Vocational education and training and employment services in Malta

This country monograph is the result of a request from the European Commission (Directorate-General for Employment and Social Affairs) in the context of the Employment Policy Reviews launched by the latter in the future member states in 1999. According to this request, the key aim of the country monographs is to provide up-to-date, detailed information and analysis on the vocational education and training systems and structures as well as on the public and private employment services in order to support the monitoring of the Joint Assessment Papers of Employment Priorities (JAP). This analysis is considered to provide a useful input enabling the future member states and the European Commission to identify the most important needs and gaps. In particular, the analysis aims at providing: (1) an instrument to assess the progress made by the countries to increase the responsiveness of their education and training systems to labour market needs; this assessment is addresses particularly the challenges and priorities related to the development of lifelong learning; (2) a tool to assess the effectiveness of the public and private employment services to assist both young and adult unemployed people and those threatened by unemployment to enter the labour market; and (3) a basis for positioning the development trends of these systems in relation to those in EU member states. The work has been conducted by a team of national, EU and ETF experts, under the responsibility of the European Training Foundation (ETF) and with the support of the Employment Training Corporation (ETC). The method of work combined the use of desk research and field visits in the capital and also in some selected regions. The final document has been prepared by the European Training Foundation and therefore, reflects primarily an ETF viewpoint. The preparation of the monographs has also benefited from a close consultation process with representatives of the national authorities. The latter were informed about this work right from the beginning of the process and they were invited to provide their opinion on the final draft. In addition, a seminar was organised on 27 September 2002 in Brussels with the aim of presenting and discussing the documents with the national authorities of the future member states as well as with the European Commission. This monograph also reflects the outcomes of this seminar and further discussions and comments from the country. The document makes use of quantitative indicators from international institutions as well as national sources. As discussed during the 27 September meeting, it should be acknowledged that in relation to indicators used in the EU, some data are still missing, while others might refer to different realities. Therefore, figures must be interpreted with caution, taking into account that statistics should be complemented by more qualitative assessments. Further analytical work will be needed to improve the picture and in particular the positioning of developments in the country towards developments in the EU.peer-reviewe

Prevalence of frailty among kidney transplant candidates and recipients in the United States: Estimates from a National Registry and Multicenter Cohort Study

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154612/1/ajt15709.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154612/2/ajt15709_am.pd

Examining guest chefs' influences on luxury restaurants' images

A guest chef's image positively influences a luxury restaurant's image; The restaurant-guest chef fit positively influences a luxury restaurant's image; The restaurant-guest chef fit moderates the relationship between a guest chef's image and a luxury restaurant's image

Effectiveness of the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine against vaccine serotype pneumococcal pneumonia in adults: A case-control test-negative design study.

BACKGROUND: Vaccination with the 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) is available in the United Kingdom to adults aged 65 years or older and those in defined clinical risk groups. We evaluated the vaccine effectiveness (VE) of PPV23 against vaccine-type pneumococcal pneumonia in a cohort of adults hospitalised with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). METHODS AND FINDINGS: Using a case-control test-negative design, a secondary analysis of data was conducted from a prospective cohort study of adults (aged ≥16 years) with CAP hospitalised at 2 university teaching hospitals in Nottingham, England, from September 2013 to August 2018. The exposure of interest was PPV23 vaccination at any time point prior to the index admission. A case was defined as PPV23 serotype-specific pneumococcal pneumonia and a control as non-PPV23 serotype pneumococcal pneumonia or nonpneumococcal pneumonia. Pneumococcal serotypes were identified from urine samples using a multiplex immunoassay or from positive blood cultures. Multivariable logistic regression was used to derive adjusted odds of case status between vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals; VE estimates were calculated as (1 - odds ratio) × 100%. Of 2,357 patients, there were 717 PPV23 cases (48% vaccinated) and 1,640 controls (54.5% vaccinated). The adjusted VE (aVE) estimate against PPV23 serotype disease was 24% (95% CI 5%-40%, p = 0.02). Estimates were similar in analyses restricted to vaccine-eligible patients (n = 1,768, aVE 23%, 95% CI 1%-40%) and patients aged ≥65 years (n = 1,407, aVE 20%, 95% CI -5% to 40%), but not in patients aged ≥75 years (n = 905, aVE 5%, 95% CI -37% to 35%). The aVE estimate in relation to PPV23/non-13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) serotype pneumonia (n = 417 cases, 43.7% vaccinated) was 29% (95% CI 6%-46%). Key limitations of this study are that, due to high vaccination rates, there was a lack of power to reject the null hypothesis of no vaccine effect, and that the study was not large enough to allow robust subgroup analysis in the older age groups. CONCLUSIONS: In the setting of an established national childhood PCV13 vaccination programme, PPV23 vaccination of clinical at-risk patient groups and adults aged ≥65 years provided moderate long-term protection against hospitalisation with PPV23 serotype pneumonia. These findings suggest that PPV23 vaccination may continue to have an important role in adult pneumococcal vaccine policy, including the possibility of revaccination of older adults

Source method biases as Implicit Personality Theory at the domain and facet levels

