Developing examplars for sustained integration of palliative care principles into allied health curricula

The PCC4U (Palliative Care Curriculum for Undergraduates) project aims to support the inclusion of the principles and practice of palliative care in all health professional training. While uptake rates of the project resources and curriculum initiatives is strong in medicine and nursing (86% of courses actively engaged with the project in 2012) integration of palliative care content in allied health disciplines has been less consistent. This report explores the process adopted to address this issue. In 2012 six allied health courses – representing social work, pharmacy, psychology, occupational therapy, dietetics and physiotherapy – commenced a range of tailored curriculum initiatives with the aim of informing the development of exemplars of integration of palliative care in specific disciplines. The PCC4U project provided palliative care learning materials, curriculum resources and expertise, and financial support as part of this curriculum development process. Review of the outcomes of each initiative indicates that tailored support has provided an opportunity for courses to develop palliative care curriculum content that reflects both discipline and local contexts. It has contributed six discipline specific exemplars of the integration of palliative care in allied health professional curricula and provided insights into allied health educational approaches in palliative care, particularly the use of evidence based resources. As a result project curriculum materials and activities have been expanded. These will be implemented with allied health courses through workshops, site visits and curriculum mapping initiatives in 2013 to better sustain the integration of palliative care in health professional curricula.

Numerical simulations of particle deposition in metal foam heat exchangers

Australia is a high-potential country for geothermal power with reserves currently estimated in the tens of millions of petajoules, enough to power the nation for at least 1000 years at current usage. However, these resources are mainly located in isolated arid regions where water is scarce. Therefore, wet cooling systems for geothermal plants in Australia are the least attractive solution and thus air-cooled heat exchangers are preferred. In order to increase the efficiency of such heat exchangers, metal foams have been used. One issue raised by this solution is the fouling caused by dust deposition. In this case, the heat transfer characteristics of the metal foam heat exchanger can dramatically deteriorate. Exploring the particle deposition property in the metal foam exchanger becomes crucial. This paper is a numerical investigation aimed to address this issue. Two dimensional (2D) numerical simulations of a standard one-row tube bundle wrapped with metal foam in cross-flow are performed and highlight preferential particle deposition areas.

Innate and adaptive immunity at mucosal surfaces of the female reproductive tract : stratification and integration of immune protection against the transmission of sexually transmitted infections

This review examines the multiple levels of pre-existing immunity in the upper and lower female reproductive tract. In addition, we highlight the need for further research of innate and adaptive immune protection of mucosal surfaces in the female reproductive tract. Innate mechanisms include the mucus lining, a tight epithelial barrier and the secretion of antimicrobial peptides and cytokines by epithelial and innate immune cells. Stimulation of the innate immune system also serves to bridge the adaptive arm resulting in the generation of pathogen-specific humoral and cell-mediated immunity. Less understood are the multiple components that act in a coordinated way to provide a network of ongoing protection. Innate and adaptive immunity in the human female reproductive tract are influenced by the stage of menstrual cycle and are directly regulated by the sex steroid hormones, progesterone and estradiol. Furthermore, the effect of hormones on immunity is mediated both directly on immune and epithelial cells and indirectly by stimulating growth factor secretion from stromal cells. The goal of this review is to focus on the diverse aspects of the innate and adaptive immune systems that contribute to a unique network of protection throughout the female reproductive tract.

Numerical simulations of particle deposition in metal foam heat exchangers

Australia is a high potential country for geothermal power with reserves currently estimated in the tens of millions of petajoules, enough to power the nation for at least 1000 years at current usage.However, these resources are mainly located in isolated arid regions where water is scarce. Therefore, wet cooling systems for geothermal plants in Australia are the least attractive solution and thus air-cooled heat exchangers are preferred. In order to increase the efficiency of such heat exchangers, metal foams have been used. One issue raised by this solution is the fouling caused by dust deposition. In this case, the heat transfer characteristics of the metal foam heat exchanger can dramatically deteriorate. Exploring the particle deposition property in the metal foam exchanger becomes crucial. This paper is a numerical investigation aimed to address this issue. Two-dimensional(2D numerical simulations of a standard one-row tube bundle wrapped with metal foam in cross-flow are performed and highlight preferential particle deposition areas.

Magnetic convection heat transfer in an open-ended enclosure filled with paramagnetic fluids

Numerical simulations of thermomagnetic convection of paramagnetic fluids placed in a micro-gravity condition (g ≈ 0) and under a uniform vertical gradient magnetic field in an open ended square enclosure with ramp heating temperature condition applied on a vertical wall is investigated in this study. In presence of the strong magnetic gradient field thermal convection of the paramagnetic fluid might take place even in a zero-gravity environment as a direct consequence of temperature differences occurring within the fluid. The thermal boundary layer develops adjacent to the hot wall as soon as the ramp temperature condition is applied on it. There are two scenarios can be observed based on the ramp heating time. The steady state of the thermal boundary layer can be reached before the ramp time is finished or vice versa. If the ramp time is larger than the quasi-steady time then the thermal boundary layer is in a quasi-steady mode with convection balancing conduction after the quasi-steady time. Further increase of the heat input simply accelerates the flow to maintain the proper thermal balance. Finally, the boundary layer becomes completely steady state when the ramp time is finished. Effects of magnetic Rayleigh number, Prandtl number and paramagnetic fluid parameter on the flow pattern and heat transfer are presented.

