List Of Practices Research Articles

Research ethics and refugee health: a review of reported considerations and applications in published refugee health literature, 2015-2018

IntroductionPublic health investigations, including research, in refugee populations are necessary to inform evidence-based interventions and care. The unique challenges refugees face (displacement, limited political protections, economic hardship) can make them especially vulnerable to harm, burden, or undue influence. Acute survival needs, fear of stigma or persecution, and history of trauma may present challenges to ensuring meaningful informed consent and establishing trust. We examined the recently published literature to understand the application of ethics principles in investigations involving refugees.MethodsWe conducted a preliminary review of refugee health literature (research and non-research data collections) published from 2015 through 2018 available in PubMed. Article inclusion criteria were: participants were refugees, topic was health-related, and methods used primary data collection. Information regarding type of investigation, methods, and reported ethics considerations was abstracted.ResultsWe examined 288 articles. Results indicated 33% of investigations were conducted before resettlement, during the displacement period (68% of these were in refugee camps). Common topics included mental health (48%) and healthcare access (8%). The majority (87%) of investigations obtained consent. Incentives were provided less frequently (23%). Most authors discussed the ways in which community stakeholders were engaged (91%), yet few noted whether refugee representatives had an opportunity to review investigational protocols (8%). Cultural considerations were generally limited to gender and religious norms, and 13% mentioned providing some form of post-investigation support.ConclusionsOur analysis is a preliminary assessment of the application of ethics principles reported within the recently published refugee health literature. From this analysis, we have proposed a list of best practices, which include stakeholder engagement, respect for cultural norms, and post-study support. Investigations conducted among refugees require additional diligence to ensure respect for and welfare of the participants. Development of a refugee-specific ethics framework with ethics and refugee health experts that addresses the need for stakeholder involvement, appropriate incentive use, protocol review, and considerations of cultural practices may help guide future investigations in this population.

The Eight Steps of Data Analysis: A Graphical Framework to Promote Sound Statistical Analysis

Data analysis is a risky endeavor, particularly among people who are unaware of its dangers. According to some researchers, “statistical conclusions validity” threatens all research subjected to the dark arts of statistical magic. Although traditional statistics classes may advise against certain practices (e.g., multiple comparisons, small sample sizes, violating normality), they may fail to cover others (e.g., outlier detection and violating linearity). More common, perhaps, is that researchers may fail to remember them. In this article, rather than rehashing old warnings and diatribes against this practice or that, I instead advocate a general statistical-analysis strategy. This graphic-based eight-step strategy promises to resolve the majority of statistical traps researchers may fall into—without having to remember large lists of problematic statistical practices. These steps will assist in preventing both false positives and false negatives and yield critical insights about the data that would have otherwise been missed. I conclude with an applied example that shows how the eight steps reveal interesting insights that would not be detected with standard statistical practices.

A pilot project on the management of osteoporosis in primary care: results of the audit cycle.

Osteoporosis is a major public health problem with the ageing population in the UK. However, there is no known national algorithm for the management of osteoporosis in primary care. Therefore, a treatment pathway was developed in secondary care for patients in the community. This audit cycle investigates whether patients at a GP practice with a population of 14 000 have been appropriately identified, coded as osteoporosis, treated, and have followed the recommended pathway. A search of the practice clinical system was undertaken for three groups of patients coded as: patients currently on the existing osteoporosis register; patients with a code of 'osteoporosis' or 'fragility fracture' but not prescribed an osteoporosis treatment; and patients currently prescribed an osteoporosis treatment with no coding for 'osteoporosis' or 'fragility fracture'. The words 'osteoporosis', 'fragility fracture', 'QOF', and all individual drug names were used in the search engine. The completed audit cycle shows an increase in the proportion of patients following the local guidelines pathway, from 75% in 2018 to 81% in 2019, emphasising the importance of having a guideline for GPs to follow in order to optimise treatment and prevent future fragility fractures. This is a pilot project to assess the ability to identify patients who have osteoporosis and review their treatment pathway. The results are promising as the analysed data indicate that GP practice lists can be used to identify and treat high-risk patients for osteoporosis and assess the adherence to the pathway. Using the pathway, GPs can more efficiently diagnose and manage patients.

