Tradition, Change and Variation : Past and Present Trends in Public Old-age Care

The general aim of this dissertation is to describe and analyse how public old-age care in Sweden has developed and changed during the last century. The study applies a provider perspective on how care has been planned and professionally carried out. A broader social policy perspective, studying old-age care at central/national as well as local/municipal level, is also developed. A special focus is directed at the large local variation in care and services for the elderly. The empirical base is comprised of official documents and other public sources, survey data from interviews with elderly recipients of public old-age care, and official statistics on publicly financed and controlled old-age care and services. Study I addresses the development of old-age care in Sweden during the twentieth century by studying an important occupation in this field – the supervisors and their professional roles, tasks and working conditions. Throughout, the roles of supervisors have followed the prevailing official policy on the proper way to provide care for elderly people in Sweden; from poor relief at the beginning of the 1900s, via a generous level of services in the 1960s and 1970s, to today’s restricted and economy-controlled mode of operation. Study II describes and compares two main forms of public old-age care in Sweden today, home help services and institutional care. The care-load found in home-based care was comparable to and sometimes even larger than in service-homes and other institutions, indicating that large care needs among elderly people in Sweden today can be met in their homes as well as in institutional settings. Studies III and IV analyse the local variation in public old-age care in Sweden. During the last decades there has been an overall decline in home help services. The coverage of home help for elderly people shows large differences between municipalities throughout this period, and the relative variation has increased. The local disparity seems to depend more on historical factors, e.g., previous coverage rates, than on the present municipal situation in levels of need or local economy and politics. In an introductory part the four papers are linked together by an outline of the demographic situation and the social policy model for old-age care in Sweden. Trends that have been apparent over time, e.g. professionalisation and market orientation, are traced and discussed. Conflicts between prevailing ideologies are analysed, in regards to for instance home-based and institution-based care, social and medical culture, and local and central levels of decision-making. ’Welfare municipality’, ‘path dependency’, and ‘decentralisation’ are suggested as a conceptual framework for describing the large and increasing local variations in old-age care. Finally, implications of the four studies with regard to old-age care policy and further research are discussed.

Limited value of ultrasound assessment in patients with poor outcome after carpal tunnel release surgerys

[EN] OBJECTIVE: To determine the value of ultrasonography in the assessment of patients with idiopathic carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and poor outcome after carpal tunnel release. METHODS: A total of 88 consecutive patients with CTS (104 hands) underwent open surgical release of the median nerve. Ultrasound (US) examination was performed blind to any patient's data. The median nerve area at tunnel inlet and outlet, the retinaculum distance, and the flattening ratio were measured. The main outcome variable was the patient's overall satisfaction using a five-point Likert scale (1 = worse, 2 = no change, 3 = slightly better, 4 = much better, 5 = cured) at 3 months postoperatively. Pre- and postoperative ultrasonographic findings in relation to clinical outcome were analysed. RESULTS: Improvement (scores 4 or 5 on the Likert scale) was recorded in 75 hands (72%). After carpal tunnel release, the cross-sectional area at tunnel inlet decreased from a mean of 14.2 to 13.3 mm2 in the group with clinical improvement and also from a mean of 12.5 to 11.6 mm2 in the group with no change or slight improvement. No significant changes in the cross-sectional area at tunnel outlet, retinaculum distance, and flattening ratio were observed. CONCLUSION: Reduction of the median nerve cross-sectional area at tunnel inlet at 3 months after carpal tunnel release was similar in patients reporting cure or great improvement and in those with slight or no improvement. Ultrasonography is of limited value in assessment of patients with poor outcome after median nerve release.

The effect of starvation on respiration rates, gut fluorescence and electron transfer system activity in Daphnia magna

Máster en Oceanografía

Exploring respiration and respiratory electron transport system (ETS) in Ulva spp.

