Explanatory model of illness of the patients with schizophrenia and the role of educational intervention

This randomized controlled trial was conducted at Department of Psychiatry, Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar from February to August 2015 to explore beliefs and concepts of patients with schizophrenia about their illness and to find out the effectiveness of structured educational intervention in changing the explanatory models of illness of the patients and in their symptoms reduction. One hundred and three patients were recruited in the trial who were randomly assigned to two groups i.e., Experimental (n = 53) and Control i.e., Treatment As Usual, TAU (n = 50). Intervention was applied to experimental group only, once a month for three months. Short Explanatory Model Interview (SEMI), Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Positive And Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) and Compliance Rating Scale were applied on all patients at baseline and at 3 months follow up. Scores on PANSS (Total), BPRS and GAF showed improvement in the experimental group as compared to TAU group, at follow up, with the p values of 0.000, 0.002 and 0.000, respectively. On follow up, 44 (95.6%) patients of experimental group achieved complete compliance as compared to 17 (47.2%) patients of TAU group [p = 0.000]. On baseline analysis of SEMI, in the experimental group, only 3.8% (n = 2) knew about name of the illness, which increased to 54.3% (n = 25) on follow up, while in TAU group it improved to 5.6% (n = 2) as compared to 0% at baseline (p = 0.000). The result suggest that Structured educational intervention can be effective in modifying the beliefs of the patients regarding their illness

A survey of eMedia-delivered interventions for schizophrenia used in randomized controlled trials

Background: Randomized trials evaluating electronic Media (eMedia) delivery of interventions are increasingly frequent in mental health. Although a number of reviews have reported efficacy of these interventions, none has reviewed the type of eMedia interventions and quality of their description. We therefore decided to conduct a survey of eMedia-delivered interventions for schizophrenia. Methods: We surveyed all relevant trials reliably identified in the Cochrane Schizophrenia Group’s comprehensive register of trials by authors working independently. Data were extracted regarding the size of the trial, interventions, outcomes and how well the intervention was described. Results: eMedia delivery of interventions is increasingly frequent in trials relevant to the care of people with schizophrenia. The trials varied considerably in sample sizes (mean =123, median =87, range =20–507), and interventions were diverse, rarely evaluating the same approaches and were poorly reported. This makes replication impossible. Outcomes in these studies are limited, have not been noted to be chosen by end users and seem unlikely to be easy to apply in routine care. No study reported on potential adverse effects or cost, end users satisfaction or ease of use. None of the papers mentioned the use of CONSORT eHealth guidelines. Conclusion: There is a need to improve reporting and testing of psychosocial interventions delivered by eMedia. New trials should comply with CONSORT eHealth guidance on design, conduct and reporting, and existing CONSORT should be updated regularly, as the field is constantly evolving

Mental health service provision in low and middle income countries

This paper discusses the provision of mental health services in lower- and middle-income countries (LAMIC) with a view to identifying culture-specific areas that can be improved and generalised within and across different countries and services. The paper highlights the need for prioritisation of mental health services by incorporating local population and cultural needs. This can be achieved only through political will and strengthened legislation, improved resource allocation and strategic organisation, integrated packages of care underpinned by professional communication and training, and involvement of patients, informal carers and the wider community in a therapeutic capacity

mHealth based interventions for the assessment and treatment of psychotic disorders: a systematic review

The relative burden of mental health disorders is increasing globally, in terms of prevalence and disability. There is limited data available to guide treatment choices for clinicians in low resourced settings, with mHealth technologies being a potentially beneficial avenue to bridging the large mental health treatment gap globally. The aim of the review was to search the literature systematically for studies of mHealth interventions for psychosis globally, and to examine whether mHealth for psychosis has been investigated. A systematic literature search was completed in Embase, Medline, PsychINFO and Evidence Based Medicine Reviews databases from inception to May 2016. Only studies with a randomised controlled trial design that investigated an mHealth intervention for psychosis were included. A total of 5690 records were identified with 7 studies meeting the inclusion criteria. The majority of included studies, were conducted across Europe and the United Sates with one being conducted in China. The 7 included studies examined different parameters, such as Experiential Sampling Methodology (ESM), medication adherence, cognitive impairment, social functioning and suicidal ideation in veterans with schizophrenia. Considering the increasing access to mobile devices globally, mHealth may potentially increase access to appropriate mental health care. The results of this review show promise in bridging the global mental health treatment gap, by enabling individuals to receive treatment via their mobile phones, particularly for those individuals who live in remote or rural areas, areas of high deprivation and for those from low resourced settings

