bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Undergraduate Education in Anaesthesia: The Influence of Role Models on Skills Learnt and Career Choice
Authors: Watts R. W. , Marley J. , Worley P.
Published: January 2019

Undergraduate teaching of anaesthesia occurs in about two-thirds of Australian departments of anaesthesia: however, student contact hours are limited compared with those of other disciplines.

Seventy-five directors of anaesthesia were surveyed by written questionnaire concerning the time devoted in their department to undergraduate study and teaching of practice/skills to undergraduate students (40 responded).

One hundred and sixty final year students were surveyed regarding career choice, anaesthesia skills taught them and role models identified during their training (101 responded).

Most final year students had been taught and had learnt the basic skills of life support such as bag and mask ventilation, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and intravenous cannulation. However, fewer were taught more specialized skills such as induction of anaesthesia and spinal anaesthesia. Positive role models in teaching anaesthetists were identified by 66% of students, more commonly if they were taught advanced skills, and were significantly associated with satisfaction with theoretical and practical training. For those students intending a career in anaesthesia (18%), 94% identified a positive role model compared to 65% who did not (P=0.03).
Pulmonary Aspiration of Blood following Traumatic Laryngeal Mask Airway Insertion
Authors: Norton A. , Germonpré J. , Semple T.
Published: January 2019

An unusual and potentially life-threatening complication arising from a relatively common event—bleeding due to traumatic laryngeal mask insertion—is presented. It demonstrates that the laryngeal mask airway (LMA) cannot always be relied upon to protect the lower airway from upper airway bleeding.
Functional Upper Airway Obstruction
Authors: Norton A. , Roberton G.
Published: January 2019

Functional disorders of the vocal cords can present with acute, dramatic upper airway obstruction, with features mimicking asthma or functional dysphonia. We report the case of an eighteen-year-old female with acute airway obstruction initially misdiagnosed as asthma. Laryngoscopy, bronchoscopy and psychiatric assessment confirmed a diagnosis of functional disorder of the vocal cords. Although a diagnosis of exclusion, it must be borne in mind in order to reduce unnecessary medical therapy and surgical intervention. It is only with the correct diagnosis that patients can receive appropriate therapy.
Patient Evaluation and Comparison of the Recovery Profile between Propofol and Thiopentone as Induction Agents in Day Surgery
Authors: Kern C. , Weber A. , Aurilio C. , Forster A.
Published: January 2019

The patient's subjective perception of the quality of his/her recovery after day case anaesthesia with propofol or thiopentone as induction agents is still controversial. The authors investigated the perception and quality of awakening after anaesthesia during the recovery period and at 24 hours and 72 hours, in outpatients undergoing anaesthesia induced either with propofol or thiopentone and maintained with a volatile anaesthetic.

In a double-blind study in adults undergoing knee arthroscopy in a day surgery unit, propofol and thiopentone were compared as induction agents in 60 randomized outpatients. A Critical Flicker Fusion Threshold test (CFFT), verbal test for anxiety, visual analog scale for anxiety and pain, and questionnaires were used to assess objectively and subjectively the quality of anaesthesia and awakening during the postoperative period.

Demographic data and mean duration of anaesthesia were similar. In the propofol group, patients awoke more rapidly (9.2±5.8 vs 12.3±5.8 min) (P<0.05); however, the CFFT measurements did not show any significant difference between the groups, except at time=0 min, when 17 patients in the propofol group were able to perform the test versus only 10 patients in the thiopentone group (P<0.05). At 4, 24, and 72 hours postoperatively, the authors were unable to detect any difference between the two groups.

Except for early recovery, there were no differences between the intermediate and late recovery profiles, when propofol or thiopentone was used as the anaesthetic induction agent in day surgery.
Rhabdomyolysis following Severe Physical Exercise in a Patient with Predisposition to Malignant Hyperthermia
Authors: Köchling A. , Wappler F. , Winkler G. , Esch J. Schulte Am
Published: January 2019

A 21-year-old man suffered from exertional heat stroke with impaired consciousness and rhabdomyolysis after strenuous physical exercise. Within two weeks the patient recovered completely without any specific therapy. Based on the symptoms and laboratory investigations, this episode suggested a moderate form of malignant hyperthermia. An in vitro contracture test was performed and a predisposition to malignant hyperthermia was diagnosed; other muscular diseases were excluded by histological examination. At present, the in vitro contracture test is the only method used to determine susceptibility to malignant hyperthermia and should be performed when the diagnosis is suggested on clinical grounds.
Mivacurium Compared with Three Different Doses of Suxamethonium for Nasotracheal Intubation
Authors: Hodgson R. , Harvey P. , Burrows R.
Published: January 2019

