Technical Advice Research Articles

7.I. Skills building seminar: Beyond the jargon: an interactive workshop for effective risk communication

Abstract Risk communication plays a central role in epidemiology to provide information for disease surveillance and outbreak control. It is one of the of the eight core functions that WHO Member States must comply with as part of the International Health Regulations (2005) ensuring national and global preparedness for health threats. It refers to the timely and accurate exchange of information between public health experts or authorities and individuals who are confronted with a threat to their survival, health, economic or social well-being. At its core, risk communication is about empowering people exposed to a risk to make well-informed decisions in order to mitigate potential risks and adopt preventive actions and measures. Risk communication considers political, social, and economic factors; it analyses risk and risk perception; and it places a great emphasis on dialogue with impacted and targeted populations to help them make the best decisions they can. Therefore, it requires an understanding of stakeholders’ perceptions, concerns, and beliefs, as well as their knowledge and practices. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for effective and efficient risk communication has become even more evident than before. Risk communication should be able to recognise and deal with rumours and disinformation, and reach the most vulnerable groups, who have a higher risk of contracting the virus and suffering from COVID-related consequences. Lately, increasing attention has been given to this topic. The WHO set-up, in April 2023, a technical Advisory Group for Risk Communication, Community Engagement and Infodemic management (TAG-RCCE-IM) to provide independent review and technical advice in the context of emergency preparedness and response in Europe. The Joint Action PreventNCD aims to also build a framework for country-specific communication strategies for non-communicable diseases (NCD) patients in health crises in one of the Work Packages, by collecting and analysing health communication strategies in different European countries targeting NCDs. In this interactive skills-building seminar, we will share with the participants the knowledge, skills, and process of effective risk communication by using case studies from experts in the field. The session will start with a presentation on the core elements of risk communication followed by examples from the field. This workshop will foster an inclusive interactive environment where participants will hear from panellists sharing their experiences from different settings such as international organisations and national public health institutes. Participants will be split into groups and will be provided with a piece of scientific output, such as a research study or epidemiological report and encouraged to translate this technical message into a clear, concise message that can effectively communicate the key points to the general public. Key messages • Risk communication is essential to fight disinformation while empowering the public to make informed decisions related to their health and well-being. • Epidemiologists and researchers should be encouraged to employ efficient and targeted communication strategies when disseminating their findings. Speakers/Panelists Stefan Schaub Bundeszentrale für gesundheitliche Aufklärung (BZgA, Cologne, Germany Federica Rossetti Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium Stefan Adrian Voinea WHO/Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark

Skill building in freediving as an example of embodied culture.

Skilled activity is a complex mix of automatized action, changed attention patterns, cognitive strategies and physiological adaptations developed within a community of practice. Drawing on physiological and ethnographic research on freediving, this article argues that skill acquisition demonstrates the variety of mechanisms that link biological and cultural processes to produce culturally shaped forms of embodiment. In particular, apneists alter phenotypic expression through patterned practices that canalize development, exaggerating the dive response, developing resistance to elevated carbon dioxide levels (hypercapnia) and accommodating hydrostatic pressure at depth. The community of divers provides technical advice and helps to orient individuals' motivations. Some biological processes are phenomenologically accessible, but others are sub-aware and must be accessed indirectly through behaviour or altered interactions with the environment. The close analysis of embodied skills like freediving illustrates how phenotypic plasticity is inflected by culturally patterned behaviours. Divers do developmental work on bodily traits like the dive response to achieve more dramatic performance, even if they cannot directly control all elements of the neurological and physiological responses. The example of expert freediving illustrates the imbrication of biology and culture in embodiment. This article is part of the theme issue 'Minds in movement: embodied cognition in the age of artificial intelligence'.

Strengthening nutrition policy and service delivery: Lessons learned from a six-country assessment of Alive and Thrive's technical assistance.

