People Working Research Articles

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Extended-spectrum β-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli from Poultry Flocks in Benin City, Nigeria

People working in proximity to chickens farms or markets are at greater risk of developing antimicrobial resistance from Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamase-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-EC) due to its zoonotic potential. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and identify the risk factors associated with ESBL producing E. coli from poultry farm environments across Benin City, Edo State. This Study was conducted at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital in Benin City, Nigeria. A total of 400 isolates of Escherichia coli was obtained from poultry birds’ faeces. Identification of the isolates was done using Standard bacteriological techniques. Antimicrobial susceptibility test was performed using Kirby-Bauer diffusion method. ESBL production by isolates was detected by the method of Double Disc Synergy Test (DDST). The statistical tool used in this study was Chi-square test (p ≤ 0.05 was set for significance). A prevalence rate of 21% ESBL production was detected in the400 isolates of Escherichia coli. The detection rate of ESBL producing E. coli was higher in Hen (28.1%) than in Cocks (17.6%), and comparably higher in poultry birds aged 13-17 weeks old (29%, p = 0.00032). No statistically significant differences were observed between housing system and frequency of antibiotic treatment. The ESBL-producers were most frequently detected in the frequency of the Antibiotic treatment (40%). ESBL-E. coli and non ESBL-E. coli producers were susceptible to Gentamicin and Augmentin. Moreover, ESBL- E. coli producers had a lower susceptibility profile compared to non ESBL- E. coli producers. Conclusively, the introduction of ESBL-producing E. coli from poultry farms to the environment may pose a potential health risk if these bacteria reach places where people may become exposed. The relatively high prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli recorded in this study calls for routine detection, surveillance, and stricter regulations on antibiotic use among poultry producers in Nigeria.

Determinants of Users’ Cybersecurity Behavior in the Metaverse: A Deep Learning-Based Hybrid SEM-ANN Approach

The Metaverse, an expansive online 3D virtual realm, has transformed how people work, socialize, and engage, but its growth brings critical cybersecurity challenges, particularly in data security and privacy. Since many cybersecurity incidents stem from human behavior, understanding factors influencing users’ cybersecurity practices in the Metaverse is vital. This study addresses the gap by proposing an integrated model based on Protection Motivation Theory (PMT), Health Belief Model (HBM), and Theory of Interpersonal Behavior (TIB), with trust as an additional construct. Using a hybrid structural equation modeling-artificial neural network (SEM-ANN) approach, data from 531 Metaverse users were analyzed. The results indicated that perceived vulnerability, self-efficacy, cues to action, habit, and trust significantly affect cybersecurity behavior, with “cues to action” identified as the most critical factor (97.8% normalized importance). Conversely, perceived severity, response efficacy, response costs, and facilitating conditions showed no significant impact. The findings offer theoretical insights and practical implications for Metaverse stakeholders and cybersecurity strategies.

Employed or Self-Employed: the Problem of Regulating Platform Work in the EU

The article analyses the process of decision-making to regulate platform work in the European Union. The author underlines that the EU strived to introduce legal certainty and improve the working conditions of platform workers. Despite the fact that many platform workers are classified as self-employed, their status remains unclear, since it is often difficult to distinguish between real and bogus self-employment, which the employer uses to evade social payments. There are two key principles of the new directive: it allows to determine correctly the status of people working on digital platforms, and sets rules for the use of algorithmic systems in the workplace. At the same time, the conclusion is drawn that the difference in approaches among member states, political groups of the European Parliament, and EU institutions turns the regulation of platform employment into the most controversial EU files, resulting in the adoption of compromise legislation on minimum standards.

