Experimental Evaluation of a Checklist-Based Inspection Technique to Verify the Compliance of Software Systems with the Brazilian General Data Protection Law

Recent laws to ensure the security and protection of personal data establish new software requirements. Consequently, new technologies are needed to guarantee software quality under the perception of privacy and protection of personal data. Therefore, we created a checklist-based inspection technique (LGPDCheck) to support the identification of defects in software artifacts based on the principles established by the Brazilian General Data Protection Law (LGPD). Objective/Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of LGPDCheck for verifying privacy and data protection (PDP) in software artifacts compared to ad-hoc techniques. Method: To assess LGPDCheck and ad-hoc techniques experimentally through a quasi-experiment (two factors, five treatments). The data will be collected from IoT-based health software systems built by software engineering students from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. The data analyses will compare results from ad-hoc and LGPDCheck inspections, the participant's effectiveness and efficiency in each trial, defects' variance and standard deviation, and time spent with the reviews. The data will be screened for outliers, and normality and homoscedasticity will be verified using the Shapiro-Wilk and Levene tests. Nonparametric or parametric tests, such as the Wilcoxon or Student's t-tests, will be applied as appropriate.Comment: Registered Report accepted for presentation at 17th ACM/IEEE International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement. New Orleans, Louisiana, United State

The Effect of a Standardized Handoff Tool on Communication, Interunit Transitions, and Wait Time: A Quality Improvement Project

This project sought not only to improve the communication and interunit transitions of care between emergency department providers (EDPs) and inpatient providers (IPs) using a standardized handoff tool, but also to reduce the Emergency Room (ED) wait time for patients admitted to the community hospital. The project employed a quantitative quasi-experimental pre-test/post-test design to explore provider satisfaction with an evidence-based standardized handoff tools and wait time. Forty-eight providers completed the survey before the I-PASS implementation, and 43 providers completed the survey post I-PASS implementation. Though not statistically significant, data indicates that wait time increased for the post-implementation months of December, January, and February 2022 when compared with pre-implementation months of February, March, and April of the previous year. From the discussion with the facility quality team, the increase in weight time is mainly due to nursing staffing and vacancies rates. Significant positive differences were seen in 18 of the 19 items on the provider satisfaction survey indicating that providers were more satisfied with handoff using the I-PASS tool than prior to implementation of the standardized tool. The only exception was that the agreement for need of standardized handoff tool was not significantly different in comparing pre and post survey responses. Findings from this project support the need for a standardized handoff tool in ED. Prior to the implementation of the tool, providers described missing information, inaccurate information, and incomplete care plans in handoffs. The I-PASS tool addressed all these items and was easy to use

Translating a theory-based positive deviance approach into an applied tool: Mitigating barriers among health professionals (HPs) regarding infection prevention and control (IPC) guidelines

Background Although a wide range of intervention programs and methods have been implemented to increase health professionals’ (HPs) adherence with infection prevention and control (IPC) guidelines and decrease the incidence of healthcare associated infections (HAIs), a significant discrepancy remains between the guidelines and their implementation in practice. Objectives This study proposes an applied tool based on the integrated theoretical framework of the positive deviance (PD) approach for developing more effective interventions to mitigate this discrepancy. Methods A qualitative study guided by the PD approach based on data from two sources: (1) in-depth archival analysis of systematic review articles, and (2) integration and synthesis of findings based on an extensive empirical study we conducted, involving 250 HPs (nurses, physicians, support staff and cleaning staff) from three governmental hospitals in Israel, over 35 months (January 2017 to November 2020). Results The barriers faced by HPs were classified into four main categories: (1) individual-motivational, (2) social-cultural, (3) organizational, and (4) work environment and resource-centered. For each barrier, we constructed a set of questions based on the PD approach. For each question, we adapted and applied methodological tools (e.g., in-depth interviews, focus groups, social network maps, video clips and simulations) to help solve the problem. Conclusion Translating a theory-based approach into an applied tool that offers step-by-step actions can help researchers and practitioners adopt and implement the approach within intervention programs to mitigate barriers.Translating a theory-based positive deviance approach into an applied tool: Mitigating barriers among health professionals (HPs) regarding infection prevention and control (IPC) guidelinespublishedVersio

Advanced Access: Creating an Infrastructure for Success in Primary Care

The Humboldt Independent Practice Association (IPA) has sought to improve the health of Humboldt County through practice transformation efforts. To date, Humboldt IPA’s primary care practice, the Priority Care Center, is building a foundation toward an Advanced Access model of care with an overarching aim of effectively improving access to quality care in Humboldt County. The 10 Building Blocks of High Performing Primary Care Practices framework set the stage for the intervention and was used as a roadmap to build an infrastructure for success. Team-based care was highlighted as the project relied on having systems and processes that empower the entire care team to expedite or provide care whenever possible. Without systems in place to support and guide staff in caring for patients, providers are held responsible for the bulk of patient care. This project posed a solution to the inefficient use of health care staff in a provider-centered model. We used a mixed-methods approach to measure success; aggregate data was collected in the form of Likert style surveys and staff were surveyed informally through face-to-face interviews. While the necessary steps were taken to create a robust infrastructure for team-based care, there is still much work to do to reach the overarching goal of Advanced Access. Innovative practices have demonstrated improved access, efficiency, and overall satisfaction among staff and patients, however, restructuring primary care practices to support a team-based model can be daunting. It is imperative that misconceptions about role and scope of practice are addressed, and that systems are put in place to safely allow for more expanded roles for healthcare staff

