Priorities for mycotoxin research in Africa identified by using the nominal group discussion technique.

AbstractIntroduction:Scientific endeavors are increasingly carried out by teams of scientists. While there is growing literature on factors associated with effective science teams, little is known about processes that facilitate the success of dissemination and implementation (D&I) teams studying the uptake of healthcare innovations. This study aimed to identify strategies used by D&I scientists to promote team science.Methods:Using a nominal group technique, a sample of 27 D&I scholars responded to the question, “What strategies have you or others used to promote team science?” Participants were asked to individually respond and then discuss within a small group to determine the group’s top three strategies. Through a facilitated consensus discussion with the full sample, a rank-ordered list of three strategies was determined.Results:A total of 126 individual responses (M = 9; SD = 4.88) were submitted. Through small group discussion, six groups ranked their top three strategies to promote team science. The final ranked list of strategies determined by the full sample included: (1) developing and maintaining clear expectations, (2) promoting and modeling effective communication, and (3) establishing shared goals and a mission of the work to be accomplished.Conclusions:Because of its goal of translating knowledge to practice, D&I research necessitates the use of team science. The top strategies are in line with those found to be effective for teams in other fields and hold promise for improving D&I team cohesion and innovation, which may ultimately accelerate the translation of health innovations and the improvement of care quality and outcomes.

Download Full-text

Working with people with personality disorder: utilising service users' views

Psychiatric Bulletin ◽

10.1192/pb.bp.105.007203 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 31 (3) ◽

pp. 85-88 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Kimberley Barlow ◽

Stephen Miller ◽

Kingsley Norton

Keyword(s):

Personality Disorder ◽

Qualitative Methodology ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Nominal Group Technique ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Service Users ◽

Further Training ◽

Modified Nominal Group Technique ◽

Clinical Interactions

Aims and MethodTo ascertain the views of people with personality disorder on their clinical interactions with professionals, to identify potential solutions to problematic interactions and to compile guidelines on how professionals could improve their interactions with these service users. Qualitative methodology was employed, comprising a modified nominal group technique with two iterative groups and ranking by importance the issues and themes raised.ResultsThere were 13 service users from three separate personality disorder services who actively participated in a group discussion and iterative process. Collectively they indicated considerable areas of deficiency in the quality of their interaction and communication with professionals. These deficits were defined clearly enough to allow the construction of guidelines aimed at preventing or remedying such deficiencies.ConclusionsThe contribution of those people with personality disorder who took part in this study was sufficiently thoughtful to allow the development of guidelines that might help staff improve their interactions with such service users. From these guidelines, further training tools are being developed, which will be evaluated in the future. However, because not all those approached chose to participate, the views expressed might not be representative of this group as a whole.

Download Full-text

Drug Supply Management in Health Care Institutions in Sri Lanka: A Case Study

Journal of Drug Delivery and Therapeutics ◽

10.22270/jddt.v11i1.4464 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 3-7

Author(s):

J.L. Himali R. Wijegunasekara

Keyword(s):

Health Care ◽

Sri Lanka ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Secondary Data ◽

Supply Management ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Drug Supply ◽

Health Care Institutions ◽

Depth Analysis ◽

Institutional Strategies

National Health Policy, Primary Health Care Package and National Medicinal Drug Policy have emphasized the importance of adequate supply of safe & effective drugs of acceptable quality in health care institutions. The Medical Supplies Division (MSD) of Ministry of Health is responsible for ensuring an optimum drug supply management, by strategically managing the key steps of Drug management cycle; Selection, Estimate, Ordering, Procuring, Storing, Distribution, Prescribing, and Use by patients. There are strategies followed at different levels. Objective of the study is to analyze the strategies to improve drug supply management in health care institutions in Sri Lanka. Data collection was carried out using KII, Inspection visits, Review manuals & guidelines, Participation in discussion meetings and Review of secondary data. Prioritization was carried out using nominal group discussion and it was decided to select “Institutional level strategies” for in depth analysis to make recommendations. The strategies identified were categorized under; Policy; Finance; Process; Facilities & Medicine; Human Resource and Public. Even though a large number of strategies are implemented, there are deficiencies in almost every strategy which leads to stock out of medicine. Root causes for “Deficiencies of Institutional Strategies” were identified using fish born diagram. Lack of terms of reference for Drug Therapeutic Committees; lack of rational prescribing and prescription audits; high demand for non-formulary drugs; unrealistic estimates, inadequate buffer stocks, delays in redistribution & delays in local purchase; limited stores capacity and suboptimal store management and limited transport availability were found as root causes. Recommendations were made accordingly.

