The accidental mentor: Australian rural nurses developing supportive relationships in the workplace

improved rural nurse retention as an outcome of recognising and developing such supportive relationships in the workplace. Strategies include: performance review and development processes that account for all forms of supportive relationships conducted in the workplace; recognising the importance of developing supportive relationships and allocating time for these; and continuing professional development designed to meet local needs for developing a culture of support in the workplace

Restoring relationships : an investigation into the effect that behaviour approaches have on teacher-student relationships

D. App. Ed. PsyA substantial research base indicates that the relationships between teachers and students significantly affect outcomes for children including emotional wellbeing, academic achievement and behaviour. As a trainee educational psychologist (EP) working in schools I have observed that some discipline procedures appear to be at odds with the development and maintenance of positive teacher-student relationships. Chapter 1: The Systematic Review - A systematic review of the literature examined the effect of disciplinary actions on students’ perceptions of their teachers, and the teacher-student relationship. Six articles fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria. These tended to be large scale data from international sources using questionnaire and observation measures. The systematic review identified that behaviourist discipline procedures were associated with various negative measures of teacher-student relationships. Chapter 2 : Bridging Document - The bridging document reflected the transition between the findings of the systematic review and the empirical study. Discussion was had around the need for research in the area of teacher-student relationships and teachers’ responses to student behaviour. The conceptual framework that underlined my research was described, including reflections of my axiology, ontology, epistemology and methodology. Chapter 3 : The Empirical Research - A mixed-methods case study investigated the consequence-based behaviour system of a primary school which centred upon missing playtime to dissuade unwanted behaviours. The introduction of a restorative conversation, inspired by the restorative justice movement, was explored as an alternative approach to addressing behaviour. This approach aimed to maintain or even promote teacher-student relationships. As a piece of action research, this project brought together a wide variety of information gathering approaches including: examining school data and policies, staff interviews, observations, and questionnaire measures of two interpersonal teacher behaviour factors of ‘influence’ (management / leadership) and ‘proximity’ (warmth / closeness). The research recognised that when experiencing the school’s traditional approach to behaviour students may have perceived less emotional warmth and leadership from their teachers. Nevertheless, a restorative conversation had a positive effect upon teacher-student 5 | P a g e relationships, and in doing so may have enabled better outcomes for children who have demonstrated unwanted behaviours. This research has appreciated the practice of teachers in this primary school and has contributed to the development of a behaviour approach that promotes teacher-student relationships. My contribution to the changes in this primary school indicates the role that EPs may play in addressing school policy and practice. This research concludes with a plea to establish the restoration of relationships as the primary focus of behaviour approaches within schools

Genetic sampling for estimating density of common species.

Understanding population dynamics requires reliable estimates of population density, yet this basic information is often surprisingly difficult to obtain. With rare or difficult-to-capture species, genetic surveys from noninvasive collection of hair or scat has proved cost-efficient for estimating densities. Here, we explored whether noninvasive genetic sampling (NGS) also offers promise for sampling a relatively common species, the snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus Erxleben, 1777), in comparison with traditional live trapping. We optimized a protocol for single-session NGS sampling of hares. We compared spatial capture-recapture population estimates from live trapping to estimates derived from NGS, and assessed NGS costs. NGS provided population estimates similar to those derived from live trapping, but a higher density of sampling plots was required for NGS. The optimal NGS protocol for our study entailed deploying 160 sampling plots for 4 days and genotyping one pellet per plot. NGS laboratory costs ranged from approximately $670 to$3000 USD per field site. While live trapping does not incur laboratory costs, its field costs can be considerably higher than for NGS, especially when study sites are difficult to access. We conclude that NGS can work for common species, but that it will require field and laboratory pilot testing to develop cost-effective sampling protocols

Reflective thought in memos to demonstrate advanced nursing practice in New Zealand

Dewey first described reflective thought as a way to solve issues of perplexity in his seminal work How We Think. Dewey's work underpinned Strauss' contribution to The Discovery of Grounded Theory. Grounded theory methods are characterised by memo writing. This paper will describe how memos, in the form of slides, were employed to demonstrate advanced skill acquisition in practice by an immigrant nurse and health visitor to a panel convened by the New Zealand Nursing Council. Globalisation and migration of the nursing workforce contributes to advancement of the nursing profession in some countries. New Zealand, whose critical mass of primary health care nursing leaders is small, with no specific postgraduate primary health care qualification, benefit from the transferable skills of migrant nurse and community practitioners. Finding easier ways to demonstrate advanced practice to New Zealand’s Nursing Council would maximise the potential contribution of immigrant nurses

