Education Service Delivery Research Articles

An investigation of nurse education service models in acute care metropolitan hospitals across Australia.

This paper outlines a study that was undertaken to investigate the different nurse education service models being utilised in acute care metropolitan hospitals across Australia with a view to make recommendations for future nurse education service delivery within healthcare organisations. This research study used a mixed methods approach comprising three phases. Phase one involved interviews and focus groups with nurse educators at one tertiary teaching hospital in Perth, Western Australia (WA). Phase two involved focus groups and interviews with nurse educators and coordinators of nurse education services in acute care metropolitan hospitals in W.A. Phase three of the study consisted of the development of a survey tool from the findings of the previous phases and a national survey of nurse educators in acute care metropolitan hospitals across Australia. The findings of this study demonstrate that a centralised nurse education service model undertakes more functions than, and delivers significant advantages over, the decentralised and combination models.

Theoretical frameworks used in studying professions

Abstract: This article outlines some of the main theoretical perspectives used as a basis for providing an analytical framework for understanding how different professions have developed their identity. The focus is upon the delivery of health, social care and education services and a principal consideration is to examine in whose interests professionals work - themselves, their clients, the general public, the State, patriarchy? Also what role does power play in their operations. For example the Neo-Durkheimian framework emphasises ‘disinterestedness’, ‘bringing cohesion’ and implies commitment for instance to welfare state values or particular altruistic codes of behaviour. A Neo-Weberian framework emphasises ‘social closure’ and ‘professional dominance’ and introduces the notion of professionals seeking to exercise power over others. This is developed further in an analysis of Neo-Marxist and Post-Structuralist frameworks which draw out the nexus of power relations that underpin professional relationships including that which a profession holds with the state, specifically with regard to the latter’s capacity as an employing authority. A fourth main perspective, Managerialism, is singled out as a feature of modern times as its characteristics of professional governance have become embedded gradually throughout professional practices to scope demands for increased efficiency, accountability and achieving greater responsiveness to client groups. Linked to this is a separate framework of Democratic or Collaborative professionalism which extends the role of accountability to widen the range of stakeholders. This raises questions about the conduct of professional practice, either directly or indirectly, in terms of upwards, downwards, inwards and outwards accountability processes and techniques. Finally some ideas underpinning the concept of a ‘professional project’ are floated illustrating for example how there is a starting point, overall objectives and sub-goals set and steps outlined towards a monopolization of professional knowledge. A fault line may emerge when one of the eventual outcomes of professions simulating a competing standards narrative leads to a notion of ‘de-professionalisation‘, arising for example from a breakdown in public services and failure to achieve high quality standards resonant of the situation characteristic of parts of the UK today. Keywords: sociology of professions; theoretical perspectives and professional practice; social closure; power structures; specialist knowledge and expertise; professionalisation and the professional project

Influence of Students’ Feedback on the Quality of Adult Higher Distance Education Service Delivery

The evaluation of a program’s compliance with service delivery and features necessary for the attainment of the programs educational objectives, student outcomes and continuous improvement is an important element in program accreditation and continuous improvement process. The study reported in this paper investigated the possible effects of students’ feedback on the improvement of adult higher education distance learning service quality in a South African rural-based university. The study interrogated the service provision factors that seemingly helped in improving the delivery of the program. Such information are vital for planning, good governance, policy formulation, monitoring and evaluation, and for decision-making. The study used a quantitative descriptive statistics analysis of data generated ranging from 2013-2014. It comprised of overall student satisfaction as the dependent variable and the explanatory variables were given by program management, facilitation, assessment, learner support, systems, resources, program outcomes and subject matter. Analytical results were obtained from the Mann Whitney Test. The population consisted of students enrolled in the Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) program by distance mode. The 313 respondents sampled were randomly selected from a total population of 916 students. Data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. The results revealed that service qualities linked to effective management, facilitation, academic support and subject matter delivery were the main qualities that the students recommended for the improvement of the program. It is therefore recommended that adult higher education programs must have a documented systematically utilized and effective process involving program service delivery constituencies like assessment, academic support and resources provided, for the periodic review of the program educational objectives to ensure that the program remains consistent with the institutional mission, needs and criteria.

Political Accountability in Education Service Delivery: Post-apartheid South African Government’s Responsiveness

This paper hopes to contribute to insights into political accountability within the education sector. Drawing on an extensive documentary review of education policies, as well as on interviews with...