Suxamethonium in the doses of 1.0, 0.5 and 0.25 mg/kg was compared with mivacurium 0.15 mg/kg in 80 patients requiring nasotracheal intubation for maxillofacial surgery in a double-blind randomized controlled trial. Anaesthesia was induced with thiopentone 5 mg/kg and alfentanil 15 μg/kg. Patients were randomly allocated to one of the four relaxant groups. Anaesthesia was maintained with enflurane in 70% nitrous oxide and 30% oxygen and analgesia provided with intravenous pethidine 0.5 to 1.5 mg/kg and rectal indomethacin 100mg. All patients given mivacurium or suxamethonium 1mg/kg had acceptable intubating conditions. Significantly fewer patients given suxamethonium 0.5 mg or 0.25 mg/kg had acceptable intubating conditions (90% and 70% respectively) (P=0.003). Poor intubating conditions requiring additional relaxation were seen in two patients given suxamethonium 0.25 mg/kg and two given 0.5 mg/kg, while no patients given suxamethonium 1.0 mg/kg or mivacurium 0.15 mg/kg required additional relaxation (P=0.004). Only four patients had postoperative myalgia, all of whom were given suxamethonium 0.5 mg/kg or more but no significant difference between groups could be demonstrated.
A Comparison of the Hamamatsu NIRO 500 and the INVOS 3100 Near-Infrared Spectrophotometers
Authors: Gomersall C. D. , Leung P. L. , Gin T. , Joynt G. M. , Young R. J. , Poon W. S. , Oh T. E.
Published: January 2019

Near-infrared spectroscopy is a technique used for non-invasive measurement of cerebral oxygenation and a number of commercial devices are currently available for use. We compared measurements of cerebral oxygenation made with two near-infrared spectrophotometers—the Somanetics Invos 3100 cerebral oximeter and the Hamamatsu NIRO-500 near-infrared spectrophotometer. Hypoxia was induced in six healthy male volunteers with and without occlusion of scalp blood flow. Oxygen saturation, end-tidal carbon dioxide tension, regional cerebral oxygen saturation, change in regional cerebral oxyhaemoglobin concentration and change in regional cerebral total haemoglobin concentration were measured. The INVOS 3100 displays cerebral oxygen saturation directly. The NIRO-500 displays change in total haemoglobin concentration and oxyhaemoglobin concentration, and the cerebral oxygen saturation was calculated offline. Statistical analysis disproved the assumption that the INVOS 3100 and the NIRO-500 were measuring the same changes in cerebral oxygenation. Neither machine can be confirmed for reliability against a gold standard and operational difficulties mean that neither can be recommended for routine clinical use.
The Role of Preoperative Cervical Spine X-rays in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Authors: Kwek T. K. , Lew T. W. K. , Thoo F. L.
Published: January 2019

The cervical spine is frequently involved in rheumatoid arthritis and yet there exists no consensus on the need to screen for cervical spine subluxations preoperatively. We reviewed retrospectively 77 patients who underwent 132 operations under general or regional anaesthesia over a 44-month period.

We found that while the majority of patients had received preoperative X-ray screening for cervical spine instability, a third of the X-ray examinations done had been inadequate. Many anaesthetists did not repeat cervical spine X-rays if there were previously performed views available. We showed that a complete X-ray examination of the cervical spine should include flexion and extension stress views in addition to frontal views of the odontoid and entire cervical spine. Anterior atlantoaxial subluxation was the most common subluxation encountered in our study population. The detection of cervical spine instability was found to significantly affect anaesthetic management, favouring techniques that avoided unprotected manipulations of the neck under anaesthesia.
Multiple Cranial Nerve Palsies Complicating Retrobulbar Eye Block
Authors: Jackson K. , Vote D.
Published: January 2019

This report details a case of accidental brainstem anaesthesia complicating retrobulbar block for cataract surgery in an 83-year-old man. Prompt diagnosis and treatment resulted in a successful outcome. The many possible presentations of brainstem anaesthesia are described and causative mechanisms are discussed.
Protection from Diaphragmatic Fatigue by Nitric Oxide Synthase Inhibitor in Dogs
Authors: Fujii Y. , Takahashi S. , Toyooka H.
Published: January 2019

The role of endogenous nitric oxide (NO) in producing diaphragmatic fatigue was examined in 26 anaesthetized, mechanically ventilated dogs divided into four groups. In Group la (n=5), dogs without fatigue received only Ringer's lactate solution. In Group lb (n=5), dogs without fatigue were given IV L-arginine analog Nω-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) 10 mg.kg-1 to inhibit NO synthase (NOS). Groups Ila and lib (n=8 of each) received the same doses of IV lactate and L-NAME as Groups la and lb effectively. Following administration of the IVsolution, diaphragmatic fatigue was induced by intermittent supramaximal bilateral electrophrenic stimulation at a frequency of 20 Hz applied for 30 min. Diaphragmatic contractility was assessed in each group by measuring transdiaphragmatic pressure (Pdi). No difference in Pdi was observed between Groups Ia and Ib. After the fatigue-producing period, in Group IIa, Pdi at low-frequency (20 Hz) stimulation decreased from the pre-fatigued values (P<0.05), whereas Pdi at high-frequency (100 Hz) stimulation did not change. In Group IIb, given L-NAME before producing fatigue, Pdi at both stimuli did not change. In conclusion, L-NAME inhibits the production of diaphragmatic fatigue. This finding suggests that endogenous NO plays an important role in producing diaphragmatic fatigue.
The Need for Undergraduate Education in Critical Care. (Results of a Questionnaire to Year 6 Medical Undergraduates, University of New South Wales and Recommendations on a Curriculum in Critical Care)
Authors: Harrison G. A. , Hillman K. M. , Fulde G. W. O. , Jacques T. C.
Published: January 2019

