Query on the burial of persons married to Gentiles from the trustees answered

Digital image

Näkövammaisten tietokoneavusteinen tiedon hankinta

The study examines various uses of computer technology in acquisition of information for visually impaired people. For this study 29 visually impaired persons took part in a survey about their experiences concerning acquisition of infomation and use of computers, especially with a screen magnification program, a speech synthesizer and a braille display. According to the responses, the evolution of computer technology offers an important possibility for visually impaired people to cope with everyday activities and interacting with the environment. Nevertheless, the functionality of assistive technology needs further development to become more usable and versatile. Since the challenges of independent observation of environment were emphasized in the survey, the study led into developing a portable text vision system called Tekstinäkö. Contrary to typical stand-alone applications, Tekstinäkö system was constructed by combining devices and programs that are readily available on consumer market. As the system operates, pictures are taken by a digital camera and instantly transmitted to a text recognition program in a laptop computer that talks out loud the text using a speech synthesizer. Visually impaired test users described that even unsure interpretations of the texts in the environment given by Tekstinäkö system are at least a welcome addition to complete perception of the environment. It became clear that even with a modest development work it is possible to bring new, useful and valuable methods to everyday life of disabled people. Unconventional production process of the system appeared to be efficient as well. Achieved results and the proposed working model offer one suggestion for giving enough attention to easily overlooked needs of the people with special abilities. ACM Computing Classification System (1998): K.4.2 Social Issues: Assistive technologies for persons with disabilities I.4.9 Image processing and computer vision: Applications Keywords: Visually impaired, computer-assisted, information, acquisition, assistive technology, computer, screen magnification program, speech synthesizer, braille display, survey, testing, text recognition, camera, text, perception, picture, environment, trasportation, guidance, independence, vision, disabled, blind, speech, synthesizer, braille, software engineering, programming, program, system, freeware, shareware, open source, Tekstinäkö, text vision, TopOCR, Autohotkey, computer engineering, computer science

Clinical and immunological studies on persons exposed toParthenium hysterophorus L

Studies on 300 persons subjected by occupational hazard to the allergenic weed, Parthenium hysterophorus L. for periods ranging from 3 to 12 months revealed that 4% of them developed contact dermatitis of the exposed parts of the body, while 56% of them got sensitized to the weed without apparently exhibiting any dermatitis. None of them suffered from allergic manifestations like rhinitis or bronchial asthma during the period of study which extended for 2 years.

Measuring the expressed emotion in Chinese family caregivers of persons with dementia: Validation of a Chinese version of the Family Attitude Scale

- Background Expressed emotion (EE) captures the affective quality of the relationship between family caregivers and their care recipients and is known to increase the risk of poor health outcomes for caregiving dyads. Little is known about expressed emotion in the context of caregiving for persons with dementia, especially in non-Western cultures. The Family Attitude Scale (FAS) is a psychometrically sound self-reporting measure for EE. Its use in the examination of caregiving for patients with dementia has not yet been explored. - Objectives This study was performed to examine the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the FAS (FAS-C) in Chinese caregivers of relatives with dementia, and its validity in predicting severe depressive symptoms among the caregivers. - Methods The FAS was translated into Chinese using Brislin's model. Two expert panels evaluated the semantic equivalence and content validity of this Chinese version (FAS-C), respectively. A total of 123 Chinese primary caregivers of relatives with dementia were recruited from three elderly community care centers in Hong Kong. The FAS-C was administered with the Chinese versions of the 5-item Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5), the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI) and the Revised Memory and Behavioral Problem Checklist (RMBPC). - Results The FAS-C had excellent semantic equivalence with the original version and a content validity index of 0.92. Exploratory factor analysis identified a three-factor structure for the FAS-C (hostile acts, criticism and distancing). Cronbach's alpha of the FAS-C was 0.92. Pearson's correlation indicated that there were significant associations between a higher score on the FAS-C and greater caregiver burden (r = 0.66, p < 0.001), poorer mental health of the caregivers (r = −0.65, p < 0.001) and a higher level of dementia-related symptoms (frequency of symptoms: r = 0.45, p < 0.001; symptom disturbance: r = 0.51, p < 0.001), which serves to suggest its construct validity. For detecting severe depressive symptoms of the family caregivers, the receiving operating characteristics (ROC) curve had an area under curve of 0.78 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.69–0.87, p < 0.0001). The optimal cut-off score was >47 with a sensitivity of 0.720 (95% CI = 0.506–0.879) and specificity of 0.742 (95% CI = 0.643–0.826). - Conclusions The FAS-C is a reliable and valid measure to assess the affective quality of the relationship between Chinese caregivers and their relatives with dementia. It also has acceptable predictability in identifying family caregivers with severe depressive symptoms.

