bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The duality in using information and communication technology in elder care
Authors: Sävenstedt Stefan , Sandman P.O. , Zingmark Karin 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  The aim of this paper is to report a study illuminating values and perceptions held by professional carers of older people about the use of information and communication technology applications.Background.  Various information and communication technology applications have successfully been developed to help solve a variety of problems in elder care. Beside different technical barriers and the assumed negative attitudes among older people, staff values and attitudes have been found to be an important cause of resistance to change and slowness in introduction of information and communication technology in health care of older people.Methods.  An interview study was conducted in 2004 with 10 healthcare personnel with 3–26 years experience of working in home care and nursing homes in Northern Sweden. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify recurring themes in the data.Results.  The interpretation of values and perceptions among carers revealed a duality where the carers perceived information and communication technology as a promoter of both inhumane and humane care, a duality that seemed to make them defensive and resistant to change. Within the overall duality, other dualities were embedded that described both perceptions about the care of older people and about being a carer. There was evidence of resistance among professional carers towards an introduction of information and communication technology applications in elder care. Carers considered that the same attributes of information and communication technology that could promote humane care could also lead to dehumanized care.Conclusion.  There should be an ethical discussion when introducing information and communication technology applications in elder care. The best caring alternative for all those concerned should be considered. It should promote aspects of wellbeing and dignity for frail older people and fears of inhumane care among carers must be recognized and discussed.
Effects of an osteoporosis educational programme for men
Authors: Tung W. C. , Lee Iris F. K. 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  This paper reports an evaluation of the effects on knowledge, health beliefs and preventive behaviours of an osteoporosis educational programme for men.Background.  Osteoporosis is an increasing global health concern, and educational programmes have been identified as a crucial strategy in its prevention. However, the effectiveness of osteoporosis educational programmes has mainly been evaluated in women.Methods.  A randomized controlled trial was carried out to identify the effects of an osteoporosis educational programme for men. The study was conducted between September 2004 to February 2005, and 128 Hong Kong Chinese men were randomly assigned to an intervention or control group, with 64 in each group. The intervention group attended an osteoporosis educational programme. All participants completed pre‐ and post‐test self‐administered questionnaires: Osteoporosis Knowledge Test, Osteoporosis Health Belief Scale and Osteoporosis Self‐Efficacy Scale.Results.  The intervention group showed a statistically significant increase in both knowledge (P < 0·0005) and health beliefs (P = 0·007) about osteoporosis and preventive behaviours in comparison with the control group. However, the difference in self‐efficacy between the two groups was not statistically significant (P = 0·154).Conclusions.  An osteoporosis educational programme can increase men's knowledge levels and change their health beliefs about osteoporosis and preventive behaviours. This approach should be more widely used in nursing practice to promoting the adoption of osteoporosis prevention behaviours in men.
Caregiver bodywork: family members’ experiences of caring for a person with motor neurone disease
Authors: Ray Robin A. , Street Annette F. 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  This paper reports a study of how family members caring for people living with motor neurone disease managed the deteriorating body, their own bodywork and the associated emotional labour.Background.  People living with the neurodegenerative condition of motor neurone disease face the prospect of dying in 3–5 years from progressive loss of voluntary muscle mass and function, culminating in respiratory failure. Theories concerning the body in illness have been used to illustrate patient perspectives; however, family caregivers’ experiences of the body have been neglected.Method.  An ethnographic case study was undertaken with 18 primary family caregivers and six peripheral caregivers. Primary caregivers participated over 10 months in three face‐to‐face, semi‐structured interviews which included mapping their support networks using ecomaps. Observational data were also recorded as field notes. Peripheral caregivers were interviewed once during the same time period. The data were generated between 2003 and 2004.Findings.  Informal caregiving requires engagement in various aspects of bodywork. Three body concepts were identified: the visible body – how the disease affected the patient and caregivers; the dependent body – the resulting care requirements; and the social body – how living with motor neurone disease affected their social support networks. The visible body is a continual reminder of the ravages of the disease, while the dependent body demands physical and emotional care. Social interactions decline over time, depriving family caregivers of the much needed support for sustaining their commitment to the bodywork required in caregiving.Conclusion.  The demands of bodywork for family caregivers are increased by the continual presence of emotional labour as they seek to implement the best way to support their relative with motor neurone disease. Nurses and allied healthcare workers need to assess each family situation, asking appropriate questions to establish the most appropriate interventions to facilitate supportive care.
