Reliability and validity of the Alberta context tool (ACT) with professional nurses: Findings from a multi-study analysis

Although organizational context is central to evidence-based practice, underdeveloped measurement hindersitsassessment. The Alberta Context Tool, comprised of 59 items that tap10 modifiable contextual concepts, was developed to address this gap. The purpose of this study to examine the reliability and validity of scores obtained when the Alberta Context Tool is completed by professional nurses across different healthcare settings. Five separate studies (N = 2361 nurses across different care settings) comprised the study sample. Reliability and validity were assessed. Cronbach\u27s alpha exceeded 0.70 for9/10 Alberta Context Tool concepts. Item-total correlations exceeded acceptable standards for 56/59items. Confirmatory Factor Analysescoordinated acceptably with the Alberta Context Tool\u27s proposed latent structure. The mean values for each Alberta Context Tool concept increased from low to high levels of research utilization(as hypothesized) further supporting its validity. This study provides robust evidence forreliability and validity of scores obtained with the Alberta Context Tool when administered to professional nurses

Developing a smartphone app to enhance Oxfam's supply chain visibility

This paper reports on the development of a smartphone app designed to give drivers and managers in a charity organisation greater visibility of transport, donation bank and shop stock in time and space. Trials of the app with samples of drivers and shop managers across three counties in the UK showed that users’ understanding of vehicle activity and how time was utilised in the business was enhanced. The app also informed their decision making, aided some collaboration and helped in their understanding of donation bank and shop performance, with one region altering their collection schedules. The quality of 3G signal was an issue in certain areas which impeded performance and the rules by which the messaging platform should be used in such a tool need careful consideratio

A data quality control program for computer-assisted personal interviews

Researchers strive to optimize data quality in order to ensure that study findings are valid and reliable. In this paper, we describe a data quality control program designed to maximize quality of survey data collected using computer-assisted personal interviews. The quality control program comprised three phases: (1) software development, (2) an interviewer quality control protocol, and (3) a data cleaning and processing protocol. To illustrate the value of the program, we assess its use in the Translating Research in Elder Care Study. We utilize data collected annually for two years from computer-assisted personal interviews with 3004 healthcare aides. Data quality was assessed using both survey and process data. Missing data and data errors were minimal. Mean and median values and standard deviations were within acceptable limits. Process data indicated that in only 3.4% and 4.0% of cases was the interviewer unable to conduct interviews in accordance with the details of the program. Interviewers&rsquo; perceptions of interview quality also significantly improved between Years 1 and 2. While this data quality control program was demanding in terms of time and resources, we found that the benefits clearly outweighed the effort required to achieve high-quality data.<br /

A protocol for advanced psychometric assessment of surveys

Background and Purpose. In this paper, we present a protocol for advanced psychometric assessments of surveys based on the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing. We use the Alberta Context Tool (ACT) as an exemplar survey to which this protocol can be applied. Methods. Data mapping, acceptability, reliability, and validity are addressed. Acceptability is assessed with missing data frequencies and the time required to complete the survey. Reliability is assessed with internal consistency coefficients and information functions. A unitary approach to validity consisting of accumulating evidence based on instrument content, response processes, internal structure, and relations to other variables is taken. We also address assessing performance of survey data when aggregated to higher levels (e.g., nursing unit). Discussion. In this paper we present a protocol for advanced psychometric assessment of survey data using the Alberta Context Tool (ACT) as an exemplar survey; application of the protocol to the ACT survey is underway. Psychometric assessment of any survey is essential to obtaining reliable and valid research findings. This protocol can be adapted for use with any nursing survey.<br /