Reduced incidence of foot-related hospitalisation and amputation amongst persons with diabetes in Queensland, Australia

Objective To determine trends in the incidence of foot-related hospitalisation and amputation amongst persons with diabetes in Queensland (Australia) between 2005 and 2010 that coincided with changes in state-wide ambulatory diabetic foot-related complication management. Methods All data from cases admitted for the principal reason of diabetes foot-related hospitalisation or amputation in Queensland from 2005–2010 were obtained from the Queensland Hospital Admitted Patient Data Collection dataset. Incidence rates for foot-related hospitalisation (admissions, bed days used) and amputation (total, minor, major) cases amongst persons with diabetes were calculated per 1,000 person-years with diabetes (diabetes population) and per 100,000 person-years (general population). Age-sex standardised incidence and age-sex adjusted Poisson regression models were also calculated for the general population. Results There were 4,443 amputations, 24,917 hospital admissions and 260,085 bed days used for diabetes foot-related complications in Queensland. Incidence per 1,000 person-years with diabetes decreased from 2005 to 2010: 43.0% for hospital admissions (36.6 to 20.9), 40.1% bed days (391 to 234), 40.0% total amputations (6.47 to 3.88), 45.0% major amputations (2.18 to 1.20), 37.5% minor amputations (4.29 to 2.68) (p < 0.01 respectively). Age-sex standardised incidence per 100,000 person-years in the general population also decreased from 2005 to 2010: 23.3% hospital admissions (105.1 to 80.6), 19.5% bed days (1,122 to 903), 19.3% total amputations (18.57 to 14.99), 26.4% major amputations (6.26 to 4.61), 15.7% minor amputations (12.32 to 10.38) (p < 0.01 respectively). The age-sex adjusted incidence rates per calendar year decreased in the general population (rate ratio (95% CI)); hospital admissions 0.949 (0.942–0.956), bed days 0.964 (0.962–0.966), total amputations 0.962 (0.946–0.979), major amputations 0.945 (0.917–0.974), minor amputations 0.970 (0.950–0.991) (p < 0.05 respectively). Conclusions There were significant reductions in the incidence of foot-related hospitalisation and amputation amongst persons with diabetes in the population of Queensland over a recent six-year period.

Constructing the ideal victim in the United States of America's annual trafficking in persons reports

Human trafficking as a global phenomenon continues to elude accurate quantitative measure, and remains a controversial policy domain significantly influenced by anecdotal evidence. Drawing on the policy analysis framework of Bacchi (1999; 2007) the problem representation of trafficking through narratives can be considered a direct antecedent of contemporary anti-human trafficking policy. This article explores the construction of human trafficking within the Trafficking in Persons Reports, published annually by the United States of America’s Department of State. An examination of the victim and offender narratives contained within the reports published between 2001 and 2012 demonstrates that human trafficking is predominantly represented as a crime committed by ideal offenders against idealized victims, consistent with Christie’s (1986) landmark criteria of ideal victimization. This representation of an ideal prototype has the potential to inform policy that diverts focus from the causative role of global socioeconomic injustice towards criminal justice policies targeting individual offenders.

