scholarly journals Capacity to handle complexity – The importance of contextual awareness in healthcare communication in English as a lingua franca

Economica ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 131-141
Author(s):  
Alexandra Vivien Bakó
Keyword(s):  
Language Use ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Complex Dynamic ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
Contextual Awareness ◽  
Healthcare Communication

Hungarian healthcare providers – as most of their colleagues around the world – engage in interaction with foreign patients, whom they do not share a mother tongue with, in English as a lingua franca (ELF) most of the time. These communicative situations pose great challenges to healthcare providers, as they have to be capable of adjusting their language use to their patients’ cognitive, linguistic and communicative-pragmatic schemata which often differ from their own. In order to develop such a capacity, ESP classes must focus on improving health science students’ awareness in exploring various ELF contexts which form ground for making informed decisions on the use of terminology. The present research aims at showing the complex dynamic nature of these ELF contexts based on empirical data collected via interviews with Hungarian healthcare providers who have extended experience in working with patients in international environments. The results can inform the everyday practice of ESP teachers in the field of the health sciences.

Barriers to Female Condom Use among Undergraduate Health Science Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bongekile T. Dlamini ◽  
Mduduzi Colani Shongwe
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Female Condom ◽  
Sexual Pleasure ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Tertiary Institution ◽  
Health Science Students ◽  
Inadequate Knowledge ◽  
Interview Guide ◽  
Depth Interviews

The female condom (FC), also known as the femidom, has been on the market since 1993, however, its use remains limited in many parts of southern Africa, including in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland). There is a dearth of literature on the reasons for the limited use of the FC, especially from the perspective of health science students who would otherwise be expected to be knowledgeable about and have favourable attitudes to it. The aim of this study was to explore and describe the barriers to FC use among undergraduate health science students at a selected tertiary institution in Eswatini. A qualitative, exploratory descriptive study was conducted among nine conveniently sampled, unmarried undergraduate students at a selected tertiary institution in the Hhohho region in Mbabane, Eswatini. Responses to an unstructured interview guide, using in-depth interviews were analysed thematically following Creswell’s steps of qualitative data analysis. Five themes emerged from the data: (1) inadequate knowledge about the FC, (2) the FC hinders sexual pleasure, (3) insertion of the FC is time-consuming and uncomfortable, (4) the FC is bigger than the vagina, and (5) fear of being labelled “promiscuous”. Generally, the participants stated that they did not use the FC because of societal myths. Therefore, there is a need to strengthen health education campaigns for the femidom to clear the myths and misconceptions that limit its use.

First grammar books in the Habsburg Monarchy: individual initiative and regulatory interference by the state (1760s–1770s)

2020 ◽  
Vol 2019 (2 (11)) ◽  
pp. 137-157
Author(s):  
Olga V. Khavanova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
State Policy ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
German Language ◽  
Habsburg Monarchy ◽  
Private Initiative ◽  
The One

The second half of the eighteenth century in the lands under the sceptre of the House of Austria was a period of development of a language policy addressing the ethno-linguistic diversity of the monarchy’s subjects. On the one hand, the sphere of use of the German language was becoming wider, embracing more and more segments of administration, education, and culture. On the other hand, the authorities were perfectly aware of the fact that communication in the languages and vernaculars of the nationalities living in the Austrian Monarchy was one of the principal instruments of spreading decrees and announcements from the central and local authorities to the less-educated strata of the population. Consequently, a large-scale reform of primary education was launched, aimed at making the whole population literate, regardless of social status, nationality (mother tongue), or confession. In parallel with the centrally coordinated state policy of education and language-use, subjects-both language experts and amateur polyglots-joined the process of writing grammar books, which were intended to ease communication between the different nationalities of the Habsburg lands. This article considers some examples of such editions with primary attention given to the correlation between private initiative and governmental policies, mechanisms of verifying the textbooks to be published, their content, and their potential readers. This paper demonstrates that for grammar-book authors, it was very important to be integrated into the patronage networks at the court and in administrative bodies and stresses that the Vienna court controlled the process of selection and financing of grammar books to be published depending on their quality and ability to satisfy the aims and goals of state policy.

Examining Transnational Student Mental Health Responses to COVID-19 During the Transition to Remote Learning: A Longitudinal Study (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Leticia Salazar Preciado ◽  
Sally Haack ◽  
Luis Renee González Lucano ◽  
Ricardo Javier Díaz Domínguez ◽  
Inbal Mazar
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Sleep Time ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Health Science Students ◽  
Survey Results ◽  
Survey Sample ◽  
Remote Learning

