Medical–surgical nurse leaders\u27 experiences with safety culture: An inductive qualitative descriptive study

The aim of this study is to describe safety culture as experienced by medical–surgical nurse leaders.BackgroundSafety culture remains a barrier in safer patient care. Nurse leaders play an important role in creating and supporting a safety culture.MethodsWe used an inductive qualitative descriptive study using semistructured interviews, document review and observations in a Midwestern community hospital in the United States.ResultsResults of the study are as follows: making sure nurses are keeping patients safe, making sure nurses have nursing interventions in place, expecting nurses to stop unsafe acts or escalate when they feel uncomfortable, making sure nurses have what they need to provide safe care, organization prioritizes patient safety and making sure nurses are learning and growing emerged as themes describing safety culture.ConclusionsNurse leaders made sure patients were safe by making sure everyone was doing their best to provide safe care. Insufficient time, too many priorities, insufficient resources, poor physician behaviours and lack of respect for their role emerged as barriers to leading a safety culture.Implications for Nursing ManagementOrganizations must remove barriers for nurse leaders to develop and lead a safety culture. Nurse leaders must learn to advocate successfully for safe nursing care and professional work environments

Reference to the index of John Rowland Skemp (1900-1967), who was the son of Rowland Skemp and Florence (nee Kearney).

J R Skemp published works on Tasmanian history, reminiscences and natural history. The papers include manuscripts of J.R. Skemp's publications and some unpublished works, some papers of Rowland and Florence Skemp, including letters to Florence's mother, Ann Kearney (nee Lovell), used by J.R. Skemp for his Letters to Anne. There are also papers of Rowland Skemp relating to his work for the local Council and local agricultural society, and Florence Skemp's papers relating to Myrtle Bank School

Body Image Perceptions and Eating Patterns Among Preadolescent Children

Preadolescent children are showing patterns of body distortion and unhealthy dieting practices to attempt weight manipulation. The present study examined body image perceptions and interest in weight manipulation among 215 preadolescent children (girls, n =101) (mean age = 10) in third, fourth, and fifth grades. To measure body image perceptions, children were asked to answer two multiple choice questions: I think I am: fat, skinny, in-between; and I would like to: lose weight, gain weight, stay the same. Interest in weight manipulation was measured using the Children’s Eating Attitude Test (ChEAT). Results indicated that children show a fairly accurate perception of their body shape and size and this remained consistent for both genders and across all age groups. ANOVA results showed children who felt they were “fat” had a significantly higher level of disturbed eating patterns (ChEAT mean = 14.00) compared to the children who felt they were “in-between” (ChEAT mean = 6.95) (p = .009). Children who indicated they would like to “lose weight” had significantly higher ChEAT scores (mean = 9.19) than those who wanted to “stay the same” (mean = 6.56) (p = .033). ChEAT scores for girls showed a significant difference between the “fat” group (mean = 29.00) and the “in-between” group (mean = 6.81) (p < .001) and between the “fat” group and the “skinny” group (mean = 10.78) (p = .002). Twenty-five percent of this sample of children indicated a desire to “lose weight” (mean body mass index = 21.35) and 67% desired to “stay the same” (mean body mass index = 17.45). Preadolescent children are showing a desire for a thinner body type and are already developing a motivation to avoid weight gain or obesity through dietary manipulation. Early identification of body distortion and disturbed eating patterns could help with education and prevention strategies

Adolescent Boys are at Risk for Body Image Dissatisfaction and Muscle Dysmorphia

Background and Purpose: Muscle Dysmorphia (MD) is characterized by extreme body dissatisfaction and a drive for muscularity that leads to compulsive behaviors to attain an ideal body shape. The primary purpose of this study was to assess the level of body image dissatisfaction (BID) among male adolescents (N = 149, mean age = 15.01 + 1.85 y and mean BMI = 23.26 + 5.01 kg/m2 ) and whether or not BID was correlated with behaviors associated with MD. A secondary purpose was to examine if a difference exists between athletes and non-athletes. Methods: The Eating Attitude Survey (EAS) was used to assess attitudes toward body weight and shape while the Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory (MDI) was used to assess the behavioral and psychological characteristics of MD. Results: This sample of male adolescents indicate some level of BID, which is also associated with overall higher scores for all subscales of the MDI, but especially the subscales relating to muscularity. Athletes in particular showed higher levels of BID and higher scores on the MDI. Conclusion: Individuals who work with adolescent boys should be aware that they can develop body dissatisfaction and may participate in compensatory behaviors that may be harmful to their overall health and development

