The challenges in the selection and recruitment to school headteachers in the Spanish Educational System

Currently, the low number of candidates and the complex formation of the teams are great problems in the occupation of the school leadership position. This qualitative study aims to identify the main difficulties experienced from the perspective of the candidates. Based on the data obtained in various interviews, it should be noted how the headteacher selection process is influenced by different variables, both contextual and personal. The variables that condition this process include complexity of the decision to be a candidate or accept the appointment and the difficulty of forming and a team, among others

Links between ease of use, perceived usefulness and attitudes towards technology in older people in university: A structural equation modelling approach

Technological resources have the potential to improve the quality of life in a context in which social pressure for the use of these tools is increasing. In this sense, the adoption of technological resources by the elderly is a highly complex issue because numerous and varied factors are involved. Precisely for this reason, this study aims to analyze the effects that exist between a series of dimensions related to the perception of older people regarding the ease of use, the perceived usefulness of technological tools, attitudes towards technology and their intention to use them in everyday life. To do this, 415 adults (M = 66.27 years) enrolled in a program at the University of Experience in the Spanish context completed an online questionnaire. The application of a Structural Equations Model for data analysis highlights that the perceived ease of use of the technology has a positive effect on the perceived usefulness of these resources. Similarly, an indirect effect of the perceived usefulness of technology on the intention to use these resources is observed through the manifestation of positive attitudes towards the use of digital tools

Critical thinking and inclusive practice: A qualitative study of spanish primary school teachers’ perceptions

As one of the most necessary skills of the 21st century for problem solving, critical thinking should be taught and included in the curriculum of those schools in which inclusivity towards all their students is a priority. From this perspective, this study presents the educational implications for the teaching and evaluation of this skill. In addition, teachers' perceptions regarding the teaching methods used, evaluation techniques and limitations that they encounter at the moment of enhancing the critical thinking of their students are analysed. A descriptive-comprehensive research with a qualitative approach was adopted, with data collected from interviews with 10 primary education teachers in the Spanish educational system. The analysis suggests that, although there is some knowledge on the part of teachers about critical thinking skills, most of them are not able to respond to this learning need. They highlight the technique of joint discussion and interactions between teams as among the effective tools for fostering critical thinking skills. Notably, these teachers have referred to the existence of certain relationships between critical thinking and equitable and quality education

Key soft skills in the orientation process and level of employability

We understand soft skills as an integrated set of knowledge, skills and values that facilitate the effective, affective and efficient development of a skill or activity. The objective of this study was to identify the soft skills that are most often used in the orientation process and those that improve employability, according to Spanish counselors. A qualitative methodology was used. The participants (n = 57) were orientation professionals. A total of 273 interviews were conducted over five years. The results and conclusions show that communication and decision-making are the most important competencies in the orientation process and at the level of employability, followed by intrapersonal skills, skills in interpersonal relationships, teamwork, problem solving, adaptation to new situations, creativity and leadership

Tratamiento quirúrgico de las metástasis diafisarias de huesos largos en pacientes oncológicos estadio IV

La incidencia de enfermedad metastásica ósea se ha incrementado debido a la mayor supervivencia de los pacientes con cáncer. El esqueleto es la tercera localización mas frecuente de metástasis procedentes de tumores primarios. Se evalúan las indicaciones quirúrgicas para evitar la aparición de fracturas patológicas y los resultados obtenidos en metástasis diafisarias de huesos largos. Cincuenta lesiones han sido tratadas en 48 pacientes. En todos los casos se estabilizó con un clavo intramedular. La supervivencia media fue de 11 meses (2 días-48 meses). Al final del seguimiento la puntuación media en la escala MSTS fue 25/30 y 27/30 para miembro superior e inferior respectivamente. Debe considerarse la radioterapia postoperatoria para disminuir la progre - sión de la enfermedad. Hay múltiples factores a tener en cuenta en el tratamiento de pacientes con metástasis óseas incluyendo comorbilidades, características histológicas del tumor primario, la expectativa de vida y acti - vidad del paciente y el dolor.The incidence of metastatic bone disease is increasing as patients with cancer living longer. The skeleton is the third most common site for metastasis that originates from primary carcinomas. We evaluated the indications for surgery to prevent pathological fractures and the results obtained in metastases of the diaphyseal long bones. Fifty metastases bone lesion were treated in 48 patients. In all cases an intramedullary nail was in - serted. The chance of surviving was 11 moths average (2 days-48 moths). At follow-up, the MSTS average was 25/30 and 27/30 for superior and inferior limb respectively. To minimize disease progression postoperative ex - ternal-beam irradiation should be considered. There are multiples factors to consider in the treatment of patients with bone metastasic, including comorbidities, the histological characteristics of the primary tumor, the expected life span of the patient, the patient ?s activity level and pain