Triangulation of qualitative approaches: hermeneutical phenomenology and grounded theory
Authors: Annells Merilyn 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  In this paper, suggestions are offered about the appropriate use of hermeneutic phenomenology and grounded theory in one study.Background.  As an alternative to selecting only one qualitative research approach to illuminate a topic of interest about which little is known, two qualitative approaches could be used in a study. Fear of ‘method slurring’ may prevent this alternative being used. Occasionally, however, credible qualitative researchers have advocated using various research approaches in one study, for example using hermeneutical phenomenology and grounded theory in triangulation. However, if pursuing this direction, several advances in thinking about using qualitative research approaches should be considered.Discussion.  An experience is presented of deciding to use grounded theory and hermeneutic phenomenology in one study. Cautions, practical considerations and alternative options are offered for using these approaches in one study, and the implications of some other possible ways to ‘triangulate’ qualitative approaches are discussed.Conclusion.  Different research approaches can be creatively and successfully used in one study if there has been adequate consideration of vital factors that determine if there is a good ‘fit’ of the approaches not only with the research problem and question, but also with each other, while also maintaining the integrity of each approach.
Teaching critical reflection skills for advanced mental health nursing practice: a deconstructive–reconstructive approach
Authors: Crowe Marie T. , O'Malley Jane 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  This paper presents a literature review conducted to establish what was already known about critical reflection in the nursing literature and what work had been done on using a critical social theory framework as the basis for critical reflection.Background.  Critical thinking emerged as a significant aspect of nursing education and practice in the late 1980s. It has been promoted as a means by which issues in clinical practice can be examined through a systematic process of exploration and reasoning. Traditionally, critical thinking has commonly involved an attempt to link practice with theory using a scenario or exemplar from practice to illustrate a practice dilemma. This process is often constructed as a retrospective narrative of events. This paper provides a deconstructive–reconstructive approach that differs from some traditional approaches by taking a critical social theory perspective with an emphasis on improving practice.Methods.  The nursing literature reviewed was accessed through Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL). The search was restricted to English language and published between 1995 and 2005. Based on these findings, we developed a postgraduate advanced mental health nursing programme.Findings.  There were 490 articles related to ‘nursing’ and ‘critical thinking’; 34 articles related to ‘nursing’ and ‘critical reflection’; 23 articles related to ‘nursing’ and ‘critical social theory’; 15 articles related to ‘mental health nursing’ and ‘critical thinking’; and two articles related to ‘mental health nursing’ and ‘critical reflection’. In the programme we developed based on these findings, students were facilitated to deconstruct concepts and knowledge integral to their own practice. In the reconstructive phase, students implement a change project in clinical practice, supported by a mentor.Conclusion.  The deconstructive–reconstructive approach to the development of critical thinking skills provides advanced practitioner with the opportunity to integrate practice, theory and research.
Perceptions of Israeli student nurses regarding clinical specialties and factors that influence these perceptions
Authors: Ganz Freda DeKeyser , Kahana Shulamit 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  This paper reports a study to determine the perceptions of baccalaureate nursing students towards clinical specialties and what factors influenced these perceptions.Background.  Previous studies have shown that nursing students enter their professional education with preconceived perceptions about the different clinical specialties in nursing. Some investigators have found that factors such as clinical experience influence these perceptions, but others have not. Cultural and social influences, especially among non‐western cultures, have rarely been investigated.Methods.  Israeli baccalaureate nursing students were surveyed in their first, third and fourth years of study during the years 1998–2004. They were asked to rank their preferences for clinical areas related to social need, social prestige, level of interest in the clinical area, job choice and what factors influenced their decisions related to job choice. Mean ranks and associations between class and calendar year cohorts were calculated.Results.  Critical care was consistently ranked as the highest preference in all perception checklists, followed by emergency, maternity and paediatric nursing. Psychiatric, community and gerontological nursing were consistently found at the bottom of the list. High levels of association were found among students from different class cohorts and calendar years. Life experiences were ranked as the factor that most influenced career choice.Conclusion.  Nursing students in Israel tend to perceive clinical areas in ways similar to other students around the world. These perceptions are strongly influenced by personal experiences and other personal contacts, most often not nursing instructors. Major changes in the local society seem for the most part to have little impact on these perceptions. Therefore there is a need for international nurse educators and recruiters to develop new, creative strategies to encourage nursing students to pursue careers in areas presently considered less popular.