Encouraging versatile thinking in algebra using the computer

In this article we formulate and analyse some of the obstacles to understanding the notion of a variable, and the use and meaning of algebraic notation, and report empirical evidence to support the hypothesis that an approach using the computer will be more successful in overcoming these obstacles. The computer approach is formulated within a wider framework ofversatile thinking in which global, holistic processing complements local, sequential processing. This is done through a combination of programming in BASIC, physical activities which simulate computer storage and manipulation of variables, and specific software which evaluates expressions in standard mathematical notation. The software is designed to enable the user to explore examples and non-examples of a concept, in this case equivalent and non-equivalent expressions. We call such a piece of software ageneric organizer because if offers examples and non-examples which may be seen not just in specific terms, but as typical, or generic, examples of the algebraic processes, assisting the pupil in the difficult task of abstracting the more general concept which they represent. Empirical evidence from several related studies shows that such an approach significantly improves the understanding of higher order concepts in algebra, and that any initial loss in manipulative facility through lack of practice is more than made up at a later stage

Body Image Dissatisfaction Among Third, Fourth, and Fifth Grade Children

Body image dissatisfaction has become increasingly more prevalent among the preadolescent population over recent years. This study examines the level of body image dissatisfaction among 261 third, fourth, and fifth grade girls and boys. A pictorial scale was used to assess how the participants viewed their current body shape, their ideal body shape, and what they believed to be the ideal body shape of the opposite gender. Overall results indicated that 50.6% of the children surveyed were dissatisfied with their current body shape, 41.8% wanted to be thinner, while 8.8% wanted to be larger. Fifty percent of the girls were dissatisfied with their current body shape, with 45.1% wishing to be thinner. Boys showed similar trends, with 48.9% dissatisfied and 38.9% wishing to be thinner. A greater percentage of boys wanted to be larger than their current body shape (12.3%) compared to girls (4.9%). A significant difference was found between genders regarding the difference between scores of their current self and ideal self, where girls selected a smaller ideal body shape than the boys. An encouraging finding was that the level of body dissatisfaction decreased from third grade to fifth grade among both genders. Girls, however, still wished to be thinner over time. Boys, on the other hand, indicated a preference for a somewhat larger body shape over time. These results indicate that body image dissatisfaction exists prior to adolescence among this sample of children. Prevention strategies and education are encouraged among this age group

Using tasks to explore teacher knowledge in situation-specific contexts

This article was published in the journal, Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education [© Springer] and the original publication is available at www.springerlink.comResearch often reports an overt discrepancy between theoretically/out-of context expressed teacher beliefs about mathematics and pedagogy and actual practice. In order to explore teacher knowledge in situation-specific contexts we have engaged mathematics teachers with classroom scenarios (Tasks) which: are hypothetical but grounded on learning and teaching issues that previous research and experience have highlighted as seminal; are likely to occur in actual practice; have purpose and utility; and, can be used both in (pre- and in-service) teacher education and research through generating access to teachers’ views and intended practices. The Tasks have the following structure: reflecting upon the learning objectives within a mathematical problem (and solving it); examining a flawed (fictional) student solution; and, describing, in writing, feedback to the student. Here we draw on the written responses to one Task (which involved reflecting on solutions of x+x−1=0 of 53 Greek in-service mathematics teachers in order to demonstrate the range of teacher knowledge (mathematical, didactical and pedagogical) that engagement with these tasks allows us to explore

Developing mathematical thinking in the primary classroom: liberating students and teachers as learners of mathematics

This paper reports on a research study conducted with a group of practising primary school teachers (n = 24) in North East Scotland during 2011–2012. The teachers were all participants in a newly developed Masters course that had been designed with the aim of promoting the development of mathematical thinking in the primary classroom as part of project supported by the Scottish Government. The paper presents the background for this initiative within the context of the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence reform. Particular attention is given to the epistemological positioning of the researchers as this influenced both the curriculum design process and also the theoretical framing of the research study which are both described. The project was set up within a design research framework, which aimed to promote classroom-based action research on the part of participants through the course and also research by the university researchers into the process of curriculum development. The research questions focused on the teachers’ confidence, competence, attitudes and beliefs in relation to mathematics and their expectations and experiences of the impact on pupil learning arising from this course. Empirical data were drawn from pre- and post-course surveys, interviews and observations of the discussion forums in the online environment. Findings from this study highlight the way the course had a transformational and emancipatory impact on these teachers. They also highlight ways in which the ‘framing’ of particular aspects of the curriculum had an oppressive impact on learners in the ways that suppressed creativity and limited the exercise of learner autonomy. Furthermore, they highlight the ways in which a number of these teachers had experienced mathematics as a school subject in very negative ways, involving high levels of ‘symbolic violence’ and of being ‘labelled’

Objects, actions, and images: a perspective on early number development

It is the purpose of this article to present a review of research evidence that indicates the existence of qualitatively different thinking in elementary number development. In doing so, the article summarizes empirical evidence obtained over a period of 10 years. This evidence first signaled qualitative differences in numerical processing, and was seminal in the development of the notion of procept. More recently, it examines the role of imagery in elementary number processing. Its conclusions indicate that in the abstraction of numerical concepts from numerical processes qualitatively different outcomes may arise because children concentrate on different objects or different aspects of the objects, which are components of numerical processing