Gender Diversity in the Norwegian Energy Sector and its Development : A descriptive and explanatory study

Using Norwegian register data accessed through microdata.no, this thesis seeks to provide a description of gender diversity in the Norwegian energy sector, and renewables specifically. Existing research on gender diversity in the energy sectors over the world draws a picture of a male-dominated sector with a persistent gender wage gap. The thesis is divided into two main parts trying to examine the Norwegian energy sector. The first part (chapter 3) is a descriptive analysis on how female participation has evolved from 2000-2019, along with the evolution of several other key characteristics. The second part (chapter 4) attempts to assess the gender wage gap in the Norwegian energy sector using a Blinder-Oaxaca (B-O) decomposition method for the years 2014 and 2018. The aim here is to compare traditional energy to renewable energy and investigate differences in the drivers of the gender wage gap. The findings from the descriptive analysis show that there is little evidence of changes in the percentage of women in the energy workforce across almost all sub-sectors. For renewable energy sources, there is even a decline from 25% to 23% from 2010 to 2019. Regarding the gender wage gap investigation, the findings for the traditional and renewable energy sector are similar. Across all conducted regressions and samples, the unexplained part of the gap is large, meaning only a small part of the gap can be attributed to the observed variables such as education, experience, or occupations. In the B-O decomposition literature, the unexplained gap can often be (partly) attributed to discrimination. We argue that not all of the unexplained gap we find is due to discrimination in the energy sector directly, but could stem from discrimination elsewhere, such as education. There is no apparent pattern as to which of traditional and renewable energy that exhibits the smallest gender wage gap.nhhma

The causes of bacterial bloodstream infections and antimicrobial resistance patterns in children attending a secondary care hospital in Bhaktapur, Nepal, 2017–2022: a retrospective study

Objectives: Data on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) among children in Nepal are limited. Here we have characterized the causes of bacterial bloodstream infections (BSIs), antimicrobial resistance patterns and the mechanisms of β-lactamase production in Enterobacterales among children attending outpatient and inpatient departments of a secondary care paediatric hospital in Nepal. Methods: We retrospectively collected demographic and clinical data of culture-proven bacterial BSIs between January 2017 and December 2022 among children <18 years attending a 50-bedded paediatric hospital. Stored isolates were subcultured for antimicrobial susceptibility testing against commonly used antimicrobials. Enterobacterales displaying non-susceptibility to β-lactams were phenotypically and genotypically investigated for ESBLs, plasmid-mediated AmpC (pAmpC) β-lactamases and carbapenemases. Results: A total of 377 significant bacteria were isolated from 27 366 blood cultures. Among 91 neonates with a BSI, Klebsiella pneumoniae (n = 39, 42.4%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n = 15, 16.3%) and Acinetobacter baumannii complex (n = 13, 14.1%) were most common. In the non-neonates, 275/285 (96.5%) infections were community-acquired including Staphylococcus aureus (n = 89, 32.4%), Salmonella Typhi (n = 54, 19.6%) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (n = 32, 11.6%). Among the 98 S. aureus, 29 (29.6%) were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. K. pneumoniae and Escherichia coli demonstrated non-susceptibility to extended-spectrum cephalosporins and carbapenems in both community and hospital-acquired cases. For E. coli and K. pneumoniae, blaCTX-M (45/46), blaEBC (7/10) and blaOXA-48 (5/6) were common among their respective groups. Conclusions: We determined significant levels of AMR among children attending a secondary care paediatric hospital with BSI in Nepal. Nationwide surveillance and implementation of antimicrobial stewardship policies are needed to combat the challenge imposed by AMR

Multimorbidity in Diabetic Patients Admitted to a Tertiary Care Center: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Multimorbidity is defined as the co-occurrence of two or more chronic conditions in the same individual. Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus rarely occurs without coexisting diseases. With an increasing elder population and longevity, elder adults have a higher prevalence of chronic morbidity, thus increasing the chances of experiencing more than one non-communicable chronic condition, where the impact of multimorbidity is greater than the cumulative effect of the single condition. The study aimed to find out the prevalence of multimorbidity in diabetic patients admitted to a tertiary care centre. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted utilising hospital records of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus admitted to the Department of Medicine from 1 April 2021 to 1 April 2022. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Review Committee of the same institute (Reference number: 12082022/07). The diagnosed cases of type 2 diabetic patients aged more than 18 years and confirmed with serum glucose levels were included in the study. Convenience sampling was used. Point estimate and 95% Confidence Interval were calculated. Results: Out of the 107 diabetic patients, multimorbidity was present in 75 patients (70.10%) (61.42-78.77, 95% Confidence Interval). Conclusions: The prevalence of multimorbidity is higher than the similar studies done in similar settings