TINJAUAN MANAJEMEN SUMBER DAYA MANUSIA YANG MEMPENGARUHI KINERJA: SEBUAH AGENDA PENELITIAN

There is increasing evidence supporting the relationship between so-called high-performance or high-commitment human resource management practices (HRM) and various measures of organizational performance. However, it is not clear why this relationship exists. This paper argues that in order to provide a convincing explanation about this association, we need to improve the theoretical and analytical framework in three main areas namely the nature of HRM, and especially the reasons for a specific list of HR practices; the nature of organizational performance; and the relationship between HRM and performance. A model is presented to explore this connection. Existing literature on HRM and performance is reviewed based on analysis to identify key gaps in knowledge and help focus further research priorities.

Choosing Wisely Africa: 10 low-value or harmful practices that should be avoided in cancer care.

e19213 Background: Choosing Wisely Africa, builds on Choosing Wisely (CW) in the USA, Canada and India, and aims to identify low-value, unnecessary, or harmful cancer practices that are frequently used on the African continent. Methods: The CWA Task Force was convened by African Organization for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC) and included representatives in surgical, medical and radiation oncology, the private and public sectors and patient advocacy group. Consensus was built through a modified Delphi process shortening a long list of practices to a short list then to a final list. Results: Of the 10 practices on the final list, one is a new suggestion, 9 are revisions or adaptations of practices from previous CW campaign lists. One item relates to palliative care, 8 concern treatment, and 1 relates to surveillance. Conclusions: The success of this campaign will be measured by how the list is implemented across sub-Saharan Africa and whether it improves the delivery of high-quality cancer care. [Table: see text]

Smoking Is Associated With COVID-19 Progression: A Meta-analysis.

IntroductionSmoking depresses pulmonary immune function and is a risk factor contracting other infectious diseases and more serious outcomes among people who become infected. This paper presents a meta-analysis of the association between smoking and progression of the infectious disease COVID-19.MethodsPubMed was searched on April 28, 2020, with search terms “smoking”, “smoker*”, “characteristics”, “risk factors”, “outcomes”, and “COVID-19”, “COVID”, “coronavirus”, “sar cov-2”, “sar cov 2”. Studies reporting smoking behavior of COVID-19 patients and progression of disease were selected for the final analysis. The study outcome was progression of COVID-19 among people who already had the disease. A random effects meta-analysis was applied.ResultsWe identified 19 peer-reviewed papers with a total of 11,590 COVID-19 patients, 2,133 (18.4%) with severe disease and 731 (6.3%) with a history of smoking. A total of 218 patients with a history of smoking (29.8%) experienced disease progression, compared with 17.6% of non-smoking patients. The meta-analysis showed a significant association between smoking and progression of COVID-19 (OR 1.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.42-2.59, p = 0.001). Limitations in the 19 papers suggest that the actual risk of smoking may be higher.ConclusionsSmoking is a risk factor for progression of COVID-19, with smokers having higher odds of COVID-19 progression than never smokers.ImplicationsPhysicians and public health professionals should collect data on smoking as part of clinical management and add smoking cessation to the list of practices to blunt the COVID-19 pandemic.