Сharacteristics of sleep disorders in persons working in conditions of ultra-high latitudes of Arctic region and possibility of their non-drug correction during Polar Day

BACKGROUND: Currently, there is an increasing expansion of Russia’s areas of interest in the Arctic region with an increase in the number of specialists of various profiles working in high and ultra-high latitudes on a long-term basis. Modern technologies effectively solve the problems of improving everyday life, reducing the influence of negative factors of the North, which makes it possible to increase the number of employees and expand the range of tasks they perform. At the same time, in these conditions, a person is constantly exposed to negative factors of the North, which affect both the effectiveness of his professional activity and his state of health. Negative factors are also seasonal in nature, associated with the peculiarities and change of the periods Polar Day — Polar Night. One of these important factors is sleep disorders, which have a negative impact on the effectiveness of professional activities, short-term and long-term changes in health. Most studies have focused on sleep disturbances in high latitude environments during the Polar Night period. AIM: The aim of the work was to study the features of sleep disorders in people working in ultra-high latitudes of the Arctic region during the Polar Day and to develop methods for their correction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: As part of the goal of the study, 208 people working on a rotational basis on the island of Alexandra Land of the Franz Josef Land archipelago during the Polar Day were examined. The study was conducted through an extended survey on sleep quality and the use of a questionnaire to assess the severity of insomnia and the daytime sleepiness scale. RESULTS: According to the results of the examination, typical sleep disturbances for the polar day period were: difficulty falling asleep, difficulty maintaining sleep (superficial sleep with frequent awakenings), early awakening, daytime (afternoon) sleepiness. At the same time, most of the subjects noted the seasonality of these complaints associated with the Polar Day period. It was revealed that the most pronounced and persistent sleep disorders are detected in persons during their stay in the Arctic zone from 1 to 3 years and after 10 years of work, which is associated in the first case with the formation of adaptation mechanisms, in the second — with their exhaustion. Factors supporting sleep disorders were identified (social and information deprivation (lack of access to Internet resources, limited communication with the mainland, etc.); physical inactivity; irregular daily shift schedule, the need to perform additional work, monotony of work, exposure to low temperatures). CONCLUSION: Non-drug correction methods have been proposed that have shown high efficacy.

“A place for my art”: independent artist-run spaces as incubators of artistic careers in Italy

ABSTRACT This paper investigates the role of Italian independent artists-run spaces as incubators of artistic careers. Considering the trade-off between the sustainability of artist-run spaces and that of the careers of the people working in them, this article raises questions about the viability of the artists’ support provided by these organizations in the medium and long run. Based on an in-depth analysis of fourteen case studies in Italy, our findings provide evidence of how artist-run spaces’ organizational, managerial, and financial characteristics can work towards the professional development of artistic careers. We identify different trajectories of development of such organizations which vary according to the field of intervention chosen and to the motivation to establish and run the space. Results show how these factors influence the capacity of artist-run spaces to provide more effective strategies than those individually pursued by the artists to face the complexity of their labour market.

Professional development and job satisfaction in pain medicine

Pain medicine is an interdisciplinary and interprofessional field of specialisation. Due to concerns about new recruits and an aging workforce, especially among physicians, it is important to better understand professional and career pathways in pain medicine. The aim of this study was to record the occupational routes of people working in an institution specialised in pain medicine/pain management as well as their motivation and job satisfaction. Astandardised online questionnaire was used to survey members via cooperating scientific societies and organisations. Data from 398 physicians, 78psychologists, 62physiotherapists, three occupational therapists and 23nursing professionals were included in the analysis. The age distribution skewed towards higher age groups, with the majority of respondents aged between 51and 60years. The respondents usually first came into clinical contact with pain medicine after many years of work. In the case of physicians in particular, there was adelay of almost adecade after their licence to practise. With regard to motivational factors, intrinsic aspects were rated higher than monetary ones. Work-life balance issues tended to be in the middle of the ranking. Regarding job satisfaction in pain medicine, the overall satisfaction of the respondents was high, with the lowest satisfaction ratings being given in the categories "opportunities for further career development", "additional income options" and "recognition by superiors". Asignificant proportion of respondents (1/3) stated that career changes were forthcoming-changes outside apain medicine setting or in particular retirement. The results emphasise the critical perspectives regarding the future provision of care for people with chronic pain. The results provide, for the first time, an insight into the career routes of staff in the field of pain medicine and their motivations and job satisfaction, which should be considered in the discussion about ensuring personnel resources in the future.

Resisting industry narratives: guidance to avoid tobacco and nicotine industry framing.

