Towards digital scholarship services in China’s university libraries

Purpose - This paper reports on a literature review with the aim to establish a guiding framework for the development of digital scholarship services in China’s university libraries. Design/methodology/approach - The framework was developed through systematically searching, screening, assessing, coding, and aggregating digital scholarship services as reported in the existing body of literature. Three types of literature were included in the analysis: (1) international academic literature as reported in English; (2) academic literature in Chinese; and (3) relevant professional reports. Findings - The literature analysis pointed to 25 different digital scholarship services, which emerged in six themes: supporting services, formulating research ideas, locating research partners, writing proposals, conducting research, and publishing results. Originality/value - Although this literature review focused on university libraries in China, the research findings and the guiding framework developed provide useful insights and indications that can be shared across international borders.Non

Impact of intracoronary bone marrow cell therapy on left ventricular function in the setting of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: a collaborative meta-analysis

Aims The objective of the present analysis was to systematically examine the effect of intracoronary bone marrow cell (BMC) therapy on left ventricular (LV) function after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction in various subgroups of patients by performing a collaborative meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Methods and results We identified all randomized controlled trials comparing intracoronary BMC infusion as treatment for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. We contacted the principal investigator for each participating trial to provide summary data with regard to different pre-specified subgroups [age, diabetes mellitus, time from symptoms to percutaneous coronary intervention, infarct-related artery, LV end-diastolic volume index (EDVI), LV ejection fraction (EF), infarct size, presence of microvascular obstruction, timing of cell infusion, and injected cell number] and three different endpoints [change in LVEF, LVEDVI, and LV end-systolic volume index (ESVI)]. Data from 16 studies were combined including 1641 patients (984 cell therapy, 657 controls). The absolute improvement in LVEF was greater among BMC-treated patients compared with controls: [2.55% increase, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.83-3.26, P < 0.001]. Cell therapy significantly reduced LVEDVI and LVESVI (−3.17 mL/m², 95% CI: −4.86 to −1.47, P < 0.001; −2.60 mL/m², 95% CI −3.84 to −1.35, P < 0.001, respectively). Treatment benefit in terms of LVEF improvement was more pronounced in younger patients (age <55, 3.38%, 95% CI: 2.36-4.39) compared with older patients (age ≥55 years, 1.77%, 95% CI: 0.80-2.74, P = 0.03). This heterogeneity in treatment effect was also observed with respect to the reduction in LVEDVI and LVESVI. Moreover, patients with baseline LVEF <40% derived more benefit from intracoronary BMC therapy. LVEF improvement was 5.30%, 95% CI: 4.27-6.33 in patients with LVEF <40% compared with 1.45%, 95% CI: 0.60 to 2.31 in LVEF ≥40%, P < 0.001. No clear interaction was observed between other subgroups and outcomes. Conclusion Intracoronary BMC infusion is associated with improvement of LV function and remodelling in patients after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Younger patients and patients with a more severely depressed LVEF at baseline derived most benefit from this adjunctive therap

Differences in Physiological Responses to Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing in Adults With and Without Type 1 Diabetes: A Pooled Analysis

OBJECTIVE To investigate physiological responses to cardiopulmonary exercise (CPX) testing in adults with type 1 diabetes compared with age-, sex-, and BMI-matched control participants without type 1 diabetes.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We compared results from CPX tests on a cycle ergometer in individuals with type 1 diabetes and control participants without type 1 diabetes. Parameters were peak and threshold variables of VO2, heart rate, and power output. Differences between groups were investigated through restricted maximum likelihood modeling and post hoc tests. Differences between groups were explained by stepwise linear regressions (P < 0.05).RESULTS Among 303 individuals with type 1 diabetes (age 33 [interquartile range 22; 43] years, 93 females, BMI 23.6 [22; 26] kg/m2, HbA1c 6.9% [6.2; 7.7%] [52 (44; 61) mmol/mol]), VO2peak (32.55 [26.49; 38.72] vs. 42.67 ± 10.44 mL/kg/min), peak heart rate (179 [170; 187] vs. 184 [175; 191] beats/min), and peak power (216 [171; 253] vs. 245 [200; 300] W) were lower compared with 308 control participants without type 1 diabetes (all P < 0.001). Individuals with type 1 diabetes displayed an impaired degree and direction of the heart rate-to-performance curve compared with control participants without type 1 diabetes (0.07 [−0.75; 1.09] vs. 0.66 [−0.28; 1.45]; P < 0.001). None of the exercise physiological responses were associated with HbA1c in individuals with type 1 diabetes.CONCLUSIONS Individuals with type 1 diabetes show altered responses to CPX testing, which cannot be explained by HbA1c. Intriguingly, the participants in our cohort were people with recent-onset type 1 diabetes; heart rate dynamics were altered during CPX testing

