scholarly journals Improving Clinical Nurses’ Development of Supervision Skills through an Action Learning Approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Irene Sommer ◽  
Karin Larsen ◽  
Carsten M. Nielsen ◽  
Britta V. Stenholt ◽  
Ida Torunn Bjørk

The aim of this study was to investigate action learning as an implementation method in a large-scale project with many participants in several autonomous and geographically spread groups. The focus of the implementation was the Model of Practical Skill Performance as a learning and supervision tool in the clinical education of nursing students. Nineteen action learning groups were established, and a total of 129 clinical supervisors and 13 facilitators were involved. To evaluate the implementation process, qualitative data were generated through three focus group interviews, questionnaires, and notes. Data illuminate clinical supervisors’ perceptions of value, impact, and sustainability when they participate in an action learning group to become familiar with the Model of Practical Skill Performance. The deductive data analysis was guided by central concepts from action learning. Action learning proved to be an engaging and effective tool in the implementation where the main strength seemed to be the autonomous local group supporting collective reflections on actions. Clinical supervisors had the right competences to adopt a reflective process-oriented approach, which is the hallmark of action learning. This study shows the necessity of collaboration between stakeholders in practice, education, and management to implement large-scale projects in clinical practice. The findings imply that managers should choose participants on the basis of their motivation and their voluntary wish to participate and that nurses’ immersion in the project over time aids implementation.

2021 ◽  
pp. JNM-D-20-00003
Author(s):  
Ida Torunn Bjørk ◽  
Karin Larsen ◽  
Monika Ravik ◽  
Inger Åse Reierson ◽  
Irene Sommer ◽  
...  

Background and PurposeMany newly graduated nurses lack proficiency in practical skill performance. Presently, nursing students’ practical skill is assessed by summative instruments with overarching items. The purpose of this study was to develop a more detailed instrument to use in summative assessment of nursing students’ practical skill performance and to assess its psychometric properties.MethodsA 50-item instrument was developed. Video-recorded performances were rated by experienced clinical supervisors. A multifacet measurement design was developed. Relevant parameters were estimated by generalizability analysis.ResultsFindings indicated that error of measurement were mainly caused by raters far more than by items. Conclusions: The present study suggested that summative assessment in realistic settings may not apply one rater only. Two to three/four raters appear necessary to dependably measure most skills.


Author(s):  
H. Bayraktar ◽  
D. Y. Bayar ◽  
B. Kara ◽  
G. Bilgin

Abstract. Cities are facing numerous challenges because of the unprecedented growth of population all over the world. In this context, smart city stands out as a viable option to improve quality of life. Smart city, with its ability to transform the information into economic, social and environmental benefits, offers acquisitions in the fields of sustainable development, competitiveness and environmental sustainability. However, the cost of implementing and maintaining smart city applications on a large scale reveals the necessity to choose the right smart city application at the beginning of smart city transformation. In order to determine which smart city application should be used in smart city domain, the current situation and needs of the city should be analysed effectively. Maturity assessment can be used as a tool to understand the existing conditions of a city. In this study, Turkey's smart city approach will be addressed and Smart City Maturity Assessment Model of Turkey will be introduced with the preparation and implementation process. Consequently, the impact of the Smart City Maturity Assessment Model on selection of smart city applications will be discussed with the result of maturity assessment which is implemented on 4 cities of Turkey.


