Modelling of the kinetics of municipal solid waste composting in full-scale mechanical-biological treatment plants

A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sanitary Engineering in the Faculty of Sciences and Technology of the New University of Lisbon

Sobrecarga vivenciada por familiares cuidadores de pacientes esquizofrénicos e sua relação com a depressão

RESUMO: A partir da desinstitucionalização psiquiátrica, a ênfase nas políticas públicas de saúde mental passou para os serviços comunitários e para períodos mais curtos de hospitalização. As famílias, então, tornaram-se as principais provedoras de cuidados cotidianos e de apoio aos pacientes. As dificuldades e o despreparo em assumir este novo papel têm gerado um sentimento de sobrecarga nos familiares, o que pode afetar sua saúde física e mental. Vários estudos investigaram as consequências de se tornar um cuidador de um paciente psiquiátrico, mas poucos pesquisaram o impacto na saúde mental desses cuidadores. A presente pesquisa investigou a relação entre a sobrecarga e a saúde mental dos familiares cuidadores de pacientes psiquiátricos. Participaram deste estudo 74 familiares cuidadores de pacientes com diagnóstico de esquizofrenia, atendidos no ambulatório do Serviço de Referência em Saúde Mental, da cidade de Divinópolis, MG. Os familiares participaram de uma entrevista estruturada. Nela foram aplicadas a Escala de Avaliação da Sobrecarga dos Familiares de Pacientes Psiquiátricos (FBIS-BR) e, para avaliar a saúde mental dos cuidadores, a Escala de Depressão de Beck (BDI). Foram realizadas análises estatísticas descritivas, univariadas e multivariadas. Os resultados mostraram que a maioria dos cuidadores era do sexo feminino (78,40%), pais (62,20%) e com idade média de 59,14 anos. Os cuidadores apresentaram uma média de sobrecarga global objetiva de 2,05 (DP ± 0,54), em uma escala de 1 a 5 pontos, e uma média de sobrecarga global subjetiva de 2,44 (DP ± 0,71), em uma escala de 1 a 4 pontos. Os resultados da escala BDI mostraram que 42 cuidadores poderiam ser classificados com depressão mínima (56,80%), 17 com depressão leve (23,00%), 7 com depressão moderada (9,50%) e 8 com depressão grave (10,80%). Foram encontradas correlações positivas significativas entre o grau de sobrecarga global e das subescalas e o nível de depressão. As análises multivariadas mostraram que o principal preditor de depressão dos cuidadores foi a sobrecarga global subjetiva. Outros preditores foram a obrecarga objetiva das rotinas diárias e da supervisão dos comportamentos problemáticos dos pacientes e a sobrecarga subjetiva das preocupações com o paciente. As informações levantadas mostraram o impacto do papel de cuidador na saúde mental dos familiares e apontaram para a necessidade de uma maior atenção, por parte dos gestores e profissionais da área, aos cuidadores de pacientes psiquiátricos.----------ABSTRACT: The emphasis in public policy on mental health was transferred to community services and for shorter periods of hospitalization from the psychiatric deinstitutionalization. Then the families become the first provider of daily care and support to patients. The difficulties and unprepared to assume this new role has generated a sense of overload in the relatives, which can affect your physical and mental health. Several studies have investigated the consequences of becoming a caregiver of a psychiatric patient, but few scholars have researched the impact on the mental health of caregivers. The present study has investigated the relationship between overload and mental health of family caregivers of psychiatric patients. The study included 74 family caregivers of patients with schizophrenia and outpatient clinic of the Department of Mental Health Reference, in Divinópolis, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The Rating Scale Burden of Relatives of Psychiatric Patients and the scale of Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) to assess the mental health of caregivers were applied in the interview. Descriptive statistics and univariate and multivariate analysis have performed. The results showed that the majority of caregivers were female (78.40%), parents (62.20%) and mean age of 59.14 years. The caregivers had an average burden overall objective of 2.05 (± 0.54) on a scale of 1 to 5 points, and a subjective global average burden of 2.44 (± 0.71) in a scale of 1 to 4 points. The results of the BDI showed that 42 caregivers could be classified with minimal depression (56.80%), 17 with mild depression (23.00%), 7 with moderate depression (9.50%) and 8 with severe depression (10 80%). Significant positive correlations were found between the degree of overloading and global subscales and depression levels. Multivariate analysis showed that the main predictor of caregivers' depression was the global subjective burden. Other predictors were the objective burden of daily routines and supervision of problem behaviors of patients and subjective burden of the concerns about patient. The resulting information showed the impact of caregiver role in the mental health of relatives and pointed to the need for higher attention of managers and professionals to caregivers of psychiatric patients.

