Search results for: parent’s attitude towards paternal involvement

Authors: Amani Waheed, Mostafa Kofi, Shaymaa Attia, Soha Younis, Basma Abdel Hadi

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Background: Exposure to pesticides is one of the most important occupational risks among farmers in developing countries. Along with the wide use of pesticides in the world, the concerns over their health impacts are rapidly growing. Objective: To investigate thyroid and reproductive hormones and fasting blood glucose levels among farmers chronically exposed to pesticide from East Almnaif district, Ismailia governorate. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 43 farmers with active involvement pesticides handling and 43 participants not occupationally exposed to pesticides as the control group. A structured interview questionnaire measuring the sociodemographic characteristics, pesticides exposure characteristics, and safety measures was used. General examination including measurements of height, weight, and blood pressure was done. Moreover, levels of plasma cholinesterase enzyme (PChE), glucose, as well as reproductive and thyroid hormones (TSH, T4, and testosterone) were determined. Results: There were no statistically significant differences between both groups regarding their age, educational level, smoking status, and body mass index. The mean duration of exposure was 20.60 11.06 years. Majority of farmers (76.7%) did not use any personal protective equipment (PPE) during pesticides handling. The mean systolic blood pressure among exposed farmers was greater (134.88 17.18 mm Hg) compared to control group (125 14.69 mm Hg) with statistically significant difference (p = 0.003). The mean diastolic blood pressure was higher (84.02 8.69 mm Hg) compared to control group (78.79 8.98 mm Hg) with statistically significant difference (p = 0.006). The pesticide exposed farmers had statistically significant lower level of PChE (3969.93 1841U/L) than control group (4879.29 1950.08 U/L). Additionally, TSH level was significantly higher in exposed farmers (median =1.39µIU/ml) compared to controls (median = 0.91 µIU/ml) (p=0.032). While, the exposed group had a lower T4 level (6.91 1.91 µg/dl) compared to the control group (7.79 2.10µg/dl), with the statistically significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.045). The exposed group had significantly lower level of testosterone hormone (median=3.37 ng/ml) compared to the control group (median= 6.22 ng/ml) (p=0.003). While, the exposed farmers had statistically insignificant higher level of fasting blood glucose (median =89 mg/dl) than the controls (median=88 mg/dl). Furthermore, farmers who did not use PPE had statistically significant lower level of T4 (6.57 1.81µg/dl) than farmers who used PPE during handling of pesticides (8.01 1.89 µg/dl). Conclusion: Chronic exposure to pesticides exerts disturbing action on reproductive function and thyroid function of the male farmers.

Keywords: chronic occupational pesticide exposure, Diabetes mellitus, male reproductive hormones, thyroid function

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Authors: Xiaoli Tian

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The recent growing interest in and use of complementary and alternative medicine is a global phenomenon. In many regions, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), an important type of complementary and alternative medicine, has been formally integrated into the healthcare system. Consequently, today’s doctors face increasing requests and questions from patients regarding TCM. However, studies of TCM focus either on patients’ approaches to TCM and Western medicine (WM) or on the politics involved in the institutionalization of TCM. To our knowledge, sociological studies on doctors’ attitudes toward TCM are rare. This paper compares the receptivity of WM-trained Chinese doctors to TCM in Hong Kong and mainland China, in order to evaluate the interplay between professional training and dominant medical paradigms, on the one hand, and institutional legitimacy and government and client pressures to accept TCM, on the other. Based on survey and in-depth interviews with Western-medicine doctors in Hong Kong and mainland China, this research finds that: there is major difference between Western-medicine doctors’ attitude toward traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in Hong Kong and mainland China. Doctors in Hong Kong are still suspicious toward TCM, no matter if they have exposure to TCM or not. Even some doctors who have much knowledge about TCM, such as got a diploma or certificate in TCM or tried TCM themselves, are still suspicious. This is because they hold up to the ideal of 'evidence-based medicine' and emphasize the kind of evidence based on randomized controlled trial (RCT). To Western medicine doctors in Hong Kong, this is the most reliable type of evidence for any medical practice, but it is lacking in TCM. This is the major reason why they do not trust TCM and would not refer patients to TCM in clinical practices. In contrast, western medicine doctors in mainland China also know about randomized controlled trial (RCT) and believe that’s the most reliable evidence, but they tend to think experience-based evidence is also reliable. On this basis, they think TCM also has clinical effectiveness. Research findings reveal that legitimacy based on institutional arrangements is a relevant factor, but how doctors understand their professional boundaries also play an important role. Doctors in Hong Kong are more serious about a strict professional boundary between Western medicine and TCM because they benefited from it, such as a very prestigious status and high income. Doctors in mainland China tend to be flexible about professional boundaries because they never benefited from a well-defined strict professional boundary. This is related to a long history of the lack of professionalism in China but is also aggravated by the increasing state support of TCM.

Keywords: evidence-based decision-making, institutional legitimacy, professional behavior, traditional Chinese medicine

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Authors: Anne Tetens, Susan Andersen, Lars Ole Bonde, Pia Jeppesen, Katrine Rich Madsen

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Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) has emphasized the critical need for feasible and effective school-based mental health promotion interventions. High-quality music education in school has been suggested to promote well-being, inclusion, and positive relations, which are essential for children’s mental health. This study explores the potential of choir singing as a distinct approach to enhance children’s mental health within the school setting. ‘Everyone Can Sing’ is a class-based mental health promotion intervention for children in grades 0-3 (ages 5-10) in Danish primary school, which integrates choir singing into the students’ normal school schedule twice a week to promote mental health through the increase of school well-being, class coherence and social inclusion. The intervention uses trained choir leaders to lead the lessons in close collaboration with the class teacher, placing a distinct emphasis on well-being and the inclusive aspect of musical expression through body and voice. Aim: The aim of the study is to evaluate the feasibility of the Everyone Can Sing intervention with the specific objective to assess implementation and changes in mental health parameters, including school well-being, class coherence and social inclusion. Methodologies: The study is a feasibility study of a one-year intervention, which started in January 2024 and is being implemented in grades 0-3 (ages 5-10) across three different Danish primary schools. It is designed according to a mixed methods approach, including both quantitative and qualitative methods. Baseline questionnaires were obtained from students, parents and teachers, and follow-up is planned at 12 months. Participant observations of class choir and individual and group interviews with students, teachers, choir leaders, and school management are collected during the intervention period. The study uses the validated ‘Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire’ for parent- and teacher-reports. The student questionnaire, which assesses school well-being, class coherence, social inclusion and indicators of mental health, was developed and validated for this study. Participant observations and interviews provide in-depth insights into the implementation process and participants’ experiences of the mental health-promoting potential of the intervention. Findings: The study included 41 classes across three schools (N=904) and questionnaire data from students (n=845, = 93%), teachers (n=890, = 98%), and parents (n=608, = 67%) at baseline. Follow-up data will be obtained in January 2025. While collection and analyses of data are still ongoing, preliminary implementation findings based on interviews and observations indicate high levels of engagement and acceptability. At 6 months into the intervention period, the study protocol is on track and suggests that the intervention is well-received. Further findings and analyses will be presented. The final results of the study will be used to decide whether the AKS intervention should proceed to a future, full-size effectiveness trial, return to refinement of the intervention or the evaluation design, or stop. Contributions: This study will provide valuable insights into new approaches to school-based mental health promotion initiatives. If feasible, the vision is to implement the intervention or elements of it in primary schools across all five Danish regions, potentially lowering the mental health burden.

Keywords: child mental health, early childhood, mental health promotion, mixed methods research, school-based intervention.