Feasibility of combining e‐health for patients with e‐learning for students using synchronous technologies
Authors: Jones Ray , Skirton Heather , McMullan Miriam 
Published: July 2006

Aim.  This paper is a report of a project to introduce and evaluate methods for using information and communication technologies to involve academic staff, students, and patients in a common synchronous e‐learning environment.Background.  Although there is no strong evidence for this, there may be benefits in ‘efficiency’ and for patients and students from shared e‐learning. Asynchronous e‐learning methods in nursing education are well‐established, but synchronous methods have received less attention. However, if feasible, because they are more akin to face‐to‐face contact, they may be more suitable for patients and may provide a quicker development path for e‐learning.Method.  We evaluated three synchronous technologies: (1) non‐commercial satellite interactive television (TV); (2) Internet videoconferencing; and (3) webcasting, through feasibility studies of ‘TV‐style’ panel discussions on health topics and seminars with interaction with viewers by e‐mail, inter‐site research meetings with face‐to‐face interaction, user surveys and literature reviews.Results.  Interactive satellite TV required the booking of rooms with specialized receiving equipment. This limited accessibility contributed to the high cost per participant. Videoconferencing proved acceptable for cross‐site research meetings and is proposed for joint meetings for doctoral students with overseas centres but has the same access issues as interactive satellite TV. Webcasting is accessible to most users with Internet access and provides a feasible means of delivery of synchronous interactive material. Reported live webcasts have had audiences of thousands. Presentation formats: panel discussions with mixed patient–professional membership and mixed patient–professional audiences were acceptable to participants but engaging academic staff and students was problematic. This may be overcome with webcasting but there may still be barriers such as timetabling and students’ concerns about learning in the same ‘live’ environment as patients.Conclusions.  Limitations in accessibility have been demonstrated for both satellite broadcasts and videoconferencing. Webcasting proved the most acceptable way of supporting a common synchronous environment. Having identified a feasible synchronous method we can now investigate hypothesized benefits for staff, students, and patients of combined e‐health e‐learning.
Areas of endemism of the Patagonian steppe: an approach based on insect distributional patterns using endemicity analysis
Authors: Cecilia Domínguez M. , Roig‐Juñent Sergio , Tassin Juan José , Ocampo Federico C. , Flores Gustavo E. 
Published: July 2006

AbstractAims  To delimit areas of endemism in the Patagonian steppe using endemicity analysis (EA), which evaluates areas of endemism by means of an endemicity index, and to compare the resulting endemic areas with those proposed for the Patagonian steppe by previous authors.Location  The Patagonian steppe, a region of South America found approximately below parallel 36° S to the east of the Andes Mountains.Methods  Distributional data for 159 species of insects collected in the Patagonian steppe, and consisting of 1317 georeferenced samples were used to identify areas of endemism. A data grid of presence and absence (with cells of 1° × 1°) was constructed. Initially, two different types of EA were performed, seeking areas defined by ‘four or more’ species. A first analysis was performed without taking into consideration those quadrats where no species had been recorded (empty quadrats), which in many cases meant a discontinuous distribution. The second analysis was performed assuming a continuous distribution for each species. A third analysis, assuming continuous distributions, was performed using ‘three or more’ as the number of species necessary for an area to be identified as an endemic area.Results  In the first two analyses, EA recognized the same five areas of endemism: western Patagonia, south‐western Payunia, northern Suabandean, southern Subandean and Austral Patagonia. The results of the third analysis allowed the identification of three more areas of endemism: northern Payunia, Chubutian and Santacrucian.Main conclusions  We identified five areas of endemism for the Patagonian steppe, some of which have been defined in previous contributions. These areas are: Western Patagonia, Payunia and Subandean Patagonia (which can be divided into septentrional and meridional), Central Patagonia (Chubutence and Santacrucense) and Austral Patagonia.
Effect of plant density on grain yield, root–length density and Orobanche crenata infestation in two faba bean genotypes
Authors: MANSCHADI A. M. , SAUERBORN J. , KROSCHEL J. , SAXENA M. C. 
Published: July 2006

SummaryThe effect of host plant cultivar and sowing density on Orobanche crenata Forsk. L. infestation in Vicia faba was studied in a field experiment in north–west Syria. Two faba bean genotypes. ILB 1814 (Syrian Local Large) and 402/29/84 (new breeding line from Egypt), were planted at four sowing densities. Whereas ILB 1814 was severely affected by O. crenata, 402/29/84 proved to be highly resistant. Sowing density did not have a significant effect on O. crenata dry weight in either genotype. However, the number of O. crenata attachments in ILB 1814 was positively correlated with plant density. The resistance of faba bean genotype 402/29/84 to O. crenata is due to: (a) less plant vigour and root–length density; (b) necrosis of host cells preventing O. crenata attack either before or just after penetration into the host root, or developing a barrier in the host root after the formation of a small tubercle: (c) early flowering and pod setting.
