Work-ready wiki: Supporting the learning and teaching of professional graduate attributes

The paper presents the background, design and formative evaluation of a wiki of workready learning activities and teaching support resources to improve the learning of professional graduate attributes. The 'Improving graduate work-readiness' project is a University of Technology Sydney curriculum renewal project involving five Faculties. The project aims to improve graduates' professional attributes and employability skills by designing new subjects, new subject modules and integrating short well-designed contextualised work-ready learning activities into existing subjects. The authors inquired of relevant professional societies their understandings of the key professional attributes required of a graduate in the contemporary workplace. These findings informed the design of a matrix of 11 professional attributes and associated sub-attributes and aligned understandings and skills that can be learnt. The work-ready wiki gives access to a matrix of generic work-ready learning activities and 16 matrixes of learning activities contextualised for each professional area of study involved in the project to-date. Workready activities contextualised for each profession maximises student relevance and motivation to learn. Maximising the ease of integration of work-ready activities into existing subjects has guided the design of the wiki-based learning activities. From the wiki practical teaching support resources can be downloaded to enable easier integration of the work-ready learning activities. The beginning of collections of work-ready learning activities can be found at . © 2008 Andrew Litchfield and Skye Nettleton

Test of Information Theory on the Boltzmann Equation

We examine information theory using the steady-state Boltzmann equation. In a nonequilibrium steady-state system under steady heat conduction, the thermodynamic quantities from information theory are calculated and compared with those from the steady-state Boltzmann equation. We have found that information theory is inconsistent with the steady-state Boltzmann equation.Comment: 12 page

Some thoughts about nonequilibrium temperature

The main objective of this paper is to show that, within the present framework of the kinetic theoretical approach to irreversible thermodynamics, there is no evidence that provides a basis to modify the ordinary Fourier equation relating the heat flux in a non-equilibrium steady state to the gradient of the local equilibrium temperature. This fact is supported, among other arguments, through the kinetic foundations of generalized hydrodynamics. Some attempts have been recently proposed asserting that, in the presence of non-linearities of the state variables, such a temperature should be replaced by the non-equilibrium temperature as defined in Extended Irreversible Thermodynamics. In the approximations used for such a temperature there is so far no evidence that sustains this proposal.Comment: 13 pages, TeX, no figures, to appear in Mol. Phy

Modes of Interaction in Naturally Occurring Medical Encounters with General Practitioners: The ´One in a Million´ Study

In this article, we qualitatively explore the manner and style in which medical encounters between patients and general practitioners (GPs) are mutually conducted, as exhibited in situ in 10 consultations sourced from the One in a Million: Primary Care Consultations Archive in England. Our main objectives are to identify interactional modes, to develop a classification of these modes, and to uncover how modes emerge and shift both within and between consultations. Deploying an interactional perspective and a thematic and narrative analysis of consultation transcripts, we identified five distinctive interactional modes: question and answer (Q&A) mode, lecture mode, probabilistic mode, competition mode, and narrative mode. Most modes are GP-led. Mode shifts within consultations generally map on to the chronology of the medical encounter. Patient-led narrative modes are initiated by patients themselves, which demonstrates agency. Our classification of modes derives from complete naturally occurring consultations, covering a wide range of symptoms, and may have general applicability

Junior doctors' experiences of managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES: To explore junior doctors' knowledge about and experiences of managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) and to seek their recommendations for improved future training on this important topic about which they currently receive little education. DESIGN: Qualitative study using in-depth interviews analysed using the framework method. SETTING: Participants were recruited from three North Thames London hospitals within the UK. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-two junior doctors undertaking the UK foundation two-year training programme (FY1/FY2). RESULTS: The junior doctors interviewed identified a significant gap in their training on the topic of MUS, particularly in relation to their awareness of the topic, the appropriate level of investigations, possible psychological comorbidities, the formulation of suitable explanations for patients' symptoms and longer term management strategies. Many junior doctors expressed feelings of anxiety, frustration and a self-perceived lack of competency in this area, and spoke of over-investigating patients or avoiding patient contact altogether due to the challenging nature of MUS and a difficulty in managing the accompanying uncertainty. They also identified the negative attitudes of some senior clinicians and potential role models towards patients with MUS as a factor contributing to their own attitudes and management choices. Most reported a need for more training during the foundation years, and recommended interactive case-based group discussions with a focus on providing meaningful explanations to patients for their symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: There is an urgent need to improve postgraduate training about the topics of MUS and avoiding over-investigation, as current training does not equip junior doctors with the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively and confidently manage patients in these areas. Training needs to focus on practical skill development to increase clinical knowledge in areas such as delivering suitable explanations, and to incorporate individual management strategies to help junior doctors tolerate the uncertainty associated with MUS