PASD1: a promising target for the immunotherapy of haematological malignancies

In general, there is a lack of good immunotherapy targets within the spectrum of haematological malignancies. However haematopoietic stem cell transplants and continuing antigen discovery have allowed further insight into how further improvements in outcomes for patients might be achieved. Most patients with haematological malignancies can be treated with conventional therapies such as radio- and chemotherapy and will attain first remission. However the removal of residual diseased cells is essential to prevent relapse and its associated high mortality. PASD1 is one of the most tissue restricted cancer-testis (CT) antigens with expression limited to primary spermatagonia in healthy tissue. However, characterisation of PASD1 expression in cancers has been predominantly focussed on haematological malignancies where the inappropriate expression of PASD1 was first identified. PASD1 has one of the highest frequencies of expression of all CT antigens in acute myeloid leukaemia, with some suggestion of its role as a biomarker in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Here we describe the characterisation of the function and expression patterns of PASD1 in cell lines and primary tissues. Development of DNA vaccines targeting PASD1 epitopes demonstrate effective ex vivo T-cell responses in terms of IFNγ secretion and tumour cell killing. Of particular note these vaccines have led to the destruction of cells which process and present endogenous PASD1 indicating that effectively primed CTLs could kill PASD1-positive tumour cells

Australian College of Nursing Rural Nursing and Midwifery Faculty: advocating for greater equity in rural health

[Extract] Working in rural Australia is a privilege and challenge that all rural nurses and midwives understand. Knowing the community, being known by the community, doing without, yet understanding much, can be achieved through innovative thinking and practice

Peritonsillar Abscess with Uvular Hydrops

The use of ultrasound by emergency physicians has improved the evaluation of pharyngeal infections. We present a unique case of concomitant peritonsillar abscess and uvular hydrops in which ultrasound provided accurate, timely information in the evaluation

Offering and hospitality in Arabic and English

This paper examines the conventional linguistic practices involved in everyday hospitality situations. We compare offers in Arabic and English and, rather than focusing on the differences between the ways interactants in these two cultures make offers, we challenge the notion that offering is in essence differently handled in the two languages. We argue instead that we should focus just as much on the similarities between the ways offers are made, since no two cultural/linguistic groups are diametrically opposed. Furthermore, no cultural or linguistic group can be argued to be homogeneous. Through a detailed analysis of four naturally occurring hospitality encounters, we explore the nature and sequencing of offering and receiving hospitality in each cultural community and discuss the extent to which offers and refusals are conventionalized in each language. In this way we hope to develop a more contextual discursive approach to cross-cultural politeness research. Drawing on Spencer-Oatey's notion of sociality face, we examine the conventions for being hospitable in order to appear sincere. A qualitative analysis of the data reveals that, while there are similarities in offering behaviour in both English and Arabic, in Arabic, the interactional moves of insisting and refusing are slightly more conventionalized. This however does not constitute a radical difference between the offering norms of these two cultural groups

Delivering Drug Treatment to New Minority Communities: Fresh Perspectives

This thesis addresses the confluence of the issues of drug use and migration. Using data that explores the needs of new communities, it argues that members of new minority communities who use drugs suffer double discrimination as migrants and as drug users. In failing to address this intersection of need, drug policy and practice compound this discrimination. The data for this submission was drawn from three empirical research projects undertaken for Peterborough Drug Action Team and the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse. These research projects addressed previously unreached communities and gathered new data. I published my work among peer-reviewed literature in the form of two journal articles and a book chapter. The research reports and published works inform my thesis. This submission reanalyses the research, using an intersectional lens to understand problems emanating from drug use in the context of migration. Black and minority ethnic people form a small proportion of problem drug users and their needs were under-researched until the late 1990s. A growing body of research has focused on established minority communities, while the drug treatment needs of members of new groups of migrants, whether economic migrants or refugees, remain hidden. My research addresses the impact of policy and practice on new communities. Engaging with members of hard-to-reach groups via community-based researchers, I gathered views about the attitudes and needs of new minority groups and developed a fresh perspective. My work demonstrates that while drug misusers suffer very real discrimination and stigma they also have strengths that could be assets for their recovery. I offer an analysis of the reasons why these strengths are underutilised by a policy agenda that perceives drug misuse as the main feature of the lives of service users in new minority communities. This perception dates back to the first phase of modern drug policy. During the 1980s drug use spread throughout the country, driven by the availability of cheap heroin. The demography of drug users shifted towards white, younger unemployed men and the drugs/crime nexus became the focus of attention. This determined policy development. The context and profile of drug use has changed since 1980; however the decisions of the past affect those taken in the present, and I argue that policy continues to view other issues in individuals’ lives as subsidiary to drug use and its treatment. My work has had an impact in practice and in the academic literature and presents significant new knowledge. In order to respond effectively to drug use in new minority communities, policy and practice must employ an intersectional viewpoint, sharing power and developing coalitions of interest

Balance Sheet Restructuring and Investment

This paper looks at the evolution of corporate balance sheets and investment over the past few years. (Lowe and Shuetrim (1992) also provide information on the evolution of corporate gearing in the 1980s. This paper focuses on the more recent experience of balance sheet restructuring and investment.) We find that many companies have significantly improved their balance sheets in this time. Leverage has been reduced, and this, coupled with lower nominal interest rates, has improved the interest cover and cash flows of the corporate sector. For many firms, the process of balance sheet repair has proceeded a long way so that the extent to which the financial position of firms will impinge on investment is much lower than it was a few years ago. However, in the short term, some focus on financial restructuring may remain given the extent of excess capacity in the economy and a shift in incentives away from debt financing. Looking further ahead, it appears that the rate of return to investing in capital is relatively high, at least when judged against the standards of earlier downturns. As the recovery picks up pace we should, therefore, see firms more inclined to expand their capital expenditure and less focused on financial restructuring.