[ES] Respiration is a key ecological index. For either individuals or communities, it can be use to assess carbon and energy, demand and expenditure as well as carbon flow rates through food webs. When combined with productivity measurements it can establish the level of metabolic balance. When combined with measurements of respiratory capacity, it can indicate physiological state. Here, we report pilot studies the metabolism of the green algae, Ulva rotundata that inhabits intertidal pools of Gran Canaria. As a starting point we used the electron transport system (ETS) to differentiate between different growing conditions in the natural environment. We suspected different levels of stress associated with these conditions and looked for the influence of this stress in the ETS measurements. This technique has been successfully applied to study bacteria, phytoplankton and zooplankton in the ocean, but it has not been used to study sessile marine macroalgae. These neritic and littoral macrophytes have major ecological and industrial importance, yet little is known about their respiratory physiology. Such knowledge would strengthen our understanding of the resources of the coastal ocean and facilitate its development and best use. Here, we modified the ETS methodology for Ulva rotundata. With this modified ETS assay we investigated the capacity of Ulva to resist anoxia. We measured respiration with optodes (Fibox 4, Presens) in the dark to the point of oxygen exhaustion and through 24 h of anoxia. Then we exposed the Ulva to light and followed the oxygen increase due to photosynthesis. We discuss here the capacity of Ulva to survive during anoxia.

Peer assessment in ULPGC on line CLIL course 2010-2013

[EN]Introduction to Content Language and Integrated Learning ( CLIL) is a 60 hour on line course offered by Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria within its extracurricular courses. During three years we have had 76 students whose final assessment has been to create a CLIL lesson which was evaluated by their peers. The tool for the peer assessment has been the Moodle platform; forums. The assessment was guided by a list of questions they had to apply when evaluating the lessons, but the replies from the CLIL lesson creators did not have any predetermined structure or guidelines to be followed. We have analysed the assessments and replies by grouping them according to content similarities.

Relationship between respiration and Electron Transfer System (ETS) in zooplankton

[EN]Respiration of zooplanktonic organisms is an significant fraction of the global carbon cycle. However, it estimation in order to obtain the data required in oceanography is still a problem. In this work, we studied respiration rates in laboratory and field experiments. Laboratory experiments using Daphnia spp. showed a significant decrease of respiration rates during starvation. In addition, we measured the gut fluorescence and enzymatic activity (electron transfer system, ETS). The former did not show the expected decrease probably due to the volume of the incubators. The relationship between respiration and ETS presented the classical variability ranging between 0.5 and 1 as observed in previous works. Copepod respiration rates were measured during RAPROCAN 1504 cruise around the Canary Islands.

The integration of curriculum and assessment in interpreter education

In dieser interdisziplinären, translationswissenschaftlichen Studie wird die Integration von Curriculum und Evaluierung in der Dolmetscherausbildung theoretisch fundiert und im Rahmen einer Fallstudie empirisch untersucht. Dolmetschkompetenz wird als ein durch zweckgerechte und messgenaue (valid and reliable) Bewertungsmethoden dokumentiertes Ergebnis der Curriculumanwendung betrachtet. Definitionen, Grundlagen, Ansätze, Ausbildungs- und Lernziele werden anhand der Curriculumtheorie und Dolmetschwissenschaft beschrieben. Traditionelle und alternative Evaluierungsmethoden werden hinsichtlich ihrer Anwendbarkeit in der Dolmetscherausbildung erprobt. In der Fallstudie werden die Prüfungsergebnisse zweier Master-Studiengänge-MA Konferenzdolmetschen und MA Dolmetschen und Übersetzen-quantitativ analysiert. Die zur Dokumentation der Prüfungsergebnisse eingesetzte Bewertungsmethodik wird qualitativ untersucht und zur quantitativen Analyse in Bezug gesetzt. Die Fallstudie besteht aus 1) einer chi-square-Analyse der Abschlussprüfungsnoten getrennt nach Sprachkombination und Prüfungskategorie (n=260), 2) einer Umfrage unter den Jurymitgliedern hinsichtlich der Evaluierungsansätze, -verfahren, und -kriterien (n = 45; 62.22% Rücklaufrate); und 3) einer Analyse des ausgangssprachlichen Prüfungsmaterials ebenfalls nach Sprachkombination und Prüfungskategorie. Es wird nachgewiesen, dass Studierende im MA Dolmetschen und Übersetzen tendenziell schlechtere Prüfungsleistungen erbringen als Studierende im MA Konferenzdolmetschen. Die Analyseergebnisse werden jedoch als aussageschwach betrachtet aufgrund mangelnder Evaluierungsvalidität. Schritte zur Curriculum- und Evaluierungsoptimierung sowie ein effizienteres Curriculummodell werden aus den theoretischen Ansätzen abgeleitet. Auf die Rolle der Ethik in der Evaluierungsmethodik wird hingewiesen.

