Open kitchens: customers' influence on chefs' working practices

The open kitchen as a customer restaurant vista is an emerging phenomenon. The existing research on chefs has primarily focused on the dark side of professional kitchen work which is often facilitated by being closed production spaces. To date, limited research has explored the transformation of chefs' experience through the re-orientation of their work environment from closed to open kitchens which now necessitate customer engagement. We build on the research gap, by investigating chefs’ perceptions of this transition, through a Goffmanian lens to theorise the impact of customer interactions. Purposive and snowball sampling strategies were employed to identify and interview twenty-eight chefs located in different cities in the UK. Chefs spoke passionately about how their social reality and shared perceptions of kitchen work are shifting due to exposure to customers. Fundamental, positive changes are occurring for chefs' working practices and the skills required in meeting the demands of the experience economy. Theoretically, our novel findings offer a fresh perspective of the modern chef and advance the conversation beyond the negative connotations portrayed of kitchen life

Patterns, trends and sex differences in HIV/AIDS reported mortality in Latin American countries: 1996-2007

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>International cohort studies have shown that antiretroviral treatment (ART) has improved survival of HIV-infected individuals. National population based studies of HIV mortality exist in industrialized settings but few have been presented from developing countries. Our objective was to investigate on a population basis, the regional situation regarding HIV mortality and trends in Latin America (LA) in the context of adoption of public ART policies and gender differences.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cause of death data from vital statistics registries from 1996 to 2007 with "good" or "average" quality of mortality data were examined. Standardized mortality rates and Poisson regression models by country were developed and differences among countries assessed to identify patterns of HIV mortality over time occurring in Latin America.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Standardized HIV mortality following the adoption of public ART policies was highest in Panama and El Salvador and lowest in Chile. During the study period, three overall patterns were identified in HIV mortality trends- following the adoption of the free ART public policies; a remarkable decrement, a remarkable increment and a slight increment. HIV mortality was consistently higher in males compared to females. Mean age of death attributable to HIV increased in the majority of countries over the study period.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Vital statistics registries provide valuable information on HIV mortality in LA. While the introduction of national policies for free ART provision has coincided with declines in population-level HIV mortality and increasing age of death in some countries, in others HIV mortality has increased. Barriers to effective ART implementation and uptake in the context of free ART public provision policies should be further investigated.</p