Does demand pressure on options explain movements in implied volatility?

The purpose of this study is to examine how options demand explains movements in implied volatility. The study takes a stock option approach and uses Barclays Plc. stock options to determine how stock options demand affects to corresponding implied volatility. The Barclays Plc. stock options behaviour can be seen as a reflection of stock options markets in the London International Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE). The option demands ability to explain implied volatility changes is investigated in five different moneyness categories. The empirical part of this study contains the use of Cox, Ross and Rubinstein binomial tree option pricing model and bisection method to calculate option implied volatilities. The hypotheses used in the study are based on the option pricing theory of flat option supply curves and the effects of option demand pressure on implied volatility changes are tested with specified regressions and ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation method. The data set of this study contains tick- and end-of-day Barclays Plc. stock options data from 4 January, 2005 to 30 December, 2005. These options are traded in the London International Fi-nancial Futures and Options Exchange (LIFFE). The empirical results show that changes in stock option implied volatility are directly related to demand pressure from public order flow and especially changes in implied volatility are dominated by call option demand. As a result – the demand pressure moves stock option prices. The trading is also partly motivated by changes in expected future volatility, but price reversals of implied volatilities are an average as much as 47 percent.fi=Opinnäytetyö kokotekstinä PDF-muodossa.|en=Thesis fulltext in PDF format.|sv=Lärdomsprov tillgängligt som fulltext i PDF-format

Työelämä-trilogia : Länsimaisen teatterin historiaa tutkivan ajankohtaisen ohjaussarjan ohjaaminen

Pro gradu -tutkielmani käsittelee taiteellis-tieteellistä Työelämä-projektia. Ohjasin Turun Ylioppilasteatterissa vuosina 2008–2010 esitystrilogian, joka käsitteli vanhojen tekstien ja teatterillisten tyylien avulla 2000- ja 2010-lukujen taitteen suomalaista työelämää. Trilogian ensimmäinen osa, Bertolt Brechtin Teurastamojen pyhä Johanna, otti selvää Brechtin eeppisestä teatterista. Toisessa osassa, joka oli Dario Fon Työnantajan hautajaiset, tutustuttiin commedia dell'arteen ja karnevalismiin. Viimeinen osa, Ernst Tollerin Koneitten murskaajat, toteutettiin saksalaisen 1920-luvun ekspressionismin innoittamana. Pro gradu -tutkielmani esittelee kolmiosaisen projektin kronologisesti. Käsittelen näytelmien sisältöä, valitsemiani teorioita, ennakkosuunnitelmiani sekä lopulta sitä, mitä käytännössä todella tapahtui. Käsittelen oman työni eli ohjaajantyön lisäksi myös muita teatterin osa-alueita kuten näyttelijäntyötä, katsojan osaa sekä visuaalisuutta, sillä valittu ohjausratkaisu vaikutti kaikissa tapauksissa vahvasti kokonaisuuteen. Tutkielmani on paitsi selvitys tiettyjen teatteriteorioitten soveltamisesta käytäntöön, myös kuvaus ohjaajan työskentelystä ja teatterintekemisen realiteeteista, sekä toisaalta myös pohdintaa yhteiskunnallisen vaikuttamisen mahdollisuuksista teatterin keinoin

Ohjauksen käsitteet mielenterveys- ja päihdetyössä – näkyykö asiakkaan osallisuus?