Download Full-text

Co-creation of an Acceptable Indigenous Food Diet for Children Under Five in Early Childhood Development Centres

10.21203/rs.3.rs-78756/v3 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Gundo Nepfumbada ◽

Tafadzwa Dzunamarira ◽

Tivani Phosa Mashamba-Thompson

Keyword(s):

Early Childhood ◽

Focus Group ◽

Focus Group Discussion ◽

Early Childhood Development ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Leafy Vegetables ◽

Childhood Development ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Children Under Five ◽

Under Five

Abstract Background: The use of indigenous food (IF) such as green leafy vegetables and fruits in rural communities has been the main source of food despite being replaced by food high in sugar and fats. Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres are uniquely positioned for positive influence to healthy eating of children. The aim of this study was for ECD stakeholders to co-create an IF diet for children under five in ECD centres.Method: A sequential explanatory mixed method design was employed. We conducted focus group discussion with stakeholders employing the community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach and the nominal group technique ranking method to co-create to an acceptable indigenous food diet for children. Data was analyzed using both qualitative and quantitative methods. A thematic approach to qualitative data analysis with a coding framework guided by Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (intervention characteristics, inner setting, outer setting, characteristics of individuals involved in implementation and the implementation process) was employed to analyse focus group discussion data. Statistical analysis was employed to analyze quantitative data collected through surveys.Results: Study participants included ECD stakeholders (ECD managers, social workers and dieticians) aged 34-52. Participants identified Ditokomane, Oranges, Mabele soft porridge, Dithotse and Dinawa as components of an IF that are suitable and acceptable for children under five years in ECD centres. Conclusion: ECD stakeholders co-created an IF diet to be implemented in ECD centres for children under five. Stakeholders are of the view that IF diet will have more health benefits on children than the current menu that is being used.

Download Full-text

A Multicenter Nominal Group Study to Rank Outcomes Important to Patients, and Their Representation in Existing Composite Outcome Measures for Psoriatic Arthritis

The Journal of Rheumatology ◽

10.3899/jrheum.161459 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 44 (10) ◽

pp. 1445-1452 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

William Tillett ◽

Emma Dures ◽

Sarah Hewlett ◽

Philip S. Helliwell ◽

Oliver FitzGerald ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Psoriatic Arthritis ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Health Assessment ◽

Nominal Group Technique ◽

Well Being ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Single Measure ◽

Composite Measures ◽

The Mean ◽

Future Work

Objective.To rank outcomes identified as important to patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and examine their representation in existing composite measures.Methods.Seven nominal group technique (NGT) meetings took place at 4 hospital sites. Two sorting rounds were conducted to generate a shortlist of outcomes followed by a group discussion and final ranking. In the final ranking round, patients were given 15 points each and asked to rank their top 5 outcomes from the shortlist. The totals were summed across the 7 NGT groups and were presented as a percentage of the maximum possible priority score.Results.Thirty-one patients took part: 16 men and 15 women; the mean age was 54 years (range 24–77; SD 12.2), the mean disease duration was 10.3 years (range 1–40; SD 9.2), and mean Health Assessment Questionnaire was 1.15 (range 0–2.63; SD 0.7). The highest-ranked outcomes that patients wished to see from treatment were pain with 93 points (20.0%), fatigue 62 (13.3%), physical fitness 33 (7.1%), halting/slowing damage 32 (6.9%), and quality of life/well-being 29 (6.2%). Reviewing existing composite measures for PsA demonstrated that no single measure adequately identifies all these outcomes.Conclusion.Pain and fatigue were ranked as the outcomes most important to patients receiving treatment for PsA and are not well represented within existing composite measures. Future work will focus on validating composite measures modified to identify outcomes important to patients.

