Smartphone-Based Prenatal Education for Parents with Preterm Birth Risk Factors

Objective To develop an educational mobile application (app) for expectant parents diagnosed with risk factors for premature birth. Methods Parent and medical advisory panels delineated the vision for the app. The app helps prepare for preterm birth. For pilot testing, obstetricians offered the app between 18–22 weeks gestational age to English speaking parents with risk factors for preterm birth. After 4 weeks of use, each participant completed a questionnaire. The software tracked topics accessed and duration of use. Results For pilot testing, 31 participants were recruited and 28 completed the questionnaire. After app utilization, participants reported heightened awareness of preterm birth (93%), more discussion of pregnancy or prematurity issues with partner (86%), increased questions at clinic visits (43%), and increased anxiety (21%). Participants reported receiving more prematurity information from the app than from their healthcare providers. The 15 participants for whom tracking data was available accessed the app for an average of 8 h. Conclusion Parents with increased risk for preterm birth may benefit from this mobile app educational program. Practice implications If the pregnancy results in preterm birth hospitalization, parents would have built a foundation of knowledge to make informed medical care choices

Pre-admission Grades And Student Performance: The Malaysian Medical School Experience

Prior academic achievement is often considered the best predictor and therefore the preadmission criteria for highly competitive medical schools. Most studies that advocate this viewpoint analyzed cohorts based on results of a central examination taken by students who come from various pre-university setups and backgrounds. Far less is known about students who come from a common setup, sit for common assessments, and the effect on their achievement in medical schools. This study sets out to investigate the correlation and association of preadmission grades and various summative results during preclinical year medical program. The association of the whole group is investigated. The association of subgroups (low, intermediate, and high achievers) to preclinical achievement was also investigated to get insight about the consistency. As a group, the pre-university performance (especially in natural sciences) has moderate to high correlations to various results in preclinical phase. As subgroups: low achievers are less consistent and predictable; high achievers are best correlated to various results of preclinical phase; while intermediate achievers are in between. The cumulative grade point and performance in natural sciences in a common pre-university program can serve not only as a predictor of performance, but also as an indicator for consistency of performance in preclinical phase of medical programs. This information may be of use to medical school admission and selection committees

The Growth of Seaweed (Kappaphycus Alvarezii) Cultivated with Long Line and Off Bottom Method on Tita Banda Neira Maluku Coastal Area

This research aimed to know the growth rate of seaweed (Kappaphycus alvarezii) cultivated by using off bottom method and long line method in coastal waters Tita Dwiwarna Village Banda Central of Maluku. It is expected that this research will provide basic information in business of seaweed cultivation to be developed. The methods were off bottom method and long line method that consisted of 2 treatments and 3 replications. Material used was mostly a polyethylene rope as long as 10 meters with the diameter size 5 mm for a mine rope and 3 mm for a span rope. Initial weight of sea weeds which is tied to a span rope 100 gram. The growth data collection was taken simultaneously with water quality data every week. Data were analyzed by using Cohran test to see homogeneity. The homogeneity data were then analyzed by using t-test to see the different between two treatments. The result of the research has shown that seaweed growth was highest in off bottom methods which average weight on the seventh week reached 690 gram. While the growth with long line methods reached the average weight on the seventh week reached only 609.4 gram. Therefore, the best growth of the sea weed was represented by off bottom method

Crowdfunding Among Event Entrepreneurs: A Conceptual Paper

This paper aims to uncover the benefits of crowdfunding among Event Entrepreneurs in Malaysia. The study reviews literature on the definition, discussion and its revolution related to capital -raising, networking, investment, and crowdfunding among Event Entrepreneurs. The method used for this paper is based on literature reviews from journal articles, conference proceedings, newspaper, books and internet search related to this research area. The conceptual framework is recommended in the end of the paper as it allows reader to understand how the benefits will affects towards crowdfunding among Event Entrepreneurs. Hence, it will provide more research interest in crowdfunding in the future.     Keywords: crowdfunding, event, event crowdfundin

