Freedom of information implications of information sharing networks for critical infrastructure protection

Protection of “critical infrastructure” has become a major issue for govern- ments worldwide. Yet in Australia, as in many other countries, including the United States, an estimated 90% of critical infrastructure is privately owned or operated commercially – in other words, critical infrastructure protection is not the exclusive domain of government. As a result, information sharing between government and the private sector has become a vitally important component of effective risk management. However, establishing effective arrangements of this kind between the public and private sector needs to take account of existing regimes of access and public disclosure which relate to government-held documents; in particular, that which is established by freedom of information (FOI) legislation. This article examines the extent to which the current Commonwealth FOI regime is likely to act as an impediment to the private sector operators of critical infrastructure participat- ing in government-operated information sharing arrangements. By examining developments in other jurisdictions, principally the United States, the article considers whether amendments to the current Australian FOI regime are necessary to ensure effective participation, consistent with the underlying object and purpose of FOI.

Measuring building quality of shopping centres in Surabaya by Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)

Quality has been an important factor for shopping centers in competitive conditions. However, quality measurement has no standard. In Surabaya, only two regional shopping centers will be measured in this research. The objective is assessing quality of shopping centers building using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method and calculating the Building Quality Index. An overall ranking of Hierarchy priorities of quality criteria founded as a result from AHP analysis. Access and Circulation became the highest priority in affecting quality of shopping centers building according to respondents’ perception of quality. Weightened value as a result from comparison between two shopping centers as follows: Tunjungan Plaza get 0,732 point and Surabaya Plaza get 0,268 point. The first shopping center got higher weight than the second shopping center. The BQI for Tunjungan Plaza is 66% and for Surabaya Plaza is 64%.

Examination of social demographic status, disease status, health behaviours and quality of life in older Australians using the theory of planned behaviour model

The increase of life expectancy worldwide during the last three decades has increased age-related disability leading to the risk of loss of quality of life. How to improve quality of life including physical health and mental health for older people and optimize their life potential has become an important health issue. This study used the Theory of Planned Behaviour Model to examine factors influencing health behaviours, and the relationship with quality of life. A cross-sectional mailed survey of 1300 Australians over 50 years was conducted at the beginning of 2009, with 730 completed questionnaires returned (response rate 63%). Preliminary analysis reveals that physiological changes of old age, especially increasing waist circumference and co morbidity was closely related to health status, especially worse physical health summary score. Physical activity was the least adherent behaviour among the respondents compared to eating healthy food and taking medication regularly as prescribed. Increasing number of older people living alone with co morbidity of disease may be the barriers that influence their attitude and self control toward physical activity. A multidisciplinary and integrated approach including hospital and non hospital care is required to provide appropriate services and facilities toward older people.

Evidence-based practice : information professionals' experience of information literacy in the workplace

Evidence-based practice is increasingly being recognised as an important issue in a range of professional contexts including education, nursing, occupational therapy and librarianship. Many of these professions have observed a relationship or interface between evidence-based practice and information literacy. Using a phenomenographic approach this research explores variation in the how library and information professionals are experiencing evidence-based practice as part of their professional work. The findings of the research provide a basis for arguing that evidence-based practice represents the professional's enactment of information literacy in the workplace.

Social Participation of Community Dwelling Stroke Survivors [Published Abstract: From the Quality of Care and Outcomes Research in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke Conference 2009]

Disability following a stroke can impose various restrictions on patients’ attempts at participating in life roles. The measurement of social participation, for instance, is important in estimating recovery and assessing quality of care at the community level. Thus, the identification of factors influencing social participation is essential in developing effective measures for promoting the reintegration of stroke survivors into the community. Data were collected from 188 stroke survivors (mean age 71.7 years) 12 months after discharge from a stroke rehabilitation hospital. Of these survivors, 128 (61 %) had suffered a first ever stroke, and 81 (43 %) had a right hemisphere lesion. Most (n = 156, 83 %) were living in their own home, though 32 (17 %) were living in residential care facilities. Path analysis was used to test a hypothesized model of participation restriction which included the direct and indirect effects between social, psychological and physical outcomes and demographic variables. Participation restriction was the dependent variable. Exogenous independent variables were age, functional ability, living arrangement and gender. Endogenous independent variables were depressive symptoms, state self-esteem and social support satisfaction. The path coefficients showed functional ability having the largest direct effect on participation restriction. The results also showed that more depressive symptoms, low state self-esteem, female gender, older age and living in a residential care facility had a direct effect on participation restriction. The explanatory variables accounted for 71% of the variance in explaining participation restriction. Prediction models have empirical and practical applications such as suggesting important factors to be considered in promoting stroke recovery. The findings suggest that interventions offered over the course of rehabilitation should be aimed at improving functional ability and promoting psychological aspects of recovery. These are likely to enhance stroke survivors resume or maximize their social participation so that they may fulfill productive and positive life roles.