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Authors: Lilian Ijomah

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Restorative justice practices continue to gain recognition globally in the criminal and juvenile justice systems and schools. Despite considerable research, little is known about how juvenile detention center staff members’ knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes affect implementation. As with many interventions, effective implementation relies on the staff members who must do the daily work. This phenomenological study aimed to add to the existing literature by examining staff knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes on restorative justice practices, barriers to effective implementation, and potential differences in knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes between education staff and juvenile detention officers at the research site. The present study used semi-structured interviews and focus groups of both types of staff members who work with the youth in a juvenile justice facility to answer three research questions: (1) To what extent are staff members knowledgeable about the principles behind restorative approach to discipline and about how the approach should be carried out?; (2) What are staff member beliefs and attitudes toward the restorative justice program and its implementation in a juvenile justice setting?; and (3) What similarities and differences are there between (a) knowledge and (b) beliefs and attitudes of the educators and juvenile detention officers? A total of 28 staff members participated, nine educators, and 19 detention officers. The findings for the first research question indicated that both groups (educators and juvenile detention officers) were knowledgeable about two of the three principles of restorative justice: repairing the harm done by the offender and reducing risks for future occurrence; but did not show clear knowledge of one principle, active involvement from all stakeholders. For research question 2, staff beliefs and attitudes were categorized into two types, positive beliefs and attitudes (e.g., that restorative justice is more appropriate than the use of punitive measures) and negative beliefs and attitudes (e.g., that restorative justice is ‘just another program that creates extra work for staff’). When the two staff groups were compared to answer research question 3, both groups were found to have similar knowledge (showing knowledge of two of the three principles) and somewhat different beliefs and attitudes – both groups showed a mix of positive and negative, but the educators showed somewhat more on the positive side. Both groups also identified barriers to implementation such as the perception of restorative justice as ‘soft’, lack of knowledge and exposure to restorative justice, shortage of resources and staff, and difficulty sustaining the restorative justice approach. The findings of this study are largely consistent with current literature but also extend the literature by studying staff knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs in a juvenile detention center and comparing the two staff groups. Recommendations include assessing staff knowledge and attitudes toward restorative justice during the hiring process, ensuring adequate staff training, communicating clearly to build positive attitudes and beliefs, providing adequate staffing, and building a sense of community.

Keywords: juvenile justice, restorative justice, restorative practices, staff attitudes and beliefs

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Authors: Mawong R., Bussracumpakorn C.

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Millions of young people around the world have been affected by COVID-19 to their psychological and social effects. Millennials’ stresses have been shaped by a few global issues, including climate change, political instability, and financial crisis. In particular, the spread of COVID-19 has become laying psychological and socioeconomic scars on them. When end-of-life planning turns into more widely discussed, the stigma and taboos around this issue are greatly lessened. End-of-life planning is defined as a future life plan, such as financial, legacy, funeral, and memorial planning. This plan would help millennials to discover the value and meaning of life. This study explores the attitudes of Thai Millennials toward end-of-life planning as a new normal awareness of life in order to initiate an innovative service concept to fit with their value and meaning. The study conducts an in-depth interview with 12 potential participants who have awareness or action on the plan. The framework of the customer journey map is used to analyze the responses to examine trigger points, barriers, beliefs, and expectations. The findings pointed to a service concept that is suggested for a new end-of-life planning service that is suited to Thai Millennials in 4 different groups, which are 1. Social -Conscious as a socially aware who to donate time and riches to make the world and society a better place, their end-of-life planning value is inspired by the social impact of giving something or some action that they will be able to do after life or during life which provides a variety of choice based on their preference to give to society, 2. Life Fulfillment who make a life goal for themselves and attempt to achieve it before the time comes to their value will be to inspire life value with a customized plan and provide guidance to suggest, 3. Prevention of the After-Death Effect who want to plan to avoid the effects of their death as patriarch, head of the family, and anchor of someone, so they want to have a plan that brings confidence and feel relief while they are still alive and they want to find some reliable service that they can leave the death will or asset, and 4. No Guilty Planning who plan for when they wish to be worry-free as a self-responsible they want to have the plan which is easy to understand and easy to access. The overall finding of the study is to understand the new service concept of end-of-life planning which to improve knowledge of significant life worth rather than death planning, encouraging people to reassess their lives in a positive way, leading to higher self-esteem and intrinsic motivation for this generation in this time of global crisis.

Keywords: design management, end-of-life planning, millennial generation, service design solution

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Authors: Gloria M. Ntuba-Jua, Afui M. Mih, Eneke E. T. Bechem

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Prunus africana (Hook. F.) Kalkman, commonly known as Pygeum or African cherry belongs to the Rosaceae family. It is a medium to large, evergreen tree with a spreading crown of 10 to 20 m. It is used by the traditional medical practitioners for the treatment of over 45ailments in Cameroon and sub-Sahara Africa. In modern medicine, it is used in the treatment of benign prostrate hyperplasia (BPH), prostate gland hypertrophy (enlarged prostate glands). This is possible because of its ability to produce some secondary metabolites which are believed to have bioactivity against these ailments. The ready international market for the sale of Prunus bark, uncontrolled exploitation, illegal harvesting using inappropriate techniques and poor timing of harvesting have contributed enormously to making the plant endangered. It is known to harbor a large number of endophytic fungi with the potential to produce similar secondary metabolites as the parent plant. Alternative sourcing of medicinal principles through endophytic fungi requires succinct knowledge of the endophytic fungi. This will serve as a conservation measure for Prunus africana by reducing dependence on Prunus bark for such metabolites. This work thus sought to compare the production of some major secondary metabolites produced by P. africana and some of its associated endophytic fungi. The leaves and stem bark of the plant from different provenances were soaked in methanol for 72 hrs to yield the methanolic crude extract. The phytochemical screening of the methanolic crude extracts using different standard procedures revealed the presence of tannins, flavonoids, terpenoids, saponins, phenolics and steroids. Pure cultures of some predominantly isolated endophyte species from the difference Prunus provenances such as Curvularia sp, and Morphospecies P001 were also grown in Potato Dextrose Broth (PDB) for 21 days and later extracted with Methylene dichloride (MDC) solvent after 24hrs to produce crude culture extracts. Qualitative assessment of crude culture extracts showed the presence of tannins, terpenoids, phenolics and steroids particularly β-Sitosterol, (a major bioactive metabolite) as did the plant tissues. Qualitative analysis by thin layer chromatography (TLC) was done to confirm and compare the production of β-Sitosterol (as marker compounds) in the crude extracts of the plant and endophyte. Samples were loaded on TLC silica gel aluminium barked plate (Kieselgel 60 F254, 0.2 mm, Merck) using acetone/hexane, (3.0:7.0) solvent system. They were visualized under an ultra violet lamp (UV254 and UV360). TLC revealed that leaves had a higher concentration of β-sitosterol in terms of band intensity than stem barks from the different provenances. The intensity of β-sitosterol bands in the culture extracts of endophytes was comparable to the plant extracts except for Curvularia sp (very minute) whose band was very faint. The ability of these fungi to make β-sitosterol was confirmed by TLC analysis with the compound having chromatographic properties (retention factor) similar to those of β-sitosterol standard. The ability of these major endophytes to produce secondary metabolites similar to the host has therefore been demonstrated. There is, therefore, the potential of developing the in vitro production system of Prunus secondary metabolites thereby enhancing its conservation.

Keywords: Caneroon, endophytic fungi, Prunus africana, secondary metabolite

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Authors: Bharathadas Sandhya

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Janamaithri Suraksha Project is the community policing project of Kerala police, fully sponsored by the Government of Kerala and in vogue in Kerala for the last ten years. The socio-economically weaker areas in the hilly terrains consisting of tribal hamlets are given special importance under the project. These hamlets are visited by the beat police officers, and they intervene in various issues in the hamlets. This study is based on data collected from 350 respondents living in the tribal hamlets of the Nilambur area in the District of Malappuram. The respondents were personally interviewed by the research team using a questionnaire consisting of 183 questions, seeking the details regarding their interaction with beat police officers, their ability to prevent or detect crimes, the menace of Maoists (extremist) presence, their interventions in other socio-economic problems like alcoholism, school dropout issues, lack of facilities for preparation for competitive examinations for educated youth, etc. The perception of the tribal population regarding the effectiveness of police intervention in their criminal justice complaints, the attitude of the police officers towards the tribal population when they approach the police station with a criminal complaint, are also studied. The general socio-economic problems of the tribal population as perceived by them are also brought out. Being the visible agency of the government, the police person coming on beat duty to the hamlet is generally seen by the tribal population as a representative to whom they can communicate the issues, even if it’s solution rests with another department like the forest or agriculture. The analysis of the primary data is carried out using computer applications. The amount of social justice benefits the tribal hamlets received through various government schemes, and their deficiencies are brought out in the study. From the conclusions of the study, certain suggestions for positive criminal justice and social justice intervention strategies are made out. The need for various government departments to work in tandem with each other so as to bring out more effectiveness in the socio-economic projects is evident from the study. Whether it is the need to obtain a transport to go to school or problem of drinking water or even opening a bank account, at least occasionally, the visiting beat police officer is of help to the tribal population. Mostly the tribal population feels free to approach the police with a criminal complaint without any inhibitions.