Farm waste utilization among farmers in Irepodun local government area, Kwara state, Nigeria: implication for extension education service delivery

The study examined the utilization of farm waste among farmers in Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. Structured interview schedule was used to elicit data from 120 farmers in the study area. Results revealed that more than half (58.4%) of the respondents were crop farmers who grow majorly maize and cassava on a subsistence scale. The major farm wastes generated in the area were maize cobs, husk and stalk (62.5%) and cassava stalk and peels (60%). Majority of the farmers got rid of their farm waste through burning while more than half of the respondents do not utilize the waste they generate from their farms. The major constraints militating against farm waste utilization includes inadequate access to extension services, inadequate awareness of benefits of farm waste, inadequate facilities for processing of farm wastes to other products and low knowledge on usage of farm waste. Logistic regression modelling results revealed that farmers who are more likely to utilize their farm waste efficiently are those with higher level of education and more years of experience in farming. It was therefore recommended that extension agencies should embark on enlightenment campaigns and trainings of farmers on various innovative ways of farm wastes utilization in order to facilitate more efficient and environmental friendly farm waste utilization initiatives in the area. Keywords. Assessment, Farmers, Farm Waste, Kwara State, Utilization.

Digitalization of learning resources in a HEI – a lean management perspective

PurposeLean is considered as a major management approach for improving operational productivity and organizational performance. It is a systemic philosophy that emphasizes on fulfilling customer needs, waste minimization, and a commitment to a culture of continual improvement. In recent years, many higher education institutions (HEIs) have leveraged on the use of technology to provide flexibility in learning and just-in-time training for learners in the efforts to improve both the internal processes of course delivery and enhance the provisions of education quality. In recognizing these trends in HEIs, the purpose of this paper is to identify the key factors that facilitate the conversion of printed learning resources to e-learning resources in a HEI.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a qualitative exploratory case study approach and examined a unique case of a HEI that is undergoing the transformation process from printed learning resources to digital sources to simplify the processes involved in educational service delivery and operational complexity. Data sources include semi-structured interviews with key personnel directly involved in the project of converting printed learning resources to digital sources, notes taken from informal discussions, and secondary data such as minutes of meetings, learning resource archives, and relevant literature. A retrospective perspective was adopted in the case analysis since the HEI has already completed 50 percent of the conversion phase when this study was carried out.FindingsAbductive reasoning approach and well-established lean principles were used to make sense of the digital transformation process of the HEI. Based on the retrospective case analysis, the authors found evidence that characterizes lean management principles and identifies the critical factors (CFs) that have facilitated the HEI to achieve the key milestones in the conversion journey. These include common vision, top management support and leadership, timely information sharing, and relationship management with key stakeholders in the transformation processes.Research limitations/implicationsSince this research is an exploratory case study, the results obtained cannot be generalized. Future research can be conducted to provide an impact analysis of the potential risk factors of a system that employs only the use of e-study materials. In addition, future studies can also assess the quality of the learning services that is supported by the e-resources by gathering student feedback on their e-learning experience that is supported by the online digital learning resources and learning management system.Practical implicationsThis study provides managerial insights into the levers to engender the transformation from a traditional print learning resources model to leaning with digital e-learning resources. The insights into the CFs aid education managers to introduce process innovations and encourage behavioral changes that will benefit learners, instructors, and administers.Originality/valueThe study is one of the first to apply lean management principles in making sense of the transformation processes involved in the use of digital innovation in higher education context. The findings provide a holistic view of the process transformations.

The Effects of Health Resource Supply Shortages on Access to Needed Health Care Services in Burkina Faso: The Case of Generic Essential Drugs and Nursing Staff Supplies

The health care system in Burkina Faso has long been affected by health human resources shortages, uneven geographical distribution of health care workers, and poor sourcing of generic essential drugs. Compounding this situation are the two recent crises linked to the strike by health workers' labour union, SYNTSHA, seeking salary hikes and increased allowances, and the still ongoing law suit filed by members of the governing body of the Purchase Center for Generic Essential Drugs and Medical Consumables (CAMEG) against the Minister of Health. These two recent shocks, by increasing the shortages in health care workers and generic essential medicines within health care facilities all over the country, are raising important questions with regard to the stability of the health care system in Burkina Faso, and its readiness to meet the health care needs of the population. Therefore using data from the pilot project Community Monitoring for Better Health and Education Services Delivery Project in Burkina Faso, this paper models the joint impact of generic essential drugs supply shortage and nursing staff supply shortage on access to needed health care in Burkina Faso. The results suggest that statistical endogeneity of supply side constraints are present in the standard univariate probit specification of Access to Care. However, when accounted for, the resulting Trivariate Probit model shows that although shortages of generic essential drugs supply do not constitute a significant barrier to access, shortages in nursing staff supply however are significantly constraining access to needed health care in Burkina faso. A potential explanation being that overall the health care needs in those regions are more linked to primary health services consumption from nurses, and less linked to health goods such as Generic essential drugs consumption. As such, government officials should ensure that the right policies are implemented to allow for a better regional distribution of nurses, and more importantly that they are offered better working conditions so as to avoid strikes.

