Festival Of Science: An Opportunity to Promote University Research

The 13th Festival of Science will be organized in a number of Croatian towns on April 20-25, 2015. The organization of the Festival in Croatia was initiated by a non-profit organization, the British Council, which continues to provide central support. Every year volunteers from any town can apply and organize the Festival of Science in their town. The Festival of Science was initially limited to university towns, but for a number of years now, smaller non-university towns have been actively organizing successful Festivals of Science. Local organizing committees are usually composed of university professors and volunteers-enthusiasts. The goal is to devote an entire week to science and popular scientific activities which tend to be organized in town centers and sometimes in academic institutions, with the idea of bringing science closer to citizens, taking it out of academic classrooms and research laboratories

Cochrane systematic review as a PhD thesis: an alternative with numerous advantages

In this article we propose that the production of a systematic review within The Cochrane Collaboration should be considered a valid mode of achieving doctoral title in medicine and related professions, including biochemistry. While engaging in a Cochrane systematic review, an author first registers a title, then writes a peer-reviewed protocol consisting of introduction and methods, and finally publishes a full systematic review in The Cochrane Library, a monthly publication, which in 2009 reached an impact factor of 5.65. Conducting a Cochrane systematic review can give PhD candidates not only an opportunity to acquire a high level of content and methodological expertise, but also the capacity to learn and solve problems by using critical and analytical thinking. This capacity is considered one of the key generic and transferable skills necessary for future researchers. While working on a Cochrane systematic review, an author builds international research network. Cochrane Review Groups as editorial bases of The Cochrane Collaboration offer ongoing support and advice to the authors. Besides being clinically relevant and high-impact, Cochrane systematic reviews should be especially interesting to doctoral students from low- and middle-income countries because they are associated with relatively small financial burden. In conclusion, systematic reviews have a number of advantages and therefore institutions offering postgraduate training should consider adopting a "Cochrane PhD", and students should consider doing a Cohrane systematic review for their doctoral thesis

Post-GDPR survey of data protection officers in research and non-research institutions in Croatia: a cross-sectional study

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) focuses on important elements of data ethics, including protecting people’s privacy, accountability and transparency. According to the GDPR, certain public institutions are obliged to appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO). However, there is little publicly available data from national EU surveys on DPOs. This study aimed to examine the scope of work, type of work, and education of DPOs in institutions in Croatia. During 2020-2021, this cross-sectional study surveyed DPOs appointed in Croatia. The survey had 35 items. The questions referred to their appointment, work methods, number and type of cases handled by DPOs, the sources of information they use, their experience and education, level of work independence, contacts with ethics committees, problems experienced, knowledge, suggestions for improvement of their work, changes caused by the GDPR, and sociodemographic information. Out of 5671 invited DPOs, 732 (13%) participated in the study. The majority (91%) indicated that they could perform their job independently; they did not have prior experience in data protection before being appointed as DPOs (54%) and that they need additional education in data protection (82%). Most DPOs indicated that they had none or minimal prior experience in data protection when they were appointed as DPO, that they would benefit from further education on data protection, and exhibited insufficient knowledge on basic concepts of personal data protection. Requirements for DPO appointments should be clarified; mandatory education and certification of DPOs could be introduced and DPOs encouraged to engage in continuous education

Dostupnost zdravstvene skrbi i vrijeme čekanja na pregled bolesnika s kroničnom nemalignom boli: povratne informacije tercijarne ambulante za liječenje boli

Evaluation of healthcare services by patients is an essential component of quality improvement. We studied association between patient satisfaction and accessibility of healthcare services to patients with chronic nonmalignant pain. A hundred patients from the Pain Clinic, Split University Hospital Center, Split, Croatia, completed a 27-item questionnaire about their condition, duration of chronic pain treatment, access to healthcare, waiting times for various healthcare services, and their satisfaction with the pain clinic and health system. Patients were referred to the pain clinic after median of 4.5 years of chronic nonmalignant pain duration. Median waiting time for pain clinic appointment, seeing a specialist and performing diagnostic procedures was 10, 30 and 90 days, respectively. However, some patients waited for an appointment to a specialist and diagnosis for up to one year. Negative association was found between waiting time for pain clinic appointment and healthcare system grade (r=-0.34, P=0.02). Patient suggestions for improving pain clinic were more staff, better approach to each patient, and better organization. In conclusion, access to public healthcare for patients with chronic nonmalignant pain should be better to improve patient satisfaction and provide better care.Procjena zdravstvene skrbi od strane bolesnika je važna sastavnica sustava kontrole kvalitete. Istražili smo povezanost zadovoljstva bolesnika i dostupnosti zdravstvene skrbi za bolesnike s kroničnom nemalignom boli. Sto bolesnika ispunilo je u Ambulanti za liječenje boli Kliničkog bolničkog centra Split upitnik od 27 pitanja vezanih za dijagnozu, trajanje boli, pristup zdravstvenoj skrbi, duljinu čekanja različitih usluga i njihovo zadovoljstvo sustavom. Utvrđeno je da su bolesnici patili od kronične boli prosječno 4,5 godine prije nego su upućeni u ambulantu za liječenje boli. Medijani vremena čekanja za pregled u ambulanti za liječenje boli, pregled specijalista i dijagnostičke pretrage bili su 10, 30 odnosno 90 dana. Pojedini su bolesnici čekali godinu dana na pregled specijalista i pretrage. Negativna povezanost utvrđena je između duljine čekanja i ocjene koju su bolesnici dali zdravstvenom sustavu (r=-0.34, P=0.02). Prijedlozi bolesnika za poboljšanje usluga u Ambulanti za liječenje boli su bili: više osoblja, bolji pristup svakom bolesniku i bolja organizacija. Zaključno, pristup zdravstvenoj skrbi bolesnika s kroničnom nemalignom boli trebalo bi poboljšati prema važećim međunarodnim smjernicama

Corrigendum to: Post-GDPR survey of data protection officers in research and non-research institutions in Croatia: a cross-sectional study

This is a correction of: Mladinić A, Puljak L, Koporc Z. Post-GDPR survey of data protection officers in research and non-research institutions in Croatia: a cross-sectional study. Biochem Med (Zagreb). 2021; 31:030703. https://doi.org/10.11613/BM.2021.030703