Keywords: community policing, beat police officer, criminal justice, social justice

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Authors: Donna Banks

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In 1998 Winston James called for more research on the Caribbean diaspora and this ethnographic study, incorporating participant observation, interviews, and archival research, adds to the scholarship in this area. The research is grounded in the discipline of cultural studies but is cross-disciplinary in nature, engaging anthropology, psychology, and urban planning. This paper centers on community murals and their contribution to a more culturally diverse and representative community. While many museums are in the process of reassessing their collection, acquiring works, and developing programming to be more inclusive, and public art programs are investing millions of dollars in trying to fashion an identity in which all residents can feel included, local artists in neighborhoods in many countries have been using community murals to tell their stories. Community murals serve a historical, political, and social purpose and are an instrumental strategy in creative placemaking projects. Community murals add to the livability of an area. Even though official measurements of livability do not include race, ethnicity, and gender - which are egregious omissions - murals are a way to integrate historically underrepresented people into the wider history of a country. This paper draws attention to a creative placemaking project in the port city of Bristol, England. A city, like many others, with a history of spacializing race and racializing space. For this reason, Bristol’s Seven Saints of St. Pauls® Art & Heritage Trail, which memorializes seven Caribbean-born social and political change agents, is examined. The Seven Saints of St. Pauls® Art & Heritage Trail is crucial to the city, as well as the country, in its contribution to the de-racialization of public spaces. Within British art history, with few exceptions, portraits of non-White people who are not depicted in a subordinate role have been absent. The artist of the mural project, Michelle Curtis, has changed this long-lasting racist and hegemonic narrative. By creating seven large-scale portraits of individuals not typically represented visually, the artist has added them into Britain’s story. In these murals, however, we see more than just the likeness of a person; we are presented with a visual commentary that reflects each Saint’s hybrid identity of being both Black Caribbean and British, as well as their social and political involvement. Additionally, because the mural project is part of a heritage trail, the murals' are therapeutic and contribute to improving the well-being of residents and strengthening their sense of belonging.

Keywords: belonging, murals, placemaking, representation

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Authors: G .D. B. N. Kulasaooriya, H. B. S. Ariyarathne, I. Abeygunawardene, A. A. J. Rafarathne, B. V. Perera

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Elephant is the largest resident of the wild and has small surface to volume ratio as well as less number of sweat glands which cause challenges to the thermoregulation of this mammal. However, this megaherbivore has adopted specialised meachanisms to maintain its thermal balance through behavioral adaptations, ear flapping and well anastomosed arterioles and venules of the ear. Nevertheless, little is known on the involvement of the skin in the process of thermoregulation. The present study was undertaken to monitor the water evaporation rate from the skin of unrestrained wild elephant calves throughout the day and to understand its importance in the thermoregulation. Seven baby elephants housed in the elephant transit home, Udawalawe were used. Ambient temparature, relative humidity (RH) and radiation heat load was monitored throughout the day of the study period. Similarly, surface temparature of the skin was taken at six points including lateral ear pinna, lateral body and the rump during the same period. The skin water evaporation was also measured from the same sites using cobolt chloride method. The surface are of the skin was determined by assigning geometrical shapes to each body part. The results showed that the ambient temperature gradually increased with the day reaching maximum around 3.00 pm. The relative humidity was lowest early in the morning. The radiation heat load did not show any significant change in the study period. The skin temperature was different among lateral ear pinna, lateral body and the rump where the highest temperature was on the rump and the lowest on the lateral ear pinna. The skin temperature gradually increase with increasing ambient temperature but there was not a strong correlation (R2 =53.53) between these two. The skin temperature had strong correlation with RH (p<0.05 R2 =70.84% ) but a significant relationship was not considered since the radiation heat load was not varying in large scale. The skin evaporative water loss had a weak negative correlation with ambient temperature (correlation coefficient= -0.01) whereas strong positive correlation with RH (correlation coefficient= 25.275 ) and no corelation with radiation heat load. It also appeared that skin water loss increases as the skin temperature increased. In the present study, it was observed that on average, skin of the baby elephant looses 403 g/m2/h of water. Based on these observations it can be concluded that a large volume of water is evaporated from the skin of baby elephants and evaporative heat loss may be contributing significantly to the thermoregulation. However, further investigation on the influence of environmental factors on evaporative heat loss has to be conducted to understand the thermoregulatory mechanisms of the baby elephant.

Keywords: thermoregulation, behavioral adaptations, evaporation, elephant

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Authors: John Acire, Wilfred Lajul, Ogwang Tom

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Using a qualitative research technique, this study investigates the influence of Early Childhood Education (ECE) on learning outcomes in lower primary schools in Gulu City, Uganda. The study, which is based on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory of human learning, fills gaps in the current literature on the influence of ECE on learning outcomes. The aims of the study include analyzing the state of learning outcomes, investigating ECE practices, and determining the influence of these practices on learning outcomes in lower primary schools. The findings highlight the critical significance of ECE in promoting children's overall development. Nursery education helps children improve their handwriting, reading abilities, and general cognitive development. Children who have received nursery education have improved their abilities to handle pencils, form letters, and engage in social interactions, highlighting the significance of fine motor skills and socializing. Despite the good elements, difficulties in implementing ECE practices were found, such as differences in teaching styles, financial limits, and potential weariness due to prolonged school hours. The study suggests focused interventions to improve the effectiveness of ECE practices, ensure their connection with educational goals and maximize their influence on children's development. The study's findings show that respondents agree on the importance of nursery education in supporting holistic development, socialization, language competency, and conceptual comprehension. Challenges in nursery education, such as differences in teaching techniques and insufficient resources, highlight the need for comprehensive measures to address these challenges. Furthermore, parental engagement in home learning activities was revealed as an important factor affecting early education outcomes. Children who were engaged at home performed better in lower primary, emphasizing the value of a supportive family environment. Finally, the report suggests measures to enhance parental participation, changes in teaching methods through retraining, and age-appropriate enrolment. Future studies might concentrate on the involvement of parents, ECE policy practice, and the influence of ECE teachers on lower primary school learning results. These ideas are intended to help create a more favorable learning environment by encouraging holistic development and preparing children for success in succeeding academic levels.

Keywords: early childhood education, learning outcomes in lower primary schools, early childhood education practices, how ECE practices influence learning outcomes in lower primary schools

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Authors: Suha Hassen

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This research aims to untangle the complexity of conducting face-to-face interviews with 80 ex-Islamic State fighters, encompassing three groups: local Iraqis, Arabs from the Middle East, and international fighters from around the globe. Each interview lasted approximately two hours and was conducted in both Arabic and English, focusing on the motivations behind joining the Islamic State and the pathways and mechanisms facilitating their involvement. The phenomenon of individuals joining violent Islamist extremist and jihadist organizations is multifaceted, drawing substantial attention within terrorism and security studies. Organizations such as the Islamic State, Hezbollah, Hamas, and Al-Qaeda pose formidable threats to international peace and stability, employing various terrorist tactics for radicalization and recruitment. However, significant gaps remain in current studies, including a lack of firsthand accounts, an inadequate understanding of original narratives (religious and linguistic) due to abstraction and misinterpretation of motivations, and a lack of Arab women's perspectives from the region. This study addresses these gaps by exploring the cultural, religious, and historical complexities that shape the narratives of ex-ISIS fighters. The paper will showcase three distinct cases: one French prisoner, one Moroccan fighter, and a local Iraqi, illustrating the diverse motivations and experiences that contribute to joining and leaving extremist groups. The findings provide valuable insights into the nuanced dynamics of radicalization, emphasizing the need for gender-sensitive approaches in counter-terrorism strategies and deradicalization programs. Importantly, this research has practical implications for counter-narrative policies and early-stage prevention of radicalization. By understanding the narratives used by ex-fighters, policymakers can develop targeted counter-narratives that disrupt recruitment efforts. Additionally, insights into the mechanisms of radicalization can inform early intervention programs, helping to identify and support at-risk individuals before they become entrenched in extremist ideologies. Ultimately, this research enhances our understanding of the individual experiences of ex-ISIS fighters and calls for a reevaluation of the narratives surrounding women’s roles in extremism and recovery.