Ceci n’est pas une ville

Treballs Finals de Grau de Belles Arts. Facultat de Belles Arts. Universitat de Barcelona, Curs: 2015-16, Tutor: Bibiana Crespo[cat] El títol de l’obra d’aquest Treball Final de Grau, Ceci n’est pas une ville, fa al·lusió a la paradoxa proposada per René Magritte al quadre La Trahison des images (La traïció de les imatges), atès que la incapacitat de distingir realitat i ficció ha sobrepassat el territori de la mera representació, convertint-se en un dels dilemes més presents a la nostra contemporaneïtat, fent-se evident tant en les imatges i la informació que ens envolta com en els paisatges que habitem.La peça és un dibuix en el que es representa un paisatge de gran format, introduint l’espectador dins la vivència d’un lloc fictici, simulat. En el dibuix es presenta el carrer principal de La Roca Village, un centre comercial construït imitant l’arquitectura catalana del segle XIX i dedicat a la venda de grans marques de roba i altres complements. Amb més de 4 milions de visitants a l’any aquest “no-poble” ja és el més visitat de Catalunya. Mitjançant el suport d’un material transparent, pintura blanca i una il·luminació dirigida, es crea una projecció d’ombra del grafisme del dibuix a la paret que domina la visió, fet que suscita una confusió a l’espectador, ja que no sap si està veient el dibuix mateix o l’ombra que genera aquest. L’ obra constitueix una crítica al capitalisme cultural i convida a l’espectador a reflexionar sobre el paisatge que habita, tot considerant que els carrers de La Roca Village, habitats per marques i transitats per consumidors, podrien ser un model per una societat en potència, que amaga les seves diferències sota un espectacle dedicat exclusivament a vendre productes lluents i experiències fictícies.[eng] The work’s title of this Final Degree Dissertation project, Ceci n’est pas une ville, refers to René Magritte’s paradox proposed in his painting La Trahison des images (The image betrayal), since the inability to distinguish reality and fiction has exceeded the territory of the mere representation, becoming one of our most noticeable contemporary dilemmas, making itself evident both in images and information that surround us, as in the landscapes that we inhabit. This piece is a drawing representing a large landscape, aiming to introduce the viewer into the experience of a fictitious and simulated place. The drawing shows the main street of La Roca Village, a shopping center built imitating the Catalan architecture of the 19th Century, devoted to selling big clothing brands. With more than 4 million of visitors per year, this “no-village” is already the most visited one in Catalonia. Through a transparent material support, white painting and a directed light, the shadow of the graphism is projected onto the wall and dominates the vision, this fact causes a confusion to the viewer as he/she doesn’t know if is watching the drawing itself or the shadow that it generates. The work constitutes a critic to cultural capitalism and invites the viewers to think about the landscapes they inhabit. Considering that La Roca Village streets, inhabited by brands and crowded by consumers, could be a potential model for a society that hides its differences under a performance exclusively dedicated to sell shiny products and fictitious experiences

Absorbing and transferring risk: assessing the impact of a statewide high-risk-pregnancy telemedical program on VLBW maternal transports

BACKGROUND: Prior research has shown that resources have an impact on birth outcomes. In this paper we ask how combinations of telemedical and hospital-level resources impact transports of mothers expecting very low birth weight (VLBW) babies in Arkansas. METHODS: Using de-identified birth certificate data from the Arkansas Department of Health, data were gathered on transports of women carrying VLBW babies for two six-month periods: a period just before the start of ANGELS (12/02-05/03), a telemedical outreach program for high-risk pregnancies, and a period after the program had been running for six months (12/03-05/04). For each maternal transport, the following information was recorded: maternal race-ethnicity, maternal age, and the birth weight of the infant. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between the predictors (telemedicine, hospital level, maternal characteristics) and the probability of a transport. RESULTS: Having a telemedical site available increases the probability of a mother carrying a VLBW baby being transported to a level III facility either before or during birth. Having at least a level II nursery also increases the chance of a maternal transport. Where both level II nurseries and telemedical access are available, the odds of VLBW maternal transports are only modestly increased in comparison to the case where neither is present. At the individual level, Hispanic mothers were less likely to be transported than other mothers, and teenaged mothers were more likely to be transported than those 18 and over. A mother's being Black or being over 35 did not have an impact on the odds of being transported to a level III facility. CONCLUSION: Combinations of resources have an impact on physician decisions regarding VLBW transports and are interpretable in terms of the capacity to diagnose and absorb risk. We suggest a collegial review of transport patterns and birth outcomes from areas with different levels of resources as a vehicle for moving the entire system of care forward over time. With such an evidence-based review in place, the collegial relations among level III specialists and obstetricians from around the state can, over time, develop workable protocols for when and how level III facilities should be involved

An analysis of children's plays for material suitable for use in oral reading

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston Universit

‘Welcome to the Machine!’ Resisting isomorphic, masculinised corporatisation of Higher Education through feminist scholarship

This paper discusses the synthesised findings from two interdisciplinary, feminist studies conducted under the auspices of the non-corporate nexus, the Women’s Academic Network at Bournemouth University, UK, of which the main author is a co-convenor and co-founder. These qualitative studies focus on academic women’s experiences of managing careers in the work culture of corporate Institutions of Higher Education (HEI) in a modern UK university. The background to this work draws from a body of international research into the slower career progression rates of women academics in comparison to male counterparts and gendered barriers the former encounter. While there has encouragement within Higher Education bodies across the EU to balance out the current gendered inequities within academia, our findings indicate that these are woven into the institutional fabric of enacted daily academic practices serving to disadvantage women scholars