scholarly journals Internships before and during COVID-19: experiences and perceptions of undergraduate interns and supervisors

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cecilia Woon Chien Teng ◽  
Raymond Boon Tar Lim ◽  
Dana Wai Shin Chow ◽  
Suganthi Narayanasamy ◽  
Chee Hsiang Liow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Soft Skills ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Remote Work ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Internship Experience ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a contingent shift to remote working and learning worldwide. However, little is known regarding the impact of this shift on internships. Moreover, much of the available literature studies on internships are focused largely on perceptions by students, less so by supervisors. This paper describes the impact of COVID-19 on public health (PH) internships and examines interns' and supervisors' perspectives on their experiences in internships before and during the pandemic.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study design was conducted on two cohorts of undergraduate students and their supervisors in Singapore. Participants were surveyed using questionnaires with both close-ended and open-ended questions about various aspects of the internship experience. Data were triangulated from these surveys and module evaluation reports, and analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively.FindingsCOVID-19 disrupted internships significantly, with a reduction in the number of placements offered and necessary changes to the internship scope. Overall, the internship experience has been positive. Supervisors and e-interns reported high levels of satisfaction and documented learning gains such as the development of technical skills and soft skills unique to remote work.Originality/valueThe study findings fill current gaps in the literature on supervisor perceptions and internship experiences during COVID-19. Recommendations are proposed to optimize e-internships, a potentially authentic workplace in the post-COVID era.

scholarly journals Mental health of undergraduate distance learners: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gayani P. Gamage ◽  
H.M.Chulani J. Herath
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Psychological Distress ◽  
Distance Learning ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Distance Learners ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type

PurposeMental health is as important as physical health and new university entrants report high prevalence of depression. In open and distance learning (ODL), students must manage both work and studies. Those who are unable to effectively balance these aspects may experience negative outcomes such as dropping out, distress and physical health problems. Therefore, the study aims to investigate psychological distress amongst distance-learning undergraduate students to gather evidence for recommending necessary interventions.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study was conducted using depression, anxiety, stress scale (DASS-21). Participants were undergraduate students from the Open University of Sri Lanka (OUSL). The students' socio-demographic details, history of physical and mental illnesses were also recorded.FindingsAccording to scoring, 51% of the sample was categorised as “psychologically distressed” relating to the anxiety levels they reported whilst depression (35%) and stress remained (20%) at low levels. The three-factor structure of DASS-21 was also confirmed with reliability scores of 0.8 obtained for all three sub-scales.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitations were low-response rate (less than 50%) and inability to provide causal explanations for psychological distress. Further research could address these.Practical implicationsThe current research identified anxiety as a psychologically distressing factor for ODL students with the use of a reliable screening tool. Therefore, exploring reasons and interventions to help reduce anxiety could be developed.Social implicationsMajority of distance learners are contributing to a country's economy whilst learning to improve their current socio-economic status. Therefore, addressing these negative impacts is important.Originality/valueThe study explored ODL students' psychological distress and highlighted the need to identify causes and development of support systems to enhance mental well-being.

Availability and cost of gluten-free products in Moroccan supermarkets and e-commerce platforms

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Morad Guennouni ◽  
Noureddine El Khoudri ◽  
Aicha Bourrouhouate ◽  
Abderraouf Hilali
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Gluten Free ◽  
Price Difference ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Free Products ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Diet Adherence

PurposeThe prevalence of celiac disease is increasing alarmingly. The only and effective treatment for this disease is a strict gluten-free diet Efforts have been made by industrialists to produce gluten-free products (GFPs); however, their low availability and high cost, compared to gluten-containing products (GCPs) still remain among the factors that cause gluten-free adherence failure. The objective of this survey is to compare the availability and cost of GFPs in supermarkets in two Moroccan cities, Marrakech and Casablanca, and on e-commerce platforms and see how they compare to GCPs.Design/methodology/approachThis is a cross-sectional study that targets supermarkets and e-commerce websites that sell GFPs food and their GCPs equivalents. The price of each product is recorded per 100 g.FindingsThe study surveys 271 GFPs and their 579 GCPs equivalents that were subsequently divided into six categories. The “GF Cookie and Cakes” category came on top of the list of products. GFPs were more available on e-commerce websites than at supermarkets in two Moroccan cities (p = 0.003). The GFPs are 364% (115–1309%) more expensive than their GCPs counterparts. Also, the authors recorded a significant price difference between GFPs sold in supermarkets and those sold on online.Originality/valueThis study reveals that labeled GFPs are less available and more expensive than their equivalents GCPs in Morocco. This affects GF diet adherence and quality of life of celiac patients. The patients who use GFPs need financial compensation from the national government.

scholarly journals The IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON LEARNING OF UNDERGRADUATE MEDICAL STUDENTS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY FROM KARACHI

