Institute of Health Care - Faculty of Health Sciences (1987-2013) : a celebration

The Institute of Health Care embarked on its mission of training health care professionals at the University of Malta in 1987. A degree programme in Nursing Studies was the first course offered by the Institute of Health Care. By expanding steadily to provide training opportunities in a variety of allied health professions, the Institute of Health Care attracted increasing numbers of students over its 25 years of existence. This paper provides a brief historical account of the developments that led to the founding of the Institute of Health Care and to its subsequent upgrade to the Faculty of Health Sciences in August 2010. It also traces the advancement of the Institute of Health Care’s individual professional divisions as they grew into faculty departments and expanded their teaching and research portfolios. A key contributor to the Institute of Health Care’s success was the dedication and commitment of its teaching staff, a factor which continues to support the Faculty of Health Sciences in its ongoing mission.peer-reviewe

Community Service-Learning Translations in a Legal Spanish Course

There is growing interest in including service-learning courses in higher education, and abundant literature exists on this subject. Less researched is binomial service learning, specifically related to civic learning and legal translation. Studies on the goals of combining foreign language instruction with civic participation in the Hispanic community through translation have revealed very positive outcomes. This paper presents two different community-related translation activities in a Spanish course for specific purposes (specifically, Legal Spanish), and the corresponding students’ reflections. One is related to El Salvador and to asylum and refugee claims in the US, while the other is linked to a Health Center in Trenton, NJ. The conclusion summarizes the results and evaluates their significance in the context of community-learning service and their success in bringing students closer to a reality that is far beyond their context, while critically thinking about justice-related issues

El perfil del voluntari dels “X FINA Campionats del Món de Natació barcelona03”

En el mes de juliol del 2003 la ciutat de Barcelona acollí els desens Campionats del Món de Natació organitzats per la Federació Internacional de Natació (FINA), amb un èxit de participació sense precedents –2.015 nedadors de 157 països– i on es van batre catorze rècords del món en les cinc modalitats aquàtiques disputades. Aquest esdeveniment esportiu, el de major rellevància per a la ciutat de Barcelona d’ençà de l’Olimpíada de 1992, comptà amb la col·laboració de 1.300 voluntaris arribats d’arreu de Catalunya i de la resta de l’Estat espanyol. Tant les 4.500 inscripcions rebudes d’interessats a participar com a voluntaris en els Campionats, com les rellevants i variades tasques dutes a terme pels que en resultaren seleccionats, feren d’aquest esdeveniment un marc idoni per a l’anàlisi del perfil del voluntariat que participa en esdeveniments esportius, mitjançant cinc indicadors –edat, sexe, procedència, nivell d’estudis i professió. En l’edat va ser on s’observaren més diferències, tant entre els voluntaris dels Campionats del Món (aspirants i seleccionats) com respecte al voluntariat català

Comparing performance management systems

My thanks to Mr. Winston J. Zahra, Director of Operations, Sales & Marketing, Island Hotels Group; Mr. Sergio Vella, Director of Manufacturing, and Mr. Kenneth Formosa, HR Manager, both at Baxter Malta Ltd.; and Dr. Johnny Sung, Centre for Labour Market Studies, University of Leicester, U.K.This paper describes some of the salient performance management systems practised in two medium sized organisations in Malta. The emphasis shall be on HR practice and there shall be an attempt to discuss the systems in terms of differences and possible similarities. The analysis and ensuing discussion are based on the author's experience and observations made whilst working within the Human Resources Departments of both organisations. The comments made during these comparisons shall be seen in the light of local context and culture, as observed by a Maltese HR practitioner.peer-reviewe

Creation and evaluation of a cognitive pamphlet designed to help children needing nitrous oxide inhalation sedation

