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Gender Differences in Social Support Vary by Environment Among Older People With HIV in South Africa and Uganda
No full textBackground and Objectives: Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 3.7 million older adults living with HIV, who experience high rates of comorbid conditions. Formal services other than HIV clinical care are largely unavailable. Overall, women are the mainstay of informal social support networks, and older women with HIV may face burdens due to family caregiving expectations. Thus, it is important to understand the extent of informal support provided to older adults living with HIV, and how this is affected by gender. Research Design and Methods: We examined differences in social networks, needs, social support and caregiving, and perceptions of support adequacy among women and men aged 50 and older living with HIV in Uganda (n = 101) and South Africa (n = 108), mostly rural and suburban populations, respectively. We used multiple regression to determine whether there was an association between gender and the amount of social support received and whether that varied by research site. Results: Men were more likely than women to receive support from a partner. Women were more likely to live with offspring, both providing and receiving care. In South Africa but not Uganda, women received more help from family than men did. There was no gender difference in getting help from friends, but it was more common in Uganda. Living alone was strongly associated with less family help and more help from friends. Discussion and Implications: Older women with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa tend to be more heavily involved in social support exchanges—both providing and receiving care—than their male peers, but place matters. Interdependence is high in rural Uganda, where formal services are scarce and needs exceed resources. Given the projected growth in this population, stronger formal supports are needed for communities and older people with HIV, especially those who live alone
Controllable Modulation of the Electronic Properties of a Two-Dimensional Ambipolar Semiconductor by Interface Ferroelectric Polarization
No full textPrecise control of charge carrier type and density of two-dimensional (2D) ambipolar semiconductors is the prerequisite for their applications in next-generation integrated circuits and electronic devices. Here, by fabricating a heterointerface between a 2D ambipolar semiconductor (hydrogenated germanene, GeH) and a ferroelectric substrate (PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3-PbTiO3, PMN-PT), fine-tuning of charge carrier type and density of GeH is achieved. Due to ambipolar properties, proper band gap, and high carrier mobility of GeH, by applying the opposite local bias (±8 V), a lateral polarization in GeH is constructed with a change of work function by 0.6 eV. Besides, the built-in polarization in GeH nanoflake could promote the separation of photoexcited electron-hole pairs, which lead to 4 times enhancement of the photoconductivity after poling by 200 V. In addition, a gradient regulation of the work function of GeH from 4.94 to 5.21 eV by adjusting the local substrate polarization is demonstrated, which could be used for data storage at the micrometer size by forming p-n homojunctions. This work of constructing such heterointerfaces provides a pathway for applying 2D ambipolar semiconductors in nonvolatile memory devices, photoelectronic devices, and next-generation integrated circuit
Empirical Evidence of Internal and External Factors Influencing Users’ Motivation Toward Teleconsultation Use
No full textIntroduction: The use of teleconsultation systems has increased in recent years, which has improved patients’ access to health care providers and enabled seamless interaction between them. The literature points out several factors that either facilitate or impede the use of teleconsultation. However, there is a lack of studies that provide empirical evidence of factors that influence consumers’ motivation toward the use of teleconsultation systems. Aim and Objective: This study aimed to provide empirical evidence of the internal and external factors that influence consumers’ motivation toward the use of teleconsultation systems. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was used to collect data from consumers who used a real-time teleconsultation system called the Sehha application in Saudi Arabia between March 13 and June 14, 2021. SPSS 27.0.1 was used for descriptive analysis. Results: Four hundred eighty-five participants completed the survey, 471 of whom were included in the analysis. The findings confirmed that internal and external factors exert an influence on consumers’ motivation toward the use of teleconsultation systems. The findings indicated that the presence of factors such as saving time, saving cost, accessibility to health care, ease-of-use, reliable internet access, availability of devices, and appropriate places during the online connection would increase consumers’ motivation toward teleconsultation systems use. Also, the findings indicated that users’ familiarity with systems similar to teleconsultation systems, users’ perception of teleconsultation convenience, the influence of others on users’ decision to use teleconsultation, and user’s skills and confidence in using teleconsultation easily, and their trust in the teleconsultation system would also increase their motivation to use it. Furthermore, the findings showed that demographic factors, including age, gender, level of education, and employment status, did not influence users’ motivation toward the use of teleconsultation Conclusions: This study provided empirical evidence of a variety of internal and external factors that exert an influence on consumers’ motivation toward the use of teleconsultation systems
