Search results for: social work teaching methods

Authors: Mohamed Gaafar, Evan Davies

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Many municipalities within Canada and abroad use chloramination to disinfect drinking water so as to avert the production of the disinfection by-products (DBPs) that result from conventional chlorination processes and their consequential public health risks. However, the long-lasting monochloramine disinfectant (NH2Cl) can pose a significant risk to the environment. As, it can be introduced into stormwater sewers, from different water uses, and thus freshwater sources. Little research has been undertaken to monitor and characterize the decay of NH2Cl and to study the parameters affecting its decomposition in stormwater networks. Therefore, the current study was intended to investigate this decay starting by building a stormwater model and validating its hydraulic and hydrologic computations, and then modelling water quality in the storm sewers and examining the effects of different parameters on chloramine decay. The presented work here is only the first stage of this study. The 30th Avenue basin in Southern Edmonton was chosen as a case study, because the well-developed basin has various land-use types including commercial, industrial, residential, parks and recreational. The City of Edmonton has already built a MIKE-URBAN stormwater model for modelling floods. Nevertheless, this model was built to the trunk level which means that only the main drainage features were presented. Additionally, this model was not calibrated and known to consistently compute pipe flows higher than the observed values; not to the benefit of studying water quality. So the first goal was to complete modelling and updating all stormwater network components. Then, available GIS Data was used to calculate different catchment properties such as slope, length and imperviousness. In order to calibrate and validate this model, data of two temporary pipe flow monitoring stations, collected during last summer, was used along with records of two other permanent stations available for eight consecutive summer seasons. The effect of various hydrological parameters on model results was investigated. It was found that model results were affected by the ratio of impervious areas. The catchment length was tested, however calculated, because it is approximate representation of the catchment shape. Surface roughness coefficients were calibrated using. Consequently, computed flows at the two temporary locations had correlation coefficients of values 0.846 and 0.815, where the lower value pertained to the larger attached catchment area. Other statistical measures, such as peak error of 0.65%, volume error of 5.6%, maximum positive and negative differences of 2.17 and -1.63 respectively, were all found in acceptable ranges.

Keywords: stormwater, urban drainage, simulation, validation, MIKE URBAN

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Authors: Eric Shannon, Mark J. McGuire, John P. Parmigiani

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A hazard associated with the use of timber harvesters is chain shot. Harvester saw chain is subjected to large dynamic mechanical stresses which can cause it to fracture. The resulting open loop of saw chain can fracture a second time and create a projectile consisting of several saw-chain links referred to as a chain shot. Its high kinetic energy enables it to penetrate operator enclosures and be a significant hazard. Accurate data on projectile composition, mass, and speed are needed for the design of both operator enclosures resistant to projectile penetration and for saw chain resistant to fracture. The work presented here contributes to providing this data through the use of a test machine designed and built at Oregon State University. The machine’s enclosure is a standard shipping container. To safely contain any anticipated chain shot, the container was lined with both 9.5 mm AR500 steel plates and 50 mm high-density polyethylene (HDPE). During normal operation, projectiles are captured virtually undamaged in the HDPE enabling subsequent analysis. Standard harvester components are used for bar mounting and chain tensioning. Standard guide bars and saw chains are used. An electric motor with flywheel drives the system. Testing procedures follow ISO Standard 11837. Chain speed at break was approximately 45.5 m/s. Data was collected using both a 75 cm solid bar (Oregon 752HSFB149) and 90 cm solid bar (Oregon 902HSFB149). Saw chains used were 89 Drive Link .404”-18HX loops made from factory spools. Standard 16-tooth sprockets were used. Projectile speed was measured using both a high-speed camera and a chronograph. Both rotational and translational kinetic energy are calculated. For this study 50 chain shot events were executed. Results showed that projectiles consisted of a variety combinations of drive links, tie straps, and cutter links. Most common (occurring in 60% of the events) was a drive-link / tie-strap / drive-link combination having a mass of approximately 10.33 g. Projectile mass varied from a minimum of 2.99 g corresponding to a drive link only to a maximum of 18.91 g corresponding to a drive-link / tie-strap / drive-link / cutter-link / drive-link combination. Projectile translational speed was measured to be approximately 270 m/s and rotational speed of approximately 14000 r/s. The calculated translational and rotational kinetic energy magnitudes each average over 600 J. This study provides useful information for both timber harvester manufacturers and saw chain manufacturers to design products that reduce the hazards associated with timber harvesting.

Keywords: chain shot, timber harvesters, safety, testing

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Authors: Boris Barbolyas, Kristina Buckova, Tomas Volensky, Cyril Belavy, Ladislav Dedik

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Background: Based on statokinezigram, the human balance control is often studied. Approach to human postural reaction analysis is based on a combination of stabilometry output signal with retroreflective marker data signal processing, analysis, and understanding, in this study. The study shows another original application of Method of Developed Statokinesigram Trajectory (MDST), too. Methods: In this study, the participants maintained quiet bipedal standing for 10 s on stabilometry platform. Consequently, bilateral vibration stimuli to Achilles tendons in 20 s interval was applied. Vibration stimuli caused that human postural system took the new pseudo-steady state. Vibration frequencies were 20, 60 and 80 Hz. Participant's body segments - head, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles and little fingers were marked by 12 retroreflective markers. Markers positions were scanned by six cameras system BTS SMART DX. Registration of their postural reaction lasted 60 s. Sampling frequency was 100 Hz. For measured data processing were used Method of Developed Statokinesigram Trajectory. Regression analysis of developed statokinesigram trajectory (DST) data and retroreflective marker developed trajectory (DMT) data were used to find out which marker trajectories most correlate with stabilometry platform output signals. Scaling coefficients (λ) between DST and DMT by linear regression analysis were evaluated, too. Results: Scaling coefficients for marker trajectories were identified for all body segments. Head markers trajectories reached maximal value and ankle markers trajectories had a minimal value of scaling coefficient. Hips, knees and ankles markers were approximately symmetrical in the meaning of scaling coefficient. Notable differences of scaling coefficient were detected in head and shoulders markers trajectories which were not symmetrical. The model of postural system behavior was identified by MDST. Conclusion: Value of scaling factor identifies which body segment is predisposed to postural instability. Hypothetically, if statokinesigram represents overall human postural system response to vibration stimuli, then markers data represented particular postural responses. It can be assumed that cumulative sum of particular marker postural responses is equal to statokinesigram.

Keywords: center of pressure (CoP), method of developed statokinesigram trajectory (MDST), model of postural system behavior, retroreflective marker data

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Authors: Mahboobe Daneshvar

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Introduction: Clinical studies on the effect of systemic conditions on periodontal diseases have shown that some systemic deficiencies may provide grounds for the onset of periodontal diseases. One of these systemic problems is osteoporosis, which may be a risk factor for the onset and exacerbation of periodontitis. This study tends to evaluate periodontal indices in osteoporotic menopausal women and compare them with healthy controls. Materials and Methods: In this case-control study, participants included 45-75-year-old menopausal women referred to rheumatology wards of the Khatamolanbia Clinic and Shahid Sadoughi Hospital in Yazd; Their bone density was determined by DEXA-scan and by imaging the femoral-lumbar bone. Thirty patients with osteoporosis and 30 subjects with normal BMD were selected. Then, informed consent was obtained for participation in the study. During the clinical examinations, tooth loss (TL), plaque index (PI), gingival recession, pocket probing depth (PPD), clinical attachment loss (CAL), and tooth mobility (TM) were measured to evaluate the periodontal status. These clinical examinations were performed to determine the periodontal status by catheter, mirror and probe. Results: During the evaluation, there was no significant difference in PPD, PI, TM, gingival recession, and CAL between case and control groups (P-value>0.05); that is, osteoporosis has no effect on the above factors. These periodontal factors are almost the same in both healthy and patient groups. In the case of missing teeth, the following results were obtained: the mean of missing teeth was 22.173% of the total teeth in the case group and 18.583% of the total teeth in the control group. In the study of the missing teeth in the case and control groups, there was a significant relationship between case and control groups (P-value = 0.025). Conclusion: In fact, since periodontal disease is multifactorial and microbial plaque is the main cause, osteoporosis is considered a predisposing factor in exacerbation or persistence of periodontal disease. In patients with osteoporosis, usually pathological fractures, hormonal changes, and aging lead to reduced physical activity and affect oral health, which leads to the manifestation of periodontal disease. But this disease increases tooth loss by changing the shape and structure of bone trabeculae and weakening them. Osteoporosis does not seem to be a deterministic factor in the incidence of periodontal disease, since it affects bone quality rather than bone quantity.

