Improving Workplace Commitment to Change: A Test of Impact Reflection and Motivation on Perceived Commitment Constructs

Commitment to change in the constantly evolving world of work presents compelling obstacles for both employers and employees (Meyer, Allen, & Topolnytsky, 1998). The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of impact reflection (i.e., focus on employer vs. employee) and extrinsic motivation (i.e., approach vs. avoidance motivation) on employed and working participants’ commitment to change scores and other commitment constructs, such as work-life balance and job satisfaction. In an online survey, participants were asked to consider a potential policy change that their employer might adopt (i.e., formalizing the use of social networking sites to recruit and screen potential employees, and monitor and interact with existing employees) and respond to a battery of measures (Commitment to Change Scales, Work-Life Balance Culture Scales, Job Satisfaction Scales) in response to this change. They also completed the Workplace Culture Questionnaire which measured perceptions of autonomy at work. Results showed no significant main effects of impact reflection or motivation on commitment to change, work-life balance, or job satisfaction. However, these three constructs were strongly correlated with each other, and workplace autonomy was strongly correlated with each of these commitment constructs. Other findings showed that age and educational attainment correlated with commitment to change, work-life balance, and job satisfaction. Implications of these findings and future research are discussed

Effectiveness and Efficiency of Persuasive Space Graphics (PSG) in Motivating UK Primary School Children’s Hand Hygiene

Good hand hygiene is necessary to control and prevent infections, but many children do not adequately wash their hands. While there are classroom communications targeted at children, the toilet space, the location of many hand hygiene activities, is neglected. This paper describes an initial evaluation of “123” persuasive space graphics (images and messages integrated within an architectural environment that encourage specific actions). The effectiveness (whether hand hygiene improves) and efficiency (the ease with which a setting can adopt and implement an intervention) is evaluated in three UK schools and one museum. Five evaluations (participant demographic, handwashing frequency, handwashing quality, design persuasiveness, stakeholder views) were conducted. In the school settings, persuasive space graphics increased the quality and frequency of handwashing. In the museum setting, frequency of handwashing slightly increased. In all settings children found the graphics persuasive, and stakeholders also believed them to be effective. Stakeholders considered persuasive space graphics a low-cost and time-efficient way to communicate. It can be concluded that persuasive space graphics are effective in increasing hand hygiene, particularly in school settings where children have a longer exposure to the graphics. Persuasive space graphics are also an efficient low-cost means of communicating hand hygiene

Catch crop strategy and nitrate leaching following grazed grass-clover

Cultivation of grassland presents a high risk of nitrate leaching. This study aimed to determine if leaching could be reduced by growing spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) as a green crop for silage with undersown Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) compared with barley grown to maturity with or without an undersown conventional catch crop of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.). All treatments received 0,60 or 120 kg of ammonium-N ha-1 in cattle slurry. In spring 2003, two grass-clover fields (3 and 5 years old, respectively, with different management histories) were ploughed. The effects of the treatments on yield and nitrate leaching were determined in the first year, while the residual effects of the treatments were determined in the second year in a crop of spring barley⁄perennial ryegrass. Nitrate leaching was estimated in selected treatments using soil water samples from ceramic cups. The experiment showed that compared with treatments without catch crop, green barley⁄Italian ryegrass reduced leaching by 163–320 kg Nha-1, corresponding to 95–99%, and the perennial ryegrass reduced leaching to between 34 and 86 kg Nha-1, corresponding to a reduction of 80 and 66%. Also, in the second growing season, leaching following catchcrops was reduced compared with the bare soil treatment. It was concluded that the green barley⁄Italian ryegrass offers advantages not only for the environment but also for farmers, for whom it provides a fodder high in roughage and avoids the difficulties with clover fatigue increasingly experienced by Danish farmers