ENSURING THE SUSTAINABILITY OF THE REORGANIZATION OF CORPORATE ENTERPRISES AND THEIR INTEGRATED ASSOCIATION’S ACTIVITIES

Introduction. In terms of the ISO 22301 requirements about ensuring the enterprise continuity under the increasing external environment variability, it is necessary to form control contours for maintaining the reorganization sustainability of corporate enterprises and their integrated associations. The purpose of scientific research is to develop theoretical and methodological bases for ensuring the sustainability of the reorganization of the activities of integrated associations of corporate enterprises. Results. The corporate architecture concept usage to ensure the sustainability of the enterprise activities reorganization has been proposed. The connection between the enterprise activities reorganization, its reorganization as a legal entity, and the redistribution of corporate control have been determined. The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF), the architectural modeling language Archimate, and the OMG Essence standard (the kernel and Language for Software Engineering Methods) have been used as the research's methodological basis. The author's approach specific distinction is the program of enterprise activities reorganization subordination to the vision of key stakeholders about the list of practices used to create consumer value. The possibility of maintaining the stability reorganization of the enterprise and its activities by using the concept of successful organizational transformations has been reflected. The practical significance of the developed technology of the reorganization sustainability is laid in providing business entities the tools for matching critical elements of the current and future enterprise’s business model. This matching gives to the enterprise management possibility to develop the organizational transformation program. Conclusions. The proposed technology of enterprise reorganization sustainability ensuring is focused on creating a successful socio-economic system and based on taking into account the interests of main stakeholders. However, the presented technology reveals only a higher level of corporate enterprise activity organization. Therefore, the prospects for further author’s research consist of detailing particular enterprise architecture elements and forming a model basis for their coordinated development. Keywords: the enterprise activity reorganization, corporate enterprise, integrated association of enterprises, enterprise architecture, and corporate control.

Development of Corporate Sustainability in Enterprises through the Application of Selected Practices and Tools

Abstract Background and Purpose: The research paper identifies practices and tools to support corporate sustainability concept that can lead to increased business competitiveness in a dynamically developing business world. The purpose of the paper is to provide insight into the practices and tools of corporate sustainability applied by the Slovak industrial enterprises and which barriers do exist. Moreover, the aim is also to identify factors influencing the application of tools such as company ownership, importance of sustainability concept, and company vision. Design/Methodology/Approach: In order to obtain the necessary data an online questionnaire was used. The sample of enterprises was selected on the basis of the enterprise size and the industry focus (n = 336). The following statistical methods were used 1) one-way ANOVA, 2) the Kruskal-Wallis test, and 3) the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. Results: This paper revealed some key insights: 1) foreign-owned enterprises are better at application of sustainability practices and tools, 2) still quite a few enterprises attribute the importance to the concept, 3) the existence of barriers, particularly in the form of a lack of financial resources, 4) one of the key drivers of sustainability is enterprise vision. Conclusion: The paper created and analyzed quite a comprehensive list of practices and tools suitable for enterprises in Slovakia. There was an effort to find out point at the ways how enterprises contribute to sustainable development. It was also found out that they attach importance to vision as a major trigger for the application of the tools.

In Orbit Operations of an Educational Cubesat: the e-st@r-II Experience

CubeSats have achieved a place of relevance in the modern space missions. However, CubeSats need improvements in terms of new technologies, mission and system reliability, and management of the entire product life cycle. A major lack of knowledge exists about the operations of past and current CubeSats in orbit. Operations planning and re-planning, failures and anomalies management, step-by-step procedures and rules of execution are crucial but poorly analyzed aspects that can increase the success rate of a mission. Moreover, information about the programmatic and technical achievements and lessons learned during the operation phases is often not available or incomplete. However, the sharing of the results, especially for educational programs, becomes fundamental to improve the quality of missions and to prevent mistakes. This paper aims at reducing this gap of knowledge and at sharing the experience and the lessons learned gained by the CubeSat Team of Politecnico di Torino over the three years of in-orbit operations of the E-ST@R-II mission. The flexible approach adopted for the operations planning, the management of anomalies and the re-planning of the operations are presented. Simple yet effective tools have been developed for mission planning and root causes identification, and they are presented through the discussion of the main technical and educational results. The paper provides also a list of good practices and recommendations applicable to future CubeSat missions.