2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 1902-07
Author(s):  
Adina Anwar ◽  
Erum Khan ◽  
Munizha Nisar ◽  
Rameesha Qutub ud Din ◽  
Syed Rubaba Azim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Strong Association ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Online Classes ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Undergraduate Medical Students ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Impact

Objective: To assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on learning of undergraduate medical students ofKarachi. Study Design: A cross-sectional, observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Study was conducted at conducted at the different public and private medicalcolleges, Karachi, from Mar to Apr 2020. Methodology: Google survey form based cross-sectional study conducted at the different public and privatemedical colleges, Karachi from March till April 2020. Non-probability consecutive sampling technique was used.This questionnaire consisted of 13 items which focused on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the learning ofundergraduate medical students from Karachi. Results: The study was conducted on 110 undergraduate students. Out of which, majority of the participantswere from third year 45 (41%) and second year of MBBS 25 (23%). It was found that almost 71% of the undergraduate students had less likely to remember and understand material taught in online class and 60% had less likely to get answers to their queries as compared to regular classes. The results also showed that 49% of the undergraduate students were disturbed by technical issues during online classes. Furthermore, it was also found that learning of 54 out of 110 undergraduate students was always affected due to loss of clinical rotations. Strong association were also found in between online satisfaction and stressful condition due to online classes. Conclusion: It was concluded that COVID-19 pandemic greatly affected the learning of the undergraduatemedical students and have negatively impacted their satisfaction level towards their studies.

The effect of treatments on the allergenicity of ß-lactoglobulin in Moroccan population

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 538-548
Author(s):  
Ouarda Azdad ◽  
Najlae Mejrhit ◽  
Lotfi Aarab
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Specific Ige ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cow Milk ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Moroccan Population ◽  
Conformational Epitopes ◽  
Β Lactoglobulin

Purpose This study aims to evaluate the effect of heating and pepsin hydrolysis on the allergenicity of purified cow’s milk ß-lactoglobulin using individual sera from Moroccan population. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study was carried out in Hospitals of Fez-Meknes region, to evaluate specific IgE to raw cow milk, as well as to heated and pepsin-hydrolyzed β-lactoglobulin. Findings Results showed that 6.6 per cent of studied patients presented high values of serial IgE. The effect of treatments on the allergenicity of ß-lactoglobulin showed that heating at 90°C and pepsin hydrolysis, for 1 h each, showed an important decrease in the recognition of human IgE with a maximum of reduction of 81 and 91 per cent, respectively. Originality/value This reduction of immunoreactivity of human IgE to treated ß-lactoglobulin suggested that this Moroccan population recognized mostly conformational epitopes.

scholarly journals The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students in New Jersey, cross-sectional study

PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (9) ◽  
pp. e0239696 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksandar Kecojevic ◽  
Corey H. Basch ◽  
Marianne Sullivan ◽  
Nicole K. Davi
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
New Jersey ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
The Impact

Assessment of dietary selenium intake of Jordanian adults in Madaba: a cross sectional study

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fadwa Hammouh ◽  
Sima Zein ◽  
Rula Amr ◽  
Hadeel Ghazzawi ◽  
Dina Muharib ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Dietary Selenium ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Selenium Intake ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Convenience Sampling

Purpose The purpose of this paper aims to assess the intake of dietary selenium among Jordanian adults in Madaba Governorate. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a cross-sectional study in Madaba Governorate. Convenience sampling was done at Madaba Governorate for this study. The subjects comprised 500 subjects (325 women and 175 men) aged from 18 to 60 years. A 24-h recall (24-HR) and Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) were used to estimate the selenium intake in the studied population. Findings Mean of dietary selenium was more than the recommended amount by at least 2.5-fold in both methods FFQ and 24-HR (p = 0.004), while no significant difference was observed in selenium consumption per day for women and men respectively using FFQ. The results indicated that selenium consumption is higher than the RDA among Madaba population. A moderate correlation was found between both methods for all subjects, women and men, respectively (p < 0.05). Originality/value The authors conclude that the selenium intake in Jordanian population is significantly above the RDA. However, future studies are required to correlate this high intake with health benefits and exclude toxic effects of Selenium.

scholarly journals Creating a safe sleep environment for babies: what are the practices performed by mothers?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Esin Zeren ◽  
Ayşe Şener Taplak ◽  
Sevinç Polat
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Family Health ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Health Centers ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Safe Sleep ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Risk Practices ◽  
Sleep Environment

PurposeThis study aims to determine the practices performed by mothers to create a safe sleep environment for their babies.Design/methodology/approachThis cross-sectional study was conducted at Family Health Centers (FHCs), the Central Anatolian Region of Turkey. The study sample consisted of 455 mothers who had 0–12-month-old babies. The data were collected via a questionnaire to ascertain the descriptive characteristics and means of creating a safe sleeping environment.FindingsMothers performed unsafe/risky practices as well as safe practices. Unsafe practices of mothers included 92.3% preferring soft mattresses, 87.0% placed a pillow under the baby's head, 17.8% preferred a prone sleep position for their baby, 16.9% covered the baby's face with a piece of thin cloth, 14.3% kept the sheet on the mattress loose, 6.8% of the mothers shared the same bed, 2.4% reported smoking in the environment where the baby slept.Originality/valueBased on our findings, it is recommended that nurses should provide information on creating a safe sleep environment to mothers during FHC visits, and at-risk practices should be identified through home visits.

