameworks and demonstrate the limitations of reductionist surgical assessments. Effective interventions must match the complexity of lived experience, combining surgical, psychological, and rehabilitative strategies
Three reasons why China wants global green leadership after Cop30 – and two reasons it doesn’t
No full textMeasurement of age-of-acquisition in morphologically rich languages: Insights from Kannada and Filipino
Get PDFIn this study, we present age-of-acquisition (AoA) ratings for 885 Kannada and Filipino words as a new resource for research and education purposes. Beyond this, we consider the methodological and theoretical considerations of measuring AoA in morphologically rich, specifically agglutinative, languages, to study child language acquisition. Parents, teachers, and experts provided subjective ratings of when they thought a child acquired each word. Results were generally consistent between the two languages. Mixed-effects models demonstrated that word characteristics, including parts-of-speech category, word length, and age band of first occurrence in a print corpus, were significantly related to AoA ratings, whereas rater characteristics, including participant type, age, gender, and number of languages spoken, had generally non-significant associations with AoA ratings. The number of morphemes was significantly associated with AoA ratings in some analyses; however, crosslinguistic differences in the directionality of the relationships suggested the need to investigate underlying drivers of morphological complexity such as morpheme frequency, transparency/consistency, and function. The age-of-acquisition ratings were internally reliable and demonstrated consistency with the first occurrences of words in print and known trends in child language research. The results demonstrate the potential of these resources and open new directions for AoA research in morphologically rich languages
How does the rise in contraceptive usage predict pregnancy termination among young women in Kenya? an in-depth multilevel analysis
Get PDFBackground: Young women were less likely to practise consistent contraceptive use and are also known to exhibit risky sexual behaviours, which could lead to unintended pregnancy. Studies have also shown that about half of the Kenyan population is young, an age bracket that predominantly experiences unwanted pregnancy. However, adequate attention has not been given to the relationship between pregnancy termination and contraceptive use among this teeming population in Kenya. Thus, this study examined the association between pregnancy termination history and contraceptive use among women aged 15–24 years old in Kenya. Methods: A total of 12,166 women aged 15–24 years old from Kenya were drawn using a secondary dataset from the most recent Kenya Demographic Health Surveys conducted in the year 2022. Frequency distribution and multilevel logistic regression analyses were employed to determine the association between contraceptive use and pregnancy termination history among young women aged 15–24 years old with covariates at p < 0.05. Results: The results showed that the higher percentage of contraceptive users among young women are those aged 15–19 years (50.1%); consequently, a higher percentage of pregnancy termination was also found among women who reported the use of contraceptive methods (6.2%) compared to 2.9% among non-users. The main findings of the study showed that young women who reported using contraceptives were more likely to have a history of pregnancy termination [aOR = 1.03; 95% CI: 0.80–1.26] compared to those who were non-users. Also, age, marital status, and parity are significantly associated with the history of pregnancy termination. Conclusion: Our analyses established an association between history of contraceptive use and termination of pregnancy among young women between 20 and 24 years in Kenya. Place of residence, age, wealth index, level of education, and met needs of children have been identified as risk factors. Intervention to reduce pregnancy termination in Kenya should focus on women aged 20–24 years, those with no formal education, urban residence, and women with met need for children
Telemedicine use in rural areas of the United Kingdom to improve access to healthcare facilities: A review of current evidence
Get PDFBackground
Rural populations in the UK face healthcare inequities despite the NHS's aim of providing universal healthcare. These disparities include restricted access, transportation challenges, and healthcare workforce shortages, resulting in delayed care and poorer health outcomes. This research aims to investigate the use of telemedicine in rural areas of the United Kingdom to improve access to healthcare facilities.
Methods
The research process combines a systematic literature review with a thematic analysis using open coding. The results were presented through thematic representation from an open-coding method, following an established search strategy, inclusion/exclusion criteria, a two-step screening procedure, and data extraction. The PRISMA framework was used to screen the articles for the research.