Keywords: Arab women in extremism, counter-narrative policy, ex-ISIS fighters in Iraq, radicalization

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Authors: Yei Mian Adrian Yap

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How we idealize the regular schools to be inclusive as much as possible hinges on mainstream teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy towards the inclusion of students with special needs in the regular schools. This research studies the Japanese and Singaporean mainstream teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy towards the inclusion of students with special needs in the regular classrooms by investigating what key variables influence their attitudes and teaching-efficacy and how they strategize to address their challenges to include their students with special needs in their regular classrooms. In order to understand the nature of teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy towards the inclusive education, a mixed-method research methodology was carried out in Japan and Singapore; it involved an explanatory sequential method of employing quantitative research first before qualitative research. In the quantitative research, 189 Japanese and 183 Singaporean teachers were invited to participate in the questionnaires and out of these participants, 38 Japanese and 15 Singaporean teachers shared their views during their semi-structured interviews. Based on the empirical findings, Japanese teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy were more likely to be influenced by their experiences in teaching students with special needs, knowledge about disability legislation, presence of their disabled family members and level of confidence to teach students with special needs. On the other hand, Singaporean teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy were affected by gender, educational level, received trainings in special needs education, knowledge about disability legislation and level of confidence to teach students with special needs. Both country results also demonstrated that there was a positive correlation between their teaching-efficacy and attitude. Narrative findings further expanded the reasons behind these quantitative factors that shaped teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy. Also it discussed the various problems faced by Japanese and Singaporean teachers and how they identified their coping strategies to circumvent their challenges in including their students with special needs in their regular classrooms. The significance of this research manifests in necessary educational reforms in both countries especially in the context of inclusive education. These findings may not be as definitive as expected but it is believed that it could provide useful information on the current situation about teachers’ concerns towards the inclusive education. In conclusion, this research could potentially make its positive contribution to the body of literature on teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy in the context of Asian developed countries and these findings could posit that regular teachers’ positive attitudes and strong sense of teaching self-efficacy could directly improve the success rate of inclusion of students with special needs in the regular classrooms.

Keywords: attitudes, inclusive education, special education, teaching-efficacy

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Authors: Yared Pawlos Woldeyes

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Public Relations often referred to as ‘PR’, is the practice of managing the spread of information between an individual or organization, such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization, and the public. Public Relations are important because they help organizations or entities cultivate and maintain meaningful connections with society at large through platforms like print media and social media. Individuals that identify as public relation specialists establish and maintain relationships with an organization’s target audiences, relevant media sources, and opinion leaders. With regard to the challenges, when trying to practice public relations for government institutions, the priority for specialists is often to help members of society exercise a positive attitude and impression of a country’s political systems and practices. If you consider the case of public relations for government entities in Ethiopia there are several factors to consider. First, public relations in Ethiopia are very much driven by a desire to create a good image of the country and prevent the spread of any information that creates a bad image of Ethiopia. Also, the current ruling party dominates public relations in Ethiopia. Unfortunately, this means that more often than not, public relations specialists are forced by the government to spread and mass communicate false information to the public instead of the truth. Any opposition to government’s agenda will result in seriously negative repercussions for public relations specialists. Although public relations is supposed to create a positive and honest relationship between an organization or the government with the public, in Ethiopia, that is not the case. As a result, very few people express an interest in practicing public relations here. Despite this, there is an opportunity for the development of an accountable public relation affairs in developing nations, taking Ethiopian’s case. For instance, the fact that Public relations are provided as a field of study in college or university to produce competent and trained specialists, the enormous contribution of good communication to the public developmental efforts linking the government to the people, and the better payment to employees of public relation officers are some of them. Therefore, there is a need by the respective stakeholders to work in coalition in raising awareness of the youth regarding the importance of a responsible public relations officer to the country’s developmental efforts, encouragement of Civil Society Organizations working in promoting free press and expression of ideas, improving the governmental structure to be transparent and that allows independent officers, and hosting international conferences on public relations practice so that the specialists can exchange knowledge and skills.

Keywords: developing nations, Ethiopia, public relations, public relations specialist

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Authors: Samuel Attias, Elad Schiff, Zahi Arnon, Eran Ben-Arye, Yael Keshet, Ibrahim Matter, Boker Lital Keinan

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Background: Despite the extensive use of manual therapies, reflexology in particular, no validated tools have been developed to evaluate patients' beliefs, attitudes and expectations regarding reflexology. Such tools however are essential to improve the results of the reflexology treatment, by better adjusting it to the patients' attitudes and expectations. The tool also enables assessing correlations with clinical results of interventional studies using reflexology. Methods: The IBEAR (Inpatient Beliefs, Expectations and Attitudes toward Reflexology) tool contains 25 questions (8 demographic and 17 specifically addressing reflexology), and was constructed in several stages: brainstorming by a multidisciplinary team of experts; evaluation of each of the proposed questions by the experts' team; and assessment of the experts' degree of agreement per each question, based on a Likert 1-7 scale (1 – don't agree at all; 7 – agree completely). Cronbach's Alpha was computed to evaluate the questionnaire's reliability while the Factor analysis test was used for further validation (228 patients). The questionnaire was tested and re-tested (48h) on a group of 199 patients to assure clarity and reliability, using the Pearson coefficient and the Kappa test. It was modified based on these results into its final form. Results: After its construction, the IBEAR questionnaire passed the expert group's preliminary consensus, evaluation of the questions' clarity (from 5.1 to 7.0), inner validation (from 5.5 to 7) and structural validation (from 5.5 to 6.75). Factor analysis pointed to two content worlds in a division into 4 questions discussing attitudes and expectations versus 5 questions on belief and attitudes. Of the 221 questionnaires collected, a Cronbach's Alpha coefficient was calculated on nine questions relating to beliefs, expectations, and attitudes regarding reflexology. This measure stood at 0.716 (satisfactory reliability). At the Test-Retest stage, 199 research participants filled in the questionnaire a second time. The Pearson coefficient for all questions ranged between 0.73 and 0.94 (good to excellent reliability). As for dichotomic answers, Kappa scores ranged between 0.66 and 1.0 (mediocre to high). One of the questions was removed from the IBEAR following questionnaire validation. Conclusions: The present study provides evidence that the proposed IBEAR-16 questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool for the characterization of potential reflexology patients and may be effectively used in settings which include the evaluation of inpatients' beliefs, expectations, and attitudes toward reflexology.

Keywords: reflexology, attitude, expectation, belief, CAM, inpatient

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Authors: Abdullah Almilaibary, Jeremy Jolley, Mark Hayter

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Background: Despite recent progress in enhancing the accessibility of HIV-related health services worldwide, opportunities to diagnose patients are often missed due to genuine barriers at different levels. The aim of the study is to explore the factors that affect the utilization of HIV testing services by young people aged 17-25 in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A non-experimental descriptive cross-sectional design was used to predict factors that influenced HIV testing among Umm- Al Qura University students aged 17-25 years. A newly developed self-completed online questionnaire was used and the study sample was drawn using a convenience sampling technique. The questionnaire consisted of 52 items divided into three scales: 12 items for HIV/AIDS-related knowledge, 3 items for risk perception, and 37 items for attitudes toward HIV testing. Five experts in the field of HIV/AIDS validated the contents of the questionnaire and agreed that the items included were related to the construct being measured. The reliability of the questionnaire was also assessed using a test/re-test strategy with 27 participants recruited from the population under study. The reliability assessment revealed that the questionnaire was consistent as Cronbach’s Alpha was 0.80 for HIV/ADS knowledge, 0.88 for risk perception and 0.78 for attitudes towards HIV testing. The data were collected between 14th of July and 14th of October 2014. Results: 394 participants completed the questionnaires: 116 (29.4%) male and 278 (70%) female. 50.5% of the participants were aged 20 to 22 years, 34.8% were 17-19 years and 14.7% were aged between 23-25 years; about 93% of the participants were single. Only 20 (6%) participants had previously been tested for HIV. The main reasons for not being tested for HIV were: exposure to HIV was considered unlikely (48%), HIV test was not offered (36%) and unawareness of HIV testing centres (16%). On HIV/AIDS-related knowledge, the male participants scored higher than the females as the mean score for males was (M = 6.4, SD = 2.4) while for females it was (M 5.7, SD 2.5). In terms of risk perception, female participants appeared to have lower levels of risk perception than male participants, with the mean score for males being (M 11.7, SD 2.5) and (M 10.5, SD 2.4) for females. The female participants showed slightly more positive attitudes towards HIV testing than male participants: the mean score for males was (M = 108.14, SD = 17.9) and was (M = 111.32, SD = 17.3) for females. Conclusions: The data reveal that misconceptions about HIV/AIDS in Saudi Arabia are still a challenge. Although the attitudes towards HIV testing were reasonably positive, the utilization of the HIV test was low. Thus, tailoring HIV/AIDS preventive strategies in Saudi Arabia should focus on the needs of young people and other high risk groups in the country.

