Search results for: health and safety at work

Authors: Minho Kwon, Jeonghee Lim, Yeongseok Jeong, Jongyoon Moon, Donghoon Shin, Kiyoung Kim

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In the past, the criteria and procedures for the design of concrete structures were mainly based on the stresses allowed for structural components. However, although the frequency of earthquakes has increased and the risk has increased recently, it has been difficult to determine the safety factor for earthquakes in the safety assessment of structures based on allowable stresses. Recently, limit state design method has been introduced for reinforced concrete structures, and limit state-based approach has been recognized as a more effective technique for seismic design. Therefore, in this study, the limit state of the bridge, which is a structure requiring higher stability against earthquakes, was evaluated. The finite element program LS-DYNA and twenty ground motion were used for time history analysis. The fracture caused by tensile and compression of the pier were set to the limit state. In the concrete tensile fracture, the limit state arrival rate was 100% at peak ground acceleration 0.4g. In the concrete compression fracture, the limit state arrival rate was 100% at peak ground acceleration 0.2g.

Keywords: allowable stress, limit state, safety factor, peak ground acceleration

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Authors: Vittorio Astarita, Giuseppe Guido, Vincenzo Pasquale Giofre, Alessandro Vitale

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Traffic microsimulation has been used extensively to evaluate consequences of different traffic planning and control policies in terms of travel time delays, queues, pollutant emissions, and every other common measured performance while at the same time traffic safety has not been considered in common traffic microsimulation packages as a measure of performance for different traffic scenarios. Vehicle conflict techniques that were introduced at intersections in the early traffic researches carried out at the General Motor laboratory in the USA and in the Swedish traffic conflict manual have been applied to vehicles trajectories simulated in microscopic traffic simulators. The concept is that microsimulation can be used as a base for calculating the number of conflicts that will define the safety level of a traffic scenario. This allows engineers to identify unsafe road traffic maneuvers and helps in finding the right countermeasures that can improve safety. Unfortunately, most commonly used indicators do not consider conflicts between single vehicles and roadside obstacles and barriers. A great number of vehicle crashes take place with roadside objects or obstacles. Only some recent proposed indicators have been trying to address this issue. This paper introduces a new procedure based on the simulation of potential crash events for the evaluation of safety levels in microsimulation traffic scenarios, which takes into account also potential crashes with roadside objects and barriers. The procedure can be used to define new conflict indicators. The proposed simulation procedure generates with the random perturbation of vehicle trajectories a set of potential crashes which can be evaluated accurately in terms of DeltaV, the energy of the impact, and/or expected number of injuries or casualties. The procedure can also be applied to real trajectories giving birth to new surrogate safety performance indicators, which can be considered as “simulation-based”. The methodology and a specific safety performance indicator are described and applied to a simulated test traffic scenario. Results indicate that the procedure is able to evaluate safety levels both at the intersection level and in the presence of roadside obstacles. The procedure produces results that are expressed in the same unity of measure for both vehicle to vehicle and vehicle to roadside object conflicts. The total energy for a square meter of all generated crash can be used and is shown on the map, for the test network, after the application of a threshold to evidence the most dangerous points. Without any detailed calibration of the microsimulation model and without any calibration of the parameters of the procedure (standard values have been used), it is possible to identify dangerous points. A preliminary sensitivity analysis has shown that results are not dependent on the different energy thresholds and different parameters of the procedure. This paper introduces a specific new procedure and the implementation in the form of a software package that is able to assess road safety, also considering potential conflicts with roadside objects. Some of the principles that are at the base of this specific model are discussed. The procedure can be applied on common microsimulation packages once vehicle trajectories and the positions of roadside barriers and obstacles are known. The procedure has many calibration parameters and research efforts will have to be devoted to make confrontations with real crash data in order to obtain the best parameters that have the potential of giving an accurate evaluation of the risk of any traffic scenario.

Keywords: road safety, traffic, traffic safety, traffic simulation

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Authors: Malvina Hoxha, Valerie Capra, Carola Buccellati, Angelo Sala, Clara Cena, Roberta Fruttero, Massimo Bertinaria, G. Enrico Rovati

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Today COXIBs are used in the treatment of arthritis and many other painful conditions in selected patients with high gastrointestinal risk and low CV risk. Previously we found a new mechanism of action of a traditional NSAID (diclofenac) and a COXIB (lumiracoxib) that possess weak competitive antagonism at the TP receptor. We hypothesize that modifying the structure of a known specific inhibitor of cyclooxygenase-2 (COXIB), so that it becomes also a more potent thromboxane antagonist will preserve the anti-inflammatory and gastrointestinal safety typical of COXIBs and prevent the cardiovascular risk associated with long term therapy.

Keywords: cyclooxygenase, inflammation, lumiracoxib, thromboxane A2

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Authors: Sandra Mendes

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Social Work has encountered over time with multivariate requests in the field of its action, provisioning frameworks of knowledge and praxis. Over the years, we have observed a transformation of society and, consequently, of the public who deals with the social work practitioners. Both, training and profession have had need to adapt and readapt the ways of doing, bailing up theories to action, while action unfolds emancipation of new theories. The theoretical questioning of this subject lies on classical authors from social sciences, and contemporary authors of Social Work. In fact, both enhance, in the design of social work, an integration and social cohesion function, creating a culture of action and theory, attributing to its method a relevant function, which shall be promoter of social changes in various dimensions of both individual and collective life, as well as scientific knowledge. On the other hand, it is assumed that Social Work, through its professionalism and through the academy, is now closer to distinguish itself from other Social Sciences as an autonomous scientific field, being, however, in the center of power struggles. This paper seeks to fill the gap in social work literature about the study of the scientific field of this area of knowledge.

