Scottish government equality outcomes:pregnancy and maternity evidence review

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Efficacy and Usefulness of an Educational Video on Safe Medication Handling

Background: Medication errors are a significant and detrimental issue in anesthesia practice and have the potential to have drastic effects for patients, providers, and hospitals; therefore, it is important to determine if an educational video on safe medication handling technique can improve knowledge on safe medication handling. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and perceived usefulness of an investigator-developed educational video on nurse anesthesia trainees’ (NATs) knowledge of safe medication handling. Methods: A single group pretest-posttest design was used to evaluate actual knowledge and perceived usefulness of safe medication handling video. A convenience sample included 19 voluntary second year NATs at NorthShore University HealthSystem School of Anesthesia. Results: Using a paired sample t- test, a statistically significant difference was found between the pre-knowledge assessment tool mean score of M = 3.6842 with SD = 1.97 and the postknowledge assessment tool mean score of M = 7.6842 with SD = 2.26 (t = 6.643; df = 18; p = 0.00*). The overall mean score of the Perceived Usefulness Scale was M = 4.28; SD=.36, indicating moderately high perceived usefulness of the safe handling video. Eighty nine and a half percent (n=17) of the participants rated each question in the Perceived Usefulness Questionnaire greater than the neutral score of 3. Conclusion: The educational video increased the knowledge on NAT-2’s on safe medication handling and was perceived as a useful tool. The video can be used for future NAT-2s to increase their knowledge on safe medication handling prior to their clinical experience

Development and Validation of the Scale of Emotional Functioning: Educators (SEF:ED)

Data collected from 97 educators provide preliminary support for the psychometric integrity of an experimental self-report instrument designed to operationalize emotional intelligence (EI) specific to educators, the Scale of Emotional Functioning: Educators, or SEF:ED. Data analyses relied in part on results from an exploratory factor analysis, which revealed an acceptable three-factor solution and item-scale correlations. Reliability estimates (i.e., split-half reliability correlations) obtained for the SEF:ED subscales of Emotional Awareness, Emotional Management, and Interpersonal Relations subscales are .86, .80, and .71, respectively. Correlation coefficients (i.e., Pearson r) between the SEF:ED composite and the Profile of Emotional Competence composite (PEC; Brasseur et al., 2013) range from .35 to .72 and provide some evidence for concurrent validity of the SEF:ED. Based on mean difference analyses, the SEF:ED Total score was statistically significantly different (and higher) than the PEC Composite (p \u3c .01), though that pattern did not extend to all of the more molecular comparisons between the SEF:ED and PEC subscale scores. Finally, correlation coefficients obtained between SEF:ED and the Maslach Burnout Inventory for Educators (MBI-ES; Maslach et al.,1986) range from -.21 to .59 and provide limited evidence of its predictive validity for important outcomes (e.g., in this case, burnout). Implications for application of the SEF:ED are discussed

Influences of supervisor and peer support on transfer of training

Student employees (N=86) at a major research institution participated in a new hire orientation training and then responded to questionnaires measuring ten transfer behaviors and eight work environment constructs measuring support, frequency of contact, cohesion, and general means efficacy. Supervisor ratings of trainee performance were used to measure transfer behaviors

The Enduring Effects of Early Literacy Experiences: A Retrospective Interview Study

Abstract This qualitative interview study was designed to understand how early literacy experiences continue to influence individuals as they become adult readers. The study utilized a case study methodology that allowed detailed descriptions of participants’ recollections of early literacy experiences and descriptions of the participants’ current reading habits. The researcher, working from a constructivist paradigm, worked to find evidence to explore what features of early reading experiences might compel an individual to turn to reading again and again, or to choose to abstain from reading. The following research questions guided this study: “What specific memories do adult readers recall about early reading experiences?” “What is the nature of the influence of early reading experiences on lifelong reading habits as reported by adults?” and “What is the nature of the influence of lifelong reading habits on social and professional life as reported by adults?” Seven participants shared their earliest memories of literacy experiences, as rooted in family and school contexts, along with explanations of the uses of reading in their adult lives. The researcher employed a typological analysis to determine how participants’ memories of early literacy experiences impacted their adult reading habits. The many facets of early reading experiences that influenced the participants’ reading habits could be categorized as positive, neutral, or negative. Most individuals experienced a combination of positive and negative literacy experiences, and the nature of these experiences influenced the participants’ adult reading habits in particular ways. The results of the analysis supported prior research in the field about the influence of teachers and the importance of early literacy instruction, and highlighted in particular, the emotional impact of successes or perceived failure in learning to read