Molecular Dynamics of Polystyrene Solutions in Microwave Fields

Equilibrium and nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulation techniques were used to assess the influence of an applied microwave field on the dynamics of methylamine-methanol and methylamine-dimethylformamide (DMF) solutions bound within atactic polystyrene over a range of polymer densities from 35 to 96 wt % polymer. Atomistically detailed systems were studied, ranging from 3000 to 10 644 particles, using previously established potential models. Structural and dynamical properties were determined in the canonical (NVT) ensemble at 298 K. The simulated DMF self-diffusion coefficients in polystyrene solutions were compared with the zero-field experimental results established with pulsed-gradient spin-echo NMR spectrometry. A simulated external microwave field, with a rms electric field intensity of 0.1 V/Å, was applied to these systems and the simulated dynamical results over field frequencies up to 104 GHz were compared with the zero-field values. Simulated evidence of athermal effects on the diffusive characteristics of these mixtures is reported

A Comparative Study of the Properties of Polar and Nonpolar Solvent/Solute/Polystyrene Solutions in Microwave Fields Via Molecular Dynamics

The influence of an applied microwave field on the dynamics of methylamine-dichloromethane (DCM) mixtures bound within atactic polystyrene (a-PS) over a range of polymer densities from 30 to 94 wt % polymer was examined using atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. This study is an extension of previous studies on methylamine transport in relatively polar polystyrene solutions of methanol and dimethylformamide [M. J. Purdue et al., J. Chem. Phys. 124, 204904 (2006)]. A direct comparison is made across the three types of polystyrene solutions. Consideration is given to both solvent and reagent transport within the polymer solutions under zero-field conditions and in an external electromagnetic field in the canonical ensemble (NVT) at 298.0 K. Various frequencies up to 104 GHz and a rms electric field intensity of 0.1 V/Å were applied. The simulation studies were validated by comparison of the simulated zero-field self-diffusion coefficients of DCM in a-PS with those obtained using pulsed-gradient spin-echo NMR spectrometry. Athermal effects of microwave fields on solute transport behavior within polymer solutions are discussed

HOIL1 regulates group 2 innate lymphoid cell numbers and type 2 inflammation in the small intestine

Patients with mutations in HOIL1 experience a complex immune disorder including intestinal inflammation. To investigate the role of HOIL1 in regulating intestinal inflammation, we employed a mouse model of partial HOIL1 deficiency. The ileum of HOIL1-deficient mice displayed features of type 2 inflammation including tuft cell and goblet cell hyperplasia, and elevated expression of Il13, Il5 and Il25 mRNA. Inflammation persisted in the absence of T and B cells, and bone marrow chimeric mice revealed a requirement for HOIL1 expression in radiation-resistant cells to regulate inflammation. Although disruption of IL-4 receptor alpha (IL4Rα) signaling on intestinal epithelial cells ameliorated tuft and goblet cell hyperplasia, expression of Il5 and Il13 mRNA remained elevated. KLRG

A video life-world approach to consultation practice: The relevance of a socio-phenomenological approach

This article discusses the [development and] use of a video life-world schema to explore alternative orientations to the shared health consultation. It is anticipated that this schema can be used by practitioners and consumers alike to understand the dynamics of videoed health consultations, the role of the participants within it and the potential to consciously alter the outcome by altering behaviour during the process of interaction. The study examines health consultation participation and develops an interpretative method of analysis that includes image elicitation (via videos), phenomenology (to identify the components of the analytic framework), narrative (to depict the stories of interactions) and a reflexive mode (to develop shared meaning through a conceptual framework for analysis). The analytic framework is derived from a life-world conception of human mutual shared interaction which is presented here as a novel approach to understanding patient-centred care. The video materials used in this study were derived from consultations in a Walk-in Centre (WiC) in East London. The conceptual framework produced through the process of video analysis is comprised of different combinations of movement, knowledge and emotional conversations that are used to classify objective or engaged WiC health care interactions. The videoed interactions organise along an active or passive, facilitative or directive typical situation continuum illustrating different kinds of textual approaches to practice that are in tension or harmony. The schema demonstrates how practitioners and consumers interact to produce these outcomes and indicates the potential for both consumers and practitioners to be educated to develop practice dynamics that support patient-centred care and impact on health outcomes

Clinical peripherality: development of a peripherality index for rural health services

