Vem får bistånd?

Uppsatsen nedan behandlar ämnena media och bistånd genom att undersöka det potentiella sambandet mellan medial exponering och mängden utvecklingsbistånd. Hypotesen lyder att ökad medieexponering av ett visst land är direkt korrelerat med ökat utvecklingsbistånd till samma land. För att besvara hypotesen genomfördes inledningsvis en kvantitativ innehållsanalys av mängden artiklar svensk tryckt press skrivit om de undersökta länderna under 27 års tid. Därefter analyserades biståndsuppgifterna för respektive land i relation till de specifika ländernas mediala exponering, det vill säga ovan nämnda artiklar, för samma tidsperiod. Relationen mellan media och bistånd sammanställdes sedan genom en regressionsanalys, där ett signifikant samband visade sig finnas. Resultatet av denna undersökning har sedermera analyserats utifrån ett teoretiskt ramverk, bland annat baserat på Robinsons CNN-effekt och McCombs teori om dagordningen. Analysen pekar på att medial exponering påverkar biståndsallokeringen både genom att influera beslutsfattare personligen, men också genom att styra opinionen

Postural Control Adaptation during Galvanic Vestibular and Vibratory Proprioceptive stimulation

he objective for this study was to investigate whether the adaptation of postural control was similar during galvanic vestibular stimulation and during vibratory proprioceptivestimulation of the calf muscles. Healthy subjects were tested during erect stance with eyes open or closed. An analysis method designed to consider the adaptive adjustments was used to evaluate the motion dynamics and the evoked changes of posture and stimulation response.Galvanic vestibular stimulation induced primarily lateral body movements and vibratory proprioceptive stimulation induced anteroposterior movements. The lateral body sway generated by the galvanic stimulation was proportionally smaller and contained more high-frequency movements (0.1 Hz) than the anteroposterior body sway induced by the vibratory stimulation. The adaptive adjustments of the body sway to the stimulation had similar time course and magnitude during galvanic and vibratory stimulation. The perturbations induced by stimulation were gradually reduced within the same time range (15–20 s) and both kinds of stimulation induced a body leaning whose direction was dependent on stimulus. The similarities in the adjustmentpatterns suggest that postural control operates in the same way independent of the receptor systems affected by the disturbance and irrespective of whether the motion responses were induced in a lateral or anteroposterior direction

Perceived and functional balance control is negatively affected by diminished touch and vibration sensitivity in relatively healthy older adults and elderly

Background: Severe diminished foot somatosensation, for example, caused by neuropathies and advanced aging, contributes to balance deficits and increased fall risk. However, little is known about somatosensory impairment and functional and subjective balance problems in relatively healthy elderly. Method: Vibration perception thresholds (VPTs) were assessed with a biothesiometer and tactile pressure sensation thresholds (TPSTs) with 20 monofilaments in 34 relatively healthy community-dwelling older adults (M = 69.4 years). Balance was evaluated with functional balance tests and questionnaires. A stepwise regression analysis was performed to determine the extent to which VPTs, TPSTs, and age could explain balance impairments. Results: High VPTs had negative effects on Berg Balance Scale and Dizziness Handicap Inventory scores (p ≤ .011), as did high TPSTs on walking speed and Figure-8 test (p ≤ .001). With visual information available, one-leg standing time (OLST) was significantly affected by ipsilateral VPTs on solid and TPSTs on compliant surface (p ≤ .002). Without visual information, age was the only factor with a main effect on OLST (p < .001). Age had no significant correlations with TPSTs or VPTs. Discussion: Somatosensation appears to be very important for perceived as well as functional balance control in older adults. Our findings have important clinical implications when assessing balance impairment and impending fall risk

Visual influences on vestibular compensation and postural control

This thesis aimed to investigate visual-vestibular interactions in healthy subjects and in patients with a well defined unilateral vestibular lesion (vestibular schwannoma before and six months after translabyrinthine surgery). Visual information is particularly important for balance control during perturbed stance. The physical act of having the eyes open or closed affects motion strategy in postural control. Standing with eyes open in darkness during balance perturbations is initially of disadvantage compared to standing with eyes closed. The postural control system appears to expect visual feedback information when eyes are open, which delays a re-weighting to vestibular and proprioceptive information. A pathologic deviation of the subjective visual horizontal (SVH) and vertical (SVV) toward the lesioned side is still present six months after unilateral vestibular deafferentation. There is great SVH and SVV variability between patients which proposes an idiosyncrasy in the compensation of graviceptive vestibular tone imbalance. Postural sway is not related to the deviation of the SVH and SVV which indicates that utriculo-ocular compensation is not related to postural compensation. Patients with a unilateral vestibular schwannoma are not more visually field dependent than healthy subjects are, but have an increased ipsilesional deviation in the rod and frame test. This suggests asymmetric visual field dependence, and that the rod and frame test can reveal a hidden vestibular imbalance. Older patients with a vestibular schwannoma have increased visual dependency and decreased compensation of the SVH and SVV compared to younger patients. Alcohol intoxication impairs the ability to use gravitational vestibular cues in SVH and SVV tests, and increases visual field dependence. Visual dependence and visual-vestibular interactions are important factors to consider when investigating and rehabilitating patients with balance disorders. With conflicting gravitational and visual information a re-weighting from a vestibular to a more visual dependency in balance control might increase the risk of misinterpreting the visual information and thus increase the risk of accidents. It is important with good lighting conditions to provide patients with adequate sway referencing visual information

Low efficacy using the 256-Hz tuning fork when evaluating the influence of somatosensation in balance control for relatively healthy elderly

