Entrepreneurial sons, patriarchy and the Colonels' experiment in Thessaly, rural Greece

Existing studies within the field of institutional entrepreneurship explore how entrepreneurs influence change in economic institutions. This paper turns the attention of scholarly inquiry on the antecedents of deinstitutionalization and more specifically, the influence of entrepreneurship in shaping social institutions such as patriarchy. The paper draws from the findings of ethnographic work in two Greek lowland village communities during the military Dictatorship (1967–1974). Paradoxically this era associated with the spread of mechanization, cheap credit, revaluation of labour and clear means-ends relations, signalled entrepreneurial sons’ individuated dissent and activism who were now able to question the Patriarch’s authority, recognize opportunities and act as unintentional agents of deinstitutionalization. A ‘different’ model of institutional change is presented here, where politics intersects with entrepreneurs, in changing social institutions. This model discusses the external drivers of institutional atrophy and how handling dissensus (and its varieties over historical time) is instrumental in enabling institutional entrepreneurship

The Hidden Curriculum of Veterinary Education: Mediators and Moderators of Its Effects

The “hidden curriculum” has long been supposed to have an effect on students' learning during their clinical education, and in particular in shaping their ideas of what it means to be a professional. Despite this, there has been little evidence linking specific changes in professional attitudes to the individual components of the hidden curriculum. This study aimed to recognize those components that led to a change in students' professional attitudes at a UK veterinary school, as well as to identify the attitudes most affected. Observations were made of 11 student groups across five clinical rotations, followed by semi-structured interviews with 23 students at the end of their rotation experience. Data were combined and analyzed thematically, taking both an inductive and deductive approach. Views about the importance of technical competence and communication skills were promoted as a result of students' interaction with the hidden curriculum, and tensions were revealed in relation to their attitudes toward compassion and empathy, autonomy and responsibility, and lifestyle ethic. The assessment processes of rotations and the clinical service organization served to communicate the messages of the hidden curriculum, bringing about changes in student professional attitudes, while student-selected role models and the student rotation groups moderated the effects of these influences

Anti-nociceptive and desensitizing effects of olvanil on capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia in the rat

Background: Olvanil (NE 19550) is a non-pungent synthetic analogue of capsaicin, the natural pungent ingredient of capsicum which activates the transient receptor potential vanilloid type-1 (TRPV1) channel and was developed as a potential analgesic compound. Olvanil has potent anti-hyperalgesic effects in several experimental models of chronic pain. Here we report the inhibitory effects of olvanil on nociceptive processing using cultured dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons and compare the effects of capsaicin and olvanil on thermal nociceptive processing in vivo; potential contributions of the cannabinoid CB1 receptor to olvanil’s anti-hyperalgesic effects were also investigated. Methods: A hot plate analgesia meter was used to evaluate the anti-nociceptive effects of olvanil on capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia and the role played by CB1 receptors in mediating these effects. Single cell calcium imaging studies of DRG neurons were employed to determine the desensitizing effects of olvanil on capsaicin-evoked calcium responses. Statistical analysis used Student’s t test or one way ANOVA followed by Dunnett’s post-hoctest as appropriate. Results: Both olvanil (100 nM) and capsaicin (100 nM) produced significant increases in intracellular calcium concentrations [Ca2+]I in cultured DRG neurons. Olvanil was able to des ensitise TRPV1 responses to further capsaicin exposure more effectively than capsaicin. Intra plantar injection of capsaicin (0.1, 0.3 and 1μg) produced a robust TRPV1-dependant thermal hyperalgesia in rats, whilst olvanil (0.1, 0.3 and 1μg) produced no hyperalgesia, emphasizing its lack of pungency. The highest dose of olvanil significantly reduced the hyperalgesic effects of capsaicin in vivo. Intraplantar injection of the selective cannabinoid CB1 receptor antagonist rimonabant (1μg) altered neither capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia nor the desensitizing properties of olvanil, indicating a lack of involvement of CB1receptors. Conclusions: Olvanil is effective in reducing capsaicin-induced thermal hyperalgesia, probably via directly desensitizingTRPV1 channels in a CB 1 receptor-independent fashion. The results presented clearly support the potential for olvanil in the development of new topical analgesic preparations for treating chronic pain conditions while avoiding the unwanted side effects of capsaicin treatments

Access for All?:Sozialinvestitionen in der frühkindlichen Bildung und Betreuung im europäischen Vergleich

