scholarly journals User testing of a Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network public guideline for the parents of children with autism

2022 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Fearns ◽  
Laura Walker ◽  
Karen Graham ◽  
Norman Gibb ◽  
Duncan Service
Keyword(s):  
Information Overload ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Sufficient Information ◽  
Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network ◽  
User Testing ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Public ◽  
Guidelines Development ◽  
Simple Language ◽  
Improved Design

Abstract Background The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) is the leading national clinical guideline producer in Scotland. Improved design and dissemination of guidelines produced for the public can empower people to take an active role in self-management and shared decision-making. The public version of the guideline examined covered getting assessed and diagnosed with autism, and approaches that can help. The aim of this study was to test a public version of a guideline for the parents of children and young people with autism, implement improvements, and identify what works in making it usable and accessible. Methods We recruited mothers from across Scotland. User testing involved formal ‘think aloud’ semi-structured interviews that guided users through the booklet. Interviews took place individually and were recorded and transcribed. Key findings were identified and themed using the honeycomb user experience model. Results Fourteen user-testing interviews were conducted. Facilitators for usability and desirability of the guideline included the chunking of text, consistent use of colour and boxes to highlight important information. Simple language, written in a tone of partnership, helped to engage mothers. Value arose from the guidelines ability to explain the process of diagnosis and make mothers feel empowered in their relationships with healthcare professionals. There was a lack of consensus on the usefulness of rating the strength of evidence and recommendations. Conclusion There was a marked similarity between what was important to the mothers and what has been found to be important to other groups. The involvement of service users and carers in the guidelines development was key to its credibility. One size does not fit all in presenting evidence-based recommendations to the public and it is a challenge to provide sufficient information while avoiding information overload. Recommendations and evidence levels are suitable for use in public versions, but these should be kept as simple as possible.

scholarly journals User Testing of a Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network Public Guideline for the Parents of Children with Autism.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Fearns ◽  
Laura Walker ◽  
Karen Graham ◽  
Norman Gibb ◽  
Duncan Service
Keyword(s):  
Information Overload ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Sufficient Information ◽  
Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network ◽  
User Testing ◽  
The Public ◽  
Guidelines Development ◽  
Simple Language ◽  
Improved Design

Abstract Background: The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) is the leading national clinical guideline producer in Scotland. Improved design and dissemination of guidelines produced for the public can empower people to take an active role in self-management and shared decision-making. The aim of this study was to test a public version of a guideline with the parents of children and young people with autism, implement improvements, and identify what works in making it usable and accessible. Methods: Parents were recruited from across Scotland. User testing involved a formal ‘think aloud’ process and semi-structured interview that guided users through the booklet. Sessions took place individually and were recorded and transcribed. Key findings were identified and themed using the honeycomb user experience model.Results: Fourteen user-testing sessions were conducted. Key facilitators for usability and desirability of the guideline included the chunking of text, consistent use of colour and the use of boxes to highlight important information. Simple language, written in a tone of partnership, helped to engage parents. Value arose from the guidelines ability to explain the process of diagnosis and make parents feel empowered in their relationship with healthcare professionals. There was a lack of consensus on the usefulness of rating the strength of evidence and recommendations. Conclusion: There was a marked similarity between what was important to the parents and what is important for other groups. The involvement of patients and carers in the guidelines development was key to its credibility. One size does not fit all in presenting evidence-based recommendations to the public and it is a challenge to provide sufficient information while avoiding information overload. Recommendations and evidence levels are suitable for use in public versions, but these should be kept as simple as possible.