Objective We tested predictions about the structure and magnitude of method biases in single‐source personality trait assessments. We expected a large number of distinct biases that would parallel the observed structure of traits, at both facet and item levels. Method We analyzed multimethod ratings on the Estonian NEO Personality Inventory‐3 in a sample of 3,214 adults. By subtracting informant ratings from self‐reports, we eliminated true score variance and analyzed the size and structure of the residual method biases. We replicated analyses using data (N = 709) from the Czech Revised NEO Personality Inventory. Results The magnitude of method biases was consistent with predictions by McCrae (2018, Psychological Assessment). Factor analyses at the facet level showed a clear replication of the normative Five‐Factor Model structure in both samples. Item factor analyses within domains showed that facet‐level method biases mimicked the facet structure of the instrument. Conclusions Method biases apparently reflect implicit personality theory (IPT)—beliefs about how traits and trait indicators covary. We discuss the (collective) accuracy and possible origins of IPT. Because method biases limit the accuracy of single‐source assessments, we recommend assessments that combine information from two or more informants

Racial differences in inflammation and outcomes of aging among kidney transplant candidates

Abstract Background Inflammation is more common among African Americans (AAs), and it is associated with frailty, poor physical performance, and mortality in community-dwelling older adults. Given the elevated inflammation levels among end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients, inflammation may be associated with adverse health outcomes such as frailty, physical impairment, and poor health-related quality of life (HRQOL), and these associations may differ between AA and non-AA ESRD patients. Methods One thousand three ESRD participants were recruited at kidney transplant evaluation (4/2014–5/2017), and inflammatory markers (interleukin-6 [IL-6], tumor necrosis factor-a receptor-1 [TNFR1], C-reactive protein [CRP]) were measured. We quantified the association with frailty (Fried phenotype), physical impairment (Short Physical Performance Battery [SPPB]), and fair/poor HRQOL at evaluation using adjusted modified Poisson regression and tested whether these associations differed by race (AA vs. non-AA). Results Non-AAs had lower levels of TNFR1 (9.7 ng/ml vs 14.0 ng/ml, p  0.9) and CRP (4.7 μg/ml vs 4.9 μg/ml, p = 0.4). Non-AAs had an increased risk of frailty with elevated IL-6 (RR = 1.58, 95% CI:1.27–1.96, p < 0.001), TNFR1 (RR = 1.60, 95% CI:1.25–2.05, p < 0.001), CRP (RR = 1.41, 95% CI:1.10–1.82, p < 0.01), and inflammatory index (RR = 1.82, 95% CI:1.44–2.31, p < 0.001). The associations between elevated inflammatory markers and frailty were not present among AAs. Similar results were seen with SPPB impairment and poor/fair HRQOL. Conclusions Non-AAs with elevated inflammatory markers may need closer follow-up and may benefit from prehabilitation to improve physical function, reduce frailty burden, and improve quality of life prior to transplant.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/149150/1/12882_2019_Article_1360.pd

Endogenous cyclin D1 promotes the rate of onset and magnitude of mitogenic signaling via Akt1 Ser473 phosphorylation

Cyclin D1 encodes the regulatory subunit of a holoenzyme that phosphorylates RB and functions as a collaborative nuclear oncogene. The serine threonine kinase Akt plays a pivotal role in the control of cellular metabolism, survival, and mitogenic signaling. Herein, Akt1-mediated phosphorylation of downstream substrates in the mammary gland is reduced by cyclin D1 genetic deletion and is induced by mammary-gland-targeted cyclin D1 overexpression. Cyclin D1 is associated with Akt1 and augments the rate of onset and maximal cellular Akt1 activity induced by mitogens. Cyclin D1 is identified in a cytoplasmic-membrane-associated pool, and cytoplasmic-membrane-localized cyclin D1-but not nuclear-localized cyclin D1-recapitulates Akt1 transcriptional function. These studies identify a novel extranuclear function of cyclin D1 to enhance proliferative functions via augmenting Akt1 phosphorylation at Ser473

Pan-cancer Alterations of the MYC Oncogene and Its Proximal Network across the Cancer Genome Atlas

Although theMYConcogene has been implicated incancer, a systematic assessment of alterations ofMYC, related transcription factors, and co-regulatoryproteins, forming the proximal MYC network (PMN),across human cancers is lacking. Using computa-tional approaches, we define genomic and proteo-mic features associated with MYC and the PMNacross the 33 cancers of The Cancer Genome Atlas.Pan-cancer, 28% of all samples had at least one ofthe MYC paralogs amplified. In contrast, the MYCantagonists MGA and MNT were the most frequentlymutated or deleted members, proposing a roleas tumor suppressors.MYCalterations were mutu-ally exclusive withPIK3CA,PTEN,APC,orBRAFalterations, suggesting that MYC is a distinct onco-genic driver. Expression analysis revealed MYC-associated pathways in tumor subtypes, such asimmune response and growth factor signaling; chro-matin, translation, and DNA replication/repair wereconserved pan-cancer. This analysis reveals insightsinto MYC biology and is a reference for biomarkersand therapeutics for cancers with alterations ofMYC or the PMN

The Psychology of Privacy in the Digital Age

Privacy is a psychological topic suffering from historical neglect – a neglect that is increasingly consequential in an era of social media connectedness, mass surveillance and the permanence of our electronic footprint. Despite fundamental changes in the privacy landscape, social and personality psychology journals remains largely unrepresented in debates on the future of privacy. By contrast, in disciplines like computer science and media and communication studies, engaging directly with socio- technical developments, interest in privacy has grown considerably. In our review of this interdisciplinary literature we suggest four domains of interest to psychologists. These are: sensitivity to individual differences in privacy disposition; a claim that privacy is fundamentally based in social interactions; a claim that privacy is inherently contextual; and a suggestion that privacy is as much about psychological groups as it is about individuals. Moreover, we propose a framework to enable progression to more integrative models of the psychology of privacy in the digital age, and in particular suggest that a group and social relations based approach to privacy is needed