Vastuullinen kaivosyhtiö vai ympäristönpilaaja? Talvivaaran kriisitiedottaminen ja sen vaikutukset uutisointiin.

Tämä tutkielma käsittelee Talvivaaran Kaivososakeyhtiö Oyj:n kriisitiedottamista vuoden 2012 alkupuolelta vuoden 2013 alkuun. Kyseisenä ajanjaksona Talvivaara on joutunut moneen eri kriisitilanteeseen. Kriisin aikana organisaatiot pyrkivät yleensä viestimään tehostetusti median suuntaan, joka mielellään uutisoi kriiseistä. Tehostetun viestinnän tavoitteena on oman näkemyksen esilletuominen, julkisuushaittojen minimointi ja yleisön luottamuksen palauttaminen. Tämän tutkimuksen aineistona on Talvivaaran tarkasteltavana ajanjaksona julkaisemat lehdistö- ja pörssitiedotteet. Tekstintutkimus perustuu perinteisesti tekstin lähilukuun ja tulkintaan. Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastelen tekstien kielellisiä valintoja eri näkökulmista aineistossa esiintyviä frekventtejä piirteitä painottaen. Pääosa tutkimuksesta keskittyy tiedotteiden retoriikkaan ja argumentaatioon. Argumentaatiota tutkiessani olen hyödyntänyt argumentaatioanalyysia. Tutkimuksen vertailuaineistoksi olen valinnut Helsingin Sanomien uutiset sähköisestä uutisarkistosta vastaavalta ajalta. Näistä varsinaiseen tarkasteluun olen poiminut sellaiset uutiset, joissa on selvästi hyödynnetty Talvivaaran lähettämiä lehdistö- ja pörssitiedotteita. Vertailun tarkoituksena on ollut selvittää, onko yksittäisellä, kriisitilanteeseen joutuneella organisaatiolla valtaa vaikuttaa valtakunnallisen median uutisoinnin sisältöihin ja näkökulmiin. Olen myös sivunnut yleisemmällä tasolla muita Helsingin Sanomissa kyseisenä ajankohtana julkaistuja Talvivaara-aiheisia uutisia, jotta voin hahmottaa laajempaa näkemystä siitä, millaista kuvaa uutisointi luo Talvivaarasta ja millaisia diskursseja puhetavat muodostavat uutisissa verrattuna tiedotteisiin. Tutkielman lähtökohtana on systeemis-funktionaalisen kieliteorian näkemys kielestä funktionaalisena, seurauksia tuottavana. SF-kieliopin lisäksi tutkimuksen väljänä viitekehyksenä toimivat retoriikka ja kriittinen diskurssianalyysi. Retoriikassa korostuu argumentaation keskeisyys. Retoriikka ei siis ole vain "kaunopuheisuutta", vaan retoriikaksi käsitetään kaikki ne kielelliset keinot, joilla puhuja pyrkii vaikuttamaan yleisöönsä. Kriittisessä diskurssianalyysissa keskitytään paljastamaan valtaapitäviä diskursseja sekä niiden taustalla vaikuttavia ideologioita. Tutkimustulosten mukaan Talvivaaran lehdistö- ja pörssitiedotteet ovat teemoiltaan, retoriikaltaan ja argumentaatioltaan melko yhteneviä. Tiedotteiden pääväitteet liittyvät enimmäkseen ympäristöön, turvallisuuteen, kaivosyhtiön hankkeiden kannattamiseen sekä kehitykseen kohti ekologista ja kannattavaa toimintaa. Talvivaara on onnistunut nostamaan tiedotteitaan uutisaiheiksi, mutta uutisen näkökulma on useimmiten erilainen kuin tiedotteessa. Uutiset eivät toista Talvivaaran viestimää kuvaa itsestään turvallisuudesta ja ympäristöstä huolehtivana sekä tulevaisuudessa kannattavaksi kehittyvänä kaivosalan yrityksenä

Evaluating the performance of university course units using data envelopment analysis