Keywords: field theory, knowledge, science, social work

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Authors: Mohammed Al Awadh

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In order for businesses to take advantage of the opportunities for expanded production and trade that have arisen as a result of globalization and increased levels of competition, productivity growth is required. The number of available sources is decreasing with each passing day, which results in an ever-increasing demand. In response to this, there will be an increased demand placed on firms to improve the efficiency with which they utilise their resources. As a scientific method, work and time research techniques have been employed in all manufacturing and service industries to raise the efficiency of use of the factors of production. These approaches focus on work and time. The goal of this research is to improve the productivity of a manufacturing industry's production system by looking at ways to measure work. The work cycles were broken down into more manageable and quantifiable components. On the observation sheet, these aspects were noted down. The operation has been properly analysed in order to identify value-added and non-value-added components, and observations have been recorded for each of the different trails.

Keywords: time study, work measurement, work study, efficiency

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Authors: Sengul Celik, Alper Ketenci

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In Turkish Constitution about health care in Article 56, it is said that: everyone has the right to live in a healthy and balanced environment. It is the duty of the state and citizens to improve the environment, protect environmental health, and prevent environmental pollution. The state ensures that everyone lives their lives in physical and mental health; it organizes the planning and service of health institutions from a single source in order to realize cooperation by increasing savings and efficiency in human and substance power. The state fulfills this task by utilizing and supervising health and social institutions in the public and private sectors. General health insurance can be established by law for the widespread delivery of health services. To have health care is one of the basic rights of patients. After the coupe attempt in July 2016, the Government of Turkey has announced a state of emergency and issued lots of emergency decrees. By these emergency decrees, lots of people were dismissed from their jobs and lost their some basic social rights. The violations occur in social life. One of the most common observations is the discrimination by government in health care system. This study aims to put forward the violation of human rights in health care system in Turkey due to their discriminated position by an emergency decree. The study is a case study that is based on nine interviews with the people or relatives of people who lost their jobs by an emergency decree in Turkey. In this study, no personally identifiable information was obtained for the safety of individuals. Also no distinctive questions regarding the identity of individuals were asked. The interviews are obtained through internet call applications. The data were analyzed through the requirements of regular health care system in Turkey. The interviews expose that the people or the relatives of people lost their right to have regular health care. They have to pay extra amount both in clinical services and in medication treatment. The patient right to quality medical care without prejudice is violated. It was assessed that the people who are involved in emergency decree and their relatives are discriminated by government and deprived of regular medical care and supervision. Although international legal arrangements and legal responsibilities of the state have been put forward by Article 56, they are violated in practice. To prevent these kinds of violations, some measures should be taken against the deprivation in health care system especially towards the discriminated people by an emergency decree.

Keywords: emergency decree in Turkey, health care, discriminated people, patients rights

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Authors: Reinaldo Biscaro, Luciano R. Ferreira, Leonardo C. Biscaro, Raphael C. Biscaro, Isabela S. Vasconcelos, Laura C. R. Ferreira, Cristiano M. Galhardi, Erica P. Baciuk

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Introduction: The present study had the objective to present the profile of workers with shoulder disorders related to labor lawsuits in Brazil. The study analyzed the association between the worker’s health and the actions performed by the companies related to injured professional. The research method performed a retrospective, cross-sectional and quantitative database analysis. The documents of labor lawsuits with shoulder injury registered at the Regional Labor Court in the 15^th region (Campinas - São Paulo) were submitted to the medical examination and evaluated during the period from 2012 until 2015. The data collected were age, gender, onset of symptoms, length of service, current occupation, type of shoulder injury, referred complaints, type of acromion, associated or related diseases, company actions as CAT (workplace accident communication), compliance of NR7 by the organization (Environmental Risk Prevention Program - PPRA and Medical Coordination Program in Occupational Health - PCMSO). Results: From the 93 workers evaluated, there was a prevalence of men (58.1%), with a mean age of 42.6 y-o, and 54.8% were included in the age group 35-49 years. Regarding the length of work time in the company, 66.7% have worked for more than 5 years. There was an association between gender and current occupational status (p < 0.005), with predominance of women in household occupation (13 vs. 2) and predominance of unemployed men in job search situation (24 vs. 10) and reintegrated to work by judicial decision (8 vs. 2). There was also a correlation between pain and functional limitation (p < 0.01). There was a positive association of PPRA with the complaint of functional limitation and negative association with pain (p < 0.04). There was also a correlation between the sedentary lifestyle and the presence of PCMSO and PPRA (p < 0.04), and the absence of CAT in the companies (p < 0.001). It was concluded that the appearance or aggravation of osseous and articular shoulder pathologies in workers who have undertaken labor law suits seem to be associated with individual habits or inadequate labor practices. These data can help preventing the occurrence of these lesions by implementing local health promotion policies at work.

Keywords: work-related accidents, cross-sectional study, shoulder lesions, labor lawsuits

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Authors: Chitra Rajagopal, Indra Deo Kumar, Ila Chauhan, Ruchi Joshi, Binoy Bhargavan

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Reliability and safety are essential for the success of mission-critical and safety-critical defense systems. Humans are part of the entire life cycle of defense systems development and deployment. The majority of industrial accidents or disasters are attributed to human errors. Therefore, considerations of human performance and human reliability are critical in all complex systems, including defense systems. Defense systems are operating from the ground, naval and aerial platforms in diverse conditions impose unique physical and psychological challenges to the human operators. Some of the safety and mission-critical defense systems with human-machine interactions are fighter planes, submarines, warships, combat vehicles, aerial and naval platforms based missiles, etc. Human roles and responsibilities are also going through a transition due to the infusion of artificial intelligence and cyber technologies. Human operators, not accustomed to such challenges, are more likely to commit errors, which may lead to accidents or loss events. In such a scenario, it is imperative to understand the human factors in defense systems for better systems performance, safety, and cost-effectiveness. A case study using Task Analysis (TA) based methodology for assessment and reduction of human errors in the Air and Missile Defense System in the context of emerging technologies were presented. Action-oriented task analysis techniques such as Hierarchical Task Analysis (HTA) and Operator Action Event Tree (OAET) along with Critical Action and Decision Event Tree (CADET) for cognitive task analysis was used. Human factors assessment based on the task analysis helps in realizing safe and reliable defense systems. These techniques helped in the identification of human errors during different phases of Air and Missile Defence operations, leading to meet the requirement of a safe, reliable and cost-effective mission.