BACKGROUND COVID-19 represents a major global health crisis and has resulted in drastic changes to daily life. While even prior to the start of the pandemic college students had a high prevalence of mental health conditions, this group is even more at risk during the pandemic. OBJECTIVE To investigate the emotional impact of quarantine and transition to remote learning on health science students from two countries, regarding anxiety prevalence, mental wellbeing and coping behaviors during the first month of the COVID-19 outbreak. METHODS A total of 28 students from Tecnologico de Monterrey (TEC) in Guadalajara, Mexico and 19 students from Drake University (Drake) in Iowa, United States participated in the study. All students were studying health sciences, including degree programs such as medicine, pharmacy, and nutrition and wellness. This longitudinal study assessed students’ immediate psychological response during the COVID-19 pandemic by using an anonymous online questionnaire administered in April and again in May 2020. The survey was created to assess anxiety levels, coping mechanisms, and changes in daily habits. Demographics such as gender, age, non-academic working, living arrangements, household size, and number of roommates/co-habitants were also collected. RESULTS The April survey sample included 47 students and the May survey sample included 41 students. At least 50% of respondents were females, 20 to 21 years of age. The April survey results showed that more TEC students rated their food intake as higher than before the pandemic when compared to Drake students (p=0.032). Alcohol consumption reportedly stayed the same for Drake students and was lower for TEC students (p=0.004). The May survey results showed a statistically significant difference only for the alcohol consumption (p<0.001). Sleep time between April and May in TEC students showed a significant statistical difference, with students reporting less sleep time in May (p=0.016). The analysis for the level of anxiety according to the Beck Anxiety Inventory showed no statistically significant differences, neither when comparing between intra (TEC p=0.189 and Drake p=0.879) and inter group survey times (TEC vs Drake in April p=0.919 and TEC vs Drake in May p=0.305). The most common physical symptoms reported by students during both study periods were: feeling hot, nervous, fear of losing control, inability to relax, and fear of the worst happening. CONCLUSIONS There is growing concern surrounding the mental health status and needs of health science students during the pandemic. It is important to monitor changes in students’ mental health in response to the pandemic and to create interventions that target students appropriately.

Language Use and Sustainable Development: Opportunities and Challenges for Policy-Makers and Educators in Northeast Vietnamese Areas

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 122-130
Author(s):  
Ha Ngan Ngo ◽  
Maya Khemlani David
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Mother Tongue ◽  
Language Shift ◽  
Minority Languages ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
The Status ◽  
Wedding Songs

Vietnam represents a country with 54 ethnic groups; however, the majority (88%) of the population are of Vietnamese heritage. Some of the other ethnic groups such as Tay, Thai, Muong, Hoa, Khmer, and Nung have a population of around 1 million each, while the Brau, Roman, and Odu consist only of a hundred people each. Living in northern Vietnam, close to the Chinese border (see Figure 1), the Tay people speak a language of the    Central    Tai language group called Though, T'o, Tai Tho, Ngan, Phen, Thu Lao, or Pa Di. Tay remains one of 10 ethnic languages used by 1 million speakers (Buoi, 2003). The Tày ethnic group has a rich culture of wedding songs, poems, dance, and music and celebrate various festivals. Wet rice cultivation, canal digging and grain threshing on wooden racks are part of the Tày traditions. Their villages situated near the foothills often bear the names of nearby mountains, rivers, or fields. This study discusses the status and role of the Tày language in Northeast Vietnam. It discusses factors, which have affected the habitual use of the Tay language, the connection between language shift and development and provides a model for the sustainability and promotion of minority languages. It remains fundamentally imperative to strengthen and to foster positive attitudes of the community towards the Tày language. Tày’s young people must be enlightened to the reality their Tày non-usage could render their mother tongue defunct, which means their history stands to be lost.

Nacionālā valoda zinātnē: Latvijas piemērs

2020 ◽  
pp. 31-52
Author(s):  
Agnese Dubova ◽  
Diāna Laiveniece ◽  
Egita Proveja ◽  
Baiba Egle
Keyword(s):  
Online Community ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Language Choice ◽  
Doctoral Dissertation ◽  
National Language ◽  
Main Trend ◽  
Scientific Language ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Scientific Excellence ◽  
Language Of Science