Sosiaali- ja terveydenhuollon suunniteltujen uudistusten myötä asiakkaiden ja palveluiden ohjaus on noussut esiin yhtenä keskeisenä kehittämisen kohteena. Ohjauksen käsitteitä on useita, ja niiden käyttö vaihtelee kontekstin mukaan. Tässä tutkimuksessa mielenkiinnon kohteena oli erityisesti osallisuuden näkyminen ohjauksen eri käsitteissä ja niiden sisällöllisissä kuvauksissa. Osallisuus liittyy keskeisesti sosiaali- ja terveysalalla sekä asiakaslähtöisyyteen että mielenterveys- ja päihdetyössä yhtenä lähtökohtana olevaan toipumisorientaatioon. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli selvittää, mitä ohjauskäsitteitä suomalaisissa mielenterveys- ja päihdetyötä koskevissa raporteissa on käytetty, mitkä ovat näitä käsitteitä kuvaavat tekstisisällöt ja mitkä näkökulmat näissä sisällöissä kuvastuvat. Tutkimus toteutettiin dokumenttianalyysina, ja aineisto analysoitiin sekä määrällisesti että laadullisesti. Analyysin tuloksena tunnistettiin kolme käytettyä ohjauksen käsitettä sekä kolme näkökulmaa, joista työntekijän näkökulma painottui eniten ja asiakkaan näkökulma vähiten. Tulosten perusteella voidaan todeta, että mielenterveys- ja päihdetyön alueella ohjauksen käsitteitä tulisi sekä sisällöllisesti kuvata tarkemmin että edelleen kehittää, jotta ne mahdollistavat asiakkaan osallisuuden. Tätä kehittämistyötä tulisi toipumisorientaation lähestymistavan mukaisesti tehdä yhdessä mielenterveys- ja päihdepalvelujen käyttäjien kanssa.  Abstract Concepts of guidance in the context of mental health and substance abuse care – is client involvement enabled?   Changes in the social and health care services as well as the development and utilization of the new technological methods in the everyday practice of the social and health care, have revealed a need to increase the competence of staff in different guidance activities. This need was recognized in several studies especially in the planning phase of the social and health care reform. In practice, several concepts are nowadays used when describing guidance. In the presented study the main interest was on the concepts used in the context of mental health and substance abuse care, in which the recovery approach with strong emphasis on client involvement is the main approach today. With the document analysis the aim was to describe which concepts of guidance have been used in the Finnish reports on mental health and substance abuse care, the content of these concept descriptions and the perspectives their present. Data was gathered with stepwise PRISMA process. As a result, three concepts describing the guidance were found and the most common perspective in these concepts was the employee’s perspective, two others being the client’s and service perspectives. Client perspective was the least described in the contents of these concepts, which indicates that the participation of the client is not made visible or well-supported in practice.  It should be noted that this study has certain limitations, but the results are suggesting a need to develop the concepts of guidance towards more client-inclusive descriptions. It is recommended to work together with people with lived experience on mental health and substance abuse problems in this development process. Keywords: guidance, involvement, mental health and substance abuse services, document analysis &nbsp

Supracervical hysterectomy versus total abdominal hysterectomy: perceived effects on sexual function

BACKGROUND: Our investigation sought to compare changes in sexual function following supracervical hysterectomy (SCH) and total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH). METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed to identify all patients who underwent supracervical hysterectomy or total abdominal hysterectomy at a tertiary care center. Patients who met criteria for participation were sent a one page confidential, anonymous questionnaire to assess sexual function experienced both pre- and postoperatively. A total of 69 patients in each group were eligible for participation. A multiple logistic regression model was used to analyze measured variables. RESULTS: Forty-eight percent (n = 33) of women undergoing a SCH returned the questionnaire, while 39% (n = 27) of those undergoing a TAH chose to participate. There were no significant demographic differences between the two groups. Patients who underwent TAH reported worse postoperative sexual outcome than SCH patients with respect to intercourse frequency, orgasm frequency and overall sexual satisfaction (P = 0.01, 0.03, and 0.03, respectively). Irrespective of type of hysterectomy, 35% of patients who underwent bilateral salpingoophorectomy (BSO) with hysterectomy experienced worse overall sexual satisfaction compared to 3% of patients who underwent hysterectomy alone (P = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that TAH patients experienced worse postoperative sexual function than SCH patients with respect to intercourse frequency and overall sexual satisfaction. Irrespective of type of hysterectomy, patients who underwent bilateral salpingoophorectomy experienced worse overall sexual satisfaction

Development of a European Centre of Excellence (Coe) for Research in Continuing Professional Development (UPGRADE)