Download Full-text

Partisipasi Semu Ibu Hamil di Posyandu

Kesmas National Public Health Journal ◽

10.21109/kesmas.v7i10.5 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 7 (10) ◽

pp. 460

Author(s):

Shrimarti Rukmini Devy ◽

Muhammad Hakimi ◽

Yayi Suryo Prabandari ◽

Totok Mardikanto ◽

Dhody Rafsandjani ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Content Analysis ◽

Focus Group ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Group Process ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Community Empowerment ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Economic Conditions ◽

The Social ◽

Women Participation

Salah satu kebijakan pembangunan bidang kesehatan yang dipergunakan untuk mengatasi kesehatan ibu hamil adalah pemberdayaan masyarakat. Keberhasilan pemberdayaan dapat diketahui melalui berbagai cara, salah satunya partisipasi masyarakat. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengidentifikasi kondisi sosial, budaya, dan ekonomi yang mempengaruhi partisipasi ibu hamil ke posyandu. Penelitian ini menggunakan rancangan etnografi. Teknik yang digunakan untuk pengumpulan data adalah wawancara mendalam, focus group discussion, observasi dan nominal group process. Data yang diperoleh dari pendekatan kualitatif akan diolah dengan content analysis. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan kondisi sosial, budaya dan ekonomi yang mempengaruhi partisipasi ibu hamil ke posyandu di Desa Rapa Laok, bermula pada faktor kemiskinan. Kondisi sosial dan budaya yang berpengaruh pada partisipasi ibu hamil, yaitu kepercayaan pada mitos dan pantangan makanan bertentangan dengan aturan medis. Kondisi ekonomi yang berpengaruh pada partisipasi ibu hamil, yaitu beban fisik dan psikis ibu hamil terhadap kesejahteraan keluarga berlebihan. Ibu hamil datang untuk memeriksakan diri ke posyandu bukan karena kesadaran untuk menjaga kesehatan tetapi untuk mendapat imbalan satu dus mi instan. Model partisipasi ibu hamil ke posyandu yang tepat adalah dengan pendekatan nondirektif (partisipatif) yang produktif.One of the development policies in health sector that is currently used to overcome maternal health issues is the community empowerment. The success of the community empowerment can be measured through the people participation. The objectives is to identify the social, cultural, and economic conditions which might influence the pregnant women participation in integrated service post. This study used a qualitative approach with an ethnographic design. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, focus group discussion, observation, and nominal group process. The data collected were analyzed using content analysis. The social, cultural, and economic conditions that strongly affected the pregnant women participation in integrated service post, because of the poverty. The social and cultural condition that affected belief in myths and food taboos which are highly contradictory to the medical rules. The economic conditions that affected is women have heavy domestic and productive workloads. Their physical and psychological burdens were excessively high that could endanger the health. The participation of pregnant women was not based on true awareness for maintaining their health but such participation was more based on their desires of getting one box of instant noodles. The participation model for the pregnant women was designed using participatory (nondirective) approach which was productive.

Download Full-text

The challenges of alcohol addictions randomised control trials (RCTs): A nominal group technique (NGT) analysis

10.21203/rs.3.rs-432672/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Eileen Brobbin ◽

Jacklyn Dunne ◽

Laura Hermann ◽

Andreas Kimergård ◽

Kim Donoghue

Keyword(s):

Group Discussion ◽

Nominal Group Technique ◽

Alcohol Addiction ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Research Activity ◽

Priority List ◽

King's College ◽

Randomised Control Trials ◽

Randomised Controlled ◽

Group Technique

Abstract Background: Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are considered the gold standard research design for assessing the efficacy of health care treatments and are essential for improving knowledge and outcomes. However, the challenges of running RCTs in the alcohol addiction field are rarely discussed. The Nominal Group Technique (NGT) is a method designed to encourage contributions and elicit agreement on what to prioritise. This paper aims to identify challenges of alcohol addiction RCTs and solutions to these challenges using the NGT.Method: Six researchers from the Addictions Department, King’s College London, experienced in running alcohol addiction trials as trial managers, principal investigators and chief investigators, took part in a two-round decision conference, which involved impartial facilitation, on-the-spot modelling and interactive group discussion according to the NGT. The data generated from the first session was viewed and refined in the second session to create a priority list of challenges and solutions for future alcohol addiction RCTs.Results: The model produced a range of challenges when conducting alcohol addiction RCTs and solutions, which were rated according to priority by experts. After refinement of the model, these were categorised into five themes including: Staff, Recruitment, Follow ups, Governance and Funding. Each of these contained challenges and solutions when conducting alcohol addiction RCTs.Conclusion: The challenges to running alcohol addiction RCTs were discussed by a group experienced in this area in order to promote discussion and solutions. The process of sharing experiences and ideas allows for furthering knowledge to improve the running of alcohol addiction RCTs. There were some challenges that were discussed where no solutions were known or thought of. Current research activity should be more open to discussing and sharing challenges and possible solutions to improve research outcomes.