2018 ◽  
pp. 1-34
Author(s):  
Andrew Jackson

One scenario put forward by researchers, political commentators and journalists for the collapse of North Korea has been a People’s Power (or popular) rebellion. This paper analyses why no popular rebellion has occurred in the DPRK under Kim Jong Un. It challenges the assumption that popular rebellion would happen because of widespread anger caused by a greater awareness of superior economic conditions outside the DPRK. Using Jack Goldstone’s theoretical expla-nations for the outbreak of popular rebellion, and comparisons with the 1989 Romanian and 2010–11 Tunisian transitions, this paper argues that marketi-zation has led to a loosening of state ideological control and to an influx of infor-mation about conditions in the outside world. However, unlike the Tunisian transitions—in which a new information context shaped by social media, the Al-Jazeera network and an experience of protest helped create a sense of pan-Arab solidarity amongst Tunisians resisting their government—there has been no similar ideology unifying North Koreans against their regime. There is evidence of discontent in market unrest in the DPRK, although protests between 2011 and the present have mostly been in defense of the right of people to support themselves through private trade. North Koreans believe this right has been guaranteed, or at least tacitly condoned, by the Kim Jong Un government. There has not been any large-scale explosion of popular anger because the state has not attempted to crush market activities outright under Kim Jong Un. There are other reasons why no popular rebellion has occurred in the North. Unlike Tunisia, the DPRK lacks a dissident political elite capable of leading an opposition movement, and unlike Romania, the DPRK authorities have shown some flexibility in their anti-dissent strategies, taking a more tolerant approach to protests against economic issues. Reduced levels of violence during periods of unrest and an effective system of information control may have helped restrict the expansion of unrest beyond rural areas.


Author(s):  
Marisa Abrajano ◽  
Zoltan L. Hajnal

This book provides an authoritative assessment of how immigration is reshaping American politics. Using an array of data and analysis, it shows that fears about immigration fundamentally influence white Americans' core political identities, policy preferences, and electoral choices, and that these concerns are at the heart of a large-scale defection of whites from the Democratic to the Republican Party. The book demonstrates that this political backlash has disquieting implications for the future of race relations in America. White Americans' concerns about Latinos and immigration have led to support for policies that are less generous and more punitive and that conflict with the preferences of much of the immigrant population. America's growing racial and ethnic diversity is leading to a greater racial divide in politics. As whites move to the right of the political spectrum, racial and ethnic minorities generally support the left. Racial divisions in partisanship and voting, as the book indicates, now outweigh divisions by class, age, gender, and other demographic measures. The book raises critical questions and concerns about how political beliefs and future elections will change the fate of America's immigrants and minorities, and their relationship with the rest of the nation.


Author(s):  
Aysegul Altunkeser ◽  
Zeynep Ozturk Inal ◽  
Nahide Baran

Background: Shear wave electrography (SWE) is a novel non-invasive imaging technique which demonstrate tissue elasticity. Recent research evaluating the elasticity properties of normal and pathological tissues emphasize the diagnostic importance of this technique. Aims: Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), which is characterized by menstrual irregularity, hyperandrogenism, and polycystic overgrowth, may cause infertility. The aim of this study was to evaluate the elasticity of ovaries in patients with PCOS using SWE. Methods: 66 patients diagnosed with PCOS according to the Rotterdam criteria (PCOS = group I) and 72 patients with non-PCOS (Control = group II), were included in the study. Demographic and clinical characteristics of the participants were recorded. Ovarian elasticity was assessed in all patients with SWE, and speed values were obtained from the ovaries. The elasticity of the ovaries was compared between the two groups. Results: While there were statistically significant differences between the groups in body mass index (BMI), right and left ovarian volumes, luteinizing hormone and testosterone levels (p<0.05), no significant differences were found between groups I and II in the velocity (for the right ovary 3.89±1.81 vs. 2.93±0.72, p=0.301; for the left ovary 2.88±0.65 vs. 2.95±0.80, p=0.577) and elastography (for the right ovary 36.62±17.78 vs. 36.79±14.32, p=0.3952; for the left ovary 36.56±14.15 vs. 36.26±15.10, p=0.903) values, respectively. Conclusion: We could not obtain different velocity and elastography values from the ovaries of the patients with PCOS using SWE. Therefore, further large-scale studies are needed to elucidate this issue.


2021 ◽  
pp. 103530462110176
Author(s):  
Anna Sturman ◽  
Natasha Heenan

We introduce a themed collection of articles on approaches to configuring a Green New Deal as a response to the current capitalist crisis marked by ecological breakdown, economic stagnation and growing inequality. The Green New Deal is a contested political project, with pro-market, right-wing nationalist, Keynesian, democratic socialist and ecosocialist variants. Critiques of the Green New Deal include pragmatic queries as the feasibility of implementation, and theoretical challenges from the right regarding reliance on state forms and from the left regarding efforts to ameliorate capitalism. They also include concerns about technocratic bias and complaints about lack of meaningful consultation with Indigenous peoples on proposals for large-scale shifts in land use. Debates over the ideological orientation, political strategy and implementation of the Green New Deal must now account for the economic and employment impacts of COVID. JEL Codes: Q43, Q54, Q56, Q58