The Impact of Lifestyle and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Midlife on the Health-Related Quality of Life among Old Men

Prevention of cardiovascular diseases is known to postpone death, but in an aging society it is important to ensure that those who live longer are neither disabled nor suffering an inferior quality of life. It is essential both from the point of view of the aging individual as well as that of society that any individual should enjoy a good physical, mental and social quality of life during these additional years. The studies presented in this thesis investigated the impact of modifiable risk factors, all of which affect cardiovascular health in the long term, on mortality and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The data is based on the all male cohort of the Helsinki Businessmen Study. This cohort, originally of 3.490 men born between 1919 and 1934 has been followed since the 1960s. The socioeconomic status of the participants is similar, since all the men were working in leading positions. Extensive baseline examinations were conducted among 2.375 of the men in 1974 when their mean age was 48 and at this time the health, medication and cardiovascular risk factors of the participants were observed. In 2000, at the mean age of 73, the HRQoL of the survivors of the original cohort was examined using the RAND-36 mailed questionnaire (n=1.864). RAND-36, along with the equivalent SF-36, is the world s most widely used means of assessing generic health. The response rate was generally over 90%. Mortality was retrieved from national registers in 2000 and 2002. For the six substudies of this thesis, the impact of four different modifiable cardiovascular risk factors (weight gain, cholesterol, alcohol and smoking) on the HRQoL in old age was studied both independently and in combination. The follow-up time for these studies varies from 26 up to 39 years. Mortality is reported separately or included in the RAND-36 scores for HRQoL. Elevated levels of all the risk factors examined among the participants in midlife led to a diminished life expectancy. Among survivors, lower weight gain in midlife was associated with better HRQoL, both physically and mentally. Higher levels of serum cholesterol in middle age indicated both an earlier mortality and a decline in the physical component of HRQoL in a dose-response manner during the 39-year follow-up. Mortality was significantly higher in the highest baseline category of reported mean alcohol consumption (≥ 5 drinks/day), but fairly comparable in abstainers and moderate drinkers during the 29-year follow-up. When HRQoL in old age was accounted for mortality, the men with the highest alcohol consumption in midlife clearly had poorer physical and mental health in old age, but the HRQoL of abstainers and those who drank alcohol in moderation were comparatively similar. The amount of cigarette smoking in midlife was shown to have had a dose-response effect on both mortality and HRQoL in old age during the 26 year follow-up. The men smoking over 20 cigarettes daily in middle age lost about 10 years of their life-expectancy. Meanwhile, the physical functioning of surviving heavy smokers in old age was similar to men 10 years older in the general population. The impact of clustered cardiovascular risk factors was examined by comparing two subcohorts of men who were healthy in 1974, but with different baseline risk factor status. The men with low risk had a 50 % lower mortality during the 29-years follow-up. Their RAND-36 scores for the physical quality of life in old age were significantly better, and the 2002 questionnaire examining psychological well-being indicated also significantly better mental health among the low-risk group. The results indicate that different risk factor levels in midlife have a meaningful impact on life-expectancy and the quality of these extra years. Leading a healthy lifestyle improves both survival and the quality of life.

Pitfalls in the Treatment of Persons with Dementia

Pitfalls in the treatment of persons with dementia Persons with dementia require high-quality health care, rehabilitation and sufficient social services to support their autonomy and to postpone permanent institutionalization. This study sought to investigate possible pitfalls in the care of patients with dementia: hip fracture rehabilitation, use of inappropriate or antipsychotic medication, social and medicolegal services offered to dementia caregiving families. Three different Finnish samples were used from years 1999-2005, mean age 78 to 86 years. After hip fracture operation, the weight-bearing restriction especially in group of patients with dementia, was associated with a longer rehabilitation period (73.5 days vs. 45.5 days, p=0.03) and the inability to learn to walk after six weeks (p<0.001). Almost half (44%) of the pre-surgery home-dwellers with dementia in our sample required permanent hospitalization after hip fracture. Potentially inappropriate medication was used among 36.2% of nursing home and hospital patients. The most common PIDs in Finland were temazepam over 15 mg/day, oxybutynin, and dipyridamole. However, PID use failed to predict mortality or the use of health services. Nearly half (48.4%) of the nursing home and hospital patients with dementia used antipsychotic medication. The two-year mortality did not differ among the users of conventional or atypical antipsychotics or the non-users (45.3% vs.32.1% vs.49.6%, p=0.195). The mean number of hospital admissions was highest among non-users (p=0.029). A high number of medications (HR 1.12, p<0.001) and the use of physical restraints (HR 1.72, p=0.034) predicted higher mortality at two years, while the use of atypical antipsychotics (HR 0.49, p=0.047) showed a protective effect, if any. The services most often offered to caregiving families of persons with Alzheimer s disease (AD) included financial support from the community (36%), technical devices (33%), physiotherapy (32%), and respite care in nursing homes (31%). Those services most often needed included physiotherapy for the spouse with dementia (56%), financial support (50%), house cleaning (41%), and home respite (40%). Only a third of the caregivers were satisfied with these services, and 69% felt unable to influence the range of services offered. The use of legal guardians was quite rare (only 4.3%), while the use of financial powers of attorney was 37.8%. Almost half (47.9%) of the couples expressed an unmet need for discussion with their doctor about medico-legal issues, while only 9.9% stated that their doctor had informed them of such matters. Although we already have many practical methods to develop the medical and social care of persons with AD, these patients and their families require better planning and tailoring of such services. In this way, society could offer these elderly persons better quality of life while economizing on its financial resources. This study was supported by Social Insurance Institution of Finland and part of it made in cooperation with the The Central Union of the Welfare for the Aged, Finland.

