An observational study of mother-child interaction.

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

Learning from positive deviants to improve the quality and safety of healthcare.

Every day around the globe, patients are harmed within healthcare organisations. Attempts to improve the quality and safety of healthcare traditionally focus on past errors and harm, yet there is little evidence of widespread improvement. In contrast, the positive deviance approach seeks to identify and learn from those who demonstrate exceptional performance despite facing the same constraints as others. Bradley et al. (2009) have proposed a four stage process to apply positive deviance within healthcare organisations: 1) positive deviants are identified using routinely collected data; 2) hypotheses are generated about how they succeed; 3) these are tested within representative samples; and 4)the successful strategies are disseminated. Despite this, limited guidance exists to support applications. This thesis sought to test a robust and pragmatic method for applying the positive deviance approach within multidisciplinary healthcare teams. Study 1 systematically reviewed the methods used to apply positive deviance within healthcare. Previous applications identified positively deviant organisations or individuals and focused on narrow outcomes or processes of care. Applications lacked quality and used extensive resources. Study 2 analysed NHS Safety Thermometer data to identify five positively deviant and five matched comparison elderly medical wards. In the main, staff and patient perceptions of safety on these wards supported their identification. During study 3, multidisciplinary staff focus groups were conducted to explore how these wards delivered exceptionally safe care. In total, 14 behaviours and cultures were hypothesised to facilitate positive deviance at ward level. Study 4 assessed the feasibility of applying positive deviance within a general practice setting. Findings highlighted challenges of selecting data to identify positive deviants, recruiting general practices to participate, and generating hypotheses about success strategies that were unique to positive deviants yet common among them. In combination, these studies generated guidance to support rigorous applications of the positive deviance approach within healthcare organisations. The evidence suggested that, in the future, it may be possible to improve the quality and safety of care by focusing on those that demonstrate exceptional rather than poor outcomes of care

Metabolomic differentiation of tumor core and edge in glioma.

Glioma is one of the most aggressive forms of brain cancer. It has been shown that the microenvironments differ significantly between the core and edge regions of glioma tumors. This study obtained metabolomic profiles of glioma core and edge regions using paired glioma core and edge tissue samples from 27 human patients. Data was acquired by performing liquid-liquid metabolite extraction and 2DLC-MS/MS on the tissue samples. In addition, a boosted generalized linear machine learning model was employed to predict the metabolomic profiles associated with O-6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation. A panel of 66 metabolites was found to be statistically significant between the core and edge regions. The machine learning model achieved AUROC values of 0.941 for the core and 0.960 for edge. This proof-of-concept study shows the metabolomic differences are reflected in MGMT promoter methylation status and demonstrates the potential for machine learning to aid as a prognostic and therapeutic tool

A Personal Perspective on Daily Occupations to Counteract Cancer Related Fatigue: A Case Study

Background: This case study aimed to identify and describe meaningful physical occupations used by a cancer survivor to increase or maintain levels of participation during active chemotherapy and subsequent cancer related fatigue. Method: A case study approach was used to develop an in-depth description and analysis based on one participant’s experience with breast cancer and associated treatments. A semi-structured interview was conducted. The data were analyzed through description of the case, categories, and themes. It also included categorical aggregation in efforts to seek a collection of instances from the data to explore any issue-relevant meanings. Results: Following data analysis, one overarching theme, return to normalcy, was identified with three subthemes: (a) prioritization of meaningful activities, (b) modifications to activities or routines, (c) lack of referral for immediate needs. Conclusion: Personal knowledge of occupational therapy practice provided support for enhancing engagement in daily meaningful occupations. Lessons learned from this experience could be applied to clients experiencing cancer related side effects to improve engagement in daily occupations

Interview with Mary Baxter

An interview with Mary Baxter regarding her experiences in a one-room school house.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/ors/1043/thumbnail.jp

Members of the Scottish Parliament on Twitter: good constituency men (and women)?

