Challenges for nursing education in Angola: the perception of nurse leaders affiliated with professional education institutions

Background: Angola is one of the African countries with the highest morbidity and mortality rates and a devastating lack of human resources for health, including nursing. The World Health Organization stimulates and takes technical cooperation initiatives for human resource education and training in health and education, with a view to the development of countries in the region. The aim in this study was to identify how nurses affiliated with nursing education institutions perceive the challenges nursing education is facing in Angola. Methods: After consulting the National Directory of Human Resources in Angola, the nurse leaders affiliated with professional nursing education institutions in Angola were invited to participate in the study by email. Data were collected in February 2009 through the focus group technique. The group of participants was focused on the central question: what are the challenges faced for nursing education in your country? To register and understand the information, besides the use of a recorder, the reporters elaborated an interpretative report. Data were coded using content analysis. Results: Fourteen nurses participated in the meeting, most of whom were affiliated with technical nursing education institutions. It was verified that the nurse leaders at technical and higher nursing education institutions in Angola face many challenges, mainly related to the lack of infrastructure, absence of trained human resources, bureaucratic problems to regularize the schools and lack of material resources. On the opposite, the solutions they present are predominantly centered on the valuation of nursing professionals, which implies cultural and attitude changes. Conclusions: Public health education policies need to be established in Angola, including action guidelines that permit effective nursing activities. Professional education institutions need further regularizations and nurses need to be acknowledged as key elements for the qualitative enhancement of health services in the country.

Height variability from the MIROC - IPCC model for the 20th century compared to that of the TOPEX/POSEIDON altimeter

Planetary waves are key to large-scale dynamical adjustment in the global ocean as they transfer energy from the east to the west side of oceanic basins; they connect the forcing in the ocean interior with the variability at its boundaries: and they change the local heat content, thus coupling oceanic, atmospheric, and biological processes. Planetary waves, mostly of the first baroclinic mode, are observed as distinctive patterns in global time series of sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) and heat storage. The goal of this study is to compare and validate large-scale SSHA signals from coupled ocean-atmosphere general circulation Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate (MIROC) with TOPEX/POSEIDON satellite altimeter observations. The last decade of the models` time series is selected for comparison with the altimeter data. The wave patterns are separated from the meso- and large-scale SSHA signals by digital filters calibrated to select the same spectral bands in both model and altimeter data. The band-wise comparison allows for an assessment of the model skill to simulate the dynamical components of the observed wave field. Comparisons regarding both the seasonal cycle and the Rossby wave Held differ significantly among basins. When carried within the same basin, differences can occur between equal latitudes in opposite hemispheres. Furthermore, at some latitudes the MIROC reproduces biannual, annual and semiannual planetary waves with phase speeds and average amplitudes similar to those observed by the altimeter, but with significant differences in phase. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. I. The first notices about Brazilian Diptera (16th century)

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. I. The first notices about Brazilian Diptera (16th century). This paper presents a historical resume of the first notices about Brazilian Diluent during the 16th century, given by Francisco Pires in 1552 (the oldest mention known), Jose de Anchieta, Leonardo do Valle, Pero de Magalhaes de Gandavo, Jean de Lery and Gabriel Soares de Souza, ending with Fernao Cardim, who made the last mentions of Brazilian Diptera in that century.

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. II. Notices about Brazilian Diptera (17th century)

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. II. Notices about Brazilian Diptera (17th century). Notices from the Brazilian Diptera from the 17th century come mainly from two foreign invasions occurred in Brazil, the first one by the French in Maranhao and the second by the Dutch in northeastern Brazil. This paper includes reports of Fathers Claude d'Abbeville and Yves d'Evreux and from Piso and Marcgrave, the last two presenting the first illustrations of Brazilian Diptera. The paper also includes reports of Friar Laureano de la Cruz, Father Joao de Sotto Mayor and Mauricio de Heriarte.