Vaikeavammaisen nuoren aikuistuminen : Yksilöllinen ja erilainen elämänkulku

Transition to adulthood of severely disabled adolescents. Diversity in individual life courses. The focus of this study is to examine the transition to adulthood of severely disabled adolescents as part of their life course. The data for this study were gathered through interviews with nine severely disabled adolescents, who were interviewed several times over a period of eight years. At the beginning of the study the adolescents were between 18 and 24 years old. The informants had severe disabilities manifesting themselves as physical incapacity, cerebral palsy, vision or hearing impairment, neurological disease, or developmental disability. One of the adolescents communicated with symbols. All except one used a wheelchair. As severely disabled adolescents, they received benefits from Kela for persons with severe disabilities, such as the higher-rate or special disability allowance or disability pension, the higher-rate or special pensioners' care allowance, or medical rehabilitation services. The interviews focused on a number of selected themes such as relationships, family, education, work, leisure-time activities, dating, decision-making, independence, happiness, and one s self-image and identity. Data were also derived from interviews with five experts. Two of the experts interviewed were severely disabled themselves. The theoritical foundation of the study lies in perviuos research on the severly disabled, the transition to adulthood and the life course. The method of analysis and interpretation is qualitative and based on interviews with the adolescents. In terms of the analytical process, the focus is on recognizing individual events in the transition process to adulthood and identifying the meanings assigned to them by the adolescents. The narratives also provide a method to shed light on the individuality of the transition. The individual situations of severely disabled adolescents vary, and their disability impacts the range of options available to them as they plan their life course. The medical and social models of disability also have an effect on life courses. Although severely disabled adolescents are able to attain some goals, they remain outsiders in many respects. Key words: Disabled person, severely disabled person, adolescent, transition to adulthood, identity, life course.

Women and Marital Breakdown in South India : Reconstructing Homes, Bonds and Persons

Women and Marital Breakdown in South India: Reconstructing Homes, Bonds and Persons is an ethnographic analysis of the situation of divorced and separated women and their families in the South Indian city of Bangalore. The study is based on 16 months of anthropological fieldwork, i.e., participant observation and life history interviews among 50 divorced and separated women from different socio-religious backgrounds in their homes, in the women s organisations and in the Family Court. The study follows the divorced and separated women from their natal homes to their affinal homes through homelessness and legal battles to their reconstructed natal, affinal or single homes in order to find out what it means to be a person within hierarchical gender and kinship relations in South India. Marital breakdown impacts on kin relations and discloses the existing gender relations and power structure through its consequences. It makes the transformability of relational personhood as well as the transformability of relational society and culture visible. Although the study reveals the painful history of women s ill-treatment in marriage, family and kinship systems, it also demonstrates the women s rejection of the domination; and shows their ability to re-negotiate and promote changes not only to their own positions but to the whole hierarchical system as well. The study explores the divorced and separated women s manifold dilemmas, complicated legal battles, and endless arrangements when they have to struggle with the very practical problems of supporting themselves financially, finding and making a new home for themselves, and re-arranging relationships with their kin and friends. As marital breakdown fundamentally transforms the women s relational field, it forces them to recreate substitutive relations in a flexible way and, simultaneously, to re-construct themselves and their lives without a ready or positive cultural or behavioural template. This process reveals the agency of the divorced and separated women as well as shedding light on issues of gender and the cultural construction of the person in South India. This topical study explores the previously neglected subject of marital breakdown in India and shows the new meaning of kinship in South India.