Development of a risk-ranking framework to evaluate simultaneously biological and chemical hazards related to food safety: Application to emerging dietary practices in France

The objective of this study was to develop a structured and transparent framework to rank emerging dietary practices. The first challenge was to rank simultaneously biological and chemical hazards using the same criteria whatever the nature of the hazard. For a list of dietary practices selected based on the results of a survey, hazard identification and health effect characterization was carried out. Taking only the top five practices led to the identification of 41 triplets “emerging dietary practice – hazard – health effect”, which highlights the complexity of scoring risk in food safety. A wide variety of hazards, including microbes, parasites, mycotoxins, allergens and other chemical compounds were considered together with a range of health effects such as foodborne pathogen disease, anaphylaxis, cancer, immunosuppression, endocrine disturbance, etc. The second challenge was to develop a framework easy to populate and run. The risk-ranking framework included eight criteria: five to describe the severity, three to describe the likelihood. All of them were informed by literature data and food safety agencies' reports, plus experts’ opinion. The PROMETHEE outranking MCDA technique, available in a R package, was implemented. This risk-ranking framework applied to the results of our small-scale survey revealed that consuming nuts on a regular basis could be the emerging dietary habit presenting the highest-risk score, due to the aflatoxin B1 hazard and its associated health effect (liver cancer). This risk-ranking framework requires however to be applied furthermore in other contexts to evaluate its robustness and identify opportunities for improvement. Once consolidated, this framework will be highly relevant for food safety authorities and policy makers to move forward transparent and evidence-informed decisions.

An Accurate, Extensive, and Practical Line List of Methane for the HITEMP Database

A methane line list for the HITEMP spectroscopic database, covering 0-13,400 cm$^{-1}$ ($>$746 nm), is presented. To create this compilation, ab initio line lists of $^{12}$CH$_{4}$ from Rey et al. (2017) ApJ, 847, 105 (provided at separate temperatures in the TheoReTS information system), are now combined with HITRAN2016 methane data to produce a single line list suitable for high-temperature line-by-line calculations up to 2000 K. An effective-temperature interpolation model was created in order to represent continuum-like features at any temperature of interest. This model is advantageous to previously-used approaches that employ so-called ``super-lines'', which are suitable only at a given temperature and require separate line lists for different temperatures. The resultant HITEMP line list contains $\sim$32 million lines and is significantly more flexible than alternative line lists of methane, while accuracy required for astrophysical or combustion applications is retained. Comparisons against experimental observations of methane absorption at high temperatures have been used to demonstrate the accuracy of the new work. The line list includes both strong lines and quasi-continuum features and is provided in the common user-friendly HITRAN/HITEMP format, making it the most practical methane line list for radiative transfer modeling at high-temperature conditions.

Sustainable Practices in Hotels: A Study of Five Star Hotels in Northern India

The hospitality sector is one of the fast growing and dynamic sectors in India. Of late not only has there been a change in demand and supply trends, but consumer preferences and desires are also changing, which has led to an eruption of innovative management practices. One of the critical issues facing this industry today is that of sustainability. Therefore, many hotel chains, particularly five-star hotels, have incorporated a number of green practices to reduce their carbon footprints. This in turn has a considerable effect on consumers’ willingness to pay for their services. This study aimed to explore the factors of consumer awareness, consumer attitude and willingness to pay premium that impact choice of sustainable 5-star hotels of Northern India. Based on the study aim, a quantitative research was conducted using survey of 447customers or visitors of the chosen hotels. The questionnaire pertained to elements crucial for this research consisting list of important sustainable practices and how these practices are affecting their preference for the hotel chains. Data was gathered using a close-ended questionnaire from the customers of these hotels. KMO factor analysis method was applied to identify the most significant factors of consumer awareness; consumer attitude and willingness to pay premium that impact their choice of the sustainable five star hotels of Northern India.

What are best practices to teach “hands-on” skills in a blended environment?

