Making sense of evidence in management decisions: the role of research-based knowledge on innovation adoption and implementation in health care

Background: Although innovation can improve patient care, implementing new ideas is often challenging. Previous research found that professional attitudes, shaped in part by health policies and organisational cultures, contribute to differing perceptions of innovation ‘evidence’. However, we still know little about how evidence is empirically accessed and used by organisational decision-makers when innovations are introduced. Aims and objectives: We aimed to investigate the use of different sources and types of evidence in innovation decisions to answer the following questions: how do managers make sense of evidence? What role does evidence play in management decision-making when adopting and implementing innovations in health care? How do wider contextual conditions and intraorganisational capacity influence research use and application by health-care managers? Methods: Our research design comprised multiple case studies with mixed methods. We investigated technology adoption and implementation in nine acute-care organisations across England. We employed structured survey questionnaires, in-depth interviews and documentary analysis. The empirical setting was infection prevention and control. Phase 1 focused on the espoused use of evidence by 126 non-clinical and clinical hybrid managers. Phase 2 explored the use of evidence by managers in specific technology examples: (1) considered for adoption; (2) successfully adopted and implemented; and (3) rejected or discontinued. Findings: (1) Access to, and use of, evidence types and sources varied greatly by profession. Clinicians reported a strong preference for science-based, peer-reviewed, published evidence. All groups called upon experiential knowledge and expert opinion. Nurses overall drew upon a wider range of evidence sources and types. Non-clinical managers tended to sequentially prioritise evidence on cost from national-level sources, and local implementation trials. (2) A sizeable proportion of professionals from all groups, including experienced staff, reported difficulty in making sense of evidence. Lack of awareness of existing implementation literature, lack of knowledge on how to translate information into current practice, and lack of time and relevant skills were reported as key reasons for this. (3) Infection outbreaks, financial pressures, performance targets and trusted relationships with suppliers seemed to emphasise a pragmatic and less rigorous approach in sourcing for evidence. Trust infrastructure redevelopment projects, and a strong emphasis on patient safety and collaboration, appeared to widen scope for evidence use. (4) Evidence was continuously interpreted and (re)constructed by professional identity, organisational role, team membership, audience and organisational goals. (5) Doctors and non-clinical managers sourced evidence plausible to self. Nursing staff also sought acceptance of evidence from other groups. (6) We found diverse ‘evidence templates’ in use: ‘biomedical-scientific’, ‘practice-based’, ‘rational-policy’. These represented shared cognitive models which defined what constituted acceptable and credible evidence in decisions. Nurses drew on all diverse ‘templates’ to make sense of evidence and problems; non-clinical managers drew mainly on the practice-based and rational-policy templates; and doctors drew primarily on the biomedical-scientific template. Conclusions: An evidence-based management approach that inflexibly applies the principles of evidence-based medicine, our findings suggest, neglects how evidence is actioned in practice and how codified research knowledge inter-relates with other ‘evidence’ also valued by decision-makers. Local processes and professional and microsystem considerations played a significant role in adoption and implementation. This has substantial implications for the effectiveness of large-scale projects and systems-wide policy

Serious electronic games as behavioural change interventions in healthcare-associated infections and infection prevention and control: a scoping review of the literature and future directions

Background The uptake of improvement initiatives in infection prevention and control (IPC) has often proven challenging. Innovative interventions such as ‘serious games’ have been proposed in other areas to educate and help clinicians adopt optimal behaviours. There is limited evidence about the application and evaluation of serious games in IPC. The purposes of the study were: a) to synthesise research evidence on the use of serious games in IPC to support healthcare workers’ behaviour change and best practice learning; and b) to identify gaps across the formulation and evaluation of serious games in IPC. Methods A scoping study was conducted using the methodological framework developed by Arksey and O’Malley. We interrogated electronic databases (Ovid MEDLINE, Embase Classic + Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus, Cochrane, Google Scholar) in December 2015. Evidence from these studies was assessed against an analytic framework of intervention formulation and evaluation. Results Nine hundred sixty five unique papers were initially identified, 23 included for full-text review, and four finally selected. Studies focused on intervention inception and development rather than implementation. Expert involvement in game design was reported in 2/4 studies. Potential game users were not included in needs assessment and game development. Outcome variables such as fidelity or sustainability were scarcely reported. Conclusions The growing interest in serious games for health has not been coupled with adequate evaluation of processes, outcomes and contexts involved. Explanations about the mechanisms by which game components may facilitate behaviour change are lacking, further hindering adoption

Investigation of the thermal stability of Mg/Co periodic multilayers for EUV applications

We present the results of the characterization of Mg/Co periodic multilayers and their thermal stability for the EUV range. The annealing study is performed up to a temperature of 400\degree C. Images obtained by scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy clearly show the good quality of the multilayer structure. The measurements of the EUV reflectivity around 25 nm (~49 eV) indicate that the reflectivity decreases when the annealing temperature increases above 300\degreeC. X-ray emission spectroscopy is performed to determine the chemical state of the Mg atoms within the Mg/Co multilayer. Nuclear magnetic resonance used to determine the chemical state of the Co atoms and scanning electron microscopy images of cross sections of the Mg/Co multilayers reveal changes in the morphology of the stack from an annealing temperature of 305\degreee;C. This explains the observed reflectivity loss.Comment: Published in Applied Physics A: Materials Science \& Processing Published at http://www.springerlink.com.chimie.gate.inist.fr/content/6v396j6m56771r61/ 21 page