Alive & Thrive (A&T) provides strategic technical assistance (TA) to develop effective policies; improve maternal, infant, and young child nutrition (MIYCN) programme design and implementationand enhance system capacity to sustain quality MIYCN service delivery at scale. A qualitative assessment was conducted using document review and stakeholder interviews (n = 79) to describe a selection of A&T's TA in six countries and systematically assess the contextual and TA process-related factors that influenced the results achieved and document the lessons learned about MIYCN TA design and implementation. To facilitate the selection of different types of TA, we classified TA into two levels of stakeholder engagement and intensity. Under the Technical Advisor TA category, we assessed A&T's support to strengthen national policy formulation, monitoring, and implementation of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes. For Capacity Development TA, we assessed A&T support to scale-up maternal nutrition services and to increase strategic use of data. Factors important for TA provision included identifying and engaging with the right people, using evidence to support advocacy and decision-making, using multiple ways to strengthen capacity, developing packages of tools to support programme scale-up, and reinforcing feedback mechanisms to improve service provision and data quality. Challenges included shifts in the political context, poorly functioning health systems, and limited resources to replicate or sustain the progress made. Continued investment in evidence-based and practical TA that strengthens the institutionalization of nutrition across all stakeholders-including government, medical associations, civil societyand development partners-is essential. Future TA must support governments to strengthen system capacity for nutrition, including financial and human resource gaps that hamper full scale-up.

Assessment of Animal Drinking Water Quality in Livestock Farms in Galapagos Islands

The purpose of this research was to determine the quality of water for bovine consumption on livestock farms in the El Progreso parish - Galapagos by applying a quality index following the Brown methodology proposed by the National Sanitation Foundation of the United States. Information was collected from the livestock farms through a socio-environmental diagnosis of the area, where five localities were considered: San Joaquín, Las Goteras, Cerro Verde, Puerto Chino and El Progreso from which fifteen livestock farms were selected for the respective sampling of the sources. of water. Therefore, nine parameters were considered for the analysis of the respective water sources: pH, TDS, Fecal Coliforms, electrical conductivity, hardness, nitrites, phosphates, temperature and turbidity. Of the total livestock farms monitored, three of them presented a rating of Good quality in a range of 70 to 90, while the remaining farms recorded values with a Medium classification, which are those that recorded AQI values between 51 to 70 according to the criteria established by the NSF. This research highlights the importance of frequently carrying out analyzes of the water sources from which cattle drink to determine the quality of the resource, and also provide technical advice to ranchers in the area on the management and cleaning of the reservoirs.

Attitude of Onion Growers towards Drip Irrigation System in Tamil Nadu, India

The drip irrigation system is a kind of micro-irrigation system that has the potential to salvage the water and other nutrients by entrance water to drip gradually to the main roots if plants and other plant parts, which is from on the soil surface or buried inside the soil surface. The main aim of drip irrigation is to place water directly into the main root zone and decrease the water vapour. This study investigates the attitude of Onion growing farmers towards drip irrigation system. The survey was conducted to collect primary data from 119 onion growing farmers in Thondamuthur block of Coimbatore district. Findings reveal that less than three-fifths (57.14%) of the respondents expressed neutral attitude level towards drip irrigation system followed by 21.85 per cent had favourable and 21.01 per cent of the respondents had un-favourable attitude level towards drip irrigation system respectively. This study recommends the implementation of an extensive agricultural institution with more prevalent and periodic visits to drip owners should be established in order to provide regular technical advice and valuable data on the maintenance and repair of the drip irrigation scheme. Such initiatives could enhance the livelihood status of the onion growing farmers in Tamil Nadu.

Beyond the distance between juridic and scientific decision-making process: An evidence-based prediction algorithm for professional liability assessment in healthcare-associated infections

