Analysis of Michael Wiskow: An Exploration of Self-Awareness

Self-awareness is an essential aspect of counselor ethical obligations, effectiveness, and professional competency. It is for these reasons why I decided to conduct an Analysis of Self as my final project. I review my relevant background, analyze my objective self via assessments, reflect on interviews with significant others, and create a theoretical conceptualization of myself in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of who I am. With this information, I reflect on how this process impacted me as well as discuss my plans for continual professional growth. I found this process to be extremely beneficial since it has altered my world view, how I perceive information, and how I influence my immediate environment. This process made me uncomfortable at times since it brought about many aspects of myself I would rather ignore. However, to increase my self-awareness, these aspects must be made aware of in order to remove any impact they may have on my professional life. Along with these unfavorable aspects, I was very pleased with my findings. I believe myself to be a good, honest person with a passion to provide services to those in need. I am proud of who I have become, and who I still inspire to be

Ten years onwards: Comparison of the South Eastern European regional public health strategy 2004 and the South Eastern European 2020 strategy

Aim: Regional collaboration has continuously contributed to the development of public health in the South Eastern Europe (SEE) region since 2000 when the Public Health Collaboration in SEE (PH-SEE) was initiated. This article looks into two frameworks for regional collaboration in the area of public health: a framework developed in 2004 by a network of public health professionals and academics, and another one developed by the SEE Health Network as integral part of the SEE 2020 strategy on Jobs and Prosperity in a European Perspective, adopted in 2013. It compares the commonalities and differences of the two frameworks; considers what is still valid and relevant after ten years and which new features have emerged in the new strategy. Methods: A literature review was carried out and a qualitative analysis was applied for the comparison of the two frameworks. Results: Notwithstanding the time gap of nearly ten years, the commonalities between the two regional health strategies are significant. Major consistent goals include: improving equity in health; strengthening human resources for health; improving intersectoral cooperation and governance. The differences between the two regional strategies, including issues around social participation and regional health information systems, are partially due to their different development context. Cross-border policies and quality management have emerged as new or more pronounced topics in the SEE 2020 strategy’s health dimension. Conclusions: Many aspects addressed in the 2004 framework are pertinent with regard to the SEE 2020 health dimension and remain relevant in the current context. The integration of health as part of the economic SEE 2020 strategy reflects a significant paradigm shift and important step forward for public healt

Progress on quality management in the German health system – a long and winding road

Breckenkamp J, Wiskow C, Laaser U. Progress on quality management in the German health system – a long and winding road. Health Research Policy and Systems. 2007;5(1): 7.The interest in quality management in health care has increased in the last decades as the financial crises in most health systems generated the need for solutions to contain costs while maintaining quality of care. In Germany the development of quality management procedures has been closely linked with health care reforms. Starting in the early nineties quality management issues gained momentum in reform legislation only 10 years later. This review summarizes recent developments in medical quality management as related to the federal reform legislation in Germany. It provides an overview on the infrastructure, actors and on the current discussion concerning quality management in medical care. Germany had to catch up on implementing quality management in the health system compared to other countries. Considerable progress has been made, however, it is recognized that the full integration of quality management will require long-term commitment in developing methods, instruments and communication procedures. The most ambitious project at present is the development of a comprehensive comparative quality management system for hospitals at national level, including public reporting. For the time being medical quality management in Germany is dealt with as a technical and professional issue while the aspects of patient orientation and transparency need further advancement

Psicologia positiva e educação: florescimento como possibilidade para a inclusão escolar

