Are Faith-based, Long-term Care Nonprofit Organizations More Effective? A Survey Study of Nursing Homes in Virginia

The role of religion in effectiveness of organizations has been part of serious debates among policy makers, practitioners and scholars after President George W. Bush\u27s creation of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in 2001. The primary purpose of this study is to determine whether being a faith affiliated nursing home influences performance. The secondary purpose is, regardless of ownership type - religiously affiliated or secular - to investigate if more religiously involved nursing homes perform better than their less religiously involved counterparts. Performance is measured based on criterion put in place by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The statistical analyses found no substantial differences between performance of church affiliated nursing homes and secular nursing homes as well as more religiously involved nursing homes and less religiously involved nursing homes

On generalization of ⊕-cofinitely supplemented modules

We study the properties of ⊕-cofinitely radical supplemented modules, or, briefly, cgs ⊕-modules. It is shown that a module with summand sum property (SSP) is cgs ⊕ if and only if M/w Loc⊕ M (w Loc⊕ M is the sum of all w-local direct summands of a module M) does not contain any maximal submodule, that every cofinite direct summand of a UC-extending cgs ⊕-module is cgs ⊕, and that, for any ring R, every free R-module is cgs ⊕ if and only if R is semiperfect.Досліджено властивості ⊕-кофінітно радикальних поповнених модулів або скорочено cgs ⊕-модулів. Показано, що модуль із властивістю суми доданків SSP є cgs⊕-модулем тоді і тільки тоді, колиM/wLoc⊕M (wLoc⊕M — сума всіх w-локальних прямих доданків модуля M) не містить жодного максимального субмодуля; кожний прямий доданок UC-розширюваного cgs⊕-модуля є cgs⊕-модулем; для будь-якого кільця R кожний вільний R-модуль є cgs⊕-модулем тоді і тільки тоді, коли R є напівперфектним

The Dialectics of Secularism and Revivalism in Turkey: The Case of Said Nursi

This dissertation analyzes Said Nursi\u27s revivalist discourse and mobilization strategies in the context of the development of secularism in Turkey. This study starts with the exploration of the development of the secularist movement and its discourse with regard to philosophical foundations of (1) the construction of reality, (2) the self and (3) the society. This is followed by the analysis of Said Nursi\u27s discourse of revivalism before and after the establishment of the Turkish Republic with respect to these three areas and by the exploration of the discourse and mobilization strategies of the Nur Movement (established by Said Nursi) vis-à-vis the mobilization strategies of the secularist establishment. This study is based on discourse analysis of the texts produced by the secularist movement, and the texts produced by Said Nursi and the letters he exchanged with his followers. I also analyze material and non-material mobilization strategies of these two movements. One of the main conclusions of this dissertation is that secularism and revivalism do not have fixed boundaries and natures. Sociopolitical contexts, socio-economic and educational backgrounds and ideological orientations of actors, their relationships with the state, with religious forces played significant roles in the emergence of substantial variations in the discourse and mobilization of the secularist movement. Said Nursi\u27s approach to religious revival, too, showed considerable variations. Although he first advocated macro level societal reform for reversing the decline of the Muslim World, Said Nursi started developing a dialectic approach to religious revival after the introduction of explicitly secularist ideas (e.g., materialism and naturalism). Following the establishment of the secularist Turkish Republic, Said Nursi started writing treatises with the purpose of challenging the philosophical foundations of secularism rather than directly engaging the secularist establishment. In so doing, he embraced a micro-level mobilization strategy which aimed at appealing to and transforming individuals. By challenging its philosophical bases and not developing a politically intonated discourse against secularism, Said Nursi and the Nur Movement embraced an effective mobilization strategy of simultaneously engaging and disengaging the secularist establishment

Working with refugees during COVID-19: social worker voices from Turkey

This short essay aims to share social workers’ experiences of working with refugees during the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey. Three of the authors work in different non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in different cities. NGOs play a vital role in the delivery of psychosocial support services to refugees in Turkey and have been inevitably affected by the pandemic. The major practice challenges are being unprepared for tele-social work, a decrease in financial resources, increasing barriers to resources, and threats to refugee children’s wellbeing. Finally, suggestions are made for the near future

Full-wave EMC Simulations Using Maxwell Garnett Model For Composites With Cylindrical Inclusions