The Didactic Diamond - a ‘masterclass’ for LILAC 2018 Liverpool

The foundation for the Didactic Diamond was developed with students of the College of Health and Social Care at the University of Derby – in particular the Chesterfield Campus. A significant number of students are so-called atypical learners (ie. returners to education or non-traditional learners) which led to an identified need to provide more robust study skill guidance. Roberts and Ousey (2011) described "finding and using evidence" as the "bane of student life" in relation to student nurses. The Didactic Diamond seeks to ease this problem by introducing students to the process involved with producing good quality academic work. It is used to explain the process from understanding the question and choosing an appropriate topic; utilising information literacy to find appropriate sources; taking notes on the found evidence to gain critical understanding of the topic; using drafting techniques to improve the academic writing and ensuring that the original question is answered fully and critically by utilising the developed resources diligently. Feedback from students on the Didactic Diamond has been positive, the simple figure acts as a mnemonic and provides students with an introduction to the method with a means to remember which steps to take in their academic process. After utilising the Diamond in one-to-one sessions it has been developed into an Academic Writing session for the University Library’s Enhance Your Learning program and has been successfully delivered to a range of students from different cohorts. The Masterclass provides an opportunity to share the Didactic Diamond with a broader audience interested in Information Literacy and embedding Information Literacy in a broader procedural context.University of Derby - Librar

The survival and development of UK public libraries under the global financial crisis

This paper discusses the survival and development of the public libraries in UK under the currentglobal financial crisis,as well as the severe problems of public funding cuts,public library closures,staff loss and significant decrease in service quality.N/

Postgraduate career intentions of medical students and recent graduates in Malawi: a qualitative interview study.

BACKGROUND: In 2004, the Malawian Ministry of Health declared a human resource crisis and launched a six year Emergency Human Resources Programme. This included salary supplements for key health workers and a tripling of doctors in training. By 2010, the number of medical graduates had doubled and significantly more doctors were working in rural district hospitals. Yet there has been little research into the views of this next generation of doctors in Malawi, who are crucial to the continuing success of the programme. The aim of this study was to explore the factors influencing the career plans of medical students and recent graduates with regard to four policy-relevant aspects: emigration outside Malawi; working at district level; private sector employment and postgraduate specialisation. METHODS: Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with fourth year medical students and first year graduates, recruited through purposive and snowball sampling. Key informant interviews were also carried out with medical school faculty. Recordings were transcribed and analysed using a framework approach. RESULTS: Opportunities for postgraduate training emerged as the most important factor in participants' career choices, with specialisation seen as vital to career progression. All participants intended to work in Malawi in the long term, after a period of time outside the country. For nearly all participants, this was in the pursuit of postgraduate study rather than higher salaries. In general, medical students and young doctors were enthusiastic about working at district level, although this is curtailed by their desire for specialist training and frustration with resource shortages. There is currently little intention to move into the private sector. CONCLUSIONS: Future resourcing of postgraduate training opportunities is crucial to preventing emigration as graduate numbers increase. The lesser importance put on salary by younger doctors may be an indicator of the success of salary supplements. In order to retain doctors at district levels for longer, consideration should be given to the introduction of general practice/family medicine as a specialty. Returning specialists should be encouraged to engage with younger colleagues as role models and mentors

COGTIPS: a double-blind randomized active controlled trial protocol to study the effect of home-based, online cognitive training on cognition and brain networks in Parkinson's disease

