269 research outputs found

    Chinese male kindergarten teachers: factors affecting job satisfaction and organisational commitment

    Get PDF
    In early childhood education there is an increasing focus on the issues related to male kindergarten teachers. The shortage of men entering the teaching profession, the high turnover rate, and social marginalisation pose a challenge to the recruitment and retention of male kindergarten teachers. Furthermore, an imbalance in the ratio of men and women in early childhood education can also have an impact on children's educational development, as male teachers are also seen to be beneficial to children's ongoing development. This quantitative study explores the factors affecting Chinese male kindergarten teachers' job satisfaction and organisational commitment. The results show that six influencing factors positively impact job satisfaction: public attitude, pay satisfaction, work pressure, interpersonal relationships, promotion and professional development, and physical work environment. Also, there is a positive relationship between job satisfaction and organisational commitment. There are implications for recruiting and retaining male kindergarten teachers, for early childhood education policymakers and training providers

    The Impact of Dietary Macronutrient Composition on Noncommunicable Diseases and Aging: A Life Course Approach

    Get PDF
    Background: Nutrition is vital for human health and is a key modifiable risk factor in the development of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), which account for 74% of global annual deaths. Aging increases disease risk, and nutritional associations vary across life stages. However, current research often focuses on individual nutrients rather than complex associations. Therefore, this thesis investigates the association of macronutrients with NCDs and aging throughout the lifespan using a multi-nutrient approach known as the Geometric Framework for Nutrition. Aims: Six studies were conducted to explore the following aims at varying stages of the life course: 1) How are macronutrients linked to NCDs? 2) Is dietary macronutrient composition associated with markers of biological aging? 3) What roles do diet quality, food groups, and factors like the microbiome play in macronutrient-NCD and aging relationships? Results: Findings from this thesis revealed a complex nonlinear relationship for macronutrients with aging (Chapters 4, 6), metabolic health (Chapters 4, 5), and disease outcomes (Chapter 7). These relationships suggest that there is no single optimal macronutrient composition for all outcomes. Notably, the microbiome was shown to play a potential effect-modifying role in how diet impacts cardiometabolic health (Chapter 8). Furthermore, the final study revealed that macronutrient composition associations with NCDs widely differ according to diet quality (Chapter 9). Conclusions: Dietary macronutrient composition is intricately linked to metabolic health, aging, and NCD risk, with variations based on diet quality, life stage, and potential modification by factors like the microbiome. The findings emphasize the need for a comprehensive and standardized approach to nutritional research that considers each of these aspects before providing dietary guidance or making public health recommendations

    Develop an ontology for pavement lifecycle management

    Get PDF

    The effects of subcutaneous Tirzepatide on obesity and overweight: a systematic review and metaā€regression analysis of randomized controlled trials

    Get PDF
    BackgroundDespite the fact that obesity and overweight are serious major health problems worldwide, fighting against them is also considered a challenging issue. Several interventional studies have evaluated the potential weight-reduction effect of Tirzepatide. In order to obtain a better viewpoint from them, this study aimed to comprehensively investigate the effects of subcutaneous Tirzepatide on obesity and overweight.MethodsScopus, PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Embase databases were searched using standard keywords to identify all controlled trials investigating the weight loss effects of Tirzepatide. Pooled weighted mean difference and 95% confidence intervals were achieved by random-effects model analysis for the best estimation of outcomes. The statistical heterogeneity and publication bias were determined using the Cochranā€™s Q test and I2 statistics and using the funnel plot and Eggerā€™s test, respectively.ResultsTwenty three treatments arm with 7062 participantsā€™ were included in this systematic review and metaā€regression analysis. The pooled findings showed that Tirzepatide vs placebo significantly reduced body weight (weighted mean difference (WMD): -11.34 kg, 95% confidence interval (CI): -12.79 to -9.88, P< 0.001), body mass index (BMI) (WMD: -3.11 kg/m2, 95% CI: -4.36 to -1.86, P< 0.001), and waist circumference (WC) (WMD: -7.24 cm, 95% CI -10.12 to -4.36, P< 0.001). These reductions were even greater, especially with higher doses and duration of Tirzepatide.ConclusionsTirzepatide medication had significant effects on weight management with the reduction of body weight, BMI, and WC. Administration of Tirzepatide can be considered a therapeutic strategy for overweight or obese people

    Treatment outcomes and medication management of tuberculosis

    Get PDF
    Tuberculosis (TB) is a bacterial infectious disease. The majority of TB patients in the Netherlands are successfully treated but in some patientsextension of treatment duration is necessary due to complications. Only in a small number of patients this treatment fails. This thesis focuses on the multifaceted medical approach to optimize the treatment of TB and improve treatment outcomes.In the first part of this thesis, we used long-term data from the national tuberculosis registry to determine the risk factors of prolonged and unsuccessful TB treatment in different patients. By identifying risk factors at an early stage, appropriate measures can be taken to reduce their impact and improve TB treatment outcomes. In the second part of this thesis, we evaluated the efficacy of a well-known antibiotic called levofloxacin. We investigated the relationship between the amount of antibiotic in the blood and the effectiveness of the treatment, and side effects by combining and analyzing data from previous studies. We also investigated in patients with a highly resistant form of TB whether they had enough of the antibiotic in their blood to kill the bacteria.Based on this research, we conclude that the amount of antibiotic in the blood differs per patient, and monitoring of this value combined with measuring the sensitivity of the bacteria to the antibiotic is necessary to adjust the dosage and thereby optimize treatment

    Applications of evidence synthesis in chemical health risk assessment

    Get PDF
    This thesis aimed to combine all available evidence within and across evidence streams, i.e. evidence synthesis, to strengthen chemical risk assessment. The evidence considered was published data of the following evidence streams: epidemiologic studies, molecular epidemiology studies, animal studies and mechanistic assays. For the purpose of evidence synthesis, advanced statistical and biological informed tools and approaches were used including meta-analysis, meta-regression, text mining, systematic reviews, systems biology, physiological based kinetic (PBK) models, and Bayesian inference. Most work performed in this thesis is on two exemplary data rich chemicals: benzene and diisocyanates. The case-studies of this thesis illustrate that human biomonitoring studies can be a valuable source of information for both enhancing exposure assessment and hazard characterization. Tooling such as text mining and network visualization tools can help to make evidence identification for hazard identification more efficient. And evidence from human (epidemiology and biomonitoring) and animal studies can also be combined together, but this does require a large number of assumptions. The chapters in this thesis demonstrate that a wide range of interdisciplinary approaches are required to be able to integrate data, for it to become optimally useful for chemical risk assessment. The methods and tooling in this thesis are mostly applied to chemicals for which a large amount of data is known. In the Discussion chapter of this thesis, suggestions are given for approaches that can be used for chemicals for which only little information is known, possibly in conjunction with the new scientific approaches described in the other Chapters of this Thesis
    • ā€¦
    corecore