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathrine Håland Jeppesen ◽  
Kirsten Frederiksen ◽  
Marianne Johansson Joergensen ◽  
Kirsten Beedholm

Abstract Background From 2014 to 17, a large-scale project, ‘The User-involving Hospital’, was implemented at a Danish university hospital. Research highlights leadership as crucial for the outcome of change processes in general and for implementation processes in particular. According to the theory on organizational learning by Agyris and Schön, successful change requires organizational learning. Argyris and Schön consider that the assumptions of involved participants play an important role in organizational learning and processes. The purpose was to explore leaders’ assumptions concerning implementation of patient involvement methods in a hospital setting. Methods Qualitative explorative interview study with the six top leaders in the implementation project. The semi-structured interviews were conducted and analyzed in accordance with Kvale and Brinkmanns’ seven stages of interview research. Result The main leadership assumptions on what is needed in the implementation process are in line with the perceived elements in organizational learning according to the theory of Argyris and Schön. Hence, they argued that implementation of patient involvement requires a culture change among health care professionals. Two aspects on how to obtain success in the implementation process were identified based on leadership assumptions: “The health care professionals’ roles in the implementation process” and “The leaders’ own roles in the implementation process”. Conclusion The top leaders considered implementation of patient involvement a change process that necessitates a change in culture with health care professionals as crucial actors. Furthermore, the top leaders considered themselves important facilitators of this implementation process.


2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. e04-e04 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila Bazrafkan ◽  
◽  
Majid Najafi Kalyani ◽  

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 56-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mwawi Ng'oma ◽  
Tesera Bitew ◽  
Malinda Kaiyo-Utete ◽  
Charlotte Hanlon ◽  
Simone Honikman ◽  
...  

Africa is a diverse and changing continent with a rapidly growing population, and the mental health of mothers is a key health priority. Recent studies have shown that: perinatal common mental disorders (depression and anxiety) are at least as prevalent in Africa as in high-income and other low- and middle-income regions; key risk factors include intimate partner violence, food insecurity and physical illness; and poor maternal mental health is associated with impairment of infant health and development. Psychological interventions can be integrated into routine maternal and child healthcare in the African context, although the optimal model and intensity of intervention remain unclear and are likely to vary across settings. Future priorities include: extension of research to include neglected psychiatric conditions; large-scale mixed-method studies of the causes and consequences of perinatal common mental disorders; scaling up of locally appropriate evidence-based interventions, including prevention; and advocacy for the right of all women in Africa to safe holistic maternity care.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Imranul Hoque

PurposeThis study aims to investigate how buyer-assisted lean intervention in garment supplier factories affects garment suppliers' productivity and production capability development.Design/methodology/approachEmploying a qualitative research approach and a lean intervention design, a multiple case study method was adopted for this study. Quantitative data on productivity performance and qualitative data on production capability development were collected from a Danish buyer and their four corresponding garment suppliers. Collected data were analysed using standard lean measurement tools and qualitative data analysis techniques.FindingsThis study demonstrates that buyer-assisted lean intervention is a useful strategy for garment suppliers to enhance their productivity and production capability. However, suppliers need to select the right lean tools, ensure seriousness and commitment to lean initiatives, substantial involvement of top management and workers, arrange formal and informal training, provide performance-based financial/non-financial incentives and nurture a learning culture to facilitate suppliers' production capability development.Research limitations/implicationsThis study implemented few lean tools in a single sewing line in four supplier factories for a short intervention duration. Thus, there is a scope for future studies to investigate the impact of the lean intervention on a large scale.Practical implicationsThe findings of this study might bring new insights to the management of buyer and supplier firms concerning how buyers could involve in suppliers' lean intervention initiatives and what suppliers need to ensure to develop production capability.Originality/valueFor the first time, this study engaged a buyer in suppliers' lean intervention initiatives to improve productivity and production capability in the garment industry of a developing country.


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