Despite the proliferation of online teaching and learning in physical therapy education, there is a gap that describes best practices used to teach “hands-on” skills.  The purpose of this study was to discover the resources used, current and emerging instructional methods, and a list of best practices for physical therapy educators.  A national survey and personal interviews gathered information from faculty who taught orthopedic subject matter. The findings suggest faculty used an assortment of resources and instructional methods in a variety of ways.  The data generated a list of best practices, which consisted of a tangible list of pre-class activities and face-to-face instructional methods.  Additional research can help faculty make informed decisions based on evidence, feasibility, and availability of technologies.  According to the literature and current teaching practices, a blended learning approach is the recommended best practice to teach orthopedic “hands-on” skills.  This study serves as a baseline in today’s instructional climate and will evolve as educators continue to seek novel approaches in the technological space within physical therapy education.

The influence of organizational culture and HRM on building innovative capability

PurposeThis paper aims to deepen the extant theoretical and empirical knowledge on the mechanisms by which organizational culture and HR practices interact to promote innovative capability in organizations.Design/methodology/approachThe data for this study were collected from a sample of 75 companies in two phases. First, the HR managers of those companies responded to a survey that measures organizational culture, HR practices and innovative capability. Second, we obtained additional data from department managers of 36 of those 75 companies. The research model and hypotheses were tested using structured equation modeling (SEM).FindingsThe results indicate that cultural traits have direct and significant effects on promoting innovative capability and that they have also a strong effect on the effectiveness of implemented HR practices, the latter having a mediation role. The importance of considering both generic and specific (innovation focused) HR practices to obtain a synergistic effect in the promotion of innovation was also demonstrated.Research limitations/implicationsThe data were collected using a questionnaire at a single point in time, and thus, not allowing cause–effect inferences.Practical implicationsThe results of this study provide evidence for HRM professionals interested in designing a system of HR practices that contributes to enhance organizational innovative capability.Originality/valueThis study advances our understanding of the mechanisms through which HR practices have an incremental effect over organizational culture on organizations' innovative capability, specifically offering a list of innovation-targeted practices. Moreover, it suggests that decision-makers will benefit from combining a range of generic and innovation-focused HR practices, which will display greater effect when embedded on highly effective culture contexts.

Cost effectiveness of an intervention to increase uptake of hepatitis C virus testing and treatment (HepCATT): cluster randomised controlled trial in primary care

ObjectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of a complex intervention in primary care that aims to increase uptake of hepatitis C virus (HCV) case finding and treatment.DesignPragmatic, two armed,...

Pharmaceutical interventions in the emergency department: cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit analysis

ObjectiveIt has been shown that pharmacists, as members of multidisciplinary patient care teams, can decrease the number of medicine errors. The objective of the present study was to analyse pharmaceutical...

Leveraging Container Technologies in a GIScience Project: A Perspective from Open Reproducible Research

Scientific reproducibility is essential for the advancement of science. It allows the results of previous studies to be reproduced, validates their conclusions and develops new contributions based on previous research. Nowadays, more and more authors consider that the ultimate product of academic research is the scientific manuscript, together with all the necessary elements (i.e., code and data) so that others can reproduce the results. However, there are numerous difficulties for some studies to be reproduced easily (i.e., biased results, the pressure to publish, and proprietary data). In this context, we explain our experience in an attempt to improve the reproducibility of a GIScience project. According to our project needs, we evaluated a list of practices, standards and tools that may facilitate open and reproducible research in the geospatial domain, contextualising them on Peng’s reproducibility spectrum. Among these resources, we focused on containerisation technologies and performed a shallow review to reflect on the level of adoption of these technologies in combination with OSGeo software. Finally, containerisation technologies proved to enhance the reproducibility and we used UML diagrams to describe representative work-flows deployed in our GIScience project.