The tobacco and nicotine industry has a long history of endangering the health and wellbeing of individuals, populations and society, including Indigenous peoples, via dubious practices and tactics that continue today. These tactics include generating opposition, fracturing consensus, dehumanizing groups and minimizing the perception of harms from tobacco use. This article offers guidance for people working in health promotion and tobacco control to align with the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which includes Articles on research, monitoring and information exchange regarding the tobacco and nicotine industry. Recommendations are given to resist the tobacco and nicotine industry's narrative in health promotion, research, evaluation and publications. Holding the industry to account provides a further step forward to eliminating tobacco disease and death.

Studies in Radical Biocracy

Work to improve the health of a system should look at decision-making because decisions propagate throughout a system, shaping system dynamics. This is especially true for decisions by those with more power, resources, and relationships in a system. Usually, human collective or group decision-making is conducted from an individualist, objectivist perspective. What happens when we allow the system to sense itself and make group decisions instead of deliberating, negotiating, and voting between individualist positions? What happens when we use an approach based on the radical relationality of Radical Participatory Design and Relational Design? Is it possible to experience a type of relational political ecology in group decision-making? The term political ecology carries multiple meanings. Here, we use the term political ecology to denote the power dynamics within any ecological system—a geographical population, a community, an ecosystem, etc. We describe three special ingredients or nutrients for a relational political ecology—relationality, emergence-conducive principles, and relational autonomy. On a team of people working for system health, these three ecological nutrients support a relational way of being which then transforms the team’s way of knowing, decision-making, and thus, political ecology. The fourth-person being that emerges from these three ecological nutrients leads to a fourth-person knowing in which individuals do not deliberate and vote on various decisions. Instead the system senses itself and the social field makes the decisions resulting in emergent and symbiotic design. Emergent design refers to design that emerges from consistently following a few basic principles. Symbiotic design occurs over time when deeply, relationally embedded entities or groups retain autonomy and indirectly or directly co-evolve, creating a design that would not have occurred through an individualist, consciously explicit design process. Using two situations from social and service design, we describe three examples of relational, autonomous decision-making or political ecologies. The three examples illustrate participatory futures, service, and systems work that lead to emergent and symbiotic designs.

TWEAK/Fn14 disrupts Th17/Treg balance and aggravates conjunctivitis by inhibiting the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in allergic conjunctivitis mice.

Allergic conjunctivitis (AC) affects people's daily life and work, especially the health of children. Although there are few relevant studies, Th17/Treg imbalance plays an important role in AC development. The aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of TWEAK/Fn14 on AC and Th17/Treg balance. Ovalbumin induced AC mouse model was utilized to observe the mechanism of TWEAK/Fn14 in vivo. Conjunctivitis was evaluated by hematoxylin-eosin staining, toluidine blue staining and AC clinical score. Flow cytometry was used to measure Th17 and Treg cell ratios. The level of Th17/Treg balance related factors and Nrf2/HO-1 signal was detected by ELISA, WB, qRT-PCR and immunohistochemistry. In the AC state, disruption of Th17/Treg cell balance, increased TWEAK/Fn14 signaling level and conjunctival inflammation were observed. After TWEAK knockdown, Th17 cell differentiation was inhibited, Treg cell differentiation was promoted, and AC symptoms were alleviated in AC mice. Moreover, TWEAK knockdown caused an enhancement of the Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathway in the AC models. Treatment with Nrf2 inhibitor reversed these changes induced by TWEAK knockdown. Therefore, TWEAK/Fn14 regulated the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway to affect Th17/Treg cell balance and conjunctivitis in AC mouse models. In summary, TWEAK/Fn14 caused Th17/Treg imbalance by inhibiting Nrf2/HO-1 pathway, which might be one potential mechanism of the exacerbation of AC.