PERBANYAKAN BIBIT KAKAO MELALUI TEKNIK GRAFTING, OKULASI, DAN SOMATIK EMBRIOGENESIS DI PROVINSI SULAWESI SELATAN

The Study of Cocoa Seed Multiplication Using Grafting, Budding and Somatic Embryogenesis inSouth Sulawesi Province. The low quality and quantity of seed is one of the obstacles to increase the cocoaproduction. Cocoa plantation revitalization program requires up to 75 million of cocoa seeds per year to supportthe development in about 200,000 hectares area. Vegetative propagation of plants such as cocoa bud grafting, sidegrafting, grafting, somatic embryogenesis (SE) can be done as one of the solutions to solve the problems. Thestudy was conducted in two cocoa-producing districts namely Luwu and North Luwu, on February to September2012. The focus of the activities was conducted research on the methods of plant propagation of cocoa that warebud grafting, side grafting, grafting, and SE which aimed to determine the most suitable method applied at the farmlevel as well as the types of clones as a source of budwood in South Sulawesi. The studies were carried out in theform of survey by selecting respondents in two locations of cocoa development. The collected data from theexperimental design were analyzed by ANOVA, and further tested was done by using Duncan’s Multiple RangeTest at the level of 5%. The feasibility of utilization of the propagation methods then analyzed using a Benefit CostRatio (B/C). The results showed that the success rate of grafting techniques and side-grafting shoots both in thenursery and in the crop ware high enough, so the seed multiplication techniques can be recommended to be appliedat the level of farmers' groups. SE seedlings technology was not recommended in smallholders, but it is possible tobe applied at private estates and national companies, that had better comprehend the application of such technologyand had adequate facilities. Local superior clones that had been identified as superior clones were Sulawesi-1,Sulawesi-2, Mocktar 01, and Buntu Batu, those were recomended to be released. Varietal released is one of majorrequirements that a clone can be developed for commercial purpose.Key words: Cocoa, propagation technology, seeds, superior clonesABSTRAKSalah satu kendala yang dihadapi dalam peningkatan produksi kakao ialah rendahnya kualitas dankuantitas bibit. Padahal, program revitalisasi perkebunan kakao memerlukan bibit kakao hingga 75 juta bibit pertahun untuk mendukung pengembangan areal seluas 200.000 ha. Perbanyakan tanaman kakao secara vegetatifseperti sambung pucuk, sambung samping, okulasi, somatik embriogenesis (SE) dapat dilakukan sebagai salah satusolusi untuk menyelesaikan permasalahan penyediaan bibit kakao. Kajian dilaksanakan di dua kabupaten penghasilkakao yaitu Kabupaten Luwu dan Luwu Utara, pada bulan Februari sampai September 2012. Fokus kegiatan ialahpengkajian terhadap metode pembibitan kakao secara vegetatif yaitu sambung pucuk, sambung samping, okulasi,dan SE yang bertujuan mengetahui metode paling cocok untuk diterapkan di tingkat petani serta jenis klon sebagaisumber entres yang digunakan di Sulawesi Selatan. Kegiatan dilakukan dalam bentuk survai dengan memilihresponden di dua lokasi pengembangan kakao. Data pengamatan dianalisis dengan menggunakan ANOVA dandiuji lanjut dengan Duncan Multiple Range Test pada taraf 95%. Untuk mengetahui kelayakan usahatanipembibitan kakao, maka dilakukan analisis Benefit Cost Ratio (B/C). Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahwa tingkatkeberhasilan teknik sambung pucuk dan sambung samping di pesemaian dan di pertanaman cukup tinggi, sehinggakedua teknik perbanyakan bibit tersebut dapat direkomendasikan di tingkat kelompok tani. Penggunaan teknologibibit SE tidak dianjurkan diterapkan di perkebunan rakyat, tetapi sebaiknya diterapkan di perusahaan perkebunanswasta dan nasional yang memiliki fasilitas yang memadai. Klon unggul lokal yang sudah teridentifikasi dapatdikembangkan yaitu Sulawesi-1, Sulawesi- 2, Mocktar 01, dan Buntu Batu. Sebaiknya klon tersebut segeradiusulkan untuk dilepas sebagai klon unggul, sehingga mempunyai legalitas sebagai klon yang dapat digunakansebagai sumber entres.Kata kunci: Kakao, teknologi perbanyakan, bibit, klon unggu

Operationalization of bi-directional screening for tuberculosis and diabetes in private sector healthcare clinics in Karachi, Pakistan

Background: Many countries are facing overlapping epidemics of tuberculosis (TB) and diabetes mellitus (DM). Diabetes increases the overall risk of developing Tuberculosis (TB) and contributes to adverse treatment outcomes. Active screening for both diseases can reduce TB transmission and prevent the development of complications of DM. We investigated bi-directional TB-DM screening in Karachi, Pakistan, a country that ranks fifth among high TB burden countries, and has the seventh highest country burden for DM.Methods: Between February to November 2014, community-based screeners identified presumptive TB and DM through verbal screening at private health clinics. Individuals with presumptive TB were referred for a chest X-ray and Xpert MTB/RIF. Presumptive DM cases had random blood glucose (RBS) tested. All individuals with bacteriologically positive TB were referred for diabetes testing (RBS). All pre-diabetics and diabetics were referred for a chest X-ray and Xpert MTB/RIF test. The primary outcomes of this study were uptake of TB and DM testing.Results: A total of 450,385 individuals were screened, of whom 18,109 had presumptive DM and 90,137 had presumptive TB. 14,550 of these individuals were presumptive for both DM and TB. The uptake of DM testing among those with presumptive diabetes was 26.1% while the uptake of TB testing among presumptive TB cases was 5.9%. Despite efforts to promote bi-directional screening of TB and DM, the uptake of TB testing among pre-diabetes and diabetes cases was only 4.7%, while the uptake of DM testing among MTB positive cases was 21.8%.Conclusion: While a high yield for TB was identified among pre-diabetics and diabetics along with a high yield of DM among individuals diagnosed with TB, there was a low uptake of TB testing amongst presumptive TB patients who were recorded as pre-diabetic or diabetic. Bi-directional screening for TB and DM which includes the integration of TB diagnostics, DM screening and TB-DM treatment within existing health care programs will need to address the operational challenges identified before implementing this as a strategy in public health programs