Relational welfare : a socially just response to co-creating health and wellbeing for all

Aims: Contemporary approaches to pursuing public value and the vision of health and wellbeing for all have evolved notably in the past few decades, with distinct approaches termed ‘co-creation’ and ‘health promotion’ gaining traction. This article explores a critique of ongoing paradigmatic shifts in public health and the public sector, focusing on cross-fertilisation between co-creation and the promotion of health and wellbeing. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s claims for social justice through redistribution, recognition and representation to achieve participatory parity, we discuss a need for transformative change to achieve societal goals of creating health and wellbeing for all, leaving no one behind. Conclusions: Health promotion and co-creation converge in a quest for active citizenship through participation, as well as embracing a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach. However, inequity in such processes, as well as health and wellbeing outcomes, are still persistent and contradictory to health promotion aims. This article argues that radically attending to human relationships and our dependency on other humans as a ‘collective’ need to be placed at the core of future-forming social construction of public and democratic institutions to allow the ongoing cross-fertilisation between health promotion and co-creation to work. Responding to this calls for transformation, the article presents a framework for developing a relational approach to welfare. The framework advocates for ‘relational welfare’, which captures the intersection of the welfare state, democracy and human relationships attending to social justice, capabilities and health and wellbeing for all as key public values in societal development.publishedVersionUnit Licence Agreemen

Feeling Valued and Adding Value : A Participatory Action Research Project on Co-creating Practices of Social Inclusion in Kindergartens and Communities

Background: Contemporary public health problems connect to the social determinants of health, with a growing recognition of social inclusion as imperative to sustainable development. In this quest for social inclusion, early childhood and families are of particular interest. Although co-creation is suggested as viable path to support well-being, less is known how social inclusion might be co-created in practice. The aim of this study was to explore how Participatory Action Research (PAR) can be a tool for transformative practices in a local community, pointing to kindergartens as meeting places for recognizing social inclusion as a common value in early childhood. Methods: A qualitative PAR study was embedded in a Norwegian municipality as an integrated part of their local public health work. The study involved a wide range of participants and stakeholders in three kindergartens and the wider community. Together, we explored potentials for co-creating social inclusion to achieve well-being through cycles of transformative actions and reflections. Reflexive thematic analysis was applied to generate patterns and themes in the data. Results: The participants formulated and took on ownership to an inclusive agenda through the PAR-process. Acts of inclusion was framed by an intersection between political aims of achieving health and well-being for all and public value co-creation unfolding at the level of the place, in the context of the Norwegian welfare regime. To feel valued and adding value was seen as important aspects for social inclusion. Four themes were generated from analysis; (1) Co-creating a shared vision of inclusive communities, (2) Becoming aware and empowered through caring, sharing and collaboration, (3) Places and spaces of inclusiveness in kindergartens and beyond, and (4) Valuing and practicing inclusion, and signs of transformative change. Conclusions: Through the PAR process, parents, kindergartens employees, community members and policy makers appear to have opened a creative toolbox for inclusive and transformational change through formulating and co-creating inclusion and well-being as public values. The results suggest that local actors might support adaptive social systems to taking on relational responsibility for inclusive processes and outcomes in the pursuit of well-being for all.publishedVersio

Technical modification of the Metamax II portable metabolic analyser for operation with a breathing apparatus

The O2 uptake of firefighters working in hot and polluted environment is not known. The portable Metamax II might measure the O2 uptake of firefighters using a breathing apparatus. However, the Metamax requires an inspiration signal between two expirations to work properly. When a firefighter inspires from bottles with pressurised air, the inspired air cannot readily be passed through a metabolic analyser. Expired air is on the other hand released to the surroundings and may be sampled for further analyses. In addition, the Metamax II does not tolerate heat, and gases at the scene of fire may damage its delicate sensors. We have modified the Metamax II, producing an artificial inspiration signal after every expiration. We have also protected the instrument from heat at the scene of fire. Expired air was sampled from exercising subjects using a breathing apparatus. The Metamax II instrument was run in the normal and modified modes while the instrumentʼs reported O2 uptake was recorded. Control experiments showed that without an inspiration signal, the instrument did not work reliably. In a typical experiment the reported O2 uptake was only 50% of the true value. In further experiments an artificial inspiration signal was sent to the main unit after every expiration. Then the instrument worked properly although only expired air passed through the Metamaxʼ breathing valve. With proper modifications of the Metamax II, the instrument worked well even if only expired air passed through the breathing valve. The valve may thus be mounted on the outlet of a firefighterʼs breathing mask. The instrument can readily be protected from heat at the scene of fire and thus be used to measure the O2 uptake of smoke divers during realistic exercises in hot and polluted environments

Creating of patina on the surface of copper and brass

In paper studied the literature on the creation of patina on architectural objects, which made fromcopper and its alloy. In purposes of cleaning and patination invited to use the polymer a gel, the mixture ofpolymethylmethacrylate and polymethacrylic acid, polyethylene glycol containing gold nanoparticles. It wasfound, that using of polymer gel can protect object from environmental hazards, allows us to give a decorativepainting, can control processes at the interface of polymer gel electrolyte-copper (brass). Besides, it can restoreobject complex shape