Streptococcus pneumoniaeInfection Aggravates Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis via Toll-Like Receptor 2
Authors: Herrmann Isabel , Kellert Markus , Schmidt Hauke , Mildner Alexander , Hanisch Uwe K. , Brück Wolfgang , Prinz Marco , Nau Roland 
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACTThe course of autoimmune inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) can be influenced by infections. Here we assessed the disease-modulating effects of the most frequent respiratory pathogenStreptococcus pneumoniaon the course of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Mice were immunized with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein 35-55 (MOG35-55) peptide, challenged intraperitoneally with liveS. pneumoniaetype 3, and then treated with ceftriaxone. EAE was monitored by a clinical score for 35 days after immunization. EAE was unaltered in mice infected withS. pneumoniae2 days before and 21 days after the first MOG35-55injection but was more severe in animals infected 7 days after the first MOG35-55injection. The antigen-driven systemic T-cell response was unaltered, and the intraspinal Th1 cytokine mRNA concentrations at the peak of disease were unchanged. The composition of CNS-infiltrating cells and subsequent tissue destruction were only slightly increased afterS. pneumoniaeinfection. In contrast, the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin-6 and spinal interleukin-6 levels were elevated, and the expression of major histocompatibility complex class II molecules, CD80, and CD86 on splenic dendritic cells were enhanced early after infection. Serum cytokine concentrations were not elevated, and EAE was not aggravated byS. pneumoniaeinfection in Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2)-deficient mice. In conclusion, infection withS. pneumoniaeworsens EAE probably by elevation of proinflammatory cytokines and activation of dendritic cells in the systemic circulation via TLR2 and cross talk through the blood-brain barrier.
Cj1496c Encodes a
Campylobacter jejuni
Glycoprotein That Influences Invasion of Human Epithelial Cells and Colonization of the Chick Gastrointestinal Tract
Authors: Kakuda Tsutomu , DiRita Victor J. 
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACT

Campylobacter jejuni
has an N-linked protein glycosylation pathway that is required for efficient cell invasion and chick gastrointestinal colonization by the microbe. In this study, we constructed insertion mutants of 22 putative glycoprotein genes and examined the ability of each to invade the human intestinal epithelial cell line INT-407. Among the mutants tested, one carrying an insertion in Cj1496c was defective for invasion into INT-407 cells; this defect was also observed in an in-frame deletion mutant of Cj1496c (ΔCj1496c). The ΔCj1496c mutant
C. jejuni
also showed a reduced ability to colonize chick ceca. Site-specific mutagenesis combined with Western blot analysis suggested that the Cj1496c protein is glycosylated at N73 and N169. However, the ΔCj1496c mutant expressing a nonglycosylated form of Cj1496c exhibited levels of invasion and colonization equivalent to those of the parent strain, suggesting that glycans are not directly involved in the function of Cj1496c.
Diversity of the T-Cell Response to PulmonaryCryptococcus neoformansInfection
Authors: Lindell Dennis M. , Ballinger Megan N. , McDonald Roderick A. , Toews Galen B. , Huffnagle Gary B. 
Published: July 2006

ABSTRACTCell-mediated immunity plays an important role in immunity to the pathogenic fungusCryptococcus neoformans. However, the antigen specificity of the T-cell response toC. neoformansremains largely unknown. In this study, we used two approaches to determine the antigen specificity of the T-cell response toC. neoformans. We report here that a diverse T-cell receptor (TCR) Vβ repertoire was maintained throughout the primary response to pulmonaryC. neoformansinfection in immunocompetent mice. CD4+T-cell deficiency resulted in relative expansion of all CD8+T-cell subsets. During a secondary immune response, preferential usage of a TCR Vβ subset in CD4+T cells occurred in single individuals, but the preferences were “private” and not shared between individuals. Both CD4+and CD8+T cells from the secondary lymphoid tissues of immunized mice proliferated in response to a variety ofC. neoformansantigens, including heat-killed wholeC. neoformans, culture filtrate antigen,C. neoformanslysate, and purified cryptococcal mannoprotein. CD4+and CD8+T cells from the secondary lymphoid tissues of mice undergoing a primary response toC. neoformansproliferated in response toC. neoformanslysate. In response to stimulation withC. neoformanslysate, lung CD4+and CD8+T cells produced the effector cytokines tumor necrosis factor alpha and gamma interferon. These results demonstrate that a diverse T-cell response is generated in response to pulmonaryC. neoformansinfection.