A universalização da educação é uma realidade que tem a inclusão escolar como uma de suas estratégias para transpor barreiras, principalmente no que diz respeito às dificuldades e deficiências individuais dos sujeitos em idade escolar. É observável que muitas das ações em inclusão são profícuas para o aprendizado intelectual, como, por exemplo, a adaptação curricular, no entanto, acabam prejudicando outras áreas de desenvolvimento dos alunos, como as habilidades afetivas e de relacionamento. Essas ações estão implicadas à necessidade de discriminação positiva de modo a oferecer condições exclusivas para o aprendizado, conforme exposto por Castel (2008), o que pode tornar-se um fator que contribui para o estabelecimento de situações de bullying, por conta da evidência que é empregada às qualidades desfavorecidas do indivíduo. Essas reflexões provocam o desejo de promover estratégias que tenham o foco em aspectos positivos do sujeito e que contribuam para a promoção do sentimento de pertença. Para isso, elege-se a Psicologia Positiva como meio de ampliar as possibilidades de ações para a inclusão escolar. Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo investigar quais são as possíveis contribuições da Psicologia Positiva para os processos de inclusão escolar, considerando os conceitos de bem-estar, de acordo com o modelo PERMA, e de florescimento (SELIGMAN, 2011). A metodologia utilizada para a realização do estudo foi a revisão bibliográfica, através da seleção de artigos e livros escritos por autores que se posicionam criticamente frente ao que se convencionou como inclusão no Brasil (FABRIS; LOPES, 2013), que defendem a ideia da Educação Integral (LECLERC; MOLL, 2012) e que anunciam a Psicologia Positiva (SELIGMAN, 2011; CINTRA; GUERRA, 2017). Conclui-se que o florescimento, conforme conceituado pela Psicologia Positiva e incluído como um dos objetivos nos projetos pedagógicos das escolas, pode ser um propulsor de ações e estratégias que possibilitam maior efetividade dos processos de inclusão escolar.The universalization of education is a reality that has school inclusion as one of its strategies to overcome barriers, especially regarding to school-age people's individual difficulties and deficiencies. It is noticeable that many of the actions in inclusion are useful for intellectual learning, such as curriculum adaptation, however, they end up harming other areas of student development, such as affectionate and relationship skills. These actions are implicated in the need for positive discrimination, in order to offer exclusive conditions for learning, as exposed by Castel (2008), which can become a factor that contributes to the establishment of bullying situations, due to the evidence that is undertaken to the individual's disadvantaged qualities. These reflections provoke the desire of promoting strategies that focus on positive aspects of the subject and that contribute to the promotion of the belonging feeling. For this regard, Positive Psychology is chosen as a mean of expanding the actions possibilities for school inclusion. This research aims to investigate what are the possible contributions of Positive Psychology to the processes of school inclusion, considering the concepts of well-being, according to PERMA model, and the flowering (SELIGMAN, 2011). The methodology used to carry out the study was the bibliographic review, through the selection of articles and books written by authors who position themselves critically in relation to what was agreed as inclusion in Brazil (FABRIS; LOPES, 2013), who advocate the idea of Integral Education (LECLERC; MOLL, 2012) and that announce Positive Psychology (SELIGMAN, 2011; CINTRA; GUERRA, 2017). The conclusion is that flowering, as conceptualized by Positive Psychology and included as one of the goals in the pedagogical projects of schools, can be a propellant of actions and strategies that enable greater effectiveness of the processes of school inclusion

Ten years onwards: Comparison of the South Eastern European regional public health strategy 2004 and the South Eastern European 2020 strategy

Aim: Regional collaboration has continuously contributed to the development of public health in the South Eastern Europe (SEE) region since 2000 when the Public Health Collaboration in SEE (PH-SEE) was initiated. This article looks into two frameworks for regional collaboration in the area of public health: a framework developed in 2004 by a network of public health professionals and academics, and another one developed by the SEE Health Network as integral part of the SEE 2020 strategy on Jobs and Prosperity in a European Perspective, adopted in 2013. It compares the commonalities and differences of the two frameworks; considers what is still valid and relevant after ten years and which new features have emerged in the new strategy.Methods: A literature review was carried out and a qualitative analysis was applied for the comparison of the two frameworks.Results: Notwithstanding the time gap of nearly ten years, the commonalities between the two regional health strategies are significant. Major consistent goals include: improving equity in health; strengthening human resources for health; improving intersectoral cooperation and governance. The differences between the two regional strategies, including issues around social participation and regional health information systems, are partially due to their different development context. Cross-border policies and quality management have emerged as new or more pronounced topics in the SEE 2020 strategy’s health dimension. Conclusions: Many aspects addressed in the 2004 framework are pertinent with regard to the SEE 2020 health dimension and remain relevant in the current context. The integration of health as part of the economic SEE 2020 strategy reflects a significant paradigm shift and important step forward for public health

The Challenges of Developing an Instrument to Assess Health Provider Motivation at Primary Care Level in Rural Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania.

The quality of health care depends on the competence and motivation of the health workers that provide it. In the West, several tools exist to measure worker motivation, and some have been applied to the health sector. However, none have been validated for use in sub-Saharan Africa. The complexity of such tools has also led to concerns about their application at primary care level. To develop a common instrument to monitor any changes in maternal and neonatal health (MNH) care provider motivation resulting from the introduction of pilot interventions in rural, primary level facilities in Ghana, Burkina Faso, and Tanzania. Initially, a conceptual framework was developed. Based upon this, a literature review and preliminary qualitative research, an English-language instrument was developed and validated in an iterative process with experts from the three countries involved. The instrument was then piloted in Ghana. Reliability testing and exploratory factor analysis were used to produce a final, parsimonious version. This paper describes the actual process of developing the instrument. Consequently, the concepts and items that did not perform well psychometrically at pre-test are first presented and discussed. The final version of the instrument, which comprises 42 items for self-assessment and eight for peer-assessment, is then shown. This is followed by a presentation and discussion of the findings from first use of the instrument with MNH providers from 12 rural, primary level facilities in each of the three countries. It is possible to undertake work of this nature at primary health care level, particularly if the instruments are kept as straightforward as possible and well introduced. However, their development requires very lengthy preparatory periods. The effort needed to adapt such instruments for use in different countries within the region of sub-Saharan Africa should not be underestimated

Assembleias de turma

O curso de extensão “Trilhas de Aprendizagem: preparando para a gestão por competências”, da Rede Sinodal de Educação, gerou frutos no espaço escolar do CEAT. Durante a formação, foram sendo percebidas as possibilidades de ações com base nos conteúdos apresentados nas Trilhas Educação Inclusiva e Escola Acolhedora e a oportunidade de efetivá-los e Espiritualidade e desenvolvimento socioemocional, em projetos existentes na escola, em especial nas assembleias de turma realizadas no Ensino Fundamental, de ambas unidades do CEAT, que pautaram a inclusão e a subjetividade. [...