The Nature of Learning about Customers in a Customer Service Setting - A Study of Frontline Contact Persons

The starting point of this thesis is the notion that in order for organisations to understand what customers value and how customers experience service, they need to learn about customers. The first and perhaps most important link in an organisation-wide learning process directed at customers is the frontline contact person. Service- and sales organisations can only learn about customers if the individual frontline contact persons learn about customers. Even though it is commonly recognised that learning about customers is the basis for an organisation’s success, few contributions within marketing investigate the fundamental nature of the phenomenon as it occurs in everyday customer service. Thus, what learning about customers is and how it takes place in a customer-service setting is an issue that is neglected in marketing research. In order to explore these questions, this thesis presents a socio-cultural approach to understanding learning about customers. Hence, instead of considering learning equal to cognitive processes in the mind of the frontline contact person or learning as equal to organisational information processing, the interactive, communication-based, socio-cultural aspect of learning about customers is brought to the fore. Consequently, the theoretical basis of the study can be found both in socio-cultural and practice-oriented lines of reasoning, as well as in the fields of service- and relationship marketing. As it is argued that learning about customers is an integrated part of everyday practices, it is also clear that it should be studied in a naturalistic and holistic way as it occurs in a customer-service setting. This calls for an ethnographic research approach, which involves direct, first-hand experience of the research setting during an extended period of time. Hence, the empirical study employs participant observations, informal discussions and interviews among car salespersons and service advisors at a car retailing company. Finally, as a synthesis of theoretically and empirically gained understanding, a set of concepts are developed and they are integrated into a socio-cultural model of learning about customers.

Análise das práticas de recrutamento e de seleção de pessoas com deficiência para o trabalho em empresas privadas: cumprimento à Lei n 8.213/1991

A proposta da presente pesquisa teve como objetivo analisar criticamente as melhores práticas de recrutamento e de seleção, direcionadas a pessoas com deficiência, candidatas a emprego em cinco empresas privadas, na cidade do Rio de Janeiro, que possuem em seu quadro de funcionários mais de 100 empregados, sendo assim, obrigadas ao cumprimento da Lei n 8.213/1991, a Lei de Cotas. Analisou-se também o modo como profissionais de Recursos Humanos adquiriram conhecimentos técnicos acerca destas práticas. Parte dos objetivos desta proposta de pesquisa foi identificar as bases desta determinação legal, no que se refere ao amparo técnico aos profissionais de RH no processo seletivo. Neste aspecto, o foco da investigação foi verificar a existência de programas de qualificação para estes profissionais, tendo em vista que a exigência de capacitação está sempre centrada na pessoa com deficiência, quando, na verdade, a carência está presente também nos responsáveis que lidam com este público, por ocasião do seu ingresso nas organizações corporativas. A abordagem metodológica incluiu uma pesquisa de campo com base em dados de entrevistas semi-estruturadas, sendo complementada pela técnica de análise de relato verbal. Seis foram os profissionais de RH escolhidos como participantes da pesquisa e que atuam diretamente na área de recrutamento e de seleção de pessoas com deficiência. Inevitavelmente, estes profissionais de RH se utilizam de instrumentos psicométricos dentre outros, cotidianamente empregados no processo seletivo, inclusive na avaliação de pessoas com deficiência. Os resultados da presente pesquisa apontam que as melhores práticas de recrutamento e de seleção, atualmente em uso, direcionadas a pessoas com deficiência, são discriminatórias, pois os profissionais envolvidos neste processo, por demonstrarem falta de conhecimento acerca de práticas apropriadas, se utilizam dos mesmos procedimentos adotados no atendimento de vagas para o público de pessoas ditas normais. Complementarmente, a revisão da literatura aponta a inexistência de amparo técnico e científico, no sentido de qualificar profissionais responsáveis pelo ingresso e permanência de pessoas com deficiência no mercado de trabalho, confirmando-se, assim, a limitação da ação de política pública em vigor. Por conta desse fato, propõe-se a adoção de ações afirmativas, neste caso de órgãos privados, no sentido de mobilizar esforços em prol da contratação de grupos socialmente excluídos no mercado de trabalho, como é o caso das pessoas com deficiência.