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. III. Three remarkable notices from the 18th century, mainly related to myiasis-producing flies (Cochliomyia and Dermatobia)

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. III. Three remarkable notices from the 18th century, mainly related to myiasis-producing flies (Cochliomyia and Dermatobia). This paper registers reports about dipterans made by three Portuguese who lived in Brazil during the 18th century. Luiz Gomes Ferreira, in his book "Erario mineral" ["Mineral revenue"], wrote curious passages related with myiasis-causing flies of the genus Cochliomyia. Jose Rodrigues de Mello registered, in Latin verses, the folklore for curing myiases caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax in cattle. Luiz dos Santos Vilhena, in the last of his twenty letters dealing with several aspects of life in Brazil, made reference to horseflies, human bot flies and mosquitos.

Astrobiology in Brazil: early history and perspectives

This review reports the Brazilian history in astrobiology, as well as the first delineation of a vision of the future development of the field in the country, exploring its abundant biodiversity, highly capable human resources and state-of-the-art facilities, reflecting the last few years of stable governmental investments in science, technology and education, all conditions providing good perspectives on continued and steadily growing funding for astrobiology-related research. Brazil is growing steadily and fast in terms of its worldwide economic power, an effect being reflected in different areas of the Brazilian society, including industry, technology, education, social care and scientific production. In the field of astrobiology, the country has had some important landmarks, more intensely after the First Brazilian Workshop on Astrobiology in 2006. The history of astrobiology in Brazil, however, is not so recent and had its first occurrence in 1958. Since then, researchers carried out many individual initiatives across the country in astrobiology-related fields, resulting in an ever growing and expressive scientific production. The number of publications, including articles and theses, has particularly increased in the last decade, but still counting with the effort of researchers working individually. That scenario started to change in 2009, when a formal group of Brazilian researchers working with astrobiology was organized, aiming at congregating the scientific community interested in the subject and to promote the necessary interactions to achieve a multidisciplinary work, receiving facilities and funding from the University de Sao Paulo and other funding agencies. Received 29 February 2012, accepted 17 May 2012, first published online 18 July 2012

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology: II. notices about Brazilian Diptera (17th century)

Essays on the history of Brazilian dipterology. II. Notices about Brazilian Diptera (17th century). Notices from the Brazilian Diptera from the 17th century come mainly from two foreign invasions occurred in Brazil, the first one by the French in Maranhão and the second by the Dutch in northeastern Brazil. This paper includes reports of Fathers Claude d'Abbeville and Yves d'Evreux and from Piso and Marcgrave, the last two presenting the first illustrations of Brazilian Diptera. The paper also includes reports of Friar Laureano de la Cruz, Father João de Sotto Mayor and Maurício de Heriarte.

Essays on the history of brazilian dipterology: III. Three remarkable notices from the 18th century, mainly related to myiasis-producing flies (Cochliomyia and Dermatobia)

This paper registers reports about dipterans made by three Portuguese who lived in Brazil during the 18th century. Luiz Gomes Ferreira, in his book "Erário mineral" ["Mineral revenue"], wrote curious passages related with myiasis-causing flies of the genus Cochliomyia. José Rodrigues de Mello registered, in Latin verses, the folklore for curing myiases caused by Cochliomyia hominivorax in cattle. Luiz dos Santos Vilhena, in the last of his twenty letters dealing with several aspects of life in Brazil, made reference to horseflies, human bot flies and mosquitos.

O processo histórico de disciplinarização da Metodologia do Ensino de Matemática

Desde as primeiras décadas do século XX, foi constatada nos currículos dos cursos de formação de professores a existência de uma disciplina cuja constituição, funcionamento e objetivos têm como pressuposto ensinar a ensinar a matemática. Historicamente, a disciplina Metodologia do Ensino de Matemática tem aparecido nos cursos de Licenciatura em Matemática com distintas denominações. Ao longo dessas mudanças, os pressupostos e as características dessa disciplina foram se modificando. Tomando como metodologia de pesquisa a análise documental e a história oral, e como referencial teórico os estudos de André Chervel (1990), este trabalho teve como objetivo compreender o processo histórico de disciplinarização da Metodologia do Ensino de Matemática em cursos de licenciatura em Matemática de instituições públicas de ensino superior do estado de São Paulo (USP, UNICAMP e UNESP-Rio Claro), buscando conhecer a gênese e o desenvolvimento histórico da disciplina, identificando conteúdos e métodos propostos bem como as mudanças pelas quais passou a disciplina.