A retrospective database study of oral corticosteroid and bisphosphonate prescribing patterns in England

Exposure to oral corticosteroids (OCS) is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis and fragility fractures. Guidelines suggest bisphosphonate (BP) therapy as the first-line treatment of glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis (GIOP). This population study used publicly available data, including prescription annual cost analysis and monthly practice-level data. Our aim was to examine the prescribing of OCS and BP at practice level and investigate reasons for variation using a mixed-effect negative binomial regression analysis. There was a rise in OCS and BP prescriptions of 55% and 1200% from 1998 to 2018, respectively. Of the 6586 included practices, the median (IQR) of OCS and BP prescriptions were 120.8 (84.8–160.4) and 107.7 (73.8–147.4) per 1000 patients, respectively. Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) were significantly associated with OCS use (p < 0.0001), but only COPD was associated with BP use (p < 0.0001). Higher OCS prescribing rates were associated with higher BP prescribing rates (5th to 1st quintile—IRR = 1.99; 95% CI: 1.88–2.10). Practice list size, deprivation and advanced age were all associated with both drugs (p < 0.0001). In conclusion, although OCS use is positively associated with BP prescription, variation among practices and CCGs exists. The variation in prescribing suggests there is still a need to improve GIOP prevention.

Identifying clinicians’ priorities for the implementation of best practices in cognitive rehabilitation post-acquired brain injury

Purpose To identify clinicians’ perceptions of current levels of implementation of cognitive rehabilitation best practices, as well as individual and consensual group priorities for implementing cognitive rehabilitation interventions as part of a multi-site integrated knowledge translation initiative. Method A two-step consensus-building methodology was used, that is the Technique for Research of Information by Animation of a Group of Experts (TRIAGE), including a cross-sectional electronic survey followed by consensual in-person group discussions to identify implementation priorities from a list of evidence-based practices for cognitive rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury and stroke. Thirty-eight professionals from three rehabilitation teams (n = 9, 13 and 16) participated, including neuropsychologists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, educators, clinical coordinators and program managers. Descriptive statistics were used to document the perceived levels of implementation as well as individual and consensual group priorities. Results Most of the best practices (81–100%) were perceived as at least partially implemented by a minimum of 50% of the participants but only 20–25% of the practices were considered fully implemented. Findings suggest that current practices are mostly consistent with general cognitive rehabilitation principles suggested in guidelines but that further efforts are needed to support the application of specific cognitive rehabilitation strategies and interventions. Executive function and self-awareness retraining, as well as interventions promoting the generalization of skills, were among the highest implementation priorities. Consensual in-person group discussions, included as part of the TRIAGE process, also helped to define and operationalize these best practices into more specific intervention components according to the teams’ needs and priorities. Conclusions TRIAGE consensus-building methodology can be used to engage stakeholders and support clinicians’ decision-making regarding the identification of implementation priorities in cognitive rehabilitation post-ABI in order to tailor the implementation process to local needs. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION The Technique for Research of Information by Animation of a Group of Experts (TRIAGE) can be used to support clinicians’ decision-making regarding the identification of implementation priorities in cognitive rehabilitation post-ABI. The combination of individual consultations followed by consensual in-person group discussions, as part of the TRIAGE process, may help clinicians in defining and operationalizing best practices into more specific intervention components to implement. Effective implementation strategies are needed to support the use of specific cognitive rehabilitation interventions in prioritized areas, such as executive function and self-awareness retraining, as well as generalization of skills. Some differences in clinicians’ perceived priorities point up the importance of tailoring implementation to local needs and contexts from the early stages in the process.

Language for a specific purpose: Business Russian

This essay examines methods for integrating Business Russian into the classroom for the specific purpose of real-world research application. Included are both the Language for Specific Purposes (LSP) methodology used within the classroom (Crouse, 2013) to engage in this type of research in Russian, as well as the results of student-centered inquiry (McCarthy, 2015). The practical results of the research are then presented in a brief history of why five select companies came to conduct business in Russia and the results of inquiries to these companies as a specific study with repercussions for the pedagogy. A list of best practices for conducting business in Russia, gained from the branches of the US companies that continue to successfully operate in Russia despite sanctions, expulsions, and diplomatic difficulties follows. The conclusions drawn from the teaching of language for a specific purpose and its practical results demonstrate the need for such high-impact (community-based learning, oral history interviews, and integrated study abroad) practices in education today.