Textbook Evaluation of English for Academic Purposes by British Council

The present study evaluates the course book English for Academic Purposes recommended by British Council in Pakistan. It is a collaborated effort of British Council and Higher Education Commission of Pakistan to enhance the English language skills of Pakistani students. The researcher has evaluated the effectiveness of this book that is it fulfilling the theoretical needs of International standards? Bloom’s taxonomy (1956) of Learning Domains is used because it is most appropriate for the evaluation the textbooks. The researcher has evaluated the course book on different levels e.g. cognitive, affective and psycho-motor with the help of Blooms taxonomy. This is a qualitative research basically though the frequencies of the certain words (verbs) are also find out. The researcher has used find out that which areas of learning process are focused and which are ignored in the textbook. The research is important as it will find out the strapping as well as frail areas of the course book and this information may be helpful for the improvement of the course book. Moreover this research has opened new horizons for further studies in the field of textbook evaluation

Representation of Women in Mann O Salwa: A Case Study through Feminist Stylistic Analysis

This descriptive study makes an attempt to analyze Mann o Salwa from the perspective of feminist stylistics to investigate how Pakistani female author represents women in her novel Mann o Salwa by utilizing analysis of transitivity choices. This paper argues that the prevailing image of women in Pakistani society and literature is passive, negative, distorted, submissive, and dependent. This research aims to explore whether female authors have succeeded in abolishing the unenthusiastic negative and passive image of women in Pakistani society or their writings are also socially influenced because it is commonly believed that it is always a male author who portrays negative and distorted image of women, in this paper the researcher has tried explore whether female authors present a positive image of women or not. Analysis of mental and material process of female protagonists has proved to be useful in answering the question of negativity and passivity of women. The result revealed that female authors’ writings to some extent are socially influenced. They partially portray them passive and dependent on man. Their actions are actually the reaction of men’s action on them as they are equally exploited by men and other women in society. They are oppressed as well as oppressors. Being a feminist research this study enhances the awareness of the society. Most of the women in the novel are portrayed negative and oppressors.

Cytotoxic and antiviral potentials of Euphorbia milii var. splendens leaf against Peste des petits ruminant virus

Purpose: To determine the cytotoxic and antiviral potentials of Euphorbia milii var. splendens leaf against Peste des petits ruminants virus (PPRV). Methods: The methanol extract, as well as n- hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, and n- butanol fractions of E. milii leaves were screened for cytotoxic and antiviral activities against PPRV using Vero cell line and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Results: Non-cytotoxic concentrations with cell survival rate (CSP) greater than 50 % were considered virucidal. Methanol extract and fractions produced significant (p < 0.05) effects at all test concentrations against PPRV. The 50 % cytotoxic concentration (CC50) calculated was ≤ 25 µg/mL for extract and fractions. In antiviral assay, ethyl acetate, n-hexane, and n-butanol fractions at all test concentrations ranging from 1.56 - 800 µg/mL were non-virucidal; even at their non-cytotoxic concentrations these fractions did not show antiviral activities. However, the methanol extract and its chloroform fractions showed significant (p < 0.05) virucidal potential. Conclusion: The results suggest that further isolation of antiviral constituents from the fractions may open new horizons for the development of new antiviral agents

Workplace mistreatment and mental health in female surgeons in Pakistan

Background: Despite workplace mistreatment, which includes harassment, bullying and gender discrimination(GD)/bias, being serious problems for female surgeons, there are limited data from lower-middle-income countries like Pakistan. This study explored harassment and GD/bias experienced by female surgeons in Pakistan, and the effects of these experiences on mental health and well-being.Methods: A nationwide survey was conducted between July and September 2019 in collaboration with the Association of Women Surgeons of Pakistan, an organization consisting of female surgeons and trainees in Pakistan. An anonymous online survey was emailed directly, disseminated via social media platforms (such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram), and sent to surgical programmes in Pakistan.Results: A total of 146 women surgeons responded to the survey; 67.1 per cent were trainees and the rest attending surgeons. Overall, 57.5 per cent of surgeons reported experiencing harassment, most common being verbal (64.0 per cent) and mental (45.9 per cent), but this mostly went unreported (91.5 per cent). On multivariable analysis adjusted for age and specialty, workplace harassment (odds ratio 2.02 (95 per cent c.i. 1.09 to 4.45)) and bullying (odds ratio 5.14 (95 per cent c.i. 2.00-13.17)) were significantly associated with severe self-perceived burnout, while having a support system was protective against feelings of depression (odds ratio 0.35 (95 per cent c.i. 0.16 to 0.74)). The overwhelming majority (91.3 per cent) believed that more institutional support groups were needed to help surgeons with stress reduction (78.8 per cent), receiving mentorship (74.7 per cent) and work-life balance (67.8 per cent).Conclusion: Workplace mistreatment, in particular harassment and bullying, has a damaging impact on the mental well-being of female surgeons, particularly trainees. The absence of support groups in Pakistan should be urgently addressed so that surgeons, especially trainees, may cope better with potentially harmful workplace stressors

