Beyond the Classroom

The growing dilemma of teacher job turnover has severely handicapped the fundamental responsibility of school districts to maintain a committed and stable instructional force. Using the lens of organizational systems theory, this chapter explores ways in which building leaders can actively increase job embeddedness of teachers and staff by constructing collaborative perspectives of teaching and learning. A systems approach where disciplines are integrated and community culture is respected can result in teachers being more engaged in school-wide pedagogy, feeling less isolated, and developing a convivial sense of fidelity which can lead to job satisfaction and commitment to remain.

Stroke and Telerehabilitation: A Brief Communication

This rapid communication highlights stroke telerehabilitation, a health care service that provides daily monitoring of the care of patients recovering from stroke, delivering convenient and immediate feedback for patients, family, and caregivers. The delivery, management, and coordination of nursing care services, provided via telecommunications technology, is a convenient method of delivering health care to patients recovering from stroke. It is important to assess the service quality of the telehealth process and to establish the role of telehealth nursing and related technologies in the care of patients recovering from stroke. Studies show that even though both health professionals and participants have reported high levels of satisfaction and acceptance of telerehabilitation interventions, the quality of the evidence on telerehabilitation in poststroke care remains low. Conducting a quality study of telehealth rehabilitation for patients recovering from stroke will help assess if home health agencies with telehealth capabilities caring for patients recovering from stroke and patients with chronic diseases can provide quality care to patients in their home and fill this health care gap. Patients that are severely handicapped and impaired and unable to reside in their home environment are not included in telerehabilitation services provided by the home care agency. It would be informative to study the benefits of telerehabilitation and the care provided to patients recovering from stroke within nursing homes, given the need for social distancing to reduce disease transmission during the current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) global health pandemic. Using telerehabilitation would mean that patients have a lower risk of exposure to infectious agents. Further research into telehealth interventions and stroke management in home care is crucial.

Stroke and Telerehabilitation: A Brief Communication (Preprint)

UNSTRUCTURED This rapid communication highlights stroke telerehabilitation, a health care service that provides daily monitoring of the care of patients recovering from stroke, delivering convenient and immediate feedback for patients, family, and caregivers. The delivery, management, and coordination of nursing care services, provided via telecommunications technology, is a convenient method of delivering health care to patients recovering from stroke. It is important to assess the service quality of the telehealth process and to establish the role of telehealth nursing and related technologies in the care of patients recovering from stroke. Studies show that even though both health professionals and participants have reported high levels of satisfaction and acceptance of telerehabilitation interventions, the quality of the evidence on telerehabilitation in poststroke care remains low. Conducting a quality study of telehealth rehabilitation for patients recovering from stroke will help assess if home health agencies with telehealth capabilities caring for patients recovering from stroke and patients with chronic diseases can provide quality care to patients in their home and fill this health care gap. Patients that are severely handicapped and impaired and unable to reside in their home environment are not included in telerehabilitation services provided by the home care agency. It would be informative to study the benefits of telerehabilitation and the care provided to patients recovering from stroke within nursing homes, given the need for social distancing to reduce disease transmission during the current coronavirus disease (COVID-19) global health pandemic. Using telerehabilitation would mean that patients have a lower risk of exposure to infectious agents. Further research into telehealth interventions and stroke management in home care is crucial.

The Quest of Economic Temperature

Temperature is the vital sign of life. So is the “economic temperature” a vital sign of economy. The concept of economic temperature has been around in history since the time money used for trading. Nonetheless, economists and scholars struggled with the basic definition of economic temperature. Mathematic modeling and quantitative analysis are essential tools for modern economic analysis. Without clear definition of economic temperature, theoretical discussions are severely handicapped. Recent development of econophysics are appealing because of the well-established mathematic formulation, particularly, thermodynamics. However, the lack of clear definition of economic temperature greatly hindered econophysics discussions and application. The Law of Supply-and-Demand and the Law of Ideal-Gas have shared hyperbolic form. Money system and ideal gas are “working-media” or “agents” in economic system and mechanical system respectively. Therefore, the shared forms are not only mathematically intriguing but also bearing theoretical significances. A definition of “Economic Temperature” based on these two well-established laws opens the door for broad-spectrum economic applications.

Underdiagnosis of psychiatric disorders in people with intellectual disabilities: Differences between psychiatric disorders and challenging behaviour

Background and purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the level of mental disorders and challenging behaviour in individuals with intellectual disability (ID) supported by specialized services, but without a prior psychiatric diagnosis, and to compare the levels of different disorders depending on the severity of ID. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study ( N = 142) of population with ID. Inclusion criteria were the following: adult patients with ID and with no previous psychiatric diagnosis prior to this survey. The Wechsler Adults Intelligence Scale-II, the Psychiatric Assessment Schedule for Adults with Developmental Disability checklist and clinical interview, the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped scale and the Inventory for Client and Agency Planning were the assessment tools. Results: A previously undiagnosed mental disorder was found in 29.6% of the sample. The most prevalent mental disorders were major depressive and anxiety disorders. An association between psychiatric comorbidity and challenging behaviour was found only for mild/moderate ID, especially for affective disorders. Conclusions: The presence of a psychiatric as well as a medical comorbidity is associated with severe ID, unlike challenging behaviour. Clinical limitations of the study have been discussed.