Teacher Feedback Regarding Principal Performance

This study was conducted to address the need for teacher feedback regarding principal performance at Casey-Westfield Community Unit School District C-4. It examined current uses of critical elements and determined which elements should be used to compose a model program utilizing teacher feedback regarding principal performance. A program which could be used in District C-4 to provide teacher feedback to principals regarding their performance was developed. The program was developed by determining (a) applicable critical elements, (b) type of feedback to be obtained, (c) procedures for administration of the program, (d) procedures for assessment of data, (e) selection of facilitator, and (f) desired impact on the principal. The critical elements which should be used to compose a model program utilizing teacher feedback regarding principal performance were found in the National Association of Elementary School Principals\u27 publication Standards for Quality Elementary and Middle Schools (1996). The identified standards were grouped into six critical elements: (a) organization, (b) leadership, (c) curriculum and instruction, (d) staff development, (e) school climate, and (f) assessment. The District C-4 program for providing teacher feedback regarding principal performance was designed to use the previously identified critical elements. Feedback should be collected through the use of a survey with a rating scale and both required and optional narrative comments. The program should be conducted in May of each year. A teacher should be selected as the facilitator to distribute the feedback instrument to teachers via mailboxes and collect the instruments after a specified amount of time. The principal should be responsible for assessing the data by tabulating the results of all scaled items and summarizing the narrative comments by critical elements for easier analysis. Other schools interested in providing principals with teacher feedback regarding principal performance are encouraged to first identify critical elements. Those critical elements should reflect state and national standards for learning. The research on what makes a quality school is comprehensive and should be utilized in any school improvement effort. After critical elements are identified, a program can be developed utilizing this study as a reference

Prenursing students\u27 perceptions of the nursing profession

The primary purpose of this study is to determine the nursing perceptions among prenursing students enrolled in a baccalaureate prenursing program. Objectives in the study included describing undergraduate baccalaureate prenursing student on selected demographic characteristics such as age, gender, ethnic background, etc., determining the perceptions of students about the nursing profession, and determining if a relationship existed between students\u27 perceptions of nursing and selected personal characteristics such as classification, reason for choosing nursing, area of nursing practice most interested, etc. A total of 207 (66.35%) prenursing students enrolled in prerequisite courses for a baccalaureate nursing program participated in the study. Instrumentation consisted of a two-part researcher designed instrument, Cockrell-Punter Nursing Perceptions Scale Instrument. Data were obtained from students who were in a prenursing program of study and came to the prenursing advising office for counseling. The findings of the study indicated that prenursing students are unclear about their perceptions of the nursing profession, and direct experiences with the healthcare professions have an impact on students\u27 decision making regarding nursing. The researcher concluded that most prenursing students recognize the need for career information about nursing, and the majority of students are willing to enroll in an Introduction to Nursing course even if for no academic credit. The researcher recommends that universities should consider implementing a Introduction to Nursing course, which includes a lecture and field experience component as an effective recruiting tool and for nursing programs to assist currently enrolled prenursing students to solidify their career choice. In addition, the researcher recommends that further research be done to follow the baccalaureate prenursing participants in this study through nursing school and into their early nursing career to compare prenursing students’ perceptions of nursing with their perceptions of nursing as senior nursing students and after 5 years of nursing practice

Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting Risk Assessment Tool for Proactive Intervention

https://digitalcommons.psjhealth.org/stvincent-bootcamp/1029/thumbnail.jp

Evidence of long distance airborne transport of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae

The ability of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae to be transported over long distances via the airborne route was evaluated. A source population of 300 grow-finish pigs was experimentally inoculated with PRRSV MN-184 and M. hyopneumoniae 232 and over a 50-day period, air samples were collected at designated distances from the source herd using a liquid cyclonic collector. Samples were tested for the presence of PRRSV RNA and M. hyopneumoniae DNA by PCR and if positive, further characterized. Of the 306 samples collected, 4 (1.3%) were positive for PRRSV RNA and 6 (1.9%) were positive for M. hyopneumoniae DNA. The PRRSV-positive samples were recovered 4.7 km to the northwest (NW) of the source population. Four of the M. hyopneumoniae-positive samples were obtained at the NW sampling point; 2 samples at approximately 2.3 km and the other 2 samples approximately 4.7 km from the source population. Of the remaining 2 samples, one sample was obtained at the southeast sampling point and the other at the southwest sampling point, with both locations being approximately 4.7 km from the source. The four PRRSV-positive samples contained infectious virus and were ≥ 98.8% homologous to the MN-184 isolate used to inoculate the source population. All 6 of the M. hyopneumoniae-positive samples were 99.9% homologous to M. hyopneumoniae 232. These results support the hypothesis that long distance airborne transport of these important swine pathogens can occur

An Evaluation of Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus Survival in Individual Feed Ingredients in the Presence or Absence of a Liquid Antimicrobial