Gender discrimination against female surgeons: A cross-sectional study in a lower-middle-income country

Introduction: Although gender discrimination and bias (GD/bias) experienced by female surgeons in the developed world has received much attention, GD/bias in lower-middle-income countries like Pakistan remains unexplored. Thus, our study explores how GD/bias is perceived and reported by surgeons in Pakistan.Method: A single-center cross-sectional anonymous online survey was sent to all surgeons practicing/training at a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan. The survey explored the frequency, source and impact of GD/bias among surgeons.Results: 98/194 surgeons (52.4%) responded to the survey, of which 68.4% were males and 66.3% were trainees. Only 19.4% of women surgeons reported \u27significant\u27 frequency of GD/bias during residency. A higher percentage of women reported \u27insignificant\u27 frequency of GD/bias during residency, as compared to males (61.3% vs. 32.8%; p = 0.004). However, more women surgeons reported facing GD/bias in various aspects of their career/training, including differences in mentorship (80.6% vs. 26.9%; p \u3c 0.005) and differences in operating room opportunities (77.4% vs. 32.8%; p \u3c 0.005). The source was most frequently reported to be co-residents of the opposite gender. Additionally, a high percentage of female surgeons reported that their experience of GD/bias had had a significant negative impact on their career/training progression, respect/value in the surgical team, job satisfaction and selection of specialty.Conclusion: Although GD/bias has widespread impacts on the training/career of female surgeons in Pakistan, most females fail to recognize this GD/bias as significant . Our results highlight a worrying lack of recognition of GD/bias by female surgeons, representing a major barrier to gender equity in surgery in Pakistan and emphasizing the need for future research

QUANTIFICATION OF SINENSETIN IN EXTRACTS OF ORTHOSIPHON STAMINEUS USING HIGH PERFORMANCE THIN-LAYER CHROMATOGRAPHY

The present study aimed to develop a high performance thin layer chromatography method for the determination of sinensetin and apply it to standardize the extracts Orthosiphon stamineus. The samples and a series of standards were applied in duplicate on silica gel plate, which was then developed using mobile phase comprising chloroform and ethyl acetate (6:4, v/v) to a distance of 5 cm. Afterwards, the plate was dried and subjected to densitometry at 366 nm for the quantification of sinensetin. The limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) was found to be 0.05 and 0.50 µg/ml, respectively. The method showed linearity in a range of 0.50-100.00 µg/ml with correlation coefficient 0.9988. The recovery, intra- and inter day accuracy were found to be 95.67-97.65, 97.64-99.54 and 97.83-98.57%, respectively, with relative standard deviation (RSD) less than 5%. The extracts contained sinensetin from 0.470-1.335 mg/g/. The results of this study indicate that the developed method is sensitive, reliable, repeatable and reproducible and may be applied to standardize extracts of Orthosiphon stamineus

Self-Esteem as a Predictor of Psychological Adjustment to Limb Loss: A Case Study of Acquired Limb Amputation

OBJECTIVES: To examine the psychological issues following acquired limb amputation and examine the significance of positive self-esteem in the psychological adjustment of amputation. METHODOLOGY: This case study was conducted in the surgical and orthopedic units of different government and private hospitals of Peshawar district. The study includes a sample of 100 acquired limb amputees,both adult males and females admitted in different hospitals of Peshawar. Patients with congenital limb loss or with preexisting psychological issues were excluded from the study. Psychological adjustment scale developed by Sabir (1999) and Self-Esteem scale developed by Rifai’s (1999) was used to determine the amputee’s level of psychological adjustment and self-esteem. RESULTS: Results revealed that amputation leads to number of psychological issues. It was found that males had lowered self-esteem and severe adjustment issues then females while young amputees exhibit greater signs of maladjustment as compared to older amputees. Regression analysis for selfesteem predicting psychological adjustment also displayed pronounced differences in the level of psychological adjustment due changing level of self-esteem. The model suggested a strong positive relation between self-esteem and psychological adjustment (r=0.880, B=0.867, t=18.37, p<.001) and 77.5% of the variance in the dependent variable (psychological adjustment) was caused by predictor variable i.e. self-esteem (R2=0.775, F (98)=337.6, p<.001). CONCLUSION: Amputation badly disturbs the psychological state of an amputee and an amputee’s self-esteem is an important coping tool and has a direct relation with better psychological adjustment to limb loss