Keywords: plaque index, Osteoporosis, tooth mobility, periodontal packet

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Authors: Najeh Lakhoua

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Introduction: Scientific developments and techniques for the systemic approach generate several names to the systemic approach: systems analysis, systems analysis, structural analysis. The main purpose of these reflections is to find a multi-disciplinary approach which organizes knowledge, creates universal language design and controls complex sets. In fact, system analysis is structured sequentially by steps: the observation of the system by various observers in various aspects, the analysis of interactions and regulatory chains, the modeling that takes into account the evolution of the system, the simulation and the real tests in order to obtain the consensus. Thus the system approach allows two types of analysis according to the structure and the function of the system. The purpose of this paper is to present an application of system analysis of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) components in order to represent the architecture of this system. Method: There are various analysis methods which are proposed, in the literature, in to carry out actions of global analysis and different points of view as SADT method (Structured Analysis and Design Technique), Petri Network. The methodology adopted in order to contribute to the system analysis of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle has been proposed in this paper and it is based on the use of SADT. In fact, we present a functional analysis based on the SADT method of UAV components Body, power supply and platform, computing, sensors, actuators, software, loop principles, flight controls and communications). Results: In this part, we present the application of SADT method for the functional analysis of the UAV components. This SADT model will be composed exclusively of actigrams. It starts with the main function ‘To analysis of the UAV components’. Then, this function is broken into sub-functions and this process is developed until the last decomposition level has been reached (levels A1, A2, A3 and A4). Recall that SADT techniques are semi-formal; however, for the same subject, different correct models can be built without having to know with certitude which model is the good or, at least, the best. In fact, this kind of model allows users a sufficient freedom in its construction and so the subjective factor introduces a supplementary dimension for its validation. That is why the validation step on the whole necessitates the confrontation of different points of views. Conclusion: In this paper, we presented an application of system analysis of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle components. In fact, this application of system analysis is based on SADT method (Structured Analysis Design Technique). This functional analysis proved the useful use of SADT method and its ability of describing complex dynamic systems.

Keywords: system analysis, unmanned aerial vehicle, functional analysis, architecture

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Authors: Saifalarab A. Mohmmed, Morgana E. Vianna, Jonathan C. Knowles

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The issue of apical periodontitis has received considerable critical attention. Bacteria is integrated into communities, attached to surfaces and consequently form biofilm. The biofilm structure provides bacteria with a series protection skills against, antimicrobial agents and enhances pathogenicity (e.g. apical periodontitis). Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) has become the irrigant of choice for elimination of bacteria from the root canal system based on its antimicrobial findings. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of different agitation techniques on the efficacy of 2.5% NaOCl to eliminate the biofilm from the surface of the lateral canal using the residual biofilm, and removal rate of biofilm as outcome measures. The effect of canal complexity (lateral canal) on the efficacy of the irrigation procedure was also assessed. Forty root canal models (n = 10 per group) were manufactured using 3D printing and resin materials. Each model consisted of two halves of an 18 mm length root canal with apical size 30 and taper 0.06, and a lateral canal of 3 mm length, 0.3 mm diameter located at 3 mm from the apical terminus. E. faecalis biofilms were grown on the apical 3 mm and lateral canal of the models for 10 days in Brain Heart Infusion broth. Biofilms were stained using crystal violet for visualisation. The model halves were reassembled, attached to an apparatus and tested under a fluorescence microscope. Syringe and needle irrigation protocol was performed using 9 mL of 2.5% NaOCl irrigant for 60 seconds. The irrigant was either left stagnant in the canal or activated for 30 seconds using manual (gutta-percha), sonic and ultrasonic methods. Images were then captured every second using an external camera. The percentages of residual biofilm were measured using image analysis software. The data were analysed using generalised linear mixed models. The greatest removal was associated with the ultrasonic group (66.76%) followed by sonic (45.49%), manual (43.97%), and passive irrigation group (control) (38.67%) respectively. No marked reduction in the efficiency of NaOCl to remove biofilm was found between the simple and complex anatomy models (p = 0.098). The removal efficacy of NaOCl on the biofilm was limited to the 1 mm level of the lateral canal. The agitation of NaOCl results in better penetration of the irrigant into the lateral canals. Ultrasonic agitation of NaOCl improved the removal of bacterial biofilm.

Keywords: 3D printing, biofilm, root canal irrigation, sodium hypochlorite

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Authors: Madeline Tagg, Choihoong Mui, Elizabeth Lek, Jide Menakaya

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Introduction: Simulation technology is used by neonatal teams to learn and refresh skills and gain the knowledge and confidence to care for sick neonates. In-situ simulation is considered superior to laboratory-based programmes as it closely mirrors real life situations. This study reports our experience of running regular laboratory-based simulation sessions for senior clinicians and nurses and its impact on their knowledge, skills and confidence. Methods: A before and after questionnaire survey was carried out on senior clinicians and nurses that attended a scheduled laboratory-based simulation session. Participants were asked to document their expectations before a 3-hour monthly laboratory programme started and invited to feedback their reflections at the end of the session. The session included discussion of relevant clinical guidelines, immersion in a scenario and video led debrief. The results of the survey were analysed in three skills based categories - improved, no change or a worsened experience. Results: 45 questionnaires were completed and analysed. Of these 25 (55%) were completed by consultants seven and six by nurses and trainee doctors respectively, and seven respondents were unknown. 40 (88%) rated the session overall and guideline review as good/excellent, 39 respondents (86%) rated the scenario session good/excellent and 40/45 fed back a good/excellent debrief session. 33 (73%) respondents completed the before and after questionnaire. 21/33 (63%) reflected an improved knowledge, skill or confidence in caring for sick new-bon babies, eight respondents reported no change and four fed back a worse experience after the session. Discussion: Most respondents found the laboratory based structured simulation session beneficial for their professional development. They valued equally the whole content of the programme such as guideline review and equipment training as well as the simulation and debrief sessions. Two out three participants stated their knowledge of caring for sick new-born babies had been transformed positively by the session. Sessions where simulation equipment failed or relevant staff were absent contributed to a poor educational experience. Summary: A regular structured laboratory-based simulation programme with a rich content is a credible educational resource for improving the knowledge, skills and confidence of senior clinicians caring for sick new born babies.

Keywords: knowledge, laboratory based, neonates, simulation

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Authors: Marcio Freire Cruz, Naoaki Ono, Shigehiko Kanaya, Carlos Arthur Mattos Teixeira Cavalcante

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The systems that record patient care information, known as Electronic Medical Record (EMR) and those that monitor vital signs of patients, such as heart rate, body temperature, and blood pressure have been extremely valuable for the effectiveness of the patient’s treatment. Several kinds of research have been using data from EMRs and vital signs of patients to predict illnesses. Among them, we highlight those that intend to predict, classify, or, at least identify patterns, of sepsis illness in patients under vital signs monitoring. Sepsis is an organic dysfunction caused by a dysregulated patient's response to an infection that affects millions of people worldwide. Early detection of sepsis is expected to provide a significant improvement in its treatment. Preceding works usually combined medical, statistical, mathematical and computational models to develop detection methods for early prediction, getting higher accuracies, and using the smallest number of variables. Among other techniques, we could find researches using survival analysis, specialist systems, machine learning and deep learning that reached great results. In our research, patients are modeled as points moving each hour in an n-dimensional space where n is the number of vital signs (variables). These points can reach a sepsis target point after some time. For now, the sepsis target point was calculated using the median of all patients’ variables on the sepsis onset. From these points, we calculate for each hour the position vector, the first derivative (velocity vector) and the second derivative (acceleration vector) of the variables to evaluate their behavior. And we construct a prediction model based on a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) Network, including these derivatives as explanatory variables. The accuracy of the prediction 6 hours before the time of sepsis, considering only the vital signs reached 83.24% and by including the vectors position, speed, and acceleration, we obtained 94.96%. The data are being collected from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC) Database, a public database that contains vital signs, laboratory test results, observations, notes, and so on, from more than 60.000 patients.

