7 research outputs found
Review of \u3ci\u3eIndian School Days\u3c/i\u3e By Basil H. Johnston
No full textIn 1939 Basil H. Johnston\u27s mother told him he would soon be going on a short trip. The reasons for her seeming upset during preparations for his departure became clear to the ten-year-old Ojibway only when the agent came to collect him. Basil realized he was being taken to Spanish, a small village in northern Ontario and the site of the St. Peter Claver\u27s Indian Residential School. Indian School Days renders the autobiographical remembrances of the author\u27s years at the Jesuit boarding school.
Residential schools for Native American children were spread throughout Canada and the United States through the 1950s. Funded by the government and religious organizations, their mission was to assimilate students into majority society. To the educators in charge, this meant the elimination of tribal language and customs and the implementation of a Canadian or American as well as a vocational curriculum. This was in no way multicultural education. As Johnston writes, we were taught to be resourceful. But unless one has a sense of worth and dignity, resourcefulness, intelligence and shrewdness are of little advantage.
Johnston\u27s account of his education with a hundred and fifty or so other Indian youths is absorbing. A gifted storyteller, he recounts vividly his arrival at the school, his designation as number forty-three, and his ordered, monotonous life. Johnston also writes of the other students and their ways of surviving the austerity and intended cultural conversion. Were it not for the spirit of the boys, every day would have passed according to plan and schedule, and there would have been no story.
Indeed, the boys had spirit. They bartered the limited food, prayed to Kitchi-Manitou for good weather so they could play sports, and experimented with forbidden experiences like horseback riding-all this while attempting to avoid the vigilant eyes of the priests in charge and the quick punishments certain to follow any infringements of the rules. The author is able to convey the humor in such episodes along with the poignancy of childhood in such an unnatural setting.
Anyone interested in education, history, or Native Americans should find Indian School Days an engaging narrative. Basil H. Johnston, valedictorian of St. Peter Claver\u27s class of 1950, has made his voice heard in a wonderful book
Clinical characteristics of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy in villages in Maridi County, Republic of South Sudan
No full textAbstract: Purpose: To describe the clinical manifestations of persons with epilepsy (PWE) in onchocerciasis endemic villages in South Sudan. Methods: During a survey in Maridi County in May 2018, PWE were interviewed and examined in their households by a clinical officer or medical doctor. Onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy (OAE) was defined as >= 2 seizures without any obvious cause, starting between the ages of 3-18 years in previously healthy persons who had resided for at least 3 years in the onchocerciasis endemic area. Results: Seven hundred and thirty-six PWE were included in the study; 315 (42.8%) were females; median age was 18 years. A variety of seizure types were reported: generalized tonic-clonic seizures in 511 PWE (69.4%), absences in 15 (2.0%), focal motor seizures with full awareness in 7 (1.0%), focal motor seizures with impaired awareness in 25 (3.4%), brief episodes of hallucinations in 316 (43.9%) and nodding seizures in 335 (45.5%). The median age of onset of all seizures was 10 years, and 8 years for nodding seizures. PWE with nodding seizures presented with more cognitive disabilities. The diagnostic criteria for OAE were met by 414 (85.2%) of the 486 PWE with complete information. Eighty (11.0%) PWE presented with Nakalanga features. Only 378 (51.4%) PWE were taking anti-epileptic treatment. Conclusion: PWE presented with a wide spectrum of seizures. The high percentage of PWE who met the diagnostic criteria for OAE suggests that better onchocerciasis control could prevent new cases. Urgent action is needed to close the anti-epileptic treatment gap
High prevalence of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy in villages in Maridi County, Republic of South Sudan: a community-based survey
No full textPurpose: To determine the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy in an onchocerciasis endemic region of South Sudan.
Methods: In May 2018, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in 8 study sites in an onchocerciasis endemic area in Maridi County.
Results: A total of 2511 households agreed to participate in the study, corresponding to 17,652 individuals. An epilepsy screening questionnaire identified 799 persons suspected to have epilepsy (4.5%); in 736 of the 766 persons (96.1%) seen by a clinical officer the diagnosis of epilepsy was confirmed. Adding 38 persons who were not seen but with a positive answer to a combination of screening questions, 774 persons (4.4%) had epilepsy. Epilepsy prevalence was highest in the 11–20 age group (10.5%); 66 persons with epilepsy (PWE) developed their first seizures in the year preceding the survey (annual incidence = 373.9/100.000). Neurocysticercosis cannot explain the high epilepsy prevalence since no pigs are kept in the area. Independent risk factors for
epilepsy included male gender, belonging to a “permanent household” and a farming family, and living in a village bordering the Maridi River. Only 7209 (40.8%) of the population took ivermectin in 2017.
