Regulation of health and safety in the workplace: The role of prosecution as a regulatory instrument

The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 has been enacted and will come into force in April 2016. The purpose of the Act is to provide a balanced framework to secure the health and safety of workers and workplaces. The Act promotes the provision of information, guidance and education and also seeks to secure compliance through effective and appropriate compliance measure, including criminal prosecution. The deterrent effect of prosecution is likely to inhibit the parties’ willingness to engage in the open and transparent information sharing. This has the potential to create an unsatisfactory equilibrium in terms of achieving the regulatory goal where there is insufficient information and certainty to both comply with, and enforce, the legislation effectively. This can be addressed by the use of compliance and enforcement policies enabling regulators to take a strategic approach to the use of prosecution as a compliance tool and to signal when prosecution will be used, however the capacity for private prosecution adds an element of unpredictability for all parties

Examination of Silica Sol-Gels and Aerogels Containing Silver Nanoparticles and 4-Mercaptobenzoic Acid Using Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Sol-gels and aero-gels containing silver nanoparticles have been investigated for use as substrates in surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). 4-Mercaptobenzoic acid (4-MBA) was chosen as the target molecule in this study, as it has been well-characterized using SERS. The orientation of the 4-MBA at different coverages in gels, and at differing concentrations of silver colloid, has not been well studied. For both base and acid-catalyzed sol-gels, xerogels, and aerogels, the concentration of 4-MBA was varied with a constant silver colloid concentration in the silica gels and the effects were measured with SERS. The effect of varying silver colloid concentration against a constant 4-MBA concentration was also investigated. The results of each process were compared

Habitual prospective memory in schizophrenia

Background Prospective memory (PM), the act of remembering that something has to be done in the future without any explicit prompting to recall, provides a useful framework with which to examine problems in internal-source monitoring. This is because it requires distinguishing between two internally-generated processes, namely the intention to perform an action versus actual performance of the action. In habitual tasks, such as taking medicine every few hours, the same PM task is performed regularly and thus it is essential that the individual is able to distinguish thoughts (i.e., thinking about taking the medicine) from actions (i.e., actually taking the medicine). Methods We assessed habitual PM in patients with schizophrenia by employing a laboratory analogue of a habitual PM task in which, concurrently with maneuvering a ball around an obstacle course (ongoing activity), participants were to turn over a counter once during each trial (PM task). After each trial, participants were asked whether they had remembered to turn the counter over. Results Patients with schizophrenia made a disproportionate number of errors compared to controls of reporting that a PM response had been made (i.e., the counter turned over) after an omission error (i.e., the counter was not turned over). There was no group difference in terms of reporting that an omission error occurred (i.e., forgetting to turn over the counter) when in fact a PM response had been made. Conclusion Patients with schizophrenia displayed a specific deficit distinguishing between two internally-generated sources, attributable to either poor source monitoring or temporal discrimination

Using the CDC’s Healthcare Personnel and First Responders: How to Cope with Stress and Build Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic Education Resources to Reduce Burnout of Intensive Care Nurses at an Urban Acute Care Hospital

Background: Nurse burnout is a serious problem, as documented by many studies. Burnout has been shown to lower quality of life, performance level, and organizational commitment while also increasing a nurses\u27 desire to leave the job. Despite this knowledge, nurse burnout continues to be present, especially among nurses who work in intensive care units (ICUs). Hospitals need ICU nurses to care for critically ill patients; therefore, it is essential to educate ICU nurses on burnout and initiate measures to decrease burnout in this vulnerable population. Purpose: The goals of this study are to explore nurse burnout in the medical intensive care unit (MICU) of an urban acute care hospital, implement educational teaching about burnout reduction using the CDC’s Healthcare Personnel and First Responders: How to Cope with Stress and Build Resilience during the COVID-19 Pandemic resource, and assess the effectiveness of the education after implementation. Methods: This quality improvement project consists of a didactic program offered to all permanent day and night shift nurses in the MICU of an urban acute care hospital. A Maslach Burnout Inventory Survey was given to all participants before and after the educational intervention to assess success of the intervention on the study population. Results: Key results included statistically significant improvement in emotional exhaustion (11.7%), depersonalization (11.7%), and personal accomplishment (8.3%) after implementing a burnout prevention educational program. Conclusion: This project helped to stress the importance of hospitals implementing a burnout prevention program and offering this education to nursing staff to improve their mental health and improve patient care and outcomes

An Exploration of Why Integration Efforts Are Largely Unsuccessful in Predominantly White Christian Churches

