Optimising baby to breast attachment (OBBA) : a mixed methods study

PhD ThesisPurpose – Only around 1% of mothers breastfeed their infants exclusively for the recommended first 6 months of life. Many problems causing early breastfeeding (BF) cessation can be caused by poor baby to breast attachment (BBA). The purpose of this research was to use BF mothers as co-designers to develop, refine, feasibility test and process evaluate a complex intervention which would teach new mothers how to optimise BBA in the first six weeks of BF. Design – The research was designed in three phases with the MRC framework as the overarching architecture Methodology – A mixed methods methodology enabled the collection of qualitative and quantitative data. Methods - Phase one used cognitive interviewing techniques to elicit women’s responses to undertake development and refinement of the intervention; Phase two was a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) to test the feasibility of delivering the intervention within a clinical setting and collect data to inform the design of a future definitive study; Phase three used in-depth interviews with women to undertake a thorough process evaluation and collect contextual information which was further expanded using focus groups with BF supporters. Findings – Feasibility was demonstrated and data collected to inform the design of a future definitive study. Although women used the intervention in different ways the key messages of when and how to optimise attachment was delivered. Possible enhancements to the intervention were identified. Health professionals felt the intervention was useful and had the potential to reduce their workload. Limitations – The pilot RCT was not powered to compare outcomes. A maximum variation sample used throughout all three phases sought to include as many different perspectives as possible. Originality – An intervention co-designed by women for women easily transfers information on why, when and how to optimise BBA, which may reduce the number of BF problems causing BF cessation. Next – A test of effectiveness including costs is now required.National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)’s Doctoral Research Training Programm

Resources on the Go: Providing Support for Student Writers in a Mobile World

Mobile Technology has moved from a supplementary to primary means of instruction and support in all delivery models. By creating class-specific mobile resources, writing instructors take ownership for the content of their students’ experiences. Session participants will use their own devices to engage in building mobile resources for student writers

Incentivizing and re-engaging lapsed health club members

Purpose – This quantitative research paper examined factors influencing re-engagement intentions and re-engagement behavior of lapsed health club members and identified which sales promotion incentives are most effective in re-engaging this lapsed member market. While previous studies examined reengagement intentions and re-engagement behavior in isolation, no research could be located which examined both simultaneously and the impact of promotion incentives in the health and fitness industry. Design/methodology/approach – Study A (mail survey) examined re-engagement intentions of one hundred lapsed members of a medium size suburban health club. Study B (an experimental field study) measured actual true re-engagement behavior using price and gift token as incentives to re-engage 300 lapsed members of the same health club. Ten hypotheses were tested using chi-square, logistic regression and correlation analysis. Findings – Results indicate that price is the most influential incentive in promoting re-engagement intentions, while the experimental field study tested this survey finding and reported that although incentives were more effective than nonincentives in terms of re-engagement behavior, price played a far greater significant role than gift token in actual re-engagement behavior of lapsed members. Highly satisfied customers are likely to have stronger re-engagement intentions with frequent attendees more influenced by price in terms of re-engagement intentions, while those who lapsed most recently demonstrated stronger re-engagement behavior. Research limitations/implications – Study A: While acknowledging that the sample size was limited, a respectable response rate of 49% was recorded for the mail survey in Study A but a greater response rate and larger sample size would have allowed for a more comprehensive analysis. However, the study is primarily exploratory in nature and serves to achieve the objectives of the research. The study was based on a medium size suburban health club, therefore no comparisons can be drawn between the results of this study and that involving larger health clubs, chains, urban clubs or those outside of Ireland. Although the inclusion of moderating effects was considered, it was not feasible to develop these interactions due to the limited sample size. Study B: Generalization of the findings in this study with other international markets is not possible due to differences in demographic factors, promotions and differences in the health and fitness industry. No comparison can be drawn either between health clubs which operate in a different environment, such as public or nonmembership-based clubs, urban clubs or those constituting a chain. While the offer incentives were of equal value, it is recognized that the gift token may have appealed more to females than to males. Practical implications – Health clubs should consider changing strategic focus, from being overly concentrated on new customer acquisition to actively re-engaging the lapsed member market by finding out why they left and offer an incentive such as price to re-engage. Although loyalty, duration, age, gender and income were found not to be significant in this study, satisfaction, frequency and recency of lapse were significant. Therefore, health clubs should strive to keep members satisfied, monitor and increase frequency of attendance with creative programming and commence the re-engagement process prior to the membership expiry so as to maximize re-engagement and customer retention using price discount as an incentive. Originality/value – The originality of this study is that is tests statistically consumer re-engagement intentions and actual re-engagement behavior simultaneously in a health club setting using a mail survey in Study A and Experimental Design in Study B

March 22, 1982

The Breeze is the student newspaper of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia

Course-Integrated information literacy instruction in introduction to accounting

Two groups of students, enrolled in Introduction to Accounting, volunteered to participate in a pedagogical study to assess course-integrated information literacy instruction. Only one group had received information literacy instruction in an earlier business course. Academic librarians provided three instruction sessions, and students completed a semester-long case to evaluate a company as a potential investment. The results suggest that information literacy skills can be learned for application in subsequent coursework. This research also provides some evidence of significantly greater improvement in information literacy and significantly higher perceptions of course-integrated instruction benefits by students who had not received the previous instruction

Designing a Low Water Use Landscape

A landscape design should meet the needs of the people who will use and maintain the area while incorporating the site’s existing environmental conditions into the design. Water is a limiting resource in Utah, so designing the landscape to efficiently use water is important. Conserving water in the landscape can be accomplished by selecting low water use plants, designing and scheduling irrigation systems efficiently, grouping plants according to their water requirements, and using hardscaping materials (patios, stone paths, decks, etc.) appropriately to reduce the area requiring irrigation

An organisational study into the impact of mobile devices on clinician and patient experience in Auckland, New Zealand

Mobile technology has potential to improve workflow, patient safety and quality of care, and has been identified as an important enabler of community services. However, little is known about the impact of mobile device use on clinician and patient experiences. Eleven community allied health clinicians were provided with live access to electronic health records, their email and electronic calendar, peer reviewed education and therapy mobile applications via a mobile device. Three data measures were collected over 19-weeks. First, quantitative time and motion data was gathered at baseline and follow-up to enable longitudinal analysis of clinician workflow. Second, a questionnaire consisting of rateable statements, multi-choice and open questions was completed at baseline and follow-up to enable analysis of clinician experience. Third, a short questionnaire was completed with a convenience sample of 101 patients who experienced mobile device use in their home. Clinicians and patients reported positive experiences associated with access to electronic health information at the point of care and the use of pictures, diagrams and videos to support clinical interactions. There was a significant reduction in time spent on patient related administration (

Improving financial information literacy in introduction to financial accounting

The motivation for this study came from a desire to improve teaching of the use of accounting information for decision making. The information literacy standards and related performance indicators guided the development of a semester-long case study by accounting faculty and academic business librarians. Their collaboration yielded a series of instruction modules and related student exercises leading up to a group activity involving the evaluation of a company as a potential investment for retirement savings. Students enrolled in two sections of an introductory accounting course volunteered to participate in this study. They provided information about their knowledge before and after all of the activities using a repeated measures research design involving pre-test and post-test questionnaires. The results of the study suggest significant improvements in financial information literacy upon completion of the case study

Biodiversity condition assessment for grazing lands

Using the ABCD Framework as a aurrogate for biodiversity condition