Empowering Self-Reliant Students: Navigating the Covid-19 Era as Autonomous Santri

This study investigates the effects that the COVID-19 epidemic had on the Ainul Yaqin Islamic Boarding College of the University of Islam Malang and its choice to use distance learning for all educational endeavors as a result of those effects. The research method used in this study is called a qualitative case study, and it uses many approaches to data collecting, such as observation, interviews, and documentation. The processes of gathering, reducing, presenting, and deriving conclusions from the data are included in data analysis. According to the findings, the implementation of remote learning has resulted in a shift in the emphasis placed on developing students characters. More specifically, more emphasis has been placed on the character characteristics of discipline, independence, and responsibility, which are crucial in an environment involving distance learning. These character qualities are honed throughout ones life through the cultivation of four stages and components of character: moral belief, moral action, moral responsibility, and moral awareness

Prescription pattern of benzodiazepines for inpatients at a tertiary care university hospital in Pakistan

Objective: To determine the point prevalence of benzodiazepine prescriptions for inpatients at a tertiary care university hospital in Pakistan and to correlate it with prescription patterns of various specialties, indications and demographic variables of the patients.Methods: This 24-hours point prevalence study was done at The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. By convenient random sampling, 208 inpatients were interviewed. Patients\u27 files were also studied to record the drugs administered. Data was entered into questionnaires and analyzed by SPSS 10.0.Results: The point prevalence of the benzodiazepines was 21.2%. It was higher among males than females and among surgical than non-surgical patients. Midazolam was the most commonly used benzodiazepine, followed by Alprazolam and Lorazepam. Pre-anesthesia and psychiatric symptoms were the two most common indications. Oral route was used in 84% patients for drug administration and mean Valium equivalent dosage was 4.86 mg/day. Mean length of prescription was 3 days. Longer duration of hospitalization was a significant predictor of the requirement of benzodiazepine prescription (p-value = 0.020).CONCLUSION: Prescription pattern of benzodiazepines at a tertiary care university hospital is similar to that reported in the developed countries through monitoring at various levels by physicians, clinical pharmacist and nursing staff. Data regarding the prescription pattern of benzodiazepines is scarce, and it needs to be expanded to formulate clear guidelines regarding their prescription

Association between perioperative hypothermia and surgical site infection after elective abdominal surgery: A prospective cohort study

Introduction: Surgical site infections (SSIs) account for 14-16% of nosocomial infections and are one of the major causes of increased morbidity, hospital stay, cost of care, and even mortality. Hypothermia as a risk factor for SSI is debated but there is lack of conclusive evidence. The present study explores the association of hypothermia with SSI.Methodology: This is a prospective cohort study conducted on adult patients who underwent elective laparotomy. Patients were divided into two cohorts, the Hypothermia Cohort and the Normothermia Cohort, based upon episodes of hypothermia of \u3c360C in the perioperative period. SSI was diagnosed based upon criteria defined by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Postoperative follow-up to detect SSI was done until 30 days after the operation.Results: A total of 183 patients met the selection criteria and were included in the study. Ninety patients (49%) had perioperative hypothermia and were followed in the Hypothermia Cohort, while 93 patients (51%) who remained normothermic in the perioperative period were followed in the Normothermia Cohort. Mean age of the patients was 49.77 +/- 14.82 years. Almost two-thirds of the participants were females (63.9%). Patients who developed hypothermia were significantly older and had lower BMI. Also the proportion of female patients was significantly higher in the Normothermic Cohort.Rate of SSI was similar in both groups (10% versus 10.8%) with p-value of 0.867. Multivariable regression analysis also failed to show any significant association between hypothermia and SSI.Conclusion: Our study failed to show any statistically significant association between hypothermia and surgical site infection

Synpolydactyly and HOXD13 polyalanine repeat: addition of 2 alanine residues is without clinical consequences

