National Strategy Research Articles

Implementation of research, education and leadership placements into Operating Department Practitioner training: A 4-pillar practice-based learning approach.

Practice-based learning has traditionally focused on clinical practice in pre-registration courses. However, recent national strategies emphasise the importance of incorporation of all four pillars, clinical, education, leadership and research, into practice-based learning (placements). This article details the introduction of practice-based learning in research, education and leadership alongside clinical placements for BSc Operating Department Practice students at Sheffield Hallam University. It provides insights into the benefits of this approach, outlines the components of each placement with examples of completed projects, shares feedback from students and practice partners and addresses challenges. The authors advocate for adoption of this approach across all pre-registration Operating Department Practice courses, to ensure a workforce capable of meeting evolving health care needs and driving the Operating Department Practice profession forwards.

NATO’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy and Interoperability Challenges: The Case of Turkey

ABSTRACT The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has significantly changed military applications, creating new competitive advantages and shifting the global balance of power. This article examines NATO’s AI strategy and the associated interoperability challenges, with a particular focus on Turkey. NATO’s AI strategy seeks to enhance interoperability among its member states by fostering the integration of AI technologies into military capabilities. However, achieving this goal is complicated by the varying levels of AI technological advancement, divergent national AI-military strategies and differing geopolitical considerations among member countries. Using Turkey as a case study, this paper explores how the rapid development of AI-based military drones contributes to Turkey’s strategic autonomy and enhances regime resilience while also highlighting certain interoperability considerations within NATO. The analysis underlines the need for a cohesive approach to AI integration that addresses these disparities to maintain NATO’s collective defence capabilities.

Building Collaborative Innovation Platforms for Engineering Education

The paper discusses the challenges of co-creating a 21st-century engineering, architecture, and urbanism curriculum in Egypt, emphasising the need for collaboration between the government, industry, and higher education providers. The paper aims to overcome barriers in the Government-University-Industry (GUI) nexus to align and enhance the engineering sector's contribution to Egypt's economic prosperity. The study identifies cultural, educational, and structural factors influencing innovation in Egypt and addresses gaps at the national, university, and program levels. The paper highlights the similarities of innovation landscape with the UK. The authors identified, poor communication and alignment between national goals, industrial strategy, and academic research that hinder engineering innovation in Egypt. The research highlights the inflexibility and lack of clarity in the current engineering curriculum, contrasting the evolving demands and advancements in engineering technology. The paper also refers to the UK Apprenticeship Education Programme as a possible model for improving industrial collaboration and discusses its relevance to Egypt's technical education initiatives.

Current applications and translational prospects of omics technologies in urothelial carcinoma

Urothelial carcinoma (UC) is one of the most common malignant tumors. The development of omics technologies has provided new perspectives for the diagnosis and treatment of UC. Genomics, transcriptomics, and proteomics have unveiled the molecular mechanisms and biological characteristics of UC, which are conducive to the discovery of new therapeutic targets and biomarkers. Single-cell omics and spatial transcriptomics have further deepened the understanding of cellular heterogeneity and the tumor microenvironment. These technologies show great potential in molecular typing, non-invasive diagnosis, early screening, and personalized treatment of UC. This article, in response to the national key strategy, will delve into how omics technologies can drive new developments in the diagnosis and treatment of UC, as well as the application and translation prospects of these technologies in UC.

Exploring the Need for Medical Futures Studies: Insights From a Scoping Review of Health Care Foresight.

The historical development and contemporary instances of futures studies, an interdisciplinary field that focuses on exploring and formulating alternative futures, exemplify the increasing significance of using futures methods in shaping the health care domain. Despite the wide array of these methodologies, there have been limited endeavors to employ them within the medical community thus far. We undertook the first scoping review to date about the application of futures methodologies and published foresight projects in health care. Through the use of the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews) method, we identified 59 studies that were subsequently categorized into the following 5 distinct themes: national strategies (n=19), strategic health care foresight (n=15), health care policy and workforce dynamics (n=6), pandemic preparedness and response (n=7), and specialized medical domains (n=12). Our scoping review revealed that the application of futures methods and foresight has been successfully demonstrated in a wide range of fields, including national strategies, policy formulation, global threat preparedness, and technological advancements. The results of our review indicate that a total of 8 futures methods have already been used in medicine and health care, while there are more than 50 futures methods available. It may underscore the notion that the field is unexploited. Furthermore, the absence of structured methodologies and principles for employing foresight and futures techniques in the health care domain warrants the creation of medical futures studies as a separate scientific subfield within the broad domains of health care, medicine, and life sciences. This subfield would focus on the analysis of emerging technological trends, the evaluation of policy implications, and the proactive anticipation and mitigation of potential challenges. Futures studies can significantly enhance medical science by addressing a crucial deficiency in the promotion of democratic participation, facilitating interdisciplinary dialogue, and shaping alternative futures. To further contribute to the development of a new research community in medical futures studies, it is recommended to establish a specialized scientific journal. Additionally, appointing dedicated futurists in decision-making and national strategy, and incorporating futures methods into the medical curriculum could be beneficial.