Keywords: dynamic analysis, long short-term memory, prediction, sepsis

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Authors: Nurten Tasdemir, Busra Baloglu, Zeynep Cingoz, Can Demirel, Zeki Gezer, Barıs Efe

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Student nurses are increasingly exposed to technology in the workplace after graduation with the growing numbers of electric health records (EHRs), handheld computers, barcode scanner medication dispensing systems, and automatic capture of patient data such as vital signs. Internationally, electronic health records (EHRs) systems are being implemented and evaluated. Students will inevitably encounter EHRs in the clinical learning environment and their professional practice. Nursing students must develop competency in the use of EHR. Aim: The study aimed to examine nursing students’ experiences of learning to use electronic health records (EHR) in clinical placements. Method: This study adopted a descriptive approach. The study population consisted of second and third-year nursing students at the Zonguldak School of Health in the West Black Sea Region of Turkey; the study was conducted during the 2015–2016 academic year. The sample consisted of 315 (74.1% of 425 students) nursing students who volunteered to participate. The students, who were involved in clinical practice, were invited to participate in the study Data were collected by a questionnaire designed by the researchers based on the relevant literature. Data were analyzed descriptively using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows version 16.0. The data are presented as means, standard deviations, and percentages. Approval for the study was obtained from the Ethical Committee of the University (Reg. Number: 29/03/2016/112) and the director of Nursing Department. Findings: A total of 315 students enrolled in this study, for a response rate of 74.1%. The mean age of the sample was 22.24 ± 1.37 (min: 19, max: 32) years, and most participants (79.7%) were female. Most of the nursing students (82.3%) stated that they use information technologies in clinical practice. Nearly half of the students (42.5%) reported that they have not accessed to EHR system. In addition, 61.6% of the students reported that insufficient computers available in clinical placement. Of the students, 84.7% reported that they prefer to have patient information from EHR system, and 63.8% of them found more effective to preparation for the clinical reporting. Conclusion: This survey indicated that nursing students experience to learn about EHR systems in clinical placements. For more effective learning environment nursing education should prepare nursing students for EHR systems in their educational life.

Keywords: electronic health record, clinical placement, nursing student, nursing education

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Authors: Chikang Wang, Jhongjheng Jian, Poming Huang

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Among a wide variety of pharmaceutical compounds, tetracycline antibiotics are one of the largest groups of pharmaceutical compounds extensively used in human and veterinary medicine to treat and prevent bacterial infections. Because it is water soluble, biologically active, stable and bio-refractory, release to the environment threatens aquatic life and increases the risk posed by antibiotic-resistant pathogens. In practice, due to its antibacterial nature, tetracycline cannot be effectively destructed by traditional biological methods. Hence, in this study, two advanced oxidation processes such as ozonation and sono-Fenton processes were conducted individually to degrade the tetracycline for investigating their feasibility on tetracycline degradation. Effect of operational variables on tetracycline degradation, release of nitrogen and change of toxicity were also proposed. Initial tetracycline concentration was 50 mg/L. To evaluate the efficiency of tetracycline degradation by ozonation, the ozone gas was produced by an ozone generator (Model LAB2B, Ozonia) and introduced into the reactor with different flows (25 - 500 mL/min) at varying pH levels (pH 3 - pH 11) and reaction temperatures (15 - 55°C). In sono-Fenton system, an ultrasonic transducer (Microson VCX 750, USA) operated at 20 kHz combined with H₂O₂ (2 mM) and Fe²⁺ (0.2 mM) were carried out at different pH levels (pH 3 - pH 11), aeration gas and flows (air and oxygen; 0.2 - 1.0 L/min), tetracycline concentrations (10 - 200 mg/L), reaction temperatures (15 - 55°C) and ultrasonic powers (25 - 200 Watts), respectively. Sole ultrasound was ineffective on tetracycline degradation, where the degradation efficiencies were lower than 10% with 60 min reaction. Contribution of Fe²⁺ and H₂O₂ on the degradation of tetracycline was significant, where the maximum tetracycline degradation efficiency in sono-Fenton process was as high as 91.3% followed by 45.8% mineralization. Effect of initial pH level on tetracycline degradation was insignificant from pH 3 to pH 6 but significantly decreased as the pH was greater than pH 7. Increase of the ultrasonic power was slightly increased the degradation efficiency of tetracycline, which indicated that the hydroxyl radicals dominated the oxidation of tetracycline. Effects of aeration of air or oxygen with different flows and reaction temperatures were insignificant. Ozonation showed better efficiencies in tetracycline degradation, where the optimum reaction condition was found at pH 3, 100 mL O₃/min and 25°C with 94% degradation and 60% mineralization. The toxicity of tetracycline was significantly decreased due to the mineralization of tetracycline. In addition, less than 10% of nitrogen content was released to solution phase as NH₃-N, and the most degraded tetracycline cannot be full mineralized to CO₂. The results shown in this study indicated that both the sono-Fenton process and ozonation can effectively degrade the tetracycline and reduce its toxicity at profitable condition. The costs of two systems needed to be further investigated to understand the feasibility in tetracycline degradation.

Keywords: degradation, detoxification, mineralization, ozonation, sono-Fenton process, tetracycline

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Authors: Narayani Sepaha

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In earlier days, the sufferer was burdened to prove the offence as well as to put the offender to punishment. The adversary system of legal procedure was characterized simply by two parties: the prosecution and the defence. With the onset of this system, firstly the judge started acting as a neutral arbitrator, and secondly, the state inadvertently started assuming the lead role and thereby relegated the victims to the position of oblivion. In this process, with the increasing role of police forces and the government, the victims got systematically excluded from the key stages of the case proceedings and were reduced to the stature of a prosecution witness. This paper tries to emphasise the increasing control over the various stages of the trial, by other stakeholders, leading to the marginalization of victims in the trial process. This monopolization has signalled the onset of an era of gross neglect of victims in the whole criminal justice system. This consciousness led some reformists to raise their concerns over the issue, during the early part of the 20th century. They started supporting the efforts which advocated giving prominence to the participation of victims in the trial process. This paved the way for the evolution of the science of victimology. Markedly the innovativeness to work out facts, seek opinions and statements of the victims and reassure that their voice is also heard has ensured the revival of their rightful roles in the justice delivery system. Many countries, like the US, have set an example by acknowledging the advantages of participation of victims in trials like in the proceedings of the Ariel Castro Kidnappings of Cleveland, Ohio and enacting laws for protecting their rights within the framework of the legal system to ensure speedy and righteous delivery of justice in some of the most complicated cases. An attempt has been made to flag that the accused have several rights in contrast to the near absence of separate laws for victims of crime, in India. It is sad to note that, even in the initial process of registering a crime the victims are subjected to the mercy of the officers in charge and thus begins the silent suffering of these victims, which continues throughout the process of their trial. The paper further contends, that the degree of victim participation in trials and its impact on the outcomes, can be debated and evaluated, but its potential to alter their position and make them regain their lost status cannot be ignored. Victim participation in trial proceedings will help the court in perceiving the facts of the case in a better manner and in arriving at a balanced view of the case. This will not only serve to protect the overall interest of the victims but will act to reinforce the faith in the criminal justice delivery system. It is pertinent to mention that there is an urgent need to review the accused centric prosecution system and introduce appropriate amendments so that the marginalization of victims comes to an end.

