Thermal efficiency of individual shelters for girolando calves in brazilian semi-arid regions

ABSTRACT The objective of this research was to evaluate the thermal efficiency of roofs used on individual shelters during milk-feeding stage of Girolando calves. The research was conducted at a farm located in a dry region of Pernambuco state, Brazil. The experimental design was completely randomized, with 27 Holstein × Gir dairy crossbred calves housed in shelters with three roofing materials (fibre cement tile, recycled tile, and thatched roofs). The recycled tiles and thatched roofs provided reductions of 18.7 and 14.6% in radiant thermal load, respectively. Regardless the roofing material, all animals increased their respiratory rate to maintain thermal equilibrium.

Enhancing absorptive capacity in a non-research and development. An action research approach to converting individual observations into organisational awareness

The ability to recognize potential knowledge and convert it into business opportunities is one of the key factors of renewal in uncertain environments. This thesis examines absorptive capacity in the context of non-research and development innovation, with a primary focus on the social interaction that facilitates the absorption of knowledge. It proposes that everyone is and should be entitled to take part in the social interaction that shapes individual observations into innovations. Both innovation and absorptive capacity have been traditionally related to research and development departments and institutions. These innovations need to be adopted and adapted by others. This so-called waterfall model of innovations is only one aspect of new knowledge generation and innovation. In addition to this Science–Technology–Innovation perspective, more attention has been recently paid to the Doing–Using–Interacting mode of generating new knowledge and innovations. The amount of literature on absorptive capacity is vast, yet the concept is reified. The greater part of the literature links absorptive capacity to research and development departments. Some publications have focused on the nature of absorptive capacity in practice and the role of social interaction in enhancing it. Recent literature on absorptive capacity calls for studies that shed light on the relationship between individual absorptive capacity and organisational absorptive capacity. There has also been a call to examine absorptive capacity in non-research and development environments. Drawing on the literature on employee-driven innovation and social capital, this thesis looks at how individual observations and ideas are converted into something that an organisation can use. The critical phases of absorptive capacity, during which the ideas of individuals are incorporated into a group context, are assimilation and transformation. These two phases are seen as complementary: whereas assimilation is the application of easy-to-accept knowledge, transformation challenges the current way of thinking. The two require distinct kinds of social interaction and practices. The results of this study can been crystallised thus: “Enhancing absorptive capacity in practicebased non-research and development context is to organise the optimal circumstances for social interaction. Every individual is a potential source of signals leading to innovations. The individual, thus, recognises opportunities and acquires signals. Through the social interaction processes of assimilation and transformation, these signals are processed into the organisation’s reality and language. The conditions of creative social capital facilitate the interplay between assimilation and transformation. An organisation that strives for employee-driven innovation gains the benefits of a broader surface for opportunity recognition and faster absorption.” If organisations and managers become more aware of the benefits of enhancing absorptive capacity in practice, they have reason to assign resources to those practices that facilitate the creation of absorptive capacity. By recognising the underlying social mechanisms and structural features that lead either to assimilation or transformation, it is easier to balance between renewal and effective operations.

O ensino da cirurgia: a necessidade de uma visão humanística

A fragmentação e "compartimentalização" do conhecimento médico não são as únicas causas das dificuldades encontradas na formação de cirurgiões. O abandono do ensino médico vinculado às ciências humanas (sociais) tem levado a formação de profissionais que entendem as ciências biológicas sem entender as ciências da vida. O afastamento da realidade cotidiana, cultural e individual cria condições para o não entendimento da singularidade e subjetividade de cada ser humano. O cirurgião tem, frequentemente, sido erroneamente descrito como portador de qualidades negativas, mas que na verdade remetem a um caráter mais firme e resoluto. De outra forma não é preciso dom para operar, mas empenho, esforço e determinação. O ensino problematizador possibilita a construção de um conhecimento crítico que leva o indivíduo a intervir na realidade que vivencia, de forma transformadora, objetiva e consciente. Esta construção crítica e humanística do conhecimento só poderá se instituir por intermédio de um ensino contextualizado sociocultural e historicamente, não apenas técnico, biocêntrico e hospitalocêntrico.

A ética médica sob o viés da bioética: o exercício moral da cirurgia

O exercício profissional da medicina atual tem uma forte abordagem biológica, devido à crescente especialização da ciência médica. Com frequência, a ciência, por si só, não ajuda a enfrentar e resolver uma situação particular de um profissional médico, e este é o lugar onde as ciências humanas, sociais e, especialmente as outras disciplinas, como a Bioética, podem dar uma abordagem mais humana e socialista, ao estudar sistematicamente a conduta humana no campo das ciências da vida e da saúde, através da luz dos valores e princípios morais. Como parte deste estudo, o segmento que está limitado à análise dos conflitos éticos decorrentes da prática da medicina e da assistência ao paciente, é conhecido como Ética médica. A Ética médica, no âmbito da cirurgia, compreende a integração do paciente cirúrgico com a natureza do cirurgião, influenciada pela sua formação e pelo seu treinamento, pela sua sensibilidade em identificar o que é correto. O ético não deve estar apenas no procedimento, no ato cirúrgico propriamente dito ou no que acontece em uma sala de operação ou mesmo no exercício da cirurgia como especialidade. A ética deve estar na vida e conduta do cirurgião, de forma que todos os atos profissionais e de vida devam ser eticamente válidos.

