Patient perceptions regarding benefits of single visit scale and polish : a randomised controlled trial

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Sonic hedgehog-expressing cells in the developing limb measure time by an intrinsic cell cycle clock

How time is measured is an enduring issue in developmental biology. Classical models of somitogenesis and limb development implicated intrinsic cell cycle clocks, but their existence remains controversial. Here we show that an intrinsic cell cycle clock in polarizing region cells of the chick limb bud times the duration of Sonic hedgehog (Shh) expression, which encodes the morphogen specifying digit pattern across the antero-posterior axis (thumb to little finger). Timing by this clock starts when polarizing region cells fall out of range of retinoic acid signalling. We found that timing of Shh transcription by the cell cycle clock can be reset, thus revealing an embryonic form of self-renewal. In contrast, antero-posterior positional values cannot be reset, suggesting that this may be an important constraint on digit regeneration. Our findings provide the first evidence for an intrinsic cell cycle timer controlling duration and patterning activity of a major embryonic signalling centre

"From the same mad planet": a grounded theory of service users' accounts of the relationship within professional peer support

Purpose: Peer support (PS)_workers are being employed despite uncertain evidence for clinical and cost-effectiveness. Psychological theories have been proposed to explain the mechanisms of PS but these lack empirical validation and specificity to professional PS. This was an exploratory study developing a substantive interpretive grounded theory of service-users' experience of professional PS work. Methodology: Constructivist grounded theory was used throughout. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten service-users who had engaged with a professional PS worker. Findings: Three overarching themes were constructed. 'The process of disclosure' describes how disclosure of mental health difficulties, experiences as a service-user and wider disclosure about life experiences, interests and values facilitate the development of a shared identity with the PS worker. 'The product of disclosure' highlights the sense of being understood as a result of the disclosure and marks a deepening of the relationship. 'Dual roles' describes the tenuous position of holding both a professional relationship and friendship. Research implications and limitations: Future research should seek to refine the theory developed and compare the effects of therapist self-disclosure with that found within PS. There were limitations within the study, including limited diversity within the sample as well as difficulties with recruitment. Originality/value: This study connects service users' accounts of receiving PS with existing psychological theory to move towards an understanding of the relationship between receivers and providers of professional PS

E-business capabilities in developed and developing countries: Different or the same?

This paper compares the e-business capabilities in developed and developing countries; in particular the awareness and usage of e-business tools and the barriers / drivers of adoption. We surveyed 136 managers of organizations (in both developed and developing countries) and analyzed the responses via the SPSS Statistics software package. A number of statistically significant differences were found between the 2 sets of organization; interestingly, however, a number of areas showed minimal difference between the 2 sets of organizations, suggesting the gap between them beginning to close

Supporting induction: relationships count

This article examines the structural changes to the induction of teachers in Scotland using the perceptions of a group of final year student teachers. This group would be the first probationer teachers to experience revised arrangements for new teacher induction in 37 years. Their preferences and concerns are highlighted, as the new procedures roll out in schools nationwide, in an attempt to stress the importance of relationships to the success of the induction scheme. The argument put forward in this article is based on the notion that personal intelligence is central to effective relationships and therefore crucially important in the context of this mentoring relationship. The views of our sample provide evidence to suggest that the quality of interactions between the mentor and the probationer teacher are paramount in providing a good induction experience. These views are substantiated by experiences in England and in induction literature elsewhere. A synthesis of this evidence is used to make recommendations for those involved in supporting induction in schools, local authorities or teacher education institutions

Coopetition in Temporary Contexts: Examining Swift Trust and Swift Distrust in Humanitarian Operations