Regulatory impact of a governmental approach for artificial intelligence technology implementation in Vietnam

This study assesses Vietnam’s state-level implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) technology and analyses the government’s efforts to encourage AI implementation by focusing on the National Strategy on AI Development Program. This study emphasizes the possibility of implementing AI at the state level in Vietnam and the importance of conducting continuous reviews and enhancements to achieve sustainable and inclusive AI growth. Impact evaluations were conducted in public organizations alone, and implication evaluations were considered optional. AI impact assessments were constrained by societal norms that necessitated establishing relationships among findings. There is a lack of official information regarding the positive impact of Vietnam’s AI policy on the development of AI infrastructure, research, and talent pools. The study’s findings highlight the necessity of facilitating extensive AI legislation, and strengthening international cooperation. The study concludes with the following recommendations for improving Vietnam’s AI policy: implementing a strong AI governance structure and supporting AI education and awareness.

Unlocking the potential: Insights from industry on barriers, solutions and policy gaps in Ireland's energy storage sector

The energy storage sector across Europe faces many financial, regulatory and policy barriers which has to date hindered development in many countries. This study documents industry perspectives from Ireland, a country which requires a significant increase in the development of energy storage due to security of supply concerns, its isolation from Europe’s central transmission network and its reliance on wind energy as a primary intermittent renewable energy resource. Using focus groups and a survey with the renewable energy and storage sector, we document perspectives on the critical barriers, innovative solutions and policy gaps identified by industry stakeholders and policy makers. Our participants believe energy storage will play a crucial role in unlocking Ireland’s substantial wind energy potential in order to meet its energy security and climate aspirations. However, our respondents suggest that unlocking this potential will require a coherent national energy storage strategy designed to reduce curtailment, identify storage technologies with duration-specific targets and establish a more comprehensive renewable energy plus storage power procurement mechanism designed for the Irish market which supports the grid, rewards low carbon technologies and reduces emissions.

The LTAR Grazing Land Common Experiment at Platte River High Plains Aquifer.

The Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) network of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) consists presently of 18 sites within the contiguous United States that are managed by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and its partners. The LTAR network focuses on developing national strategies for more efficient, resilient, and profitable agricultural production systems, improved environmental quality, and enhanced rural prosperity. The Platte River High Plains Aquifer (PRHPA) LTAR site is managed jointly by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) and USDA-ARS and is one of the LTAR sites that conduct research on both integrated cropping and grazing systems. The PRHPA region encompasses multiple land resource areas and diverse agricultural production systems. The PRHPA sites, predominantly located in eastern Nebraska, are designated as an integrated system focused specifically on the region's dominant production practices of row crop (corn and soybean), managed pastures, and beef cattle production. Here, we focus on C3 cool-season smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.) pasture grazing systems under prevailing and alternative management practices for the region. The sites evaluate continuous and rotational grazing with and without pasture fertilization (prevailing practices). In an additional treatment, cattle are supplemented with dry distillers grains plus solubles, while manure supplies fertilization (alternative practice). Main measurements at the site evaluate plant and animal productivity, forage quality, greenhouse gas fluxes, and soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. This paper describes the regional characteristics of the PRHPA site, ongoing LTAR research related to pasture and livestock production, stakeholder engagement, and future research plans.

Land Transformations in Irpinia (Southern Italy): A Tale on the Socio-Economic Dynamics Acting in a Marginal Area of the Mediterranean Europe

