Education and Elite Soccer: An Examination of the Female Experience in Norway and Canada : A Qualitative Study of Elite Female Soccer Players in Norway and Canada

Women's soccer has expanded in the last 30 years, from purely amateur to increasingly professional. The emergence of paid women's leagues throughout the world, symbolizes this growth, in addition to the exposure of the Women's World Cup (WWC), U20 and U17 WWC. This study was undertaken in order to examine the question: What is the experience of Norwegian and Canadian elite female soccer players in combining soccer with education? The theory and concepts of Pierre Bourdieu were utilized as the lens in which to examine the findings of this research. These include concepts related to field, habitus and the ability to acquire and convert capital from time spent as elite female players, into life and career postsoccer. Twenty women who were all elite female soccer players in high school were interviewed for the study, ten from Norway and ten from Canada, who were between the ages of 24 and 32. Of the ten from each nation, five were those that reached the highest level of play in their respective countries, and five who did not. The method of research conducted was the life history interview method. Results showed that the majority of those that were elite female players in high school in Canada went on to finish a university degree in 4-5 years. This is because the soccer structure in North America ties a university education and elite level soccer inherently together. All the elite level Norwegian players did not finish their university degrees in a standard three to four years, with their soccer commitments cited as the main reason. However, Norwegians were better able to continue to play soccer at an elite level, after they were finished university and could balance a career, while Canadians had to make a choice between career and soccer as soon as they were finished with their bachelor degree. Looking at the results through the lens of Bourdieu, besides educational capital, there was very little ability to convert capital acquired from being an elite female player into skills required for a career post-soccer. These findings concur with past research which has shown very limited opportunities for females in soccer, whether in coaching or administration, once they are done with their own on-field careers. Thus women in both countries need to be conscientious in building up skills and options for their career, once they have retired from the sport

New approach of modifying the anatase to rutile transition temperature in TiO2 photocatalysts

In pure synthetic titanium dioxide, the anatase to rutile phase transition usually occurs between the temperatures of 600 °C and 700 °C. The phase transition temperature can be altered by various methods, including modifying the precursor or by adding dopant or modifier to the TiO2 sample. In an attempt to investigate the phase transition using aromatic carboxylic acids, the current study examines the impact of increasing concentrations of benzoic acid (1 : 0, 1 : 1, 1 : 4 and 1 : 8 molar ratio TiO2 : benzoic acid) on anatase to rutile transition. The samples were characterised using Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) studies. At 500 °C, all samples contained only anatase. At 600 °C, the 1 : 1, 1 : 4 and 1 : 8 samples contain only anatase and the control (which contains no modifier) was a mixture of 27% anatase and 73% rutile. At 700 °C, the 1 : 1 molar ratio sample contained 50% anatase/rutile, 1 : 4 and 1 : 8 molar ratio samples were observed to have a majority of anatase, 76% and 71% respectively. When the temperature was increased to 800 °C, the sample with the 1 : 4 molar ratio contained 10% anatase and at the same temperature the 1 : 8 ratio sample contained 7% anatase; the remaining samples (1 : 0 and 1 : 1) at this temperature contained only rutile. These results show that there is a significant % anatase still present when the doped samples were calcined to 700 °C when compared with the control (100% rutile). There are small amounts of the anatase phase in the 1 : 4 and 1 : 8 samples at 800 °C. Therefore, benzoic acid has induced a delay in the rutile formation

Culture and the state Institutionalizing ‘the underclass’ in the new Ireland

This paper analyses some of the activities of a community development group connected to a very poor neighbourhood in Dublin, Ireland within the context of anti-poverty discourses and types of targeted funding generated by the European Union. Community development groups and discourses are saturated with terms such as the ‘social market’, ‘inclusion’ and ‘community’ that are an interesting combination of progressive politics and concepts recognizably connected to social science disciplines like Anthropology and Human Geography. In this essay, the authors examine a ‘community’ response to the so-called ‘horse protest’ in Dublin, a response in large part funded by EU mechanisms geared to combating ‘social exclusion’. They also trace back some of the connections between the institutional actors in this community and EU policies and funding mechanisms. Finally, they examine the trajectory of the Republic of Ireland, especially its experience of a booming economy, that has influenced perceptions of, and reactions to, problems in this neighbourhood. This work represents an attempt to merge ethnographic data and policy analysis within one textual frame, and in particular it represents the authors’ attempt to understand how certain discursive sign-posts like ‘social exclusion’ are given content as concrete social-historical processes