Keywords: victim participation, criminal justice, India, trial, marginalised

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Authors: Mohamad Shamsuri Juhari

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Fathers who positively involve themselves in their children’s lives will have had a constructive influence on the latter’s social, behavioural, and psychological development. This paper will share the preliminary findings of an ongoing research project which investigates Singaporean fathers from the nation’s minority Malay-Muslim community who commit the reverse, that is, it intends to study the reasons behind these fathers’ non-involvement during the period of their children’s developing years be it through absence, disinterest or ignorance. For instance, children from homes with absentee fathers are more likely to develop deficiencies in attitude and conduct. A father’s negative show of parental skills can also cause setbacks in the child’s education, economic instability in the latter’s future family life, as well as the likelihood of an ensuing intergenerational transmission of criminal behaviour. In the context of the minority Singaporean Malay-Muslim community, the need to investigate the challenges faced by fathers from the ethnic group in carrying out their parental roles arose due to the perceptible rise in statistics reflecting delinquency among its youths. This has resulted in other associated issues such as teenage pregnancies (and the subsequent cyclical patterns of divorce and single motherhood), over-representation in the data for drug offences, and under-representation in statistics reflecting academic achievement. While other factors are known to be involved, these negative outcomes have also been attributed to the lack of fatherly guidance in the affected Malay families. This still-ongoing research project is being carried out in two phases: The first by means of secondary research as well as exploratory data collection via roundtable and focus group discussions with fathers from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. This sets the way for the second phase in which a survey will be undertaken, followed by a series of in-depth face-to-face interviews. The research findings will then be translated into intervention initiatives to overcome the identified challenges. Based on the results collated from Phase 1 of the research, this paper will share a ‘first look’ on the challenges to effective parenting faced by Malay-Muslim fathers in Singapore specifically those relating to the socio-cultural domains of attitude, knowledge, and practice.

Keywords: Malay fathers, socio-cultural domains, attitude, knowledge, practice

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Authors: Priya Saha, Sourav Dey Roy Jr., Debotosh Bhattacharjee, Mita Nasipuri, Barin Kumar De, Mrinal Kanti Bhowmik

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Biometric face recognition technology (FRT) has gained a lot of attention due to its extensive variety of applications in both security and non-security perspectives. It has come into view to provide a secure solution in identification and verification of person identity. Although other biometric based methods like fingerprint scans, iris scans are available, FRT is verified as an efficient technology for its user-friendliness and contact freeness. Accurate facial feature localization plays an important role for many facial analysis applications including biometrics and emotion recognition. But, there are certain factors, which make facial feature localization a challenging task. On human face, expressions can be seen from the subtle movements of facial muscles and influenced by internal emotional states. These non-rigid facial movements cause noticeable alterations in locations of facial landmarks, their usual shapes, which sometimes create occlusions in facial feature areas making face recognition as a difficult problem. The paper proposes a new hybrid based technique for automatic landmark detection in both neutral and expressive frontal and near frontal face images. The method uses the concept of thresholding, sequential searching and other image processing techniques for locating the landmark points on the face. Also, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) based software is designed that could automatically detect 16 landmark points around eyes, nose and mouth that are mostly affected by the changes in facial muscles. The proposed system has been tested on widely used JAFFE and Cohn Kanade database. Also, the system is tested on DeitY-TU face database which is created in the Biometrics Laboratory of Tripura University under the research project funded by Department of Electronics & Information Technology, Govt. of India. The performance of the proposed method has been done in terms of error measure and accuracy. The method has detection rate of 98.82% on JAFFE database, 91.27% on Cohn Kanade database and 93.05% on DeitY-TU database. Also, we have done comparative study of our proposed method with other techniques developed by other researchers. This paper will put into focus emotion-oriented systems through AU detection in future based on the located features.

Keywords: biometrics, face recognition, facial landmarks, image processing

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Authors: Fatimah A. Alhomaid, Nadia H. Mahmoud, Maha A. Al-Qaraawi

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The present study was designed to induce hyperhomocysteinemia (HHcy) in elderly male and female rats. Also,to evaluate, the effect of (HHcy) as a risk factor for cerebrovascular disease and brain atrophy and folate supplementation on serum levels of Hcy, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc), triglycerides, pyridoxal phosphate , folate also, histopathological examination of brain and cerebrovascular vessels In this work 50 male and 50 female elderly albino rats were used and divided into five groups. The first group served as control, the second and third group received two different dose of L-methionine, the fourth and fifth group received fortified diet with folate powder plus L-methionine. Our results showed that homocysteine levels in male and female rats that received low and high dose of methionine were higher than in the control group, while the levels of folate significantly decreased in male rats only. Induced hyperhomocysteinemia in elderly male and female rats led to significant increase in serum level of cholesterol, LDLc and triglycerides but serum level of HDLc were significantly lower in methionine treated male and female rats than in control. Our results showed that a strong positive correlation between all these parameters and homocysteine except HDLc levels which correlate negatively to Hcy levels. Administration of folate to methionine treated male rats led to insignificant changes in the level of cholesterol when compared to control group but this level was found to be significantly decrease in female rats received small dose of methionine. When the level of cholesterol compared to the same dose of methionine treated group we found a significant decrease in both male and female rats. LDLc and triglycerides level significantly decrease in male rats only versus the control rats, while when compared to low and high dose of methionine a significant decreased occurs. A significant increase in serum level of HDLc in male and female rats when compared to both control and methionine treated groups. In male and female rats supplemented with folate we found an increased serum levels of folate when compared to rats received both dose of methionine. The levels of pyridoxal phosphate significantly decreased in all treated rats compared to the control group and its level were increased with supplementation of folate versus the rats received small and large dose of methionine. It can be concluded that hyperhomocysteinemia may be an additional risk factor for cerebrovascular atherosclesosis and brain atrophy in elderly people and diatery supplementation with folate blocking the activity of homocysteine and may be considered as a therapeutic possibility.

Keywords: hyperhomocysteinemia, brain atrophy, cerebrovascular, L-methionine, pyridoxal phosphate

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Authors: Shaun G. Abbott, Rebecca C. Reynolds, John B. F. de Wit

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Low physical activity (PA) levels are a major public health concern in Australia. There is some evidence that PA interventions can increase PA levels via various methods, including online delivery. Low Socioeconomic Status (SES) people participate in less PA than the rest of the population, partly due to poor self-regulation behaviors associated with socioeconomic characteristics. Interventions that involve a particular method of self-regulation, Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII), has regularly achieved healthy behavior change, but few studies focus on PA behavior outcomes and no studies examining the effect of MCII on the PA behaviors of low SES people has been done. In this study, a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) will deliver MCII for PA behavior change to individuals of relative disadvantage for the first time. The current pilot study will predict sample size for a future full RCT and test the hypothesis that sedentary participants from areas of relative socioeconomic disadvantage of Sydney, who learn the MCII technique will be more physically active, have improved anthropometry and psychological indicators at the completion of a 12-week intervention compared to baseline and control. Eligible participants of relative socioeconomic disadvantage will be randomly assigned to either the ‘PA Information Plus MCII Intervention Group’ or a ‘PA Information-Only Control Group’. Both groups will attend a baseline and 12-week face-to-face consultation; where PA, anthropometric and psychological data will be gathered. The intervention group will be guided through an MCII session at the baseline appointment to establish a PA goal to aim to achieve over 12 weeks. Other than these baseline and 12-week consultations, all participant interaction will occur online. All participants will receive a ‘Fitbit’ accelerometer to record objectively. PA as a daily step count, along with a PA diary for the duration of the study. PA data will be recorded on a personalized online spreadsheet. Both groups will receive a standard PA information email at weeks 2, 4, and 8. The intervention group will also receive scripted follow-up online appointments to discuss goal progress. The current pilot study is in recruitment stage with findings to be presented at the conference in December if selected.

