Veterinary Medical Libraries in the 21st Century

The purpose of this volume is to present a picture of information access and delivery by United States and Canadian academic veterinary medical libraries (VMLs) to the veterinary community and others with interests in the profession. This is done by discussing the resources that are available, as well as methods of delivery of that information. Our discussion of these topics will not only point out the unique aspects of these collections and services, but will also illustrate much that is in common with all medical collections and library services. As with all libraries, the goal of VMLs is to provide high quality service while looking after the information needs of their clientele through selection, acquisition, cataloging, and dissemination of materials and familiarizing their users with these resources. In the past decade, new challenges and opportunities for information specialists stem from the impact of technology on VMLs. Our goal with this volume is to be concise, but thorough about all of these topics.https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/library_books/1000/thumbnail.jp

''We're kind of screwed'': perspectives of emergency medical workers on the Western Cape EMS system

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Arts in Research Psychology At the University of the Witwatersrand April 2014The World Health Organization honours Emergency Medical Service (EMS) systems as a vital part of any effective health care system and as such, it remains an important topic for research. Literature on South African EMS systems is limited and thus a need exists to better understand South African EMS systems. The aim of this study was to explore the perspectives of Emergency Medical Workers (EMWs) on the Western Cape provincial EMS system. In addition, the study aimed to uncover the insights of the EMWs into the daily operations, struggles, communication and interactions within the EMS system. Obtaining these insights were thought to be important since South African EMWs face multiple challenges in their occupations, such as burnout, critical incident exposure, occupational stress and so forth. In part, these challenges are a result of the effect that the country’s political history of Apartheid has had on EMS, as well as the current burden of inequality, poverty, poor infrastructure, multiple communicable diseases (such as HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis) and the high rate of trauma and violence. In order to meet the aims of this study, a qualitative paradigm with open, unrestrictive methods was employed. Three semi-structured focus group discussion (consisting of four, four and six EMWs respectively) were conducted. The analysis was inductive or data-driven and specifically involved a thematic analysis, combined with a matrix and saliency analysis. This open, inductive approach was not only appropriate to the explorative nature of the study, but also allowed for new and unique insights to emerge. The analysis firstly revealed that the EMWs perceived the EMS to be a complex, interdependent system that is hierarchically organized and politically influenced. In addition, the EMWs perceived themselves to be at the bottom of this hierarchy, yet they also placed emphasis on the expertise and prestige associated with their occupation. As such, they seem to have a dual identity and position within the EMS system. Secondly, by exploring the EMWs’ perceptions of and interactions with the other role-players in the EMS system (call-takers, dispatchers and management) it was found that communication plays a vital role within the EMS system and permeates the system in both a broader and more subtle way than initially postulated by previous research. The EMWs also indicated that they wanted the other role-players in the EMS system to experience and better understand their day-to-day tasks and struggles. Thirdly, the EMWs revealed how they are passionate about and dedicated to their jobs and that their first priority is to provide quality care to the patient. Yet they also raised some concerns around how the occupation has potential adverse effects on their physical and psychological well-being. Finally, it was found that the EMWs faced many daily struggles and obstacles, of which finding the correct location of the incident and getting to the scene of the incident within their time targets was a major concern. Overall the EMWs that the issues that cause a lot of aggravation and distress for them are actually those minor aspects which are often overlooked by the management of the EMS. In other words, for the EMWs, the devil lies in the details. To conclude, this research yielded unique and new insights into a South African EMS system and into the occupation of the EMWs. These results serve as an important exploratory step from which further research in this area may be extended and it also has the potential to generate interventions for improving the working environments and job satisfaction of EMWs and as such may have an impact on the efficiency of the EMS systems in general. Keywords: Emergency Medical Workers, Emergency Medical Services, South Africa, Teamwork, Hierarchies in Emergency Medical Services, Communication, Work Engagement, Identity of Emergency Medical Workers, Coping Mechanisms, Political influences on Public Health

Hiking the Horizontal: Team Learning Behaviors and Team Innovative Work Behavior in Cross-boundary Public Sector Work Teams