BACKGROUND: The configuration of rural health services is influenced by geography. Rural health practitioners provide a broader range of services to smaller populations scattered over wider areas or more difficult terrain than their urban counterparts. This has implications for training and quality assurance of outcomes. This exploratory study describes the development of a "clinical peripherality" indicator that has potential application to remote and rural general practice communities for planning and research purposes. METHODS: Profiles of general practice communities in Scotland were created from a variety of public data sources. Four candidate variables were chosen that described demographic and geographic characteristics of each practice: population density, number of patients on the practice list, travel time to nearest specialist led hospital and travel time to Health Board administrative headquarters. A clinical peripherality index, based on these variables, was derived using factor analysis. Relationships between the clinical peripherality index and services offered by the practices and the staff profile of the practices were explored in a series of univariate analyses. RESULTS: Factor analysis on the four candidate variables yielded a robust one-factor solution explaining 75% variance with factor loadings ranging from 0.83 to 0.89. Rural and remote areas had higher median values and a greater scatter of clinical peripherality indices among their practices than an urban comparison area. The range of services offered and the profile of staffing of practices was associated with the peripherality index. CONCLUSION: Clinical peripherality is determined by the nature of the practice and its location relative to secondary care and administrative and educational facilities. It has features of both gravity model-based and travel time/accessibility indicators and has the potential to be applied to training of staff for rural and remote locations and to other aspects of health policy and planning. It may assist planners in conceptualising the effects on general practices of centralising specialist clinical services or administrative and educational facilities

The economic cost of bereavement in Scotland.

Aspects of the socioeconomic costs of bereavement in Scotland were estimated using 3 sets of data. Spousal bereavement was associated with increased mortality and longer hospital stays, with additional annual cost of around {pound}20 million. Cost of bereavement coded consultations in primary care was estimated at around {pound}2.0 million annually. In addition, bereaved people were significantly less likely to be employed in the year of and 2 years after bereavement than non-bereaved matched controls, but there were no significant differences in income between bereaved people and matched controls before and after bereavement

GP-support by means of AGnES-practice assistants and the use of telecare devices in a sparsely populated region in Northern Germany – proof of concept

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In many rural regions in Germany, the proportion of the elderly population increases rapidly. Simultaneously, about one-third of the presently active GPs will retire until 2010. Often it is difficult to find successors for vacant GP-practices. These regions require innovative concepts to avoid the imminent shortage in primary health care.</p> <p>The AGnES-concept comprises the delegation of GP-home visits to qualified AGnES-practice assistants (AGnES: GP-supporting, community-based, e-health-assisted, systemic intervention). Main objectives were the assessment of the acceptance of the AGnES-concept by the participating GPs, patients, and AGnES-practice assistants, the kind of delegated tasks, and the feasibility of home telecare in a GP-practice.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In this paper, we report first results of the implementation of this concept in regular GP-practices, conducted November 2005 – March 2007 on the Island of Rügen, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. This study was meant as a proof of concept.</p> <p>The GP delegated routine home-visits to qualified practice employees (here: registered nurses). Eligible patients were provided with telecare-devices to monitor disease-related physiological values.</p> <p>All delegated tasks, modules conducted and questionnaire responses were documented. The participating patients were asked for their acceptance based on standardized questionnaires. The GPs and AGnES-practice assistants were asked for their judgement about different project components, the quality of health care provision and the competences of the AGnES-practice assistants.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>550 home visits were conducted. 105 patients, two GPs and three AGnES-practice assistants (all registered nurses) participated in the project. 48 patients used telecare-devices to monitor health parameters. 87.4% of the patients accepted AGnES-care as comparable to common GP-care. In the course of the project, the GPs delegated an increasing number of both monitoring and interventional tasks to the AGnES-practice assistants. The GPs agreed that delegating tasks to a qualified practice assistant relieves them in their daily work.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A part of the GPs home visits can be delegated to AGnES-practice assistants to support GPs in regions with an imminent or already existing undersupply in primary care. The project triggered discussions among the institutions involved in the German healthcare system and supported a reconciliation of the respective competences of physicians and other medical professions.</p