Who enrols and graduates from web-based pharmacy education - Experiences from Northern Sweden

Introduction: As a response to the shortage of prescriptionists in Northern Sweden, a web-based Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy program was introduced at Umeå University in 2003. This study explored who is likely to enrol and graduate from the web-based bachelor program and whether the program has addressed the shortage of prescriptionists in rural Northern Sweden. Methods: Data from three different sources were included in this study; the initial cohort including students admitted to the program in 2003 (survey), the entire cohort including all people admitted to the program between 2003 and 2014 (university\u27s admissions data) and the alumni cohort including graduates who participated in an alumni survey in 2015. Results: A typical student of the web-based pharmacy program is female, over 30 years of age, married or in a de-facto relationship and has children. Furthermore, the students graduating before 2009 were more likely to live in Northern Sweden compared to those graduating later. Discussion and conclusion: The results indicate that the introduction of a web-based bachelor of pharmacy program at Umeå University was to some extent able to address the shortage of prescriptionists in Northern Sweden. Web-based education may potentially help address the maldistribution of health professionals by providing flexible education opportunities

Six Sigma - a New Approach of Quality

The term six sigma was elaborated by Motorola Corp, in the early ‘80s, after a visit in Japan. The method’s application with this name has reduced the fabrication deficiencies with 99,7%, thus, in 1998, Motorola Corp. was one of the first companies to receive The Quality National Award in USA, “Malcolm Baldrige”. Then the method was used by other companies as well, which have declared that using the six sigma method, the 3,4 deficiencies per million of opportunities level may be achieved, attaining not perfection, but almost perfection.Six-Sigma method, quality

Pharmacists\u27 satisfaction with their work: Analysis of an alumni survey

Background: The level of job satisfaction among practicing pharmacists is important because it has been found to affect job performance and employee turnover. The Swedish pharmacy market has undergone major changes in recent years, and little is known about pharmacists’ job satisfaction. Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the level of job satisfaction and associated factors among graduates from the web-based pharmacy programs at Umeå University. Methods: Job satisfaction of pharmacists was measured as part of an alumni survey conducted with those who graduated from the pharmacy programmes between 2006 and 2014. Data analysis included descriptive statistics, and logistic regression was used to explore factors affecting job satisfaction. Results: The total number of graduates who completed the survey was 222 (response rate 43%.) The majority of respondents were female (95%), and most were employed at a community pharmacy (85%). The mean age was 39.7 years. The majority of graduates (91%) were satisfied with their job “most of the time” or “all of the time”, and 87% of the respondents would “definitely” or “maybe” choose the same career again. The multivariate analysis showed that increasing years in the current position (OR:0.672 (0.519–0.871)) was associated with lower job satisfaction. Older age (OR: 1.123 (1.022–1.234)), the perception that the knowledge and skills acquired during the education is useful in the current job (OR: 4.643 (1.255–17.182)) and access to continuing professional development (OR:9.472 (1.965–45.662)) were associated with higher job satisfaction. Conclusion: Most graduates from the web-based pharmacy programmes are satisfied with their current job. Access to continuing professional development seems to be important for the level of job satisfaction among pharmacists

Influence of ground substrate on establishment of reindeer lichen after artificial dispersal

Methods to improve the recovery of reindeer lichen after soil disturbance or overgrazing are being sought for areas where reindeer are herded. The effects of four substrates – mineral soil, moss, twigs and pine bark – on the establishment of lichen fragments after total removal of the vegetation were thus studied in a middle-aged pine stand and a clear-cut, both located in a lichen-rich pine-heath. Cladina mitis fragments of two sizes were manually dispersed in 1 m2 quadrats and their movements from their respective dispersal points were registered after one year. The natural re-establishment of lichens in the quadrats was monitored over three years by using digital pictures. In the forest stand, no significant differences were detected in either the fragment movement or the lichen establishment between the different substrates, but the fragment size had positive effects on both parameters. In the clear-cut, the moss substrate was the most suitable not only for the artificially dispersed lichens to fasten to, but also for the natural settlement of lichens from the surrounding lichen mat. More lichen thalli fastened to the bark and twigs substrates than to the mineral soil, but the settlement of lichens from the surrounding was greater on bare mineral soil substrate. The results indicate that artificial dispersal of lichen thalli on an appropriate substrate could be a successful strategy for promoting lichen recovery

On the effect of chaotic orbits on dynamical friction

Chaotic orbits suffer significant changes as a result of small perturbations. One can thus wonder whether the dynamical friction suffered by a satellite on a regular orbit, and interacting with the stars of a galaxy, will be different if the bulk of the stars of the galaxy are in regular or chaotic orbits. In order to check that idea, we investigated the orbital decay (caused by dynamical friction) of a rigid satellite moving within a larger stellar system (a galaxy) whose potential is nonintegrable. We performed numerical experiments using two kinds of triaxial galaxy models: (1) the triaxial generalization of Dehnen´s spherical mass model (Dehnen; Merritt & Fridman); (2) a modified Satoh model (Satoh; Carpintero, Muzzio, & Wachlin). The percentages of chaotic orbits present in these models were increased by perturbing them. In the first case, a central compact object (black hole) was introduced; in the second case, the perturbation was produced by allowing the galaxy to move on a circular orbit in a logarithmic potential. The equations of motion were integrated with a non-self-consistent code. Our results show that the presence of chaotic orbits does not affect significantly the orbital decay of the satellite.Fil: Cora, Sofia Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica la Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; ArgentinaFil: Vergne, Maria Marcela. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica la Plata; ArgentinaFil: Muzzio, Juan Carlos. Universidad Nacional de la Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica la Plata; Argentin