Conclusion: A very high prevalence and incidence of epilepsy was observed in several villages in Maridi County located close to the Maridi River and the Maridi dam. Urgent action is needed to prevent children in Maridi County from developing OAE by strengthening the onchocerciasis elimination program.R Colebunders received funding from the European Research Council (ERC 671051
High prevalence of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy in villages in Maridi County, Republic of South Sudan : a community-based survey
No full textAbstract: Purpose: To determine the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy in an onchocerciasis endemic region of South Sudan. Methods: In May 2018, a door-to-door household survey was conducted in 8 study sites in an onchocerciasis endemic area in Maridi County. Results: A total of 2511 households agreed to participate in the study, corresponding to 17,652 individuals. An epilepsy screening questionnaire identified 799 persons suspected to have epilepsy (4.5%); in 736 of the 766 persons (96.1%) seen by a clinical officer the diagnosis of epilepsy was confirmed. Adding 38 persons who were not seen but with a positive answer to a combination of screening questions, 774 persons (4.4%) had epilepsy. Epilepsy prevalence was highest in the 11-20 age group (10.5%); 66 persons with epilepsy (PWE) developed their first seizures in the year preceding the survey (annual incidence = 373.9/100.000). Neurocysticercosis cannot explain the high epilepsy prevalence since no pigs are kept in the area. Independent risk factors for epilepsy included male gender, belonging to a "permanent household" and a farming family, and living in a village bordering the Maridi River. Only 7209 (40.8%) of the population took ivermectin in 2017. Conclusion: A very high prevalence and incidence of epilepsy was observed in several villages in Maridi County located close to the Maridi River and the Maridi dam. Urgent action is needed to prevent children in Maridi County from developing OAE by strengthening the onchocerciasis elimination program
Persons with onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy and nodding seizures have a more severe form of epilepsy with more cognitive impairment and higher levels of Onchocerca volvulus infection
No full textAbstract: Aims. Following previous reports of very high epilepsy prevalence in the onchocerciasis-endemic villages in Maridi County, South Sudan, a study was conducted to investigate the association between the level of Onchocerca volvulus infection, epilepsy, and related outcomes. Methods. In December 2018, persons with epilepsy (PWE) were recruited from villages where an epilepsy prevalence of 4.4% (range: 3.5-11.9%) was documented. We enrolled 318 participants from whom two skin snips were taken for microscopic detection of O. volvulus microfilariae (mf). Seizure history was obtained for all PWE and their degree of disability assessed using the modified Rankin scale. Results. Almost all (84.9%) PWE had detectable mf in their skin snips. Onchocerciasis-infected PWE experienced nodding seizures more often than uninfected PWE (p=0.034). Moreover, persons with nodding seizures had more frequent seizures (p<0.001) and higher disability scores (p<0.001), and were more often cognitively impaired and younger at the time of their first epileptic seizure (nine years vs 12 years, p<0.001) compared to PWE without nodding seizures. Based on multivariate models, nodding seizures were associated with higher mf densities (aOR: 1.022; 95% CI: 1.005-1.041). Epilepsy onset at a younger age was associated with a worse outcome. Higher frequency of seizures, longer duration of epilepsy and younger age were associated with increased disability. Regular antiepileptic drug use was associated with better cognitive and disability outcomes. Conclusion. PWE with nodding seizures have a more severe form of onchocerciasis-associated epilepsy, with earlier seizure onset and higher levels of O. volvulus infection. Younger PWE were prone to worse epilepsy outcomes, which would be prevented with regular antiepileptic treatment
Katherine Drexel: Mystery, mission, spirituality and sainthood
No full textKatherine Drexel (1858-1955), the founder of the sisters of the blessed. Sacrament, was canonized by Pope John Paul II on October 1, 2000. This thesis analyzes Drexel’s life and virtues to establish why she became a saint. The examination of Drexel’s life begins in Chapter 2, which discloses the family life of a wealthy Philadelphia debutante, who, nonetheless, learned charity and philanthropy from her banker father and her religious mother. Following the deaths of her parents, Drexel wanted to enter a Catholic convent to spend her life in prayer and contemplation. Chapter 3 details the process of her vocational discernment that was carried out over several years in an epistolary argument with her spiritual director, Bishop O'Connor of Omaha. While he first believed that her vocation was to remain a single woman dedicated to serving the poor through judicial disbursement of her large inheritance, he later decided that she should found a new order of missionary nuns dedicated to the needs of the Native- Americans and African-Americans. Chapter 3 details the difficulties she encountered in the establishing of her new order at a time when the United States was racially divided by both law and custom. Drexel's order grew slowly in the face of open hostility towards her mission, including that of the Ku Klux Klan, and it then declined following the upheavals that came in the wake of the Second Vatican Council. Chapter 4 addresses the spirituality that sustained Drexel throughout her long life. Her deep spirituality was both kenotic and Eucharistie, and it allowed her to face daunting challenges in the mission field. Chapter 5 analyzes why the pope chose to canonize Drexel and entails a study of the process of saint-making as it evolved over the centuries
Um modelo para identificar desperdícios de conhecimento relacionados à performance dos portfólios de projetos