The European Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Research in Continuing Professional Development (UPGRADE) is a pan-European network of researchers, clinicians, regulators, educators, and professional bodies, established in 2020 through a consensus group of experts, who defined its mission, vision, values, aims and objectives. The Centre’s aim is to advance the science of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for healthcare professionals through research and dissemination of best practices for CPD. Debate among UPGRADE partners and interchange of research data will yield best practices across countries to optimise quality CPD programmes. Collaboration, information exchange and communication among CPD experts will be facilitated through UPGRADE via an online Community of Inquiry (CoI). UPGRADE aims to evolve as a driving force network of academics and health professional leaders in research, education, professional regulation, and clinical practice whose collaborative work ensures quality and safe person-centred care. UPGRADE members are from 22 European countries, represented by strategic leaders in diverse sectors of health, policy, academia, and professional organisations. Three research-working groups constitute the pillars of UPGRADE, which addresses gaps in research, collect and create critical databases, and solidify the effectiveness of CPD

Working with families affected by mental distress: stakeholders' perceptions of mental health nurses educational needs

Family and informal caregivers provide a substantial amount of care and support to people who experience mental health problems. The aim of this study was to explore mental health nurses’, students’ and service users’ perceptions of the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are required by mental health nurses to work with families and carers using a qualitative methodology. Three themes emerged from the data: Knowledge of the family and how mental distress affects the family; Working with the family – support and education and Valuing the role of the family. The three themes demonstrate the complexity of preparing mental health nurses to work with families and carers and the paper offers recommendations about how this might be achieved

Interventions for psychosexual dysfunction in women treated for gynaecological malignancy

Backgroun

From the rhetoric to the real: a critical review of how the concepts of recovery and social inclusion may inform mental health nurse advanced level curricula – the eMenthe project

Objectives This critical review addresses the question of how the concepts of recovery and social inclusion may inform mental health nurse education curricula at Master’s level in order to bring about significant and positive change to practice. Design This is a literature-based critical review incorporating a modified rapid review method. It has been said that if done well, this approach can be highly relevant to health care studies and social interventions, and has substantial claims to be as rigorous and enlightening as other, more conventional approaches to literature (Rolfe, 2008). Data sources In this review, we have accessed contemporary literature directly related to the concepts of recovery and social inclusion in mental health. Review methods We have firstly surveyed the international literature directly related to the concepts of recovery and social inclusion in mental health and used the concept of emotional intelligence to help consider educational outcomes in terms of the required knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to promote these values-based approaches in practice. Results A number of themes have been identified that lend themselves to educational application. International frameworks exist that provide some basis for the developments of recovery and social inclusion approaches in mental health practice, however the review identifies specific areas for future development. Conclusions This is the first article that attempts to scope the knowledge, attitudes and skills required to deliver education for Master’s level mental health nurses based upon the principles of recovery and social inclusion. Emotional intelligence theory may help to identify desired outcomes especially in terms of attitudinal development to promote the philosophy of recovery and social inclusive approaches in advanced practice. Whilst recovery is becoming enshrined in policy, there is a need in higher education to ensure that mental health nurse leaders are able to discern the difference between the rhetoric and the reality

Introducing PIONEER: a project to harness big data in prostate cancer research

Prostate Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Enhancement Through the Power of Big Data in Europe (PIONEER) is a European network of excellence for big data in prostate cancer, consisting of 32 private and public stakeholders from 9 countries across Europe. Launched by the Innovative Medicines Initiative 2 and part of the Big Data for Better Outcomes Programme (BD4BO), the overarching goal of PIONEER is to provide high-quality evidence on prostate cancer management by unlocking the potential of big data. The project has identified critical evidence gaps in prostate cancer care, via a detailed prioritization exercise including all key stakeholders. By standardizing and integrating existing high-quality and multidisciplinary data sources from patients with prostate cancer across different stages of the disease, the resulting big data will be assembled into a single innovative data platform for research. Based on a unique set of methodologies, PIONEER aims to advance the field of prostate cancer care with a particular focus on improving prostate-cancer-related outcomes, health system efficiency by streamlining patient management, and the quality of health and social care delivered to all men with prostate cancer and their families worldwide.Prostate Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment Enhancement Through the Power of Big Data in Europe (PIONEER) is a European network of excellence for big data in prostate cancer, consisting of 32 private and public stakeholders from 9 countries across Europe. In this Perspectives article, the authors introduce the PIONEER project and describe its aims and plans for ultimately improving prostate cancer care through the use of big data