What makes an International Financial Centre (IFC) Competitive? An empirical study of the determinants responsible for the competitiveness of an IFC

International Financial Centres (IFCs) serve as focal points for implementing international agreements and other transactions between financial sectors located around the world. The competitiveness of an IFC depends on its function to provide easy access to the capital, stability in financial markets and a dynamic business eco-system. The purpose of conducting this study is to identify the most relevant determinants that significantly affect the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI) ranking of the countries across the world. First published in 2007, the GFCI is considered as the primary source for ranking IFCs globally. GFCI is an index which ranks financial centres based on over 61,499 assessments of financial centres across the world provided by 10,252 respondents to an online questionnaire of GFCI (GFCI33, 2023). The collected date represents 153 key indices provided by sources including the World Bank, the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development, and the Economist Intelligence Unit. It utilises qualitative (online questionnaires) and quantitative (economic indices) dataset to publish reports biannually. Through this paper, an attempt has been made to conduct an empirical study of the determinants responsible for the competitiveness of an IFC based on GFCI ranking. To facilitate this study, extensive data has been collected for 196 IFCs (unique financial jurisdictions) along with 238 key factors (determinants) over a period of fourteen years (2007 till 2020). In addition to revisiting some of the existing empirical studies on this subject, this dissertation attempts to further build on the existing empirical research and analyses the impact of unique key factors on the GFCI ranking through the application of a panel regression. From extensive set of variables, the study adopts 17 most relevant determinants (summarised below) by using a Decision Tree approach. The variable of Business Regulations is constructed by using the Ease of doing business index source from the World Bank (GFCI 33). The variable of corporate taxes is constructed by the sum of tax bases and tax rates dataset source from KPMG (GFCI 33). Indexed sourced from Transparency International is used to construct the variable of Corruption Perception Index (GFCI 33). The variable of Credit Market Regulations is constructed by international consortium group by measuring the deposit based financing source from World Bank (GFCI 33). Government size, Property Rights and the Legal System, Reliable Money, Freedom to Trade Internationally Regulation, and Gender equality in legal rights are five broad categories used to construct Economic Freedom Overall Index Variable source from Fraser Institute (GFCI 33). The study adopts the variable of freedom of trade which is sourced from WTO constructed upon non-tariff barrier in exports and imports of a country (GFCI 33). The variable of Global Competitiveness Index is constructed by the macroeconomic and the micro/business aspects of competitiveness into a single index (GFCI 33). The data on volume of high tech exports is modelled and calculated as a function of foreign demand and of price competitiveness in order to construct variable of High Tech Exports source. The variable of inflation is constructed by using Consumer Price Index (CPI). The variable of Internet uses as a percentage of population is derived by dividing the number of Internet users by total population and multiplying by 100. The variable of Labour Market Regulations is constructed through using of the Rigidity of Employment Index. The variable of Legal System Property Rights is constructed by encompassing index of Legal verification and guarantee systems, fair legal rules, and formal compensation mechanism. The variable of quality of roads is constructed through collecting data on the transportation infrastructure and financial spending by using (IRI) International Roughness Index (GFCI 33). Spending, revenue, and employment are all ways to construct the variable of size of a government. An aggregate of money growth (money supply growth minus real GDP growth), standard deviation of inflation (GDP deflator), CPI inflation in most recent year, and freedom to hold foreign currency in bank accounts are used to construct the variable of the sound money index. The index is measured on a scale of 0 (worst) to 10 (best). The variable of percentage of Urban Population is constructed by Individuals living in urban areas as a percentage of total population. A long and solid life, being educated and have a respectable way of life are the three indicators to construct the variable of HDI. The results of the Panel regression show that all the variables positively impact the GFCI ranking except business regulations, labour market regulation, legal system property rights and HDI. This dissertation also establishes to arrange the IFCs in groups (Clusters) based on similar shared characteristics. This has been possible by adopting criteria of developing a centroid for each cluster against each determinant for a number of observations (Years). As a result, each cluster includes all those countries that are experiencing similar characteristics throughout the range of observations (years). By introducing the Elbow method of clustering, the study has identified five optimal groups (clusters). In order to deal with complexities of missing values in the dataset and arranging the IFCs in these five optimal groups based upon a centroid (mean) value, this study has undergone an appropriate clustering methodology using the Majorisation-Minimisation Algorithm named as K-POD means clustering. It is evident that each centroid is seen as representing the average observation within a cluster across all the variables in the analysis. All the observations in a cluster ranging between maxima and minima centrifuge around centroid value. The distances between cluster centroids show how far apart the centroids of the clusters in the final partition are from one another. The study suggests that by minimising the hurdles created by business regulation laws, labour market regulation procedures and legalised process of property rights, the GFCI ranking will improve for the countries. It will help to pave the path of financial stability and creation of wealth. Similarly, by providing better health and education facilities, the Human development Index will help positively to improve the GFCI ranking of countries