Dialogue and Coordination: How Hybrid Models Can Strengthen Labor Standards Enforcement

2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 312-334
Author(s):  
Kelly Pike
Keyword(s):  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
National Development ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Hybrid Models ◽  
Labor Standards ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public And Private Enforcement

This article examines the factors that limit and support the capacity of developing states to regulate labor in the public and private spheres, as well as the role of international parties in strengthening that capacity. The purpose is to better understand the potential for a more coordinated approach informed by hybrid models of enforcement, which can contribute to closing regulatory gaps. Fieldwork was carried out in the garment sectors in South Africa and Lesotho during 2018, including 20 semi-structured interviews with industry stakeholders representing government, business, and labor. Findings indicate that the developing state has an important role to play in facilitating a more coordinated approach between systems of enforcement, including public and private enforcement agencies, national development agencies, manufacturers, buyers, and unions. The case studies indicate the potential of such an approach to, for example, improve inspection quality, accountability, and transparency. The state can play an active role in facilitating a hybrid approach to regulation that involves both state and non-state actors, with dialogue and coordination at the core of addressing broader challenges for enforcement.

scholarly journals User testing a patient information resource about potential complications of vaginally inserted synthetic mesh

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolina Angelova ◽  
Louise Taylor ◽  
Lorna McKee ◽  
Naomi Fearns ◽  
Tracey Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
Patient Information ◽  
Pelvic Organ ◽  
Synthetic Mesh ◽  
Information Resource ◽  
User Testing ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Asking Questions ◽  
Direct Guidance

Abstract Background Vaginal mesh implants are medical devices used in a number of operations to treat stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. Although many of these operations have delivered good outcomes, some women have experienced serious complications that have profoundly affected their quality of life. To ensure that evolving patient information is up-to-date, accurate and appropriate, the Transvaginal Mesh Oversight Group ‘user-tested’ a newly developed Scottish patient resource, the first to focus exclusively on the issue of complications. The aim of this research was to gather feedback on usability, content, language and presentation to inform the development of the resource from a user perspective. Methods The experience of using the patient resource was captured through semi-structured interviews that followed a ‘think-aloud’ protocol. The interviewer observed each participant as they went through the resource, asking questions and making field notes. Participants’ comments were then categorised using a validated model of user experience and subsequently analysed thematically. Results Thirteen people participated in the user testing interviews, including women with lived experience of mesh implants (n = 7), a convenience sample of staff working for Healthcare Improvement Scotland (n = 5) and a patient’s carer (n = 1). The majority of participants considered the resource as clear and helpful. Respondents reported that some presentational aspects promoted usability and understandability, including the use of a font that is easy to read, bullet lists, coloured headings and simple language. Barriers included the reliance on some technical language and an explicit anatomical diagram. Participants endorsed the valuable role of health professionals as co-mediators of patient information. Conclusions The findings illustrate the value of undertaking in-depth user-testing for patient information resources before their dissemination. The study highlighted how the direct guidance or navigation of a patient information resource by a health professional could increase its salience and accuracy of interpretation by patients, their families and carers. These insights may also be useful to other developers in improving patient information.

In-cash Transfers: from Passive to Empowered Beneficiaries in the Global South

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Katarina Pitasse Fragoso
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Poverty Alleviation ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Main Argument ◽  
The Public ◽  
Local Public Services ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Public Policy Decisions

Over the last few years, there has been an increase in discussions advocating in-cash programmes as a way to alleviate poverty. Indeed, this represents a leap forward in comparison to in-kind programmes. However, little progress, at least in developing countries, has been achieved in answering the question of how the state should transfer the means of redressing deprivation to those who are living in poverty. This article addresses this issue by challenging anti-poverty programmes through a social-egalitarian framework. My main argument starts from the perspective that in-cash transfers are a necessary but not sufficient mechanism for poverty alleviation. I acknowledge that cash alone does not guarantee the poor an equally active role in influencing the public-policy decisions that affect their lives. I then suggest a participatory device to complement the cash-transfer proposal in order to give institutional opportunities to the poor to decide, together with practitioners, what should be done at the level of local public services.

scholarly journals Perceptions of Antibiotic Use and Resistance: Are Antibiotics the Dentists’ Anxiolytics?