Marginal areas in economically advanced countries are a critical issue that European and national policies have been addressing for some time. These areas are affected by depopulation, infrastructural gaps and labor systems that do not reach the corresponding national levels and where often agriculture still plays a critical role. In Italy, despite the fact that the National Strategy for Inner Areas (SNAI) has been active for about a decade with the aim of increasing the territorial cohesion of these fragile areas, rather limited results have been achieved in terms of halting economic marginalization and demographic decline. In this specific context, our work is aimed at analyzing land use changes, the loss of ecosystem services and demographic trends in a Mediterranean region (Irpinia—Southern Italy) on district and municipal scales in the last 30 years (1990–2018) to capture current, subtle socio-economic dynamics. The analysis carried out has indicated a substantial increase in urban areas due to the development of new industrial areas and discontinuous urban fabric (urban sprawl) at the expense of natural areas (mainly meadows and shrublands). The agricultural areas have remained substantially unchanged in terms of extension, with a slight increase in heterogeneous agricultural areas and an expansion of high-value crops (vineyards), that are the most suitable for multifunctional agriculture activities (experiential and rural tourism). The analysis of the demographic trend has highlighted a widespread phenomenon of depopulation, with the exception of those municipalities who economically orbit around the provincial capital of Avellino. The municipalities in depopulation are mostly located in the inner areas characterized by a more rugged morphology and infrastructural gaps. Unexpectedly, most of municipalities show a significant anticorrelation among the population and agricultural areas which is an indicator of social and economic phenomena as complex as they are underestimated. As a final step, this analysis highlights also a loss of carbon storage mainly attributable to the soil sealing of large areas. This study can help to comprehensively understand the conditions of marginal areas in Mediterranean Europe over recent decades in the light of the main socio-economic dynamics to better direct efforts towards the containment of the human capital hemorrhage, consisting of persistently negative natural and migratory rates, and the sustainable empowerment of these geo-economic peripheries.

Advancing Thai Agriculture: Strategic Proposals for a Young Smart Farmer in Thailand

The study "Advancing Thai Agriculture: Strategic Proposals for a Young Smart Farmer in Thailand" addresses the critical role of agriculture in Thailand's economy and the challenges it faces, such as climate change, water scarcity, and market volatility. It emphasizes the importance of young smart farmers and innovative solutions like smart farming technologies, sustainable practices, and educational programs to ensure the sector's future sustainability and productivity. The research employs qualitative methods, including interviews and participant observations, to gather data on governmental policies and the preparedness of the next generation of farmers. The findings suggest a need for strategic planning and stakeholder engagement to foster a new generation of knowledgeable, technologically adept farmers. This effort aligns with national strategies to transform Thailand into a knowledge-driven economy, emphasizing sustainable and efficient agricultural practices.

Communicating coping during the pandemic: an analysis of the presidential addresses of Ghana and Nigeria during the COVID-19 pandemic

Coping is a well-studied concept across multiple disciplines, including communication and psychology. Over the years, studies have identified that individuals and organizations use varying coping strategies to deal with an unpleasant phenomenon. This paper analyzed themes of coping within the presidential addresses of Ghana and Nigeria during the COVID-19 pandemic. We argued that an investigation into these important official documents from the two Global South countries could offer propagative ideas for the communication subareas of health communication, mass communication, disaster, and crisis communication. After analyzing the presidential addresses, the study identified emerging patterns of African communication systems, social comparison, and politico-religious communication as coping themes embedded in the speeches. The role of the African communication system and implications for collective coping, cultural values, and local resources as agents for national coping strategy are discussed.

Types of Socio-Cultural Practices that Affect Inter-Ethnic Conflict in Narok County, Kenya

In Kenya, inter-ethnic conflicts have caused irreversible damages to people and their assets, and to the nation’s cohesive fabric. There have been several roots for interethnic conflicts, and one of them has been socio-cultural practices. Such practices are different in each generation and between various different ethnic groups. Despite this occurrence, limited studies have researched on the types of socio-cultural practices and inter-ethnic conflicts. Hence, this study investigated several types of socio-cultural practices, and the way they sway inter-ethnical conflicts in Narok county. The research employed a cross-sectional survey approach conducted in Narok, focusing on adult residents categorized into security agencies, village elders, nyumba kumi elders, and the general public as the target demographic. The County was divided into constituencies and wards for sampling purposes using purposive sampling. Purposive sampling was used to select the security agencies, as well as village elders and nyumba kumi elders. The general public were picked by systematic random sampling. The tools utilized to get data were, questionnaires and interview schedule. Quantitative data underwent analysis using descriptive statistics. Specifically, frequency distributions were predominantly employed to synopsize the outcomes, aiding in the interpretation and presentation of the findings. Qualitative data, on the other hand, underwent thematic analysis. Both qualitative and quantitative data were triangulated to offer comprehensive depictions of the main discoveries. The study found that, there are four types of socio-cultural practices: Promoting ethnic identities, upholding cultural belief systems, promotion of indigenous knowledge and passing downwards historical grievances. And together they affect inter-ethnic conflicts in Narok county. The study concluded that, the government should as a matter of fact and necessity have refined national values and incorporate them into our national security development strategy in order to have stability which is a pre-requisite for our national development. From the forgoing, cultural values if harnessed can be a vital tool for development strategy. The study recommended that, there should be efforts to counter the types of socio-cultural practices like promoting ethnic identities that heighten inter-ethnic conflicts, and strengthen the ones that can decrease in inter-ethnic conflicts like promoting socio-cultural exchange programs so as to attain the noble environment for the community and citizens.