Keywords: attitude toward hiv testing, hiv testing, hiv/aids related knowledge, risk perception

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Authors: Shankha Pratim Bhattacharya

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In general building repair and renovation projects are minor in nature. It requires less attention as the primary cost involvement is relatively small. Although the building repair and maintenance projects look simple, it involves much complexity during execution. Many of the present research indicate that few uncertain situations are usually linked with maintenance projects. Those may not be read properly in the planning stage of the projects, and finally, lead to time overrun. Building repair and maintenance become essential and periodical after commissioning of the building. In Institutional buildings, the regular maintenance projects also include addition –alteration, modification activities. Increase in the student admission, new departments, and sections, new laboratories and workshops, up gradation of existing laboratories are very common in the institutional buildings in the developing nations like India. The project becomes very critical because it undergoes space problem, architectural design issues, structural modification, etc. One of the prime factors in the institutional building maintenance and modification project is the time constraint. Mostly it required being executed a specific non-work time period. The present research considered only the institutional buildings of the Eastern part of India to analyse the repair and maintenance project delay. A general survey was conducted among the technical institutes to find the causes and corresponding nature of construction delay factors. Five technical institutes are considered in the present study with repair, renovation, modification and extension type of projects. Construction delay factors are categorically subdivided into four groups namely, material, manpower (works), Contract and Site. The survey data are collected for the nature of delay responsible for a specific project and the absolute amount of delay through proposed and actual duration of work. In the first stage of the paper, a relative importance index (RII) is proposed for the delay factors. The occurrence of the delay factors is also judged by its frequency-severity nature. Finally, the delay factors are then rated and linked with the type of work. In the second stage, a regression analysis is executed to establish an empirical relationship between the actual time of a project and the percentage of delay. It also indicates the impact of the factors for delay responsibility. Ultimately, the present paper makes an effort to identify the critical delay factors for the repair and renovation type project in the Eastern Indian Institutional building.

Keywords: delay factor, institutional building, maintenance, relative importance index, regression analysis, repair

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Authors: Sarwat un Nisa

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One of the remarkable gifts that a human being is blessed with is the ability to speak using a combination of sounds. Different combinations of sounds combine to form a word which in turn make a sentence and therefore give birth to a language. A person can either be a monolingual, i.e., can speak one language or bilingual, i.e., can speak more than one language. Whether a person speaks one language or multiple languages or in whatever language a person speaks, the main aim is to communicate, express ideas, feelings or thoughts. Sometimes the choice of a language is deliberate and sometimes it is a habitual act. The language which is used to put our ideas across speaks many things about our cultural, linguistic and ethnic identities. It can never be claimed that bilinguals are better than monolinguals in terms of linguistic skills, bilinguals or multilinguals have more than one language at their disposal. Therefore, how effectively two languages are used by the same person keeps linguists always intrigued. The most prominent and common features found in the speech of bilingual speakers are code switching and code mixing. The aim of the present paper is to explore these features among the adolescent speakers of Kashmir. The reason for studying the linguistics behavior of adolescents is the age when a person is neither an adult nor a child. They want to drift away from the norms and make a new norm for themselves. Therefore, how their linguistics skills are influenced by their age is of great interest because it can set the trend for the future generation. Kashmir is a multilingual society where three languages, i.e., Kashmiri, Urdu, and English are regularly used by the speakers, especially the educated ones. Kashmiri is widely used at home or mostly among adults. Urdu is the official language, and English is used in schools and for most of the written official correspondences. Thus, it is not uncommon to find these three languages coming in contact with each other quite frequently. The language contact results in the code switching and code mixing. In this paper different aspects of code switching and code mixing are discussed. Research Method: The data were collected from the different districts of Kashmir. The informants did not have prior knowledge of the survey. The situation was spontaneous and natural. The topics were introduced by the interviewer to the group of informants which comprised of three participants. They were asked to discuss the topic, most of the times without any intervention of the interviewer. Along with conversations, the informants also filled in written questionnaires comprising sociolinguistic questions. Questionnaires were analysed to get an idea about the sociolinguistic attitude of the informants. Percentage, frequency, and average were used as statistical tools to analyse the data. Conclusions were drawn taking into consideration of interpretations of both speech samples and questionnaires.

Keywords: code mixing, code switching, Kashmir, bilingualism

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Authors: Vladimir A. Rozov

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Comparative studies of religion and ritual could contribute better understanding of human culture universalities. Belief in supernatural beings seems to be a common feature of the religion. A significant part of the Islamic concepts that concern supernatural beings is based on a tradition based on the Hadiths. They reflect, among other things, his ideas about a proper way to interact with supernatural beings. These ideas to a large extent follow from the pre-Islamic religious experience of the Arabs and had been reflected in a number of ritual actions. Some of those beliefs concern a particular function of clothing. For example, it is known that Muhammad was wrapped in clothes during the revelation of the Quran. The same thing was performed by pre-Islamic soothsayers (kāhin) and by rival opponents of Muhammad during their trances. Muhammad also turned the clothes inside out during religious rituals (prayer for rain). Besides these specific ways of clothing which prove the external similarity of Muhammad with the soothsayers and other people who claimed the connection with supernatural forces, the pre-Islamic soothsayers had another characteristic feature which is physical flaws. In this regard, it is worth to note Muhammad's so-called "Seal the Prophecy" (h̠ ātam an- nubūwwa) -protrusion or outgrowth on his back. Another interesting feature of Muhammad's behavior was his attitude to eating onion and garlic. In particular, the Prophet didn`t eat them and forbade people who had tasted these vegetables to enter mosques, until the smell ceases to be felt. The reason for this ban on eating onion and garlic is caused by a belief that the smell of these products prevents communication with otherworldly forces. The materials of the Hadith also suggest that Muhammad shared faith in the apotropical properties of water. Both of these ideas have parallels in other cultures of the world. Muhammad's actions supposed to provide an interaction with the supernatural beings are not accidental. They have parallels in the culture of pre-Islamic Arabia as well as in many past and present world cultures. The latter fact can be explained by the similarity of the universal human beliefs in supernatural beings and how they should be interacted with. Later a number of similar ideas shared by the Prophet Muhammad was legitimized by the Islamic tradition and formed the basis of popular Islamic rituals. Thus, these parallels emphasize the commonality of human notions of supernatural beings and also demonstrate the significance of the pre-Islamic cultural context in analyzing the genesis of Islamic religious beliefs.

Keywords: hadith, Prophet Muhammad, ritual, supernatural beings

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Authors: Ewa Toloczko

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Studies show that developing writing skills throughout years of formal foreign language instruction does not necessarily result in rewarding accomplishments among learners, nor an affirmative attitude they build towards written assignments. What causes this apparently wide-spread bias to writing might be a diminished relevance students attach to it, as opposed to the other productive skill — speaking, insufficient resources available for them to succeed, or the ways writing is approached by instructors, that is inapt teaching techniques that discourage rather that inflame learners’ engagement. The assumption underlying this presentation is that psychological and psycholinguistic factors constitute a key dimension of every writing process, and hence should be seriously considered in both material design and lesson planning. The author intends to demonstrate research in which writing tasks were conceived of as attitudinal rather than technical operations, and consequently turned into meaningful and socially-oriented incidents that students could relate to and have an active hand in. The instrument employed to achieve this purpose and to make writing even more interactive was the format of a project, a carefully devised series of tasks, which involved students as human beings, not only language learners. The projects rested upon the premise that the presence of peers and the teacher in class could be taken advantage of in a supportive rather than evaluative mode. In fact, the research showed that collaborative work and constant meaning negotiation reinforced not only bonds between learners, but also the language form and structure of the output. Accordingly, the role of the teacher shifted from the assessor to problem barometer, always ready to accept the slightest improvements in students’ language performance. This way, written verbal communication, which usually aims to merely manifest accuracy and coherent content for assessment, became part of the enterprise meant to emphasise its social aspect — the writer in real-life setting. The samples of projects show the spectrum of possibilities teachers have when exploring the domain of writing within school curriculum. The ideas are easy to modify and adjust to all proficiency levels and ages. Initially, however, they were meant to suit teenage and young adult learners of English as a foreign language in both European and Asian contexts.