BACKGROUND: Cognitive dysfunction is highly prevalent in Parkinson's disease (PD) and a large proportion of patients eventually develops PD-related dementia. Currently, no effective treatment is available. Cognitive training is effective in relieving cognitive dysfunctions in several -neurodegenerative- diseases, and earlier small-scale trials have shown positive results for PD. In this randomized controlled trial, we assess the efficacy of online home-based cognitive training, its long-term effects, as well as the underlying neural correlates in a large group of PD patients. METHODS: In this double-blind randomized controlled trial we will include 140 non-demented patients with idiopathic PD that experience significant subjective cognitive complaints. Participants will be randomized into a cognitive training group and an active control group. In both groups, participants will individually perform an online home-based intervention for eight weeks, three times a week during 45 min. The cognitive training consists of thirteen games that focus on executive functions, attention and processing speed with an adaptive difficulty. The active control comprises three games that keep participants cognitively engaged without a training component. Participants will be subjected to extensive neuropsychological assessments at baseline and after the intervention, and at six months, one year and two years of follow-up. A subset of participants (40 in each treatment condition) will undergo structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging. The primary outcome of this study is the performance on the Tower of London task. Secondary outcomes are objective and subjective cognitive functioning, conversion to PD-related mild cognitive impairment or dementia, functional and structural connectivity and network topological indices measured with magnetic resonance imaging. None of the outcome measures are part of the cognitive training program. Data will be analyzed using multivariate mixed-model analyses and odds ratios. DISCUSSION: This study is a large-scale cognitive training study in PD patients that evaluates the efficacy in relieving cognitive dysfunction, and the underlying mechanisms. The strengths of this study are the large sample size, the long follow-up period and the use of neuroimaging in a large subsample. The study is expected to have a low attrition and a high compliance rate given the home-based and easily-accessible intervention in both conditions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT02920632 . Registered September 30, 2016

Impact of intracoronary bone marrow cell therapy on left ventricular function in the setting of ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction: a collaborative meta-analysis

AIMS The objective of the present analysis was to systematically examine the effect of intracoronary bone marrow cell (BMC) therapy on left ventricular (LV) function after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction in various subgroups of patients by performing a collaborative meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. METHODS AND RESULTS We identified all randomized controlled trials comparing intracoronary BMC infusion as treatment for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. We contacted the principal investigator for each participating trial to provide summary data with regard to different pre-specified subgroups [age, diabetes mellitus, time from symptoms to percutaneous coronary intervention, infarct-related artery, LV end-diastolic volume index (EDVI), LV ejection fraction (EF), infarct size, presence of microvascular obstruction, timing of cell infusion, and injected cell number] and three different endpoints [change in LVEF, LVEDVI, and LV end-systolic volume index (ESVI)]. Data from 16 studies were combined including 1641 patients (984 cell therapy, 657 controls). The absolute improvement in LVEF was greater among BMC-treated patients compared with controls: [2.55% increase, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.83-3.26, P < 0.001]. Cell therapy significantly reduced LVEDVI and LVESVI (-3.17 mL/m², 95% CI: -4.86 to -1.47, P < 0.001; -2.60 mL/m², 95% CI -3.84 to -1.35, P < 0.001, respectively). Treatment benefit in terms of LVEF improvement was more pronounced in younger patients (age <55, 3.38%, 95% CI: 2.36-4.39) compared with older patients (age ≥ 55 years, 1.77%, 95% CI: 0.80-2.74, P = 0.03). This heterogeneity in treatment effect was also observed with respect to the reduction in LVEDVI and LVESVI. Moreover, patients with baseline LVEF <40% derived more benefit from intracoronary BMC therapy. LVEF improvement was 5.30%, 95% CI: 4.27-6.33 in patients with LVEF <40% compared with 1.45%, 95% CI: 0.60 to 2.31 in LVEF ≥ 40%, P < 0.001. No clear interaction was observed between other subgroups and outcomes. CONCLUSION Intracoronary BMC infusion is associated with improvement of LV function and remodelling in patients after ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction. Younger patients and patients with a more severely depressed LVEF at baseline derived most benefit from this adjunctive therapy