Colleges of Education Libraries in Ghana: An Evaluative Study

The type of training that teachers undergo in Ghana is supposed to be characterized by the cultivation and sustaining of reading habits. This mission cannot be realized without proper libraries in the colleges of education. With the upgrading of colleges of Education in Ghana to the status of tertiary institution, one would expect that the image of libraries in colleges of education would be augmented. The study presents the results of an evaluative study of fourteen (14) colleges, representing 37.8% of the total number of colleges of education in Ghana. The article discusses amongst other factors such as budget, human resources, library collection services provided and physical facilities of the libraries being assessed. The study revealed that libraries in Ghanaian colleges of education are so poor, both quantitatively and qualitatively, that much remains to be done to enhance their status. The researchers hope that the recommendations given when fully implemented by the stakeholders will definitely raise the image of libraries in colleges of education in Ghana. Keywords: Academic libraries, College libraries, Education, Colleges of Education

Towards institutional repository sustainability: Lecturers awareness, patronage and content submission to the University of Cape Coast repository

Having been hardest hit by the crisis of inadequate funding for journal subscription, academic institutions, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa have embraced open access institutional repositories as alternative means of scholarly communication. Upon the embrace of this approach to knowledge sharing, the University of Cape Coast’s Institutional Repository, UCCSpace, like most academic repositories, has had to contend with the issues of sustainability in the area of content recruitment. The study thus assesses lecturers’ awareness and perception of institutional repositories in the context of content population and sustainability of IRs. Through the Descriptive Survey Design, the study engages 714 lecturers in a survey, yielding a 21.8% response rate, with the questionnaire analyzed descriptively. The results indicate that the respondents were generally aware of open access institutional repository concept with a positive perception about their value. Ironically, they had little knowledge of the existence and operations of UCCSpace, and equally contributed less to its content owing to reasons of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), fear of plagiarism and absence of water-tight peer review, accounted for the low patronage. The study recommends the education of lecturers and other members of the university community, increasing repository awareness via physical and virtual platforms, addressing issues of IPRs and instituting motivation schemes to encourage content submission

Logic Regression for Provider Effects on Kidney Cancer Treatment Delivery

In the delivery of medical and surgical care, often times complex interactions between patient, physician, and hospital factors influence practice patterns. This paper presents a novel application of logic regression in the context of kidney cancer treatment delivery. Using linked data from the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program and Medicare we identified patients diagnosed with kidney cancer from 1995 to 2005. The primary endpoints in the study were use of innovative treatment modalities, namely, partial nephrectomy and laparoscopy. Logic regression allowed us to uncover the interplay between patient, provider, and practice environment variables, which would not be possible using standard regression approaches. We found that surgeons who graduated in or prior to 1980 despite having some academic affiliation, low volume surgeons in a non-NCI hospital, or surgeons in rural environment were significantly less likely to use laparoscopy. Surgeons with major academic affiliation and practising in HMO, hospital, or medical school based setting were significantly more likely to use partial nephrectomy. Results from our study can show efforts towards dismantling the barriers to adoption of innovative treatment modalities, ultimately improving the quality of care provided to patients with kidney cancer

Expert consensus document: Semantics in active surveillance for men with localized prostate cancer — results of a modified Delphi consensus procedure

Active surveillance (AS) is broadly described as a management option for men with low-risk prostate cancer, but semantic heterogeneity exists in both the literature and in guidelines. To address this issue, a panel of leading prostate cancer specialists in the field of AS participated in a consensus-forming project using a modified Delphi method to reach international consensus on definitions of terms related to this management option. An iterative three-round sequence of online questionnaires designed to address 61 individual items was completed by each panel member. Consensus was considered to be reached if ≥70% of the experts agreed on a definition. To facilitate a common understanding among all experts involved and resolve potential ambiguities, a face-to-face consensus meeting was held between Delphi survey rounds two and three. Convenience sampling was used to construct the panel of experts. In total, 12 experts from Australia, France, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, the UK, Canada and the USA participated. By the end of the Delphi process, formal consensus was achieved for 100% (n = 61) of the terms and a glossary was then developed. Agreement between international experts has been reached on relevant terms and subsequent definitions regarding AS for patients with localized prostate cancer. This standard terminology could support multidisciplinary communication, reduce the extent of variations in clinical practice and optimize clinical decision making

Semantics in active surveillance for men with localized prostate cancer - results of a modified Delphi consensus procedure