The importance of educational service delivery performance and distinctive capabilities to competitive advantage and its implication on student’s trust

The importance of educational service delivery performance and distinctive capabilities to competitive advantage and its implication on student’s trust

Service quality and student/customer satisfaction in the private tertiary education sector in Singapore

PurposeThis paper focuses on students’ perceptions of the quality of non-academic services received in higher education. While the important role played by expectations and perceptions in students’ evaluations of such services has been discussed in much of the service quality literature, there is insufficient work in the private tertiary educational sector (PTES). Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between service quality, student satisfaction, and behavioural intentions in the PTES, using Singapore as a case study.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopted quantitative research to address the research questions. Primary data were collected from 324 valid responses from a survey conducted in two private tertiary educational institutes (PTEIs) in Singapore.FindingsThe results suggested that perceived service quality is positively correlated to satisfaction; perceived service quality and satisfaction are positively correlated to favourable behavioural intentions; and the relationships among perceived service quality and loyalty and paying more for a service are mediated by satisfaction.Originality/valueThis study is significant as the results provide better insights for Singaporean administrators in PTEIs, which is an under-researched area. Generally, the results will have far-reaching implications for all stakeholders in the delivery and consumption of education services in PTEIs, within and beyond Singapore.

Management of a Technical University in the Context of Preparing Students for the 21stCentury Careers in Science and Technology

Today, the delivery of educational services is accomplished in a diversity of ways due to the rules dictated by the ever-evolving global environment. As the global environment has changed drastically over the last decades and has become more uncertain, the prevailing management approaches do not seem to be well-suited for contemporary universities. Both public and private universities are now pressed to perform their traditional functions more efficiently. The expectations of students have also changed, which makes higher education institutions become more flexible for meeting the needs of new student populations. Thus, senior managers of a contemporary technical university have to re-examine their strategies aimed at achieving academic and research excellence, which requires flexible and responsive forms of management that are more inclusive of academic and research aspects in the decision-making process. This paper considers the implications for managers and academics, as key stakeholders of a higher education institution, in the highly globalized modern environment. The paper explores a few central issues faced by the management of a technical university in in the framework of developing a competitive strategy with due account for the needs of new student populations, as well as employers and policy-makers.

Can Diversification of Livelihood Sources Increase Income of Farm Households? — A Case Study in Uttar Pradesh

This paper has examined the question ‘Can diversification of livelihood sources increase the income of farmers?’ through a case study conducted on 151 farm households in the districts of Moradabad and Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh in the first quarter of 2017. The study has considered three sources of income, viz. crops, animal husbandry and non-farm sector. The analytical tools used in the study are Simpson index of diversification, chi-square test and censored Tobit regression model. The study has observed a significant difference between the incomes of diversified and undiversified farm households. The determinants of income sources of farm households identified in the study are age, education level, use of ICT, access to credit, input supply and market. The study has suggested that to increase farmers’ income, policies should focus on the development of livestock sector to motivate them for rearing of animals for commercial purposes. Also, the delivery of formal and informal education and extension services should be strengthened to enable the farmers to utilize their full capacity and consequently earn more. Information centres should be opened at the block level to provide information on less time-consuming farming techniques, marketing and opportunities in the non-farm sector.

Perception of Stakeholders in Funding of Medical Education in Nigeria

This paper examined how budgeting and funding impact teaching, research and community service (service delivery) in medical education in Nigeria using College of Medicine of the University of Lagos (CMUL) as the case study. The perception of key stakeholders of the medical school was obtained in highlighting the efficiency of funds utilisation over a 20-year period (1991/1992 to 2010/2011). The use of questionnaire was employed for theoretical tests and estimations. Theoretical statistical tools were used in the testing and analysis of the research hypotheses. The result showed extra budgetary spending for the first five years, when the CMUL received 114% of amount requested from the federal government. Subsequently, this was not sustainable and it was affirmed that budgeting and funding were relevant to service delivery of medical education. The study showed that available funding did not stimulate effective provision of medical education at the CMUL. The study recommended strict realignment of expenditure in favour of core activities of the medical school, quick implementation of contextualised funding model to replace the current normative and contractual model, introduction of tuition fees at undergraduate level, aggressive internally generated revenue drive and provision of conducive enabling environment for teaching and learning.

