<i>Coxiella burnetii</i> antibody prevalence and risk factors of infection in the human population of Estonia

Q fever is an emerging health problem in both humans and animals. To estimate the prevalence of Coxiella burnetii (C. burnetii) antibodies in the Estonian population, we analyzed plasma samples from 1000 individuals representing the general population and 556 individual serum samples from five population groups potentially at a higher risk (veterinary professionals, dairy cattle, beef cattle, and small ruminant stockbreeders and hunters). Additionally, 118 dairy cow bulk tank milk samples were analyzed to establish the infection status of the dairy cattle herds and the participating dairy cattle keepers. Questionnaires were used to find the potential risk factors of exposure. The effects of different variables were evaluated using binary logistic regression analysis and mixed-effects logistic analysis. The prevalence in veterinary professionals (9.62%; p = 0.003) and dairy cattle farmers (7.73%; p = 0.047) was significantly higher than in the general population (3.9%). Contact with production animals in veterinary practice and being a dairy stockbreeder in C. burnetii positive farms were risk factors for testing C. burnetii seropositive (p = 0.038 and p = 0.019, respectively). Results suggest that C. burnetii is present in Estonia and the increased risk of infection in humans is associated with farm animal contact

An exemplar of how an MA research project unlocked leadership and management potential in a secondary/ HEI partnership

This paper provides a summary of a completed research project from an MA Education: Leadership and Management thesis on a whole school assessment strategy. It shows how Leadership and Management potential has been successfully unlocked through the research process, and at various levels across the secondary school. This was a partner school that had a two year cohort undertaking an Education Masters programme with a specific Leadership and Management angle. The individuals co-writing the paper and presenting are the (now graduated) student, who is a Curriculum Lead, and has subsequently gone on to be selected as a Specialist Leader in Education (an SLE) and her thesis supervisor, who raises issues found in her own doctoral research process. The paper traces the recent journey of systems leadership, and looks at how SLE roles are being used as an alternative path to traditional forms of school leadership. The paper concludes by suggesting that more research is needed to record the impact of SLE roles. Introduction This paper provides a summary of a completed research project from an MA Education: Leadership and Management thesis on a whole school assessment strategy. It shows how Leadership and Management potential has been successfully unlocked through the research process, and at various levels across the secondary school, and into a wider area of the city beyond. The former student presenting (who is an Assistant Head from this September), used her research process across her school, then in her SLE role brought the process to various School Improvement Inspectors and processes. This has led to changes in the City’s schools, and a wider awareness of the impact that assessment strategies can have across the City’s borders into the County beyond. This small scale individual research is put into a wider context here using some of the themes from the research inside the MA supervisor’s own doctoral research process Role of postgraduate study The role of postgraduate study in education has been long recognised with the TDA funding Masters programmes for teachers in the last decade, and more recently Teach First having an integrated Masters programme. O’Grady and Cottle (2015) write about the journey of postgraduate study in Education and conclude that ‘the outcome can be rewarding and transformational for students as their confidence rises, their academic relationships are shaped and their practice emerges in creative and innovative ways’ (O’Grady and Cottle, 2015: 10). This paper highlights a particular case of where this process has taken place

<i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> ELISA results including those that tested positive (POS) and those that tested positive or yielded a grey zone result twice (POS+GREY) in the general population, children, veterinarians, animal caretakers, and hunters in Estonia.

<p><i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> ELISA results including those that tested positive (POS) and those that tested positive or yielded a grey zone result twice (POS+GREY) in the general population, children, veterinarians, animal caretakers, and hunters in Estonia.</p