Generating a system of group constants for neutron-physical calculations of fast reactors based on ROSFOND-2020.2 library files

The subject of constant support development is currently becoming increasingly important in connection with the national strategy of transition to a closed nuclear fuel cycle. At the same time, the importance of the tasks of refining calculation models and minimizing methodological, statistical, and constant errors is increasing. In this connection, the idea of creating a universal system of constants describing with equal accuracy both uranium loading and loading with mixed oxide uranium-plutonium fuel and the possibility to perform on its basis both precision Monte Carlo calculations (data format – ACE) and multigroup calculations (formats – ABBN and ANISN) was laid in the basis of this work. In this paper we analyze the freely available libraries of evaluated nuclear data in order to justify the choice of source files for the formation of a new system of group constants for neutron-physical calculations of fast reactor cores, describe the process of formation of a new library of reactor constants, and verify the obtained system on computational test models of BN-800 reactor and critical systems. The process of formation of the new system of group constants included selection of initial neutron data files, updating of data tables of basic neutron cross-sections, self-shielding factors and Doppler coefficients, as well as data on fission spectra for the main fuel nuclides. The methodological component of the error for test models of the BN-800 core was evaluated. Using the ABBN-RF22 system of group constants it was possible to estimate the correction in the 299 groups calculation, which amounted to 0.3%. Previously, when using the ABBN-93 library, there was no such possibility due to the lack of continuity between the files of evaluated neutron data and the group constants used.

The wellbeing turn: A necessary consideration in international student mobility

AbstractThe COVID‐19 pandemic directly impacted current and aspiring international students who were confronted not only with a global health crisis but one which put a stop to any kind of international and local mobilities. While the pandemic in Australia exposed the vulnerabilities of international students–the likes of which have never been seen before–these experiences which directly impact student wellbeing essentially also have consequences on international student mobility (ISM) scholarship. This is because ISM scholarship has traditionally been driven by migration and mobility studies frameworks of economic and social mobility and security through international Global South‐to‐Global South migrations. This paper argues that the pandemic has impacted on individual ISM decision‐making where international student wellbeing should be recognised as a driver in ISM scholarship. To find out how the COVID‐19 global health crisis is bringing about a new paradigm in which to conceptualise and theorise ISM, this paper relies on data gathered before and during the pandemic. These include research reports, Australia's international education national strategies, Australian international student recruitment marketing material, mainstream media articles and a range of research projects I have conducted on international students in Australia. This paper thus suggests that the COVID‐19 global health crisis and its impact on not only the international student lived experience but on student expectations and aspirations, have fundamentally changed. Here this paper observes that a ‘wellbeing turn’ has existed in Australia in the international education space and proposes that ISM scholarship needs to consider the ‘wellbeing turn’ as a necessary consideration in ISM research.

A Comprehensive Review of the Integrated Program for Out-of-School Adolescents (IPOSA) in Tanzania

The purpose of this study was to analyze how the Integrated Program for Out-of-School Adolescents (IPOSA) addresses the educational challenges of out-of-school adolescents in Tanzania through its flexible, competency-based approach. The study also sought to provide insights for improving the program’s effectiveness and scalability. A descriptive and analytical design were employed, using existing data from official reports, program documentation and previous studies. The study draws on qualitative and quantitative data to assess the program’s development, structure and outcomes. Key documents analyzed include the 2015/2016 profiling study on out-of-school children, IPOSA administrative and real-time implementation reports, comprehensive reports from UNICEF and Tanzania’s national education strategies. Key study revealed that IPOSA is distinct from previous educational models due to its emphasis on flexibility, inclusivity and competence-based learning. It effectively addresses the diverse needs of out-of-school adolescents, equipping them with practical, real-world skills that align with workforce demands. The program’s design, which integrates literacy, life skills, vocational training and entrepreneurship, has demonstrated a significant impact on marginalized groups. The study recommends that the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, along with the Institute of Adult Education, allocate additional resources to expand IPOSA’s reach, particularly in marginalized communities. Additionally, regular curriculum updates, enhanced collaboration between stakeholders and improved monitoring and evaluation systems are recommended to ensure the program’s continued success and scalability.