Association between education in EOL care and variability in EOL practice: a survey of ICU physicians

This study investigated the association between physician education in EOL and variability in EOL practice, as well as the differences between beliefs and practices regarding EOL in the ICU. Physicians from 11 ICUs at a university hospital completed a survey presenting a patient in a vegetative state with no family or advance directives. Questions addressed approaches to EOL care, as well physicians' personal, professional and EOL educational characteristics. The response rate was 89%, with 105 questionnaires analyzed. Mean age was 38 +/- A 8 years, with a mean of 14 +/- A 7 years since graduation. Physicians who did not apply do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders were less likely to have attended EOL classes than those who applied written DNR orders [0/7 vs. 31/47, OR = 0.549 (0.356-0.848), P = 0.001]. Physicians who involved nurses in the decision-making process were more likely to be ICU specialists [17/22 vs. 46/83, OR = 4.1959 (1.271-13.845), P = 0.013] than physicians who made such decisions among themselves or referred to ethical or judicial committees. Physicians who would apply "full code" had less often read about EOL [3/22 vs. 11/20, OR = 0.0939 (0.012-0.710), P = 0.012] and had less interest in discussing EOL [17/22 vs. 20/20, OR = 0.210 (0.122-0.361), P < 0.001], than physicians who would withdraw life-sustaining therapies. Forty-four percent of respondents would not do what they believed was best for their patient, with 98% of them believing a less aggressive attitude preferable. Legal concerns were the leading cause for this dichotomy. Physician education about EOL is associated with variability in EOL decisions in the ICU. Moreover, actual practice may differ from what physicians believe is best for the patient.

Haplotype frequencies based on eight polymorphic sites at the 3' untranslated region of the HLA-G gene in individuals from two different geographical regions of Brazil

The Brazilian population represents an admixture of native Amerindians, Portuguese settlers and Africans who were brought as slaves during the colonization period that began in the 16th century and was followed by waves of immigrations of Europeans and Asians in the 20th century. The contribution of these different ethnic groups to the constitution of Brazilian populations from different geographic regions is variable and, in addition to environmental factors, might act by determining different allele profiles among Brazilian populations from different regions. We studied polymorphic sites at the 3' untranslated region of the HLA-G gene in individuals from a Northeastern Brazilian region and compared them to our previously published data about a Southeastern Brazilian region, located at a distance of 2589 km. Our results showed that most polymorphic sites present a similar distribution in both populations, except for the lower frequency of the +3003C allele in the Northeastern population compared to the Southeastern population. Although differences in genotypic distribution were only significant for the +3003 locus (P = 0.0201), the diversity of haplotypes was distinct for each population. These results are important for casecontrol studies on the association of human leucocyte antigen-G polymorphism with disease and also in terms of the genetic structure of two distinct Brazilian populations.

Evolução da escolaridade esperada no Brasil ao longo do século XX

Este trabalho apresenta dois procedimentos para calcular o número de anos de escolaridade fornecidos pelo sistema educacional brasileiro. Um dos procedimentos é baseado nas taxas de conclusão dos ensinos fundamental, médio e superior. Tal procedimento, que depende do conhecimento da população nas várias faixas etárias e do número de concluintes de cada um dos níveis educacionais, foi utilizado para as estimativas no período posterior a 1962. O outro procedimento é baseado no número de anos de estudo declarado pela população adulta, tal como divulgado pelo Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE), e foi utilizado para estimar o número de anos fornecidos pelo sistema educacional em períodos mais remotos. O bom acordo entre os resultados obtidos com os dois métodos no período entre 1962 e 1999 demonstra que eles são consistentes. A combinação dos dois procedimentos fornece resultados para um período de cerca de 90 anos, iniciando-se em meados da década de 1920. As incertezas dos resultados, estimadas a partir tanto das flutuações dos dados utilizados, quanto das aproximações numéricas que foram feitas, são da ordem de 3%. Alguns detalhes dos cálculos são apresentados ao final, nos apêndices. As variações no número de anos de escolaridade, quando maiores do que as incertezas estimadas, estão associadas a eventos políticos, sociais ou educacionais que marcaram o período analisado.