Functional components and lipid quality assessment in vegetable foods: analytical and technological approaches

Lipids are important components that contribute very significantly to nutritional and technological quality of foods because they are the least stable macro-components in foods, due to high susceptibility to oxidation. When rancidity take place, it makes food unhealthy and unacceptable for consumers. Thus, the presence of antioxidants, naturally present of added to foods, is required to enhance shelf life of foods. Moreover, antioxidant like phenolic compounds play an important role in human health enhancing the functionality of foods. The aim of this PhD project was the study of lipid quality and lipid oxidation in different vegetable foods focusing on analytical and technological aspects in order to figure out the effects of lipid composition and bioactive compounds (phenolic compounds, omega-3 fatty acids and dietary fiber) addition on their shelf life. In addition, bioavailability and antioxidant effects of phenolic compounds in human and animals, respectively, were evaluated after consumption of vegetable foods. The first section of the work was focused on the evaluation of lipid quality impact on technological behaviour of vegetable foods. Because of that, cocoa butter with different melting point were evaluated by chromatographic techniques (GC, TLC) and the sample with the higher melting point showed the presence of fatty acids, triglycerides, 2-monoglycerides and FT-IR profile different from genuine cocoa butter, meaning an adding of foreign fat (lauric-fat) not allowed by the law. Looking at lipid quality of other vegetable foods, an accelerated shelf life test (OXITEST®), was used to evaluate of lipid stability to oxidation in tarallini snacks made up using different lipid matrices (sunflower oil, extravirgin olive oil and a blend of extravirgin olive oil and lard). The results showed a good ability of OXITEST® to discriminate between lipid unsaturation and different cooking times, without any samples fat extraction. In the second section, the role of bioactive compounds on cereal based food shelf life was studied in different bakeries by GC, spectrophotometric methods and capillary electrophoresis. It was examined the relationships between phenolic compounds, added with flour, and lipid oxidation of tarallini and frollini. Both products showed an increase in lipid oxidation during storage and antioxidant effects on lipid oxidation were not as expected. Furthermore, the influence of enrichment in polyunsaturated fatty acids on lipid oxidation of pasta was evaluated. The results proved that LC n-3 PUFA were not significantly implicated in the onset of oxidation in spaghetti stored under daylight and accelerated oxidation in a laboratory heater. The importance of phenolic compounds as antioxidant in humans and rats was also studied, by HPLC/MS in the latter section. For this purpose, apigenin and apigenin glycosides excretion was investigated in six women’s urine in a 24 hours study. After a single dose of steamed artichokes, both aglicone and glucuronide metabolites were recovered in 24 h urine. Moreover, the effect of whole grain durum wheat bread and whole grain Kamut® khorasan bread in rats were evaluated. Both cereals were good sources of antioxidants but Kamut® bread fed animals had a better response to stress than wheat durum fed, especially when a sourdough bread was supplied.

