Towards a sustainable society: a profile of social accents

Against the background of the pending global environmental crisis, this article argues that the solutions to the crisis are as much part of the sociopolitical field as they are of the technological and scientific fields. Consequently a number of social accents that should be addressed in the attempt to achieve a sustainable society are elucidated. These accents include revision of current value systems characterized mainly by economic variables, the curbing of population growth rates, expansion of human rights, alleviation of poverty, universal access to education, health sen’ices and family planning. The redistribution of and access to natural resources, community involvement and the fostering of a political will to address these issues should also be reflected o

Speech-language therapy treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia : a scoping review

Thesis (MSL&HT)--Stellenbosch University, 2021.ENGLISH SUMMARY : The management of multilingual aphasia, a multi-layered phenomenon, is a growing and complex field in speech-language therapy. Researchers and clinicians are often faced with many challenges and questions when making clinical decisions. The decision-making process includes the following considerations: which language(s) to treat; the transfer of therapeutic benefits between the treated and untreated language(s), or not, and whether there is little or no effect in the untreated language. Despite demographic and epidemiological trends such as increased migration patterns and the linguistic diversity in South Africa (11 official languages), a comprehensive inquiry regarding clinical practices employed by speech-language therapists (SLTs) with multilingual speakers with aphasia has not been conducted yet. Given the limited clinical guidelines available for managing this clinical population, this scoping review was conducted to explore, describe, and summarise reported speech-language therapy treatment practices used with multilingual speakers with aphasia. The scoping review included two phases. Phase one was a literature review investigating international trends in the treatment of multilingual speakers with aphasia (step one to step five). This was followed by the consultation phase (step six) in the form of semi-structured interviews with five South African SLTs working with adult multilingual speakers with aphasia. Content analysis was the primary means of analysis with a quantitative approach in phase one and a qualitative approach in phase two. The scoping review revealed a range of information regarding treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia. There was variability in the practices employed and broad definitions of the terminology used. The primary concern in the stakeholder consultation process was the mismatch between the linguistic diversity amongst SLTs and most of the multilingual population in South Africa. The need for including interpreters in clinical work was also noted. These findings highlight the need to develop local research that includes evidenced-based guidelines regarding treatment practices for multilingual speakers with aphasia, despite the complexity and challenge of the heterogeneous composition of South Africa.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Meertalige afasie is 'n verskynsel met baie fasette en die behandeling daarvan is ’n groeiende en ingewikkelde proses. Navorsers en klinici het dikwels vrae wat kliniese besluitneming kan beinvloed. Die besluitnemingsproses behels onder andere die volgende: watter taal/tale om te behandel; die oordrag van terapeutiese voordele tussen die behandelde en onbehandelde tale, al dan nie, en of daar min of geen effek in die onbehandelde taal voorkom. Ten spyte van uiteenlopende demografiese en epidemiologiese neigings, soos verhoogde migrasiepatrone en die taalkundige diversiteit (11 amptelike tale) in Suid-Afrika, is daar tot op datum nie 'n omvattende ondersoek gedoen rakende kliniese praktyke wat deur spraak-taalterapeute by die meertalige bevolking gebruik word nie. 'n Oorsigstudie is aangewend om bestaande behandelingspraktyke vir spraak-taalbehandeling wat by meertalige sprekers met afasie gebruik word, te ondersoek, te beskryf en op te som. Die oorsigstudie het twee fases ingesluit. Fase een was ’n literatuuroorsig wat internasionale tendense vir die behandeling van meertalige sprekers met afasie ondersoek het (stap een tot stap vyf), gevolg deur 'n reeks semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude (stap ses) met vyf Suid-Afrikaanse spraak-taalterapeute wat betrokke was by die rehabilitasie van volwasse meertalige sprekers met afasie. Inhoudsanalise was die primêre metode van analise met 'n kwantitatiewe benadering in fase een en 'n kwalitatiewe benadering in fase twee. Die oorsigstudie het 'n verskeidenheid aspekte aangaande die behandelingspraktyke vir meertalige sprekers met afasie aangedui met verskillende resultate, asook 'n gebrek aan gedefinieerde besonderhede. Die primêre kommer wat tydens die konsultasieproses geopper is, was die wanbalans tussen die taalkundige diversiteit onder spraak-taalterapeute en die meerderheid van die veeltalige bevolking in Suid-Afrika. Daar is ook kennis geneem van die behoefte om tolke by kliniese werk in te sluit. Hierdie bevindings beklemtoon die behoefte aan plaaslike navorsing wat bewysgebaseerde riglyne rakende behandelingspraktyke vir meertalige sprekers met afasie insluit, ondanks die kompleksiteit en uitdaging van die heterogene samestelling van Suid-Afrika.Master