Keywords: projects, psycholinguistic/ psychological dimension of writing, writing as a social enterprise, writing skills, written assignments

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Authors: Emma Avoyan

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The safety standards for flood protection in the Netherlands have been revised recently. It is expected that all major flood-protection structures will have to be reinforced to meet the new standards. The Dutch Flood Protection Programme aims at accomplishing this task through innovative integrated projects such as construction of multi-functional flood defenses. In these projects, flood safety purposes will be combined with spatial planning, nature development, emergency management or other sectoral objectives. Therefore, implementation of dike reinforcement projects requires early involvement and collaboration between public and private sectors, different governmental actors and agencies. The development and implementation of such integrated projects has been an issue in Dutch flood risk management since long. Therefore, this article analyses how cross-sector collaboration within flood risk governance in the Netherlands has evolved over time, and how this development can be explained. The integrative framework for collaborative governance is applied as an analytical tool to map external factors framing possibilities as well as constraints for cross-sector collaboration in Dutch flood risk domain. Supported by an extensive document and literature analysis, the paper offers insights on how the system context and different drivers changing over time either promoted or hindered cross-sector collaboration between flood protection sector, urban development, nature conservation or any other sector involved in flood risk governance. The system context refers to the multi-layered and interrelated suite of conditions that influence the formation and performance of complex governance systems, such as collaborative governance regimes, whereas the drivers initiate and enable the overall process of collaboration. In addition, by applying a method of process tracing we identify a causal and chronological chain of events shaping cross-sectoral interaction in Dutch flood risk management. Our results indicate that in order to evaluate the performance of complex governance systems, it is important to firstly study the system context that shapes it. Clear understanding of the system conditions and drivers for collaboration gives insight into the possibilities of and constraints for effective performance of complex governance systems. The performance of the governance system is affected by the system conditions, while at the same time the governance system can also change the system conditions. Our results show that the sequence of changes within the system conditions and drivers over time affect how cross-sector interaction in Dutch flood risk governance system happens now. Moreover, we have traced the potential of this governance system to shape and change the system context.

Keywords: collaborative governance, cross-sector interaction, flood risk management, the Netherlands

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Authors: Eszter J. Tóth, Alexandra Hoffmann, Csaba Vágvölgyi, Tamás Papp

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Members of the genera Curvularia and Bipolaris are closely related melanin producing filamentous fungi; both of them have the teleomorph states in genus Cochliobolus. While Bipolaris species infect only plants and may cause serious agriculture damages, some Curvularia species was recovered from opportunistic human infections. The human pathogenic species typically cause phaeohyphomycoses, i.e. mould infections caused by melanised fungi, which can manifest as invasive mycoses with frequent involvement of the central nervous system in immunocompromised patients or as local infections (e.g. keratitis, sinusitis, and cutaneous lesions) in immunocompetent people. Although their plant-fungal interactions have been intensively studied, there is only little information available about the human pathogenic feature of these fungi. The aim of this study was to investigate the neutrophil granulocytes’ response to hyphal forms of Curvularia and Bipolaris in comparison with the response to Aspergillus. In the present study Curvularia lunata SZMC 23759 and Aspergillus fumigatus SZMC 23245 both isolated from human eye infection, and Bipolaris zeicola BRIP 19582b isolated from plant leaf were examined. Neutrophils were isolated from heparinised venous blood of healthy donors with dextran sedimentation followed by centrifugation over Ficoll and hypotonic lysis of erythrocytes. Viability and purity of the cells were checked with trypan blue and Wright staining, respectively. Infection of neutrophils was carried out with germinated conidia in a ratio of 5:1. Production of hydrogen peroxide, superoxide anion, and nitrogen monoxide was measured both intracellularly and extracellularly in response to the germinated spores with or without the supernatant and after serum treatment. ROS and NOS production of neutrophils in interaction with the three fungi were compared. It is already known that Aspergillus species induce ROS production of neutrophils only after serum treatment. Although, in case of C. lunata, serum opsonisation also induced an intensive production of reactive species, lower level of production was measured in the lack of serum as well. After interaction with the plant pathogenic B. zeicola, amount of reactive species found to be similar with and without serum treatment. The presence of germination supernatant decreased the reactive species production in case of each fungus. Interaction with Curvularia, Bipolaris and Aspergillus species induced different response of neutrophils. It seems that recognition of C. lunata and B. zeicola is independent of serum opsonisation, albeit it increases the level of the produced reactive species in response for C. lunata. The study was supported by the grant LP2016-8/2016.

Keywords: Curvularia, neutrophils, NOS, ROS, serum opsonisation

Procedia PDF Downloads 194

Authors: Abhinav Singh

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Point Of Sale (POS) malwares have been stealing the limelight this year. They have been the elemental factor in some of the biggest breaches uncovered in past couple of years. Some of them include • Target: A Retail Giant reported close to 40 million credit card data being stolen • Home Depot : A home product Retailer reported breach of close to 50 million credit records • Kmart: A US retailer recently announced breach of 800 thousand credit card details. Alone in 2014, there have been reports of over 15 major breaches of payment systems around the globe. Memory scrapping malwares infecting the point of sale devices have been the lethal weapon used in these attacks. These malwares are capable of reading the payment information from the payment device memory before they are being encrypted. Later on these malwares send the stolen details to its parent server. These malwares are capable of recording all the critical payment information like the card number, security number, owner etc. All these information are delivered in raw format. This Talk will cover the aspects of what happens after these details have been sent to the malware authors. The entire ecosystem of credit card frauds can be broadly classified into these three steps: • Purchase of raw details and dumps • Converting them to plastic cash/cards • Shop! Shop! Shop! The focus of this talk will be on the above mentioned points and how they form an organized network of cyber-crime. The first step involves buying and selling of the stolen details. The key point to emphasize are : • How is this raw information been sold in the underground market • The buyer and seller anatomy • Building your shopping cart and preferences • The importance of reputation and vouches • Customer support and replace/refunds These are some of the key points that will be discussed. But the story doesn’t end here. As of now the buyer only has the raw card information. How will this raw information be converted to plastic cash? Now comes in picture the second part of this underground economy where-in these raw details are converted into actual cards. There are well organized services running underground that can help you in converting these details into plastic cards. We will discuss about this technique in detail. At last, the final step involves shopping with the stolen cards. The cards generated with the stolen details can be easily used to swipe-and-pay for purchased goods at different retail shops. Usually these purchases are of expensive items that have good resale value. Apart from using the cards at stores, there are underground services that lets you deliver online orders to their dummy addresses. Once the package is received it will be delivered to the original buyer. These services charge based on the value of item that is being delivered. The overall underground ecosystem of credit card fraud works in a bulletproof way and it involves people working in close groups and making heavy profits. This is a brief summary of what I plan to present at the talk. I have done an extensive research and have collected good deal of material to present as samples. Some of them include: • List of underground forums • Credit card dumps • IRC chats among these groups • Personal chat with big card sellers • Inside view of these forum owners. The talk will be concluded by throwing light on how these breaches are being tracked during investigation. How are credit card breaches tracked down and what steps can financial institutions can build an incidence response over it.

Keywords: POS mawalre, credit card frauds, enterprise security, underground ecosystem