Formal planning rationality in public sector professional work: between discourse and practice

Although rational models of formal planning have been seriously criticized by strategy literature, they not only remain a widely used organizational practice in private firms, but they have increasingly been entering public, professional organizations too, as part of public sector managerial reforms. This research addresses this apparent paradox, exploring the meaning of formal planning in public sector professional work. Curiously, this is an issue that remains under-investigated in the literature: the long debate on formal planning in strategy research devoted scant attention to its diffusion in the public sector, and public sector studies have scrutinized the introduction of other management tools in professional work, but very limitedly formal planning itself. In fact, little is known on the actual meaning of formal planning in public, professional services. This research is based upon a case of adoption of formal planning tools in a public hospital. Embracing a discourse analytical lens, it examines which formal planning discourse entered professional work, to what extent, and how professionals interpret it and engage with it in their practice. The analysis uncovers dynamics of social construction of meaning where, eventually, a formal planning discourse both shapes and is shaped by professional practice. In particular, it is found that formal planning rationality largely penetrated professional work, but not to the detriment of professional values. Morevover, formal planning ‘fails’ as a tool for rational decision making, but it takes up a knowledge work and a social value in professional work, as a tool for explicitation of action courses and for dialogue between otherwise more disconnected parts of the organization.

The Right to Voice: Its Realization by Estonian and American Parents in Public Schools

Investigating parents’ formal engagement opportunities in public schools serves well to characterize the relationship between states and societies. While the relationship between parental involvement and students’ academic success has been thoroughly investigated, rarely has it been seen to indicate countries’ governing regimes. The researcher was curious to see whether and how does parents’ voice differ in different democracies. The hypothesis was that in mature regimes, institutional opportunities for formal parental engagement are plenty and parents are actively involved; while in young democracies there are less opportunities and the engagement is lower. The assumption was also that parental deliberation in expressing their dissatisfaction with schools differs across democracies: where it is more intense, there it translates to higher engagement. Parents’ informedness on relevant regulations and agendas was assumed to be equally average, and their demographic background to have similar effects on engagement. The comparative, most different systems design was employed where public middle schools last graders’ parents in Tartu, Estonia and in Huntsville, Alabama the United States served as a sample. The multidimensional study includes the theoretical review, country and community analyses, institutional analysis in terms of formal parental involvement, and parents’ survey. The findings revealed sizeable differences between parents’ engagement levels in Huntsville and Tartu. The results indicate passivity in both communities, while in Tartu the engagement seems to be alarmingly low. Furthermore, Tartu parents have much less institutional opportunities to engage. In the United States, multilevel efforts to engage parents are visible from local to federal level, in Estonia similar intentions seem to be missing and meaningful parental organizations do not exist. In terms of civic education there is much room for development in both countries. The road will be longer for a young democracy Estonia in transforming its institutional systems from formally democratic to inherently inclusive.

Life cycle assessment in construction field: A life cycle cost analysis of reinforcement concrete bridge

The present work is included in the context of the assessment of sustainability in the construction field and is aimed at estimating and analyzing life cycle cost of the existing reinforced concrete bridge “Viadotto delle Capre” during its entire life. This was accomplished by a comprehensive data collection and results evaluation. In detail, the economic analysis of the project is performed. The work has investigated possible design alternatives for maintenance/rehabilitation and end-of-life operations, when structural, functional, economic and also environmental requirements have to be fulfilled. In detail, the economic impact of different design options for the given reinforced concrete bridge have been assessed, whereupon the most economically, structurally and environmentally efficient scenario was chosen. The Integrated Life-Cycle Analysis procedure and Environmental Impact Assessment were also discussed in this work. The scope of this thesis is to illustrate that Life Cycle Cost analysis as part of Life Cycle Assessment approach could be effectively used to drive the design and management strategy of new and existing structures. The final objective of this contribution is to show how an economic analysis can influence decision-making in the definition of the most sustainable design alternatives. The designers can monitor the economic impact of different design strategies in order to identify the most appropriate option.