Die Investition in kindbezogene Sozialpolitik ist heute ein zentrales Anliegen europäischer Wohlfahrtsstaaten. Frühkindlicher Bildung und Betreuung kommt die Schlüsselrolle zu, Bildungserfolg und Elternerwerbstätigkeit zu fördern zwecks Chancengleichheit und Armutsbekämpfung. Der international verbreitete Sozialinvestitionsdiskurs lenkt leicht davon ab, dass große Unterschiede in den nationalen Systemen frühkindlicher Bildung und Betreuung bestehen, und diese unterschiedlich in die nationalen Wohlfahrtsstaatsregime eingebettet sind. Am Beispiel Schwedens, Deutschlands und Großbritanniens werden verschiedene Kinderbetreuungssysteme einer kritischen Analyse unterzogen mit Hinblick auf ihr „Sozialinvestitionspotenzial“. Die Untersuchung zeigt, dass frühkindliche Bildungsangebote nicht als Allheilmittel zur Vorbeugung sozialer Ungleichheit fungieren können. Falls nicht mit weiteren, auf Gleichheit ausgerichtete Maßnahmen im Bildungs- und sozialen Sicherungsbereich kombiniert, ist zu erwarten, dass sich eine gegenteilige Wirkungslogik der Sozialinvestitionsstrategie entfaltet, die herkunftsbezogene Bildungsungleichheit noch verstärkt.The importance of investing in early childhood is widely acknowledged in policy circles. Particularly formal Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) is seen as key to creating equal opportunities and combating poverty by increasing educational achievement of children and supporting parental employment. This social investment perspective has in recent decades supported the rapid development and expansion of ECEC in most European countries. However, the international social investment discourse masks fundamental differences in European ECEC systems and detracts attention from the way ECEC is embedded in the wider welfare regime of a country. This paper critically examines the ‘social investment potential’ of ECEC systems by comparing an early social investment country, Sweden, with two ‘late movers’, the UK and Germany. It argues that investing in ECEC is not per se a panacea for social inclusion. To the contrary, if not combined with other, partly ‘traditional’ equality measures both in education and social protection, ECEC investment may have the opposite effect of increasing social inequality

The influence of postgraduate qualifications on educational identity formation of healthcare professionals

Demand for postgraduate qualifications in medical education can be judged by the increase in providers worldwide over the last two decades. However, research into the impact of such courses on identity formation of healthcare professionals is limited. This study investigates the influence of such programmes on graduates’ educational identities, practices and career progression. Informed by constructivist grounded theory (CGT), semi-structured interviews were conducted with 27 graduates (2008–2012) from one postgraduate programme, who were at different stages in their careers worldwide. The audio data were transcribed and analysed using a CGT approach. Participants enrolled in award-bearing medical education courses for various intrinsic and extrinsic reasons. The findings from this study highlight their development as educators, and educational researchers, leaders and learners, as their self-efficacy in educational practices and engagement in scholarly activities increased. Graduates attributed career progression to the qualification, with many being promoted into senior positions. They also described substantial performance attainments in the workplace. The findings contribute to understanding the complexity and nuances of educational identity formation of healthcare professionals. A qualification in medical education encouraged transformational changes and epistemological development as an educator. Awareness of these findings will inform both those considering enrolment and those supporting them of potential benefits of these programmes

Piloting online self-audit of methadone treatment in Irish general practice: results, reflections and educational outcomes

Background: Work based learning underpins the training and CPD of medical practitioners. Medical audit operates on two levels; individual self-assessment and professional/practice development. In Ireland, annual practice improvement audit is an essential requirement for the successful completion of continuous professional development (CPD) as determined by the regulatory body, the Irish Medical Council. All general practice (GP) doctors providing methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) in Ireland have a contractual obligation to partake in a yearly methadone practice audit. The Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP) as national training provider is tasked to facilitate this annual audit process. The purpose of this audit is to assess the quality of care provided to patients against an agreed set of national standards, enhance learning, and promote practice improvement and reflective practice. The aim was to present an online MTP self-audit and evaluate results from a 12-month pilot among GPs providing MMT in Ireland. Method A mixed method study describing three phases (design and development, pilot/implementation and evaluation) of a new online self –audit tool was conducted. Descriptive and thematic analysis of audit and evaluation data was conducted. Results: Survey Monkey is a suitable software package for the development and hosting of an easy to use online audit for MMT providing doctors. Analysis of the audit results found that the majority of GPs scored 80% or over for the 25 identified essential criteria for MMT provision. The evaluation of the GP audit experience underscores the positive outcomes of the online self-audit in terms of improving practice systems, encouraging reflective practice, enhanced patient care and doctor commitment to continued provision of MMT in addiction clinics and in primary care. Conclusions: Results from this audit demonstrate a high level of compliance with best practise MMT guidelines by Irish GPs providing MMT. The online self-audit process was well received and encouraged reflective practice. The audit process hinged on the individual GP’s ability to review and critically analyse their professional practice, and manage change. This model of audit could be adapted and used to monitor the management of other chronic illnesses in general practice