Antibiotics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 735
Author(s):  
Julie Dormoy ◽  
Marc-Olivier Vuillemin ◽  
Silvia Rossi ◽  
Jean-Marc Boivin ◽  
Julie Guillet
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Oral Surgery ◽  
Antibiotic Use ◽  
Public Health Issue ◽  
Clinical Factors ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
The Public

Background: Antibiotic resistance is a global health crisis. The aim of this study was to explore dentists’ perceptions of antibiotic resistance. Methods: A qualitative method was used. Seventeen dentists practising in the Nancy (Lorraine, France) region were surveyed. They were general practitioners or specialised in oral surgery, implantology, or periodontology. The practitioners took part in semi-structured interviews between September 2019 and July 2020. All of the interviews were transcribed in full and analysed thematically. Results: Four major themes have been selected: attitudes of the dentists in regard to the guidelines, clinical factors that influence prescriptions, non-clinical factors that influence prescriptions, and the perception of antibiotic resistance. The dentists stated that they were very concerned regarding the public health issue of antibiotic resistance. However, they often prescribe according to their own interests and habits rather than according to the relevant guidelines. Conclusions: Although dentists are generally well aware of antibiotic resistance, they often do not adequately appreciate the link between their prescribing habits and the phenomenon of antibiotic resistance. Regular updating of practitioners’ knowledge in this regard is necessary, but patients and the general public should also be made more aware of the issue.

scholarly journals Artificial Intelligence: The Attitude of the Public and Representatives of Various Industries

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (8) ◽  
pp. 339
Author(s):  
Tatjana Vasiljeva ◽  
Ilmars Kreituss ◽  
Ilze Lulle
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Primary Data ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Public ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
Public Survey ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Main Factors ◽  
Negative Factors ◽  
Near Future

This paper looks at public and business attitudes towards artificial intelligence, examining the main factors that influence them. The conceptual model is based on the technology–organization–environment (TOE) framework and was tested through analysis of qualitative and quantitative data. Primary data were collected by a public survey with a questionnaire specially developed for the study and by semi-structured interviews with experts in the artificial intelligence field and management representatives from various companies. This study aims to evaluate the current attitudes of the public and employees of various industries towards AI and investigate the factors that affect them. It was discovered that attitude towards AI differs significantly among industries. There is a significant difference in attitude towards AI between employees at organizations with already implemented AI solutions and employees at organizations with no intention to implement them in the near future. The three main factors which have an impact on AI adoption in an organization are top management’s attitude, competition and regulations. After determining the main factors that influence the attitudes of society and companies towards artificial intelligence, recommendations are provided for reducing various negative factors. The authors develop a proposition that justifies the activities needed for successful adoption of innovative technologies.

Arthroplasty registers: A review of international experiences

2009 ◽  
Vol 25 (01) ◽  
pp. 63-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Serra-Sutton ◽  
Alejandro Allepuz ◽  
Mireia Espallargues ◽  
Gerold Labek ◽  
Joan M. V. Pons
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Annual Reports ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Web Pages ◽  
Sufficient Information ◽  
Health Administration ◽  
The Public ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Orthopaedic Society ◽  
Governmental Funding

Objectives:Registers have proven to be a valuable instrument in the evaluation of arthroplasty procedures and the performance of implants. The aim of this study was to describe the structure, functioning, and content of arthroplasty registers in Europe and other parts of the world.Methods:A search of technical reports was carried out through the Internet and in Medline/PubMed. The exhaustiveness of the information was confirmed using the links to Web pages of other registers and contacts with key people. Aims, methods in data collection and evaluation, internal structure and organization, participants, validity of the data, and other variables were assessed for each arthroplasty register using a qualitative content analysis of the texts.Results:Fifteen arthroplasty registers were identified which published sufficient information to conduct a comparative analysis. Eight additional registers were identified but no information was available on the Internet or in English. Most registers were initiatives of an orthopaedic society receiving governmental funding. Data were collected using standardized clinical forms and additional information from clinical-administrative datasets or other registers (mortality, implant costs, hip fractures). The main outcome measure of these registers is survival of the prostheses. Registers use the Internet and their annual reports as the main strategy for the dissemination and feed-back of their results.Conclusions:Scientific or professional societies and the public health administration should collaborate in the development of arthroplasty registers. To adequately assess the results of observational data information on the structure, the process of arthroplasty interventions and patients characteristics should be collected.

scholarly journals Opening a Path towards Sustainable Corporate Behaviour: Public Participation in Criminal Environmental Proceedings