Submaximal oxygen uptake efficiency slope as a predictor of VO2max in men with cardiovascular disease

Purpose: Although V̇O2 max is considered the gold standard measure of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), it can be difficult to attain in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD). The submaximal oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES) integrates cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and respiratory function during incremental exercise into a single index and has been proposed as an alternative and effort independent measure of cardiopulmonary reserve (Baba et al., 1996). The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between V̇O2 max and both submaximal absolute OUES and relative OUES (OUES.kg-1). Methods: A total of 55 men ((mean ± SD) age, 59.08 ± 9.03 yr; VO2 max, 1.94 ± 0.53 L.min-1and 22.73 ± 5.95 mL.kg-1.min-1) were recruited during induction to a community based exercise referral program following completion of phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation. Participants performed a graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer with breath-by-breath open circuit spirometry and a 12 lead ECG. Absolute OUES and OUES.kg-1 were calculated by plotting VO2 in mL.min-1 on the x-axis, and the log transformed VE on the y-axis (VO2 = a log 10 VE + b). Exercise data up to the ventilatory anaerobic threshold (VAT) was included in the analysis. Results: The %V̇O2 max corresponding to the VAT was 55.72 ± 11.81. Absolute OUES and OUES.kg-1 were 2164.42 ± 540.96 and 25.28 ± 5.99, respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between V̇O2 max (L.min-1) and OUES (r= 0.775; p<0.001) and between V̇O2 max (mL.kg-1.min-1) and OUES.kg-1 (r= 0.78; p<0.001). Conclusion: Determination of V̇O2 max is not often feasible in individuals with CVD where maximal exercise testing is contraindicated or when performance may be impaired by pain, dyspnea or angina. The findings from the present study indicate that the OUES and OUES.kg-1 are significantly related to absolute and relative V̇O2 max, respectively and may be used as a valid sub maximal effort independent measure of CRF

Relation between physical activity and oxygen uptake efficiency in men with CVD

Purpose: The oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES) represents the rate of increase in V̇O2 in response to a given V̇E during incremental exercise, indicating how effectively oxygen is taken in by the lungs, transported and used in the periphery. OUES, calculated using only submaximal exercise data is identical to the OUES calculated over the entire duration of a cardiopulmonary exercise test (CEPT) , and both maximal and submaximal OUE are significantly related to cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) measured as V̇O2peak. Currently, little research has been published on how physical activity (PA) assessed by accelerometers is related to submaximal and maximal OUES. The purpose of this study was to determine the relation light (LIPA), moderate (MIPA) and vigorous (VIPA) intensity physical activity and maximal and submaximal OUES in men with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Methods: A total of 56 men (mean ( SD): age of 59.3 ± 9.2 yr., V̇O2 peak (L/min) 2.0 0.50, V̇O2 peak (mL/kg/min) 23.6 5.8, were recruited during an induction to a community-based exercise referral program following completion of phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation program. Participants underwent a graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer with breath by breath open circuit spirometry after which they wore a wrist worn accelerometer (Actigraph) for 7 d. Absolute and relative submaximal and maximal OUES were calculated by plotting V̇O2 in mL/min on the x axis, and the log transformed VE on the y axis (V̇O2 = a log 10 VE + b). Exercise data up to the ventilatory anaerobic threshold and maximal exercise were used to calculate submaximal and maximal OUE, respectively. Results: Participants performed 584.49 73.87 min of daily LIPA, 145.45 60.85 min of MIPA and no daily min of VIPA. There was a significant relation between absolute submaximal OUES (r=0.386; p<0.01), submaximal OUES/Kg (r=0.296; p<0.05) and LIPA. There was a significant relation between maximal OUES (r=0.286; p<0.05), maximal OUES/Kg (r=0.279; p<0.05) and MIPA. Conclusion: Submaximal and maximal OUE are related to levels of LIPA and MIPA, respectively. Submaximal OUES can potentially be used as an objective, effort independent test to estimate LIPA levels among men with CVD

Physical activity patterns and cardiorespiratory fitness in men with cardiovascular disease