Leadership Styles in the Maintenance Industry of UAE: A Focus Group Analysis

The primary objective of this qualitative research is to identify and study various leadership styles in the maintenance industry of UAE. The researcher used focus group as a method of data collection. 8 senior officers from the various reputed maintenance companies were invited for the deliberation on the leadership styles being practiced in the various management hierarchies of such companies. The researcher also investigated success level of various leadership styles in terms of employee motivation and moral. The researcher guided the Focus Group Members discussion around these areas, took notes, and finally complied all the views in a report format. Study revealed that Top level management practicing autocratic style of leadership that is not yielding the desired results of higher motivation level and subordinates are also not really happy with it. Targets and being achieved but corporate citizenship feel is missing in the subordinates. Middle level management is practicing almost all types of leadership styles but team leadership is most commonly used by middle level management, subordinates are generally happy with it. Lower level management using autocratic leadership style in order to control the field staff; however field staff never felt happy with it as they feel bad when always engineers / supervisors imposing their decisions on them and being the work floor workers, their suggestions are not taken care of.</jats:p

The impact of different weed management systems on weed flora and dry biomass production of barley grown under various barley-based cropping systems

Weeds are among the major issues responsible for reduction in yield and profit in any crop production system. Herbicides are the easiest and quickest solution of weeds; however, their frequent use exert negative consequences on environment, human health, and results in the evolution of herbicide-resistant weed species. Due to these reasons, alternative weed management methods that are less harmful to environment and human health are needed. This two-year study evaluated the impact of different weed management options, i.e., false seedbed (FS), allelopathic water extracts (AWE), chemical control (CC), weed-free (WF) weedy-check (WC) on weed spectrum in various barley-based cropping systems, i.e., fallow-barley (FB), maize-barley (MB), cotton-barley (CB), mungbean-barley (M*B), and sorghum-barley (SB). Data relating to density, diversity, and biomass production of weed species prevailing in the studied cropping systems were recorded. Interactive effect of weed management methods and barley-based cropping systems significantly altered weed diversity, and densities of individual, broadleaved, and grassy weeds. A total 13 weed species (ten broadleaved and three grass) were recorded during both years of study. The highest dry biomass, diversity, and density of individual, broadleaved, and grassy weeds were noted in WC treatment, whereas WF treatment resulted in the lowest values of these traits. Chemical control resulted in the highest suppression of weed flora and improved dry biomass production of barley followed by AWE. The SB cropping system with CC or AWE resulted in the least weed flora. The M*B cropping system with CC or AWE produced the highest dry biomass of barley. It is concluded that including sorghum crop in rotation and applying AWE could suppress weeds comparable to herbicides. Similarly, including mungbean in rotation and applying AWE could increase dry biomass production of barley. In conclusion, herbicides can be replaced with an eco-friendly approach, i.e., allelopathy and inclusion of sorghum crop could be helpful in suppressing weed flora

Migration research issues in Asia

Abstract: Purpose: The aim of this study is to highlight the issues confronted during research on migration from Asian perspectives. In addition, the study aims to convince the research dimensions to be in line with the issues of the current environment. Approach: A quantitative approach is perceived to be an ideal technique to be employed for this research study since most of the data has been acquired from the secondary work done by different research fellows on the subject. Descriptive analysis has been presented on the work earlier done and also focused on the gap for the incumbent studies. Findings: Intense migration occurred over the last three decade in Asia, this article’s area of concern on research conduction of international labor in Asia. This article covers research carried out in the late twenty-first century. The rising implication called for highlighting the Asian migration phenomena. The rising implication called for highlighting the Asian migration phenomena. It is evident by present work on the literature on migration, the development of research, and the development of research networks in the region. It is suggested that increased efforts should focus on the establishment of a link between internal and international migration in spite of more work on migration phenomena in the region. Conclusion: It is concluded that migration in Asia is a significant phenomenon, and if it continues, will hurt the associated nations due to brain drain