Creating dementia-friendly communities: Challenging stigma and building understanding through public education

ABSTRACT Stigma is a well-documented barrier to community and social engagement for people living with dementia. Awareness raising and public education have been identified as essential for developing communities that are supportive of people living with dementia and enable their social inclusion. A public dementia education program, co-designed and delivered by people living with dementia and targeted to people working in public-facing service roles, was developed to increase awareness of dementia and challenge stigma. This quality improvement study evaluates this dementia-friendly community education program in terms of participants’ reactions to the program, knowledge acquisition, change in behavior, and impacts associated with the program. A survey methodology was used to assess immediate reactions to the workshop (N = 110), and at a three-month follow-up to assess longer-term impacts of the program (N = 36). The workshop was well received with >88% of respondents being satisfied with the topics covered, delivery format, and program materials; >65% of respondents reported being more knowledgeable in all workshop topic areas as a result of the program. At follow-up, >80% of respondents reported that they implemented dementia-friendly actions as outlined in the workshop but were able do so more frequently for individual-level actions, rather than organizational-level actions. Respondents valued hearing the experiences of a person with lived experience. The study findings highlight the value of practical education targeted to public service sector personnel and codesigned and delivered by people living with dementia as a strategy for fostering change towards more dementia-friendly communities. Targeting leadership and management may affect greater change at organizational levels.

Barriers for work in people with multiple sclerosis: a Norwegian cultural adaptation and validation of the short version of the multiple sclerosis work difficulties questionnaire.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is associated with high rates of unemployment, and barriers for work are essential to identify in the regular follow-up of these people. The current study aimed to culturally adapt and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Norwegian version of the Multiple Sclerosis Work Difficulties Questionnaire-23 (MSWDQ-23). Following backward and forward translation, the Norwegian version of the MSWDQ-23 (MSWDQ-23NV) was completed by 229 people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Validity was evaluated through confirmatory factor analysis and by associating scores with employment status, disability, and health-related quality of life outcome measures. Convergent validity was checked by correlating MSWDQ-23 scores with alternative study measures. Internal consistencies were examined by Cronbach's alfa. A good fit for the data was demonstrated for the MSWDQ-23NV in confirmatory factor analysis, with excellent internal consistencies also demonstrated for the full scale and its subscales (physical barriers, psychological/cognitive barriers, external barriers). The MSWDQ-23NV subscales were related in the expected direction to health-related quality of life outcome measures. While higher scores on the physical barriers subscale was strongly associated with higher levels of disability and progressive MS types, higher scores on all subscales were associated with not working in the past year. The Norwegian MSWDQ-23 is an internally consistent and valid instrument to measure perceived work difficulties in persons with all types of MS in a Norwegian-speaking population. The MSWDQ-23NV can be considered a useful tool for health care professionals to assess self-reported work difficulties in persons with MS. The Norwegian MSWDQ-23 scale should be examined for test-retest reliability and considered implemented in the regular follow up at the MS-outpatient clinics in Norway to support employment maintenance.

Gender Dynamics and Economic Impacts: The Feminization of Indian Agriculture in India

The phenomenon known as feminization of agriculture, which emerged in India after privatisation, refers to a rise in the proportion of women employed in farming. But feminization does not inevitably result in empowerment because female workers receive lower wages than male workers. Gender discrimination, general bias against women, a lack of advancements in technology for women, limited control over resources, and limited market access are some of the barriers that prevent women from progressing in agriculture. The states with a greater number of people working in agriculture saw the smallest shifts in labour participation between men and women. As women become more involved in agriculture, they contribute significantly to household income and food production. This financial contribution can enhance their decision-making power within the family and community.As small-scale farmers contend with growing competition from larger agricultural operations, more men are migrating to urban centres in pursuit of higher-paying jobs. This leaves women responsible for sustaining the family structure and preserving the traditional small-scale farming way of life. As a result, there is rising concern over the disparity between women's actual economic contributions and the public's perception of them. The first step in feminising agriculture and empowering women is to recognise the obstacles that women face in the sector. There are two in particular that are closely related i.e. land and credit. It is imperative to implement policy initiatives and programmes that advance gender equality, facilitate access to resources and training, and foster positive social situations. Social mobilization, collective action, community education, and community-based marketing are necessary. The focus on women's access to land and natural resources has the potential to greatly improve their capacity to produce and obtain food.

