1,720,969 research outputs found
The 'international dimension' in social work education: current developments in England
No full textAs our awareness of the impact of globalising trends has increased, so too has social work's interest in international issues grown. At the same time, concerns have been raised about what constitutes international social work, and how this 'international dimension' might be introduced to social work students as part of their preparation for practice. This paper reports on a recently completed study which explored the different ways in which international issues are being addressed in social work programmes leading to the newly established three-year degree in social work across the UK. Based on an email survey of accredited programmes in England, plus a small number of follow-up interviews, findings are presented on the different approaches and innovations adopted in the development of curriculum with an international perspective. Discussion focuses on possible factors promoting and/or inhibiting the development of an international dimension within the qualifying curriculum. The paper concludes with some observations on how the different understandings of 'international social work' can contribute to a greater appreciation of global problems and alternative ways of responding to social needs at local, national and international levels
The single assessment process in primary care: older people's accounts of the process
No full textRecent government policies have been active in addressing social inclusion and active participation of older people in many aspects of societal life. Independence and wellbeing animate these developments and are evident in the emphasis on person-centred services within the single assessment process for older people (Department of Health,2002b). Drawing on a feasibility study of the Single Assessment Process as a ‘case-finding’ approach, this paper presents findings drawn from older people’s accounts of this experience. These accounts indicate the potential of the process for identifying ‘low-level’ need, whilst raising issues of access to formal services and resource constraint; also they underline the importance of understanding how older people seek ways of managing their own health and well-being, whilst continuing to contributeto the social cohesion of society by providing support to their peers and to younger generations.Interdependence, it is suggested, rather than dependence should underlie any approach to assessing older people’s needs, if we are to appreciate and build upon thecomplexity of older people’s strategies for actively managing their lives
Ethical regulation and visual methods: making visual research impossible or developing good practice?
No full textThe ethical regulation of social research in the UK has been steadily increasing over the last decade or so and comprises a form of audit to which all researchers in Higher Education are subject. Concerns have been raised by social researchers using visual methods that such ethical scrutiny and regulation will place severe limitations on visual research developments and practice. This paper draws on a qualitative study of social researchers using visual methods in the UK. The study explored their views, the challenges they face and the practices they adopt in relation to processes of ethical review. Researchers reflected on the variety of strategies they adopted for managing the ethical approval process in relation to visual research. For some this meant explicitly ‘making the case’ for undertaking visual research, notwithstanding the ethical challenges, while for others it involved ‘normalising’ visual methods in ways which delimited the possible ethical dilemmas of visual approaches. Researchers only rarely identified significant barriers to conducting visual research from ethical approval processes, though skilful negotiation and actively managing the system was often required. Nevertheless, the climate of increasing ethical regulation is identified as having a potential detrimental effect on visual research practice and development, in some instances leading to subtle but significant self-censorship in the dissemination of findings
Exercise on prescription schemes for stroke patients post-discharge from physiotherapy
No full textPurpose: 'Exercise on prescription' (EoP) schemes run by fitness instructors in leisure centres in the UK have potential to promote continued rehabilitation and activity engagement post-discharge from stroke physiotherapy. This study explores the views of physiotherapists, stroke patients and fitness instructors about the appropriateness and acceptability of EoP schemes for stroke patients post-discharge from physiotherapy.Method: this qualitative study collected data from stroke patients referred to EoP, fitness instructors and referring physiotherapists (n = 30). Data were transcribed and analysed thematically. Exploration of key themes within and between groups was made.Results: referral to EoP appears to alleviate some of the distress that patients and physiotherapists experience at physiotherapy discharge and provide an opportunity for physiotherapists to wean patients from physiotherapy. However, concerns about risks to patients because of fitness instructors' low levels of knowledge about stroke and the limited monitoring of exercisers were identified. Physiotherapists are likely to refer only the most able patients post-stroke to EoP.Conclusions: the study indicates that, in the light of limited health resources, EoP schemes have potential benefit for people post-discharge from physiotherapy. However, safety needs and the concerns of stroke survivors must be considered in EoP scheme development and management if they are to successfully help more people post-stroke maintain healthy levels of activity and fitnes
Anonymisation and visual images: issues of respect, 'voice' and protection
Full text linkA central ethical issue confronting researchers using visual methods is how to manage the use of identifiable images. Photographic and other visual materials can make the anonymisation of individuals problematic; at the same time many researchers, as well as research participants, view image manipulation as undesirable. Anonymisation is one of a range of ethical concerns that need consideration in relation to the use of identifiable images. Other concerns include the contexts in which images were produced and through which they may be consumed; the longevity of images in the public domain and the potential for future uses and secondary analysis of images. This paper explores some of the ways in which researchers specifically approach anonymisation in relation to visual methods, drawing on a qualitative study of ethical issues in visual research. Focus group discussions and interviews with researchers who use visual methods revealed the ongoing challenges of identification and anonymisation. While decisions about visual identification are inevitably complex and situated, our explorations revealed ongoing tensions between, on the one hand, research participants’ rights and researchers’ desire for participants to be seen as well as heard and, on the other hand, researchers’ real and perceived ethical responsibility to safeguard participants
A design to investigate the feasibility and effects of partnered ballroom dancing on people with Parkinson disease: randomized controlled trial protocol
No full textBackground: self-help and physical leisure activities has become increasingly important in the maintenance of safe and functional mobility among an increasingly elderly population. Preventing the cycle of deterioration, falling, inactivity, dependency, and secondary complications in people with Parkinson disease (PD) is a priority. Research has shown that people with PD are interested in dance and although the few existing trials are small, initial proof of principle trials from the United States have demonstrated beneficial effects on balance control, gait, and activity levels. To our knowledge, there has been no research into long-term effects, cost effectiveness, the influence on spinal posture and turning, or the personal insights of dance participants.Objective: the purpose of this study was to determine the methodological feasibility of conducting a definitive phase III trial to evaluate the benefits of dance in people with PD. We will build on the proof of principle trials by addressing gaps in knowledge, focusing on areas of greatest methodological uncertainty; the choice of dances and intensity of the program; for the main trial, the availability of partners, the suitability of the currently envisaged primary outcomes, balance and spinal posture; and the key costs of delivering and participating in a dance program to inform economic evaluation.Methods: fifty participants (mild-to-moderate condition) will be randomized to the control (usual care) or experimental (dance plus usual care) groups at a ratio of 15:35. Dance will be taught by professional teachers in a dance center in the South of England. Each participant in the experimental group will dance with his or her spouse, a friend, or a partner from a bank of volunteers. A blinded assessor will complete clinical measures and self-reported ability at baseline, and at 3 and 6 months after randomization. A qualitative study of a subgroup of participants and partners will examine user’s views about the appropriateness and acceptability of the intervention, assessment protocol, and general trial procedures. Procedures for an economic evaluation of dance for health care will be developed for the main trial.Results: recruitment began in January 2013 and the last participant is expected to complete the trial follow-up in June 2014.Conclusions: findings from our study may provide novel insights into the way people with PD become involved in dance, their views and opinions, and the suitability of our primary and secondary outcome
Study protocol: the development of a research design to investigate the feasibility and effects of partnered ballroom dancing on people with Parkinson's disease
No full textGoing Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
- …
