Applying project management concepts and tools to built environment research projects

This paper concerns the issue of Built Environment research students utilising a formal approach for designing and conducting research projects. The authors draw upon their experience of supervising and examining Built Environment research projects at undergraduate and postgraduate levels to critically reflect upon issues faced by researchers. Furthermore, student feedback has been obtained via semi formal interviews. Within the paper a case is presented for research students in built environment disciplines to adopt and use Project Management concepts and tools in order to exercise better management control of research projects and increase the possibility of bringing the research to a successful conclusion. The works of Phillips and Pugh (2005), Rudestam and Newton (2001) and Delamont et al (1997) support the authors’ observations and conclusions that research students would benefit from having a more formalised approach when conducting their research in order to better control and succeed in their research activities

Resiliency, Connectivity and Environments: Their roles in theorizing approaches to the promoting the wellbeing of young people

Early theory and findings in the area of resilience among young people emphasised individual differences and personality characteristics to explain different reactions to stress and risk. The ‘modern’ resiliency literature views the possible explanatory variables for different outcomes in broader contexts such as family, schools and community. Despite this change over time the individualising, problem focused orientation of resilience approaches continues to obscure the environment, leaving it an under-interrogated factor in youth wellbeing. The importance of this rests on its impact on policy and practice in the fields of youth development and health promotion. In this paper we argue that contemporary resiliency theory and research continue to fall short of the paradigm shift called for by those orienting to environmentally-based public health measures to improve population level wellbeing among young people

Treatment using 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency improves pain and function in patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joint: A randomised controlled trial

Objective: This study investigated whether capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency (CRMRF)-based treatment improves pain and function among patients with osteoarthritis of the knee. Design and setting: Three-group randomised controlled trial with concealed allocation, participant blinding and intention-to-treat analysis. Forty-five patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis, from the waiting list for physiotherapy at a local hospital were enrolled. Intervention: Participants in the active and sham groups received eight sessions of CRMRF and sham-CRMRF respectively over four weeks, along with standard care. The control group received standard care only. Assessment: Pain and function were measured at four time points: week zero (baseline), week four (post intervention), week eight and week 16 (two follow-ups) using visual analogue scale (VAS), Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) Osteoarthritis Index, timed up and go (TUG) test and knee range of motion (ROM). Results: For pain (VAS), there were clinically significant changes in the active group at post treatment compared to sham (Mean difference: 0.79 (95% CI: 0.29 to 1.3), effect size: 1.3) and control (Mean difference: 0.82 (95% CI: 0.32 to 1.3), effect size: 1.5), and at one-month follow-up compared to control (Mean difference: 0.68 (95% CI: 0.10 to 1.3), effect size: 1.1). For function (WOMAC), there was clinically significant change in the active group at post treatment compared to control (Mean difference: 1.3 (95% CI: 0.02 to 2.6), effect size: 0.94), but not compared to sham. No meaningful differences were noted for TUG or knee ROM. No differences were noted at three-month follow-up for any outcomes. Conclusion: CRMRF treatment can improve pain and function in patients with knee osteoarthritis in the short term. Trial registration: NIHR-CRN study ID: 20264.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Skin thermophysiological effects of 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency in healthy adults : A randomised crossover study and comparison with Pulsed Shortwave Therapy

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis Group in Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine on 8 January 2018, available online: https://doi.org/10.1080/15368378.2017.1422260. Under embargo until 8 January 2019.Radiofrequency-based electrophysical agents (EPA) have been used in therapy practice over several decades (e.g., shortwave therapies). Currently, there is insufficient evidence supporting such devices operating below shortwave frequencies. This laboratory-based study investigated the skin physiological effects of 448 kHz capacitive resistive monopolar radiofrequency (CRMRF) and compared them to pulsed shortwave therapy (PSWT). In a randomised crossover study, seventeen healthy volunteers received four treatment conditions–High, Low and Placebo dose conditions receiving 15-min CRMRF treatment and a Control condition receiving no intervention. Fifteen participants also received high dose PSWT for comparison. Treatment was applied to the right lower medial thigh. Pre, post and 20-min follow-up measurements of skin temperature (SKT), skin blood flow (SBF) and nerve conduction velocity (NCV) were obtained using Biopac MP150 system. Group data were compared using the ANOVA model. Statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05 (0.8P, 95%CI). Significant increase and sustenance of SKT with both high and low dose CRMRF was demonstrated over the other groups (p < 0.001). PSWT increased SKT significantly (p < 0.001) but failed to sustain it over the follow-up. However, among the five conditions, only high dose CRMRF significantly increased and sustained SBF (p < 0.001). Overall, the CRMRF physiological responses were significantly more pronounced than that of PSWT. No significant changes in NCV were noted for any condition. Physiological changes associated with CRMRF were more pronounced when compared to PSWT, placebo or control. Any potential stronger therapeutic benefits of CRMRF need to be confirmed by comparative clinical studies.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Electro physical agents and tissue repair: : can we really make a difference?

This article is based on the Olive Sands Memorial lecture presented at the Physio First 2015 Conference and aims to provide an overview of the complexities of the tissue repair events, together with the use of electro physical agents (EPAs) in practice, considering the evidence for their effectiveness.Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Peer-assisted location authentication and access control for wireless networks

This paper presents the development and implementation of a location‐based, lightweight peer‐assisted authentication scheme for use in wireless networks. The notion of peer‐assisted authentication is based upon some target user equipment‐ (UE) seeking authentication and access to a network based upon its physical location. The target UE seeks authentication through the UE of peers in the same network. Compared with previous work, the approach in this paper does not rely on any cryptographic proofs from a central authentication infrastructure, thus avoiding complex infrastructure management. However, the peer‐assisted authentication consumes network channel resources which will impact on network performance. In this paper, we also present an access control algorithm for balancing the location authentication, network quality of service (QoS), network capacity and time delay. The results demonstrate that peer‐assisted authentication considering location authentication and system QoS through dynamic access control strategies can be effectively and efficiently implemented in a number of use cases

Advances in Electrotherapy

Topic Areas - Electrotherapy vs Electrophysical Agents/Modalities - Electrophysical Framework - Electrophysical Forum - Popularity, Evidence and New Device Hype - Radiofrequency Interventions – newly developing field in Equine practice - Low Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound (LIPUS) is it a viable Equine option for interventions beyond fracture management?Non peer reviewe

Rural Elders\u27 Knowledge Of Nurse Practitioners As Health Care Providers

The population of America is growing older every year. Thirteen percent of the population is at least 65 years old. Many elders have limited health care choices because fewer physicians are locating their practices in rural areas. Nurse practitioners are now practicing in underserved areas such as rural communities. The purpose of this descriptive exploratory study was to explore baseline knowledge of rural elders concerning the role of nurse practitioners as health care providers. Becker\u27s Health Belief Model was used to guide the research. The research question was as follows: What is rural elders\u27 knowledge of nurse practitioners as health care providers? A convenience sample of 53 elders from Sunday school classes in northeast Mississippi was utilized. Data were obtained using the Davis Acceptance Survey (Revised). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze data. Findings indicated that 77.4% of rural elders in the study were knowledgeable regarding the nurse practitioner role in general. Respondents were more likely to believe that nurse practitioners could provide health maintenance 111 services, such as history taking and referral to physician, and less likely to know that nurse practitioners could treat more serious illnesses, such as high blood pressure and kidney infections. These results indicate that rural elders need additional education about the functional role of the nurse practitioner in primary care. Recommendations for future research include replication of the study using a larger sample size excluding those already studied, including more minorities, using a different a geographical location, and using different data collection instruments