Keywords: implementation intentions, mental contrasting, motivation, pedometer, physical activity, socioeconomic

Procedia PDF Downloads 300

Authors: Ali K. M. Al-Nasrawi, Uday A. Al-Hamdany, Sarah M. Hamylton, Brian G. Jones, Yasir M. Alyazichi

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Surface elevation dynamics have always responded to disturbance regimes. Creating Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) to detect surface dynamics has led to the development of several methods, devices and data clouds. DEMs can provide accurate and quick results with cost efficiency, in comparison to the inherited geomatics survey techniques. Nowadays, remote sensing datasets have become a primary source to create DEMs, including LiDAR point clouds with GIS analytic tools. However, these data need to be tested for error detection and correction. This paper evaluates various DEMs from different data sources over time for Apple Orchard Island, a coastal site in southeastern Australia, in order to detect surface dynamics. Subsequently, 30 chosen locations were examined in the field to test the error of the DEMs surface detection using high resolution global positioning systems (GPSs). Results show significant surface elevation changes on Apple Orchard Island. Accretion occurred on most of the island while surface elevation loss due to erosion is limited to the northern and southern parts. Concurrently, the projected differential correction and validation method aimed to identify errors in the dataset. The resultant DEMs demonstrated a small error ratio (≤ 3%) from the gathered datasets when compared with the fieldwork survey using RTK-GPS. As modern modelling approaches need to become more effective and accurate, applying several tools to create different DEMs on a multi-temporal scale would allow easy predictions in time-cost-frames with more comprehensive coverage and greater accuracy. With a DEM technique for the eco-geomorphic context, such insights about the ecosystem dynamic detection, at such a coastal intertidal system, would be valuable to assess the accuracy of the predicted eco-geomorphic risk for the conservation management sustainability. Demonstrating this framework to evaluate the historical and current anthropogenic and environmental stressors on coastal surface elevation dynamism could be profitably applied worldwide.

Keywords: DEMs, eco-geomorphic-dynamic processes, geospatial Information Science, remote sensing, surface elevation changes,

Procedia PDF Downloads 265

Authors: S. Paszkiewicz, A. Zubkiewicz, A. Szymczyk, D. Pawlikowska, I. Irska, E. Piesowicz, A. Linares, T. A. Ezquerra

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Over the last century, the world has become increasingly dependent on oil as its main source of chemicals and energy. Driven largely by the strong economic growth of India and China, demand for oil is expected to increase significantly in the coming years. This growth in demand, combined with diminishing reserves, will require the development of new, sustainable sources for fuels and bulk chemicals. Biomass is an attractive alternative feedstock, as it is widely available carbon source apart from oil and coal. Nowadays, academic and industrial research in the field of polymer materials is strongly oriented towards bio-based alternatives to petroleum-derived plastics with enhanced properties for advanced applications. In this context, 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), a biomass-based chemical product derived from lignocellulose, is one of the most high-potential biobased building blocks for polymers and the first candidate to replace the petro-derived terephthalic acid. FDCA has been identified as one of the top 12 chemicals in the future, which may be used as a platform chemical for the synthesis of biomass-based polyester. The aim of this study is to synthesize and characterize the multiblock copolymers containing rigid segments of poly(trimethylene 2,5-furanoate) (PTF) and soft segments of poly(tetramethylene oxide) (PTMO) with excellent elastic properties or aliphatic polyesters of polycaprolactone (PCL). Two series of PTF based copolymers, i.e., PTF-block-PTMO-T and PTF-block-PCL-T, with different content of flexible segments were synthesized by means of a two-step melt polycondensation process and characterized by various methods. The rigid segments of PTF, as well as the flexible PTMO/or PCL ones, were randomly distributed along the chain. On the basis of 1H NMR, SAXS and WAXS, DSC an DMTA results, one can conclude that both phases were thermodynamically immiscible and the values of phase transition temperatures varied with the composition of the copolymer. The copolymers containing 25, 35 and 45wt.% of flexible segments (PTMO) exhibited elastomeric property characteristics. Moreover, with respect to the flexible segments content, the temperatures corresponding to 5%, 25%, 50% and 90% mass loss as well as the values of tensile modulus decrease with the increasing content of aliphatic polyether or aliphatic polyester in the composition.

Keywords: furan based polymers, multiblock copolymers, supramolecular structure, functional properties

Procedia PDF Downloads 122

Authors: Demmiele Matu Kiiza, Constantine Steven Labongo Loum, Julaina Obika Asinasi

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Background: The use of traditional medicine in Uganda forms the preliminary therapeutic approaches among many people. Traditional medicines have been used in Uganda for many years, not only for the management of pregnancy-related complications but also for the management of other physical and psychological illnesses. Traditional medicines are always considered the first line of treatment by a considerable number of people. This study, therefore, sought to explore the lived experiences of pregnant women by assessing their perceptions of the transitional use of traditional medicine. Methods: Ethnography was used to capture data from an emic perspective. The ethnographic approach involved visiting a few selected pregnant women to observe and participate in the identification of traditional medicines. The ethnographic fieldwork was carried out within a period of three months. In-depth interviews were carried out and audio recorded and later transcribed verbatim. Data was thereafter analyzed thematically. The thematic analysis involved identifying statements made by research participants by transcribing audio and reading through field notes, coding was done, and themes were generated according to commonly mentioned experiences of using traditional medicine. Results: The findings revealed that women performed a ritual of ‘cutting the cord’ by making a small horizontal incision on the belly across the linea Nigra (also known as a pregnancy line) at around six months of pregnancy to avoid producing a baby with an umbilical cord tied around the baby’s neck. They also used crushed egg shells, crushed snail shells and herbs such as pawpaw roots, Entarahompo (crassocephalum vitelline), Ekyoganyanja (Erlangea tomentose), to manage Omushohokye (a term used by the study participants to refer to a situation where women pass out too much water when giving birth, producing a child with mold and oozing out of a milky liquid through the breasts before giving births); prepare for safe delivery and also to manage pregnancy-related complications. The study recommends the implementation of a traditional medicine use policy using a bottom-up approach. Designing and implementing of culturally sensitive maternal healthcare intervention programs and involving village health teams and the elderly in health education.

Keywords: traditional medicine, pregnant women, uganda, perceptions

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Insook Lee, Heeseung Choi, Kyung-Sook Bang, Sungjae Kim, Minkyung Song, Buhyun Lee

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Backgrounds: A clearer and comprehensive understanding of the effects of forest therapy on depression is needed for further refinements of forest therapy programs. The purpose of this study was to review the literature on forest therapy programs designed to decrease the level of depression among adults to evaluate current forest therapy programs. Methods: This literature review was conducted using various databases including PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycArticle, KISS, RISS, and DBpia to identify relevant studies published up to January 2016. The two authors independently screened the full text articles using the following criteria: 1) intervention studies assessing the effects of forest therapy on depression among healthy adults ages 18 and over; 2) including at least one control group or condition; 3) being peer-reviewed; and 4) being published either in English. The Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network (SIGN) measurement tool was used to assess the risk of bias in each trial. Results: After screening current literature, a total of 14 articles (English: 6, Korean: 8) were included in the present review. None of the studies used randomized controlled (RCT) study design and the sample size ranged from 11 to 300. Walking in the forest and experiencing the forest using the five senses was the key component of the forest therapy that was included in all studies. The majority of studies used one-time intervention that usually lasted a few hours or half-day. The most widely used measure for depression was Profile of Mood States (POMS). Most studies used self-reported, paper-and-pencil tests, and only 5 studies used both paper-and-pencil tests and physiological measures. Regarding the quality assessment based on the SIGN criteria, only 3 articles were rated ‘acceptable’ and the rest of the 14 articles were rated ‘low quality.’ Regardless of the diversity in format and contents of forest therapies, most studies showed a significant effect of forest therapy in curing depression. Discussions: This systematic review showed that forest therapy is one of the emerging and effective intervention approaches for decreasing the level of depression among adults. Limitations of the current programs identified from the review were as follows; 1) small sample size; 2) a lack of objective and comprehensive measures for depression; and 3) inadequate information about research process. Futures studies assessing the long-term effect of forest therapy on depression using rigorous study designs are needed.