Four different models for effective dielectric properties of biphasic composite containing random or aligned cylindrical inclusions are considered in this paper. These models are based on the Maxwell Garnett (MG) mixing rule. The effects of distribution and orientation of cylindrical inclusions in a composite material is studied. An equivalent averaged material with Debye-like frequency characteristics, suitable for time-domain full-wave numerical electromagnetic simulations is retrieved. This Debye model is derived from the Maxwell Garnett formulation. The numerical model test structure consists of a composite slab inserted in a rectangular waveguide. Simulations are run for the frequency range above the cut-off frequency of the fundamental mode TE10. The differences between the proposed models are quantified using the Feature Selection Validation (FSV) tool. The comparison of the models provides an insight on the effect of inclusion orientation and distribution. © 2011 IEEE

One-Stage Reconstruction for Midfacial Defect after Radical Tumor Resection

A serious midface defect involving resection of squamous cell carcinoma originating from the hard palate was treated by an unusual reconstructive strategy. After tumor resection, surgical reconstruction was accomplished in one stage using one free flap with one distant and local flap: a radial forearm flap to reconstruct the upper lip, a forehead flap to reconstruct the external nose, a cantilever calvarial bone graft to replace the nasal skeleton and a nasolabial flap and split thickness skin graft to cover the internal nasal lining. The rationale for this one-stage reconstruction and the problems associated with midfacial reconstruction after wide tumor excision are discussed

PATIKA: An integrated visual environment for collaborative construction and analysis of cellular pathways

Motivation: Availability of the sequences of entire genomes shifts the scientific curiosity towards the identification of function of the genomes in large scale as in genome studies. In the near future, data produced about cellular processes at molecular level will accumulate with an accelerating rate as a result of proteomics studies. In this regard, it is essential to develop tools for storing, integrating, accessing, and analyzing this data effectively. Results: We define an ontology for a comprehensive representation of cellular events. The ontology presented here enables integration of fragmented or incomplete pathway information and supports manipulation and incorporation of the stored data, as well as multiple levels of abstraction. Based on this ontology, we present the architecture of an integrated environment named PATIKA (Pathway Analysis Tool for Integration and Knowledge Acquisition). PATIKA is composed of a server-side, scalable, object-oriented database and client-side editors to provide an integrated, multi-user environment for visualizing and manipulating network of cellular events. This tool features automated pathway layout, functional computation support, advanced querying and a user-friendly graphical interface. We expect that PATIKA will be a valuable tool for rapid knowledge acquisition, microarray generated large-scale data interpretation, disease gene identification, and drug development

Group problem management plus (PM+) to decrease psychological distress among Syrian refugees in Turkey: a pilot randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Syrian refugees resettled in Turkey show a high prevalence of symptoms of mental disorders. Problem Management Plus (PM+) is an effective psychological intervention delivered by non-specialist health care providers which has shown to decrease psychological distress among people exposed to adversity. In this single-blind pilot randomised controlled trial, we examined the methodological trial procedures of Group PM+ (gPM+) among Syrian refugees with psychological distress in Istanbul, Turkey, and assessed feasibility, acceptability, perceived impact and the potential cost-effectiveness of the intervention. METHODS: Refugees with psychological distress (Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, K10 > 15) and impaired psychosocial functioning (World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule, WHODAS 2.0 > 16) were recruited from the community and randomised to either gPM+ and enhanced care as usual (E-CAU) (n = 24) or E-CAU only (n = 22). gPM+ comprised of five weekly group sessions with eight to ten participants per group. Acceptability and feasibility of the intervention were assessed through semi-structured interviews. The primary outcome at 3-month follow-up was symptoms of depression and anxiety (Hopkins Symptoms Checklist-25). Psychosocial functioning (WHODAS 2.0), symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder and self-identified problems (Psychological Outcomes Profiles, PSYCHLOPS) were included as secondary outcomes. A modified version of the Client Service Receipt Inventory was used to document changes in the costs of health service utilisation as well as productivity losses. RESULTS: There were no barriers experienced in recruiting study participants and in randomising them into the respective study arms. Retention in gPM+ was high (75%). Qualitative analyses of the interviews with the participants showed that Syrian refugees had a positive view on the content, implementation and format of gPM+. No adverse events were reported during the implementation. The study was not powered to detect an effect. No significant difference between gPM+ and E-CAU group on primary and secondary outcome measures, or in economic impacts were found. CONCLUSIONS: gPM+ delivered by non-specialist peer providers seemed to be an acceptable, feasible and safe intervention for Syrian refugees in Turkey with elevated levels of psychological distress. This pilot RCT sets the stage for a fully powered RCT. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT03567083 ; date: 25/06/2018