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of Twitter by Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) for the provision of constituency-related information, or in support of their constituency service work. Design/methodology/approach - Content analysis of 10,411 tweets sent by the 105 MSPs on Twitter during four weeks in early-2014. Findings - While there was some evidence of MSPs on Twitter acting as a promoter of local community interests and as a conduit for information on local policy issues and events, their tweets were dominated by the wider, national, political agenda and by the Scottish independence debate. Compared with their online behaviour as parliamentary candidates three years earlier, MSPs placed an even greater emphasis on the one-way broadcast of information to their followers. They were reluctant to respond to contentious local policy questions, or to enter into any visible, meaningful, political debate with their constituents. Research limitations/implications - Although the research was conducted seven months before the Scottish independence referendum on 18 September 2014, the independence debate still dominated proceedings on Twitter. It might, therefore, be appropriate to revisit MSPs' use of Twitter at some point during a truer 'peacetime' period. Originality/value - This is the first systematic content analysis of tweets sent by all MSPs on Twitter. It allows the authors to compare their actual Twitter use with that envisaged by the Scottish Parliament, as a way of MSPs communicating about their work and engaging with their constituents

The Effects of the Leisure Activity of Coloring on Post-Test Anxiety in Graduate Level Occupational Therapy Students

Background: This study examined the effects of the leisure activity of coloring on the anxiety levels of graduate level occupational therapy students after taking a high stress exam. This study also examined the effects of the leisure activity of coloring on the students’ perceptions of preparedness for and performance on the exam. Method: The participants were recruited for this quantitative, pre/posttest study through a purposive convenience sample and randomly assigned to either the leisure activity or the control. A self-report assessment was used for data collection. The changes in anxiety levels were examined using a repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). Independent sample t-tests were performed to compare means of the change in anxiety levels, the participants’ perceptions of outcomes on the previous tests, and their perceptions of preparedness for the tests. Results: The participants who participated in the leisure activity of coloring demonstrated a significantly greater reduction in anxiety levels than the participants in the control. Perceptions of performance on and preparedness for the previous tests did not differ between the groups. Conclusion: The findings support using the leisure activity of coloring as an effective tool for the reduction of post-test anxiety in graduate level occupational therapy students

A Survey of Interventions for Cancer Survivors Provided by Occupational Therapy Practitioners

Purpose: Currently, there is a lack of research exploring evidence-based occupational therapy intervention practices at the activity level in survivorship care, which is important to identify for future research and clinical needs of the profession. The purpose of this study was to describe what activity level interventions OT practitioners are using and report any practice trends that might exist. Method: A cross-section design was used with non-probability purposive sampling to recruit occupational therapy practitioners working with adults living with and beyond cancer. A three-phase process for survey development and implementation was used, as recommended by the literature, for improving content validity and minimizing measurement error. Results: A total of 267 surveys were distributed and 70 surveys returned (26.20% response rate). Given the range and frequency of responses, it is suggested that occupational therapy practitioners focus on individual needs for function and participation and are not limiting practice to physical impairments. There were several areas that only a small percentage of respondents identified addressing with clients, including shopping (range 5.83-9.23%), driving and community mobility (range 5.90-9.58%), and financial management (range .74-10.20%) that typically fall into outpatient and community health practice settings. Conclusion: We reviewed current oncology intervention and referral practice trends for occupational therapy and pose several implications for advancing clinical practice in oncology. Future research into interventions not supported by literature that occupational therapists identified currently using in practice is needed

Master’s of Occupational Therapy Student Perceptions of Creative Thinking Across the Academic Program

This study was part of a larger study to describe how master’s of occupational therapy (MOT) students define and perceive their own creative thinking across the academic program. This study involved a cross-sectional quantitative study based on the self-reflective creative thinking surveys completed by the MOT students at Texas Woman’s University (N = 136). Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to reduce a large number of variables by finding which variables are redundant and measuring the same construct. The PCA resulted in three new components accounting for 68% of the variance. Three ANOVAs were conducted to explore possible differences in the students’ perceptions about creative thinking during phases of the program. This study did not reveal any significant differences among the students across the program regarding their perceptions of creative thinking. However, analysis showed rich information about the students’ perceptions of creativity. Three new components were created in response to the PCA. Overall, the students demonstrate high levels of agreement that the MOT students value creative thinking, believe it can be learned, and believe that it is important for occupational therapy practice. This study can serve as a basis for a larger study to develop assessment and/or MOT curriculum design

Ladyhouse Blues Playbill

Providence College Department of Theatre, Dance & Film Blackfriars Theatre Ladyhouse Blues by Kevin O\u27Morrison December 2-5, 1982 Director, Judith Reagan Scenery and Lighting, Jim Eddy Stage Manager, David Joseph Clements I Costumes, Mary-Jo Flanagan Theatre Program Director, John Garrity Cast: Helen - Heidi Ann Vician, Eylie - Carol Caulfield, Dot - Mary Ellen Baxter, Liz - Marilyn Murphy Meardon, Terry - Jane Dillonhttps://digitalcommons.providence.edu/ladyhouse_pubs/1006/thumbnail.jp