Procedia PDF Downloads 436

Authors: A. Gazdzinska, P. Jagielski, E. Kaniewska, S. P. Gazdzinski, M. Wylezol

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Background: In the multi-factor etiology of obesity, an increasing degree of importance is attributed to behavioral factors. Lifestyle and health-oriented behaviors heavily influence the treatment of multiple diseases, including obesity. However, only a few studies evaluated health-related behaviors exhibited by patients qualified for bariatric surgery. None of them was performed in Polish population. Aim: Assessment of health behaviors of obese patients according to the degree of mood disorders. Method: The study involved 93 patients (66 females) who were qualified for bariatric surgery in the Department of Surgery of the Military Institute of Aviation Medicine in Warsaw. Diagnostic instrument was the Juczynski’s Inventory of Health Behavior (HBI), which evaluates health behavior in four categories, i.e. proper nutrition habits (PNH), preventive behavior (PH), health practices (HP) and positive mental attitude (PMA). The average HBI falls in the range between 24 and 120 points, for each category of health behaviors fall between 1 and 5 (higher score means higher severity declared healthy behaviors). The depressive symptoms in patients were assessed with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). All analyses were conducted using STATISTICA 12. Results: The average age was 44.2 ± 11.5 years, mean BMI was 44.3 ± 10.5 kg/m2 and 46.8 ± 7.6 kg/m2, in females and males respectively. According to BDI, 32% patients had mild level of depression, 10% moderate and 14% severe depression. BDI scores were not different between females and males. Low results with regard to the health behaviors declared were obtained by 35.5 % of patients, medium by 44.0%, while high ones by only 20.5%. On average, patients gained 3.28 points in PNH, 3.37 points in PH, 3.29 points in HP, while 3.42 in the PMA category, showing average intensity of these behaviors. These health behaviors were practiced significantly more often by women (p = 0.04). The average HBI was 80.2; with average score of 81.5 for females and 76.6 for males, respectively (p = 0.03). Women were better in the PNH category (p = 0.02). A positive correlation was found between age and all categories of health behaviors, in particular PNH (R = 0.38; p = 0.001), PH (R = 0.26; p = 0.01), HP (R = 0.27; p = 0.01) and PMA (R = 0.24; p = 0.02), independent of gender. The severity of depression had a significant impact only on the behaviors associated with proper eating habits, which saw a negative correlation between BDI scores and the PNH (R = -0.21; p = 0.04). Conclusions: Majority of morbidly obese patients qualified for bariatric surgery obtained low to average scores in health behavior questionnaire. However, these results are similar in comparison with the Polish adult population. In accordance to these results, it seems that healthy behaviors, among them eating behaviors, do not appear to be a cause of obesity epidemic or they might be acquired when the disease is already underway. Female gender and age had a positive effect, and depression had a negative effect on the level of health behaviors among patients qualified for bariatric surgery.

Keywords: depression, habits, health behaviours, obesity

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Authors: Fouzia Arif, Arif S. Mohammad, Hifsa Altaf, Lubna Raees

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Introduction: The term "disability", refers to any condition that impedes the completion of daily tasks using traditional methods. In developing countries like Pakistan, disable population is usually excluded from the mainstream. In squatter settlements the situation is more critical. Sultanabad is one of the squatter settlements of Karachi. Purpose of case study is to improve the health of disabled children’s, and create awareness among the parents and community. Through a household visit, Shiraz, a young disabled boy of 15.5 years old was identified. Her mother articulated that her son was living normally and happily with his parents two years back. When he was 13 years old and student of class 8th, both his legs were traumatized in a Railway Train Accident while playing cricket. He got both femoral shaft fractured severely. He was taken to Jinnah Post Graduate Medical Centre (JPMC) where his left leg was amputated at above knee level and right leg was opened & fixed by reduction internally, luckily bone healed moderately with the passage of time. Methods: In Squatter settlements of Karachi Sultanabad, a survey was conducted in two sectors. Disability screening questionnaire was developed, collaboration with community through household visits, outreach sessions 23cases of disabled were identified who were socialized through sports, Musical program and get-together was organized with stockholder for creating awareness among community and parent’s. Collaboration was established with different NGOs, Government, stakeholders and community support for establishment of Physiotherapy Center. During home visit it was identified that Shiraz was on bed since last 1 year, his family could not afforded cost of physiotherapist and medical consultation due to poverty. Parents counseling was done mentioning that Shiraz needed to take treatment. After motivation his parents agreed for treatment. He was consulted by an orthopedic surgeon in AKUH, Who referred to DMC University of Health Science for rehabilitation service. There he was assessed and referred for Community Based Physiotherapy Centre Sultanabad. Physiotherapist visited home along with Coordinator for Special children and assessed him regularly, planned Physiotherapy treatment for abdominal, high muscles strutting exercise foot muscles strengthening exercise, knee mobilization weight bearing from partial to full weight gradually, also strengthen exercise were given for residual limb as the boy was dependent on it. He was also provided by an artificial leg and training was done. Result: Shiraz is now fully mobile, he can walk independently even out of home, functional ability progress improved and dependency factors reduced. It was difficult but not impossible. We all have sympathy but if we have empathy then we can rehabilitate the community in a better way. His parents are very happy and also the community is surprised to see him in such better condition. Conclusion: Combined efforts of physiotherapist, Coordinator of special children, community and parents made a drastic change in Shiraz’s case by continuously motivating him for better outcome. He is going to school regularly without support. Since he belongs to a poor family he faces financial constraints for education and clinical follow ups regularly.

Keywords: femoral shaft fracture, trauma, orthopedic surgeon, physiotherapy treatment

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Authors: Shau-Ping Shiu, Shu-Ling Lin

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Pregnancy lead a process of changing in the endocrine system. Either pregnancy itself or the surrounding affect such as the attitude of family to the pregnant lady can bring lots of stress. Sever stress may lead pregnant women display serious mental problem such as mood swings, impulsivity, and abnormal behavior. A method of self management of stress(SMS) has been proved that help patient of cancer in release their stress. This study were going to use SMS to help pregnant women. Methods: In this study, 42 ladies in the first to third months of pregnancy process applied to join SMS of program have divided into 21 participants in both control and experimental group by draw. 24 sessions of Yoga program were conducted once a week for 6 months for experimental group. Verbatim used to gather more feedbacks from the interview followed by each Yoga sessions. Brief symptom Rating scale also conducted pre and post experiment for 42 participations. Results: Overall score of Brief Symptom Rating Scale reduced 17.82 points and suicide drop 9 points in experimental group, compared to the control group increasing 10.24 point of overall score and suicide add 7 points. Feedback from interviews showed participations improved in emotion, physical health and stress management. They indicated having more positive emotion daily, having better gastrointestinal peristalsis movement, releasing back tention, well weight control, reducing stress and changing the quality of interpersonal relationships. Conclusion: SMS of Yoga program in this study included four key training directions which were stimulation, relaxation, awareness and pranayama lead a great improvment of stress management for pregnant lady. Throughout this Yoga program, women learned to ignite eustress, remove distress, create calmness and breath slows down. As the result, Yoga program has helped women in experiment group lower their tension, and bring the extra benifits in emotion and relationships. It support women to overcome their pregnancy. Suggestion: An unexpected result of this study showed all participants had no morning sickness since they engaged in SMS program, and no one absent from course due to the benefits of it. We strongly suggest that SMS of Yoga program can be a add of medication for women in pregnancy, however, the position of Forward in the SMS sequence has been point out pressing participant’s stomach, which can be replace to Bridge position to comfort participants.

Keywords: self-management of stress(SMS), yoga program, pregnant women, early pregnancy

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Authors: Xavier McCreanor, Rowena Naidoo, Verusia Chetty

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Background: The growing trend of children with disabilities being excluded from physical education classes due to a lack of inclusive education training for educators is concerning. This poses a significant health risk to disabled children worldwide, including those attending mainstream schools in South Africa. Unfortunately, disabled children often feel left out and uncomfortable in physical education classes. The current public school system faces challenges in providing quality physical education to disabled children, as classes need to be tailored to their specific needs. Although studies have pointed to the need for training, there is limited understanding of the teaching methods and curricula required for the inclusive education of children with disabilities. Objective: Given the lack of practical guidance, teaching methods, and resources, a scoping review was conducted to map and summarise the existing literature on teaching physical education to children with disabilities. The review aimed to identify the information regarding curricula used to teach children with disabilities, elaborate on the teaching methodologies, and report on the findings of relevant studies. Methods: The researchers searched the literature in the following electronic databases: Google Scholar; EBSCOhost; the Cochrane Library; PubMed; and Science Direct. The research team also conducted a reference list search to ensure that all relevant articles were included in the study. The researchers followed an initial screening process and two more screening levels to extract the data collaboratively, organize it into themes and sub-themes, summarise them, and report the results in a descriptive and narrative synthesis. Results and Conclusion: A scoping review of the past decade’s research on inclusive physical education for students with disabilities revealed persistent exclusion and insufficient involvement. The challenges are due to inaccessible facilities and negative attitudes. To address these obstacles, structural changes, inclusive policies, accessible facilities, and comprehensive training for physical education instructors are crucial. However, challenges such as inadequate policies and guidelines, financial limitations, and a shortage of specialists and resources hinder the implementation of inclusive physical education. Overcoming these challenges requires a collaborative effort. Creating a supportive environment, providing customized activities, and adopting effective teaching methods are essential to promote inclusivity and enhance the learning experiences of students with disabilities.