Keywords: defence systems, reliability, risk, safety

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Authors: Apinya Mungaomklang, Natakamol Lookkham

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The purpose of this research is to study the characteristics of the graduates based on Thailand Qualification Framework (TQF) of the Faculty of Industrial Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The population of the research was employers/entrepreneurs/supervisors of students who were doing Professional Experiences course in their respective organizations during semester 1/2012. Data were collected during the month of September 2012 from the total number of 100 people. The tool used in this research was a questionnaire developed by the research team. Data were analyzed using percentage, mean and standard deviation using a computer program. The results showed that most of the surveyed organizations were private companies. The program with most students doing Professional Experiences course was Safety Technology and Occupational Health. The nature of work that most students did was associated with the document. Employers/ entrepreneurs/employers’ opinions on the characteristics of the graduates based on TQF received high scores. Cognitive skills received the highest score, followed by interpersonal relationships and responsibilities, ethics and moral, numerical analysis skills, communication and information technology skills, and knowledge, respectively.

Keywords: graduates characteristics, Thailand Qualification Framework, employers, entrepreneurs

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Authors: Cristina Domínguez, Steven N. Cuadra

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Aims: The aims of this study are: 1) to describe the occurrence and estimate the risk of suffering injuries of any kind, especially work-related injuries, in rural children working in agricultural activities and in urban children working on the street 2) to explore factors that might be associated with the occurrence of work-related injuries among child workers such as gender, school attendance, and performance of household chore. Method: We performed a crossectional study among working children in agricultural activities (120) and on the street (108) and in non-working referents (140) in 2019. We investigated self-reported injuries during the last 12 months, with focus on work-related injuries. Incidence rate, rate ratios, and 95% CI were calculated by Poisson regression. Results: Agricultural workers have a higher incidence of work-related injuries (2.1 per 1000 person-days) than children working on the street (1.8 per 1000 person-days). However, when considering girl’s unpaid work at home, girls had higher occurrence. Girls had a 30% increase on the risk of suffering work related injuries compared to boys. Performing household chore and attending school were the major predictors of injury occurrence. Discussion: Our data suggest If such partial and full-time girl’s housework is taken into account, there would be little or no variation between the sexes with regard to injuries occurrence, and the incidence rate of work related injuries among girls could even exceed that of boys A greater understanding of the interaction of factors related to how child workers spend their time, and its impact on children’s health, is needed in order to identify feasible and appropriate strategies to reduce the negative effect of work on children when elimination of child labor is not reachable in the short term. Clearly, gender aspects on child labor may allow for more effective targeting of prevention efforts.

Keywords: injuries, child labor, agricultural work, gender

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Authors: Rosemary Saunders, Courtney Glass, Karla Seaman, Karen Gullick, Julie Andrew, Anne Wilkinson, Ashwini Davray

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Current literature demonstrates that most Australians receive end-of-life care in a hospital setting, despite most hoping to die within their own home. The necessity for high quality end-of-life care has been emphasised by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care and the National Safety and Quality in Health Services Standards depict the requirement for comprehensive care at the end of life (Action 5.20), reinforcing the obligation for continual organisational assessment to determine if these standards are suitably achieved. Limited research exploring clinical staff perspectives of end-of-life care delivery has been conducted within an Australian private health context. This study aimed to investigate clinical staff member perceptions of end-of-life care delivery at a private hospital in Western Australia. The study comprised of a multi-faceted mixed-methods methodology, part of a larger study. Data was obtained from clinical staff utilising surveys and focus groups. A total of 133 questionnaires were completed by clinical staff, including registered nurses (61.4%), enrolled nurses (22.7%), allied health professionals (9.9%), non-palliative care consultants (3.8%) and junior doctors (2.2%). A total of 14.7% of respondents were palliative care ward staff members. Additionally, seven staff focus groups were conducted with physicians (n=3), nurses (n=26) and allied health professionals including social workers (n=1), dietitians (n=2), physiotherapists (n=5) and speech pathologists (n=3). Key findings from the surveys highlighted that the majority of staff agreed it was part of their role to talk to doctors about the care of patients who they thought may be dying, and recognised the importance of communication, appropriate training and support for clinical staff to provide quality end-of-life care. Thematic analysis of the qualitative data generated three key themes: creating the setting which highlighted the importance of adequate resourcing and conducive physical environments for end-of-life care and to support staff and families; planning and care delivery which emphasised the necessity for collaboration between staff, families and patients to develop care plans and treatment directives; and collaborating in end-of-life care, with effective communication and teamwork leading to achievable care delivery expectations. These findings contribute to health professionals better understanding of end-of-life care provision and the importance of collaborating with patients and families in care delivery. It is crucial that health care providers implement strategies to overcome gaps in care, so quality end-of-life care is provided. Findings from this study have been translated into practice, with the development and implementation of resources, training opportunities, support networks and guidelines for the delivery of quality end-of-life care.

Keywords: clinical staff, end-of-life care, mixed-methods, private hospital.