Download Full-text

Enabling Factors, Hindrances, and Self-perceived Level of Preparedness of Typhoon Haiyan Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Responders

Acta Medica Philippina ◽

10.47895/amp.v52i2.430 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 52 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hilton Y. Lam ◽

Carlos Primero D. Gundran ◽

Jaifred Christian F. Lopez ◽

Emelia B. Santamaria ◽

Anna Cristina A. Tuazon ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Disaster Response ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Nominal Group Technique ◽

The Philippines ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Medical Services ◽

Enabling Factors ◽

Medical Response ◽

Emergency Medical ◽

The Government

Background. Despite the implementation of policies related to disaster risk reduction and management in the Philippines, the response after Typhoon Haiyan in November 2013 was hampered by operational challenges. Objective. The purpose of this study was to document disaster response experiences of Typhoon Haiyan from field level emergency medical service (EMS) responders, a key component of the disaster response, specifically the enabling factors and hindrances to disaster medical response activities, including their self-perceived level of preparedness in these activities. Methods. In this mixed-methods study, 52 respondents identified enabling factors and hindrances to their disaster response and their corresponding self-perceived level of preparedness. In a subsequent focus group discussion, the researchers used the nominal group technique to process the respondents’ experiences. Results. The respondents identified factors that enabled or hindered their response activities such as coordination, stress debriefing, infrastructure, and preparedness. Furthermore, an average of 33% of the respondents said they were adequately prepared to deliver the necessary medical services during the disaster response, thus validating previous studies on preparedness and disaster response operations. Conclusion. The government should critically examine its cluster approach to disaster response and consider an integrated, inclusive, and proactive approach in disaster planning.

Download Full-text

Applying Qualitative Methods in Organizations: A Note for Industrial/Organizational Psychologists

The Qualitative Report ◽

10.46743/2160-3715/2005.1844 ◽

2015 ◽

Author(s):

Benjamin Ehigie ◽

Rebecca Ehigie

Keyword(s):

Social Sciences ◽

Qualitative Methods ◽

Delphi Method ◽

Empirical Studies ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Nominal Group Technique ◽

Nominal Group ◽

Organizational Studies ◽

The Social ◽

Technique Delphi

Early approach to research in industrial and organizational (I/O) psychology was oriented towards quantitative techniques as a result of influences from the social sciences. As the focus of I/O psychology expands from psychological test development to other personnel functions, there has been an inclusion of qualitative methods in I/O psychology practice. The present paper therefore examines how qualitative methods like observation, interviews, ethnography, focus group discussion, nominal group technique, Delphi method, and projective techniques can be used by I/O psychologists in organizational studies. It is believed that knowledge gained on the application s of these qualitative methods would enhance understanding of workers’ behaviors in organizations and facilitate management decisions. Empirical studies are also presented, on how these qualitative methods have successfully been used in organization.

Download Full-text

Using Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) to Replace a Practice Placement: A Controversial Option?

British Journal of Occupational Therapy ◽

10.1177/030802260707000904 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 70 (9) ◽

pp. 389-392 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stephanie Tempest ◽

Kevin Cordingley ◽

Christine Craik

Keyword(s):

Higher Education ◽

Experiential Learning ◽

Occupational Therapy ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Learning Opportunities ◽

Nominal Group ◽

First Year ◽

Occupational Therapy Education ◽

Occupational Therapy Students ◽

Therapy Education

The Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) is established in higher education, but there are no studies on its use in occupational therapy. Brunel University wanted to investigate whether APEL could enable occupational therapy students meeting certain criteria to be exempt from the first-year practice placement, and so devised an APEL proposal. Practice placement educators and students were invited to give their opinion on the proposal through a questionnaire; additionally, the students attended a nominal group discussion. Three themes emerged from the six practice placement educators who agreed to participate: logistics, student experience and learning opportunities. The three students who participated valued APEL for confirming and recognising learning from previous experience. The low response impedes establishing any definite views on the topic, but could suggest that APEL is not a controversial option to practice placement educators and students. Further study is required on the adoption of APEL in occupational therapy education.

Download Full-text