One hundred and fifteen final year medical students of the University of New South Wales (UNSW) who were gathered together for mid-year lectures were asked to respond to a questionnaire which sought their perceptions of their knowledge of and competence in those skills required to prevent loss of life of patients with acute reversible life-threatening illnesses.

There were 101 responders (88% response rate). A high proportion of students lacked practical experience of many of the skills or had not witnessed some procedures. They lacked confidence in their ability to manage acute emergencies. The results were similar to those in a separate study of the perceptions of New South Wales interns and resident medical officers of their competencies at the beginning of their intern year.

The authors concluded that undergraduate education in critical care had not kept pace with the rapid evolution of critical care practice and describe the development and implementation of an explicit vertical and horizontal curriculum of critical care in the undergraduate curriculum of the UNSW.
Unusual Cause of Intraoperative Hypotension Diagnosed with Transoesophageal Echocardiography in a Patient with Renal Cell Carcinoma
Authors: Plowman A. N. , Bolsin S. N. , Patrick A. J.
Published: January 2019

Transoesophageal echocardiography (TOE) is not commonly used in the management of non-cardiac cases. We report a case where the use of TOE played a major role in the intraoperative diagnosis and subsequent management of a patient exhibiting severe hypotension whilst undergoing a nephrectomy. The rare diagnosis of a secondary intraventricular tumour would not have been evident with more conventional monitoring techniques.
Anaesthesia for Caesarean Section in a Patient with an Intracranial Arteriovenous Malformation
Authors: Yih P. S. W. , Cheong K. F.
Published: January 2019

Intracranial haemorrhage from an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) during pregnancy is rare but may result in significant maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. In the untreated patient with an AVM, the best mode of delivery remains debatable with most obstetricians preferring a caesarean section in order to avoid Valsalva manoeuvres associated with vaginal delivery. We describe the administration of epidural anaesthesia for such a parturient undergoing Caesarean section and the anaesthetic implications.
Anaesthetic Breathing Circuit Obstruction Due to Blockage of Tracheal Tube Connector by a Foreign Body—Two Cases
Authors: Foreman M. J. , Moyes D. G.
Published: January 2019

Two cases are presented which illustrate the disastrous consequences possible when an anaesthetic breathing circuit is obstructed by a foreign body. Despite reports of previous similar cases, work practices and equipment manufacture or design continue to allow for such events to occur. The importance of both pre-anaesthetic testing of the entire circuit including attachments such as the tracheal tube connector and filters, and the removal of these parts should obstruction occur, is emphasised. Use of “clear” transparent breathing circuit components and opaque or brightly coloured packaging and caps which could potentially cause obstruction should decrease the incidence and facilitate the diagnosis of this problem.
Simvastatin With PRP Promotes Chondrogenesis of Bone Marrow Stem Cells In Vitro and Wounded Rat Achilles Tendon–Bone Interface Healing In Vivo
Authors: Zhang Ying , Yu Jing , Zhang Jiefeng , Hua Yongxin
Published: January 2019

Background:

Tendons and ligaments are joined to bone in a specialized interface that transmits force from muscle to bone and permits body movement. Tendon/ligament injuries always occur in the interface areas, and injured tendons/ligaments have a limited healing response because the insertion site is composed of a fibrocartilaginous zone.

Purpose:

To study the effect of simvastatin with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on chondrogenesis of rat bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) in vitro and wounded rat Achilles tendon–bone interface healing in vivo.

Study Design:

Controlled laboratory study.

Methods:

The in vitro model was performed by the culture of rat BMSCs with various concentrations of simvastatin (0, 10, 50, 100 nM) for 2 weeks. The effect of simvastatin on the chondrogenic differentiation of the BMSCs was examined by histochemical analysis and real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The in vivo model was carried out by testing the healing effect of simvastatin with PRP on 12 wounded rat Achilles tendon–bone interfaces.

Results:

Simvastatin induced chondrogenic differentiation of rat BMSCs in a concentration-dependent manner as evidenced by histological staining and real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The wounds treated with simvastatin alone or with simvastatin-containing PRP gel healed much faster than the wounds treated with saline alone or PRP alone. Histological analysis showed that higher percentages of healed tissues were positively stained with safranin O and fast green in wounds treated with simvastatin-containing PRP gel than in the other 3 groups. Immunohistochemical analysis further demonstrated these findings, as evidenced by more positively stained healed tissues with collagen I and II antibodies in the wound areas treated with simvastatin-containing PRP gel than the other 3 groups.