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Authors: Mabel Y. C. Yau, Roy C. F. Lai, Hugo Y. H. Or

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This study is a pilot surveillance of hygiene compliance and food microbial safety of both licensed and mobile vendors selling Chinese ready–to-eat snack foods in Hong Kong. The study reflects similar situations in running mobile food vending business on trucks. Hong Kong is about to launch the Food Truck Pilot Scheme by the end of 2016 or early 2017. Technically, selling food on the vehicle is no different from hawking food on the street or vending food on the street. Each type of business bears similar food safety issues and cast the same impact on public health. Present findings demonstrate exemplarily situations that also apply to food trucks. 9 types of Cantonese style snacks of 32 samples in total were selected for microbial screening. A total of 16 vending sites including supermarkets, street markets, and snack stores were visited. The study finally focused on a traditional snack, the steamed rice cake with red beans called Put Chai Ko (PCK). PCK is a type of classical Cantonese pastry sold on push carts on the street. It used to be sold at room temperature and served with bamboo sticks in the old days. Some shops would have them sold steam fresh. Microbial examinations on aerobic counts, yeast, and mould, coliform, salmonella as well as Staphylococcus aureus detections were carried out. Salmonella was not detected in all samples. Since PCK does not contain ingredients of beef, poultry, eggs or dairy products, the risk of the presence of Salmonella in PCK was relatively lower although other source of contamination might be possible. Coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus was found in 6 of the 14 samples sold at room temperature. Among these 6 samples, 3 were PCK. One of the samples was in an unacceptable range of total colony forming units higher than 105. The rest were only satisfactory. Observational evaluations were made with checklists on personal hygiene, premises hygiene, food safety control, food storage, cleaning and sanitization as well as waste disposals. The maximum score was 25 if total compliance were obtained. The highest score among vendors was 20. Three stores were below average, and two of these stores were selling PCK. Most of the non-compliances were on food processing facilities, sanitization conditions and waste disposal. In conclusion, although no food poisoning outbreaks happened during the time of the investigation, the risk of food hazard existed in these stores, especially among street vendors. Attention is needed in the traditional practice of food selling, and that food handlers might not have sufficient knowledge to properly handle food products. Variations in food qualities existed among supply chains or franchise eateries or shops. It was commonly observed that packaging and storage conditions are not properly enforced in the retails. The same situation could be reflected across the food business. It did indicate need of food safety training in the industry and loopholes in quality control among business.

Keywords: cantonese snacks, food safety, microbial, hygiene, street food

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Authors: Elaheh Ezami, Behzad Mohammadian, Elham Aznab

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Health service design will need to change due to bringing in new digital health tools. This highlights the importance of innovation in adopting Health Information Technology (HIT). It can be argued that innovation in the health sector correlates with entrepreneurship. Various reasons exist for health entrepreneurs to advocate increased investment in HIT to compensate for shortcomings in the health sector and improve the quality of healthcare. Furthermore, every innovative program presents challenges and motivations for entrepreneurs that may distract or encourage the adoption of technology. Our study used a systematic literature review to identify relevant articles that defined the frustrations and promotions of using health information technology in organizations or enterprises. A meta-analysis of the articles was conducted to identify the factors driving or pulling entrepreneurs to use HIT.

Keywords: health information technology, health entrepreneurship, health enterprise, health entrepreneurs' innovation

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Authors: Akanksha Dicholkar, Celin Jacob, Omkar More

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Work force instability, as demonstrated by high rates of staff turnover and lingering vacancy rates, continues to be a major challenge faced by health care organizations. The impact is manifested in workflow inefficiencies, delays in delivering patient care, and dissatisfaction among patients and staff, all of which can have significant negative effects on quality of care and patient safety. In addition, the staggering administrative costs created by a transient work force threaten health care organizations financial viability. One nurse retention strategy is to have newly hired nurses partake in Preceptorship. Precepting is a way to enculturate new employees into their role. Also good professional, collegial relationship between an experienced nurse and a newly hired nurse relations was evidenced. This study demonstrates impact of preceptor program on absconding rate, employee satisfaction & Patient satisfaction. Purpose of study: To decrease absconding rate. Objective: 1. To reduce the high absconding rate among nurses in Aster Medcity (AMC). 2. To facilitate the acclimatization of the newly hired nurse into their role, focusing on professional growth, inter-professional relationships and clinical skills required for the job. Methodology: Descriptive study by Convenience sampling method and collect data by direct observation, questionnaire, interviews. Sample size as per Sample size statistical table at 95 % CI. We conducted a pre and post intervention analysis to assess the impact of Preceptorship at AMC, with a daily occupancy of approx. 300 patients. Result: Preceptor program has had a significant improvement positive impact on all measured parameters. Absconding rate came down from 20% to 0% (P= 0.001). Patient satisfaction scores rose from 85% to 95%. Employee satisfaction rose form 65% to 85%. Conclusion: The project proved that Preceptor Development Programme and the steps taken in hand holding of the new joinees were effective in reducing the absconding rate among nurses and improved the overall satisfaction of new nurses. Preceptee satisfaction with the preceptorship experience was correlated with favorable evaluation of the relationship between the preceptee and preceptor. These findings indicate that when preceptors and preceptees have the benefit of formal preceptorship programs that are well supported, and when the preceptors’ efforts are rewarded, satisfaction is enhanced for both participants, preceptor commitment to the role is reinforced.

Keywords: absconding rate, preceptor, employee satisfaction index, satisfaction index

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Authors: Wissem Abdaoui, Ilhem Mokhtari, Adel Gouri, Benouareth Djamel Eddine

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Contracted in a health facility, hospital-acquired infections are a major public health problem in recent years. The increase of nosocomial infections is partly related to diagnostic and therapeutic advances in medicine. The aim of our study was to isolate and diagnose some types of bacteria that are circulating in the hospital by performing different samples at two medical services: Pulmonary and Infectious Diseases. The antibiotic susceptibility tests were performed for bacterial isolates. The results have shown that there is a predominance of enterobacteria followed by the staphylococcus with its two species epidermidis ans saprophyticus. The study of the antibiogramme identified that some of these bacteria have a resistant profile against all the tested antibiotics. The fight against nosocomial infections is difficult because it must act on several factors: quality of care, safety of the hospital environment, hygiene, wearing gloves etc. are all areas that should be of heightened vigilance and preventive measures.