SEQUENTIAL BAYESIAN CLASSIFICATION: DNA BARCODES

DNA barcodes are short strands of nucleotide bases taken from the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). A single barcode may have the form C C G G C A T A G T A G G C A C T G and typically ranges in length from 255 to around 700 nucleotide bases. Unlike nuclear DNA (nDNA), mtDNA remains largely unchanged as it is passed from mother to o spring. It has been proposed that these barcodes may be used as a method of di erentiating between biological species (Hebert, Ratnasingham, and deWaard 2003). While this proposal is sharply debated among some taxonomists (Will and Rubino 2004), it has gained much momentum and attention from biologists. One issue at the heart of the controversy is the use of genetic distance measures as a tool for species differentiation. Current methods of species classification utilize these distance measures that are heavily dependent on both evolutionary model assumptions as well as a clearly defined gap between intra- and interspecies variation (Meyer and Paulay 2005). We point out the limitations of such distance measures and propose a character-based method of species classification which utilizes an application of Bayes\u27 rule to overcome these defciencies. The proposed method is shown to provide accurate species-level classification. The proposed methods also provide answers to important questions not addressable with current methods

A sequential naïve Bayes classifier for DNA barcodes

DNA barcodes are short strands of 255–700 nucleotide bases taken from the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) region of the mitochondrial DNA. It has been proposed that these barcodes may be used as a method of differentiating between biological species. Current methods of species classification utilize distance measures that are heavily dependent on both evolutionary model assumptions as well as a clearly defined “gap” between intra- and interspecies variation. Such distance measures fail to measure classification uncertainty or to indicate how much of the barcode is necessary for classification. We propose a sequential naïve Bayes classifier for species classification to address these limitations. The proposed method is shown to provide accurate species-level classification on real and simulated data. The method proposed here quantifies the uncertainty of each classification and addresses how much of the barcode is necessary

Promising Payment Reform: Risk-Sharing With Accountable Care Organizations

Describes the implementation of shared payer-provider risk payment models at eight private accountable care organizations. Analyzes challenges for providers, purchasers, and payers, including securing the infrastructure for successful risk management

Evaluation of early tissue reactions after lumbar intertransverse process fusion using CT in a rabbit

Objective: The objective of the study was to evaluate tissue reactions such as bone genesis, cartilage genesis and graft materials in the early phase of lumbar intertransverse process fusion in a rabbit model using computed tomography (CT) imaging with CT intensity (Hounsfield units) measurement, and to compare these data with histological results. Materials and methods: Lumbar intertransverse process fusion was performed on 18 rabbits. Four graft materials were used: autograft bone (n = 3); collagen membrane soaked with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) (n = 5); granular calcium phosphate (n = 5); and granular calcium phosphate coated with rhBMP-2 (n = 5). All rabbits were euthanized 3weeks post-operatively and lumbar spines were removed for CT imaging and histological examination. Results: Computed tomography imaging demonstrated that each fusion mass component had the appropriate CT intensity range. CT also showed the different distributions and intensities of bone genesis in the fusion masses between the groups. Each component of tissue reactions was identified successfully on CT images using the CT intensity difference. Using CT color mapping, these observations could be easily visualized, and the results correlated well with histological findings. Conclusions: The use of CT intensity is an effective approach for observing and comparing early tissue reactions such as newly synthesized bone, newly synthesized cartilage, and graft materials after lumbar intertransverse process fusion in a rabbit mode