Results
Findings reveal that telemedicine significantly improves access to healthcare in rural areas by reducing travel barriers, enhancing mental health services, and increasing patient engagement. Studies highlight its expanding use during pandemics, cross-border reach, and beneficial effects on mental health services. Digital literacy programs and targeted resource distribution were identified as critical to maximizing the effectiveness of telemedicine. Measures like digital literacy and equitable resource allocation are called for in response to issues like specialized care delivery and equitable access. Together, these projects present a thorough strategy for using telemedicine's promise of equal access to healthcare in rural areas.
Conclusion
Even though studies show that telemedicine was used more frequently during the epidemic, the review underscores the need for enhanced digital literacy and infrastructure to ensure equitable access. Difficulties, including legal complications, a lack of technological literacy, and communication obstacles, still exist. Initiatives to promote digital literacy, fair resource distribution, and regulatory changes for smooth integration are highlighted in the suggested solutions. Overall, telemedicine holds the potential to significantly reduce healthcare disparities in rural areas, provided these challenges are addressed
Parallax as disorientation within city space
Get PDFThis paper explores the role of parallax in architecture and the so-called ‘parallax gap’ proposed by philosopher Slavoj Žižek in 2009. For Žižek the parallax gap is grounded in psychoanalytic short circuits, prompting a hypothesis about postmodern conflicts within architecture. While the concept of parallax has appeared within architecture at various points historically, Žižek’s parallax gap affords a possibility for the redirection of the viewer’s gaze away from the architectural object to the spaces inflected by, and between, neighbouring urban fabric. Reflecting on the potentialities of interrogating architecture and urban space psychoanalytically, I argue for an expansion of parallax focused on understanding spatial dislocations and disorientations. The result retraces parallax in urban space research, catering for a fertile investigation at the intersection of architecture, culture, politics, and psychoanalysis
‘Being a teacher is different from working as a teacher’: evaluating pre-service primary school teachers’ practicum experiences in a Spanish context
Get PDFThis longitudinal qualitative study explores the value of practicum experiences for the formation of pre-service teachers’ (PSTs) identities at different stages of their training in a Spanish context. It aimed to understand pre-service teachers’ professional development and practicum experiences, their support needs during this time and contribution of practicum experiences for the formation of their teacher identities. Using a case study approach, data were collected from interviews with pre-service teachers and their drawings, to elicit visual representations of their sense-making. A reflexive thematic approach was adopted for the data analysis. The findings demonstrate their learning about the realities and challenges facing teaching professionals, and raise pressing concerns for teacher education. Firstly, teacher education has become a technical and instrumental practice due to the process of ‘professionalisation’ of teachers, the concern is that important moral and ethical dimensions of teaching are overlooked, resulting in unintended negative consequences. Secondly, pre-service teachers lack opportunities and space to question practice. Practicum experience must be more than simply ‘learning the ropes’. It must support pre-service teachers to become reflexive practitioners, and it is suggested that in this task teacher educators and school-based mentors have an important part to play
Artificial intelligence coach bots: coaches’ perceptions of potential future impacts on professional coaching, a qualitative study.
Get PDFPurpose
This research aimed to understand perceptions of experienced coaches of the potential changes and impacts artificial intelligence (AI) coach bots pose to the coaching industry in the imminent future.
Design/methodology/approach
This was an exploratory qualitative study in which semi-structured interviews were carried out with nine credentialed professional coaches with a range of experience with AI coach bots. The data were analysed using thematic analysis.
Findings
Four themes were developed from the data: (1) The limited coaching capabilities of AI coach bots; (2) the greater accessibility of AI coaching services; (3) possible AI-human hybrid service delivery and (4) ethical issues in using AI coach bots. The interviewees emphasised the importance of the human presence, human qualities and human characteristics in the coaching context.
Research limitations/implications
The study was limited by the small sample size, so the findings cannot be statistically generalised to the coaching industry.
Practical implications
Alignment with earlier studies indicates that practical implications of the study are that coaches might usefully explore hybrid delivery of services and that professional bodies should establish clear guidelines for the ethical use of AI coach bots.
Originality/value
This is one of the first studies exploring the impact of AI coach bots on professional coaching and the coaching industry