Towards developing an integrated model of information behaviour

This paper presents the results from a study of information behaviors in the context of people's everyday lives undertaken in order to develop an integrated model of information behavior (IB). 34 participants from across 6 countries maintained a daily information journal or diary – mainly through a secure web log – for two weeks, to an aggregate of 468 participant days over five months. The text-rich diary data was analyzed using a multi-method qualitative-quantitative analysis in the following order: Grounded Theory analysis with manual coding, automated concept analysis using thesaurus-based visualization, and finally a statistical analysis of the coding data. The findings indicate that people engage in several information behaviors simultaneously throughout their everyday lives (including home and work life) and that sense-making is entangled in all aspects of them. Participants engaged in many of the information behaviors in a parallel, distributed, and concurrent fashion: many information behaviors for one information problem, one information behavior across many information problems, and many information behaviors concurrently across many information problems. Findings indicate also that information avoidance – both active and passive avoidance – is a common phenomenon and that information organizing behaviors or the lack thereof caused the most problems for participants. An integrated model of information behaviors is presented based on the findings.

The relationship between culture, attitude, social networks and quality of life in midlife Australian and Taiwanese citizens

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to specifically investigate the differences in culture, attitudes and social networks between Australian and Taiwanese men and women and identify the factors that predict midlife men and women’s quality of life in both countries. Methods: A stratified random sample strategy based on probability proportional sampling (PPS) was conducted to investigate 278 Australian and 398 Taiwanese midlife men and women’s quality of life. Multiple regression modelling and classification and regression trees (CARTs) were performed to examine the potential differences on culture, attitude, social networks, social demographic factors and religion/spirituality in midlife men and women’s quality of life in both Australia and Taiwan. Results: The results of this study suggest that culture involves multiple functions and interacts with attitudes, social networks and individual factors to influence a person’s quality of life. Significant relationships were found between the interaction between cultural circumstances and a person’s internal and external factors. The research found that good social support networks and a healthy optimistic disposition may significantly enhance midlife men and women’s quality of life. Conclusion: The study indicated that there is a significant relationship between culture, attitude, social networks and quality of life in midlife Australian and Taiwanese men and women. People who had higher levels of horizontal individualism and collectivism, positive attitudes and better social support had better psychological, social, physical and environmental health, while it emerged that vertical individualists with competitive characteristics would experience a lower quality of life. This study has highlighted areas where opportunities exist to further reflect upon contemporary social health policies for Australian and Taiwanese societies and also within the global perspective, in order to provide enhanced quality care for growing midlife populations.

Does quality of life among breast cancer survivors one year after diagnosis differ depending on urban and non-urban residence? A comparative study

Background: This study examined the quality of life (QOL), measured by the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT) questionnaire, among urban (n=277) and non-urban (n=323) breast cancer survivors and women from the general population (n=1140) in Queensland, Australia. ---------- Methods: Population-based samples of breast cancer survivors aged <75 years who were 12 months post-diagnosis and similarly-aged women from the general population were recruited between 2002 and 2007. ---------- Results: Age-adjusted QOL among urban and non-urban breast cancer survivors was similar, although QOL related to breast cancer concerns was the weakest domain and was lower among non-urban survivors than their urban counterparts (36.8 versus 40.4, P<0.01). Irrespective of residence, breast cancer survivors, on average, reported comparable scores on most QOL scales as their general population peers, although physical well-being was significantly lower among non-urban survivors (versus the general population, P<0.01). Overall, around 20%-33% of survivors experienced lower QOL than peers without the disease. The odds of reporting QOL below normative levels were increased more than two-fold for those who experienced complications following surgery, reported upper-body problems, had higher perceived stress levels and/or a poor perception of handling stress (P<0.01 for all). ---------- Conclusions: Results can be used to identify subgroups of women at risk of low QOL and to inform components of tailored recovery interventions to optimize QOL for these women following cancer treatment.

Patterns, correlates, and prognostic significance of quality of life following breast cancer

Objective To describe quality of life (QOL) over a 12-month period among women with breast cancer, consider the association between QOL and overall survival (OS), and explore characteristics associated with QOL declines. Methods A population-based sample of Australian women (n=287) with invasive, unilateral breast cancer (Stage I+), was observed prospectively for a median of 6.6 years. QOL was assessed at six, 12 and 18 months post-diagnosis, using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy, Breast (FACT-B+4) questionnaire. Raw scores for the FACT-B+4 and subscales were computed and individuals were categorized according to whether QOL declined, remained stable or improved between six and 18 months. Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards survival methods were used to estimate OS and its associations with QOL. Logistic regression models identified factors associated with QOL decline. Results Within FACT-B+4 sub-scales, between 10% and 23% of women showed declines in QOL. Following adjustment for established prognostic factors, emotional wellbeing and FACT-B+4 scores at six months post-diagnosis were associated with OS (p<0.05). Declines in physical (p<0.01) or functional (p=0.02) well-being between six and 18 months post-diagnosis were also associated significantly with OS. Receiving multiple forms of adjuvant treatment, a perception of not handling stress well and reporting one or more other major life events at six months post-diagnosis were factors associated with declines in QOL in multivariable analyses. Conclusions Interventions targeted at preventing QOL declines may ultimately improve quantity as well as quality of life following breast cancer.