Challenges in conducting community-driven research created by differing ways of talking and thinking about science: a researcher’s perspective

Increasingly, health scientists are becoming aware that research collaborations that include community partnerships can be an effective way to broaden the scope and enhance the impact of research aimed at improving public health. Such collaborations extend the reach of academic scientists by integrating a variety of perspectives and thus strengthening the applicability of the research. Communication challenges can arise, however, when attempting to address specific research questions in these collaborations. In particular, inconsistencies can exist between scientists and community members in the use and interpretation of words and other language features, particularly when conducting research with a biomedical component. Additional challenges arise from differing perceptions of the investigative process. There may be divergent perceptions about how research questions should and can be answered, and in expectations about requirements of research institutions and research timelines. From these differences, misunderstandings can occur about how the results will ultimately impact the community. These communication issues are particularly challenging when scientists and community members are from different ethnic and linguistic backgrounds that may widen the gap between ways of talking and thinking about science, further complicating the interactions and exchanges that are essential for effective joint research efforts. Community-driven research that aims to describe the burden of disease associated with Helicobacter pylori infection is currently underway in northern Aboriginal communities located in the Yukon and Northwest Territories, Canada, with the goal of identifying effective public health strategies for reducing health risks from this infection. This research links community representatives, faculty from various disciplines at the University of Alberta, as well as territorial health care practitioners and officials. This highly collaborative work will be used to illustrate, from a researcher’s perspective, some of the challenges of conducting public health research in teams comprising members with varying backgrounds. The consequences of these challenges will be outlined, and potential solutions will be offered

Unbearability of suffering at the end of life: the development of a new measuring device, the SOS-V

AbstractBackgroundUnbearable suffering is an important issue in end-of-life decisions. However, there has been no systematic, prospective, patient-oriented research which has focused on unbearable suffering, nor is there a suitable measurement instrument. This article describes the methodological development of a quantitative instrument to measure the nature and intensity of unbearable suffering, practical aspects of its use in end-stage cancer patients in general practice, and studies content validity and psychometric properties.MethodsRecognizing the conceptual difference between unbearability of suffering and extent or intensity of suffering, we developed an instrument. The compilation of aspects considered to be of importance was based on a literature search. Psychometric properties were determined on results of the first interviews with 64 end-stage cancer patients that participated in a longitudinal study in the Netherlands.ResultsThe instrument measures five domains: medical signs and symptoms, loss of function, personal aspects, aspects of environment, and nature and prognosis of the disease. Sixty nine aspects were investigated, and an overall score was asked. In 64 end-stage cancer patients the instrument was used in total 153 times with an average interview time varying from 20-40 minutes. Cronbachs alpha's of the subscales were in majority above 0.7. The sum scores of (sub)scales were correlated strongly to overall measures on suffering.ConclusionThe SOS-V is an instrument for measuring the unbearability of suffering in end-stage cancer patients with good content validity and psychometric properties, which is feasible to be used in practice. This structured instrument makes it possible to identify and study unbearable suffering in a quantitative and patient-oriented way

Orderic Vitalis: Life, Works and Interpretations

The Gesta Normannorum ducum and Historia ecclesiastica of Orderic Vitalis are widely regarded as landmarks in the development of European historical writing and, as such, are essential sources of medieval history for students and scholars alike. The essays here consider Orderic's life and works, presenting new research on existing topics within Orderic studies and opening up new directions for future analysis and debate. They offer fresh interpretations from across the disciplines of medieval manuscript studies, English-language studies, archaeology, theology, and cultural memory studies; they also revisit established readings

Moisture movement and thickness swelling in oriented strandboard, part 1. Analysis using nuclear magnetic resonance microimaging. Wood Sci

Abstract The previous paper in this series demonstrates the use of a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) micro-imaging system to observe the movement of liquid water through small specimens (11 · 16 mm 2 cross-section) of oriented strandboard (OSB) and solid wood. In the present paper, a NMR body scanner is utilized to obtain images of moisture penetration into ASTM D 1037-99 standard sized (152 · 152 mm 2 ) thickness swelling specimens at different intervals during water soaking. As with the micro-imaging study, silicone was applied to the surfaces and edges of some of the specimens in order to observe the directional characteristics of moisture movement through OSB. Specimens with commercially applied edge sealant were also included in the study in order to observe the effectiveness of the sealant of reducing moisture penetration and thickness swelling. The presence of voids and areas of low density were shown to contribute significantly to moisture penetration into the specimens

Moisture movement and thickness swelling in oriented strandboard. 1. Analysis using nuclear magnetic resonance microimaging. Wood Sci.

Abstract A procedure was developed to observe the water absorption characteristics of small specimens of oriented strandboard (OSB) and solid wood in a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) microimaging facility. The procedure allowed a specimen to be surrounded in water while remaining in a fixed position within the imaging coil, after which the water could be removed and the specimen immediately imaged. This technique permitted images of the specimen to be taken after a number of different periods of water soak without having to remove and replace the specimen, thus easily maintaining the same image location. Both the distribution of free water and its movement as a function of time were observed using this technique. Inter-strand voids within OSB were shown to be the main route for moisture movement through a specimen of this type. The influence of the inherent anisotropy of OSB on moisture movement was investigated by sealing selected surfaces of a specimen with silicone to observe moisture absorption in predetermined directions