Validity and reliability of the Spanish version of the Florida Patient Acceptance Survey

Antecedentes Para los sistemas de salud actuales, la medición y la generación de indicadores que permitan evaluar los resultados en salud, han tomado gran relevancia como parte de la calidad en la atención. En consecuencia, los procesos de adaptación y validación de los instrumentos, son importantes para tener herramientas de medición fiables. El instrumento Florida Patient Acceptance Survey, es una escala específica para medir la aceptación de las personas a los dispositivos cardiacos. Método estudio de tipo metodológico, en el cual se llevó a cabo la validez facial, de contenido y confiabilidad de la versión en español del instrumento Florida Patient Acceptance Survey. La validez facial y de contenido se realizó mediante el juicio de expertos, utilizando las pruebas estadísticas de Coeficiente Kappa de Fleiss e índice de Lawshe modificado. Para realizar la prueba de confiabilidad se utilizó la teoría del ítem; participaron 126 personas implante de un dispositivo de estimulación cardiaca. La fiabilidad se calculó mediante la prueba estadística de alfa de Cronbach. Resultados la validez facial evaluó tres categorías: claridad, precisión y comprensión, mostrando un acuerdo moderado entre los jueces para las categorías. La validez de contenido presentó un acuerdo substantivo entre los jueces, con un índice de Lawshe de 0,822. La confiabilidad fue determinada con un alfa de Cronbach de 0,724. Conclusiones la versión en español del Florida Patient Acceptance Survey, es un instrumento fiable para medir la aceptación de las personas con implante de dispositivo de estimulación cardiaca.Background For the current health services, the measurement and generation of indicators that enable health outcomes to be evaluated, is of great relevance as part of quality health care. As a result, the adaptation and validation processes of measurement tools are important to ensure that they are reliable to use. The Florida Patient Acceptance Survey is a specific scale for measuring the acceptance of cardiac devices by individuals. Method A methodological-type study was carried out, in which the face validity, content and reliability of the Spanish version of the Florida Patient Acceptance Survey. The face validity and content was performed by expert consensus, using the statistical tests, Fleiss Kappa Coefficient and the modified Lawshe index. The theory of the item was used to perform the reliability test, in which a total of 126 individuals implanted with a cardiac stimulation device took part. The reliability was calculated using the Cronbach alpha statistical test. Results The face validity evaluates three categories: clarity, precision, and comprehension, showing a moderate agreement between the experts for the categories. There was a substantial agreement in content validity among the experts, with a Lawshe index of 0.822. The reliability was determined with a Cronbach alpha of 0.724. Conclusions The Spanish version of the Florida Patient Acceptance Survey, is a reliable tool to measure the acceptance of individuals with cardiac stimulation device implant

Anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic effects of GHRH antagonists in prostate cancer

Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) and its receptors have been implicated in the progression of various tumors. In vitro and in vivo studies have demonstrated that GHRH antagonists inhibit the growth of several cancers. GHRH antagonists, JMR-132 and JV-1-38 inhibit the growth of androgen-independent prostate tumors. Here we investigated the involvement of GHRH antagonists in proliferative and apoptotic processes. We used non-tumoral RWPE-1 and tumoral LNCaP and PC3 human prostatic epithelial cells, as well as an experimental model of human tumor PC3 cells. We evaluated the effects of JMR-132 and JV-1-38 antagonists on cell viability and proliferation in the three cell lines by means of MTT and BrdU assays, respectively, as well as on cell cycle and apoptotic process in PC3 cells. The expression levels of PCNA, p53, p21, CD44, Cyclin D1, c-myc, Bax and Bcl2 were determined in both in vivo and in vitro models by means of Western-blot and RT-PCR. GHRH antagonists suppressed cell proliferation and decreased the levels of the proliferation marker, PCNA, in the three cell lines and in PC3 tumor. GHRH antagonists led to an increase of cells in S-phase and a decrease in G1 and G2/M phases, and induced S-phase arrest and increase of apoptotic cells. The effects of GHRH-antagonists on cell cycle could be due to the changes observed in the expression of p21, p53, Bax, Bcl2, CD44, Cyclin D1, c-myc and caspase 3. Present results confirm and extend the role of GHRH antagonists as anti-proliferative and pro-apoptotic molecules in prostate cancer.Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Manch

Near real-time surveillance of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic with incomplete data

When responding to infectious disease outbreaks, rapid and accurate estimation of the epidemic trajectory is critical. However, two common data collection problems affect the reliability of the epidemiological data in real time: missing information on the time of first symptoms, and retrospective revision of historical information, including right censoring. Here, we propose an approach to construct epidemic curves in near real time that addresses these two challenges by 1) imputation of dates of symptom onset for reported cases using a dynamically-estimated "backward" reporting delay conditional distribution, and 2) adjustment for right censoring using the NobBS software package to nowcast cases by date of symptom onset. This process allows us to obtain an approximation of the time-varying reproduction number (Rt) in real time. We apply this approach to characterize the early SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in two Spanish regions between March and April 2020. We evaluate how these real-time estimates compare with more complete epidemiological data that became available later. We explore the impact of the different assumptions on the estimates, and compare our estimates with those obtained from commonly used surveillance approaches. Our framework can help improve accuracy, quantify uncertainty, and evaluate frequently unstated assumptions when recovering the epidemic curves from limited data obtained from public health systems in other locations.PMD was supported by the fellowship Ramón Areces Foundation. JAH was funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Award U54GM088558, and the National Institutes of Health Director’s Early Independence, Award DP5-OD028145. ML was supported by the Morris-Singer Fund and by a subcontract from the Carnegie Mellon University under an award from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Award U01IP001121). MS was supported by the National Institute Of General Medical Sciences, Award R01GM130668-02. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.S

Consolidation with ethyl silicate: how the amount of product alters the physical properties of the bricks and affects their durability

We evaluated the consolidating capacity of ethyl silicate in three types of bricks fired at 800, 950 and 1100 °C. We chose two concentrations of product, at 25% and 50%, diluting the product in white spirit to estimate whether greater dilution enables the product to penetrate deeper into the bricks, or whether a higher concentration leads to better consolidation of bricks. The application of ethyl silicate caused bricks porosity to decline and their compactness to increase. These changes were more accentuated as the concentration of the product increased. The pore size distribution not changed substantially except that there were fewer of the smallest pores. The color and the lightness of the pieces changed after application of the consolidant, albeit slightly. The durability of bricks improved as manifested by the results of the salt crystallization test. In general, the longest-lasting pieces were those treated with 25% ethyl silicate.Se ha evaluado la capacidad consolidante del silicato de etilo en tres tipos de ladrillos cocidos a 800, 950 y 1100 °C. Se eligieron dos concentraciones de producto, al 25% y 50%, diluyéndolo en white spirit para estimar si más dilución favorece una penetración más en profundidad del producto o si una mayor concentración produce una mejor consolidación de los ladrillos. El silicato de etilo ha causado una disminución de la porosidad y un aumento de la compacidad de los ladrillos, acentuándose estas modificaciones con mayor concentración de producto. La distribución porométrica no ha cambiado de forma sustancial, disminuyendo los poros más pequeños. Color y luminosidad de las piezas han modificado ligeramente tras la aplicación del consolidante. Los ladrillos consolidados han mejorado su durabilidad frente al envejecimiento acelerado producido por las sales. En general, las piezas más duraderas han resultado ser las tratadas con el 25% de silicato de etilo.This study was financially supported by Research Group RNM179 of the Junta de Andalucía and by Research Project MAT2016-75889-R