Stakeholders' perspectives on competency-based education program in Africa: A qualitative study.

Competency-based education (CBE) is adopted to reform health professionals' education. The goal is to produce graduates who are not only competent in their fields but also equipped with the necessary social accountability skills for safe practice. The study aimed to explore nursing education stakeholders' perspectives on competency-based primary healthcare (PHC)-oriented nursing education programmes in the South African context. The setting for this study was a higher education institution in South Africa. A descriptive qualitative method was used in this study. After taking ethical clearance from the university ethics committee, data were purposively collected and theoretically sampled from 40 participants through focus group discussion, individual interviews and document analysis. The data findings reported categories that emerged from this study, which include the attributes of a competency-based PHC-oriented programme and the outcomes of a competency-based PHC-oriented programme. In the context of this study, the concept of CBE was portrayed as a programme with strong social accountability that aims at addressing priority health needs surrounding communities and ensuring that the health needs of the community are met while providing health delivery service to communities in their natural environment. These findings add to the growing evidence base around CBE as an approach to strengthen PHC-oriented health services in low- and middle-income countries, a key aspect of which is providing service within communities. This enables the accessibility of quality healthcare closer to where people live and work to achieve Sustainable Development Goal number three.

Legal Regulation of Employment Relations of the Disabled Workers in the BRICS Countries

According to the UN, more than one billion people in the world are people with disabilities, which is approximately 15 per cent of the total population. The number of the population with disabilities is also high in the BRICS countries. People with disabilities in the BRICS countries belong to the group of those who need special state care and the provision of additional guarantees and benefits, including labor relations. The concept of a person with a disability in the legislation of the BRICS countries has changed over time. As the practice of recent years shows, in our countries today one can observe uniformity on some issues of legal regulation of the work of disabled people. All countries in question have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and implemented it into national law. However, the problems of implementing the norms on the legal regulation of the labor of disabled people remain, and they require further solutions. Obviously, further integration and joint development of the BRICS countries will help in overcoming them.

Monte Carlo Simulation of Organ Absorbed Dose of Worker's Radiation Exposure in Bone Scintigraphy

Objectives: This study examines individual organ doses and the impact of ionizing radiation sources on effective radiation doses. Methods: In the research, the ICRP-defined adult standing phantom was used as the phantom material in the Visual Monte Carlo Dose Calculation Program (VMC). Subsequently, the incurred doses were calculated by defining different doses, distances, and durations for the 99mTc radioactive source. Results: Exposure times were set at 5 minutes and 20 minutes in comparison. The results indicated that for 5 minutes and 20 minutes at 360 cm, doses remained below the ICRP recommended annual dose limit of 5.7 µSv/h for occupational exposure. Conclusion: Organ absorbed and effective doses varied with exposure time and source-phantom distance. To optimize radiation exposure, people working in radiation fields must make an increased effort to reduce radiation doses following the ALARA principles. Keywords: Effective dose, absorbed dose, VMC software, Monte Carlo

Clinical Trials: It’s Growth & Opportunities

A clinical trial is a research study in human volunteers to answer specific health questions. Carefully conducted clinical trials are fastest and safest way to find treatment that work in people and way to improve health. Investigational trials determine whether experimental treatment or new ways of using known therapies are safe and effective under controlled environment. Observational trials address health issues in large groups of people or population in natural settings. Clinical trials aim to measure therapeutic effectiveness and constitute an important and highly specialized form of biological assay. In phase I pharmacokinetics, safety, gross effects are studied on human volunteers, by clinical pharmacologists. If the drug passes the test, it enters phase II testing’s, where pharmacokinetics, safety, therapeutic efficiency are studied on selected patients by clinical pharmacologist, if passes hundreds of selected patients are now studied, primarily for safety and therapeutic effectiveness by clinical investigators in phase III. If this is passed the drug is now approved and marketed. Even after marketing, physicians from various hospitals and clinics send their opinion about the drug, regarding ADR, efficacy in phase IV.