Background: Diminished foot somatosensation contributes to balance deficits and increased fall risk. However, it remains unclear if the 256-Hz tuning fork is adequate to measure, in the outpatient clinical setting, somatosensation in relatively healthy elderly. Aims/Objectives: To evaluate the performance of the 256-Hz tuning fork compared to other measures of somatosensation and balance. Material and methods: Thirty-six subjects (mean 69.4 ± 5.3 years) were allocated into four 256-Hz tuning fork sensation groups (TFSG) based on their ability to detect vibration at the first metatarsal, malleolus, tibia or no sites. A biothesiometer measured vibration perception thresholds (VPTs) and 20 monofilaments tactile pressure sensation thresholds (TPSTs). Balance was evaluated with posturography, functional balance tests and questionnaires. Results: There were no significant differences in age, VPTs or TPSTs between the four TFSGs, nor in outcome of functional balance tests, posturography and questionnaires. Very few significant associations were found between TFSGs and VPTs, TPSTs, functional balance tests, posturography and questionnaires. Conclusions and significance: Somatosensation measured with a 256-Hz tuning fork seems to be a minor determinant for balance and thus superfluous when evaluating the importance of vibration perception for balance control in relatively healthy elderly

School nurses experience of working with students who have coherent absence

Bakgrund: Allt fler elever är helt eller delvis frånvarande utan giltiga skäl från skolans undervisning trots att det är skolplikt. Det finns många faktorer som påverkar att en elev har frånvaro, dessa kan kategoriseras till psykologiska, sociala/familjerelaterade samt pedagogiska. Elevhälsan bör vara delaktiga i arbetet med att främja närvaro då elever i behov av stöd kan identifieras tidigt. Skolsköterskan innehar kunskap om hälsa, hälsoproblematik samt psykisk ohälsa och kan integrera detta i arbetet och fungera som en länk mellan elev, vårdnadshavare, skola och externa kontakter. Syfte: Undersöka skolsköterskans erfarenhet av att arbeta med elevers ogiltiga sammanhängande frånvaro på högstadiet. Metod: Studien genomfördes med kvalitativ metod. Tio skolsköterskor intervjuades via epost och analyserades med kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultat: Studien resulterade i tre huvudkategorier: Att skolsköterskan uppmärksammas på elevers frånvaro, att arbeta med elever som har frånvaro, att samverka. Slutsats: Skolsköterskans arbete med frånvarande elever sker i samverkan med andra professioner utefter de rutiner och handlingsplaner som finns. Skolsköterskorna är inte alltid direkt involverade i arbetet med dessa elever däremot är skolsköterskorna ofta den samverkande länken i kontakt med professioner inom och utanför skolan gällande dessa elever. Background: More and more students are wholly or partially absent without valid reasons from the schools teaching even though there is compulsory attendance. There are many factors that affect a student being absent, these can be categorized into psychological, social/family and educational. Student health should be part in the efforts to promote attendance, where students in need of support can be identified early. The school nurse holds the knowledge of health, health problems and mental illness and know how to integrate this into the work and working as a link between the students, parents, school and external contacts. Aim: The aim of this study was to examine school nurses experience of working with students who have coherent absence Method: A qualitative research method was used for this study. Ten school nurses were interviewed using e-mail surveys which have been analyzed using qualitative content analysis. Results: The study resulted in three main categories: School nurses get notice about students with absence, School nurses work with absent student and to cooperate. Conclusion: School nurses work with absent students is done through cooperation with other professions following the current routines and plans for action. School nurses are not directly involved with these students but school nurses frequently work as the collaborative link when contacting other professionals internal and external due to these students

An exploration of Swedish companies' offshoring of R&D activities to China

A trend among manufacturing companies is offshoring of R & D. The aim of this study is to investigate Swedish companies\u27 offshoring of R & D activities to China, utilizing both a survey and explorative case studies. The survey results show that 9% of the companies have offshored R & D to China, that performance in China is satisfactory, primarily in terms of costs, and that there is a need for strong integration mechanisms to handle coordination and information sharing. Based on the case studies, a categorization of firms offshoring R & D into Market- & Talent-driven firms and Low-cost & Supplydriven firms is proposed, as these have different challenges and require different managerial solutions. Finally, a dilemma concerning information sharing and innovation is identified and discussed. \ua9 2010 IEEE

Effectuation of adaptive stability and postural alignment strategies are decreased by alcohol intoxication.

Human stability control is a complex process comprising contributions from several partly independent mechanisms such as coordination, feedback and feed-forward control, and adaptation. Acute alcohol intoxication impairs these functions and is recognized as a major contributor to fall traumas. The study aimed to investigate how alcohol intoxication at .06% and .10% blood alcohol concentration (BAC) affected the movement spans and control of posture alignment. The angular positions of the head, shoulder, hip and knees relative to the ankles were measured with a 3D motion analysis system in 25 healthy adults during standing with eyes open or closed and with or without vibratory balance perturbations. Alcohol intoxication significantly increased the movement spans of the head, shoulders, hip and knees in anteroposterior and lateral directions during quiet stance (p⩽.047 and p⩽.003) and balance perturbations (p<.001, both directions). Alcohol intoxication also decreased the ability to reduce the movement spans through adaptation in both anteroposterior (p⩽.011) and lateral (p⩽.004) directions. When sober and submitted to balance perturbations, the subjects aligned the head, shoulders, hip and knees more forward relative to the ankle joint (p<.001), hence adopting a more resilient posture increasing the safety margin for backward falls. Alcohol intoxication significantly delayed this forward realignment (p⩽.022). Alcohol intoxication did not cause any significant posture realignment in the lateral direction. Thus, initiation of adaptive posture realignments to alcohol or other disruptions might be context dependent and associated with reaching a certain level of stability threats