The Dedicated Education Unit: Increasing Capacity and Confidence

Background: In the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) 2020 annual survey, nursing schools turned away 66,274 entry-level applications to baccalaureate nursing programs in the United States due to a faculty shortage and clinical placement sites (AACN, 2021). Local Problem: Hospitals need more qualified nurses to meet community needs. The need for clinical faculty and additional clinical placement sites disrupts the workforce pipeline through local nursing schools. A new approach to clinical education is needed to prepare more students for the growing complexities of independent nursing practice. Methods: Dedicated Education Unit (DEU) implementation to expand pre-licensure nursing student clinical placement. Pre-and post-intervention survey instruments assessed students\u27 and new clinical instructors\u27 perceived self-efficacy and confidence. Interventions: New clinical instructors were trained on the DEU model, emphasizing Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competencies and team processes. Following the training, students and clinical experience participated in a 14-week clinical experience in the DEU model. Results: The post-intervention survey showed increased student-perceived self-efficacy and confidence in managing clinical quality, safety, and team processes related to their experience in the DEU. Conclusion: The DEU model creates a cost-effective alternative to traditional clinical instruction

Spatial Adhocism as Practice for Conflict Politics: Theorising Urban Politics in Kolkata

This thesis critically examines how people at the urban margins of Kolkata form various kinds of political relationships with the postcolonial state to exert rights in the city. It considers these relationships as conflict politics and analyses its spatial manifestations through the notion of ‘spatial adhocism’. Spatial adhocism refers to the quasi-permanent state-political society relations for the mobilisation of resources outside legality. The thesis expands upon existing literature to provide new analytical and empirical insights into the discursive socio-spatial subjectivities of postcolonial cities. It does so, by examining how the practices of conflict politics and spatial adhocism are deployed by the postcolonial state and the political society. The thesis also contributes to the understanding of adhoc geographies which exist in postcolonial urbanism. The empirical evidence underpinning this thesis is collected from three illustrative case studies from Kolkata, namely Loomtex jute mill worker’s movement, Salt Lake anti-eviction movement and Bhangar anti-power-grid movement. Methodologically, this thesis adopts an ethnographic approach, particularly semi-structured interviews, document analysis, participant observation. In terms of comparison, this thesis utilises the experimental comparison method of analysing differential patterns of conflict politics and interconnected trajectories of spatial adhocism. The central findings of the thesis are that the relationships between the state and political society are heterogeneous and that spatial adhocism is omnipresent in postcolonial urbanism. Firstly, the thesis challenges the binary relation of dominance and resistance between the state and the political society and establishes the relation as various forms of engagements. Secondly, it shows that spatial adhocism enables political society to practice various forms of conflict politics with the state to alter hegemonic socio-spatial relations. For the postcolonial state adhoc practices limit conflict politics and help it to maintain an ambiguous relationship with people at the urban margins. This ambiguity serves a two-fold aim. It helps the state to promote capital accumulation in a contingent way, and it also promotes a selective allowance of rights for the people at the margins of the state. Overall the thesis claims that postcolonial urbanism can be theorised through an understanding of the heterogeneity of discursive political practices and their spatial manifestations

Spatial Adhocism as Practice for Conflict Politics: Theorising Urban Politics in Kolkata

This thesis critically examines how people at the urban margins of Kolkata form various kinds of political relationships with the postcolonial state to exert rights in the city. It considers these relationships as conflict politics and analyses its spatial manifestations through the notion of ‘spatial adhocism’. Spatial adhocism refers to the quasi-permanent state-political society relations for the mobilisation of resources outside legality. The thesis expands upon existing literature to provide new analytical and empirical insights into the discursive socio-spatial subjectivities of postcolonial cities. It does so, by examining how the practices of conflict politics and spatial adhocism are deployed by the postcolonial state and the political society. The thesis also contributes to the understanding of adhoc geographies which exist in postcolonial urbanism. The empirical evidence underpinning this thesis is collected from three illustrative case studies from Kolkata, namely Loomtex jute mill worker’s movement, Salt Lake anti-eviction movement and Bhangar anti-power-grid movement. Methodologically, this thesis adopts an ethnographic approach, particularly semi-structured interviews, document analysis, participant observation. In terms of comparison, this thesis utilises the experimental comparison method of analysing differential patterns of conflict politics and interconnected trajectories of spatial adhocism. The central findings of the thesis are that the relationships between the state and political society are heterogeneous and that spatial adhocism is omnipresent in postcolonial urbanism. Firstly, the thesis challenges the binary relation of dominance and resistance between the state and the political society and establishes the relation as various forms of engagements. Secondly, it shows that spatial adhocism enables political society to practice various forms of conflict politics with the state to alter hegemonic socio-spatial relations. For the postcolonial state adhoc practices limit conflict politics and help it to maintain an ambiguous relationship with people at the urban margins. This ambiguity serves a two-fold aim. It helps the state to promote capital accumulation in a contingent way, and it also promotes a selective allowance of rights for the people at the margins of the state. Overall the thesis claims that postcolonial urbanism can be theorised through an understanding of the heterogeneity of discursive political practices and their spatial manifestations

Relationship Between Software Development Team Structure, Ambiguity, Volatility, and Project Failure

Complex environments like the United States Air Force\u27s advanced weapon systems are highly reliant on externally developed software, which is often delivered late, over budget, and with fewer benefits than expected. Grounded in Galbraith\u27s organizational information processing theory, the purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship between software development team structure, ambiguity, volatility and software project failure. Participants included 23 members of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association in the southeastern United States who completed 4 project management surveys. Results of multiple regression analysis indicated the model as a whole was able to predict software project failure, F(3,19) = 10.838, p \u3c .001, R2 = 0.631. Software development team structure was the only statistically significant predictor, t = 2.762, p = .012. Implications for positive social change include the potential for software development company owners and military leaders to understand the factors that influence software project success and to develop strategies to enhance software development team structure