A influência do modelo pedagógico em variáveis psicológicas de estudantes do 1º ano da ESTSP-IPP

Introdução – A adaptação ao ensino superior reveste-se de experiências académicas que podem constituir fonte de stress para os estudantes. A implementação de novos modelos pedagógicos, no âmbito do processo de Bolonha, introduz novas variáveis cujo impacto, designadamente em termos de saúde, importa conhecer. Este estudo tem como objetivo analisar as associações entre modelo pedagógico (Problem Based Learning – PBL vs. modelos próximos do tradicional) e variáveis psicológicas (coping, desregulação emocional, sintomas psicossomáticos, perceção de stress e afeto). Metodologia – O estudo tem um design transversal. Foram usados os seguintes questionários online: Brief-COPE, Escala de Dificuldades de Regulação Emocional, Questionário de Manifestações Físicas de Mal-Estar, Escala de Stress Percebido e Escala de Afeto Positivo e Negativo. A amostra é constituída por 183 estudantes do primeiro ano (84% do género feminino) de cursos da Escola Superior de Tecnologia da Saúde do Porto – Instituto Politécnico do Porto (ESTSP-IPP). Resultados – Foram encontradas correlações significativas entre as variáveis demográficas e psicológicas. Considerando diferentes modelos pedagógicos, foram encontradas diferenças significativas nas variáveis psicológicas. Os principais preditores de stress na amostra foram: ser mulher, frequentar uma licenciatura no modelo PBL, ter maiores índices de desregulação emocional, apresentar mais sintomas psicossomáticos, menos afeto positivo e mais afeto negativo. Conclusão – As diferenças encontradas entre modelos pedagógicos são discutidas, possibilitando a reflexão sobre as implicações práticas e sugestões para futuras investigações.

Constructing and validating a scale of employee satisfaction with HRM practices in the healthcare context

The concept of HRM perceptions is a growing interest in the literature, as one of the antecedents of HRM outcomes. Regardless, not only the cognitive aspect of perception is interesting in this field (what you think) but also the affective perspective is of interest (how you feel about it). In this study we propose a scale for assessing satisfaction with the perceptions of the HRM practices. A 24 item Likert-type scale was developed considering literature review, to assess subjects’ satisfaction with Human Resources Practices in a healthcare setting. Talked reflections were held and a survey encompassing all workers from a Hospital was conducted later, with a sample of 922 subjects. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were performed; reliability was tested using Cronbach’s alpha. The scale presents good psychometric properties with alpha values that range from .71 to .91. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis demonstrated that the scale presents a very good fit with CFI= 0.94, AGFI= 0.88, and RMSEA= 0.07. The present study represents a first approach in the usage of this scale and despite having a large sample, respondents originate from a single institution. This study presents a pertinent scale towards measuring a seldom explored construct of the worker-organization relationship. The scale is parsimonious and results are promising. There seems to be very little research on how subjects feel about the HRM practices. This construct, very much in line with more recent studies concerning worker perceptions can be especially interesting in the context of the worker-organization relationship.

Cultural Intelligence Scale: Validation in a Multicultural Setting of Erasmus Mundus Students and Alumni

Purpose: This work aims at further developing and testing the psychometric properties of the Cultural Intelligence Scale (Ang & Van Dyne, 2006) in an Erasmus Mundus Students and Alumni Population, including reliability. Design Methodology: The study included 626 participants from 109 different countries that emcompasses 6 continents. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analysis procedures were carried out in order to test the scale in a multicultural scale of Erasmus Mundus Students. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach Alpha. Results: The scale presents excellent psychometric properties with alpha values that range from .84 to .90. Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses demonstrated that the original model of the scale presents an exceptionally good fit. Limitations: The present study was conducted using a convenience sample and online questionnaires that limit its conclusions when we consider the globality of the Erasmus Mundus Students. Research/Practical Implications: This study presents evidence that Ang and Van Dyne’s scale is an adequate measure instrument to assess intercultural intelligence in a multicultural setting of students and alumni. Originality/Value: Multicultural samples and studies are becoming more and more present and relevant; the study of intercultural competences and habilities is becoming increasingly important, and in this task, solid psychometric instruments are of paramount importance. This study presents evidence that Ang and Van Dyne’s (2006) scale is a fairly recent and parsimonious instrument with excellent psychometric properties properties.