Cultural barriers for women in surgery: How thick is the glass ceiling? An analysis from a low middle-income country

Background: This study aimed to highlight cultural barriers faced by surgeons pursuing a surgical career faced by surgeons at a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan. As more females opt for a surgical career, barriers faced by female surgeons are becoming increasingly evident, many of which are rooted in cultural norms. In Pakistan, a predominantly Muslim-majority, low middle-income country, certain societal expectations add additionally complexity and challenges to existing cultural barriers.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered via e-mail to the full-time faculty and trainees in the Department of Surgery at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan, from July 2019 to November 2019.Results: In total, 100 participants were included in this study, with the majority being residents (55.6%) and consultants (33.3%). 71.9% of female surgeons felt that cultural barriers towards a surgical career existed for their gender, as compared to 25.4% of male surgeons (p \u3c 0.001). 40.6% of females reported having been discouraged by family/close friends from pursuing surgery, as compared to only 9.0% of males (p \u3c 0.001). Moreover, a greater percentage of females surgeons were responsible for household cooking, cleaning and laundry, as compared to male surgeons (all p \u3c 0.001). Lastly, 71.4% of female surgeons felt that having children had hindered their surgical career, as compared to 4.8% of males (p \u3c 0001).Conclusion: Our study shows that significant cultural barriers exist for females pursuing a surgical career in our setting. Findings such as these emphasize the need for policy makers to work towards overcoming cultural barriers

Data_Sheet_1_Seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2-specific anti-spike IgM, IgG, and anti-nucleocapsid IgG antibodies during the second wave of the pandemic: A population-based cross-sectional survey across Kashmir, India.docx

BackgroundWithin Kashmir, which is one of the topographically distinct areas in the Himalayan belt of India, a total of 2,236 cumulative deaths occurred by the end of the second wave. We aimed to conduct this population-based study in the age group of 7 years and above to estimate the seropositivity and its attributes in Kashmir valley.MethodsWe conducted a community-based household-level cross-sectional study, with a multistage, population-stratified, probability-proportionate-to-size, cluster sampling method to select 400 participants from each of the 10 districts of Kashmir. We also selected a quota of healthcare workers, police personnel, and antenatal women from each of the districts. Households were selected from each cluster and all family members with age 7 years or more were invited to participate. Information was collected through a standardized questionnaire and entered into Epicollect 5 software. Trained healthcare personnel were assigned for collecting venous blood samples from each of the participants which were transferred and processed for immunological testing. Testing was done for the presence of SARS-CoV-2-specific anti-spike IgM, IgG antibodies, and anti-nucleocapsid IgG antibodies. Weighted seropositivity was estimated along with the adjustment done for the sensitivity and specificity of the test used.FindingsThe data were collected from a total of 4,229 participants from the general population within the 10 districts of Kashmir. Our results showed that 84.84% (95% CI 84.51–85.18%) of the participants were seropositive in the weighted imputed data among the general population. In multiple logistic regression, the variables significantly affecting the seroprevalence were the age group 45–59 years (odds ratio of 0.73; 95% CI 0.67–0.78), self-reported history of comorbidity (odds ratio of 1.47; 95% CI 1.33–1.61), and positive vaccination history (odds ratio of 0.85; 95% CI 0.79–0.90) for anti-nucleocapsid IgG antibodies. The entire assessed variables showed a significant role during multiple logistic regression analysis for affecting IgM anti-spike antibodies with an odds ratio of 1.45 (95% CI 1.32–1.57) for age more than 60 years, 1.21 (95% CI 1.15–1.27) for the female gender, 0.87 (95% CI 0.82–0.92) for urban residents, 0.86 (95% CI 0.76–0.92) for self-reported comorbidity, and an odds ratio of 1.16 (95% CI 1.08–1.24) for a positive history of vaccination. The estimated infection fatality ratio was 0.033% (95% CI: 0.034–0.032%) between 22 May and 31 July 2021 against the seropositivity for IgM antibodies.InterpretationDuring the second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, 84.84% (95% CI 84.51–85.18%) of participants from this population-based cross-sectional sample were seropositive against SARS-CoV-2. Despite a comparatively lower number of cases reported and lower vaccination coverage in the region, our study found such high seropositivity across all age groups, which indicates the higher number of subclinical and less severe unnoticed caseload in the community.</p