The potency of the OHADA law in the African digital economy

Abstract There are various technological developments or innovations that have (or will in the future) radically transform business transactions and the way in which people work, enter into contracts, and fulfil their contractual obligations. The principal focus of this article is to analyse the shortfall of the Organisation for the Harmonisation of Business Laws in Africa’s (OHADA) law, through its Uniform Act on General Commercial Law, in failing to embrace new technologies in a trending digital era when applying traditional contract laws rules to the buying and selling of goods. This is significant because the Uniform Act, as a tool for the regulation of cross-border sale of goods contracts, has been put to the test. Although the scope of the OHADA Uniform Act on General Commercial Law is not extensive to new technologies, this article probes the question as to whether the pulse of technology poses a challenge for the traditional 20th-century rules under OHADA. In other words, is the statute robust enough to reflect the modern digital world, or will it become outdated if it is not revamped or supplemented by other conventions to accommodate new technologies and ways of conducting business? This study uses an in-depth critical analysis of the provisions of the Uniform Act in order to ascertain its potency as it concludes that it is imperative in this modern digital age for such a statute to embody technological innovations for the efficient conduct of transnational businesses.

Brief Analysis of the Interaction and Development between Modern Media and Traditional Culture

With the rapid development of modern media technology, the application fields of modern media are increasingly extensive, playing an important role in people's daily work and life. Chinese culture, with its long and profound history, is facing challenges from various emerging cultures. Increasingly, foreign cultures, leveraging rapidly developing media technologies, have influenced our traditional culture. Therefore, to ensure that traditional culture can quickly adapt to the rapidly developing social environment, it is necessary to explore the integration points between modern media technology and traditional culture and strategically combine them to achieve mutual development. This paper discusses the interactive development of traditional culture and modern media, analyzes the modes of dissemination, interactive effects, and interaction models of traditional culture in modern media, and reveals the positive roles of modern media in promoting the inheritance and innovation of traditional culture, enhancing cultural identity and social cohesion, fostering cross-cultural communication and cultural integration, and driving cultural industry and economic growth, thereby positively influencing the development of traditional culture in China.

Model justifying the need for professional competencies in the field of aviation

Around 11.3 million people work in the aviation sector worldwide. During 2020 and 2021, thousands of highly skilled aviation professionals lost their jobs or were retired. After easing travel restrictions in 2022, aviation began to recover rapidly, which was and still is a major challenge for the sector. Along with financial and technological challenges, there is the issue of retraining employees and renewing their competencies. In this era of non-stop progress, the main goal of the players in the aviation sector is to keep up with the changes. Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are rapidly being integrated in aviation operations, systems are being automated and ongoing digitization helps to manage increasing flow of information or travelers. Technological, digital, or regulatory changes create a constant need for new and diverse competencies in this field, which becomes a vital need for the sector to survive in the market. This article aims to review the regulations of competencies necessary for those working in aviation and create models to justify the need for professional competencies in aviation. It would reflect the constantly changing environment and its influence on aviation organizations. Therefore, the biggest challenge is to create a model as a sufficient tool to assess the need for competence in work activities.

The Influence of Organizational Culture and Welfare on The Work Effectiveness of USK Employees

An organization is a forum in which there are activities of people working together to achieve a certain goal that has been determined together. This study aims to examine the influence of organizational culture and welfare on the work effectiveness of USK employees. The research method used is a survey using a questionnaire distributed to employees at the USK administrative headquarters. The collected data was analyzed using descriptive statistical and regression methods. The results of the study show that there is a positive relationship between strong organizational culture and employee welfare and employee work effectiveness. The influence of organizational culture on the work effectiveness of USK employees is 70.48%, which shows that organizational culture has a significant influence on the work effectiveness of employees at USK. While the influence of welfare is 66.76%, this shows a fairly good level of approval for the effectiveness of employee work. The combination of a strong organizational culture and employee well-being creates greater synergy in increasing work effectiveness. The influence of a strong and positive organizational culture significantly increases the effectiveness of employee work and the influence of employee welfare includes aspects such as fair compensation, a safe work environment, and contributes to increasing employee motivation and productivity. The implications of these findings show the importance of paying attention to organizational culture that allows employee participation and well-being in improving overall organizational performance.