Purpose: Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is generally regarded as an objective and reproducible measure of recent habitual physical activity (PA). Considering that the majority of daily PA is performed at light intensity, it is likely that CRF benefits will be detected at submaximal rather than maximal exercise. The purpose of this study was to evaluate daily minutes of light (LIPA), moderate (MIPA) and vigorous (VIPA) intensity physical activity among men with cardiovascular disease (CVD), and to determine the relation between PA and submaximal (oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES)) and maximal (V̇O2 peak) indices of CRF. Methods: A total 32 male participants (mean ( SD): age of 60.0 ± 8.7 yr, V̇O2 peak (L/min) 2.0 0.45, V̇O2 peak (mL/kg/min) 23.3 5.7, were recruited during an induction to a community based exercise referral program following completion of phase 2 cardiac rehabilitation. Participants underwent a graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer with breath by breath open circuit spirometry after which they wore a wrist worn accelerometer (Actigraph) for 7 d. Absolute and relative submaximal OUES were calculated by plotting V̇O2 in mL/min on the x axis, and the log transformed VE on the y axis (V̇O2 = a log 10 VE + b). Exercise data up to the ventilatory anaerobic threshold was included in the analysis. Results: Participants performed 589.05 69.41 min of daily LIPA, 161.38 66.16 min of MIPA and no daily min of VIPA. There was no significant relation between peak V̇O2 and either LIPA or MIPA. There was a significant correlation between submaximal OUES (r=0.44; p<0.01) and LIPA. The relation between submaximal OUES/kg and LIPA min almost reached statistical significance (r=0.33; p<0.07). There was no significant relation between MIPA and OUES or OUES/kg. Conclusion: Men with CVD spend the majority (78%) of their day performing LIPA. OUES, a submaximal measure of CRF was related LIPA whereas no relation was found between V̇O2 peak and LIPA

Pulmonary hypertension and homebased (PHAHB) exercise intervention: protocol for a feasibility study

Introduction Novel therapies for pulmonary hypertension (PH) have improved survival and slowed disease progression. However, patients still present with symptoms of exertional dyspnoea and fatigue, which impacts their ability to perform activities of daily living, reduces exercise tolerance and impairs their quality of life (QoL). Exercise training has shown to be safe and effective at enhancing QoL and physical function in PH patients, yet it remains an underused adjunct therapy. Most exercise training for PH patients has been offered through hospital-based programmes. Home-based exercise programmes provide an alternative model that has the potential to increase the availability and accessibility of exercise training as an adjunct therapy in PH. The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility, acceptability, utility and safety of a novel remotely supervised home-based PH exercise programme. Methods Single arm intervention with a pre/post comparisons design and a follow-up maintenance phase will be employed. Eligible participants (n=25) will be recruited from the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital PH Unit. Participants will undergo a 10-week home-based exercise programme, with induction training, support materials, telecommunication support and health coaching sessions followed by a 10-week maintenance phase. The primary outcomes are feasibility, acceptability, utility and safety of the intervention. Secondary outcomes will include the impact of the intervention on exercise capacity, physical activity, strength, health-related QoL and exercise self-efficacy. Ethics and dissemination Ethics approval has been obtained from the Mater Misericordiae Institutional Review Board REF:1/378/2032 and Dublin City University Research Ethics DCUREC/2018/246. A manuscript of the results will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal and results will be presented at conferences, community and consumer forums and hospital research conferences. Trial registration number ISRCTN83783446; Pre-result

Exploration of physical activity knowledge, preferences and support needs among pulmonary hypertension patients

Objective: Physical activity (PA) is an established adjunct therapy for pulmonary hypertension (PH) patients to mitigate PH symptoms and improve quality of life. However, PA engagement within this population remains low. This study investigated PH patients’ knowledge of PA, recalled advice, exercise preferences and PA support needs. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 adults (mean age 50 years; SD ±12 years) diagnosed with PH, living in Ireland. Interview scripts were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Results: Four key themes were identified: Lack of PA knowledge; exercise setting preference; accountability and monitoring; and clinician delivered PA information and guidance. Conclusion: This study found that PH clinicians provide suboptimal PA advice, yet patients desired clinician-delivered PA guidance. Home-based exercise was preferred with monitoring and external accountability deemed as important to facilitate sustained engagement. Practice implications: PH clinicians are well positioned to play a critical role in assisting and empowering PH patients to engage in PA. Providing training and education to PH clinicians regarding exercise prescription may be beneficial. Further research is needed to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of home-based exercise interventions to improve quality of life and physical activity in PH