Integration of sentiment analysis into customer relational model : the importance of feature ontology and synonym

Online business or Electronic Commerce (EC) is getting popular among customers today, as a result large number of product reviews have been posted online by the customers. This information is very valuable not only for prospective customers to make decision on buying product but also for companies to gather information of customers’ satisfaction about their products. Opinion mining is used to capture customer reviews and separated this review into subjective expressions (sentiment word) and objective expressions (no sentiment word). This paper proposes a novel, multi-dimensional model for opinion mining, which integrates customers’ characteristics and their opinion about any products. The model captures subjective expression from product reviews and transfers to fact table before representing in multi-dimensions named as customers, products, time and location. Data warehouse techniques such as OLAP and Data Cubes were used to analyze opinionated sentences. A comprehensive way to calculate customers’ orientation on products’ features and attributes are presented in this paper.

Total heat transfer measurements on a flight investigation of reentry environment model

Stagnation-point total heat transfer was measured on a 1:27.7 model of the Flight Investigation of Reentry Environment II flight vehicle. Experiments were performed in the X1 expansion tube at an equivalent flight velocity and static enthalpy of 11 km/s and 12.7 MJ/kg, respectively. Conditions were chosen to replicate the flight condition at a total flight time of 1639.5 s, where radiation contributed an estimated 17-36% of the total heat transfer. This contribution is theorized to reduce to <2% in the scaled experiments, and the heating environment on the test model was expected to be dominated by convection. A correlation between reported flight heating rates and expected experimental heating, referred to as the reduced flight value, was developed to predict the level of heating expected on the test model. At the given flow conditions, the reduced flight value was calculated to be 150 MW/m2. Average stagnation-point total heat transfer was measured to be 140 ± 7% W/m2, showing good agreement with the predicted value. Experimentally measured heat transfer was found to have good agreement of between 5 and 15% with a number of convective heating correlations, confirming that convection dominates the tunnel heating environment, and that useful experimental measurements could be made in weakly coupled radiating flow

Conceptualizing the interplay of knowledge accumulation and integration capabilities in service innovation-based competitive strategy : a project-oriented firm context

While past knowledge-based approaches to service innovation have emphasized the role of integration of knowledge in the provisioning of solutions, these approaches fail to address complexities involved with knowledge integration in project-oriented context, specifically, how the firm’s capability to acquire new knowledge from clients and past project episodes influence the development of new service solutions. Adopting a dynamic capability framework and building on knowledge-based approaches to innovation, this paper presents a conceptual model that captures the interplay of learning capabilities and the knowledge integration capability in the service innovation-based competitive strategy. Implications to theory and directions for future research are discussed.

Numerical study of lid-driven square cavity with heat generation using LBM

In this study, the mixed convection heat transfer and fluid flow behaviors in a lid-driven square cavity filled with high Prandtl number fluid (Pr = 5400, ν = 1.2×10-4 m2/s) at low Reynolds number is studied using thermal Lattice Boltzmann method (TLBM) where ν is the viscosity of the fluid. The LBM has built up on the D2Q9 model and the single relaxation time method called the Lattice-BGK (Bhatnagar-Gross-Krook) model. The effects of the variations of non dimensional mixed convection parameter called Richardson number(Ri) with and without heat generating source on the thermal and flow behavior of the fluid inside the cavity are investigated. The results are presented as velocity and temperature profiles as well as stream function and temperature contours for Ri ranging from 0.1 to 5.0 with other controlling parameters that present in this study. It is found that LBM has good potential to simulate mixed convection heat transfer and fluid flow problem. Finally the simulation results have been compared with the previous numerical and experimental results and it is found to be in good agreement.

Heat strain and hydration status of surface mine blast crew workers

Objective Dehydration and symptoms of heat illness are common among the surface mining workforce. This investigation aimed to determine whether heat strain and hydration status exceeded recommended limits. Methods Fifteen blast crew personnel operating in the tropics were monitored across a 12-hour shift. Heart rate, core body temperature, and urine-specific gravity were continuously recorded. Participants self-reported fluid consumption and completed a heat illness symptom inventory. Results Core body temperature averaged 37.46 +/- 0.13[degrees]C, with the group maximum 37.98 +/- 0.19[degrees]C. Mean urine-specific gravity was 1.024 +/- 0.007, with 78.6% of samples 1.020 or more. Seventy-three percent of workers reported at least one symptom of heat illness during the shift. Conclusions Core body temperature remained within the recommended limits; however, more than 80% of workers were dehydrated before commencing the shift, and tended to remain so for the duration.