Active surveillance (AS) is broadly described as a management option for men with low-risk prostate cancer, but semantic heterogeneity exists in both the literature and in guidelines. To address this issue, a panel of leading prostate cancer specialists in the field of AS participated in a consensus-forming project using a modified Delphi method to reach international consensus on definitions of terms related to this management option. An iterative three-round sequence of online questionnaires designed to address 61 individual items was completed by each panel member. Consensus was considered to be reached if >= 70% of the experts agreed on a definition. To facilitate a common understanding among all experts involved and resolve potential ambiguities, a face-to-face consensus meeting was held between Delphi survey rounds two and three. Convenience sampling was used to construct the panel of experts. In total, 12 experts from Australia, France, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, the UK, Canada and the USA participated. By the end of the Delphi process, formal consensus was achieved for 100% (n = 61) of the terms and a glossary was then developed. Agreement between international experts has been reached on relevant terms and subsequent definitions regarding AS for patients with localized prostate cancer. This standard terminology could support multidisciplinary communication, reduce the extent of variations in clinical practice and optimize clinical decision making.Peer reviewe

Reasons for Discontinuing Active Surveillance : Assessment of 21 Centres in 12 Countries in the Movember GAP3 Consortium

Background: Careful assessment of the reasons for discontinuation of active surveillance (AS) is required for men with prostate cancer (PCa). Objective: Using Movember's Global Action Plan Prostate Cancer Active Surveillance initiative (GAP3) database, we report on reasons for AS discontinuation. Design, setting, and participants: We compared data from 10 296 men on AS from 21 centres across 12 countries. Outcome measurements and statistical analysis: Cumulative incidence methods were used to estimate the cumulative incidence rates of AS discontinuation. Results and limitations: During 5-yr follow-up, 27.5% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 26.4-28.6%) men showed signs of disease progression, 12.8% (95% CI: 12.0-13.6%) converted to active treatment without evidence of progression, 1.7% (95% CI: 1.5-2.0%) continued to watchful waiting, and 1.7% (95% CI: 1.4-2.1%) died from other causes. Of the 7049 men who remained on AS, 2339 had follow-up for >5 yr, 4561 had follow-up for Conclusions: Our descriptive analyses of current AS practices worldwide showed that 43.6% of men drop out of AS during 5-yr follow-up, mainly due to signs of disease progression. Improvements in selection tools for AS are thus needed to correctly allocate men with PCa to AS, which will also reduce discontinuation due to conversion to active treatment without evidence of disease progression. Patient summary: Our assessment of a worldwide database of men with prostate cancer (PCa) on active surveillance (AS) shows that 43.6% drop out of AS within 5 yr, mainly due to signs of disease progression. Better tools are needed to select and monitor men with PCa as part of AS. (C) 2018 European Association of Urology. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Promoting Information Literacy among Undergraduate Students of Ashesi University College.

In its simplest form, information literacy is defined as the ability to recognize a need for information and from there on, one is able to locate, retrieve, evaluate and use the procured information effectively. The acquisition of information literacy skills is deemed by many as a necessity for the information age and it is termed by many as lifelong learning skills. The main objectives of the study is to promote information literacy skills among the undergraduate students of Ashesi University College; to find out whether students can use Boolean operators; to explore students ability to locate information independently; and to make recommendations to the university authority as to how information literacy skills could be promoted in among students. Copies of a questionnaire were distributed to 200 students out of a total student population of 450. Out of this number, 120 of them responded. The study revealed that most of the students’ level of information literacy is low based on the fact that they have problems in using the Boolean Operators OR, AND, andNOT. They also have a problem of using information sources and finally they use the internet without evaluating the authenticity of the website. Based on the findings, and other conclusions, recommendations are made to the authorities of Ashesi University College on how best to promote and integrate information literacy programme into the curriculum of the University

The Challenges of School Libraries after the Implementation of the New Educational Reforms in Ghana.

ABSTRACT The study is focused on challenges of school libraries in the new educational reforms in Ghana. The study was conducted at the Konongo-Odumase Senior High School in the Asante-Akim North District of the Ashanti Region. It is aimed at finding the extent to which the reforms has improved school library service provision. The study revealed that, school library service provision has not seen remarkable change since the inception of the new educational reforms in Ghana. Some of these challenges are poor funding, untrained library staff, poor facilities among others. To meet these challenges, some recommendations have been made. It is hoped that; if the recommendations made in this study are implemented, school libraries in Ghana will live up to expectation