Conclusion:

The combination of simvastatin with PRP induced chondrogenesis of BMSCs in vitro and enhanced fibrocartilage formation in vivo. The simvastatin–PRP gel treatment promotes wounded tendon-bone interface healing in clinical treatment.

Clinical Relevance:

The combination of simvastatin with PRP may be a good clinical treatment for wounded tendon/ligament junction healing, especially for acute sports-related tendon/ligament injuries.
Manager effectiveness, employee engagement, and client-based organizational outcomes in a mental health setting
Authors: Prince Pamela N. , Mihalicz Dwight W.
Published: January 2019

Employee engagement is seen as an important aspect of organizational outcomes in health settings. In this article, the authors explore the importance of manager effectiveness in the creation and reinforcement of employee engagement. Using a naturalistic retrospective study approach, the relationships between manager training, managerial leadership activities, employee satisfaction, and organization outcomes are explored. Although directionality cannot be assumed, the three measures of managerial effectiveness, employee engagement, and client-based organizational outcomes all show positive results over a 4-year period after an investment in key initiatives to improve manager effectiveness.
Comparing the Acute Presentation of Sport-Related Concussion in the Pediatric and Adult Populations
Authors: Corti Sandro J. , Pizzimenti Natalie M. , McCarthy Matthew T. , Essad Kate M. , Kutcher Jeffrey S.
Published: January 2019

Despite growing research on concussion, there is minimal evidence comparing the acute presentation of concussion between pediatric and adult patients. This cross-sectional study compares injury characteristics, symptoms, and neurologic examination in sport-related concussion based on age. Patients presenting to an outpatient sports neurology clinic for initial assessment of concussion within 7 days of injury were divided into 2 groups, 18 and older (n = 28) and 17 and younger (n = 107). There were no significant differences between pediatric and adult patients in any score of the Sport Concussion Assessment Tool–3rd Edition symptom scale, neurologic examination category, pertinent elements of past medical history, or characteristics of the concussion. The pediatric group had higher average hours of sleep (8.1 ± 0.3 vs 7.1 ± 0.58; P = .03) and were less likely to wake refreshed (36.3% vs 65%; P = .02). The initial presentation of concussion within 7 days of injury will likely not differ by age, specifically 18 and older versus 17 and younger.
Feasibility, Reliability, Responsiveness, and Validity of the Patient-Reported Functional Scale for the Intensive Care Unit: A Pilot Study
Authors: Reid Julie C. , Clarke France , Cook Deborah J. , Molloy Alexander , Rudkowski Jill C. , Stratford Paul , Kho Michelle E.
Published: January 2019

Background:

Although many performance-based measures assess patients’ physical function in intensive care unit (ICU) survivors, to our knowledge, there are no patient-reported ICU rehabilitation-specific measures assessing function. We developed the Patient-Reported Functional Scale-ICU (PRFS-ICU), which measures patients’ perceptions of their ability to perform 6 activities (rolling, sitting edge of bed, sit-to-stand and bed-to-chair transfers, ambulation, and stair climbing). Each item is scored from 0 (unable) to 10 (able to perform at pre-ICU level) to a maximum of 60.

Objectives:

Estimate the feasibility, reliability, responsiveness, and validity of the PRFS-ICU.

Methods:

This was a substudy of TryCYCLE, a single-center, prospective cohort examining the safety and feasibility of early in-bed cycling with mechanically ventilated patients (NCT01885442). To determine feasibility, we calculated the number of patients with at least 1 PRFS-ICU assessment during their hospital stay. To assess reliability, 2 raters blinded to each other’s assessments administered the PRFS-ICU within 24-hours of each other. We calculated the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC; 95% confidence interval [CI]), standard error of measurement (SEM, 95% CI), and minimal detectable change (MDC90). To assess validity, we estimated convergent validity of the PRFS-ICU with the Functional Status Score for ICU (FSS-ICU), Medical Research Council Sum Score (MRC-SS), Physical Function Test for ICU (PFIT-s), Katz Index of Independence in Activities of Daily Living (Katz ADLs), and a pooled index using Pearson's correlation coefficient ( r, 95% CI).

Results:

Feasibility: 20 patients completed a PRFS-ICU assessment. Reliability and responsiveness: 16 patients contributed data. The ICC, SEM, and MDC90 were 0.91 (0.76, 0.97), 4.75 (3.51, 7.35), and 11.04 points, respectively. Validity: 19 patients contributed data and correlations were ( r [95% CI]): FSS-ICU (0.40 [−0.14, 0.76]), MRC-SS (0.51 [0.02, 0.80]), PFIT-s (0.43 [−0.13, 0.78]), Katz ADLs (0.53 [0.10, 0.79]), and pooled index (0.48 [−0.14, 0.82]).

