Designing for Nurse-AI Collaboration in Triage

The Local Emergency Medical Communication Centers (LEMCs) play a crucial role in the Norwegian healthcare system by receiving calls for immediate medical assistance. Registered nurses operate the phone calls, and their task is to assess the situation and triage the caller into appropriate triage levels indicating when and how help should be provided. Telephone triage poses challenges due to the limitations of audio communication, time sensitivity, and complex decision-making. Additionally, nurses often face the burden of managing clinical tools across multiple interfaces. This thesis explored how to design a system to support nurses in telephone triage and how we can facilitate nurse-AI collaboration in the process. A Research through Design (RtD) methodology was employed, and an iterative design approach was utilized. The research investigated the design aspects of AI-based suggestions and the use of natural language when creating semi-structured documentation. Four prototype iterations were developed throughout the study, and researchers from RE-AIMED and telephone operators conducted evaluations of the prototypes. Designing a tool for telephone triage requires understanding the user's needs and workflow. It is, therefore, crucial to involve telephone operators in the design process. The prototype demonstrated how we could design for incorporating AI in the triage process, and this thesis explores the various considerations when designing for nurse-AI collaboration. One notable finding was the importance of enabling documentation in natural language, as relying solely on structured documentation may fail to capture the caller's specific situation. Additionally, it is important to design a system that facilitates documentation of patient-initiated information and questions initiated by the nurses or the system.Masteroppgave i informasjonsvitenskapINFO390MASV-INF

Antifungal Effect of Hydrogen Peroxide on Catalase-Producing Strains of Candida spp.

Objective: Clinical isolates of Candida were tested for the presence of catalase and susceptibility to hydrogen peroxide

Development of a High Performance Liquid Chromatographic Assay Measuring Mezlocillin in Serum or Tissue

Objective: This study evaluated the blood and uterine tissue concentration of mezlocillin, a broadspectrum penicillin

Effects of exogenous glucoamylase enzymes alone or in combination with a neutral protease on apparent total tract digestibility and feces D-Lactate in crossbred angus bulls fed a ration rich in rolled corn

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two glucoamylases (GA) and the combination of one GA with a neutral protease on apparent total tract digestibility in beef bulls fed a total mixed ration (TMR) rich in rolled corn. Sixteen Angus beef bulls (266 ± 4.9 kg of initial BW, and 182 ± 1.7 d of age) were distributed in 4 blocks, each block consisted of 4 animals balanced by BW. The experimental design was a 4 × 4 Latin square (4 blocks and 4 periods, 2 w per period). Four treatments were tested; (1) control, (2) GA preparation from Trichoderma reesei (TrGA); (3) GA from Aspergillus fumigatus (AfuGA); (4) AfuGA in combination with a neutral protease from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (BamPro). Apparent total tract digestibility and fecal D-lactate concentration were analyzed. Enzyme supplementation, regardless of enzyme type, increased apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter (from 66.7% to 73.1% ± 2.01), and starch (from 74.7% to 81.8% ± 2.25), without affecting feces D-lactate concentration. Irrespective of glucoamylase type, glucoamylase supplementation improved apparent digestibility of dry matter and starch, and the addition of a protease did not have additional benefits on nutrient digestibilityinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Influence of Sheep’s Wool Vegetation Mats on the Plant Growth of Perennials

Vegetation mats for horticulture and landscaping usually consist of coconut fibre and straw. They have hardly any available nutrients and serve only as a carrier material for plant growth. Water capacity is low. By incorporating raw sheep‘s wool, nutrients, such as nitrogen, potassium, and sulphur can positively influence the nutrient content of the carrier material. Water storage and water holding capacity are increased by the wool. In this study, three different thick-layered vegetation mats with different proportions of sheep’s wool and coir fibres were developed for the pre-cultivation of perennials. The focus is on the evaluation of sheep’s wool as a carrier material compared to pure coconut fibre as well as the plant growth of the eight perennial species used (Achillea clypeolata ‘Moonshine’, Achnatherum calamagrostis ‘Algäu’, Anaphalis triplinervis, Aster dumosus ‘Prof. Anton Kippenberg’, Aster dumosus ‘Silberball’, Centranthus ruber ‘Coccineus’, Coreopsis verticillata, Salvia nemorosa ‘Rosakönigin’). The vegetation mats with sheep’s wool contained 230, 241, and 308 g nitrogen (N)/m2 and the coir mats contained 75 g N/m2. The water content ranged from 16.0 to 22.1 vol% for the sheep’s wool mats and 12.6 vol% for the coir mat at pF1 (is equal to matrix potential at −10 hPa). The air content ranged from 71.9 to 77.0 vol% for the sheep’s wool mat and 79.4 vol% for the coir mat at pF1. On all vegetation mats containing sheep’s wool, the overall impression of the perennials was better than in the control. Especially good were Asters. At the end of the trial, the assessment scores of Asters on the sheep’s wool mats were two scores higher than on the coir mat. Aster dumosus ‘Prof. Anton Kippenberg’ achieved an average plant height between 35.8, 35.8, and 36.5 cm on the sheep’s wool mats and 14.4 cm on the coir mat. Aster dumosus ‘Silberball’ yielded 41.3, 42.3, and 44 cm on the sheep’s wool mats and 26.7 cm on the coir mat. No significant differences regarding plant height between the different variants of sheep’s wool mats emerged. Therefore, these mats can be used as alternative planting concepts for landscaping.German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi)Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation)Open Access Publication Fund of Humboldt-UniversitätPeer Reviewe

