The Effectiveness of Doctoral Program in Nursing in Iran Based on the Patrick Model

Background: Doctoral program in nursing aims to train nursing professionals and managers to improve the quality of care and ultimately to promote public health. Some critics believe that in Iran this program mostly focuses on training instructors and researchers and neither improves the function and position of nursing discipline nor meets the needs of the community. Objectives: The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of nursing doctoral program based on the Patrick model from the perspective of nursing doctoral students. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 90 nursing students who were conveniently selected from seven nursing schools. A questionnaire designed based on the Patrick model was used. Descriptive statistics, simple and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. Percentage of the effectiveness scores was reported. Results: The mean score of effectiveness of the nursing doctoral program was 84.76 ± 2.73, which assumed a good level. Multiple regression analysis showed that job status and being native in the field of education explains 11% of the variance in the effectiveness score. Conclusions: Although the efficacy of nursing doctoral program is good, however, it needs revision to enhance the outcomes of the program in order to meet public needs and to increase learners’ satisfaction

Numerical Simulation of Particle Separation in the Fluid Flow in a Microchannel Including Spiral and Acoustic Regions

Particulate separation has many applications in medicine, biology and industry. In this research, the separation of polystyrene particles with a diameter of 10, 20 and 30 μm in the fluid flow of a microchannel is investigated. The microchannel consists of a spiral region and a straight region under the influence of acoustic waves. In the spiral region, the particles under hydrodynamic effects undergo the initial separation; then the particles enter the straight region of the microchannel, and the final separation of the particles is done by the force generated and exerted through the acoustic waves. The effects of acoustic frequency and the number of spiral region loops on separation are investigated. The results show that for measured dimensions and parameters, at 1 MHz acoustic wave, when the number of loops is 2 for the spiral region, the particles at the end of the path are in a suitable position for separation. In addition, the results show that the separation of particles with this hybrid system is better than that done by the simple methods, and the separation rate can be as high as 100