Contextual Word Embedding for Biomedical Knowledge Extraction: a Rapid Review and Case Study
No full textRecent advancements in natural language processing (NLP), particularly contextual word embedding models, have improved knowledge extraction from biomedical and healthcare texts. However, limited comprehensive research compares these models. This study conducts a scoping review and compares the performance of the major contextual word embedding models for biomedical knowledge extraction. From 26 articles identified from Scopus, PubMed, PubMed Central, and Google Scholar between 2017 and 2021, 18 notable contextual word embedding models were identified. These include ELMo, BERT, BioBERT, BlueBERT, CancerBERT, DDS-BERT, RuBERT, LABSE, EhrBERT, MedBERT, Clinical BERT, Clinical BioBERT, Discharge Summary BERT, Discharge Summary BioBERT, GPT, GPT-2, GPT-3, and GPT2-Bio-Pt. A case study compared the performance of six representative models—ELMo, BERT, BioBERT, BlueBERT, Clinical BioBERT, and GPT-3—across text classification, named entity recognition, and question answering. The evaluation utilized datasets comprising biomedical text from tweets, NCBI, PubMed, and clinical notes sourced from two electronic health record datasets. Performance metrics, including accuracy and F1 score, were used. The results of this case study reveal that BioBERT performs the best in analyzing biomedical text, while Clinical BioBERT excels in analyzing clinical notes. These findings offer crucial insights into word embedding models for researchers, practitioners, and stakeholders utilizing NLP in biomedical and clinical document analysis
Perioperative knowledge, self-efficacy and clinical practices related to postoperative delirium care in older people across geographical regions in Australia
No full textIntroduction: In older people undergoing surgery, there is a lower tolerance for complications. This highlights the need for documented clinical practices on proper prevention, pre-screening and management of complications such as postoperative delirium (POD). Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines exist for delirium management; however, the management of delirium in clinical settings differs widely. Objective: This study aims to develop an understanding of the knowledge, components of self-efficacy (confidence/competence), and clinical practice related to POD care among preoperative and recovery nurses across different types of geographical locations in Australia. Design: A 27-item online survey was sent out to professional associations focused on perioperative care across Australia. The participants included practicing registered nurses specialising in perioperative care. The main outcome measures were Knowledge, confidence/competence and clinical practice relating to POD care in older patients. Findings: Respondents were categorised into two groups—major cities and rural and remote. Mean age was 46.3 years for respondents in Australian major cities and 49.5 for the comparison group. There was a statistically significant difference between Australian major cities and ‘rural and remote’ in confidence in detecting hyperactive delirium, 25.2% versus 11.7% respectively as well as managing hyperactive delirium, 13.8% versus 1.7%, respectively. Similar results were also observed on hypoactive delirium. Respondents from both groups did not mirror the ideal situation in managing a hyperactive delirium. Discussion: Results from this study are inconclusive and there is no clear-cut observation in clinical practice or knowledge between the two geographical categories in this study. Conclusion: The absence of a distinct strategy with POD prevention highlights the need for a uniform approach and consensus on POD prevention and management in older people. This can be achieved by creating more awareness and education through professional development related to POD
Demographic change and loss of big trees in resprouting eucalypt forests exposed to megadisturbance
No full textAim: Increased tree mortality linked to droughts and fires is occurring across temperate regions globally. Vegetation recovery has been widely reported; however, less is known about how disturbance may alter forests structurally and functionally across environmental gradients. We examined whether dry forests growing on low-fertility soils were more resilient to coupled extreme drought and severe fire owing to lower tree mortality rates, higher resprouting success and persistence of juveniles relative to wetter forests on more fertile soils. Location: Fire-tolerant eucalypt forests of temperate southeastern Australia. Time period: 2020–2023. Major taxa studied: Eucalyptus, Corymbia, Angophora. Methods: Demographic surveys of tree mortality and regeneration in all combinations of dry/wet forest, fertile/less fertile substrates exposed to extreme drought and fire were conducted. We used Bayesian regression modelling to compare tree mortality, diameter, response traits, population structure and occurrence of fire scars between substrates/forest types. Results: Overall mortality (20%–33%) and topkill (34%–41%) were within historically reported ranges for various forests and soil types. However, we observed an atypical trend of increased mortality and topkill in the largest trees, particularly when they had structural damage from past fires. Trees in wet forests on more fertile soils had the highest levels of mortality. Numbers of persistent resprouting juveniles were highest in dry forests on low-fertility soils. Dry forests growing on low-fertility soils appear more resilient to compound disturbances due to lower rates of mortality and higher rates of juvenile persistence. Wet forests on more fertile soils may experience greater demographic change due to higher mortality of small and large trees. Main conclusions: Mesic forests on relatively fertile soils were found to be at relatively high risk of demographic change from compound disturbances. Combined, fire and drought are likely to reduce the number of large trees in affected areas, with consequences for forest carbon cycling and storage