Reverberações da Lei n 8.213/91 à luz das concepções de deficiência: estudo de caso sobre o programa de sensibilização gerencial em uma organização privada de ensino profissionalizante

Com base nos rebatimentos da Lei n 8.213/1991, que prevê a obrigatoriedade legal de empresas privadas brasileiras contratarem de 2% a 5% de beneficiários da Previdência Social reabilitados ou de pessoas com deficiência (PcDs) habilitadas em seus quadros funcionais, o objetivo da presente pesquisa foi avaliar as repercussões da Lei de Cotas, tendo como referência as concepções de deficiência preponderantes dentro de uma organização privada de ensino profissionalizante por meio do seu Projeto de Sensibilização Gerencial. O projeto de sensibilização gerencial objetivou consolidar as etapas iniciais, na implementação de um programa institucional de valorização da diversidade. A hipótese principal formulada para a pesquisa, dentre outras relativas às concepções de deficiência, por parte de gestores, é que as reverberações positivas produzidas pela Lei de Cotas atingem, inclusive, as organizações empresariais supostamente distanciadas do movimento inclusionista. Para fins de avaliação das concepções de deficiência foram utilizados delineamentos de pesquisa estatística, compreendendo o teste de Shapiro-Wilk para determinar se as respostas às perguntas configuravam ou não uma distribuição normal, além do Coeficiente de Correlação de Pearson para medir a intensidade da relação linear entre as variáveis estudadas. Serviram como instrumentos da pesquisa um questionário sociodemográfico e um inventário de concepções de deficiência (ICD), sendo este direcionado para o objeto atitudinal, considerando-se as percepções sociais favoráveis e desfavoráveis no grupo pesquisado. Esse inventário de concepções de deficiência é composto de sete blocos de asserções e de uma escala do tipo Likert de seis pontos, que foi aplicada em um universo que contempla estrategicamente 60 participantes selecionados em três (3) grupos (Grupo piloto 1 envolvendo 30 participantes das áreas do Comitê Gestor do projeto na empresa; Grupo piloto 2 envolvendo 12 trainees; e Grupo Gerencial envolvendo 18 participantes, incluindo Gerentes de Área e Gerentes de Equipe da Superintendência de Produtos Educacionais). De posse dos resultados da avaliação das concepções de deficiência pelo ICD, foram realizados workshops de sensibilização com os participantes com o objetivo de sensibilizá-los e disseminar o conhecimento sobre inclusão social e laboral de PcDs, as ações de políticas públicas na atualidade, a natureza das deficiências, considerando-se os aspectos sociais da profissionalização, empregabilidade de pessoas com deficiência na empresa. Para tanto, foram empregadas técnicas e procedimentos lúdicos, além de debates para fins de reflexão crítica por parte dos participantes. A avaliação de reação foi conduzida ao término desses workshops. O conjunto dos dados levantados até então possibilitou proceder-se a um diagnóstico das concepções que prevalecem sobre PcDs na organização alvo da pesquisa. Os resultados evidenciaram a coexistência de concepções distintas da deficiência, indicando que, embora concepções negativas se perpetuem, as reverberações da Lei de Cotas têm apresentado também repercussões visivelmente positivas valorizando, assim, as ações corporativas apontadas para a diversidade humana, no contexto do trabalho. Em termos conclusivos, considera-se, no entanto, que o processo de inclusão laboral deva ser percebido por parte dos gestores como contínuo e em direção à mudança do comportamento humano nas organizações frente à profissionalização de PcDs. Posteriormente, tendo-se como suporte os resultados da presente pesquisa, um plano de ação institucional será implementado, como proposta de um programa balizado em 10 projetos sintéticos que servirão de modelo para empresas brasileiras interessadas em incluir a diversidade e reter talentos com deficiência em seus postos de trabalho, de modo a garantir-lhes o direito de exercício pleno da cidadania.