Delivering Healthcare and Education as Rightful Services not Commodities: A Noble Cause with Great Practical Implications at Children’s Cancer Hospital – 57357 Egypt

Health care and education should be delivered to everyone as rightful services with a moral motive evolving form the fact that they are basic human rights and not commodities. Services are attainable rights, while commodities are only delivered or become of better quality when someone pays for them. Being labelled as rightful services, healthcare and education cannot be owned. And that is the right policy for health and education reform, because if they were owned as commodities, it would be easy to control them and limit their delivery based on affordability. The delivery of healthcare and educational services as rightful services has humanistic, economic and developmental implications. From a humanistic standpoint, healthcare and education should be delivered as basic human rights, and not as gifts or privileges that are granted to people with terms and conditions. Also, the concept of delivering healthcare and education from an economical versus commercial point of view will lead to the delivery of more services with lower costs, thus increasing access to these services and leading to more productivity and overall economic positive output. Consequently, this would have a developmental implication, where the performance of individuals who receive their basic human rights would tremendously improve as a result of being healthy and well-educated. These concepts have actually been practically applied at the Children’s Cancer Hospital – 57357 Egypt which treats children with cancer free of charge and implements continuous learning and education for its patients and employees as rightful services. The hospital sets an example for health policy planning and implementation as a role model towards healthcare reform in low and middle income countries.

The Role of Leadership in Management of Educational Institutions

This present paper discusses the importance of leadership in educational management with specific reference to schools. Educational leadership has a critical role in the transformation of society, and for change to happen, effective leaders are key. Along with the widespread belief that the quality of leadership makes a significant difference to school and student outcomes. There is also increasing recognition that if effective school leaders and managers are developed they are most likely going to provide the best possible education for their learners. Effective leadership and management are essential if schools and colleges are to achieve the wide-ranging objectives set for them by their many stakeholders, notably the government which provide most of the funding for public educational institutions. Teachers and their leaders and managers are the people who are required to deliver higher educational standards. Management and leadership are important for the delivery of good educational services. Although the two are similar in some respects, they may involve different types of outlook, skills and behaviours. Good managers should strive to be good leaders and good leaders need management skills to be effective. Leaders will have a vision of what can be achieved and then communicate this to others and evolve strategies for realising the vision. They motivate people and are able to negotiate for resources and other support to achieve their goals. Managers ensure that the available resources are well organised and applied to produce the best results. In the resource constrained and difficult environments of many developing countries, a manager must also be a leader to achieve optimum results.

The right to education for young people excluded from mainstream in a divided society

This paper offers a rights-based analysis of the equity of educational experience allocated to young people excluded from school in Northern Ireland. Using Tomaševski’s ‘4As scheme’ as a conceptual guide, the availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability of alternative education provision is examined. The article begins with a brief overview of the contextual landscape within which the sector operates, alluding to the definitional and procedural difficulties that have hindered the delivery of equitable alternative education services to date, before an examination of the current legal architecture within which the right to education may be given further realisation is detailed. The latter part of the article considers the extent to which the organisation, management and delivery of the EOTAS sector is rights-compliant, before concluding that the right to education, as it stands under domestic and international law, does not extend far enough to ensure and protect the educational entitlements of children excluded from school.

SPECIAL EDUCATION REFORM TOWARDS INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: BLURRING OR EXPANDING BOUNDARIES OF SPECIAL AND REGULAR EDUCATION IN CHINA

China has developed a three‐tier special education service delivery system consisting of an array of placement options of special schools, special classes and learning in regular classrooms (LRC) (with the LRC as the major initiative) to serve students with disabilities after 1980s responding to the international trend of inclusive education mandate. How to balance the development of special education schools (classes) and inclusive education remains controversial. The authors found that special education provision in China has been improved in scale and quality with the expansion of special schools and LRC programmes both to have formed a parallel special education system. The authors argue that the boundaries between special and regular education system are enlarged and blurred in different situations. This reflects that the move towards inclusive education in China has been largely underpinned by its specific cultural values and conflicts between the pursuit of academic excellence and new goal of universalising basic education for all. The Chinese pragmatic practice of inclusive education shows that special schools should be a part of, instead of apart from, inclusive education, and thus should be re‐empowered with new roles to support and facilitate inclusive education.