Keywords: forest therapy, systematic review, depression, adult

Procedia PDF Downloads 287

Authors: Petros Dlamini, Bethiweli Malambo, Maggie Masenya

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Knowledge management practices are very important in public libraries, especial in the era of the information society. The success of public libraries depends on the recognition and application of knowledge management practices. The study investigates the value and challenges of knowledge management practices in public libraries. Three research objectives informed the study: to identify knowledge management practices in public libraries, understand the value of knowledge management practices in public libraries, and determine the factors hampering knowledge management practices in public libraries. The study was informed by the interpretivism research paradigm, which is associated with qualitative studies. In that light, the study collected data from eight librarians and or library heads, who were purposively selected from public libraries. The study adopted a social anthropological approach, which thoroughly evaluated each participant's response. Data was collected from the respondents through telephonic semi-structured interviews and assessed accordingly. Furthermore, the study used the latest content concept for data interpretation. The chosen data analysis method allowed the study to achieve its main purpose with concrete and valid information. The study's findings showed that all six (100%) selected public libraries apply knowledge management practices. The findings of the study revealed that public libraries have knowledge sharing as the main knowledge management practice. It was noted that public libraries employ many practices, but each library employed its practices of choice depending on their knowledge management practices structure. The findings further showed that knowledge management practices in public libraries are employed through meetings, training, information sessions, and awareness, to mention a few. The findings revealed that knowledge management practices make the libraries usable. Furthermore, it has been asserted that knowledge management practices in public libraries meet users’ needs and expectations and equip them with skills. It was discovered that all participating public libraries from Umkhanyakude district municipality valued their knowledge management practices as the pillar and foundation of services. Noticeably, knowledge management practices improve users ‘standard of living and build an information society. The findings of the study showed that librarians should be responsible for the value of knowledge management practices as they are qualified personnel. The results also showed that 83.35% of public libraries had factors hampering knowledge management practices. The factors are not limited to shortage of funds, resources and space, and political interference. Several suggestions were made to improve knowledge management practices in public libraries. These suggestions include improving the library budget, increasing libraries’ building sizes, and conducting more staff training.

Keywords: knowledge management, knowledge management practices, storage, dissemination

Procedia PDF Downloads 82

Authors: Giorgi Gaprindashvili

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One of the best examples, in evolution of the public procurement, from post-soviet countries are reforms carried out in Georgia, which brought them close to international standards of procurement. In Georgia, public procurement legislation started functioning in 1998. The reform has passed several stages and came in the form as it is today. It should also be noted, that countries with economy in transition, including Georgia, implemented all the reforms in public procurement based on recommendations and support of World Bank, the United Nations and other international organizations. The first law on public procurement in Georgia was adopted on December 9, 1998 which aimed regulation of the procurement process of budget-organizations, transparent and competitive environment for private companies to access state funds legally. The priorities were identified quite clearly in the wording of the law, but operation/function of this law could not be reached on its level, because of some objective and subjective reasons. The high level of corruption in all levels of governance, can be considered as a main obstacle reason and of course, it is natural, that it had direct impact on the procurement process, as well as on transparency and rational use of state funds. This circumstances were the reasons that reforms in this sphere continued, to improve procurement process, in particular, the first wave of reforms began in 2001. Public procurement agency carried out reform with World Bank with main purpose of smartening the procurement legislation and its harmonization with international treaties and agreements. Also with the support of World Bank various activities were carried out to raise awareness of participants involved in procurement system. Further major changes in the legislation were filed in May 2005, which was also directed towards the improvement and smarten of the procurement process. The third wave of the reform began in 2010, which more or less guaranteed the transparency of the procurement process, which later became the basis for the rational spending of state funds. The reform of the procurement system completely changed the procedures. Carried out reform in Georgia resulted in introducing new electronic tendering system, which benefit the transparency of the process, after this became the basis for the further development of a competitive environment, which become a prerequisite for the state rational spending. Increased number of supplier organizations participating in the procurement process resulted in reduction of the estimated cost and the actual cost from 20% up to 40%, it is quite large saving for the procuring organizations and allows them to use the freed-up funds for their other needs. Assessment of the reforms in Georgia in the field of public procurement can be concluded, that proper regulation of the sector and relevant policy may proceed to rational and transparent spending of the budget from country’s state institutions. Also, the business sector has the opportunity to work in competitive market conditions and to make a preliminary analysis, which is a prerequisite for future strategy and development.

Keywords: public administration, public procurement, reforms, transparency

Procedia PDF Downloads 359

Authors: Z. A. Ahmad Noor Syukri, A. J. Nawal Aswan, S. V. Wong

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The motorcycle has become one of the most common type of vehicles used on the road, particularly in the Asia region, including Malaysia, due to its size-convenience and affordable price. This study focuses only on crashes involving motorcycles with passenger cars consisting 43 real world crashes obtained from in-depth crash investigation process from June 2016 till July 2017. The study collected and analyzed vehicle and site parameters obtained during crash investigation and injury information acquired from the patient-treating hospital. The investigation team, consisting of two personnel, is stationed at the Emergency Department of the treatment facility, and was dispatched to the crash scene once receiving notification of the related crashes. The injury information retrieved was coded according to the level of severity using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) and classified into different body regions. The data revealed that weekend crashes were significantly higher for the night time period and the crash occurrence was the highest during morning hours (commuting to work period) for weekdays. Bad weather conditions play a minimal effect towards the occurrence of motorcycle – passenger vehicle crashes and nearly 90% involved motorcycles with single riders. Riders up to 25 years old are heavily involved in crashes with passenger vehicles (60%), followed by 26-55 year age group with 35%. Male riders were dominant in each of the age segments. The majority of the crashes involved side impacts, followed by rear impacts and cars outnumbered the rest of the passenger vehicle types in terms of crash involvement with motorcycles. The investigation data also revealed that passenger vehicles were the most at-fault counterpart (62%) when involved in crashes with motorcycles and most of the crashes involved situations whereby both of the vehicles are travelling in the same direction and one of the vehicles is in a turning maneuver. More than 80% of the involved motorcycle riders had sustained yellow severity level during triage process. The study also found that nearly 30% of the riders sustained injuries to the lower extremities, while MAIS level 3 injuries were recorded for all body regions except for thorax region. The result showed that crashes in which the motorcycles were found to be at fault were more likely to occur during night and raining conditions. These types of crashes were also found to be more likely to involve other types of passenger vehicles rather than cars and possess higher likelihood in resulting higher ISS (>6) value to the involved rider. To reduce motorcycle fatalities, it first has to understand the characteristics concerned and focus may be given on crashes involving passenger vehicles as the most dominant crash partner on Malaysian roads.

Keywords: motorcycle crash, passenger vehicle, in-depth crash investigation, injury mechanism

Procedia PDF Downloads 315

Authors: Kornelia Kordiak

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The research is based on a biographical approach and serves as a foundation for understanding individual human destinies through the analysis of the context of life experiences. It focuses on the significance of childhood in shaping family micro-worlds from the perspective of biographical learning. In this case, the family micro-world is interpreted as a complex of beliefs and judgments about elements of the ‘total universe’ based on the individual's experiences. The main aim of the research is to understand the importance of childhood in shaping family micro-worlds from the perspective of reflection on biographical learning. Additionally, it contributes to a deeper understanding of the familial experiences of the studied individuals who form these family micro-worlds and the course of the biographical learning process in the subjects. Biographical research aligns with an interpretative paradigm, where individuals are treated as active interpreters of the world, giving meaning to their experiences and actions based on their own values and beliefs. The research methods used in the project—narrative interview method and analysis of personal documents—enable obtaining a multidimensional perspective on the phenomenon under study. Narrative interviews serve as the main data collection method, allowing researchers to delve into various life contexts of individuals. Analysis of these narratives identifies key moments and life patterns, as well as discovers the significance of childhood in shaping family micro-worlds. Moreover, analysis of personal documents such as diaries or photographs enriches the understanding of the studied phenomena by providing additional contexts and perspectives. The research will be conducted in three phases: preparatory, main, and final. The anticipated schedule includes preparation of research tools, selection of research sample, conducting narrative interviews and analysis of personal documents, as well as analysis and interpretation of collected research material. The narrative interview method and document analysis will be utilized to capture various contexts and interpretations of childhood experiences and family relations. The research will contribute to a better understanding of family dynamics and individual developmental processes. It will allow for the identification and understanding of mechanisms of biographical learning and their significance in shaping identity and family relations. Analysis of adult narratives will enable the identification of factors determining patterns of behavior and attitudes in adult life, which may have significant implications for pedagogical practice.