Keywords: adapted physical activity, disability, physical education, schools

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Authors: Ajay Ivan

Abstract:

This paper focuses on the cultural politics of health-promotional and disease-preventive pedagogic practices in the context of the national tobacco control programme in India. Tobacco consumption is typically problematised as a paradox: tobacco poses objective health risks such as cancer and heart disease, but its production, sale and export contribute significantly to state revenue. A blanket ban on tobacco products, therefore, is infeasible though desirable. Instead, initiatives against tobacco use have prioritised awareness creation and behaviour change to reduce its demand. This paper argues that public health communication is not, as commonly assumed, an apolitical and neutral transmission of disease-preventive information. Drawing on Michel Foucault’s concept of governmentality, it examines such campaigns as techniques of disciplining people rather than coercing them to give up tobacco use, which would be both impractical and counter-productive. At the level of the population, these programmes constitute a security mechanism that reduces risks without eliminating them, so as to ensure an optimal level of public health without hampering the economy. Anti-tobacco pedagogy thus aligns with a contemporary paradigm of health that emphasises risk-assessment and lifestyle management as tools of governance, using pedagogic techniques to teach people how to be healthy. The paper analyses the pictorial health warnings on tobacco packets and anti-tobacco advertisements in movie theatres mandated by the state, along with awareness-creation messages circulated by anti-tobacco advocacy groups in India, to show how they discursively construct tobacco and its consumption as a health risk. Smoking is resignified from a pleasurable and sociable practice to a deadly addiction that jeopardises the health of those who smoke and those who passively inhale the smoke. While disseminating information about the health risks of tobacco, these initiatives employ emotional and affective techniques of persuasion to discipline tobacco users. They incite fear of death and of social ostracism to motivate behaviour change, complementing their appeals to reason. Tobacco is portrayed as a grave moral danger to the family and a detriment to the vitality of the nation, such that using it contradicts one’s duties as a parent or citizen. Awareness programmes reproduce prevailing societal assumptions about health and disease, normalcy and deviance, and proper and improper conduct. Pedagogy thus functions as an apparatus of public health governance, recruiting subjects as volunteers in their own regulation and aligning their personal goals and aspirations to the objectives of tobacco control. The paper links this calculated management of subjectivity and the self-responsibilisation of the pedagogic subject to a distinct mode of neoliberal civic governance in contemporary India. Health features prominently in this mode of governance that serves the biopolitical obligation of the state as laid down in Article 39 of the Constitution, which includes a duty to ensure the health of its citizens. Insofar as the health of individuals is concerned, the problem is how to balance this duty of the state with the fundamental right of the citizen to choose how to live. Public health pedagogy, by directing the citizen’s ‘free’ choice without unduly infringing upon it, offers a tactical solution.

Keywords: public health communication, pedagogic power, tobacco control, neoliberal governance

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Authors: Susumu Fukita, Hiromi Kawasaki, Satoko Yamasaki, Kotomi Yamashita, Tomoko Iki

Abstract:

The increase in the number of workers with mental health problems has become an issue. Many workers work in small- and medium-sized enterprises, which often support local employment and economy, especially in underpopulated mountainous areas. It is important for managers to take mental health measures for employees since there is no budget to hire health staff in small- and medium-sized enterprises. It is necessary to understand the manager's attitude toward the mental health of employees and to publicly support the manager in promoting mental health measures for employees. The purpose of this study was to study the awareness of managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises regarding the mental health of employees and to consider support for managers to take measures for the mental health of employees. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises in underpopulated mountainous areas in November 2019. Managers were asked about their awareness of the mental health of their employees. Qualitative descriptive analysis was used, and subcategories and categories were extracted. Four categories emerged. Regarding the mental health of employees, the managers acknowledged that if the appearance and behavior of the employees do not interfere with their lives, the manager judges that the employees’ mental health is normal. It was also found that the managers acknowledged that there is a comfortable working environment due to the characteristics of the underpopulated mountainous area. On the other hand, the managers acknowledged that employees are dissatisfied with salaries and management systems. In addition, it was found the manager acknowledged that some employees retire due to mental health problems. Although managers recognized that employees may be dissatisfied with salaries, they also recognized that there was a comfortable working environment due to the characteristics of the areas, with good interpersonal relationships. Economic challenges are difficult to solve in underpopulated mountainous areas. It is useful to consider measures that take advantage of the characteristics of the areas where it is easy to work because of good relations with each other, for example, to create a family-like workplace culture where managers and employees can engage in daily conversation. The managers judged that the employees were in good health if there was no interference with their lives. However, it is too late to take measures at the stage when it becomes an obstacle to life. Therefore, it is necessary to provide training for managers to learn observation techniques by which they quickly notice changes in the situation of employees and give appropriate responses; and to set up a contact point for managers to consult. Local governments should actively provide public support such as training for managers and establishing consultation desks to maintain valuable employment and local economics in underpopulated mountainous areas.

Keywords: employer, mental health, small- and medium- sized enterprises, underpopulated areas

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Authors: Arshad Hussain

Abstract:

Background: Sukh Initiative is a multi-donor funded, family planning and reproductive health project, primed by Aman Healthcare Services; implemented through a consortium of local and international organizations, in a selected one million underserved peri-urban population of Karachi, Sindh; which aims at increasing modern contraceptive prevalence rate by 15 percentage point. Objective: To empower women to access contraception by increasing knowledge, improving quality of services and expanding the basket of choices; contributing to the goals of FP2020. Methods: A five years project has a multi-pronged approach with door to door services by LHWs and CHWs in an LHWs covered population and provision of quality FP/RH services both at public and private health care facilities. The project engages youth (12-16 years) both with community and at secondary schools to mentor them for responsible adulthood with life skilled base initiative. A 24/7 availability of youth and FP helpline service provides counselling, referrals in addition with a follow-up mechanism. Results: 131,810 MWRAs were reached by 191 community health workers through 29,693 of community support group meetings and 166,775 house hold visits. These MWRAs were counselled on FP related myths and misconception and referred to 216 providers trained for quality family planning services and maintaining average 64% quality scores in 43 public health and 35 private facilities in the project area. Of those referred 26% MWRAs opted modern contraception with 17.56% in LARCs and 41% PPFP as compared to baseline. Aman TeleHealth is linked with 24/7 counselling, referrals and post services follow-ups to clients, showing 14% proportion of FP call volume. Sukh has a unique role in engaging all partners on youth SRHR issues through family life education sessions, 30 higher sec. schools in Sukh area have been provided LSBE to 16,000 students (aged 15-17), and in community approximately 10, 496 girls and boys have received SRHR information. Conclusion: Through individual counselling, access to quality family planning services and involvement of stakeholders, Suk created an enabling environment to rapid increase in family planning in the project intervention area.

Keywords: family planning and reproductive health, married women with reproductive age, urban squatter, Pakistan

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Authors: Jonathan Turner, Julie Doyle, Laura O’Philbin, Dympna O’Sullivan

Abstract:

People living with dementia should be at the centre of decision-making regarding goals for daily living. These goals include basic activities (dressing, hygiene, and mobility), advanced activities (finances, transportation, and shopping), and meaningful activities that promote well-being (pastimes and intellectual pursuits). However, there is limited involvement of people living with dementia in the design of technology to support their goals. A project is described that is co-designing intelligent computer-based support for, and with, people affected by dementia and their carers. The technology will support self-management, empower participation in shared decision-making with carers and help people living with dementia remain healthy and independent in their homes for longer. It includes information from the patient’s care plan, which documents medications, contacts, and the patient's wishes on end-of-life care. Importantly for this work, the plan can outline activities that should be maintained or worked towards, such as exercise or social contact. The authors discuss how to integrate care goal information from such a care plan with data collected from passive sensors in the patient’s home in order to deliver individualized planning and interventions for persons with dementia. A number of scientific challenges are addressed: First, to co-design with dementia patients and their carers computerized support for shared decision-making about their care while allowing the patient to share the care plan. Second, to develop a new and open monitoring framework with which to configure sensor technologies to collect data about whether goals and actions specified for a person in their care plan are being achieved. This is developed top-down by associating care quality types and metrics elicited from the co-design activities with types of data that can be collected within the home, from passive and active sensors, and from the patient’s feedback collected through a simple co-designed interface. These activities and data will be mapped to appropriate sensors and technological infrastructure with which to collect the data. Third, the application of machine learning models to analyze data collected via the sensing devices in order to investigate whether and to what extent activities outlined via the care plan are being achieved. The models will capture longitudinal data to track disease progression over time; as the disease progresses and captured data show that activities outlined in the care plan are not being achieved, the care plan may recommend alternative activities. Disease progression may also require care changes, and a data-driven approach can capture changes in a condition more quickly and allow care plans to evolve and be updated.

Keywords: care goals, decision-making, dementia, self-care, sensors

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