The impact of heat waves on children's health : a systematic review

Young children are thought to be particularly sensitive to heatwaves, but relatively less research attention has been paid to this field to date. A systematic review was conducted to elucidate the relationship between heat waves and children’s health. Literature published up to August 2012 were identified using the following MeSH terms and keywords: “heatwave”, “heat wave”, “child health”, “morbidity”, “hospital admission”, “emergency department visit”, “family practice”, “primary health care”, “death” and “mortality”. Of the 628 publications identified, 12 met the selection criteria. The existing literature does not consistently suggest that mortality among children increases significantly during heat waves, even though infants were associated with more heat-related deaths. Exposure to heat waves in the perinatal period may pose a threat to children’s health. Pediatric diseases or conditions associated with heat waves include renal disease, respiratory disease, electrolyte imbalance and fever. Future research should focus on how to develop a consistent definition of a heat wave from a children’s health perspective, identifying the best measure of children’s exposure to heat waves, exploring sensitive outcome measures to quantify the impact of heat waves on children, evaluating the possible impacts of heat waves on children’s birth outcomes, and understanding the differences in vulnerability to heat waves among children of different ages and from different income countries. Projection of the children’s disease burden caused by heat waves under climate change scenarios, and development of effective heat wave mitigation and adaptation strategies that incorporate other child protective health measures, are also strongly recommended.

Challenges of knowledge integration in small and medium enterprises

This study attempts to develop a better understanding of the challenges of knowledge integration (KI) within the innovation process in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). Using several case studies, this study investigates how knowledge integration may be managed within the context of innovation in SMEs. The research places particular focus on identifying the challenges of knowledge integration in SMEs in relation to three aspects of knowledge integration activities, namely knowledge identification, knowledge acquisition, and knowledge sharing. Four distinct tasks emerged in the knowledge integration process, namely team building capability, capturing tacit knowledge, role of knowledge management (KM) systems, and technological systemic integration. The paper suggests that managing knowledge integration in SMEs can be best managed by focusing on these four tasks, which in turn will lead to innovation.

Strategic capability development : a multi-level case study of the role of knowledge integration within product innovation

Capability development is at the heart of creating competitive advantage. This thesis intends to conceptualise Strategic Capability Development as a renewal of an organisation's existing capability in line with the requirements of the market. It followed and compared four product innovation projects within Iran Khodro Company (IKCO), an exemplar of capability development within the Iranian Auto industry. Findings show that the maturation of strategic capability at the organisational level has occurred through a sequence of product innovation projects and by dynamically shaping the learning and knowledge integration processes in accordance with emergence of the new structure within the industry. Accordingly, Strategic Capability Development is conceptualised in an interpretive model. Such findings are useful for development of an explanatory model and a practical capability development framework for managing learning and knowledge across different product innovation projects.

Advancing nursing practice : redefining the theoretical and practical integration of knowledge

Aim The aim of this paper is to offer an alternative knowing-how knowing-that framework of nursing knowledge, which in the past has been accepted as the provenance of advanced practice. Background The concept of advancing practice is central to the development of nursing practice and has been seen to take on many different forms depending on its use in context. To many it has become synonymous with the work of the advanced or expert practitioner; others have viewed it as a process of continuing professional development and skills acquisition. Moreover, it is becoming closely linked with practice development. However, there is much discussion as to what constitutes the knowledge necessary for advancing and advanced practice, and it has been suggested that theoretical and practical knowledge form the cornerstone of advanced knowledge. Design The design of this article takes a discursive approach as to the meaning and integration of knowledge within the context of advancing nursing practice. Method A thematic analysis of the current discourse relating to knowledge integration models in an advancing and advanced practice arena was used to identify concurrent themes relating to the knowing-how knowing-that framework which commonly used to classify the knowledge necessary for advanced nursing practice. Conclusion There is a dichotomy as to what constitutes knowledge for advanced and advancing practice. Several authors have offered a variety of differing models, yet it is the application and integration of theoretical and practical knowledge that defines and develops the advancement of nursing practice. An alternative framework offered here may allow differences in the way that nursing knowledge important for advancing practice is perceived, developed and coordinated. Relevance to clinical practice What has inevitably been neglected is that there are various other variables which when transposed into the existing knowing-how knowing-that framework allows for advanced knowledge to be better defined. One of the more notable variables is pattern recognition, which became the focus of Benner’s work on expert practice. Therefore, if this is included into the knowing-how knowing-that framework, the knowing-how becomes the knowledge that contributes to advancing and advanced practice and the knowing-that becomes the governing action based on a deeper understanding of the problem or issue.