Keywords: childhood, adulthood, biographical learning, narrative interview, analysis of personal documents, family micro-worlds

Procedia PDF Downloads 23

Authors: Cleto J. Sauer Jr., Rita C. Sauer, Chaider G. Andrade, Doris F. Rabelo

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Introduction: Endotracheal Intubation (ETI) is a procedure for clinical management of patients with severe clinical presentation of COVID-19 disease. Realistic simulation (RS) is an active learning methodology utilized for clinical skill's improvement. To improve ETI skills of public health network's physicians from Recôncavo da Bahia region in Brazil, during COVID-19 outbreak, RS training was planned and carried out. Training scenario included the Nasco Lifeform realistic simulator, and three actions were simulated: ETI procedure, sedative drugs management, and bougie guide utilization. Training intervention occurred between May and June 2020, as an interinstitutional cooperation between the Health's Department of Bahia State and the Federal University from Recôncavo da Bahia. Objective: The main objective is to report the effects on participants' self-confidence perception for ETI procedure after RS based training. Methods: This is a descriptive study, with secondary data extracted from questionnaires applied throughout RS training. Priority workplace, time from last intubation, and knowledge about bougie were reported on a preparticipation questionnaire. Additionally, participants completed pre- and post-training qualitative self-assessment (10-point Likert scale) regarding self-confidence perception in performing each of simulated actions. Distribution analysis for qualitative data was performed with Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test, and self-confidence increase analysis in frequency contingency tables with Fisher's Exact Test. Results: 36 physicians participated of training, 25 (69%) from primary care setting, 25 (69%) performed ETI over a year ago, and only 4 (11%) had previous knowledge about the bougie guide utilization. There was an increase in self-confidence medians for all three simulated actions. Medians (variation) for self-confidence before and after training, for each simulated action were as follows: ETI [5 (1-9) vs. 8 (6-10) (p < 0.0001)]; Sedative drug management [5 (1-9) vs. 8 (4-10) (p < 0.0001)]; Bougie guide utilization [2.5 (1-7) vs. 8 (4-10) (p < 0.0001)]. Among those who performed ETI over a year ago (n = 25), an increase in self-confidence greater than 3 points for ETI was reported by 23 vs. 2 physicians (p = 0.0002), and by 21 vs. 4 (p = 0.03) for sedative drugs management. Conclusions: RS training contributed to self-confidence increase in performing ETI. Among participants who performed ETI over a year, there was a significant association between RS training and increase of more than 3 points in self-confidence, both for ETI and sedative drug management. Training with RS methodology is suitable for ETI confidence enhancement during COVID-19 outbreak.

Keywords: confidence, COVID-19, endotracheal intubation, realistic simulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: A. Kesraoui, M. Seffen

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Applications of adsorption onto activated carbon for water treatment are well known. The process has been demonstrated to be widely effective for removing dissolved organic substances from wastewaters, but this treatment has a major drawback is the high operating cost. The main goal of our research work is to improve the retention capacity of Tunisian biomass for the depollution of industrial wastewater and retention of pollutants considered toxic. The biosorption process is based on the retention of molecules and ions onto a solid surface composed of biological materials. The evaluation of the potential use of these materials is important to propose as an alternative to the adsorption process generally expensive, used to remove organic compounds. Indeed, these materials are very abundant in nature and are low cost. Certainly, the biosorption process is effective to remove the pollutants, but it presents a slow kinetics. The improvement of the biosorption rates is a challenge to make this process competitive with respect to oxidation and adsorption onto lignocellulosic fibers. In this context, the alternating current appears as a new alternative, original and a very interesting phenomenon in the acceleration of chemical reactions. Our main goal is to increase the retention acceleration of dyes (indigo carmine, methylene blue) and phenol by using a new alternative: alternating current. The adsorption experiments have been performed in a batch reactor by adding some of the adsorbents in 150 mL of pollutants solution with the desired concentration and pH. The electrical part of the mounting comprises a current source which delivers an alternating current voltage of 2 to 15 V. It is connected to a voltmeter that allows us to read the voltage. In a 150 mL capacity cell, we plunged two zinc electrodes and the distance between two Zinc electrodes has been 4 cm. Thanks to alternating current, we have succeeded to improve the performance of activated carbon by increasing the speed of the indigo carmine adsorption process and reducing the treatment time. On the other hand, we have studied the influence of the alternating current on the biosorption rate of methylene blue onto Luffa cylindrica fibers and the hybrid material (Luffa cylindrica-ZnO). The results showed that the alternating current accelerated the biosorption rate of methylene blue onto the Luffa cylindrica and the Luffa cylindrica-ZnO hybrid material and increased the adsorbed amount of methylene blue on both adsorbents. In order to improve the removal of phenol, we performed the coupling between the alternating current and the biosorption onto two adsorbents: Luffa cylindrica and the hybrid material (Luffa cylindrica-ZnO). In fact, the alternating current has succeeded to improve the performance of adsorbents by increasing the speed of the adsorption process and the adsorption capacity and reduce the processing time.

Keywords: adsorption, alternating current, dyes, modeling

Procedia PDF Downloads 150

Authors: N. Hadhoum, B. Guerfi, T. M. Sider, Z. Yassa, T. Djerboua, M. Boursouti, M. Mamou, F. Z. Hadjadj Aoul, L. R. Mekacher

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Introduction and objectives: Chlorobutanol is a raw material, mainly used as an antiseptic and antimicrobial preservative in injectable and ophthalmic preparations. The main objective of our study was the synthesis and evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of chlorobutanol hemihydrates. Material and methods: Chlorobutanol was synthesized according to the nucleophilic addition reaction of chloroform to acetone, identified by an infrared absorption using Spectrum One FTIR spectrometer, melting point, Scanning electron microscopy and colorimetric reactions. The dosage of carvedilol active substance was carried out by assaying the degradation products of chlorobutanol in a basic solution. The chlorobutanol obtained was subjected to bacteriological tests in order to study its antimicrobial activity. The antibacterial activity was evaluated against strains such as Escherichia coli (ATCC 25 922), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25 923) and Pseudomonas aeroginosa (ATCC = American type culture collection). The antifungal activity was evaluated against human pathogenic fungal strains, such as Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger provided by the parasitology laboratory of the Hospital of Tizi-Ouzou, Algeria. Results and discussion: Chlorobutanol was obtained in an acceptable yield. The characterization tests of the product obtained showed a white and crystalline appearance (confirmed by scanning electron microscopy), solubilities (in water, ethanol and glycerol), and a melting temperature in accordance with the requirements of the European pharmacopoeia. The colorimetric reactions were directed towards the presence of a trihalogenated carbon and an alcohol function. The spectral identification (IR) showed the presence of characteristic chlorobutanol peaks and confirmed the structure of the latter. The microbiological study revealed an antimicrobial effect on all strains tested (Sataphylococcus aureus (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), E. coli (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), Pseudomonas aeroginosa (MIC = 1250 µg/ml), Candida albicans (MIC =2500 µg/ml), Aspergillus niger (MIC =2500 µg/ml)) with MIC values close to literature data. Conclusion: Thus, on the whole, the synthesized chlorobutanol satisfied the requirements of the European Pharmacopoeia, and possesses antibacterial and antifungal activity; nevertheless, it is necessary to insist on the purification step of the product in order to eliminate the maximum impurities.