Conclusions:

Our pilot work suggests the PRFS-ICU may be a useful tool to assess and monitor patients’ perceptions of function over time.
An Ecological Perspective on Youth Career Education in Transitioning Societies: China as an Example
Authors: Xie Dong , Kong Ning , Skaggs Sydney , Yang Anbo
Published: January 2019

Contextual factors have received increased attention in understanding the challenges and difficulties in translating career education and career guidance services from Western societies to non-Western societies, many of which are undertaking a shift from a socialist and collectivistic system to a more individualistic one. In this article, using China as an example, we discussed the contextual factors in different ecological systems, such as economical, educational, and sociocultural, and how they may facilitate or impede youth career education in a transitioning society. We reviewed a career education program in a Chinese senior middle school to illustrate such impacts. Additionally, we proposed strategies for further development of youth career education in China as well as in other countries with similar transitions. We introduced a framework of a diversified concept of career and several context-resonant career development theories to be considered in guiding youth career education programs in these transitioning societies.
Are Blacks at Higher Risk for Vancomycin-Related Acute Kidney Injury?
Authors: Sharma Mamta , Braekevelt Kaylin , Kale-Pradhan Pramodini , Szpunar Susan , Khatib Riad
Published: January 2019

Background:

Black individuals have a higher lifetime risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) and chronic kidney disease than whites. Vancomycin has a potential for nephrotoxicity. The objective of this study was to determine whether the incidence of AKI among patients being treated with vancomycin differs by race.

Methods:

Retrospective study of adult (3 ≥18 years) inpatients who were on vancomycin for 348 hours between January 2012 and December 2014. Data on demographics, comorbid conditions, clinical characteristics, vancomycin dose, duration, and nephrotoxic drugs were collected. Patients with a creatinine clearance <30 mL/min or undergoing dialysis were excluded.

Results:

We identified 1130 patients during the study period; 48.1% (544) were black. The overall incidence of AKI was 8.2% (10.1% blacks, 6.5% whites; P = .03). Independent predictors of AKI included black race ( P = .011); higher Charlson score ( P = .006); higher body mass index (BMI; P = .002); higher vancomycin trough level ( P < .0001); and sepsis/systemic inflammatory response syndrome (<.0001), pneumonia ( P = .001) or gastrointestinal/genitourinary ( P = .025) as the source of infection.

Conclusion:

The incidence of vancomycin-related AKI was higher in blacks, independent of other risk factors. Based on our study, vancomycin trough levels and renal function need to be closely monitored in blacks.
Conceptually Rich, Perceptually Sparse: Object Representations in 6-Month-Old Infants’ Working Memory
Authors: Kibbe Melissa M. , Leslie Alan M.
Published: January 2019

Six-month-old infants can store representations of multiple objects in working memory but do not always remember the objects’ features (e.g., shape). Here, we asked whether infants’ object representations (a) may contain conceptual content and (b) may contain this content even if perceptual features are forgotten. We hid two conceptually distinct objects (a humanlike doll and a nonhuman ball) one at a time in two separate locations and then tested infants’ memory for the first-hidden object by revealing either the original hidden object or an unexpected other object. Using looking time, we found that infants remembered the categorical identity of the hidden object but failed to remember its perceptual identity. Our results suggest that young infants may encode conceptual category in a representation of an occluded object, even when perceptual features are lost.
From Spirituality Everything is Connected: Revolutions for Living with Equity and Eco-justice
Authors: Cano Silvia Martinez
Published: January 2019

Everything is connected, from galaxies to the smallest particles in our bodies. We need an interpretation of reality that allows us to see the whole as well as the Whole. This new view is a holistic spirituality that experiences God in the whole of life. It is necessary to make an effort to abandon elements that contaminate global life, because they originate in an anthropology of power-submission, man-woman, human-nature, consumption-participation, exploitation-cooperation… that justifies the exploitation of nature and of human beings. We need to move from the devouring anthropocentrism we live in to a life-centred worldview. This article reflects on reality as an organic whole, the body of God. Reality is a creative, collective, dynamic and diverse ‘body’ that we must care for with equity and eco-justice. Our actions must be oriented towards the practice of God’s justice in the bodies and lives of women. Thus, we will recover the balance of this world.
The Development and Validation of the Organizational Effectiveness Scale Using Confirmatory Factor Analysis
Authors: Tayal Ritu , Upadhyay Rajesh Kumar , Yadav Mohit , Singh Reena
Published: January 2019

The purpose of this article is to conceptualize, develop and validate a scale for measuring organizational effectiveness (OE). The methodology comprises of the extant literature review of studies conducted on scale construction of OE. In the exploratory phase, 11 baseline dimensions of OE were established which was followed by the qualitative study in order to determine the items contributing to these factors. The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to validate the scale by using the data generated from 353 bank employees. Additionally, OE has been specified as a second-order factor, measured by its 11 first-order factors. CFA model fit indicators for the proposed scale were found good according to the recommended values. The scale exhibited inclusive psychometric properties as per the results from the varied reliability and validity checks. Also, the second-order measurement model suggested OE to be most affected by ‘organization innovation’. Factors considered for OE while designing the research instrument are the guidelines for the management which cater the organization at the individual level.
Afghanistan’s Political Future and Its Role in Eurasian Cooperation
Authors: Safranchuk Ivan
Published: January 2019

