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Evolutionary Model of e-Procurement Adoption: A Case of the Vietnam Construction Industry

In order to propose more effective solutions to improve the diffusion of e-procurement technologies in the construction sector, it is very important to get a better understanding on the practical evolutionary process of e-procurement adoption at the enterprise level. This cases-study seeks to investigate the strategic evolution of e-procurement adoption in construction companies. Data collected from in-depth semi-structured interviews was analyzed by within-case and cross-case analyses to understand well the similarities and differences between the company cases regarding the way e-procurement technologies have been adopting and implementing. The present study found out a six-stage evolutionary model of e-procurement implementation specific for the context of Vietnamese construction industry. Further, it also proposed the best practical solutions for the cases studied as well as for the general context toward more collaborative e-procurement environment. Although this study is based on the experience of the construction section in a specific country, it is believed its results may be applicable to other developing countries. Using the evolutionary model developed, construction companies are able to self-assess and locate their e-procurement adoption level, and so that establish appropriate practical solutions to move forward a higher level of e-procurement applicability

https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2017.00219 Decreasing Sedentary Behavior: Effects on Academic Performance, Meta-Cognition, and Sleep

There is growing interest in using activity workstations as a method of increasing light physical activity in normally sedentary environments. The current study (N = 117) compared the effects of studying in college students while slowly pedaling a stationary bike with a desktop with studying at traditional desks across 10 weeks in an academic semester. The students were assigned to study either on the stationary bike or at a traditional desk located in the campus library for a minimum of 2 h a week. During the 10 weeks, the students studied for tests or worked on other required academic activities while working at their assigned desk. In addition, the participants completed a pre survey, weekly surveys, and a post survey. We found that although students studying at the traditional desks reported more ease of studying and more effective studying than those using the stationary bikes, the two groups performed equally well on tests in an introductory psychology course. Moreover, the students using the traditional desks reported a decrease in sleep quality later in the semester while those using the activity workstation reported stable levels of sleep quality. The current results indicate that activity workstations could be implemented in university settings to encourage light physical activity without negatively affecting academic performance while providing possible long-term health and well-being benefits. Furthermore, the results suggests that activity workstations could be a means of combating sedentary behavior in environments where individuals are expected to sit either while waiting (e.g., doctor\u27s waiting rooms, airports) or when completing a necessary task (e.g., the workplace, educational settings)

Miscommunication in Doctor-Patient Communication

The effectiveness of medical treatment depends on the quality of the patient–clinician relationship. It has been proposed that this depends on the extent to which the patient and clinician build a shared understanding of illness and treatment. Here, we use the tools of conversation analysis (CA) to explore this idea in the context of psychiatric consultations. The CA “repair” framework provides an analysis of the processes people use to deal with problems in speaking, hearing, and understanding. These problems are especially critical in the treatment of psychosis where patients and health care professionals need to communicate about the disputed meaning of hallucinations and delusion. Patients do not feel understood, they are frequently non‐adherent with treatment, and many have poor outcomes. We present an overview of two studies focusing on the role of repair as a mechanism for producing and clarifying meaning in psychiatrist–patient communication and its association with treatment outcomes. The first study shows patient clarification or repair of psychiatrists’ talk is associated with better patient adherence to treatment. The second study shows that training which emphasizes the importance of building an understanding of patients’ psychotic experiences increases psychiatrists’ self‐repair. We propose that psychiatrists are working harder to make their talk understandable and acceptable to the patient by taking the patient's perspective into account. We conclude that these findings provide evidence that repair is an important mechanism for building shared understanding in doctor–patient communication and contributes to better therapeutic relationships and treatment adherence. The conversation analytic account of repair is currently the most sophisticated empirical model for analyzing how people construct shared meaning and understanding. Repair appears to reflect greater commitment to and engagement in communication and improve both the quality and outcomes of communication. Reducing potential miscommunication between psychiatrists and their patients with psychosis is a low‐cost means of enhancing treatment from both the psychiatrist and patient perspective. Given that misunderstanding and miscommunication are particularly problematic in psychosis, this is critical for improving the longer term outcomes of treatment for these patients who often have poor relationships with psychiatrists and health care services more widely

Surveying the Current State of International Outreach in Radiology Training Programs