A solidão na gravidez : determinantes da solidão e seu impacto na ligação materno-fetal

RESUMO - O sentimento de solidão tem vindo a tornar-se cada vez mais frequente entre os indivíduos, fruto do desenvolvimento da sociedade moderna. Especificamente, ocorrendo durante a gravidez, situação que produz na mulher importantes alterações não só físicas, como também psicológicas, familiares e sociais, deve passar a ser alvo de uma atenção especial. De um ponto de vista da Saúde Mental, o desenvolvimento saudável da gravidez exige uma rede de suporte social e uma relação conjugal satisfatórias. Tais elementos devem ser considerados como factores protectores do aparecimento de sentimentos de solidão. Pelo contrário, um baixo sentido de coerência e o aparecimento de depressão durante a gravidez são factores de risco que, inevitavelmente, irão interferir na qualidade da ligação materno-fetal, com repercussões no desenvolvimento psico-social do futuro ser humano. Este protocolo de projecto propõe um estudo transversal, exploratório e de natureza quantitativa. Engloba dois sub-estudos, focando os determinantes da solidão e o impacto desta na ligação materno-fetal, e pretende identificar associações pertinentes entre as várias dimensões envolvidas. A amostra em estudo será constituída por 202 grávidas que frequentam o Centro de Saúde de Torres Vedras. As variáveis correspondentes serão operacionalizadas através de questionários estandardizados e validados para a população portuguesa, sendo eles a Escala de Solidão da UCLA, a Escala de Satisfação com o Suporte Social, a Escala de Avaliação de Áreas da Vida Conjugal, a Escala de Ligação Materno-Fetal, a Escala de Depressão Pós-Parto de Edimburgo e o Questionário de Orientação para Viver. Espera-se identificar e caracterizar as possíveis associações entre a solidão e a satisfação com o suporte social, a satisfação conjugal, a depressão durante a gravidez e o sentido de coerência, que a explicarão, e a ligação materno-fetal, que será influenciada por ela. Os questionários serão respondidos pelas grávidas seleccionadas de acordo com critérios de inclusão e exclusão. Além das descrições estatísticas iniciais, as análises de associação serão realizadas em função das distribuições encontradas, e tendo em conta dimensões do contexto sociodemográfico. Os resultados da investigação serão divulgados num relatório final. ----------------------- ABSTRACT - The feeling of loneliness is increasing as a result of developments in modern society. Specifically occurring during pregnancy, when important changes - physical, psychological and related to the family structure and interaction with society - take place, special attention should be devoted. To maintain good mental health during pregnancy it is important to have good social support and harmonious conjugal relations, both considered as factors preventing the emergence of feelings of loneliness. By contrast low sense of coherence and depression during the pregnancy are risk factors which, inevitably, will affect the quality of the maternal-fetal attachment and have repercussions on the psycho-social development of the future individual. This protocol of draft proposes a transversal exploratory study of a quantitative nature on two sub-studies, exploring the determinants of loneliness and its impact on the maternal-fetal attachment, which intends to identify some correlations between parameters. The study sample is made up of 202 pregnant women who are patients at the Health Centre of the city of Torres Vedras. They will be selected according to criteria of inclusion and exclusion. All variables will be measured through standardized and validated surveys illustrating the Portuguese population, like the Scale of Loneliness of the UCLA, Scale of Satisfaction with the Social Support, Scale of Evaluation of Areas of the Conjugal Life, Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale, Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and Orientation To Life Questionnaire. We expect to identify correlations between loneliness and satisfaction with social support and conjugal relations, depression during pregnancy and sense of coherence, which will explain it, and the maternal-fetal attachment, which will influence it. Beyond the initial statistical descriptions, the data analysis will be executed according to the distributions found and will be carried taking into account the socio-demographic context. The results of the survey will be published in a final report.

Dynamic Analysis and Pattern Visualization of Forest Fires

This paper analyses forest fires in the perspective of dynamical systems. Forest fires exhibit complex correlations in size, space and time, revealing features often present in complex systems, such as the absence of a characteristic length-scale, or the emergence of long range correlations and persistent memory. This study addresses a public domain forest fires catalogue, containing information of events for Portugal, during the period from 1980 up to 2012. The data is analysed in an annual basis, modelling the occurrences as sequences of Dirac impulses with amplitude proportional to the burnt area. First, we consider mutual information to correlate annual patterns. We use visualization trees, generated by hierarchical clustering algorithms, in order to compare and to extract relationships among the data. Second, we adopt the Multidimensional Scaling (MDS) visualization tool. MDS generates maps where each object corresponds to a point. Objects that are perceived to be similar to each other are placed on the map forming clusters. The results are analysed in order to extract relationships among the data and to identify forest fire patterns.

The Persistence of Memory

This paper analyzes several natural and man-made complex phenomena in the perspective of dynamical systems. Such phenomena are often characterized by the absence of a characteristic length-scale, long range correlations and persistent memory, which are features also associated to fractional order systems. For each system, the output, interpreted as a manifestation of the system dynamics, is analyzed by means of the Fourier transform. The amplitude spectrum is approximated by a power law function and the parameters are interpreted as an underlying signature of the system dynamics. The complex systems under analysis are then compared in a global perspective in order to unveil and visualize hidden relationships among them.