With a purpose of understanding why church diversification efforts remain largely unsuccessful, this qualitative multiple case study includes an exploration of the experiences of seven African Americans and six Caucasians who are current or former members of predominantly White nondenominational churches. Interviews focused on revealing experiences and interactions that may have made African Americans feel more welcome as well as experiences and interactions that may have made African Americans feel more out of place in a predominantly White church setting. While African Americans gave a personal account of their experiences as African Americans, Caucasian participants were asked to provide their perspective of factors they believed may have made African Americans feel more welcome or unwelcome in their churches. Results include a summary of each participant’s personal experience as well as the resulting themes that emerged from the group of African American participants and the resulting themes that emerged from the Caucasian participants

A pilot study on the impact of teaching assistant led CS1 study sessions using Peer Instruction

James Madison University’s Computer Science program strives to be a student-centered learning environment with a focus on creating a community for undergraduate success. National data reveals computer science has the lowest student retention rate compared to other STEM majors. The National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT) has compiled a list of ways to retain students in Computer Science. In particular, NCWIT calls for collaboration indicate that “a sense of belonging, or a feeling of fit, is important for supporting student interest and persistence.” One aspect of creating community is the department’s longstanding commitment to provide undergraduate teaching assistants (TAs). Traditionally, TAs provide one-on-one help in the classroom and also hold supplementary lab hours in the evenings to answer questions. As part of this honors project, we have developed a new program called “The Fourth Hour” to increase student retention. Led by TAs using Peer Instruction (PI), these weekly study sessions provide a structured review of introductory topics. The aim of this research is to discover if weekly study sessions promote an environment in which students feel an increased sense of belonging and improved course material retention. In the Fall 2019 semester, JMU offered ten sections of CS149, the introductory programming course, also known as “CS1” in the literature. Each section had approximately 30 students enrolled. Four TAs were chosen to lead one study session each week using the same lesson materials. Three attitudinal surveys were administered over the duration of the semester to collect data on student demographics, self-efficacy, and sense of belonging. Pre- and post assessment results were recorded to test student course material retention. Study session attendance was also collected to discern if there was a correlation with student demographics, self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and/or course material retention. Anomalies in the data and inconsistent attendance rates limited the statistical significance of our results. However, our qualitative analysis suggests that the study sessions had a positive impact on students. As a result, the CS department is planning to continue offering the Fourth Hour program

Classroom Approaches and Japanese College Students\u27 Intercultural Competence

Preparing college students to be contributing members of local and global societies requires educators to analyze the capabilities and needs of their students and to adjust instructional content and practice. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was twofold: (a) to explore how classroom approaches designed to facilitate students\u27 questioning of assumptions and beliefs regarding different cultural beliefs, social structures, and practices might influence Japanese college students\u27 self-reported development of intercultural competence, and (b) to investigate whether or not the students developed their potential for intercultural competence. Mezirow\u27s transformative learning theory informed this study. Archival qualitative data were from 137 Japanese undergraduate students\u27 journals from a course with approaches designed to facilitate questioning their assumptions and beliefs. Multilevel coding was used to support thematic analysis. Archival quantitative data of students\u27 pretest and posttest scores on the Intercultural Adaptation Potential Scale (ICAPS) were too few for meaningful analysis. Limited trend interpretations of the quantitative data helped support the qualitative data findings. Key findings included students identifying the importance of opportunities to discuss conflicting cultural beliefs, social structures, and practices; several questioned their assumptions and enhanced their intercultural competence. Expanded research into the challenge of enhancing cultural competence is needed. Positive social change is possible when intercultural competence and understanding the importance of dealing with cultural conflicts in an informed manner are enhanced. Students who expand their comfort levels and understandings will gain membership into multiple societies, reflect critically on their worldviews, and be able to take positive actions during conflicts

Predicting Forgiveness in Women Experiencing Intimate Partner Violence

Several theories have attempted to explain the stay/leave decisions of women experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV). One recent study suggests that women’s intent to return to their abusive partners was related to forgiveness of the abuse; consequently, this study aims to identify factors that may make women more likely to forgive IPV. It was hypothesized that commitment, specifically both personal dedication and constraint commitment (Stanley & Markman, 1992), would predict forgiveness and that denial of injury would mediate the relation between commitment and forgiveness, as women may be more likely to deny the severity of the abuse in order to reduce the experienced dissonance that arises from being committed to an unhealthy relationship. Finally, it was hypothesized that silencing the self (Jack, 1991) would moderate the relation between personal dedication and denial of injury. Results generally supported the hypothesis that denial of injury would mediate the relation between commitment and forgiveness. Silencing the self was not found to be a moderator. These findings, limitations, and future directions are discussed