Direct Evidence of Abortive Lytic Infection-Mediated Establishment of Epstein-Barr Virus Latency During B-Cell Infection

Viral infection induces dynamic changes in transcriptional profiles. Virus-induced and antiviral responses are intertwined during the infection. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a human gammaherpesvirus that provides a model of herpesvirus latency. To measure the transcriptome changes during the establishment of EBV latency, we infected EBV-negative Akata cells with EBV-EGFP and performed transcriptome sequencing (RNA-seq) at 0, 2, 4, 7, 10, and 14 days after infection. We found transient downregulation of mitotic division-related genes, reflecting reprogramming of cell growth by EBV, and a burst of viral lytic gene expression in the early phase of infection. Experimental and mathematical investigations demonstrate that infectious virions were not produced in the pre-latent phase, suggesting the presence of an abortive lytic infection. Fate mapping using recombinant EBV provided direct evidence that the abortive lytic infection in the pre-latent phase converges to latent infection during EBV infection of B-cells, shedding light on novel roles of viral lytic gene(s) in establishing latency. Furthermore, we find that the BZLF1 protein, which is a key regulator of reactivation, was dispensable for abortive lytic infection in the pre-latent phase, suggesting the divergent regulation of viral gene expressions from a productive lytic infection

Isolation may select for earlier and higher peak viral load but shorter duration in SARS-CoV-2 evolution

During the COVID-19 pandemic, human behavior change as a result of nonpharmaceutical interventions such as isolation may have induced directional selection for viral evolution. By combining previously published empirical clinical data analysis and multi-level mathematical modeling, we find that the SARS-CoV-2 variants selected for as the virus evolved from the pre-Alpha to the Delta variant had earlier and higher peak in viral load dynamics but a shorter duration of infection. Selection for increased transmissibility shapes the viral load dynamics, and the isolation measure is likely to be a driver of these evolutionary transitions. In addition, we show that a decreased incubation period and an increased proportion of asymptomatic infection are also positively selected for as SARS-CoV-2 mutated to adapt to human behavior (i.e., Omicron variants). The quantitative information and predictions we present here can guide future responses in the potential arms race between pandemic interventions and viral evolution

Soft-x-ray fluorescence study of the quasi-one-dimensional Heisenberg antiferromagnet tetraphenylverdazyl

Soft-x-ray fluorescence measurements have been performed on a single crystal of the organic antiferromagnet 2,4,6-triphenylverdazyl. Resonant and nonresonant C Kα and N Kα (2p → 1s transition) x-ray emission spectra (XES) were measured and compared with x-ray photoelectron valence band spectra and deMon density-functional theory calculations. It is shown that intramolecular interactions are much stronger than intermolecular ones and give the main contribution to the formation of C 2p density of states. We present evidence of a delocalization of unpaired N 2p electrons over the verdazyl ring. The excitation energy dependence of C Kα and N Kα XES observed below the C 1s and N 1s thresholds, respectively, is discussed in terms of symmetry selective resonant inelastic x-ray scattering

Healthy Campus Trial: A multiphase optimization strategy (MOST) fully factorial trial to optimize the smartphone cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) app for mental health promotion among university students: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

This is the final version. Available from the publisher via the DOI in this record.After the publication of the primary findings, the de-identified and completely anonymized individual participant-level dataset will be posted on the UMIN-ICDR website (http://www.umin.ac.jp/icdr/index-j.html) so that it can be accessed by qualified researchers.Background: Youth in general and college life in particular are characterized by new educational, vocational, and interpersonal challenges, opportunities, and substantial stress. It is estimated that 30-50% of university students meet criteria for some mental disorder, especially depression, in any given year. The university has traditionally provided many channels to promote students' mental health, but until now only a minority have sought such help, possibly owing to lack of time and/or to stigma related to mental illness. Smartphone-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) shows promise for its accessibility and effectiveness. However, its most effective components and for whom it is more (or less) effective are not known. Methods/design: Based on the multiphase optimization strategy framework, this study is a parallel-group, multicenter, open, fully factorial trial examining five smartphone-delivered CBT components (self-monitoring, cognitive restructuring, behavioral activation, assertion training, and problem solving) among university students with elevated distress, defined as scoring 5 or more on the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). The primary outcome is change in PHQ-9 scores from baseline to week 8. We will estimate specific efficacy of the five components and their interactions through the mixed-effects repeated-measures analysis and propose the most effective and efficacious combinations of components. Effect modification by selected baseline characteristics will be examined in exploratory analyses. Discussion: The highly efficient experimental design will allow identification of the most effective components and the most efficient combinations thereof among the five components of smartphone CBT for university students. Pragmatically, the findings will help make the most efficacious CBT package accessible to a large number of distressed university students at reduced cost; theoretically, they will shed light on the underlying mechanisms of CBT and help further advance CBT for depression