Pulmonary tuberculosis among prisoners in Southern Thailand: prevalence and its association with imprisonment status

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bintinee Bilmumad ◽  
Tippawan Liabsuetrakul ◽  
Nipa Ngamtrairai ◽  
Virasakdi Chongsuvivatwong
Keyword(s):  
Pulmonary Tuberculosis ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Treatment Success ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Southern Thailand ◽  
High Detection ◽  
Screening Result

Purpose This study aims to measure the prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB), its association with imprisonment status and to document the treatment success rate (TSR) among prisoners in Songkhla province, Southern Thailand. Design/methodology/approach A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in five prisons in Songkhla province, including all prisoners in the fiscal of year 2019, who had an annual chest radiography (CXR) screening result. Information of prisoners who had been imprisoned from 1 October 2018 to 30 September 2019, were reviewed for PTB diagnosis. Imprisonment status and other associated factors with PTB were analyzed using multiple logistic regression. Findings The prevalence of PTB was 2.72%. Prisoners having new or transfer-in status were more likely to have PTB. Those aged 40–80 years, who had smoked for ten years or more, or who were underweight, had higher odds of having PTB. TSR among prisoners with PTB in this study was 94.9%. Originality/value The prevalence of PTB among prisoners having annual CXR screening was high. Detection of PTB was higher among new or transfer-in prisoners; therefore, the CXR for PTB screening before admission to prison should be performed to prevent transmission to other prisoners.

Professionals’ perceptions of the impact of a family justice center: a four-year, cross-sectional study

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 223-238
Author(s):  
Christine Murray ◽  
Alexandra Lay ◽  
Brittany Wyche ◽  
Catherine Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Interpersonal Violence ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Usa ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore the perspectives held by professionals affiliated with an FJC through a cross-sectional survey. The family justice center (FJC) model is expanding rapidly in the USA and internationally. Despite the rapid growth of the FJC movement, there is a need for more research to document the impact of FJCs on victims and survivors, professionals working in FJCs and the broader community. Design/methodology/approach The current paper focuses on perspectives of professionals who serve victims of family and interpersonal violence and it includes the results of a four-year, cross-sectional survey of professionals working in a community that established an FJC. Data analyzes examined differences in perspectives of professionals based on timing (i.e. from before an FJC was established to the time when the center was in operation for three years) and based on whether professionals worked primarily onsite at the FJC location. Findings The findings demonstrated that although some statistically significant differences were identified that suggest a positive impact of an FJC for professionals, more research is needed to further explore how professionals’ perspectives and experiences are impacted through the establishment of an FJC. Originality/value This study is the first-known cross-sectional examination of the perspectives of professionals working within an FJC model over a multi-year period.

scholarly journals Does country-of-origin matter in the era of globalisation? Evidence from cross sectional data in Uzbekistan

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 262-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farhod Karimov ◽  
Jaafar El-Murad
Keyword(s):  
Purchase Intention ◽  
Country Of Origin ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Transitional Economies ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Air Conditioners ◽  
Customer Perceptions ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the consistency over time of customer attitude towards country-of-origin in a transitional economy. Design/methodology/approach A single cross-sectional study in Uzbekistan was carried out, with n=527, consisting of 374 street and 153 online surveys, replicating a study carried out 20 years earlier. Findings Whilst consumers still perceive products from advanced countries to have higher quality, quality perception in relation to country-of-origin information is dynamic and transitional countries can improve the perception of consumers towards their national brands. Research limitations/implications This study was carried out in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan, the most populous of the Central Asian republics. Researchers may wish to extend it by examining COO effects in other transitional economies, and additionally to examine the effect of country-of-brand origin. Practical implications Customer perceptions and attitudes take a long-time to evolve. This cross-sectional study showed that the COO perception of China has improved significantly and the perception towards the products produced locally in Uzbekistan has also slightly improved across all categories. Strong brands can contribute to the image of the country. Transition countries need to take appropriate marketing actions to cultivate positive perception through innovation and branding. Originality/value Prior research has been extended by adding new product categories such as mobile phones, computers, washing machines and air conditioners. This research shows that government officials and exporters in developing countries should prioritise strengthening their country’s image to help domestic marketers export and attract foreign investors. The authors provide insights for marketers to understand the impact of product country-of-origin on customer purchase intention and its antecedents in transitional economies, such as Uzbekistan.

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