The outcome of a training programme (RESPECT) on staff’s attitudes towards causes and management of aggression in a Regional Referral Hospital of Northern Uganda

Introduction Occupational violence has been demonstrated to impact negatively on the well‐being of nurses and patients. Staff attitudes towards causes and management of patients’ aggression influence their practice. Training is likely to influence attitudes towards aggression; however, Uganda's health system lacks adequate resources to provide aggression management training for staff. Aim To assess the impact of a training programme (RESPECT) on staff attitudes towards causes and management of patient's aggression in a Ugandan hospital. Methods This study used a mixed‐methods convergent design. A convenience sample of nurses and support staff employed in the psychiatric ward and other services across the hospital (N = 90) completed the Management of Aggression and Violence Attitude Scale (MAVAS) pre‐ and post‐training. The views of a smaller sample (n = 35) were captured via interviews and focus groups and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Participants reported greater agreement with patients’ physical and social environment (external and situational causative models) as factors influencing patient's aggression. Qualitative findings substantiated the results identified in the survey. Attitudes towards seclusion, restraint and medication remained unchanged. Discussion and implications for practice RESPECT has the potential to change staff attitudes towards aggression in the short term. Further research is needed to investigate long‐term effects and impact on incidents of aggression

Motivation and incentives of rural maternal and neonatal health care providers: a comparison of qualitative findings from Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania.

In Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania strong efforts are being made to improve the quality of maternal and neonatal health (MNH) care. However, progress is impeded by challenges, especially in the area of human resources. All three countries are striving not only to scale up the number of available health staff, but also to improve performance by raising skill levels and enhancing provider motivation. In-depth interviews were used to explore MNH provider views about motivation and incentives at primary care level in rural Burkina Faso, Ghana and Tanzania. Interviews were held with 25 MNH providers, 8 facility and district managers, and 2 policy-makers in each country. Across the three countries some differences were found in the reasons why people became health workers. Commitment to remaining a health worker was generally high. The readiness to remain at a rural facility was far less, although in all settings there were some providers that were willing to stay. In Burkina Faso it appeared to be particularly difficult to recruit female MNH providers to rural areas. There were indications that MNH providers in all the settings sometimes failed to treat their patients well. This was shown to be interlinked with differences in how the term 'motivation' was understood, and in the views held about remuneration and the status of rural health work. Job satisfaction was shown to be quite high, and was particularly linked to community appreciation. With some important exceptions, there was a strong level of agreement regarding the financial and non-financial incentives that were suggested by these providers, but there were clear country preferences as to whether incentives should be for individuals or teams. Understandings of the terms and concepts pertaining to motivation differed between the three countries. The findings from Burkina Faso underline the importance of gender-sensitive health workforce planning. The training that all levels of MNH providers receive in professional ethics, and the way this is reinforced in practice require closer attention. The differences in the findings across the three settings underscore the importance of in-depth country-level research to tailor the development of incentives schemes

The effect of aggression management training programmes for nursing staff and students working in an acute hospital setting. A narrative review of current literature

BACKGROUND: Patient aggression is a longstanding problem in general hospital nursing. Staff training is recommended to tackle workplace aggression originating from patients or visitors, yet evidence on training effects is scarce. AIMS: To review and collate current research evidence on the effect of aggression management training for nurses and nursing students working in general hospitals, and to derive recommendations for further research. DESIGN: Systematic, narrative review. DATA SOURCES: Embase, MEDLINE, the Cochrane library, CINAHL, PsycINFO, pubmed, psycArticles, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection were searched for articles evaluating training programs for staff and students in acute hospital adult nursing in a 'before/after' design. Studies published between January 2000 and September 2011 in English, French or German were eligible of inclusion. REVIEW METHODS: The methodological quality of included studies was assessed with the 'Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies'. Main outcomes i.e. attitudes, confidence, skills and knowledge were collated. RESULTS: Nine studies were included. Two had a weak, six a moderate, and one a strong study design. All studies reported increased confidence, improved attitude, skills, and knowledge about risk factors post training. There was no significant change in incidence of patient aggression. CONCLUSION: Our findings corroborate findings of reviews on training in mental health care, which point to a lack of high quality research. Training does not reduce the incidence of aggressive acts. Aggression needs to be tackled at an organizational level