While it is widely admitted that Afghanistan can contribute to connectivity in Eurasia, one may not also deny that Afghanistan’s regional role is dependent on regional conditions. This article takes Afghanistan’s security and geostrategic trends in Eurasia as the two major variables, defining conditions for Afghanistan’s regional role. They are reviewed and then synthesised as dependent and independent variables to form taxonomy of possible regional roles for Afghanistan.
Towards the end of mutual trust? Prison conditions in the context of the European Arrest Warrant and the transfer of prisoners framework decisions
Authors: Marguery TP
Published: January 2019

This article contends that the presumption of mutual trust between the European Union Member States is a legal fiction. In the context of transfer of a custodial sentence from one country to another based on mutual recognition and mutual trust, a failure of the latter can have detrimental effects on judicial cooperation and, especially, on the functions of punishment. In particular, mutual recognition and mutual trust create a bridge between the external limits of punishment (fundamental rights) and the internal limits to the functions of punishment (retribution, deterrence and rehabilitation). The non-compliance with individuals’ fundamental rights undermines the very social functions of punishment. Such a failure can only be prevented if the Member States and the European Union endeavour to establish and maintain a truly integrated penal policy with concerns for individuals at its very core.
The Short Tenure of a Woman Superintendent: A Clash of Gender and Politics
Authors: Grogan Margaret
Published: January 2019

This article reports the two-year tenure of a woman superintendent in a small southern city. Placed against the background of local community politics and school district politics it shows that women in the superintendency still face issues of gender stereotyping that influence the way they are perceived as leaders of school systems. A feminist poststructuralist framework is used to understand how the various subject positions available to women collide with the discourse of the superintendency. It is recommended that women leaders resist the images that have been traditionally reserved for them and begin to reinvent the superintendency on their own terms.
Quality Management in U.S. High Schools: Evidence from the Field,
Authors: Detert James R. , Kopel Michelle E. Bauerly , Mauriel John J. , Jenni Roger W.
Published: January 2019

This article reports on the first stages of a longitudinal study examining the implementation of a reform effort in high schools known as Quality Management (QM). Quality Management is defined as the use of the following seven practices: continuous improvement, customer focus, systems thinking, leadership, studying and evaluating processes, data-based decision making, and training. Interview and survey data from a national sample of purposively chosen high schools show limited results in terms of the effective use and institutionalization of the seven Quality practices by classroom teachers, though the lessons learned and examples of best practices are instructive. Contextual factors that aid or inhibit the implementation QM practices are identified and explicated. The findings provide insight into the implementation of systemic school reform efforts, with particular emphasis on the critical leadership role of principals.
Teachers Serving on School Decision-Making Councils: Predictors of Teacher Attraction to the Job
Authors: Winter Paul A. , Keedy John L. , Newton Rose Mary
Published: January 2019

School reformers maintain that teacher service on school councils contributes to improved school decision making. There is, however, little empirical evidence that teachers are attracted to serving on school councils. In this study, randomly selected teachers (N = 318) from a reform state rated validated job descriptions for school council vacancies. Teachers with greater numbers of dependent children and prior school council experience rated school council positions more negatively than did teachers with fewer dependent children and no experience on school councils. Regression analysis revealed number of dependent children and school council experience explained 6.8% of the variance in teacher rating of a school council position. Results have implications for teacher attraction to school councils.
Voices from the Field Creating a School for David: A Principal's Narrative
Authors: Perry Eleanor A.
Published: January 2019

This article recounts my year-long journey as a principal to pull a school community together. Specifically, I describe my school's use of two Organization Development problem solving strategies to alter the norms of the culture and guide the community through planned change for purposes of improved student achievement. I describe how the strategies of S-T-P (Situation-Target-Plan) and FFA (Force Field Analysis) were applied within a model that integrated staff development, Organization Development, and action research. I conclude by reflecting how my practitioner experiences and my own administrative training directly influenced the way I now prepare aspiring administrators.
White Racism, Antiracism, and School Leadership Preparation
Authors: Young Michelle D. , Laible Julie
Published: January 2019

This article emerges from a belief that an overwhelming majority of White school leaders do not have a thorough enough understanding of White racism or the ways in which they are perpetuating White racism in their schools, even though most are well-meaning individuals. The lack of understanding or awareness of different forms of racism and how White racism works is highly problematic. Indeed, it has appalling consequences, detrimentally impacting the lives and dreams of millions of children. In this article, we draw from both literature and experience to argue for the incorporation of antiracism in school leadership programs. We begin with the assertion that because Educational Administration programs function as important agents of socialization for our future school leaders, White racism in all its manifestations must be confronted in these programs. After building the case that racism is enacted by teachers and administrators in schools and demonstrating the harmful effects of White racism on both children and adults, we argue that racism is not being adequately addressed in educational administration programs. Subsequently, we offer guidance to our readers for promoting antiracism among future educational leaders.
Educational Policy in a Media-Driven Age: The Rise of PRolicy
Authors: Lugg Catherine A.
Published: January 2019