Variabilidade interobservadores no diagnóstico de lesões precursoras do câncer anal: estudo do cenário habitual

OBJETIVO: Analisar a variabilidade interobservadores no diagnóstico de lesões precursoras do câncer anal no cenário mais comum de um serviço constituído por patologistas sem experiência prévia no diagnóstico destas lesões. MÉTODOS: Quinhentas e duas lâminas histopatológicas com espécimes anais retirados de 372 pacientes HIV-positivos e HIV-negativos foram analisadas no Departamento de Patologia da Fundação de Medicina Tropical do Amazonas por três patologistas com ampla experiência no diagnóstico de doenças tropicais e infecciosas, mas sem experiência prévia importante no diagnóstico de lesões precursoras do câncer anal. As leituras individuais de cada patologista foram comparadas com a que se seguiu a diagnóstico de consenso em microscópio de ótica compartilhada. Os diagnósticos individuais foram confrontados com os de consenso mediante análise da estatística kappa. RESULTADOS: A concordância absoluta entre cada diagnóstico individual e o de consenso correspondente foi ruim (kappa=-0,002). Considerando os resultados apenas positivos ou negativos para lesões intraepiteliais escamosas anais, obteve-se concordância regular entre os observadores (kappa=0,35), enquanto que a concordância foi moderada quando os resultados histopatológicos foram considerados positivos ou negativos para lesão intraepitelial de alto grau ou câncer (kappa=0,52). CONCLUSÃO: A variabilidade interobservadores no diagnóstico histopatológico do câncer anal e de suas lesões precursoras entre patologistas sem grande experiência na área, apesar de experts em outras, é tal que os diagnósticos neste campo e neste cenário comum devem sempre ser de consenso.

Individual dietary counselling during and after pregnancy: Impact on diet and body weight

In Finland, maternity and child health clinics play a key role in promoting health in young families. Currently, obesity causes the greatest challenges to clinics. In obese pregnant women, an increased risk for metabolic diseases exist which can affect both the mother and child. The purpose of this thesis was to explore the role of dietary counselling: in Finnish health clinics; in the regulation of dietary intake; and in affecting the body weight of women. The main aim was to test the effect of dietary counselling and probiotic intervention on dietary intake and maternal body weight during and after pregnancy. In addition to dietary counselling, the effect of other factors, such as eating behaviour on dietary intake and body weight control after pregnancy was assessed. Another aim was also to evaluate dietary counselling practices by nurses (n = 327) in Finnish health clinics assessed by a questionnaire. At the beginning of the pregnancy, women (n = 256) enrolled in a dietary intervention study, were randomised into three groups. One group received dietary counselling with probiotics, one had counselling with placebo and the third group was the control group. The control group consisted of women whom did not receive counselling and took placebo. Probiotics and placebo supplements were used until the end of exclusive breastfeeding or six months after pregnancy. Women were followed from early pregnancy up to four years after pregnancy. Follow-up visits took place three times during pregnancy, at one and six months, and one, two and four years after pregnancy. Dietary counselling, provided by a nutritionist, aimed to influence the quality of dietary fat intake. Dietary counselling is important to provide in clinics, as determined by the nurses, and these nurses expressed a want to improve their own nutritional knowledge through education. The nurses had varying knowledge of current dietary recommendations. Dietary counselling for women during and after pregnancy resulted in beneficial changes in dietary intake up to one year after pregnancy and body weight and waist circumference up to four years after pregnancy. Probiotics had a beneficial effect together with dietary counselling on waist circumference until one year after pregnancy, but not throughout the long term, four years after pregnancy. Other factors, such as eating behaviour, associated with dietary intake and body weight control after pregnancy. Specifically, dietary recommendations are reached amongst women whom had high cognitive restraint in their eating behaviour and did not demonstrate uncontrolled eating. Overweight women more frequently emotionally ate compared to normal weight women and women with central adiposity related more frequently to having an uncontrolled eating behaviour than women with normal waist circumference. In addition, being overweight prior to pregnancy and excessive weight gain during pregnancy associated with increased body weight retention after pregnancy. This study showed that individual dietary counselling is useful in influencing dietary intake which adheres to dietary recommendations and this counselling influences, favourably, body weight after pregnancy. Especially, women with the risk for weight retention, such as women who have emotional and uncontrolled eating behaviours, who were overweight prior to pregnancy or those who had excessive weight gain during pregnancy, may benefit from individual dietary counselling. This study underscores the need to develop dietary counselling practices for pregnant women and their follow-up after pregnancy in Finnish health clinics. These practices include increasing the efficacy of the counselling such as collaboration with families, having knowledgable health professionals and having sufficient resources.