Prevalence of Asthma in a Portuguese Countryside Town:Repercussions on Absenteeism and Self-Concept

Background: Childhood asthma represents an increasing health problem and is the leading cause of hospital admission and absenteeism in children with chronic disease. It also compromises quality of life, eventually contributing to disturbances in self-concept. Self-concept is a recent and global perspective of “the self” and relates to skills, self-image and self-esteem. Little information is available on this topic and there are no data from Portuguese countryside towns. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asthma among all school children in the 5th and 6th grades in a Portuguese countryside town and to establish its possible correlation with absenteeism and self-concept. Methods: In April 2002, two questionnaires were administered in the presence of the researcher to a group of 950 children attending different schools. The children completed the internationally renowned questionnaires: ISAAC and the Self-Concept Scale by Susan Harter. Results: Our sample (n = 818) had a mean age of 11 years (10-15 years) and a male-to-female ratio of 1/1. The cumulative prevalence of asthma was11.9% and that of active asthma was 8.8 %; 63.9% of asthmatics were male and 36.1 % were female. The mean age of asthmatics was 11.34 years and 74 % had active symptoms. Comparison of this group of 97 asthmatic children with the remaining children revealed a statistically significant correlation between the presence of asthma and school absenteeism (global: p = 0.04; gymnastics: 0.05). Regarding the Self-Concept Scale a statistically significant association was found between the presence of asthma and school achievement (p = 0.027), physical appearance (p = 0.015), behavior (p < 0.000) and self-esteem (p < 0.000). No statistically significant correlations were found in social acceptance (p = 0.289) or athletic competence (p = 0.085). Asthmatic boys had higher self-concept scores than girls, except in the domain of behavior. Conclusions: Twelve percent of the population studied was asthmatic. In asthmatic children, absenteeism was higher and self-concept was lower for almost all domains, except social acceptance and athletic achievement, probably due to overprotection.

Propriedades Psicométricas da Versão Portuguesa do Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire na Miocardiopatia Dilatada com Insuficiência Cardíaca Congestiva

Several studies have shown that patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) have a compromised health-related quality of life (HRQL), and this, in recent years, has become a primary endpoint when considering the impact of treatment of chronic conditions such as CHF. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the psychometric properties of the Portuguese version of a new specific instrument to measure HRQL in patients hospitalized for CHF: the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ). METHODS: The KCCQ was applied to a sample of 193 consecutive patients hospitalized for CHF. Of these, 105 repeated the assessment 3 months after admission, with no events during this period. Mean age was 64.4 +/- 12.4 years (21-88), and 72.5% were 72.5% male. CHF was of ischemic etiology in 4% of cases. RESULTS: This version of the KCCQ was subjected to statistical validation, with assessment of reliability and validity, similar to the American version. Reliability was assessed by the internal consistency of the domains and summary scores, which showed similar values of Cronbach alpha (0.50-0.94). Validity was assessed by convergence, sensitivity to differences between groups and sensitivity to changes in clinical condition. We evaluated the convergent validity of all domains related to functionality, through the relationship between them and a measure of functionality, the New York Heart Association (NYHA) classification. Significant correlations were found (p < 0.01) for this measure of functionality i patients with CHF. Analysis of variance between the physical limitation domain, the summary scores and NYHA class was performed and statistically significant differences were found (F = 23.4; F = 36.4; F = 37.4, p = 0.0001) in the ability to discriminate severity of clinical condition. A second evaluation was performed on 105 patients at the 3-month follow-up outpatient appointment, and significant changes were observed in the mean scores of the domains assessed between hospital admission and the clinic appointment (differences from 14.9 to 30.6 on a scale of 0-100), indicating that the domains assessed are sensitive to changes in clinical condition. The correlation between dimensions of quality of life in the KCCQ is moderate, suggesting that the dimensions are independent, supporting the multifactorial nature of HRQL and the suitability of this measure for its evaluation. CONCLUSION: The KCCQ is a valid instrument, sensitive to change and a specific measure of HRQL in a population with dilated cardiomyopathy and CHF.

Development of an Unmanned Capsule for large-scale maritime search and rescue

This paper describes the development and testing of a robotic capsule for search and rescue operations at sea. This capsule is able to operate autonomously or remotely controlled, is transported and deployed by a larger USV into a determined disaster area and is used to carry a life raft and inflate it close to survivors in large-scale maritime disasters. The ultimate goal of this development is to endow search and rescue teams with tools that extend their operational capability in scenarios with adverse atmospheric or maritime conditions.

Mathematical modelling of shallow flows: closure models drawn from grain-scale mechanics of sediment transport and flow hydrodynamics

Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering 36(10) 1605–16