Keywords: nosocomial infection, isolation, identification, sensitivity and resistance to antibiotics

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Authors: Desta Brhanu Gebrehiwot

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The purpose of this review was to analyze the overall or combined effect of scholarly studies conducted on the impacts of Food for work (FFW) and Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) on farm households’ livelihood (agricultural investment on the adoption of fertilizer, food security, livestock holding, nutrition and its’ disincentive effect) in Ethiopia. In addition, to make a critical assessment of the internal and external validity of the existing studies, the review also indicates the possibility to redesign the program. The method of selecting eligible studies for review was PICOS (Participants, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes, and Settings) framework. The method of analysis was the fixed effects model under Meta-Analysis. The findings of this systematic review confirm the overall or combined positive significant impact of PSNP on fertilizer adoption (combined point estimate=0.015, standard error=0.005, variance=0.000, lower limit 0.004 up to the upper limit=0.026, z-value=2.726, and p-value=0.006). And the program had a significant positive impact on the child nutrition of rural households and had no significant disincentive effect. However, the program had no significant impact on livestock holdings. Thus, PSNP is important for households whose livelihood depends on rain-fed agriculture and are exposed to rainfall shocks. Thus, better to integrate the program into the national agricultural policy. In addition, most of the studies suggested that PSNP needs more attention to the design and targeting issued in order to be effective and efficient in social protection.

Keywords: meta-analysis, fixed effect model, PSNP, rural-livelihood, Ethiopia

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Authors: Katie E. Jennings

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The interactions between family dynamics and environmental factors with mental health vulnerability in individuals are well known and are a theme for on-going research and debate. The impact upon mental health issues and forensic issues on family dynamics, experience, and emotional wellbeing cannot be over-Emphasised. For forensic patients with diagnosed mental disorders, these relationships and environments may have also been functionally linked to the development and maintenance of those disorders; with significant adverse childhood experiences being a common feature of many Patient’s histories. Mental health hospitals remove the patient from their home environments and provide treatment outside of these relationships and often outside of the home area. There is, therefore, a major focus on Services ensuring that patients are able to build and maintain relationships with family and friends, requiring services to involve families in Patients' care and treatment wherever possible. There are standards set by Government and clinical bodies that require absolute demonstration of the inclusion of family and friends in all aspects of the care and treatment of forensic patients. For some patients and family members, this push to take on a “role” in care can be unhelpful, extremely stressful, and has constant implications for the potential delicate reparation of relationships. Based on work undertaken for over 20 years in forensic mental health settings, this paper explores the positive psychology approach to a dimensional model to family inclusion in mental health care that learns from family court work and allows for the maintenance of relationships to be at both proximal and Distil levels; to prevent the replication of abuse, decrease the need for falsehoods and assist the recovery of all. The model is based on allowing families to choose to not be involved or be involved in different ways if this is seen to be more helpful. It also allows patients to choose the level of potential involvement that they would find helpful, and for this to be reviewed at a timeframe agreed by all parties, rather than when the next survey is due or the patient has a significant care meeting. This paper is significant as there is a lack of research to support services to use a positive psychology approach to work in this area, the assumption that being asked to be involved must be positive for all seems naïve at best for this patient group. Work relating to the psychology of family can significantly contribute to the development of knowledge in this area. The development of a dimensional model will support choice within families and assist in the development of more honest and open relationships.

Keywords: family dynamics, forensic, mental disorder, positive psychology

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Authors: Wei Yaming

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Objective: In order to compare the stress of employees sent overseas with (GRAS) before and after, we used the resource-oriented music listening intervention in this study. We also collected pertinent experimental data. Methods: The experiment involved 47 employees who were sent abroad by the Chinese side. They completed the stress scale test and documented it before the intervention. They tested for stress after five interventions and performed one-on-one interviews. Quantitative data and SPSS software were used to analyze relationships between stress reduction and resource-oriented music listening, as well as Pearson's correlation, multiple regression levels, and ANOVA. For the qualitative analysis, content analysis of one-on-one interviews was performed. Results: A comparison of data from before and after demonstrates how resource-focused music listening activities can lessen and relieve stress in remote workers. In the qualitative study, stress is broken down into six categories: relationship stress, health stress, emotional stress, and frustration stress. External pressures include work pressure and cultural stress. And it has been determined that listening to music that is resource-oriented can better ease internal stress (health, emotion, and dissatisfaction). Conclusion: The Guide Resource-oriented Music Listening (GROML) Program appears to have had some effect on the participants' stress levels. The resources that the participants encountered while listening to music are bravery, calm, letting go, and relaxing.