‘Back Off! Stop Making US Illegal!’: The Criminalisation of Homelessness in Australia
No full textIn Australia, vagrancy and public order laws have been used to criminalise homelessness since colonisation. Such laws have never provided an effective deterrent against ‘offending’ because most crimes committed by homeless people are survival-related or otherwise associated with their homeless status. It is generally agreed that a welfare-oriented rather than a punitive approach is needed if these ‘crimes’ are to be prevented, however the perspectives of homeless people on this subject remain largely unknown. We undertook a national study where we asked homeless individuals and criminal law practitioners to comment on whether and how criminal law processes could respond more appropriately to the ‘offending’ behaviour of homeless people. Practitioners viewed criminal law interventions as an opportunity to connect homeless individuals with the services they required. However, the homeless participants were not supportive of mandated social service intervention. They eschewed a criminal identity and wanted state actors to leave them alone
Gender-Based Violence and Carceral Feminism in Australia: Towards Decarceral Approaches
No full textThis article explores the limitations of criminal legal responses to gender-based violence in Australia, specifically sexual assault law reforms and the criminalisation of coercive control. We demonstrate that carceral horizons deployed to address gender-based violence cause further harm to survivors and overshadow diverse perceptions and practices of justice. We suggest that such an approach is inappropriate and dangerous in the Australian context, given the historical and enduring harms of colonisation and the extent to which the actors within and the structure of the criminal legal system perpetrate violence towards Indigenous survivors of gender-based violence. Drawing on insights from research on survivors’ justice needs, survivors’ experiences in the criminal legal system, and abolitionist, transformative, and Indigenous scholarship, we discuss the potential for alternative ways of conceptualising justice responses in the Australian context that move beyond and avoid further perpetuating the harms arising from criminal legal responses to gender-based violence
Peopled landscapes: Questions of coexistence in invasive plant management and rewilding
No full textThe concept of ‘peopled landscapes’ is based on the notion that it is not possible, nor socially or politically desirable, to remove people from the environment in the era of the Anthropocene. As such, it is necessary to document and develop ways to coexist and flourish. This review examines emergent scholarship about peopled landscapes and biodiversity conservation by considering invasive plant management and rewilding as social processes. While invasive plant management and rewilding are often understood as separate, thinking through social scientific research and examples from Australia and the UK, we demonstrate how both forms of human action in landscapes can be more usefully understood as social relations with nature involving social change and social action. Drawing attention to agency, practices and capacity, we show how diverse forms of human and nonhuman actions are recognised, attributed or acknowledged in biodiversity conservation in peopled landscapes. In practice, centring the idea of peopled landscapes (rather than conceiving of the environment as where the impact of people is minimised) shows how invasive plant management and rewilding can be understood as related responses to environmental problems. Flourishing and coexistence in peopled landscapes require recognition of the diverse human and nonhuman agencies that shape the politics of acceptable action, and illustrate the inseparability of environmental and social justice. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog
The geography of social vulnerability and wildfire occurrence (1984–2018) in the conterminous USA
No full textWildfire is increasing in frequency, extent, and severity in many parts of the USA. Considering the unequal burden of natural hazards on socially vulnerable populations, we ask here, how are characteristics of social vulnerability associated with wildfire occurrence nationwide, at different scales and across differing levels of wildland–urban interface development? To answer this question, we first identify all non-urban census tracts in the USA that have experienced a wildfire since 1984. Using 26 different measures of social vulnerability, we compare these tracts to non-urban census tracts that have not experienced a wildfire. In doing so, we identify notable social vulnerabilities in areas that have experienced wildfire, including higher unemployment, higher employment in extractive industries, higher percentage of people living in mobile homes, higher percentages of Native Americans, higher percentage of people with less than 12th grade education, and higher populations of people with special needs. Breaking our data into eight regions and comparing tracts with a high proportion of wildland–urban interface (WUI) to those with a low proportion of WUI, we find that these characteristics are generally consistent across regions of the USA and vary slightly between high WUI and low WUI tracts. Overall, we find a robust pattern of higher social vulnerability in areas with wildfire occurrence. Whereas previous studies about social vulnerability to wildfire focus on relationships with wildfire hazard potential or concentrate on a single region, this study fills a knowledge gap by examining the relationship between social vulnerability and wildfire occurrence nationwide