A number of paediatric dental patients are highly anxious about dental treatment and this prevents them from accepting dental treatment in the conventional manner. There are a number of techniques available to help subjects deal better with treatment and one of the more commonly used techniques is nitrous oxide inhalation sedation. This technique involves the administration of a titrated mixture of nitrous oxide and oxygen through a nose-piece with the aim of sedating a patient to a point where s/he can cope with dental treatment. This technique is highly successful but it still requires a certain amount of cooperation on the part of the patient. Some patients find it hard to accept the nose-piece while others accept it initially but then still do not manage to relax enough for dental treatment to be carried out. Children‟s coping strategies vary and are dependent on factors such as age, personal characteristics and cultural influences. Research shows that cognitively oriented coping strategies are more constructive in the dental setting and it is possible to teach children how to use such strategies. Preparation for surgery and anaesthesia is clearly important and many children consider the dental visit a stressful situation. Cognitive behaviour therapy has been used to help subjects cope with various medical conditions and also in preparation for surgery. The aim of this project was to develop and evaluate a cognitive pamphlet to help facilitate inhalation sedation treatment for anxious paediatric dental patients. The project was carried out in three parts. The first study, a retrospective case note review of the patients undergoing inhalation sedation at Glasgow Dental Hospital and School, ascertained the population sample. 13 The case notes of all the patients who attended for dental treatment with inhalation sedation at the Glasgow Dental Hospital in the year 2005 were pulled and demographic details of the patients were recorded from them. The results showed that the mean age of the patients attending was 10.8years with a range of 5 to 16 years and about 53% of patients were female. Therefore, it was concluded that the pamphlet should target children aged between 7 and 16 years and it should be equally appealing to both genders. In the second study a cognitive pamphlet was designed, evaluated qualitatively and modified. The pamphlet was designed by the main researcher with the help of a psychologist. It consisted of a three-panel brochure with bold colourful images and text. It presented the subject with three sets of cognitive exercises to practice at home and perform during treatment. The pamphlet was qualitatively evaluated by a focus group of paediatric dentists using a structured interview questionnaire. The pamphlet was then amended according to the suggestions of the interviewees. The third study was a single blind randomised controlled clinical evaluation of this modified pamphlet. Subjects were assessed and recruited to the study from the sedation assessment clinics in the Glasgow Dental Hospital and the Community Dental Services. The subjects were randomly allocated to either a control or a study group. The subjects in the study group received a previously developed pamphlet consisting of cognitive behavioural therapy exercise. The children were instructed to read the pamphlet and practice the exercises at home and then use them at their first treatment visit. The preoperative anxiety levels of the subjects were assessed prior to assignment into the 14 respective groups. The blinded operators were asked to assess the overall behaviour of the subjects on a Global Rating Scale and a Visual Analog Scale. All the subjects had their first treatment visit videotaped and all the tapes were watched by two blinded observers at the end of the study and the subjects‟ acceptance of the nose-piece as well as their overall behaviour was scored. The scales used by the blinded observers were the Houpt Scale, the Visual Analog Scale and the Global Rating Scale. These scales were applied at specific time-points, namely: 1. introduction to the nose-piece, 2. fitting of the nose-piece, 3. breathing in and out of the nose-piece and 4. start of the operative procedure. The final number of subjects participating in the study was 35, of which 11 (31.5%) were recruited from the Community Dental Services. Eighteen (51.4%) were male and the mean age was 10.2 years (7-14). Thirteen (34.2%) were in the highest level of social deprivation. The preoperative anxiety scores were very similar for both groups and the mean values (24.6 and 24.9) were higher than the normative value. The primary outcome measure of the study was whether the pamphlet improved subject acceptance of the nose-piece. Only one subject from the control group refused to wear the nose-piece while all the subjects in the study group accepted the nose-piece. The difference was not statistically significant (Chi square test, p= 0.324). The secondary outcome measure was the overall behaviour of the subjects during treatment. Although, there was poor agreement between the observers, the individual results from each observer as well as the result at the time of best agreement show that there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (Mann-Whitney and Fisher‟s Exact test). The results show that the pamphlet was not 15 successful to either help subjects accept the nose-piece or improve their behaviour during treatment. There could be various reasons for the failure of the pamphlet to improve patient co-operation. These include an already highly successful technique (inhalation sedation), a small study sample, failure to comply with instructions to read the pamphlet, difficulty in processing cognitive exercises without the help of a psychologist and the Hawthorne effect. Although it is not possible to recommend the use a cognitive pamphlet prior to inhalation sedation at this stage, it may be possible to further investigate this idea in a future study taking into consideration the shortcomings of the present study and improving them