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Type II syndactyly or synpolydactyly (SPD) is clinically very heterogeneous, and genetically three distinct SPD conditions are known and have been designated as SPD1, SPD2 and SPD3, respectively. SPD1 type is associated with expansion mutations in <it>HOXD13</it>, resulting in an addition of ≥ 7 alanine residues to the polyalanine repeat. It has been suggested that expansions ≤ 6 alanine residues go without medical attention, as no such expansion has ever been reported with the SPD1 phenotype.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We describe a large Pakistani and an Indian family with SPD. We perform detailed clinical and molecular analyses to identify the genetic basis of this malformation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We have identified four distinct clinical categories for the SPD1 phenotype observed in the affected subjects in both families. Next, we show that a milder foot phenotype, previously described as a separate entity, is in fact a part of the SPD1 phenotypic spectrum. Then, we demonstrate that the phenotype in both families segregates with an identical expansion mutation of 21 bp in <it>HOXD13</it>. Finally, we show that the HOXD13 polyalanine repeat is polymorphic, and the expansion of 2 alanine residues, evident in unaffected subjects of both families, is without clinical consequences.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>It is the first molecular evidence supporting the hypothesis that expansion of ≤ 6 alanine residues in the HOXD13 polyalanine repeat is not associated with the SPD1 phenotype.</p

A Qualitative Study of the Critical Success Factors of ERP System - A Case Study Approach

Abstract The aim of the present study was to explore Critical Success Factors (CSFs) in implementation, pre-implementation and post-implementation phases of ERP system. A single exploratory case study approach has been employed to analyze the case of an electric supply Government owned company of Pakistan. For the collection of data face-toface in-depth interviews were conducted. NVivo 10 software has been used for the in-depth qualitative analysis. Many techniques have been used for the validation of different themes of the study such as Coding Nodes, Word Tree, Word Tag Clouds and Tree Map. This study found six CSFs of ERP in pre-implementation phase, twelve CSFs during the phase of ERP implementation and six CSFs in pre-implementation stage. This study also gives general recommendations for ERP consultants and ERP end-user companies for the successful implementation of ERP system

An attitude-behavioral model to understand people’s behavior towards tourism during COVID-19 pandemic

The impact of pandemics on the tourism industry should be explored from the perspective of those who will travel, go to the tourist places on vacation, and avail services from tourism and hospitality-related organizations. This study has aimed to identify the reasons for the changed human psychology towards tourism during the COVID-19 Pandemic to develop an attitude-behavioral model. This investigation thus conducted an extensive empirical study among tourists to capture their social, emotional, and financial beliefs. The research then examined the measurement model through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) before investigating the cause-effect relationship through the structural model. Analysis revealed that the negative effect of attitude on behavioral intention toward this new equilibrium is controlled by the emotional aspect of attitude. Furthermore this paper made several contributions to the literature on human psychology, crisis management, human behavior, marketing, and tourism

III-V-on-silicon integrated micro - spectrometer for the 3 μm wavelength range

A compact (1.2 mm(2)) fully integrated mid-IR spectrometer operating in the 3 mu m wavelength range is presented. To our knowledge this is the longest wavelength integrated spectrometer operating in the important wavelength window for spectroscopy of organic compounds. The spectrometer is based on a silicon-on-insulator arrayed waveguide grating filter. An array of InAs0.91Sb0.09 p-i-n photodiodes is heterogeneously integrated on the spectrometers output grating couplers using adhesive bonding. The spectrometer insertion loss is less than 3 dB and the waveguide-referred responsivity of the integrated photodiodes at room temperature is 0.3 A/W. (C) 2016 Optical Society of Americ

Presentation and outcome of Middle East respiratory syndrome in Saudi intensive care unit patients.

BACKGROUND: Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection is associated with high mortality rates but limited clinical data have been reported. We describe the clinical features and outcomes of patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of data from all adult (>18 years old) patients admitted to our 20-bed mixed ICU with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection between October 1, 2012 and May 31, 2014. Diagnosis was confirmed in all patients using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction on respiratory samples. RESULTS: During the observation period, 31 patients were admitted with MERS-CoV infection (mean age 59 ± 20 years, 22 [71 %] males). Cough and tachypnea were reported in all patients; 22 (77.4 %) patients had bilateral pulmonary infiltrates. Invasive mechanical ventilation was applied in 27 (87.1 %) and vasopressor therapy in 25 (80.6 %) patients during the intensive care unit stay. Twenty-three (74.2 %) patients died in the ICU. Nonsurvivors were older, had greater APACHE II and SOFA scores on admission, and were more likely to have received invasive mechanical ventilation and vasopressor therapy. After adjustment for the severity of illness and the degree of organ dysfunction, the need for vasopressors was an independent risk factor for death in the ICU (odds ratio = 18.33, 95 % confidence interval: 1.11-302.1, P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: MERS-CoV infection requiring admission to the ICU is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The need for vasopressor therapy is the main risk factor for death in these patients