No full textTese (doutorado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro Tecnológico, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Engenharia de Produção, Florianópolis, 2015.Atualmente vários fatores são determinantes para se fazer uma gestão efetiva dos processos de negócios das empresas. Dentre estes, dois vêm se destacando: capital intelectual e gestão do conhecimento. Entretanto, verifica-se que há uma falta de entendimento e mensuração dos desperdícios de conhecimento, e estes desperdícios podem ocorrer com o capital intelectual, durante a gestão de um portfólio. Desta forma, o objetivo geral desta tese é desenvolver um modelo de identificação dos desperdícios de conhecimento em portfólio de projetos. Para alcançá-lo, foram estabelecidos os seguintes objetivos específicos: identificar junto à literatura os modelos existentes relacionados à mensuração do capital intelectual, determinar os conceitos de desperdícios de conhecimento, analisar a relação existente entre os desperdícios de conhecimento e a performance do portfólio de projetos, medir desperdícios de conhecimento em portfólio de projetos. O procedimento metodológico foi estruturado em três fases: pesquisa e análise da literatura, desenvolvimento metodológico e estudo de campo. A pesquisa e análise da literatura foi realizada com base em buscas sistemáticas e exploratórias da literatura, e buscou identificar os aspectos relacionados à gestão do capital intelectual, bem como dos desperdícios de conhecimento em um ambiente de gestão de portfólio de projetos. Durante a fase de desenvolvimento metodológico, realizou-se um survey, junto a especialistas, a fim de compreender e estruturar desperdício de conhecimento e perda de conhecimento, resultando na validação externa destes constructos. Com base nesta validação e nos elementos teóricos advindos da literatura, foi desenvolvido o modelo conceitual genérico para mensurar desperdícios de conhecimento. Na sequência, buscou-se dar especificidade ao modelo criando indicadores de desperdício de conhecimento relacionados ao objeto de estudo, que é a gestão de portfólio de projetos, resultando num modelo específico autorreflexivo (modelo de mensuração dos desperdícios de conhecimento em portfólio de projetos). O estudo de campo foi realizado no âmbito da cooperação existente entre o PPGEP, e a University of Skövde, School of Business (doutorado sanduíche), com nove empresas suecas intensivas em conhecimento que adotam a gestão de portfólios. Por meio de estudos de caso, utilizando de entrevistas semiestruturadas padronizadas que envolveram gestores de portfólio de projetos, visando não só validar empiricamente o modelo, bem como fazer os devidos ajustes e melhorias do mesmo. Como contribuições desta tese obteve-se: a estruturação e compreensão do que são desperdício de conhecimento, suas dimensões, bem como sua relevância e importância; A estruturação e compreensão do conceito de perda de conhecimento e sua importância; A diferenciação entre ambos os conceitos; O desenvolvimento de um modelo conceitual genérico para mensurar desperdícios de conhecimento, bem como do modelo autorreflexivo específico para gestão de portfólios que permite entender como, quando, onde e de que forma ocorrem os desperdícios de conhecimento em portfólio de projetos, possibilitando uma gestão baseada em evidências e permitindo ações de melhoria contínua do desempenho global.Abstract : Currently several factors are crucial for making company's effective business processes management. Among these, two has been increasing: intellectual capital and knowledge management. However, it appears that there is a lack of understanding and measuring knowledge waste, which can occur with the intellectual capital for the management of a portfolio. Thus, the general objective of this thesis is to develop an identification model of knowledge waste for portfolio management. To achieve this, the following specific objectives were established: identify at the literature existing models related to the measurement of intellectual capital; determine the concepts of knowledge waste; examine the relationship between the knowledge waste and project portfolio performance; measure knowledge waste in project portfolio. The methodological approach was structured in three groups of activities: literature, methodological development and field study. The literature review was based on systematic and exploratory searches of the literature, and sought to identify the aspects related to the management of intellectual capital and knowledge waste in a project portfolio management environment. The literature provided the theoretical elements about intellectual capital, waste knowledge, loss of knowledge, performance and construction of performance indicators. During the methodological development, a survey was conducted among the experts to understand and structure what is waste of knowledge and loss of consciousness, resulting in the external validation of these constructs. Based on this validation and theoretical elements coming from the literature, was developed the generic conceptual model to measure knowledge of waste. Next, was given the specificity to the model creating knowledge waste indicators related to the subject matter, which is the project portfolio management, resulting in a self reflective specific model. The field study was carried out under the existing cooperation between the PPGEP, and the University of Skövde, School of Business (PhD sandwich) with nine Swedish intensive knowledge companies that adopt portfolio management. Through case studies, using standardized semi-structured interviews involving project portfolio managers, aimed not only empirically validate the model and make the necessary adjustments and improvements thereof. As contributions of this thesis were obtained: the structuring and understanding of what is knowledge waste, its dimensions and its relevance and importance; The structuring and understanding the concept of knowledge loss and its importance; The differentiation between the two concepts; The development of a conceptual generic model to measure knowledge waste; And the specific self reflective model for portfolio management that allows to understand how, when, and where knowledge waste occur in project portfolio, enabling evidence-based management allowing actions for continual improvement of overall performance