Brucellosis : The Malta Experience - A Celebration 1905-2005

Professor Rizzo Naudi provides a short description of what can be found in his book Brucellosis : The Malta Experience - A Celebration 1905 - 2005. He describes in some chronological order the progress made in the study of this worldwide disease of animals that also affects humans. Most of the important discoveries regarding this disease were made by English and Maltese investigators working in Malta during the nineteenth and twentieth century. In the words of Dr Kennedy one of the members of the Mediterranean Fever Commission, "The History of Malta Fever (Brucellosis) is practically the history of its study in the Mediterranean and more especially in Malta". This Book is an account of these important discoveries and the subsequent efforts to control and eradicate this disease in Malta, which are very interesting from a historical and social point of view.peer-reviewe

Bone bioengineering for mandibular reconstruction

The reconstruction of critical-size bone defects following tumour resection or bone loss due to trauma is topical today and relates to the complexity of the treatment involved and poor healing outcomes. In bone bioengineering, the current trends are to explore novel methods of repairing these defects by using various bone substitutes. Various graft materials have been used for the restoration of these defects. A graft ideally needs to promote osteogenesis, osteoinduction and osteoconduction. The aim of this investigation was to assess the histological, radiographic and mechanical properties of the tissue regenerate following the application of tricalcium phosphate (TCP) scaffolding and recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 7 (rhBMP-7) for the reconstruction of a critical-size osteoperiosteal mandibular continuity defect in the rabbit model. Highly purified and freeze dried recombinant human BMP-7 was used. It was produced by Chinese hamster ovary cells in culture and purified from the culture media. All the TCP samples had a porosity of 80% and average pore size of 100 – 500µm. For the rhBMP-7 loaded scaffolds; rhBMP-7 was reconstituted according to a recommended specification and 400ng were loaded by adsorption into the TCP scaffolds. Nine adult New Zealand white rabbits (3.0-4.0kg) were used for the planned study. In each case a unilateral osteoperiosteal mandibular body critical-size defect was created. In six cases the critical-size defect was filled with the rhBMP-7 on the TCP scaffolding, and in three cases the TCP was used alone. Assessments were made with plain radiographs at 0, 4, 8, and 12 weeks follow-up. Three months post-operatively the animals were sacrificed, the mandibles removed and the surgical sites were assessed with cone beam CT radiography, tested mechanically and analysed histologically. More bone regeneration was seen radiographically and histologically within the mandibles that received rhBMP-7 in the TCP, with evidence of both woven and lamellar bone formation. Union was obtained at the surgical site with no cartilage formation. The regenerated bone was confined to the area that had received the scaffold, with no calcification of the surrounding soft tissues. The TCP was also resorbed more completely in this experimental group. Very little bone was formed in the cases where the defect was filled with TCP alone. The mechanical properties of the regenerate in the group that received the rhBMP-7 and TCP were also significantly superior to those of the cases that received TCP alone. Histologically the overall mean of the percentage regenerated bone volume in the rhBMP-7 and TCP cases was 29.41% ± 6.25, while that for the TCP alone cases was 6.35% ± 3.08. The difference between the groups was statistically significant (p = 0.014). Mechanically the failure moments for the TCP alone cases were found to be very low (0-48mNm) while those for the rhBMP-7 and TCP cases were higher but there was considerable variation between the cases (55-2115mNm). Some of the cases in this group achieved failure moments comparable to normal untreated bone. In conclusion TCP scaffolding and rhBMP-7 can be used successfully for the reconstruction of critical-size mandibular defects in the rabbit model and TCP loaded with rhBMP-7 was significantly superior in its capacity for bone regeneration histologically when compared to TCP alone. The resultant bony regenerate could also at times have mechanical properties similar to those of natural bone. But due to the variability of the mechanical properties further investigations are required before clinical application