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7886
Author(s):  
Pavel Kotlán ◽  
Alena Kozlová ◽  
Zuzana Machová
Keyword(s):  
Public Participation ◽  
Criminal Liability ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
Human Rights Protection ◽  
The Public ◽  
Governmental Organizations ◽  
Non Governmental Organizations

Establishing criminal liability for environmental offences remains daunting, particularly with regard to the ‘no plaintiff—no judge’ element as a result of which the public seems to be ultimately deprived of the possibility to participate in criminal environmental proceedings. While there is arguably a lack of specific instruments at the European Union (EU) level which would prescribe such legal obligation on the part of the State, there has been a shift in understanding the role of the public and its participation in criminal liability cases, namely under the auspices of the so-called effective investigation and the concept of rights of victims in general. Using the example of the Czech Republic as a point of reference, this article aims to assess the relevant legal developments at both EU and Czech levels to illustrate why the non-governmental organizations (NGOs), essentially acting as public agents, should be granted an active role in environmental criminal proceedings. After examining the applicable legal framework and case law development, the article concludes that effective investigation indeed stands as a valid legal basis for human rights protection which incorporates an entitlement to public participation. Despite that, this pro-active shift is far from being applied in practice, implying that the legislation remains silent where it should be the loudest, and causing unsustainable behaviour of companies.

Leadership of change in South Africa public sector turnarounds

2018 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mampe Kumalo ◽  
Caren Brenda Scheepers
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Current Literature ◽  
Organisational Change ◽  
Director General ◽  
Change Processes ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Financial Consequences

PurposeOrganisational decline has far-reaching, negative emotional and financial consequences for staff and customers, generating academic and practitioner interest in turnaround change processes. Despite numerous studies to identify the stages during turnarounds, the findings have been inconclusive. The purpose of this paper is to address the gap by defining these stages, or episodes. The characteristics of leaders affect the outcome of organisational change towards turnarounds. This paper focusses, therefore, on the leadership requirements during specific episodes, from the initial crisis to the full recovery phases.Design/methodology/approachA total of 11 semi-structured interviews were conducted with executives from the public sector in South Africa who went through or were going through turnaround change processes and 3 with experts consulting to these organisations.FindingsContrary to current literature in organisational change, this study found that, in these turnaround situations, leadership in the form of either an individual CEO or director general was preferable to shared leadership or leadership distributed throughout the organisation. This study found four critical episodes that occurred during all the public service turnarounds explored, and established that key leadership requirements differ across these episodes. The study shows how these requirements relate to the current literature on transactional, transformational and authentic leadership.Practical implicationsThe findings on the leadership requirements ultimately inform the selection and development of leaders tasked with high-risk turnaround change processes.Originality/valueFour episodes with corresponding leadership requirements were established in the particular context of public sector turnaround change processes.

Nostalgia, the Fleeting, and the Rare in Chilean Relationships to Nature and Nonhuman Species

2014 ◽  
Vol 22 (6) ◽  
pp. 560-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meredith Root-Bernstein
Keyword(s):  
Participant Observation ◽  
Social Value ◽  
Public Realm ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Central Chile ◽  
The Public ◽  
Dominant Discourse ◽  
Mediterranean Habitat ◽  
Nonhuman Species ◽  
Over Time

Semi-structured interviews and participant observation were used to understand how urban Chileans form relationships with nature and nonhuman species in central Chile. Most informants expressed dislike of the typical mediterranean-habitat landscape, characterizing it as dry, poor, and empty. Yet many people expressed nostalgic attachment to specific places, species, and activities that they had experienced, often as children. Most of the reminisced-about interactions were fleeting or had been lost over time. In the dominant discourse, nature in the mediterranean zone of Chile is closely associated with poverty, and it is considered to lack beauty, biodiversity, culture, and history. Appeals to personal nostalgia may break through this discourse to form private assemblages of value. Chileans also attributed social value to interactions with species who are rare or who are found “exclusively” in Chile. Appeals to nostalgia, rarity, and exclusivity help to draw these private discourses into the public realm.

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