Characterization of the Mycobacterial MSMEG-3762/63 Efflux Pump in Mycobacterium smegmatis Drug Efflux

Multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) represents a major health problem worldwide. Drug efflux and the activity of efflux transporters likely play important roles in the development of drug-tolerant and drug-resistant mycobacterial phenotypes. This study is focused on the action of a mycobacterial efflux pump as a mechanism of drug resistance. Previous studies demonstrated up-regulation of the TetR-like transcriptional regulator MSMEG_3765 in Mycobacterium smegmatis and its ortholog Rv1685c in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) in acid-nitrosative stress conditions. MSMEG-3765 regulates the expression of the MSMEG_3762/63/65 operon, and of the orthologous region in Mtb (Rv1687c/86c/85c). MSMEG-3762 and Rv1687c are annotated as ATP-binding proteins, while MSMEG-3763 and Rv1686c are annotated as trans-membrane polypeptides, defining an ABC efflux pump in both M. smegmatis and Mtb. The two putative efflux systems share a high percentage of identity. To examine the role of the putative efflux system MSMEG-3762/63, we constructed and characterized a MSMEG-3763 deletion mutant in M. smegmatis (∆MSMEG_3763). By comparative analysis of wild type, knockout, and complemented strains, together with structural modeling and molecular docking bioinformatics analyses of the MSMEG-3763 trans-membrane protein, we define the protein complex MSMEG-3762/63 as an efflux pump. Moreover, we demonstrate involvement of this pump in biofilm development and in the extrusion of rifampicin and ciprofloxacin (CIP), antimicrobial drugs used in first- and second-line anti-TB therapies

Exploring the influence of context on feedback at medical school:a video-ethnography study

Feedback in medical education is complicated by the multiple contexts within which learning occurs. However, feedback research in medical education has typically focused on information provided by tutors to students with limited exploration of the influence of context. This research seeks to address this gap by exploring the influence of multiple contexts upon feedback processes. Employing video-ethnography methodology we explored feedback in two common contexts for medical student learning: the simulated clinical environment and the medical workplace. Learning and teaching sessions were filmed in each of these contexts, capturing diverse feedback processes. Data were analysed for key themes using a Framework Analysis approach and similarities and differences between the two contexts identified. In total 239 distinct feedback episodes across 28 different teaching and learning sessions were captured, with feedback processes relating to the patient, practice, educational and institutional contexts observed. In this paper, we concentrate on key similarities and differences in feedback processes between the two contexts with respect to six themes: feedback interlocutors, interlocutor positioning, feedback types, feedback foci, feedback styles and feedback milieu. We argue that feedback is inextricably linked to the multiple contexts in which feedback is enacted. It is only by exploring these contextual influences that feedback can be understood more fully. With such understanding we should be better placed to develop interventions capable of improving the long elusive experience of successful feedback.</p

Long-menu questions in computer-based assessments: a retrospective observational study

Background: Computer based assessments of paediatrics in our institution use series of clinical cases, where information is progressively delivered to the students in a sequential order. Three types of formats are mainly used: Type A (single answer), Pick N, and Long-menu. Long-menu questions require a long, hidden list of possible answers: based on the student's initial free text response, the program narrows the list, allowing the student to select the answer. This study analyses the psychometric properties of Long-menu questions compared with the two other commonly used formats: Type A and Pick N. Methods: We reviewed the difficulty level and discrimination index of the items in the paediatric exams from 2009 to 2015, and compared the Long-menu questions with the Type A and Pick N questions, using multiple-way analyses of variances. Results: Our dataset included 13 exam sessions with 855 students and 558 items included in the analysis, 212 (38 %) Long-menu, 201 (36 %) Pick N, and 140 Type A (25 %) items. There was a significant format effect associated with both level of difficulty (p = .005) and discrimination index (p < .001). Long-menu questions were easier than Type A questions(+5.2 %; 95 % CI 1.1–9.4 %), and more discriminative than both Type A (+0.07; 95 % CI 0.01–0.14), and Pick N (+0.10; 95 % CI 0.05–0.16) questions. Conclusions: Long-menu questions show good psychometric properties when compared with more common formats such as Type A or Pick N, though confirmatory studies are needed. They provide more variety, reduce the cueing effect, and thus may more closely reflect real life practice than the other item formats inherited from paper-based examination that are used during computer-based assessments