Impact of Airbnb on Hotel Industry in Helsinki

The sharing economy has opened doors to many business ideas within the hospitality industry but at the same time disrupted longstanding industries. Airbnb is one of the most famous company part of the sharing economy that has created a reliable marketplace for people to advertise, find and book an interesting and unique accommodations all over the world. The fast growth of this sector and Airbnb is due to technological advancements that provide an easy access to the tourism industry all over the world. It has put many questions in many hotel owners’ mind, who consider if Airbnb will be a threat, and if it has affected or will affect their business in the future. The aim of this research is to find out if Airbnb has affected the performance of hotels in Helsinki. The target groups are from hostels to five star hotels. The study will attempt to find out if Airbnb’s presence has caused any impact on hotels in the Helsinki region, and if there is any competition between hotels and Airbnb. If so; has it influenced the hotel occupancy rate, price and revenue? A qualitative research method is used to conduct this research. Semi-structured interviews with 6 hotel managers were conducted in order to find out the performance of their respective hotels, against the background of Airbnb’s significant growth in Helsinki. The results indicate that hotel performance in Helsinki has continued to grow while more and more hosts were renting out their places on Airbnb. Hotels have been very successful at selling their rooms with overnight stays in hotels showing an increase along with the occupancy rates and the RevPAR. All in all, Airbnb is not considered a threat to the hotel business in Helsinki as it does not have a negative effect on the performance of hotels. It is not even considered a competitor by hoteliers

Characterization of Transferrable Mechanisms of Quinolone Resistance (TMQR) among Quinolone-resistant Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae causing Urinary Tract Infection in Nepalese Children

Background: Transferrable mechanisms of quinolone resistance (TMQR) can lead to fluoroquinolone non-susceptibility in addition to chromosomal mechanisms. Some evidence suggests that fluoroquinolone resistance is increasing among the pediatric population. We sought to determine the occurrence of TMQR genes among quinolone-resistant E. coli and K. pneumoniae causing urinary tract infections among Nepalese outpatient children (< 18 years) and identify molecular characteristics of TMQR-harboring isolates. Methods: We performed antimicrobial susceptibility testing, phenotypic extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) and modified carbapenem inactivation method tests, and investigated the presence of six TMQR genes (qnrA, qnrB, qnrS, aac(6’)-Ib-cr, oqxAB, qepA), three ESBL genes (blaCTX−M, blaTEM, blaSHV), and five carbapenemase genes (blaNDM, blaOXA−48, blaKPC, blaIMP, blaVIM). The quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) of gyrA and parC were sequenced for 35 TMQR-positive isolates. Results: A total of 74/147 (50.3%) isolates were TMQR positive by multiplex PCR [aac(6’)-Ib-cr in 48 (32.7%), qnrB in 23 (15.7%), qnrS in 18 (12.3%), qnrA in 1 (0.7%), and oqxAB in 1 (0.7%) isolate]. The median ciprofloxacin minimum inhibitory concentration of TMQR-positive isolates (64 µg/mL) was two-fold higher than those without TMQR (32 µg/mL) (p = 0.004). Ser-83→Leu and Asp-87→Asn in GyrA and Ser-80→Ile in ParC were the most common QRDR mutations (23 of 35). In addition, there was a statistically significant association between TMQR and two β-lactamase genes; blaCTX−M (p = 0.037) and blaTEM (p = 0.000). Conclusion: This study suggests a high prevalence of TMQR among the quinolone-resistant E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates causing urinary tract infection in children in this area of Nepal and an association with the carriage of ESBL gene. This is a challenge for the management of urinary infections in children. Comprehensive prospective surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in these common pathogens will be necessary to devise strategies to mitigate the emergence of further resistance

Perception towards vaccine effectiveness in controlling COVID-19 spread in rural and urban communities:a global survey

INTRODUCTION: Several studies exhibited varying reports of perception toward vaccine effectiveness, vaccine hesitancy, and acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines. As this fluctuated with evidence generation, this study explored the perception toward vaccine effectiveness in rural and urban communities among various countries. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted online from April to August 2021 using convenience sampling among people from different countries approved by the Asia Metropolitan University Medical Research and Ethics. We adapted the questionnaire from the World Health Organization's (WHO) survey tool and guidance on COVID-19. The logistic regression models were performed to show perception toward vaccine effectiveness. RESULTS: A total of 5,673 participants responded to the online survey. Overall, 64% of participants agreed that the vaccine effectively controlled viral spread, and 23% agreed that there was no need for vaccination if others were vaccinated. Males had 14% higher odds of believing that there was no need for vaccination. Less social media users had 39% higher odds of developing the belief that there is no need for vaccination than all other people vaccinated. CONCLUSION: People's perceptions toward vaccine acceptance have fluctuated with the information flow in various social media and the severity of COVID-19 cases. Therefore, it is important that the current scenario of peoples' perception toward vaccine acceptance and determinants affecting the acceptance are explored to promote the vaccination approach against COVID-19 prevention and transmission effectively