The technique of data envelopment analysis (DEA) for measuring the relative efficiency has been widely used in the higher education sector. However, measuring the performance of a set of course units or modules that are part of a university curriculum has received little attention. In this article, DEA was used in a visual way to measure the performance of 12 course units that are part of a Photogrammetry curriculum taught at Aalto University. The results pinpointed the weakest performing units, i.e. units where the provided teaching efforts might not be adequately reflected in the students’ marks in the unit. Based on the results, a single unit was considered to offer poor performance with respect to its teaching resources and was selected as a candidate for revision of its contents. Financial resources were not used as such; instead, the performance of students in previous pre-requisite units was used as the inputs. For clarity, a single output covering the overall student performance in the examined unit was used. The technique should be widely applicable assuming the grade point averages of the students who took the course unit are available along with the marks obtained in the evaluated units and their pre-requisites

Treatment initiation for parkinson's disease in Australia 2013-2018 : a nation-wide study

Background Guidelines highlight the importance of an individualized approach to treatment initiation for Parkinson's disease. Our aim was to investigate initiation of anti-Parkinson medication in Australia from 2013-2018, and to determine factors predicting choice of initial treatment. Methods Cohort of new-users (N = 4,887) of anti-Parkinson medication aged >= 40 years were identified from a 10% random representative sample of national medication dispensing data from July-2013 to June-2018. Changes in treatment initiation were examined across the whole cohort and stratified by age and sex. Results Treatment initiation was most frequent with levodopa followed by non-ergot dopamine agonists (DAs) and anticholinergics. Two thirds initiated with levodopa across the study period. Initiation with non-ergot DAs increased from 22 to 27% (rate ratio, RR 1.23, 95% confidence interval, CI 1.02-1.47) and initiation with anticholinergics decreased from 6.9% to 2.4% (RR 0.34, 95% CI 0.21-0.55) from 2013-2018. Among persons aged >= 65 years, one third of women and one fourth of men initiated on levodopa. Among women aged = 65 years, consistent with current guidelines. Whilst the value of levodopa sparing strategies is unclear, treatment initiation with DA has become increasingly common relative to levodopa among women but not among men aged < 65 years.Peer reviewe

THE A-STEP 2030 SUMMER SCHOOL

This report outlines the design and evaluation of the Learning and Teaching Activity which forms part of the A-STEP 2030 (Attracting diverSe Talent to the Engineering Professions of 2030) project. This project is an EU Erasmus+ project funded under call number 2018-1-FR01-KA203-047854. The document begins by explaining the purpose and aims of the overall research project and more specifically, the background to the design of the Learning and Teaching Activity. The report provides a detailed description of the organisation of the learning and teaching activity and a summary of the feedback received from participants. Exemplars of the future scenarios co-created as part of the learning and teaching activity are included in Appendix 2. These can be used by engineering educators to engage students in conversations about the future of engineering education. The report is completed with recommendations for future learning and teaching activities which can build upon this pilot project

REPORT ON THE METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK OF NEW PEDAGOGICAL APPROACHES – SCENARIOS OF FUTURE ENGNEERING EDUCATION

This report summarises the methodology used to create scenarios as part of the innovative teaching pedagogies proposed in the A-STEP 2030 (Attracting diverSe Talent to the Engineering Professions of 2030) project. This project is an EU Erasmus+ project funded under call number 2018-1-FR01-KA203- 047854. The report begins by describing the overall project and the organisation of the learning and teaching activity. The scenarios were co-created with student participants and academic staff in the learning and teaching activity - A-STEP 2030 Summer School which was held in August 2021. The specific scenarios created by participants are described in this report and can be used by engineering educators in delivery of engineering programmes. More detailed videos are also included on the project website (www.astep2030.eu

Trajectory analyses of adherence patterns in a real-life moderate to severe asthma population