Keywords: resource-oriented, music listening, oversea dispatch employees, work stress

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Authors: Doua AlSaad, Ahmed Awaisu, Samah Elsalem, Palli Valapila Abdulrouf, Binny Thomas, Moza AlHail

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Background: It has been suggested that pyridoxine has an anti-lactogenic effect. Studies of the efficacy of pyridoxine in suppressing lactation have reported conflicting results. The aim of this review is to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of high-dose pyridoxine in postpartum lactation inhibition. Methods: This systematic review included published trials that compared the efficacy and/or safety of pyridoxine to placebo or to other pharmacological agents for the inhibition of postpartum lactation. We searched PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, CINAHL, AMED, the Cochrane library, and the clinical trials registry to identify relevant literature. No limit was imposed on the year of publication of the studies, and the review included studies published until 15 January 2016. Two reviewers independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. Results: Seven studies were included, with a total of 1155 women, of which 471 women received pyridoxine. Three studies were randomized controlled trials, while the remaining four studies were non-randomized controlled trials. All of the included studies were relatively small (n = 18 – 482). The studies compared pyridoxine with placebo, bromocriptine, and/or stilboestrol. Pyridoxine was given orally, with a total daily dose of 450 – 600 mg for 5 to 7 days. Two trials (n = 349 participants) indicated that pyridoxine was effective in inhibiting lactation in approximately 95% of the enrolled patients. All other studies failed to demonstrate pyridoxine efficacy through either clinical assessment or prolactin level measurements. Pyridoxine safety was assessed by two trials in which no serious untoward side-effects were reported. Overall, the risk of bias for most of the studies was low to moderate. Conclusion: Current evidence supporting the effectiveness of high dose pyridoxine in the inhibition of postpartum lactation is inconsistent and insufficient. Larger randomized trials are needed to confirm the efficacy of pyridoxine in postpartum lactation inhibition. Acknowledgment: This review received a grant from the Medical Research Center of Hamad Medical Corporation in Qatar (grant number: 15100/15).

Keywords: pyridoxine, safety, effectiveness, lactation inhibition

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Authors: Henry Kelly, Helena Shaw

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This paper will seek how innovative methods from Health Economics and, to a lesser extent, wellbeing analysis can be applied in the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) of transport infrastructure and policy interventions. The context for this will focus on the framework articulated by the UK Treasury (finance department) and the English Department for Transport. Both have well-established methods for undertaking CBA, but there is increased policy interest, particularly at a regional level of exploring broader strategic goals beyond those traditionally associated with transport user benefits, productivity gains, and labour market access. Links to different CBA approaches internationally, such as New Zealand, France, and Wales will be referenced. By exploring a complementary method of accessing the impacts of policies through the quantification of health impacts is a fruitful line to explore. In a previous piece of work, 14 impact pathways were identified, mapping the relationship between transport and health. These are wide-ranging, from improved employment prospects, the stress of unreliable journey times, and air quality to isolation and loneliness. Importantly, we will consider these different measures of health from an intersectional point of view to ensure that the basis that remains in the health industry does not get translated across to this work. The objective is to explore how a CBA based on these pathways may, through quantifying forecast impacts in terms of Quality-Adjusted Life Years may, produce different findings than a standard approach. Of particular interest is how a health-based approach may have different distributional impacts on socio-economic groups and may favour distinct types of interventions. Consideration will be given to the degree this approach may double-count impacts or if it is possible to identify additional benefits to the established CBA approach. The investigation will explore a range of schemes, from a high-speed rail link, highway improvements, rural mobility hubs, and coach services to cycle lanes. The conclusions should aid the progression of methods concerning the assessment of publicly funded infrastructure projects.

Keywords: cost-benefit analysis, health, QALYs transport

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Authors: Ava Zarif Sanayei, Sedigheh Sina

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During fluoroscopically guided procedures, healthcare workers, especially radiology trainees, are at risk of exposure to elevated radiation exposure. It is vital to prioritize their safety in such settings. However, there is limited data on their monthly or annual doses. This study aimed to evaluate the equivalent dose to the eyes of the student trainee, utilizing LiF: Mg, Ti (TLD-100) chips at the radiology department of a hospital in Shiraz, Iran. Initially, the dosimeters underwent calibration procedures with the assistance of ISO-PTW calibrated phantoms. Following this, a set of dosimeters was prepared To determine HP(3) value for a trainee involved in the main operation room and controlled area utilized for two months. Three TLD chips were placed in a holder and attached to her eyeglasses. Upon completion of the duration, the TLDs were read out using a Harshaw TLD reader. Results revealed that Hp(3) value was 0.31±0.04 mSv. Based on international recommendations, students in radiology training above 18 have an annual dose limit of 0.6 rem (6 mSv). Assuming a 12-month workload, staff radiation exposure stayed below the annual limit. However, the Trainee workload may vary due to different deeds. This study's findings indicate the need for consistent, precise dose monitoring in IR facilities. Students can undertake supervised internships for up to 500 hours, depending on their institution. These internships take place in health-focused environments offering radiology services, such as clinics, diagnostic imaging centers, and hospitals. Failure to do so might result in exceeding occupational radiation dose limits. A 0.5 mm lead apron effectively absorbs 99% of radiation. To ensure safety, technologists and staff need to wear this protective gear whenever they are in the room during procedures. Furthermore, maintaining a safe distance from the primary beam is crucial. In cases where patients need assistance and must be held for imaging, additional protective equipment, including lead goggles, gloves, and thyroid shields, should be utilized for optimal safety.

Keywords: annual dose limits, Hp(3), individual monitoring, radiation protection, TLD-100

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Authors: Babak Nemat Shahrbabaki, Arezo Fallahi, Masoomeh Hashemian

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Introduction: Health and safety are basic components of civil right. Health care systems in different countries were influenced by political, economic and cultural circumstances. In order to health services to people, these systems are organized with different forms, methods such as: prevention, treatment and rehabilitation and in this among, public satisfaction with the services provided is important. This study aimed to determine client satisfaction with family physician and relationship with physician’ demographic variables in health care centers of Jiroft county, Iran. Methods: This is a descriptive-analytical study. The collective data tool was a self-made questionnaire with two parts. The first part comprised demographic characteristics, and the second part contained 11 items for the assessment of satisfaction with family physician from different aspects. In addition, questionnaire, reliability and validity were confirmed. Random simple sampling method was used to determine samples. 234 people referred to the health centers filled questionnaire. The data were analyzed using SPSS software, and inferential statistical analysis was performed. Findings: The majority of the study population were women, married, and aged between 18 and 62 years (mean= 30.09±10.71). Total average satisfaction score was 42.63±3.68. Overall satisfaction averages were 9.47% very high, 30.04% high, 33.09% moderate, 15.12% low, and 12.28% very low. Except lodge on of family physician none of physician’ demographic variables did not effect on satisfaction index. Discussion & Conclusion: The Results showed that mean of satisfaction indexes of family physicians was high and lodge on of family physician effected on this index. Informing people about the main goals of family-doctor program will help to promote the quality of program and increase people satisfaction.