Anomalous Behavior of the Zero Field Susceptibility of the Ising Model on the Cayley Tree

It is found that the zero field susceptibility chi of the Ising model on the Cayley tree exhibits unusually weak divergence at the critical point Tc. The susceptibility amplitude is found to diverge at Tc proportionally to the tree generation level n, while the behavior of chi is otherwise analytic in the vicinity of Tc, with the critical exponent gamma=0.Comment: 3 pages, 2 figure

EFFECT OF POST-ACTIVATION POTENTIATION ON KINEMATICS AND KICKING PERFORMANCE IN A ROUNDHOUSE KICK WITH TRAINED MARTIAL ARTS PRACTITIONERS

The purpose of this study was to examine if kicking with elastic resistance (ER) during warming up could initiate Post-Activation Potentiation (PAP), and increase kinematics and performance on subsequent explosive kicking. Five woman and eleven men (n=16) with a background in kickboxing and/or TaeKwonDo performed two warming up strategies with subsequent testing. Kicking performance, defined as kicking velocity with the foot was measured 3D. In addition, muscle activity of the prime movers was measured. Kicking velocity of the foot increased by 3.3% after performing a warming-up strategy including kicking with ER (p=0.009). Increases were also recorded in muscle activity in m. vastus medialis (35.2%, p=0.05), rectus femoris (43.9%, p=0.04). The study show a positive effect on kicking performance after performing a warmup strategy including kicking with ER

Comparison of a Traditional Graded Exercise Protocol With a Self-Paced 1-km Test to Assess Maximal Oxygen Consumption

Purpose: To compare the assessment of the maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max) in a traditional graded exercise test (GXT) with a 1-km self-paced running test on a nonmotorized treadmill in men and women. Methods: A total of 24 sport-science students (12 women: age 23.7 [7.7] y, body height 1.68 [0.02] m, body mass 66.6 [4.3] kg; 12 men: 22.1 [3.1] y, body height 1.82 [0.06] m, body mass 75.6 [11.0] kg) performed a traditional GXT on a motorized treadmill and a 1-km self-paced running test on a nonmotorized treadmill. VO2max, blood lactate, heart rate, and rating of perceived exertion, together with running velocity and duration at each test, were measured. Results: The main findings of the study were that the 1-km test produced significantly higher VO2max values (53.2 [9.9] vs 51.8 [8.8] mL/kg/min ) and blood lactate concentrations (11.9 [1.8] vs 11.1 [2.2] mmol/L) than the GXT (F ≥ 4.8, P ≤ .04, η2 ≥ .18). However, after controlling for sex, these differences were only present in men (60.6 [8.1] vs 58.1 [8.0] mL/kg/min , P = .027). Peak running velocity was higher in the GXT than in the 1-km test (15.7 [2.7] vs 13.0 [2.8] km/h). Men had higher VO2max values and running velocities than women in both tests. However, men and women used approximately similar pacing strategies during the 1-km test. Conclusions: Higher VO2max values were observed in a 1-km self-paced test than in the GXT. This indicates that a 1-km running test performed on a nonmotorized treadmill could serve as a simple and sport-specific alternative for the assessment of VO2maxacceptedVersio

Comparison of Two Types of Warm-Up Upon Repeated-Sprint Performance in Experienced Soccer Players

Author's accepted version (post-print).This is a non-final version of an article published in final form in Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 30(8), 2258-2265. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000001331The aim of the study was to compare the effects of a long warm-up and a short warm-up upon repeated-sprint performance in soccer players. Ten male soccer players (age, 21.9 +/- 1.9 years; body mass, 77.7 +/- 8.3 kg; body height, 1.85 +/- 0.03 m) conducted 2 types of warm-ups with 1 week in between: a long warm-up (20 minutes: LWup) and a short warm-up (10 minutes: SWup). Each warm-up was followed by a repeated-sprint test consisting of 8 x 30 m sprints with a new start every 30th second. The best sprint time, total sprinting time, and % decrease in time together with heart rate, lactate, and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured. No significant differences in performance were found for the repeated-sprint test parameters (total sprint time: 35.99 +/- 1.32 seconds [LWup] and 36.12 +/- 0.96 seconds [SWup]; best sprint time: 4.32 +/- 0.13 seconds [LWup] and 4.30 +/- 0.10 seconds [SWup]; and % sprint decrease: 4.16 +/- 2.15% [LWup] and 5.02 +/- 2.07% [SWup]). No differences in lactate concentration after the warm-up and after the repeated-sprint test were found. However, RPE and heart rate were significantly higher after the long warm-up and the repeated-sprint test compared with the short warm-up. It was concluded that a short warm-up is as effective as a long warm-up for repeated sprints in soccer. Therefore, in regular training, less warm-up time is needed; the extra time could be used for important soccer skill training

Comparison of Different Sprint Training Sessions with Assisted and Resisted Running : Effects on Performance and Kinematics in 20-m Sprints

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