ASEAN - EU Relations in the First Two Decades of the 21st Century and Some Impacts on Vietnam

In the first two decades of the 21st century, the Indo-Pacific region has emerged as the epicenter of power competition in the global geopolitical landscape, influencing adjustments in national security strategies of regional and global powers. Amidst the complex fluctuations of the modern world political situation, the EU is actively intensifying strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific region for the benefit of its alliance. Among these efforts, ASEAN stands as one of the most crucial leading partners in the policies and strategies that the EU has been implementing in this region. The research findings are significant in elucidating the influencing factors and providing assessing ASEAN - EU relations in the first two decades of the 21st century and the impact of this relationship on Vietnam.

How to benefit from the risk assessment process: Analyzing the threats that pose a threat to the national security of the state

This essay focuses on the recent evolution of national security assessments (NSAs) and national security strategies (NSSs) and evaluates how best to make use of them. While accepting that NSAs are a fairly novel development that indicates more joined-up thinking at the government level, they remain limited for two primary reasons. First, they have tended to be laden with cognitive bias, often reflecting near-term security interests and short-term thinking. Second, there is often a range of implementation problems related to moving from the assessment of risk to the realization of effective security policy. As such, truly benefitting from these risk assessments requires that policymakers counter cognitive biases and develop policy processes that are able to move from the identification of threats to a policy response.

Core Mechanisms in Mediating eHealth Implementation and Uptake: A Case Study of Eastern Uganda

Researchers agree that, globally, in both developing and developed countries, healthcare management is faced with acute challenges: expanding areas of health needs, operationalizing health management, constrained budget allocations, as well as resource limitations. Hence, there is an imminent drive to find solutions to stimulate health system transformation through health system innovation. Therefore, effective national operational strategies to minimize resource wastage and contain the costs of health service delivery are critical. The study adopted a methodology that incorporated different research approaches and strategies. Deductive and inductive approaches were used; the strategies were surveys and case studies. A sample of 178 health professionals and administrators in three Health care facilities in Eastern Uganda, were determined and surveyed. Eligible respondents were stratified and selected through simple random sampling. Self-administered questionnaires and interview guides were used to gather the data. The captured data was analysed using Stata version 17. Regression analysis was used to determine the impact of eHealth Implementation core mechanisms on Quality Health Service Delivery. From the results of regression analysis, the core mechanisms variable had a p-value of 0.049 which was significant. For eHealth Implementation Core Mechanisms, the respondents have less control over them since they are dependent on several environmental factors, such as government funding or grants, Government regulations, and policies among others.

Event communication of university museums and scientific organizations (based on the experience of the “Night of Museums – 2024” in St. Petersburg)

The article is devoted to the consideration of event communication using the example of participation in the all-Russian event “Night of Museums” by museums of universities and scientific organizations of St. Petersburg in 2024. A sociological survey of St. Petersburg residents showed sufficient awareness of the “Night of Museums” event: every second person knows both about the event and about its holding in 2024 in the Northern capital. However, those wishing to take part in it in 2024 did not exceed 20%, especially to visit museums of universities and scientific institutions (2%). Analyzing the category ‘event communication’ at the intersection of methodological approaches of political science and discourse science, the author considers it promising to study the mutual influence of three discursive constructs: museum discourse – discourse of state memory policy – discourse of national identity, considered in relation to modern political realities of Russia in the context of the implementation of the national security strategy.

Social Policy and Early Childhood Development: A Field Study in Baghdad City

Social policy includes many aspects, some of which are related to welfare, as well as many social responsibilities and rights that are considered the basis of the early childhood stage, as social policy aims to secure a kind of stimulating, safe and equal environment for children, especially in the first years of their lives, as these early stages greatly affect their growth, development and future capabilities. It aims to study the current facts related to a phenomenon, situation or group of individuals. This study relied on the social survey method by sample and used the questionnaire tool to identify the extent of the impact of social legislation to protect early childhood. A field study in the city of Baghdad, where the study sample amounted to (200) individuals, males and females. The results of the study showed that the highest percentage of the research community are females at 54.4%. The results of the study showed that providing health care to mothers before and after birth is the health system for child health by 60.4%. The results of the study indicate that the early childhood care policy contributed to reducing child mortality rates by 63.2%. The results of the study indicate that one of the most important ways is the contribution of the social care policy to correcting some wrong practices by holding educational courses for workers in health centers by 43.6%. The results of the study concluded that there are educational programs provided for early childhood with cognitive and cognitive stimulation by 58.4%. And the contribution of government efforts to provide development programs for the early childhood stage by encouraging enrollment in education by 55.2%. One of the most important difficulties facing the implementation of policies and strategies for sustainable development for early childhood is the absence of activation of the national strategy by 36%. Therefore, we recommend the establishment of a higher council for childhood that takes on the responsibility of drawing up policies related to children and following up on strategies and programs related to them.