Organizations need to develop innovations to meet emerging problems and challenges due to increasing global competition, customer expectations, or market changes. Responding to these challenges requires employees to create solutions within their organizations, such as new products or processes. While some research has found crucial roles of individual faculty in the innovation process, less is known about how individual educators (i.e., university faculty and clinical practitioners) work across knowledge and organizational boundaries.The purpose of this case study on team innovative work behavior (TIWB) in higher education was to learn more about which team learning behaviors (TLBs) and team innovative work behaviors (TIWBs) were exhibited by a university-based cross-boundary work team to understand how these complex organizations can leverage learning toward practice improvement. The purposefully selected sample was composed of an 11 member California-based work team consisting of 5 faculty members from a redesigning public university, 4 senior administrators from partnering public school districts, and 2 faculty members from a partnering mentor program. The primary data collection method was in depth critical incident (CI) interviews. Supportive methods included a pre-interview questionnaire, field observations, document and artifact review, and a group interview. The data were coded and analyzed first by research question, and then findings were organized thematically in alignment with three analytic categories based on the study’s conceptual framework. The research revealed that the team exhibited several TLBs and one TIWB throughout the redesign process. The team’s capacity for learning and innovating was strongly influenced by the organizational conditions that brought the team together as well as the team’s leadership and facilitation. While few of the team members were able to articulate their own learning and practice changes explicitly, they did reflect on their learning in the context of task completion and goal achievement. Recommendations are offered for university and district practitioners, and for further research, including: (1) identifying a team leader with both positional and reputational authority, (2) selecting a team based on existing relationships and shared commitment to change, (3) using evidence to challenge existing assumptions, and (4) aligning activities to organizational and environmental forces

Targeted metabolomic analyses of cellular models of pelizaeus-merzbacher disease reveal plasmalogen and myo-inositol solute carrier dysfunction

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Leukodystrophies are devastating diseases characterized by dys- and hypo-myelination. While there are a number of histological and imaging studies of these disorders, there are limited biochemical data available. We undertook targeted lipidomic analyses of Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease (PMD) fibroblasts, PMD lymphocytes, and 158JP oligodendrocytes, a murine model of PMD, to define the lipid changes in these cell models. Further targeted metabolomics analyses were conducted to obtain a preliminary evaluation of the metabolic consequences of lipid changes and gene mutations in these cell models.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In both PMD fibroblasts and lymphocytes, and 158JP oligodendrocytes, ethanolamine plasmalogens were significantly decreased. Labeling studies with 158JP oligodendrocytes further demonstrated a decreased rate of lipid remodeling at sn-2. Targeted metabolomics analyses of these cells revealed dramatic increases in cellular levels of myo-inositol. Further uptake studies demonstrated increased rates of myo-inositol uptake by PMD lymphocytes.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our data demonstrating PlsEtn decrements, support previous studies indicating leukodystrophy cells possess significant peroxisomal deficits. Our data for the first time also demonstrate that decrements in peroxisomal function coupled with the PLP1 gene defects of PMD, result in changes in the function of membrane myo-inositol solute carriers resulting in dramatic increases in cellular myo-inositol levels.</p

Influence of scattering coefficient on the prediction of room acoustic parameters in a virtual concert hall.

The scattering coefficient is one of the most important input parameters in room acoustics simulations. Together with absorption coefficient they belong to main descriptors of interior surface properties in the calculation process based on ray or radiosity method algorithms. This paper investigates the influence of scattered sound on the objective room acoustical parameters in the example of a virtual concert hall. Six different alternatives were simulated, where scattering coefficients s = 10, 30, 50, 60, 70 and 90 % respectively, were applied to the interior surfaces of the ceiling, side and rear walls. Analysis has been performed by studying the results of objective room acoustical parameters predicted by simulations done in the software Catt-Acoustic®

Quadrupole transitions and quantum gates protected by continuous dynamic decoupling

Dynamical decoupling techniques are a versatile tool for engineering quantum states with tailored properties. In trapped ions, nested layers of continuous dynamical decoupling (CDD) by means of radio-frequency field dressing can cancel dominant magnetic and electric shifts and therefore provide highly prolonged coherence times of electronic states. Exploiting this enhancement for frequency metrology, quantum simulation or quantum computation, poses the challenge to combine the decoupling with laser-ion interactions for the quantum control of electronic and motional states of trapped ions. Ultimately, this will require running quantum gates on qubits from dressed decoupled states. We provide here a compact representation of nested CDD in trapped ions, and apply it to electronic S and D states and optical quadrupole transitions. Our treatment provides all effective transition frequencies and Rabi rates, as well as the effective selection rules of these transitions. On this basis, we discuss the possibility of combining CDD and Mølmer-Sørensen gates

Quadrupole transitions and quantum gates protected by continuous dynamic decoupling

Dynamical decoupling techniques are a versatile tool for engineering quantum states with tailored properties. In trapped ions, nested layers of continuous dynamical decoupling by means of radio-frequency field dressing can cancel dominant magnetic and electric shifts and therefore provide highly prolonged coherence times of electronic states. Exploiting this enhancement for frequency metrology, quantum simulation or quantum computation, poses the challenge to combine the decoupling with laser-ion interactions for the quantum control of electronic and motional states of trapped ions. Ultimately, this will require running quantum gates on qubits from dressed decoupled states. We provide here a compact representation of nested continuous dynamical decoupling in trapped ions, and apply it to electronic $S$ and $D$ states and optical quadrupole transitions. Our treatment provides all effective transition frequencies and Rabi rates, as well as the effective selection rules of these transitions. On this basis, we discuss the possibility of combining continuous dynamical decoupling and M{\o}lmer-S{\o}rensen gates