Keywords: antimicrobial agent, bacterial and fungal strains, chlorobutanol, MIC, minimum inhibitory concentration

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Authors: Ram Sharan Mehta, Sanjeev Sharma

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Introduction: Haemodialysis (HD) is a mechanical process of removing waste products from the blood and replacing essential substances in patients with renal failure. First artificial kidney developed in Netherlands in 1943 AD First successful treatment of CRF reported in 1960AD, life-saving treatment begins for CRF in 1972 AD. In 1973 AD Medicare took over financial responsibility for many clients and after that method become popular. BP Koirala institute of health science is the only center outside the Kathmandu, where HD service is available. In BPKIHS PD started in Jan.1998, HD started in August 2002 till September 2003 about 278 patients received HD. Day by day the number of HD patients is increasing in BPKIHS as with institutional growth. No such type of study was conducted in past hence there is lack of valid & reliable baseline data. Hence, the investigators were interested to conduct the study on " Profile of the Renal Failure patients under Haemodialysis at B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences Nepal". Objectives: The objectives of the study were: to find out the Socio-demographic characteristics of the patients, to explore the knowledge of the patients regarding disease process and Haemodialysis and to identify the problems encountered by the patients. Methods: It is a hospital-based exploratory study. The population of the study was the clients under HD and the sampling method was purposive. Fifty-four patients undergone HD during the period of 17 July 2012 to 16 July 2013 of complete one year were included in the study. Structured interview schedule was used for collect data after obtaining validity and reliability. Results: Total 54 subjects had undergone for HD, having age range of 5-75 years and majority of them were male (74%) and Hindu (93 %). Thirty-one percent illiterate, 28% had agriculture their occupation, 80% of them were from very poor community, and about 30% subjects were unaware about the disease they suffering. Majority of subjects reported that they had no complications during dialysis (61%), where as 20% reported nausea and vomiting, 9% Hypotension, 4% headache and 2%chest pain during dialysis. Conclusions: CRF leading to HD is a long battle for patients, required to make major and continuous adjustment, both physiologically and psychologically. The study suggests that non-compliance with HD regimen were common. The socio-demographic and knowledge profile will help in the management and early prevention of disease and evaluate aspects that will influence care and patients can select mode of treatment themselves properly.

Keywords: profile, haemodialysis, Nepal, patients, treatment

Procedia PDF Downloads 373

Authors: Pin Yu Chen, Puay Chuan Lee, Yu Jen Loo, Ju Xia Zhang, Deborah Teo, Jack Wei Chieh Tan, Biauw Chi Ong

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Background: Synchronous communication, such as telephone calls, remains the standard communication method between nurses and other healthcare professionals in Singapore public hospitals despite advances in asynchronous technological platforms, such as instant messaging. Although miscommunication is one of the most common causes of lapses in patient care, there is a scarcity of research characterizing baseline inter-professional healthcare communications in a hospital setting due to logistic difficulties. Objective: This study aims to characterize the frequency and patterns of communication behaviours among healthcare professionals. Methods: The one-week observational study was conducted on Monday through Sunday at the nursing station of a cardiovascular medicine and cardiothoracic surgery inpatient ward at the National Heart Centre Singapore. Subjects were shadowed by two physicians for sixteen hours or consecutive morning and afternoon nursing shifts. Communications were logged and characterized by type, duration, caller, and recipient. Results: A total of 1,023 communication events involving the attempted use of the common telephones at the nursing station were logged over a period of one week, corresponding to a frequency of one event every 5.45 minutes (SD 6.98, range 0-56 minutes). Nurses initiated the highest proportion of outbound calls (38.7%) via the nursing station common phone. A total of 179 face-to-face communications (17.5%), 362 inbound calls (35.39%), 481 outbound calls (47.02%), and 1 emergency alert (0.10%) were captured. Average response time for task-oriented communications was 159 minutes (SD 387.6, range 86-231). Approximately 1 in 3 communications captured aimed to clarify patient-related information. The total duration of time spent on synchronous communication events over one week, calculated from total inbound and outbound calls, was estimated to be a total of 7 hours. Conclusion: The results of our study showed that there is a significant amount of time spent on inter-professional healthcare communications via synchronous channels. Integration of patient-related information and use of asynchronous communication channels may help to reduce the redundancy of communications and clarifications. Future studies should explore the use of asynchronous mobile platforms to address the inefficiencies observed in healthcare communications.

Keywords: healthcare communication, healthcare management, nursing, qualitative observational study

Procedia PDF Downloads 207

Authors: Béla Kovács, Éva Bódi, Farzaneh Garousi, Szilvia Várallyay, Áron Soós, Xénia Vágó, Dávid Andrási

Abstract:

In agriculture for analysis of elements in different food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples generally flame atomic absorption spectrometers (FAAS), graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometers (GF-AAS), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometers (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometers (ICP-MS) are routinely applied. An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) is capable for analysis of 70-80 elements in multielemental mode, from 1-5 cm3 volume of a sample, moreover the detection limits of elements are in µg/kg-ng/kg (ppb-ppt) concentration range. All the analytical instruments have different physical and chemical interfering effects analysing the above types of samples. The smaller the concentration of an analyte and the larger the concentration of the matrix the larger the interfering effects. Nowadays there is very important to analyse growingly smaller concentrations of elements. From the above analytical instruments generally the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer is capable of analysing the smallest concentration of elements. The applied ICP-MS instrument has Collision Cell Technology (CCT) also. Using CCT mode certain elements have better (smaller) detection limits with 1-3 magnitudes comparing to a normal ICP-MS analytical method. The CCT mode has better detection limits mainly for analysis of selenium, arsenic, germanium, vanadium and chromium. To elaborate an analytical method for trace elements with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer the most important interfering effects (problems) were evaluated: 1) Physical interferences; 2) Spectral interferences (elemental and molecular isobaric); 3) Effect of easily ionisable elements; 4) Memory interferences. Analysing food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples an other (new) interfering effect emerged in ICP-MS, namely the effect of various matrixes having different evaporation and nebulization effectiveness, moreover having different quantity of carbon content of food and food raw materials, moreover environmental samples. In our research work the effect of different water-soluble compounds furthermore the effect of various quantity of carbon content (as sample matrix) were examined on changes of intensity of the applied elements. So finally we could find “opportunities” to decrease or eliminate the error of the analyses of applied elements (Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, As, Se, Mo, Cd, Sn, Sb, Te, Hg, Pb, Bi). To analyse these elements in the above samples, the most appropriate inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer is a quadrupole instrument applying a collision cell technique (CCT). The extent of interfering effect of carbon content depends on the type of compounds. The carbon content significantly affects the measured concentration (intensities) of the above elements, which can be corrected using different internal standards.

Keywords: elements, environmental and food samples, ICP-MS, interference effects

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Authors: J. Van Engeland, C. Lavigne, S. De Jaeger

Abstract:

In the light of the transition towards a more circular economy, recovery of products, parts or materials will gain in importance. Additionally, the EU proximity principle related to waste management and emissions generated by transporting large amounts of end-of-life products, shift attention to local recovery networks. The Flemish inter-communal cooperation for municipal solid waste management Meetjesland (IVM) is currently investigating the set-up of such a network. More specifically, the network encompasses the recycling of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which is collected in separate containers. When these containers are full, a truck should transport them to the processor which can recycle the PVC into new products. This paper proposes a model to optimize the container collection. The containers are located at different Civic Amenity sites (CA sites) in a certain region. Since people can drop off their waste at these CA sites, the containers will gradually fill up during a planning horizon. If a certain container is full, it has to be collected and replaced by an empty container. The collected waste is then transported to a single processor. To perform this collection and transportation of containers, the responsible firm has a set of vehicles stationed at a single depot and different personnel crews. A vehicle can load exactly one container. If a trailer is attached to the vehicle, it can load an additional container. Each day of the planning horizon, the different crews and vehicles leave the depot to collect containers at the different sites. After loading one or two containers, the crew has to drive to the processor for unloading the waste and to pick up empty containers. Afterwards, the crew can again visit sites or it can return to the depot to end its collection work for that day. All along the collection process, the crew has to respect the opening hours of the sites. In order to allow for some flexibility, a crew is allowed to wait a certain amount of time at the gate of a site until it opens. The problem described can be modelled as a variant to the PVRP-TW (Periodic Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows). However, a vehicle can at maximum load two containers, hence only two subsequent site visits are possible. For that reason, we will refer to the model as a model for building tactical waste collection schemes. The goal is to a find a schedule describing which crew should visit which CA site on which day to minimize the number of trucks and the routing costs. The model was coded in IBM CPLEX Optimization studio and applied to a number of test instances. Good results were obtained, and specific suggestions concerning route and truck costs could be made. For a large range of input parameters, collection schemes using two trucks are obtained.

Keywords: container collection, crew scheduling, mixed integer linear programming, waste management

Procedia PDF Downloads 125