Keywords: family physician program, satisfaction, health-care centers, client

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Authors: Jonathan Hinton Westover, Maureen S. Andrade, Doug Miller

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Research has been inconclusive in determining if men or women experience more job satisfaction. A global comparison examining extrinsic and intrinsic factors, work relations, and work-life balance determinants found few differences; however, work relations and work-life balance factors were more significant for male than female workers across occupations. The current study uses International Social Survey Program data representing 37 countries to explore gender differences in job satisfaction in the hospitality industry. Findings demonstrate that mean job satisfaction scores for females are lower across hospitality occupations except for hotel receptionists, housekeeping supervisors, and hotel cleaners. Regression results revealed additional differences such as the significance of co-worker relations, the negative impact of being discriminated against and harassed at work, working weekends, marital status, and supervisory status for women with autonomy, work stress, education, and employment relationship being more salient for men. Interesting work, work being useful to society, job security, pay, relations with management, and work interfering with family were significant for both males and females.

Keywords: job satisfaction, gender, hospitality, global comparisons

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Authors: Abid I. Abu-Tair, Gavin M. Wilde, John M. Kinuthia

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Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) is a functional capability that has been developed to allow the United Kingdom Fire and Rescue Service to deal with ‘major incidents’ primarily involving structural collapse. The nature of the work undertaken by USAR means that staying out of a damaged or collapsed building structure is not usually an option for search and rescue personnel. As a result, there is always a risk that they could become victims. For this paper, a systematic and investigative review using desk research was undertaken to explore the role which structural engineering can play in assisting search and rescue personnel to conduct structural assessments when in the field. The focus is on how search and rescue personnel can assess damaged and collapsed building structures, not just in terms of the structural damage that may be countered, but also in relation to structural stability. Natural disasters, accidental emergencies, acts of terrorism and other extreme events can vary significantly in nature and ferocity, and can cause a wide variety of damage to building structures. It is not possible or, even realistic, to provide search and rescue personnel with definitive guidelines and procedures to assess damaged and collapsed building structures as there are too many variables to consider. However, understanding what implications damage may have upon the structural stability of a building structure will enable search and rescue personnel to judge better and quantify the risk from a life-safety standpoint. It is intended that this will allow search and rescue personnel to make informed decisions and ensure every effort is made to mitigate risk so that they do not become victims.

Keywords: damaged and collapsed building structures, life safety, quantifying risk, search and rescue personnel, structural assessments in the field

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Authors: Ojo Adeshina Akinwumi

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This study investigated leadership style and organizational culture as predictors of unethical work behaviour among employees in corporate organizations. This study adopted an expo facto research design. Two Hundred and Seventy-Four (274) employees (149 males, 125 females) sampled from the organization participated in the study. Their ages ranged from 19 to 65, with a mean of 36.36 years and a standard deviation of 10.43. Unethical Work Behaviour was measured using Unethical Work Behaviour Scale (UWBC), Organizational Culture was measured using Organizational Culture Scale, (and OCS and Leadership Styles were measured using Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (LSMLQ). Two hypotheses were formulated and tested using Pearson Product Moment Correlation and Multiple Regressions Analysis. Results indicated that leadership styles had no significant relationship with unethical work behaviour (r(274)=.09;>0.05). However, organizational culture had a significant relationship with unethical work behaviour (r(274)=.15;p,0.05). Lastly, leadership style and organizational culture jointly predicted unethical work behaviour among employees. [F (2, 273) =3.65, p<0.05). Findings from this study were discussed in line with existing literature. It was also recommended that leadership styles and organizational culture should be improved upon in order to reduce unethical work behaviour by employees.

Keywords: leadership style, organizational culture, unethical work behavior, employees in corporate organisations in Nigeria

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Authors: Punya Tepsing

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This research aimed to study the beliefs in auspicious materials of entrepreneurs in Muang Hat Yai. The data were collected via documentary research and field work including interviews, observations shops in Hat Yai which used auspicious materials to bring lucks to the shops. The results were as follows. The beliefs in auspicious materials that the entrepreneurs had were of three areas: 1) The auspicious materials could correct the improperness of the shop location, for example, the shop situated opposite a branch road, a shrine, or a bank. The owner usually corrected it by putting Chinese auspicious materials in front of or in the shop, for example, a lion holding a sword in his mouth, or a mirror, etc. 2) The auspicious materials could bring in more income. The owner of the shop usually put the auspicious materials such as a cat beckoning and a bamboo fish trap believed to trap money in front of or inside the shop. 3) The auspicious materials like turtles, paired fish and a monster holding the moon in his mouth could solve life problems including health, family, and safety problems. The use of these auspicious materials showed the blending of the beliefs of the Chinese shop entrepreneurs with the Thai folk beliefs. What is interesting is that Hat Yai is located near the three southern border provinces which are the unrest area and this may cause the number of tourists to decline. This prompted them to build a mechanism in adjusting themselves both to save their lives and to increase the number of customers. Auspicious materials can make them feel more confident.