The development and structural validity testing of the Person-centred Practice Inventory–Care (PCPI-C)

From PLOS via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: received 2023-01-26, collection 2024-01-01, accepted 2024-04-20, epub 2024-05-10Acknowledgements: The authors of this paper acknowledge the significant contributions of all the service users who participated in this study.Publication status: PublishedFiona Gilmour - ORCID: 0000-0002-9106-3618 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9106-3618Background: Person-centred healthcare focuses on placing the beliefs and values of service users at the centre of decision-making and creating the context for practitioners to do this effectively. Measuring the outcomes arising from person-centred practices is complex and challenging and often adopts multiple perspectives and approaches. Few measurement frameworks are grounded in an explicit person-centred theoretical framework. Aims: In the study reported in this paper, the aim was to develop a valid and reliable instrument to measure the experience of person-centred care by service users (patients)–The Person-centred Practice Inventory-Care (PCPI-C). Methods: Based on the ‘person-centred processes’ construct of an established Person-centred Practice Framework (PCPF), a service user instrument was developed to complement existing instruments informed by the same theoretical framework–the PCPF. An exploratory sequential mixed methods design was used to construct and test the instrument, working with international partners and service users in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Australia and Austria. A three-phase approach was adopted to the development and testing of the PCPI-C: Phase 1 –Item Selection: following an iterative process a list of 20 items were agreed upon by the research team for use in phase 2 of the project; Phase 2 –Instrument Development and Refinement: Development of the PCPI-C was undertaken through two stages. Stage 1 involved three sequential rounds of data collection using focus groups in Scotland, Australia and Northern Ireland; Stage 2 involved distributing the instrument to members of a global community of practice for person-centred practice for review and feedback, as well as refinement and translation through one: one interviews in Austria. Phase 3: Testing Structural Validity of the PCPI-C: A sample of 452 participants participated in this phase of the study. Service users participating in existing cancer research in the UK, Malta, Poland and Portugal, as well as care homes research in Austria completed the draft PCPI-C. Data were collected over a 14month period (January 2021-March 2022). Descriptive and measures of dispersion statistics were generated for all items to help inform subsequent analysis. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted using maximum likelihood robust extraction testing of the 5-factor model of the PCPI-C. Results: The testing of the PCPI-C resulted in a final 18 item instrument. The results demonstrate that the PCPI-C is a psychometrically sound instrument, supporting a five-factor model that examines the service user’s perspective of what constitutes person-centred care. Conclusion and implications: This new instrument is generic in nature and so can be used to evaluate how person-centredness is perceived by service users in different healthcare contexts and at different levels of an organisation. Thus, it brings a service user perspective to an organisation-wide evaluation framework.pubpu

Safety, Feasibility and Effectiveness of the remotely delivered Pulmonary Hypertension And Home-Based (PHAHB) Physical Activity intervention

Background Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a heterogeneous condition, associated with a high symptom burden and a substantial loss of exercise capacity. Despite prior safety concerns regarding physical exertion, exercise training as a supportive therapy is now recommended for PH patients. Currently, most programs are hospital-based, which limits accessibility. There is a need to provide alternative approaches for physical activity engagement for PH patients. The aim of this research was to develop, implement and evaluate the safety, feasibility, and effectiveness of home-based physical activity intervention for PH. Methods An entirely remotely delivered home-based exercise intervention underpinned by behaviour change theory and informed by end-users, was assessed using a single-arm feasibility study design. Participants (n=19; 80% female) with a mean (±sd) age of 49.9±15.9 y with a diagnosis of PH undertook a 10-week, home-based exercise intervention with induction training, support materials, telecommunication support, health coaching, exercise training, and assessments, all remotely delivered. Training involved respiratory training along with a combination of aerobic and resistance exercises. Results The intervention was deemed safe as no adverse events were reported. A high level of feasibility was demonstrated as the protocol was implemented as intended, sustained a high level of engagement and adherence and was well accepted by participants in terms of enjoyment and utility. There was a significant improvement in functional capacity, physical activity, exercise self-efficacy and quality of life (QoL), between baseline and post-training. Conclusion The study demonstrates that an entirely remotely delivered home-based exercise program is safe, feasible and effective in improving functional capacity, physical activity, and QoL in PH patients