Greek Translation and Cultural Adaptation of the Short Version of the Maastricht Utrecht Adherence in Hypertension Questionnaire

Background: The recently published short version of the Maastricht Utrecht Adherence in Hypertension (MUAH) questionnaire (MUAH-16) suggests that MUAH-16 better represents a patient's adherence to antihypertensive medication than the original MUAH questionnaire. Objective: The aim of our study was the cultural adaptation and validation of the short MUAH-16 questionnaire in the Greek population. Methods: 10 patients were involved in the process of translation and cultural adaptation of MUAH-16, providing feedback on the final version, which was then administered to 100 patients. All patients received at least one antihypertensive drug during the last three months and were followed in the Hypertension-24h ABPM ESH Center of Excellence, Outpatient Clinic for the Treatment of Hypertension in the 3rd Internal Medicine Department of Papageorgiou General Hospital of Thessaloniki. Results: A factor analysis revealed a similar internal structure with four subscales that closely resembled the subscales in the original version of the questionnaire. Internal reliability indexes are equal or better than those of the original subscale structure. Conclusions: The Greek translation of the MUAH-16 is a good match for the original version with small, cultural differences. More research is needed in order to validate the proposed revised internal structure with a larger sample

Applying balanced scorecard methodology in public sector: The case of a vocational school in Greece

Balanced Scorecard is a very important tool for management and evaluation of the long-term organization strategy, which simultaneously observes the improvements at the efficient function, exploiting the most of the organization’s potentials and diffusing the progress to all the employees. The implementation of Balanced Scorecard took place at the 5th Laboratory Centre (LC) of East Attica during the school year 2016-17, after the goals had been set and the measurement indicators had been defined by the school’s administration stuff (School Head, Deputy School Head, Teachers responsible for LC Sectors, Teachers responsible for Direction Laboratories, Teachers Board). The results indicated that the vision, the objectives and the overall strategy of the organization had been clarified and communicated to all customers. The administrative control of the progress of the procedures was more effective and the daily actions were connected with the objectives of the organization. Also it is important that all employees aligned with the organization's long-term strategy, and, furthermore, redesigning the model was possible. In the long term the appropriate background for the ongoing development of the organization and its effectiveness improvement in a constantly changing environment was created

Applying balanced scorecard methodology in public sector: The case of a vocational school in Greece

Balanced Scorecard is a very important tool for management and evaluation of the long-term organization strategy, which simultaneously observes the improvements at the efficient function, exploiting the most of the organization’s potentials and diffusing the progress to all the employees. The implementation of Balanced Scorecard took place at the 5th Laboratory Centre (LC) of East Attica during the school year 2016-17, after the goals had been set and the measurement indicators had been defined by the school’s administration stuff (School Head, Deputy School Head, Teachers responsible for LC Sectors, Teachers responsible for Direction Laboratories, Teachers Board). The results indicated that the vision, the objectives and the overall strategy of the organization had been clarified and communicated to all customers. The administrative control of the progress of the procedures was more effective and the daily actions were connected with the objectives of the organization. Also it is important that all employees aligned with the organization's long-term strategy, and, furthermore, redesigning the model was possible. In the long term the appropriate background for the ongoing development of the organization and its effectiveness improvement in a constantly changing environment was created

Energy analysis of alternative CO 2 refrigeration system configurations for retail food applications in moderate and warm climates

Refrigeration systems are crucial in retail food stores to ensure appropriate merchandising of food products. This paper compares four different CO2 refrigeration system configurations in terms of cooling performance, environmental impact, power consumption and annual running costs. The systems studied were the conventional booster refrigeration system with gas bypass (reference system), the all CO2 cascade system with gas bypass, a booster system with a gas bypass compressor, and integrated cascade all CO2 system with gas bypass compressor. The weather conditions of London, UK, and Athens, Greece, were used for the modelling of energy consumption and environmental impacts to represent moderate and warm climatic conditions respectively. The control strategies for the refrigeration systems were derived from experimental tests in the laboratory on a conventional booster refrigeration system. The results from the analysis showed that the CO2 booster system with gas bypass compressor can provide best performance with 5.0% energy savings for the warm climate and 3.65% for the moderate climate, followed by the integrated cascade all CO2 system with gas bypass compressor, with 3.6% and 2.1% savings over the reference system for the warm and moderate climates respectively.This study was supported by the Research Councils UK Energy programme, Grant No: EP/K011820/1 and GEA Searle, now Kevlion. The authors wish to acknowledge the cash and in-kind contributions of these organisations as well as the support received from Brunel University London and the RCUK National Centre for Sustainable Energy use in Food Chains (CSEF)

A novel approach to data collection for difficult structures: data management for large numbers of crystals with the BLEND software

The present article describes how to use the computer program BLEND to help assemble complete datasets for the solution of macromolecular structures, starting from partial or complete datasets, derived from data collection from multiple crystals. The program is demonstrated on more than two hundred X-ray diffraction datasets obtained from 50 crystals of a complex formed between the SRF transcription factor, its cognate DNA, and a peptide from the SRF cofactor MRTF-A. This structure is currently in the process of being fully solved. While full details of the structure are not yet available, the repeated application of BLEND on data from this structure, as they have become available, has made it possible to produce electron density maps clear enough to visualise the potential location of MRTF sequences

What are the implications of building simulation algorithm choice on indoor overheating risk assessment?

Building performance simulation tools commonly offer several algorithm options for most heat transfer processes being modelled. The impact of this choice on indoor overheating risk, assessed using the criteria described in the CIBSE Technical Memorandum 59, was quantified for a naturally ventilated dwelling archetype in two popular tools. By selecting nondefault algorithm options, the predicted overheating risk changed from high to low for 33% of the cases in tool A and doubled the predicted overheating hours in certain rooms in tool B. Given these findings, modellers should carefully decide on the algorithms being used and publish them for increased transparency

Effect of arsenic-phosphorus interaction on arsenic-induced oxidative stress in chickpea plants

Arsenic-induced oxidative stress in chickpea was investigated under glasshouse conditions in response to application of arsenic and phosphorus. Three levels of arsenic (0, 30 and 60 mg kg−1) and four levels of P (50, 100, 200, and 400 mg kg−1) were applied to soil-grown plants. Increasing levels of both arsenic and P significantly increased arsenic concentrations in the plants. Shoot growth was reduced with increased arsenic supply regardless of applied P levels. Applied arsenic induced oxidative stress in the plants, and the concentrations of H2O2 and lipid peroxidation were increased. Activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and concentrations of non-enzymatic antioxidants decreased in these plants, but activities of catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) were significantly increased under arsenic phytotoxicity. Increased supply of P decreased activities of CAT and APX, and decreased concentrations of non-enzymatic antioxidants, but the high-P plants had lowered lipid peroxidation. It can be concluded that P increased uptake of arsenic from the soil, probably by making it more available, but although plant growth was inhibited by arsenic the P may have partially protected the membranes from arsenic-induced oxidative stress