Using social marketing to promote cold and flu prevention behaviors on an Australian university campus

Background: Cold and influenza transmission is a serious public health issue for universities. This case study describes a coordinated social marketing campaign that incorporated health messages and products. It was designed to motivate behavior change to prevent the spread of colds and influenza on a university campus. Methods: The aims of this multi-component intervention were to raise awareness of the importance of individual behavior in preventing the spread of colds and flu and to encourage staff and students to adopt three simple habits: hand washing, cough or sneeze in sleeve, and stay at home if sick. A repeated, cross-sectional survey design assessed the following pre- and post-campaign: salience of colds and flu; perceived severity of, and susceptibility to, colds and flu; beliefs about effective prevention strategies; and engagement in preventative behaviors. Campaign message and product recall were assessed post-campaign. Results: Campaign message recall was high (over 80% of staff and 70% of students); fewer staff (one-third) or students (one-quarter) recalled campaign products. Few pretest-posttest differences were observed in perceived susceptibility or severity. Recognition of cough or sneeze into your sleeve as an effective prevention strategy increased pre- to post-campaign (a percentage increase of 39.6% for staff and 25.1% for students); campaign exposed respondents were significantly more likely than unexposed to rate this strategy as effective post-campaign. Substantial pretest-posttest percentage increases in the top ranked prevention strategies were found for the three core messages: hand washing (51% for students); cough in sleeve (59.2%, staff; 71.1%, students); and stay at home if sick (120%, staff). Conclusions: This setting-based intervention clearly reached staff and students with the primary messages. Success can be attributed to using consumer insight to develop multiple marketing messages and strategies, rather than a single- strategy communication campaign

Glucosamine/L-lactide copolymers as potential carriers for the development of a sustained rifampicin release system using Mycobacterium smegmatis as a tuberculosis model

The present study aims at developing a new, ultrafine particle-based efficient antibiotic delivery system for the treatment of tuberculosis. The carrier material to make the rifampicin (RIF)-loaded particles is a low molecular weight starshaped polymer produced from glucosamine (core building unit) and L-lactide (GluN-LLA). Particles were made via electrohydrodynamic atomization. Prolonged release (for up to 14 days) of RIF from these particles is reported. Drug release data fits the Korsmeyer-Peppas equation, which suggests the occurrence of a modified diffusion-controlled RIF release mechanism in vitro and is also supported by differential scanning calorimetry and drug leaching tests. Cytotoxicity tests on Mycobacterium smegmatis showed that antibiotic-free GluN-LLA and polylactides (PLA) particles (reference materials) did not show any significant anti-bacterial activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration values obtained for RIF-loaded particles showed 2- to 4-fold improvements in the anti-bacterial activity relative to the free drug. Cytotoxicity tests on macrophages indicated that cell death correlates with an increase of particle concentration but is not significantly affected by material type or particle size. Confocal microscopy was used to track internalization and localization of particles in the macrophages. The uptake of GluN-LLA particles is higher than those of their PLA counterparts. In addition, after phagocytosis, the GluN-LLA particles stayed in the cytoplasm and showed favorable long-term drug release behavior, which facilitated the killing of intracellular bacteria when compared to free RIF. The present studies suggest that these drug carrier materials are potentially very attractive candidates for the development of high-payload, sustained-release antibiotic/resorbable polymer particle systems for treating bacterial lung infections