The UK workforce : realising our potential

for Business, a new UK-wide network of employer-led Sector Skills Councils (SSCs), supported and directed by the Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA). The purpose of Skills for Business is to bring employers more centre stage in articulating their skill needs and delivering skills-based productivity improvements that can enhance UK competitiveness and the effectiveness of public services. The remit of the SSDA includes establishing and progressing the network of SSCs, supporting the SSCs in the development of their own capacity and providing a range of core services. Additionally the SSDA has responsibility for representing sectors not covered by a SSC and co-ordinating action on cross cutting and generic skills issues. Research, and developing a sound evidence base, are central to the SSDA and to Skills for Business as a whole. It is crucial in: analysing productivity and skill needs; identifying priorities for action; and improving the evolving policy and skills agenda. It is vital that the SSDA research team works closely with partners already involved in skills and related research to generally drive up the quality o

Developing Teachers’ Professional Learning: Canadian Evidence and Experiences in a World of Educational Improvement

This article discusses the current international emphasis on educational improvement and, particularly, approaches to developing teachers’ professional learning. I begin by arguing for the importance of Canadian narratives and evidence within global debates. I turn then to an example of a recently conducted study of the state of educators’ professional learning in Canada to examine research-informed principles and examples from policies and practices across Canada. I conclude by arguing for the importance of the Canadian education community learning with, from, and for Canada, appreciating that diversity is our strength, but recognizing that inequities are our greatest challenge

Health Beliefs of Community Dwelling Older Adults in the United Arab Emirates: A Qualitative Study

© 2012, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC. There is a paucity of information about the health beliefs that older adults in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hold. This is a serious omission as understanding people’s ideas about health maintenance and disease prevention informs public health policy and practice. Using a qualitative methodology, twenty-three community dwelling adults aged between sixty and eighty years were interviewed. The data were analyzed to uncover the meanings of health and health beliefs ascribed by the participants within their narratives. Participant narratives revealed representations of health that were in close alignment with previous research. ‘Health as value’ also emerged as a distinct health belief. Analysis of the interview data identified three superordinate themes labeled ‘Health is what you eat’; ‘Health was better in the past’; and ‘Health is from God’ as factors that participants attributed to their health. The implications for the health care system in the UAE are discussed. As the first study of its kind within the UAE, this study provides a solid base from which future studies exploring health beliefs and social representations of health can build upon

How Is That Going to Work?: Part II – Acqusitions Challenges and Opportunities in a Shared ILS

Building on a presentation given at the 2013 Charleston Conference, this article continues the discussion about acquisitions policies, workflows, and consortial collaboration in a next‐generation shared ILS. The Orbis Cascade Alliance is a consortium of 37 public and private academic institutions in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. In January 2013, the Alliance began a two‐year process of migrating all 37 institutions (in 4 cohorts, with a new cohort going live every 6 months) to Ex Libris’s Alma and Primo in order to realize efficiencies and increase collaboration within the consortium. The authors, who represent institutions in the first and third cohorts, offer perspectives on new consortial structures stemming from changing workflows, policy issues to consider from a consortial viewpoint, challenges and opportunities for the new system, partnering with vendors, and ongoing considerations for large‐scale cooperative collection development and assessment

Master of Science

thesisThis study was made to determine (a) if there is a significant difference between anxiety levels of psychiatric patients at a midway point in their hospitalization and at the time of their discharge, and (b) is extra-hospital factors such as illness, employment status, or follow-up care influence anxiety levels as the patient is being released from the hospital. This was accomplished by administration of the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale (MAS) and a structured interview. Every new patient admitted to the psychiatric unit of Salt Lake General Hospital who met the following criteria was selected as a subject: (1) he must have been in the hospital for ten day before the initial MAS was given and (2) he must have been in the hospital for a period of two weeks before the second test and the structured interview were give. Information concerning independent variables (age, occupation, sex, race, medication, source of referral to the hospital, and method of payment) was recorded. Each patient was individually administered the tests. For each scale (MAS, L, and K) a t test was used to determine the significance of the difference between the initial and retest. A Pearson product moment correlation was completed from the test-retest record of the 30 patients. There were no significant differences in means of standard deviations on the three scales. The positive correlations were all significant at the .01 level of confidence. The hypothesis that there would be an increase in anxiety at the time of discharge was not confirmed. There was a significant tendency for patients scoring low on the Taylor scale to be less candid (as inferred from their scores on the L scale) than individual scoring high. The structured interview divulged the present methods of discharging patients and information relating to the extra-hospital situations at the time of discharge. Since extra-hospital factors are highly variable and personal, an interview seemed to be the best method to determine their effect. Although not statistically significant the patterns of responses indicate that follow-up care and illness in the family are situational factors affecting anxiety. Two by two contingency tables were used to see if there was a reliable relationship between the MAS and the items in the interview as well as the independent variables. One question was significant "" How do you feel about going home? "" and was confirmed at the .05 level of significance (X[2] = 6.42). The patients who desired to return home had a lower anxiety rate than the ones who desired to remain hospitalized. This study is consistent with past studies and indicates the MAS measures basic anxiety. Basic anxiety levels have not changed and the patient returning to the community meets stress situations which create situational anxiety that is manifest. The test is not refined enough to pick up small changes that the individual experiences during the course of hospitalization. The L and K scales show defensive reactions to anxiety. The defense responses may be effective in reducing anxiety and thus the anxiety level may appear low on testing. The interview revealed extra-hospital factors that affect the patient at the time of discharge and shows a need to deal with the patient"™s environment and his response to it. Results of the structured interview could be improved if the author had established rapport with the patients and also a sense of trust had been developed. It is the conclusion of the writer that further care should be implemented as the patient leave the hospital and that nursing should assume continuity of patient care in the community. The nurse, functioning as a member of the health team, can insure that problems are dealt with as they arise, decrease anxiety, and create a therapeutic environment for the family

Building the capacity to use research in education requires a sustained strategic and systemic effort

The English education context offers positive elements and challenges for evidence-informed policy and practice. The issues are well understood but Carol Campbell and Ben Levin argue there is a lack of a strategic approach to improving knowledge mobilisation in the sector. Renewed attention is needed to build such capacities if schools are to benefit from the findings of high quality research

Genetic Research Using Archival Tissue: Ethical, Social, and Legal Considerations in the United Arab Emirates

© 2018, National University of Singapore and Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. Pathological archival tissue has been used as a source of research material for many years. The advancement in molecular techniques led to an escalated interest in genetic research on archival tissue. Research on archival tissue has been used without obtaining consents from patients, although the ethical justification for such a practice is unlikely to apply for genetic research that involves whole genome sequencing, for instance. Issues of confidentiality and patients’ autonomy are being raised as institutions consider when approval for this type of research should be granted. In addition, patients’ advocate is mandating some of these changes. In the context of the United Arab Emirates, this paper makes clear the current uncertainties arising from the use of archival tissue in genetic research, as it could be highly invasive of privacy interests and also fails to respect autonomous choice. It further explains what needs to change in order to support such research that is directed at promoting public good, but in a way that is not detrimental to the welfare of patients as research participants