Background: Global Initiative for Asthma step 5 therapies (GINA-5), other than inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting β-agonists in fixed dose combinations (ICS/LABA FDC), often entail more expensive (eg, monoclonal biologics) or less safe (eg, maintenance oral corticosteroids [OCS]) treatments. It is therefore important to assess poor inhaler adherence as a possible cause of suboptimal response to ICS/LABA FDC before additional GINA-5. Objective: To determine rates of, and time to, additional GINA-5 after first-year ICS/LABA FDC use, and their association with inhaler adherence. Methods: Patients initiating ICS/LABA FDC between 2013 and 2017 were identified from Australian national dispensing data. Group-based trajectory modeling was used to estimate medication adherence patterns. Multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were used to examine the association between adherence trajectories and GINA-5 addition during 2-year follow-up. Results: In total, 3062 new ICS/LABA FDC users were identified, of whom 120 (3.9%) received additional GINA-5 (OCS: 89; long-acting muscarinic antagonists: 39; biologics: &lt;3). Mean time to commencing additional GINA-5 was 705.2 (standard deviation, 1.7) days. Adherence trajectories were nonpersistent use (20%), seasonal use (8%), poor adherence (58%), and good adherence (13%). Although poor adherence was associated with longer time to additional GINA-5 (adjusted hazard ratio: 0.58; 95% confidence interval: 0.35-0.95), over 80% of additional GINA-5 was commenced in poorly adherent patients. Use of ≥2 OCS/antibiotic courses also predicted additional GINA-5. Conclusions: Almost 1 in 20 people with asthma commenced additional GINA-5 after ICS/LABA initiation, most of whom (&gt;80%) were poorly adherent to inhaled preventers. There is a substantial unmet need for inhaler adherence to be addressed before prescribing additional GINA-5.</p

Characteristics and predictors of off-label use of antipsychotics in general population sample

Objective Increasing number of people have been prescribed antipsychotics (APs) off-label in recent decades. This study aimed to identify the characteristics and predictors of receiving prescription of antipsychotics off-label. Methods The study sample was part of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966 (n = 7071). Data included questionnaires and national register data. Information on prescribed medications was extracted from the national register. The sample was divided into three groups: Persons who had been prescribed APs off-label (n = 137), individuals with non-psychotic mental disorders without APs off label (n = 1478) and individuals who had been diagnosed with psychosis or bipolar disorder and who had been prescribed APs (n = 151). We compared sociodemographic, lifestyle and clinical characteristics between the off-label and the comparison groups using logistic regression. Results The most common diagnoses in the off-label group were depression (n = 96, 70.1%) and anxiety (n = 55, 40.1%). Compared with individuals with non-psychotic mental disorders who were not prescribed APs off-label, individuals with prescribed off-label APs had a lower level of education, lower socioeconomic status, were less often married, had a higher level of somatic and psychiatric morbidity, were more often smokers and more often had a substance abuse disorder and heavy alcohol consumption. When comparing the off-label group to individuals with psychosis or bipolar disorder who used APs, there were less differences, though individuals with psychosis or bipolar disorder had more markers of morbidity and a lower level of education. Conclusion Individuals who had been prescribed APs off label had a higher level of mental and somatic morbidity and poorer socioeconomic status than individuals with non-psychotic mental disorders who did not use APs.Peer reviewe

Predictors of response to pharmacological treatments in treatment-resistant schizophrenia - A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: As the burden of treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) on patients and society is high it is important to identify predictors of response to medications in TRS. The aim was to analyse whether baseline patient and study characteristics predict treatment response in TRS in drug trials. Methods: A comprehensive search strategy completed in PubMed, Cochrane and Web of Science helped identify relevant studies. The studies had to meet the following criteria: English language clinical trial of pharmacological treatment of TRS, clear definition of TRS and response, percentage of response reported, at least one baseline characteristic presented, and total sample size of at least 15. Meta-regression techniques served to explore whether baseline characteristics predict response to medication in TRS. Results: 77 articles were included in the systematic review. The overall sample included 7546 patients, of which 41% achieved response. Higher positive symptom score at baseline predicted higher response percentage. None of the other baseline patient or study characteristics achieved statistical significance at predicting response. When analysed in groups divided by antipsychotic drugs, studies of clozapine and other atypical antipsychotics produced the highest response rate. Conclusions: This meta-analytic review identified surprisingly few baseline characteristics that predicted treatment response. However, higher positive symptoms and the use of atypical antipsychotics - particularly clozapine -was associated with the greatest likelihood of response. The difficulty involved in the prediction of medication response in TRS necessitates careful monitoring and personalised medication management. There is a need for more investigations of the predictors of treatment response in TRS.Peer reviewe