Improving the Professional Ethics of Facilitators through Andragogical Methodologies for Non-Formal Education Delivery in Nigeria

There are professional ethics that guide people in any profession. Hence, people are expected to perform credibly well in their different professions. Therefore, this paper examines some ways of improving the professional ethics of facilitators through andragogical methodologies for non-formal education delivery in Nigeria. The paper also discusses some of the andragogical methods that facilitators can use in teaching and learning situation which can improve the professionalization of facilitators. The paper concludes with an urgent call for the need to improve the professional ethics of facilitators in all non-formal education settings and service delivery. Based on the background of the study, some recommendations are made that facilitators teaching in non-formal education should be trained, certified and grounded in adult education methodologies before they are allowed to teach adult learners by the Agency for Adult and Non-formal Education. The facilitators teaching in non-formal education should be full-time facilitators and not part-time facilitators. Seminars, workshops and conferences should be organized from time to time by the agency for adult and non-formal education for facilitators in order to share experiences and ideas for the improvement of adult education.

Building and Sustaining School-University Partnerships in Rural Settings: One Approach for Improving Special Education Service Delivery

School-university partnerships have been offered as possible solutions for many contemporary educational challenges. These relationships are generally well accepted by university and school personnel; however, unanswered questions remain regarding their nature and utility. This paper describes one teacher preparation program's efforts to strengthen and extend existing partnerships with a small group of primarily rural school districts. Partnership efforts were supported, in part by a 325T professional development grant to prepare highly qualified special education teachers. Three specific, grant-related activities (i.e., improving educators' understanding and use of evidence-based practices, capturing practitioners' professional wisdom, and changing practice through instructional coaching) were highlighted as exemplars of partnership work. Lessons learned over the 5-year partnership with nine rural school districts are summarized and directions for future research and practice are offered.

Provision of Health and Social Services for Drug Addicts in the Republic of Macedonia

The Republic of Macedonia experienced a rapid growth in drug addiction after its independents in 1991. The complexity of the problem represents a serious challenge for all relevant factors involved in creation of policies as well as actors in delivery of health, education and social services. Provision of necessary service required appropriate amendments of relevant laws based on the adopted international legislation. The most significant legal changes were introduction of the principles of pluralisation of social protection (Law on Social protection, 2004), that enabled emerging of new private for profit and nonprofit actors as providers of services as well as introduction of the principle of decentralization, enabling establishment of services on local level. Additionally, a number of national and local strategies and programs were developed and adopted within the system of health and social protection. These changes contributed to an increase in the number of available services offering variety of treatments responding to the individual needs of beneficiaries. Despite the increase in offered service, the state has yet to respond to the ever rising problem of addicted children. So far, little has been done for this age group of addicts that requires specialized and adjusted service provision. Provided social services are facing the problem in the sustainability of the available services provided within the nongovernmental sector that is mainly financed from foreign funds.

Patient participation in cancer clinical trials: A pilot test of lay navigation.

BackgroundClinical trials (CT) represent an important treatment option for cancer patients. Unfortunately, patients face challenges to enrolling in CTs, such as logistical barriers, poor CT understanding and complex clinical regimens. Patient navigation is a strategy that may help to improve the delivery of CT education and support services. We examined the feasibility and initial effect of one navigation strategy, use of lay navigators.MethodsA lay CT navigation intervention was evaluated in a prospective cohort study among 40 lung and esophageal cancer patients. The intervention was delivered by a trained lay navigator who viewed a 17-min CT educational video with each patient, assessed and answered their questions about CT participation and addressed reported barriers to care and trial participation.ResultsDuring this 12-month pilot project, 85% (95% CI: 72%–93%) of patients eligible for a therapeutic CT consented to participate in the CT navigation intervention. Among navigated patients, CT understanding improved between pre- and post-test (means 3.54 and 4.40, respectively; p-value 0.004), and 95% (95% CI: 82%–98%) of navigated patients consented to participate in a CT. Navigated patients reported being satisfied with patient navigation services and CT participation.ConclusionsIn this formative single-arm pilot project, initial evidence was found for the potential effect of a lay navigation intervention on CT understanding and enrollment. A randomized controlled trial is needed to examine the efficacy of the intervention for improving CT education and enrollment.