BackgroundHAIs (Healthcare-Acquired-Infections) have been recently the subject of judgment n. 6386 pronounced on 3rd March 2023 by the Italian Supreme Court. This sentence provided three criteria to determine whether a health facility is responsible for the patient contracting a nosocomial infection, i.e. time criterion, topographical criterion and clinical criterion. Accordingly, the healthcare facility is obliged to prove the fulfillment of a series of preventive hygiene measures specifically detailed by the legislator. Herein, the positive predictive value of these criteria (“juridic criteria”) in the identification of professional liability for nosocomial infections was evaluated in comparison with clinical criteria reviewed by Infectious Disease specialists (“Infectious-Disease criteria”, i.e. presence of a Multidrug Resistant Organism (MDRO); development of surgical site infection; inadequate antibiotic therapy; inadequate disinfection). MethodsTwo retrospective cohorts were compared from the Portal of Telematic Services of the Ministry of Justice; 51 patients were extrapolated from Italian judgments concerning claims for Gram-negative nosocomial infections in the three-year period 2020–2022. On the other side, from the electronic database of University Hospital of Bari we extracted 349 patients affected by Gram-negative infections in the same timespan. Both “juridic” criteria and “Infectious-Disease” criteria were then applied to the full cohort after stratification for cohort of origin and after stratification for nosocomial or non-nosocomial infections. Predictive value of criteria was evaluated through receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves and area under the curve (AUC). ResultsOverall, the incidence of definite nosocomial infections (according to final judgement or clinical records discharge letter) was 84 % in juridic cohort and 46 % in “real-world” series.Data suggested that the presence of all three juridic criteria [ROC AUC = 0.944 (95%CI = 0.924–0.963)] or the four clinical criteria [ROC AUC = 0.948 (95%CI = 0.928–0.969)] predicted well a case of nosocomial infection with professional liability.Moreover, by summarizing both criteria in a single classification system, the generated ROC curve (was the one with the highest AUC [0.9488 (95%CI = 0.928–0.969)].Accordingly, further tests were performed, evaluating the predictive value of one juridic criterium plus at one of more Infectious-Disease criteria. Interestingly, the ROCs curves demonstrated that the presence of at least 1 juridic criteria plus at least 2 Infectious Disease criteria reached a predictive value comparable to 2 or 3 juridic criteria. ConclusionsThe results highlight the efficiency of new criteria laid down in the judgment of the Italian Supreme Court to attribute liability for nosocomial infection despite the disputed distance between juridic and scientific decision-making process. In addition, the use of a combined score combining “juridic” and “Infectious-Disease” criteria provides a high-quality tool to be used by technical consultants to make up for lack of clinical documentation by passing judgments concerning litigation about professional liability in case of nosocomial infections. This sheds light on the possibility to face worldwide judicial inquiries with scientific rigor.

Environmental innovation subjects: current legal challenges

Problem setting. Environmental innovation is a key element of a sustainable development strategy aimed at reducing the negative impact of human activity on the environment. They consist in the implementation of new technologies, processes, products or services that have a lower negative impact on nature compared to traditional solutions. A central aspect of environmental innovations is the participation of entities that contribute to their development and implementation. In all industrialized countries, innovation is one of the priority directions in government policy, because it is the basis of national independence and economic development. The state creates favorable conditions for innovative activity, forming uniform civilized rules and mechanisms that determine the development of all subjects of the innovation sphere. Analysis of recent researches and publications. In particular, in this area there were publications of legal scholars: G.V. Anisimova, V.L. Bredikhina, M.V. Krasnova, Yu. Yu. Bakai, D.V. Zadikhailo and others. Purpose of research consists in determining and making proposals to the current legislation in a certain topic. Article’s main body. The subjects of the modern market of ecological innovations are the state, enterprises, organizations, institutions, universities, foundations, natural persons (scientists and specialists), who ensure the processes of generation and distribution of ecological innovations Organizational and legal forms of innovative activity in the environmental sphere are technoparks, technopolises, business incubators, innovation centers, venture firms, consulting and analytical firms. Conclusions and prospects for development. Technoparks, in today’s world, the latter play a significant role in promoting the direct development of environmental innovations. Their existence is based on the creation of a favorable environment for interaction between scientific institutions, business and authorities with the aim of joint creation and implementation of new technologies of environmental direction. Science parks should contribute to the support of startups, the direction of which is primarily the development and implementation of environmental technologies, including the development of efficient renewable energy sources, waste-free / low-waste materials and other products aimed at reducing the negative impact on the environment. Clusters, in turn, facilitate the concentration of enterprises operating in similar or complementary segments of the economy, thereby allowing them to jointly develop and implement environmental innovations through the exchange of knowledge and resources. Innovative business incubators have the opportunity to provide startups with financial support. It is about receiving grants, investments, etc. Such financial support will allow startups to work on their ideas, develop products and introduce them to the market. Second, business incubators can provide expert support. For example, business consulting, technical advice, marketing or product development support. Experts at the incubator guide startups through the various stages of development, from ideation to commercialization, helping them avoid common mistakes and use best practices.Industrial parks act also as one of the subjects of ecological innovation relations due to their ability to unite production enterprises in order to jointly implement ecological technologies and practices. They can be involved in the implementation of energyefficient technologies, renewable energy, the development and implementation of efficient use of water resources, as well as waste management. Industrial parks can create favorable conditions for cooperation between enterprises in the field of environmental research and development, as well as promote the exchange of knowledge and experience in this area. Thus, the main goal common to all these subjects is to promote the development and implementation of environmentally friendly technologies with the aim of preserving the environment, as well as ensuring sustainable development.