Purpose – By drawing on commitment-trust theory, we examine the role of swift trust and distrust in supporting coopetition under conditions of uncertainty and interdependence in the setting of humanitarian disaster relief organisations. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents findings from case studies of 18 international humanitarian relief organisations based on 48 interviews and the analysis of publicly available documents. Findings – We find that both swift trust and swift distrust support coopetition. As coopetition is simultaneous cooperation and competition, in this study we show how swift trust and swift distrust also occur simultaneously in coopetitive contexts. Research limitations/implications – Coopetition as a strategic choice is well-researched in the private sector, yet has received less attention in the nonprofit sector, particularly in contexts that are shaped by interdependence and uncertainty. We show the importance of swift trust and swift distrust in coopetitive relationships by drawing on commitment-trust theory. Practical implications – In focusing on a competitive environment in which cooperation is essential, we find limited choice of coopetitive partners. Humanitarian relief organisations must often simply work with whichever other organisations are available. We highlight how trust and distrust are not opposite ends of a spectrum and detail how both contribute to coopetitive relationships. Originality/value – Our findings contribute to commitment-trust theory by explaining the important role of distrust in forging coopetitive relationships. Furthermore, we contribute to prior work on coopetition by focusing on an uncertain and interdependent nonprofit environment

Human optional stopping in a heteroscedastic world

When making decisions, animals must trade off the benefits of information harvesting against the opportunity cost of prolonged deliberation. Deciding when to stop accumulating information and commit to a choice is challenging in natural environments, where the reliability of decision-relevant information may itself vary unpredictably over time (variable variance or "heteroscedasticity"). We asked humans to perform a categorization task in which discrete, continuously valued samples (oriented gratings) arrived in series until the observer made a choice. Human behavior was best described by a model that adaptively weighted sensory signals by their inverse prediction error and integrated the resulting quantities with a linear urgency signal to a decision threshold. This model approximated the output of a Bayesian model that computed the full posterior probability of a correct response, and successfully predicted adaptive weighting of decision information in neural signals. Adaptive weighting of decision information may have evolved to promote optional stopping in heteroscedastic natural environments. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

Effectiveness and reach of a directed-population approach to improving dental health and reducing inequalities: a cross sectional study

Background Childsmile School adopts a directed-population approach to target fluoride varnish applications to 20% of the primary one (P1) population in priority schools selected on the basis of the proportion of enrolled children considered to be at increased-risk of developing dental caries. The study sought to compare the effectiveness of four different methods for identifying individuals most in need when a directed-population approach is taken. <p></p> Methods The 2008 Basic National Dental Inspection Programme (BNDIP) cross-sectional P1 Scottish epidemiological survey dataset was used to model four methods and test three definitions of increased-risk. Effectiveness was determined by the positive predictive value (PPV) and explored in relation to 1-sensitivity and 1-specificity. <p></p> Results Complete data was available on 43470 children (87% of the survey). At the Scotland level, at least half (50%) of the children targeted were at increased-risk irrespective of the method used to target or the definition of increased-risk. There was no one method across all definitions of <i>increased-risk</i> that maximised PPV. Instead, PPV was highest when the targeting method complimented the definition of <i>increased-risk</i>. There was a higher percentage of children at <i>increased-risk</i> who were not targeted (1-sensitivity) when caries experience (rather than deprivation) was used to define <i>increased-risk</i>, irrespective of the method used for targeting. Over all three definitions of <i>increased-risk</i>, there was no one method that minimised (1-sensitivity) although this was lowest when the method and definition of <i>increased-risk</i> were complimentary. The false positive rate (1-specificity) for all methods and all definitions of <i>increased-risk</i> was consistently low (<20%), again being lowest when the method and definition of <i>increased-risk</i> were complimentary. <p></p> Conclusion Developing a method to reach all (or even the vast majority) of individuals at <i>increased-risk</i> defined by either caries experience or deprivation is difficult using a directed-population approach at a group level. There is a need for a wider debate between politicians and public health experts to decide how best to reach those most at need of intervention to improve health and reduce inequalities. <p></p&gt

Supplier selection activities in the service sector: A case study in Nigeria

This paper presents the results of the supplier selection process conducted by a Nigerian service sector organization. One organization was used as a case study whereby data collection involved an action research approach; the data was then subject to statistical analysis via the SPSS Statistics software package. In total, 185 potential suppliers were assessed. Several statistically significant differences were also found between those suppliers that met the minimum requirements and those that did not as well as between organizations that offered products and organizations that offered services