On the pathogenesis of Plasmodium vivax malaria: Perspectives from the Brazilian field

Life-threatening Plasmodium vivax malaria cases, while uncommon, have been reported since the early 20th century. Unfortunately, the pathogenesis of these severe vivax malaria cases is still poorly understood. In Brazil, the proportion of vivax malaria cases has been steadily increasing, as have the number of cases presenting serious clinical complications. The most frequent syndromes associated with severe vivax malaria in Brazil are severe anaemia and acute respiratory distress. Additionally, P. vivax infection may also result in complications associated with pregnancy. Here, we review the latest findings on severe vivax malaria in Brazil. We also discuss how the development of targeted field research infrastructure in Brazil is providing clinical and ex vivo experimental data that benefits local and international efforts to understand the pathogenesis of P. vivax. (C) 2012 Australian Society for Parasitology Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evidence that a single bioluminescent system is shared by all known bioluminescent fungal lineages

Since the early 20th century, many researchers have attempted to determine how fungi are able to emit light. The first successful experiment was obtained using the classical luciferin-luciferase test that consists of mixing under controlled conditions hot (substrate/luciferin) and cold (enzyme/luciferase) water extracts prepared from bioluminescent fungi. Failures by other researchers to reproduce those experiments using different species of fungi lead to the hypothesis of a non-enzymatic luminescent pathway. Only recently, the involvement of a luciferase in this system was proven, thus confirming its enzymatic nature. Of the 100 000 described species in Kingdom Fungi, only 71 species are known to be luminescent and they are distributed unevenly amongst four distantly related lineages. The question we address is whether the mechanism of bioluminescence is the same in all four evolutionary lineages suggesting a single origin of luminescence in the Fungi, or whether each lineage has a unique mechanism for light emission implying independent origins. We prepared hot and cold extracts of numerous species representing the four bioluminescent fungal lineages and performed cross-reactions (luciferin x luciferase) in all possible combinations using closely related non-luminescent species as controls. All cross-reactions with extracts from luminescent species yielded positive results, independent of lineage, whereas no light was emitted in cross-reactions with extracts from non-luminescent species. These results support the hypothesis that all four lineages of luminescent fungi share the same type of luciferin and luciferase, that there is a single luminescent mechanism in the Fungi, and that fungal luciferin is not a ubiquitous molecule in fungal metabolism.

Homogeneity assessment of a station climate series (1933-2005) in the Metropolitan Area of Sao Paulo: instruments change and urbanization effects

This work assessed homogeneity of the Institute of Astronomy, Geophysics and Atmospheric Sciences (IAG) weather station climate series, using various statistical techniques. The record from this target station is one of the longest in Brazil, having commenced in 1933 with observations of precipitation, and temperatures and other variables later in 1936. Thus, it is one of the few stations in Brazil with enough data for long-term climate variability and climate change studies. There is, however, a possibility that its data may have been contaminated by some artifacts over time. Admittedly, there was an intervention on the observations in 1958, with the replacement of instruments, for which the size of impact has not been yet evaluated. The station transformed in the course of time from rural to urban, and this may also have influenced homogeneity of the observations and makes the station less representative for climate studies over larger spatial scales. Homogeneity of the target station was assessed applying both absolute, or single station tests, and tests relatively to regional climate, in annual scale, regarding daily precipitation, relative humidity, maximum (TMax), minimum (TMin), and wet bulb temperatures. Among these quantities, only precipitation does not exhibit any inhomogeneity. A clear signal of change of instruments in 1958 was detected in the TMax and relative humidity data, the latter certainly because of its strong dependence on temperature. This signal is not very clear in TMin, but it presents non-climatic discontinuities around 1953 and around 1970. A significant homogeneity break is found around 1990 for TMax and wet bulb temperature. The discontinuities detected after 1958 may have been caused by urbanization, as the observed warming trend in the station is considerably greater than that corresponding to regional climate.