Purpose: Over the past decade, there has been an increased level of attention focused on improving radiology’s contributions to global health programs in resource-restricted areas of the world. This has led to the formation of new organizations and international imaging partnerships. As a result, there have been related publications and guidelines, which has increased awareness and interest amongst current and prospective radiology trainees. Methods and Materials: With this survey of residency program directors, we set out to: 1) examine current opinions of and experience with integrating international and outreach opportunities into their training curriculum; and 2) to analyze these data to inform strategies for growing opportunities within training programs nationwide. Results: The majority (51%) of programs participating in the survey have interest in participating in international projects and 64% feel they add value to resident education. Only about a quarter (27%) of programs, however, have had residents participate in radiology-related international projects over the last five years, and even fewer (18.8%) have established international elective opportunities. However, the majority of programs (58.3%) have some faculty who are involved in international radiology. Conclusion: The reported interest in international educational and service opportunities among residency training programs is much greater than current levels of participation. A much larger percentage of responding programs have faculty involved in international work than residents, despite the acknowledged benefits and interes

The impact of using computer decision-support software in primary care nurse-led telephone triage:Interactional dilemmas and conversational consequences

Telephone triage represents one strategy to manage demand for face-to-face GP appointments in primary care. Although computer decision-support software (CDSS) is increasingly used by nurses to triage patients, little is understood about how interaction is organized in this setting. Specifically any interactional dilemmas this computer-mediated setting invokes; and how these may be consequential for communication with patients. Using conversation analytic methods we undertook a multi-modal analysis of 22 audio-recorded telephone triage nurse-caller interactions from one GP practice in England, including 10 video-recordings of nurses' use of CDSS during triage. We draw on Goffman's theoretical notion of participation frameworks to make sense of these interactions, presenting 'telling cases' of interactional dilemmas nurses faced in meeting patient's needs and accurately documenting the patient's condition within the CDSS. Our findings highlight troubles in the 'interactional workability' of telephone triage exposing difficulties faced in aligning the proximal and wider distal context that structures CDSS-mediated interactions. Patients present with diverse symptoms, understanding of triage consultations, and communication skills which nurses need to negotiate turn-by-turn with CDSS requirements. Nurses therefore need to have sophisticated communication, technological and clinical skills to ensure patients' presenting problems are accurately captured within the CDSS to determine safe triage outcomes. Dilemmas around how nurses manage and record information, and the issues of professional accountability that may ensue, raise questions about the impact of CDSS and its use in supporting nurses to deliver safe and effective patient care

Cell-free protein synthesis of membrane (1,3)-beta-D-glucan (curdlan) synthase: Co-translational insertion in liposomes and reconstitution in nanodiscs

A membrane-embedded curdlan synthase (CrdS) from Agrobacterium is believed to catalyse a repetitive addition of glucosyl residues from UDP-glucose to produce the (1,3)-β-d-glucan (curdlan) polymer. We report wheat germ cell-free protein synthesis (WG-CFPS) of full-length CrdS containing a 6xHis affinity tag and either Factor Xa or Tobacco Etch Virus proteolytic sites, using a variety of hydrophobic membrane-mimicking environments. Full-length CrdS was synthesised with no variations in primary structure, following analysis of tryptic fragments by MALDI-TOF/TOF Mass Spectrometry. Preparative scale WG-CFPS in dialysis mode with Brij-58 yielded CrdS in mg/ml quantities. Analysis of structural and functional properties of CrdS during protein synthesis showed that CrdS was co-translationally inserted in DMPC liposomes during WG-CFPS, and these liposomes could be purified in a single step by density gradient floatation. Incorporated CrdS exhibited a random orientation topology. Following affinity purification of CrdS, the protein was reconstituted in nanodiscs with Escherichia coli lipids or POPC and a membrane scaffold protein MSP1E3D1. CrdS nanodiscs were characterised by small-angle X-ray scattering using synchrotron radiation and the data obtained were consistent with insertion of CrdS into bilayers. We found CrdS synthesised in the presence of the Ac-AAAAAAD surfactant peptide or co-translationally inserted in liposomes made from E. coli lipids to be catalytically competent. Conversely, CrdS synthesised with only Brij-58 was inactive. Our findings pave the way for future structural studies of this industrially important catalytic membrane protein.Agalya Periasamy, Nadim Shadiac, Amritha Amalraj, Soňa Garajová, Yagnesh Nagarajan, Shane Waters, Haydyn D.T. Mertens, Maria Hrmov

Anti-interleukin-13 and anti-interleukin-4 agents versus placebo, anti-interleukin-5 or anti-immunoglobulin-E agents, for children and adults with asthma

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the efficacy and safety of anti-interleukin-13 or anti-interleukin-4 agents, compared with placebo, anti-Immunoglobulin E agents, or anti-interleukin-5 agents, for the treatment of children, adolescents, or adults with asthma

The inflammatory microenvironment in colorectal neoplasia

Peer reviewedPublisher PD