Keywords: belief, auspicious materials, shop, entrepreneur, Maung Hat Yai

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Authors: Boce Zhang

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Strategic innovation of nanotechnology to promote food safety has drawn tremendous attentions among research groups, which includes the need for research support during the implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) in the United States. There are urgent demands and knowledge gaps to the understanding of a) food-water-bacteria interface as for how pathogens persist and transmit during food processing and storage; b) minimum processing requirement needed to prevent pathogen cross-contamination in the food system. These knowledge gaps are of critical importance to the food industry. However, the lack of knowledge is largely hindered by the limitations of research tools. Our groups recently endeavored two novel engineering systems with biomimetics and microfluidics as a holistic approach to hazard analysis and risk mitigation, which provided unprecedented research opportunities to study pathogen behavior, in particular, contamination, and cross-contamination, at the critical food-water-pathogen interface. First, biomimetically-patterned surfaces (BPS) were developed to replicate the identical surface topography and chemistry of a natural food surface. We demonstrated that BPS is a superior research tool that empowers the study of a) how pathogens persist through sanitizer treatment, b) how to apply fluidic shear-force and surface tension to increase the vulnerability of the bacterial cells, by detaching them from a protected area, etc. Secondly, microfluidic devices were designed and fabricated to study the bactericidal kinetics in the sub-second time frame (0.1~1 second). The sub-second kinetics is critical because the cross-contamination process, which includes detachment, migration, and reattachment, can occur in a very short timeframe. With this microfluidic device, we were able to simulate and study these sub-second cross-contamination scenarios, and to further investigate the minimum sanitizer concentration needed to sufficiently prevent pathogen cross-contamination during the food processing. We anticipate that the findings from these studies will provide critical insight on bacterial behavior at the food-water-cell interface, and the kinetics of bacterial inactivation from a broad range of sanitizers and processing conditions, thus facilitating the development and implementation of science-based food safety regulations and practices to mitigate the food safety risks.

Keywords: biomimetic materials, microbial food safety, microfluidic device, nanotechnology

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Authors: Tahra El-Obeid, Reham Mousa, Amal Alzahiri

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During the past few years the traditional market of Qatar has become an attraction to many customers who eat from the numerous women street vendors selling Qatari traditional dishes. To gain an understanding on the safety of these street vended foods, we designed the study to test microbiological quality of 14 different Qatari foods sold in Souk Wagif, the main traditional market in Qatar. This study was conducted to mainly identify presence or absence of microbial pathogens. A total of 56 samples were purchased from 10 different street vendors and the samples were collected randomly on different days. The samples were tested for microbial contaminants at Central Food Laboratories, Doha, Qatar. The qualitative study was conducted using Real Time-PCR to screen for; Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli and E. coli 0157:H7. Out of the 56 samples, only two samples “Biryani” and “Khabess” contained E. coli. However, both samples tested negative for E. coli O157:H7. The microbial contamination of the Qatari traditional street vended foods was 3%. This result may be attributed to the food safety training requirement set by the regulatory authorities before issuing any license to food handlers in Qatar as well as the food inspection conducted by the food health inspectors on a regular basis.

Keywords: microbiological quality, street vended food, traditional dishes, Qatar

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Authors: Terungwa Simon Yange, Agana Moses A.

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This paper studied steganography and designed a simplistic approach to a steganographic tool for hiding information in image files with the view of addressing the security challenges with data by hiding data from unauthorized users to improve its security. The Structured Systems Analysis and Design Method (SSADM) was used in this work. The system was developed using Java Development Kit (JDK) 1.7.0_10 and MySQL Server as its backend. The system was tested with some hypothetical health records which proved the possibility of protecting data from unauthorized users by making it secret so that its existence cannot be easily recognized by fraudulent users. It further strengthens the confidentiality of patient records kept by medical practitioners in the health setting. In conclusion, this work was able to produce a user friendly steganography software that is very fast to install and easy to operate to ensure privacy and secrecy of sensitive data. It also produced an exact copy of the original image and the one carrying the secret message when compared with each.

Keywords: steganography, cryptography, encryption, decryption, secrecy

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Authors: Meredith Rossi, Lesley Lee, Mary Wear, Mary Van Baalen, Bradley Rhodes

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The astronaut community is unique, and may be disproportionately exposed to occupational hazards not commonly seen in other communities. The extent to which the demands of the astronaut occupation and exposure to spaceflight-related hazards affect the health of the astronaut population over the life course is not completely known. A better understanding of the individual, population, and mission impacts of astronaut occupational exposures is critical to providing clinical care, targeting occupational surveillance efforts, and planning for future space exploration. The ability to characterize the risk of latent health conditions is a significant component of this understanding. Provision of health screening services to active and former astronauts ensures individual, mission, and community health and safety. Currently, the NASA-Johnson Space Center (JSC) Flight Medicine Clinic (FMC) provides extensive medical monitoring to active astronauts throughout their careers. Upon retirement, astronauts may voluntarily return to the JSC FMC for an annual preventive exam. However, current retiree monitoring includes only selected screening tests, representing an opportunity for augmentation. The potential long-term health effects of spaceflight demand an expanded framework of testing for former astronauts. The need is two-fold: screening tests widely recommended for other aging populations are necessary to rule out conditions resulting from the natural aging process (e.g., colonoscopy, mammography); and expanded monitoring will increase NASA’s ability to better characterize conditions resulting from astronaut occupational exposures. To meet this need, NASA has begun an extensive exploration of the overall approach, cost, and policy implications of expanding the medical monitoring of former NASA astronauts under the Astronaut Occupational Health program. Increasing the breadth of monitoring services will ultimately enrich the existing evidence base of occupational health risks to astronauts. Such an expansion would therefore improve the understanding of the health of the astronaut population as a whole, and the ability to identify, mitigate, and manage such risks in preparation for deep space exploration missions.

Keywords: astronaut, long-term health, NASA, occupational health, surveillance

Procedia PDF Downloads 523