Background: Contaminated complete feed and porcine plasma are risk factors for PEDV introduction to farms and a liquid antimicrobial has been proven useful for reducing risk. This study provides information on the survivability of PEDV across common swine feed ingredients in the presence or absence of the liquid antimicrobial.Results: Eighteen ingredients commonly included in commercial swine diets were selected, including 3 grain sources (corn, soybean meal (SBM), dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS)), 5 porcine by-products (spray-dried plasma, purified plasma, intestinal mucosa, meat and bone meal and red blood cells (RBCs)), 3 vitamin/trace mineral (VTM) mixes (sow, nursery, finishing), 2 fat sources (choice white grease and soy oil), 3 synthetic amino acids (lysine HCL, D/L methionine, threonine), as well as limestone and dry choline chloride. Complete feed and stock PEDV served as controls. Thirty grams of each ingredient were inoculated with 2 mL PEDV. A matched set of samples were treated with the formaldehyde-based liquid antimicrobial SalCURB® (LA). All samples (n = 320) were stored outdoors under winter time ambient conditions for 30 days. Samples were submitted on 1, 7, 14 and 30 days post-inoculation (DPI) and tested by PCR and virus isolation (VI). All VI-negative samples were tested by swine bioassay. Viable PEDV was detected by VI or swine bioassay at 1, 7, 14 and 30 DPI from SBM, DDGS, meat & bone meal, RBCs, lysine HCL, D/L methionine, choice white grease, choline chloride, complete feed and stock virus control and at 7 DPI in limestone and at 14 DPI in threonine. Supplementary testing of complete feed and SBM indicated viable virus out to 45 and 180 DPI, respectively. All other samples were negative by VI and bioassay. In contrast, treatment with LA inactivated PEDV across all ingredients on 1 DPI and induced RNA reduction over time.Conclusions: Under the conditions of this study, PEDV viability in feed was influenced by ingredient with extended survival in SBM. Furthermore, LA treatment rendered virus inactive, independent of ingredient type

Serologic Evidence of Widespread Everglades Virus Activity in Dogs, Florida

Everglades virus (EVEV), an alphavirus in the Venezuelan equine encephalitis complex, circulates among rodents and vector mosquitoes in Florida and occasionally infects humans. It causes febrile disease, sometimes accompanied by neurologic manifestations. Although previous surveys showed high seroprevalence in humans, EVEV infections may be underdiagnosed because the disease is not severe enough to warrant a clinic visit or the undifferentiated presentations complicate diagnosis. Documented EVEV activity, as recent as 1993, was limited to south Florida. Using dogs as sentinels, a serosurvey was conducted to evaluate whether EVEV circulated recently in Florida and whether EVEV's spatial distribution parallels that of the mosquito vector, Culex cedecei. Four percent of dog sera contained neutralizing EVEV antibodies, and many seropositive animals lived farther north than both recorded EVEV activity and the principal vector. These results indicate that EVEV is widespread in Florida and may be an important, unrecognized cause of human illness

Evaluation of the Long-Term Effect of Air Filtration on the Occurrence of New PRRSV Infections in Large Breeding Herds in Swine-Dense Regions

Airborne transmission of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is a risk factor for the infection of susceptible populations. Therefore, a long‑term sustainability study of air filtration as a means to reduce this risk was conducted. Participating herds (n = 38) were organized into 4 independent cohorts and the effect of air filtration on the occurrence of new PRRSV infections was analyzed at 3 different levels from September 2008 to January 2012 including the likelihood of infection in contemporary filtered and non-filtered herds, the likelihood of infection before and after implementation of filtration and the time to failure in filtered and non-filtered herds. Results indicated that new PRRSV infections in filtered breeding herds were significantly lower than in contemporary non-filtered control herds (P < 0.01), the odds for a new PRRSV infection in breeding herds before filtration was 7.97 times higher than the odds after filtration was initiated (P < 0.01) and the median time to new PRRSV infections in filtered breeding herds of 30 months was significantly longer than the 11 months observed in non-filtered herds (P < 0.01). In conclusion, across all 3 levels of analysis, the long-term effect of air filtration on reducing the occurrence of new PRRSV infections in the study population was demonstrated

An evaluation of contaminated complete feed as a vehicle for porcine epidemic diarrhea virus infection of naïve pigs following consumption via natural feeding behavior: proof of concept

Background: Since its initial detection in May 2013, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) has spread rapidly throughout the US swine industry. Initially, contaminated feed was proposed as a risk factor for PEDV; however, data were not available to support this theory. Here we provide proof of concept of this risk by describing a novel means for recovering PEDV-contaminated complete feed material from commercial swine sites and conducting an in vivo experiment to prove its infectivity. Results: For on-farm detection of PEDV RNA in feed, paint rollers were used to collect material from at-risk feed bins from 3 clinically affected breeding herds. This material was tested by PCR and determined to be positive for PEDV-RNA (Ct = 19.50-22.20 range). To test infectivity, this material was pooled (Ct = 20.65) and a Treatment group of 3-week old PEDV-naïve piglets were allowed to consume it via natural feeding behavior. For the purpose of a Positive control, piglets were allowed to ingest feed spiked with stock PEDV (Ct = 18.23) while the negative control group received PEDV-free feed. Clinical signs of PEDV infection (vomiting and diarrhea) and viral shedding were observed in both the Positive control and Treatment group’ post-consumption with virus and microscopic lesions detected in intestinal samples No evidence of infection was observed in the Negative controls.Conclusions: These data provide proof of concept that contaminated complete feed can serve as a vehicle for PEDV infection of naïve pigs using natural feeding behavior