Short-term relationships between winter temperatures and cardiac disease mortality in Cape Town

No Abstract

Nanofibers Offer Alternative Ways to the Treatment of Skin Infections

Injury to the skin causes a breach in the protective layer surrounding the body. Many pathogens are resistant to antibiotics, rendering conventional treatment less effective. This led to the use of alternative antimicrobial compounds, such as silver ions, in skin treatment. In this review nanofibers, and the incorporation of natural antimicrobial compounds in these scaffolds, are discussed as an alternative way to control skin infections. Electrospinning as a technique to prepare nanofibers is discussed. The possibility of using these structures as drug delivery systems is investigated

Die liturgiese gebruik van die orrel in 'n post-mordene era: persepsies van kerkmusici en leraars van die Nederduitse Gereformeerde gemeentes in Port Elizabeth

In this study the liturgical usage of the organ is investigated within a post-modern society. It focuses specifically on the church services of the Dutch Reformed Congregations of Port Elizabeth with regards to the functionality of the organ during morning and evening services. The objectives of the study are to demonstrate the current situation of musical worship in the Dutch Reformed Congregations of Port Elizabeth. Furthermore it serves as a way to indicate any deficiency in the field, which would need to be addressed. In order to achieve these objectives, both a qualitative and quantitative study is undertaken. The qualitative study investigates existing literature regarding the church service and its music. The quantitative study comprises an analysis of self-administered questionnaires that was handed over for completion by the Dutch Reformed Congregations of Port Elizabeth. The results obtained were electronically processed to percentages and graphic illustrations. In this mini-treatise it is argued that the usage of other music instruments (in the form of music worship groups) during church services could possibly lead to a change in the liturgical function of the organ. It was found that the usage of the organ in the Dutch Reformed Congregations of Port Elizabeth was mainly retained during morning services. During evening services however, the usage of other music instruments was in the majority, which resulted in a decrease of organ usage. It was further discovered that a large group of organists are not involved with music worship groups. Training of organists in a contemporary style of music worship will therefore serve as a significant purpose to fulfil this deficiency

Hospitalisation for TB in the Free State: opinions of health workers and managers

Non-governmental health care providers in the Free State have traditionally provided long-term hospitalisation services for TB patients. This history now appears to have come to a halt. This paper documents the opinions of a purposive selection of public health workers and managers with regard to TB-related hospitalisation. The views and experiences of health workers and managers at the district, provincial and national levels were recorded by means of self-administered questionnaires and personal interviews over the period 2001-2003. In the Free State this period was characterised by a range of intricate problems. Indications are, however, that public district hospitals are capable of dealing with the burden caused by the sequential closure of the former Allanridge Chest and Santoord hospitals

A qualitative exploration of resilience in pre-adolescent AIDS orphans living in a residential care facility

This article presents the findings of a study among a small group of South African AIDS orphans living in a residential care facility, Lebone Land. The research was conducted between June and September 2006. A qualitative, exploratory study consisting of in-depth, semistructured interviews with eight children and seven key informants aimed to identify and investigate developmental assets operating in the children’s lives to help them cope amid exposure to adversities. The findings indicate that the  developmental assets that facilitate coping and foster resilience in these children relate to four main components: external stressors and challenges, external supports, inner strengths and interpersonal and problem-solving skills. Emerging key themes relate to the experience of illness, death, poverty and violence, as well as the important roles of morality, social values, resistance skills, religion and faith in assisting these children in defining their purpose in life. To this end, constructive use of time, commitment to learning, goal-setting, problem-solving ability and self-efficacy are fundamental in the children’s attainment of their future projections. Therefore, qualities such as optimism, perseverance and hope seem to permeate the children’s process of recovery. Strong networks of support, particularly friendships with other children, also seemto contribute to developing and sustaining resilience