The aim of the paper is to show and describe the current situation in the Latvian scientific language based on a case study of the problem about the place of a national language and its existence in science in modern globalised time, when the dominance of English as the lingua franca of science grows. More specifically, the paper analyses the November 2019 conceptual plans of the Latvian Ministry of Education and Science about a new concept of doctoral study programmes that would lean towards using English as the doctoral dissertation language in hopes for scientific excellence, and the public reaction and opinion on this concept. The descriptive method is used within the paper, including the contemporary literature review focused on the language of science globally, issues of multilingualism and glocalization, and the problems caused by these issues. Via empirical discourse content analysis, the authors looked at various documents, including Latvian law that governs the rights and rules of the Latvian language use in various contexts. They examined a wide array of mainly online content and diverse online community discourse related to the question of what language should be used (Latvian or English) within the doctoral dissertation process. For a comparison of the situation, the paper also provides a brief insight into the regulation of the language used in the development of dissertations in Lithuania. During the study, 21 different sources, that is, articles posted on various Latvian news media sites and 304 online user comments, predominantly anonymous, under these articles relating to the issue of language choice in doctoral dissertations were analysed. All the mentioned sources, to a greater or lesser extent, discussed the issue of what place Latvian has as a language of science and whether English should be the dominant language in doctoral studies, what implications the choice and usage of a language could have, and what far-reaching impact this might have on science, education, and society. The material revealed a breadth of opinions, depending on what group a person is more likely to represent, ranging from the Ministry stance to organisations and the general public. Some had a very pro-English stance, and some showed significant concern for the Latvian language. The main trend in online community user opinions could be condensed as such: there is a variety of language choices for a doctoral dissertation – a dissertation written in Latvian; a dissertation written in English; or leaving the language choice up to the doctoral student. This would ensure that the language choice fits the doctoral students’ goals and field of research. Making English mandatory would not likely lead to guarantee scientific excellence as what matters is the research content itself, not the language used. The national language in science is a current and important issue in Latvia, as there is a need for state language use in a scientific register, and this usage should be developed further. The Ministry document discussed is still a draft report, and it is not yet known what final decisions on the PhD process and dissertation language will be taken by policymakers in the future. This paper shows that language choice and use in science is not just a matter for scholars and PhD candidates, but an issue that can and does gain interest from various groups of society and gets discussed online in multiple ways, allowing people to express their opinion on policy and societal issues. Latvian is a scientific language, and it has a place within the international scientific discourse, and it should not be made to step aside for the dominant lingua franca.

scholarly journals Eating disorders among health science students at a university in southern Brazil

2011 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luiza do Nascimento Ghizoni Pereira ◽  
Fabiana Schuelter Trevisol ◽  
João Quevedo ◽  
Luciano Kurtz Jornada
Keyword(s):  
Eating Disorders ◽  
Weight Loss ◽  
University Students ◽  
Eating Attitudes ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Southern Brazil ◽  
Health Science Students ◽  
Weight Loss Strategies ◽  
Eat 26

OBJECTIVES: To analyze eating disorders among female university students and to assess the frequency of bulimia nervosa, anorexia nervosa, and inappropriate weight loss strategies in this population. METHODS: The sample comprised 214 female university students attending different health science programs at a university in southern Brazil, aged over 18 years, assessed using self-administered questionnaires. The 26-item version of the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh (BITE), and a supplementary questionnaire covering data on weight status and inappropriate weight loss strategies were used to assess dietary abnormalities. RESULTS: Mean age (± standard deviation) was 21±9.93 years, and mean body mass index (BMI) was 21.1±2.59. Among the respondents, 72.9% said they would like to weigh less, 29% reported the use of different weight loss methods (diuretics were the most common, followed by laxatives, amphetamine-derived drugs, and self-induced vomiting). With regard to EAT-26 scores, 22.4% (95%CI 17.7-27.1) revealed abnormal feeding patterns; BITE indicated that 9.8% (95%CI 6.5-13.1) were at risk for developing bulimia and 36.9% (95%CI 31.5-42.3) required clinical evaluation. Mean BMI was lower among students with normal scores on both tests, but no association was found between BMI and satisfaction with own weight. CONCLUSION: There was a strong trend toward eating disorders in the health science students assessed, as demonstrated by EAT-26 and BITE scores; inadequate weight loss strategies are frequently used as well.

scholarly journals Experience of sexual harassment in public transport among female health science students: A cross sectional study of Kathmandu, Nepal

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Mishra ◽  
J. Lamichhane
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Harassment ◽  
Public Transport ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Health Science ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Health Science Students ◽  
College Going ◽  
The Status

Background: Sexual harassment on public transport is an everyday occurrence for millions of girls and women around the globe. With the skyrocketing population of Kathmandu valley public transport has been facing enormous pressure. The major victims of these harassments happens to be college going girls and working women as they tend to travel more in public transports. This study sought to determine the prevalence and factors responsible for sexual harassment in public transport among female health science students.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among 396 female health science students studying in Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences using self-administered structured questionnaire. Participants were selected through stratified random sampling method.Results: The prevalence of sexual harassment among female health science students was found to be 79.6%. Physical harassment was the most prominent type of harassment (67.1%) followed by verbal (61.2%) and non verbal 34.6%. After the experience of sexual harassment, 44.6% scolded the harasser, 29.1% kept silent, 17.3% dropped at nearest bus station whereas remaining 9% reacted in other different ways. Overcrowding was considered as main reason for sexual harassment by 69.2% of the participants. 36.8% of female students didn’t use any precautionary methods whereas 32.6% avoided going out alone at night.Conclusion: The study reveals that the prevalence of sexual harassment is significantly high. With increasing population and limited vehicles people are left with no option rather than travelling in the overcrowded vehicles where the chances of experiencing various sorts of sexual harassments are very high. In order to address this emerging issue, prompt and appropriate intervention should be taken by government, public and especially the status of women must be raised in society.JMMIHS.2018;4(1):20-32

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