Are Our Climate Data Fit for Your Purpose?

Abstract This paper describes the vision and objectives for evaluation and quality control of datasets available on the Climate Data Store (CDS) of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). The CDS is a cloud service providing reliable, open, and free access to climate datasets from many different sources, including observations and derived climate data records, global and regional reanalysis products, and output from global and regional climate models. CDS data and information are widely used to monitor climate change, for policy development, environmental impact studies, business plans, public awareness, and many other purposes. CDS users include policymakers, technical consultants, and data scientists who are climate literate but not necessarily specialized in climate science. A key objective for C3S is to simplify data discovery and access and to ensure that all information provided is fit for purpose. The role of evaluation and quality control is to generate useful statements about the technical and scientific quality of the datasets available on the CDS, presented in a form that can be mapped directly to user requirements associated with specific application contexts. The ambition is to enable users to select, locate, access, and process climate data that are fit for purpose, simply by expressing their requirements in their own words.

What I do: technical advisor

What I do: technical advisor

The Current Role of Western Development Actors as Knowledge and Policy Providers: The Making of Good Governance of Natural Gas Resources in Tanzania

The creation, dissemination, and application of knowledge are crucial for achieving sustainable development and have been at the heart of international development efforts since World War II. In conventional international development cooperation, the Global North is portrayed as the provider of knowledge and material assistance, with the South often perceived as a more passive receiver. This approach perpetuates hierarchical knowledge-power relations, as what is considered the ‘best practices’ are usually based on experiences, ideologies, and ideals from the North. This paper critically examines the current role of Western development actors as providers of knowledge and policy, specifically in the formulation of good governance for natural gas resources in Tanzania. Following significant offshore natural gas discoveries between 2010–2015, Tanzania has garnered the attention of international energy companies, foreign donors, technical advisors, and consultants, all offering guidance and capacity-building expertise to ready the country for production. Drawing on interviews with key actors supported by secondary sources, this analysis depicts how hierarchical knowledge relations persist, but also highlights the contested and evolving nature of what constitutes good governance of natural gas resources. The paper underscores how context matters in petroleum resource governance and, more broadly, the necessity for contextualising knowledge in international development cooperation.

Sustainability of the community model of avocado production in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, Michoacán, México

The avocado is a commodity crop that has generated severe environmental and social impacts in Michoacán, the world’s leading producer. Current studies overlook the diversity of avocado production by focusing on Michocán’s central region, while the regions of a more recent expansion remain poorly studied. We analyzed the model of avocado production in five indigenous communities in the municipality of Zitácuaro that have part of their territory within the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve. We use the Framework for the Evaluation of Management Systems using Sustainability Indicators to characterize and evaluate the sustainability of the Community Model of Avocado Production (CMAP). Based on 42 interviews with producers, we identified eleven critical points related to environmental (small-scale production; forest conservation; high prophylactic use of agrochemicals; high dependence on irrigation), economic (high crop diversity; low profitability; high yield loss to pests; low economic diversification), and social (high dependence on technical advisors; low dependence on labor force external to the community; few changes in land ownership) aspects of sustainability. The CMAP has productive and socio-political characteristics that represent strengths and weaknesses for its sustainability. The main environmental results suggest that the avocado expansion (2007–2022) in the communities did not involve a change in forest land use. Socially, the CMAP favors the local workforce and facilitates the maintenance of land ownership. The sustainability of CMAP is mostly limited by its economic aspects. With adequate economic support for socially and environmentally sustainable productive practices, the CMAP can improve the local livelihoods while promoting forest conservation.