This article analyzes the rise of PRolicy (Public Relations public policy), as it relates to educational policy, by examining the first Reagan administration and its use of media manipulation to shape public perceptions of its educational policy agendas. The article explores how PRolicy shapes both educational policy and strengthens borders and uses the legacy of the first Reagan administration as an example that continues to affect current educational policy. The article concludes with a discussion of PRolicy and implications for educational policy researchers, teachers, and administrators.
A Transforming Process in Honduras: Implementing Service Learning with Privileged Children
Authors: Jorgenson Olaf
Published: January 2019

As a very poor developing country, Honduras offers unlimited opportunities for service learning. In one Honduran bicultural school, service learning has taken hold as part of the school's culture. The transformational potential of service learning among privileged children in developing countries is pronounced, as in our case these individuals will likely become the political, economic, and social leaders of Honduras, and will literally shape its future.
Equity and Excellence: The Effect of School and Sociodemographic Variables on Student Achievement
Authors: Munoz Marco A. , Dossett Dena
Published: January 2019

The purpose of this analysis was to examine issues of equity and excellence by means of exploring the relevance of school and sociodemographic variables on student performance in a large county of Kentucky. The study was correlational in nature. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to identify the predictors of student achievement for the last four years. The predictors included school and sociodemographic variables. The dependent variable was operationalized using school scores on a standardized test, the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills (CTBS). Previous research suggesting that poverty is the best predictor of educational outcomes was supported, but other variables were also found to be significant. Implications for policy and administrative practice are discussed.
Promoting Social Justice and Caring in Schools and Communities: The Unrealized Potential of the Cohort Model
Authors: Horn Raymond A.
Published: January 2019

The problem of the efficacy of educational leadership as a promoter of just and caring change in schools and communities is explored in the context of educational leadership preparation practices. An exploration of this problem is based on the premise that despite the use of innovative instructional methods, in most cases current preparation programs merely reproduce the use of modernistic administrative practices and organizational structures. Here, the cohort model is identified as a means to promote just, caring, and relevant educational leadership. After a review of the benefits, drawbacks, and the nature of the use of cohorts in leadership preparation programs, a cohort structure is examined that will prepare educational leaders who are able to promote just and caring change in our postmodern communities.
Organizational Citizenship Behavior in Schools and Its Relationship to School Climate
Authors: Dipaola Michael , Tschannen-Moran Megan
Published: January 2019

Within effective organizations employees often go beyond formal job responsibilities, performing nonmandatory tasks with no expectation of recognition or compensation. Therefore, it is important to learn more about how organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) can be cultivated. In this study a new measure of OCB, which is useful in exploring how this construct functions in K–12 schools, was developed. Data were collected in two separate samples and confirmed that this new measure was reasonably valid and reliable. Further testing explored whether the two-factor structure found in other organizational contexts held in public school settings. A significant relationship was found between OCB and school climate. Implications of these findings and directions for further research are discussed.
School Uniform Policies: Students’ Views of Effectiveness
Authors: Mccarthy Teresa M. , Moreno Josephine
Published: January 2019

Nurturing Schools literature advises considering students’ voices to help determine the influence of policies on cognitive, social, emotional, and ethical intellectual growth. This study employed focus group interviews with middle school students to determine their perceptions of their school uniform policy's effectiveness. Self-esteem issues as well as students’ opinions of uniform colors, branded apparel, and inconsistent enforcement of the uniform policy reflected views that contradicted administrators’ goals for wearing uniforms. Research questions are offered to guide development of a standard measure of student opinions of school uniforms and raise awareness of issues to be addressed when considering a uniform policy.
The Penetration of Educational Leadership Texts by Revelation and Prophecy: The Case of Stephen R. Covey
Authors: English Fenwick W.
Published: January 2019

The writings of Stephen R. Covey and his best-selling work, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, are beginning to be included in a broad range of texts marketed to educational leaders, including textbooks for the formal preparation of school administrators at the university level. Despite its unprecedented popularity, Covey's work is not research based nor is it scientific. Its epistemological claims are grounded in Christian prophecy and revelation. Covey's work neglects to meet even the most minimal standards of academic scholarship and should not be the content of any curriculum that professes to be based on empirically verified science. As long as educational practitioners and professors of educational administration remain unaware of the deeply metaphysical nature of Covey's works, they will continue to mistake or substitute revelation and prophecy for science. In so doing they run the risk of forfeiting claims about the “scientific preparation” of educational administrators, which has long been the hallmark of professional schools.
Leadership and Special Education: A Study of Power Shifts
Authors: Doyle Lynn H.
Published: January 2019

The reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) signals dramatic changes for all facets of education. This autoethnography investigates the diagnostic and placement practices in an urban school district. Analysis revealed that although the reauthorization of IDEA opens the door to transformation, educators in this study interpreted the law in ways that constrained their work. Discussion focuses on how administrators and staff members who understand the intentions of the reauthorized IDEA might view it less as a mandate and more as an opportunity to shift power.
The Complexity of Poverty: A Missing Component of Educational Leadership Programs
Authors: Lyman Linda L. , Villani Christine J.
Published: January 2019

National survey results indicate that understanding the complexity of poverty and its effects is not a major social justice component of educational leadership programs. Authors present and discuss survey respondents’ perceptions of: importance of understanding poverty, evidence of program emphasis, areas of program emphasis, attitudes toward causes of poverty, and program themes. Embedded in the discussion is a description of a learning activity that has enhanced students’ understanding of the complexity of poverty. The widely recognized learning and achievement gap for poor and minority students creates a need and an opportunity for increased attention to poverty and other social justice issues in educational leadership programs.
From the Desk of the Middle School Principal: Leadership Responsive to the Needs of Young Adolescents
Authors: Brown Kathleen M. , Anfara Vincent A. , Gross Steven J.
Published: January 2019

Beyond their own walls, middle schools are having a profound effect on the entire range of American schooling, K–12. However, the recent indictments of student achievement at the middle level (TIMSS, NAEP) have increased attention on middle schools in general, and leadership in particular. What are the essential skills and knowledge that are necessary to effectively administer a middle school in the new millennium? The purpose of this research is dedicated to discovering and highlighting the qualities of effective leadership from the perspectives of the principals themselves—“in their own words.” As a result of the data analysis, a model of leadership grounded in the concept of “developmental responsiveness” has emerged. This new paradigm is examined within the context of school improvement and is compared to what the literature and professional organizations identify as necessary characteristics.
School Leadership Reforms: Filtering Social Justice through Dominant Discourses
Authors: Marshall Catherine , Mccarthy Martha
Published: January 2019

Do administrative licensure policy reforms address social justice concerns? By analyzing the policy discourse (in interviews and documents) in Indiana and North Carolina, this article shows that policy actors believe the focus on heightened standards will raise the quality of leadership candidates. In turn, they believe that this focus on quality will address diversity, achievement gaps, and other equity issues. However, they are concerned about whether higher education can and will adequately implement the needed curricular practices. The complexities of administrator shortages, budget shortfalls, and high-stakes testing complicate implementation of reforms in leadership preparation. By focusing on social justice, this analysis reveals ways in which the two states’ policy actions have treated equity and social justice as components of quality.
Two Women High School Principals: The Influence of Gender on Entry into Education and their Professional Lives
Authors: Lad Kaetlyn
Published: January 2019

This study explores the influences of being female on the lives of two women high school principals. The study focuses on how being female influenced their career choices and subsequent professional lives. The data presented are a subset of a larger set of data collected during a case study. The data indicate that career choices, behavior expectations and treatment, career advancement, and time demands are ways in which being female influenced them in their professional lives. Recommendations are made as to how the principalship might be restructured to attract more women (and men) to aspire to be high school principals.
Professing Educational Leadership: Conceptions of Power
Authors: Brunner C. Cryss
Published: January 2019

This article focuses on power, its conception, and its enactment during decision making. Its purpose is to lay the groundwork for the intentional infusion into educational leadership preparation programs of classroom experiences that develop, encourage, and support leaders who attend to social justice issues while making decisions related to children. The article begins with a discussion of two modern conceptions of power and a mixed version of the two, followed by an exploration of the relationship between conceptions of power and the enactment of power in decision making. The second part of the article is in the form of a case that has been designed to draw attention to some of the difficulties administrators encounter when they try to understand and use power with others rather than over others. The case study is based on actual events that have occurred in public school settings. The final part of the article contains a self-reflective experience designed to facilitate the exploration of an individual's conceptualization of the term power.
“Color-Blind” Leadership and Intergroup Conflict
Authors: Mabokela Reitumetse Obakeng , Madsen Jean A.
Published: January 2019

Educational organizations that reflect a diversity of class, gender, socioeconomic status, and nationality in their membership establish a complex set of interactions that have implications for how groups are formed. The study on which this article is based examines the responses of principals to intergroup conflict that occurred as a result of cultural incongruities between teachers of color and European American participants in desegregated suburban schools. In schools, intergroup theory applies to school participants because of the nature of the organizational context between identity and organizational groups. The principal plays a critical role in creating an inclusive environment that determines how groups are formed, the emotional climate of the workplace, and how roles are structured. Because U.S. schools serve a more diverse student population with a greater need to recruit teachers of color than ever before, principals must be aware of the challenges in leading a varied group of followers.