The nature of goal orientations and their relationships with performance, mental effort and self-efficacy

The concept of Goal Orientations (GOs), which was initially developed in the area of educational psychology, is becoming more and more popular in organisational psychology. Although research on GOs has come a long way since the 1970s there are still a number of conceptual and operational issues which have yet to be addressed. These include issues with the definition, dimensionality, stability and specificity of GOs. It is considered essential to address these concerns because they greatly influence the reliability, validity and accuracy of GO research. Consequently, one aim of this study was to examine the dimensionality, stability and specificity of GOs. It is believed that once enough evidence regarding these issues is gathered this could be used to develop a comprehensive definition of GOs. This study aims to contribute towards gathering such evidence. GOs have been examined both in terms of profiles as well as in terms of individual GO scales (non-profile perspective) in the past. This study uses both perspectives in order to attempt to provide as much information as possible regarding the issues being investigated. Another aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between GOs and performance, mental effort and self-efficacy. Further knowledge of these relationships is considered to be of benefit to organisations. So as to achieve these aims a longitudinal study, consisting of a survey and an experimental study, was carried out. The survey sample consisted of 641 participants whilst the experimental sample was made up of 73 participants. The participants were mainly Loughborough University students. However, there were also a number of employed and retired individuals participating in the study. Quantitative analysis was deemed to be the most appropriate method of analysis to achieve the aims of this study. Data analyses were carried out using SPSS and Latent Gold software packages. The results point towards GOs not being as general and stable as initially assumed. There is a strong possibility of GOs being domain-specific. Consistent with a number of past studies, the approach GOs were found to be more strongly related to self-efficacy, mental effort and performance on tasks than the avoidance GOs. Moreover, the relationships between GOs and these variables seem to be moderated by task characteristics. The profile analyses results revealed that a number of GO profiles obtained in this study were very similar to those obtained in other studies. A closer look at these common GO profiles indicated that some profiles were consistently more strongly related to self-efficacy, mental effort and performance than others. This study provides a foundation for future research studies to build on in order to better understand the nature of GOs and their relationships with self-efficacy, mental effort and performance

The new motor vehicles market : an analysis of attributes considered by university students in the purchase of a new car

University students are increasingly becoming an important segment in the market for new motor vehicles. The growth of the market for new cars during 1994 is analysed and followed by the identification of a number of attributes considered by students in making their car purchase decision. Explorative qualitative research using conjoint analysis is used to identify the ideal combination of attributes and attribute levels.peer-reviewe

El perfil del voluntario de los “X FINA Campeonatos del Mundo de Natación barcelona03”

En el mes de julio del 2003 la ciudad de Barcelona acogió los X Campeonatos del Mundo de Natación organizados por la Federación Internacional de Natación (FINA), con un éxito de participación sin precedentes –2.015 nadadores de 157 países– donde se batieron catorce récords mundiales en las cinco modalidades acuáticas disputadas. Este acontecimiento deportivo, el de mayor relevancia para la ciudad de Barcelona desde la Olimpíada de 1992, contó con la colaboración de 1.300 voluntarios llegados de toda Cataluña y del resto de España. Tanto las 4.500 inscripciones recibidas de interesados en participar como voluntarios de los Campeonatos, como las relevantes y variadas tareas llevadas a cabo por los seleccionados, hicieron de este evento un marco idóneo para el análisis del perfil del voluntariado que participó en acontecimientos deportivos, mediante cinco indicadores –edad, sexo, procedencia, nivel de estudios y profesión–. Fue en la edad donde se observaron más diferencias, tanto entre los voluntarios de los Campeonatos del Mundo (aspirantes y seleccionados) como entre el voluntariado catalán