Board Financial Expertise and Financial Sustainability: Evidence from Saudi-Listed Firms

This paper evaluates the effects of board financial expertise on the financial sustainability of Saudi non-financial listed companies. The research sampled data from 97 companies covering 2013 to 2022 and analysed the data using different econometric models. The research findings indicated a strong and positive impact of board financial expertise on sustainable performance. This outcome implies that financial sustainability may increase as the number of finance specialists on the board rises. The evidence supports agency framework, resource dependency, and upper echelons theories. These frameworks argue that stringent monitoring, technical advice, and intellectual competence of finance specialists may positively influence organisational outcomes. Practically, the results indicated that Saudi-listed firms should emphasise employing financial specialists on their boards to boost their value and attain sustainable growth. The study may also guide managers and regulators on the relevance of financial experts in promoting sustainable practices.

Does access to veterinary department and cooperatives for technical advice improve livestock farmers’ income? Evidence from recent NSSO survey, India

Does access to veterinary department and cooperatives for technical advice improve livestock farmers’ income? Evidence from recent NSSO survey, India

Promotion of healthy territories: Technical advice on social housing in Sector 1 of Colônia Juliano Moreira

RESUMO O artigo propõe contribuir para a reflexão sobre princípios e estratégias promotoras de saúde em territórios vulnerabilizados, tendo como objetivo específico avaliar o papel que pode ser desempenhado por uma política e serviço público de base local, permanente e participativo, desenvolvido por meio de assessoria técnica com enfoque na requalificação do espaço da moradia e do habitat que favoreça a população mais vulnerabilizada e promova soluções positivas em sua qualidade de vida. O trabalho tem sua fundamentação teórico-metodológica no campo da saúde urbana, referenciada na perspectiva crítica da complexidade do fenômeno saúde-doença, mais especificamente quando relaciona a vulnerabilidade socioambiental e os condicionantes do ambiente construído à saúde coletiva. O artigo utiliza como caso referência a experiência desenvolvida pela Fiocruz Mata Atlântica, da Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, e busca verificar a identificação dos fatores determinantes e de processos de determinação social da saúde, bem como a apropriação de princípios e estratégias de ação desse campo disciplinar. Os resultados parciais dessa experiência em curso apresentam avanços não somente nas transformações objetivas dos fatores determinantes relacionados com o ambiente construído, mas também na organização social e na articulação intersetorial nesse contexto, assim como na construção de referências para políticas públicas.

The Partial Collapse of the Italia Viaduct

On 2 March 2015, one span of the so-called “Italia Viaduct”, the second highest bridge in Europe, collapsed during some renovation works, killing one worker. This article describes in detail the forensic investigations developed by the authors acting as technical consultants (i.e. expert witnesses) to the Public Prosecutor. In cases similar to that under study, it is very common that the collapse is disproportionate to the original cause. Hence, in the investigation, a clear distinction between the triggering cause and the causes of the damage evolution was made. The purpose of the investigations was not only to determine the causes of such a collapse but also to give the Public Prosecutor sufficient data to identify the parties responsible. The aim of the article is also to discuss the methodology used for the investigations and the relevant results in order to trace general criteria useful for forensic structural investigations.

ECCO Guidelines on Therapeutics in Crohn's Disease: Surgical Treatment.

This article is the second in a series of two publications on the European Crohn's and Colitis Organisation [ECCO] evidence-based consensus on the management of Crohn's disease. The first article covers medical management; the present article addresses surgical management, including preoperative aspects and drug management before surgery. It also provides technical advice for a variety of common clinical situations. Both articles together represent the evidence-based recommendations of the ECCO for Crohn's disease and an update of prior ECCO guidelines.

Factors Influencing Adoption of Technical Advice from Agricultural Extension Services: Evidence from a Field Survey in Western Uttar Pradesh, India

This article examines the key drivers of farmers’ adoption of technical advice and their preferred providers of agricultural extension services. Based on a primary survey conducted in western Uttar Pradesh, India, the data from 272 sample households were analysed using a binary logistic regression model. The findings suggest that farmers’ decisions to adopt technical advice are influenced positively by farm size, household size, average hours spent on farms, training and awareness of the extension scheme. The positive relationship between farm size and technical advice adoption demonstrates the need for extension services to reconsider their strategies for reaching out to more marginal and small farmers, who account for over 85 per cent of agricultural households, by incorporating their priorities into their outreach programmes. Non-government extension sources are found to be important for access but not for the adoption of technical advice. However, in both commercial and public extension services, a lack of faith in extension services is the fundamental cause of the relatively low adoption rate. The low preference of information and communications technology-based extension services underlines that physical forms of extension services are far more important in developing countries like India. JEL Code: Q16

Effect of Various Improved Technology in Wheat Production Zone of Nepal

The study was held in 2024 in the Kailari, Gauriganga, Godawari, and Dhangadhi local level of Kailali District of Nepal to evaluate and identify the factors impacting the adoption of a number of sophisticated technologies in the research area. Data were collected from 200 respondents utilizing a semi-structured interview form, using simple random selection. The factors influencing the adoption of better technologies in wheat production were identified using a logistic regression model. Age, gender, ethnicity, and area of cultivation are socioeconomic elements that have been linked to the adoption of appropriate agricultural practices, as well as training, technical advice, and membership. The adoption of seed replacement was positively significant (P<0.1) as a result of the training. The adoption of seed varieties was positively significant (P<0.05) for cultivated area. The farmers who were involved in farmer groups or Cooperative had 2.209 times higher odds for the adoption of improved seed compared to the odds for farmers who were not involved in farmer groups. Advice from the technician had a positively significant (P<0.05) impact on the date of sowing. The use of more frequent irrigation was positively significant (P<0.05) in relation to the age of the household head. The split nitrogen application was positively significantly influenced by super zone membership (P<0.05).

Streamlining ICT Network Resources, Processes and Operations through a Centralized Management System: A Development and Evaluation

This study aims to provide an inventory and monitoring system for the ICT Network and Telecommunication Department at Lyceum of the Philippines University Cavite. As it streamlines the management and documentation of network equipment and IP addresses under a single, centralized system, it incorporates integrated management features to carry out and improve network resource management operations. The development of the system was presented with the use of the Agile Model, which illustrates the client's workflow, allowing for changes and discussions based on the client's feedback; the model involves planning, design, implementation, testing, and evaluation, allowing continuous improvement, and providing high-quality systems that met the client's requirements. In addition, the system's components were tested for unit functionality and browser compatibility by the technical adviser, (2) administrators, and (5) IT experts. Furthermore, the system also underwent an evaluation process based on ISO 25010 to measure its Compatibility, Usability, Reliability, Functional Suitability, Security, Portability, Maintainability, and Performance Efficiency, participated by (1) a technical adviser, (2) administrators, (10) IT Experts, and (10) end users. The findings revealed that the system was fully operational and could carry out its designated functions, with an average result of 98.93% passing rate. No component failed during testing in the presence of the specified test respondents. From the responses of the determined evaluators, all aspects of the system are deemed “Highly Acceptable.” The implications of these findings indicate that the ICT Network Resource Management System for LPU Cavite has met the requirements and expectations set forth. The system's compliance with ISO 25010 requirements, successful test results, and high-end user acceptability highlight its potential to enhance the management and monitoring processes, leading to more efficient and effective management for the university’s ICT network and telecommunication department. Keywords: ICT, Network Management System, ICT Network Resources, Streamlining ICT Resources Received Date: April 12, 2024Revised Date: May 17, 2024Accepted Date: May 26, 2024

Impact Analysis of Formal Agencies on Price Realisation and Farmers’ Income in Odisha

The present study examined the factors influencing paddy farmers’ decision to choose the formal agency (government and cooperatives) as their primary disposal destination. It assessed the impact of this choice on price realisation and household income in Odisha. The analysis revealed that paddy output disposal to formal agencies improves price realisation and farmers’ income by ?3.31 per kg and ?16518 per annum as compared to informal agencies, respectively. The choice of formal agencies was determined by several factors, namely land size, marketed surplus, awareness about MSP, education, social status, and access to technical advice. The study emphasizes expanding the outreach of the existing Paddy-Procurement Automation System (P-PAS) system of its procurement in Odisha to enable the farmers to receive better prices for their produce and improve household income.