Kathryn Marie Hibbert, Lisa Faden-MacDougall, Noureen Huda, Sandra DeLuca, Elizabeth Seabrook and Mark Goldszmidt
This paper aims to trace the relational and material ways in which workplace teams come together (or fail to) in the provision of patient care.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to trace the relational and material ways in which workplace teams come together (or fail to) in the provision of patient care.
Design/methodology/approach
Six interprofessional scholars brought their unique theoretical and disciplinary lenses to understand the contextualized experiences of the patient and the team. Adopting a critical narrative inquiry (CNR) approach, the experiences of 19 participants were documented as they interacted in the care of an elderly patient over a three-week period. Actor network theory constructs enabled the analysis of multiple artefacts implicated in the interactions to learn of their contribution to the enactment of her care.
Findings
The study gives empirical insights about ways in which knowledge circulates amongst the workplace and how systemic structures may impede effective and quality patient care. Various types of knowledge are held by different team members, and both individuals and materials (e.g. technologies) can influence the way those knowledges are shared (or not).
Research limitations/implications
Focusing on a rich data set surrounding one patient documented as theatre serves pedagogical purposes and serves as a shared “boundary-breaking” object to interrogate from multiple stakeholder perspectives. CNR provides for recursive, dynamic learning as readers critically consider experiences within their own contexts.
Practical implications
Despite research that documents competing political, systemic and economic goals, sedimented policies and practices persist in ways that undermine care goals.
Social implications
Tackling the urgent issue of an aging population will require expanding collaboration (for planning, research and so on) to include a broader set of stakeholders, including operational, administrative and post-discharge organizations. Attention to social infrastructure as a means to assemble knowledges and improve relationships in the care process is critical.
Originality/value
Building a boundary-breaking shared object to represent the data offers a unique opportunity for multiple stakeholder groups to enter into dialogue around barriers to workplace interaction and collaboration progress, linking problems to critical perspectives.
Details
Keywords
Junie Ong, Kinjal Doshi, Keng Hao Chew, June H.M. Tay and Jonathan Jon-Chung Foo
Teaching is a demanding profession with educators often experiencing high levels of stress, leading to burnout and associated negative outcomes such as diminished job satisfaction…
Abstract
Purpose
Teaching is a demanding profession with educators often experiencing high levels of stress, leading to burnout and associated negative outcomes such as diminished job satisfaction and compromised health. Enhancing social and emotional competence through mindfulness practices has shown promise in mitigating these effects. However, the demanding schedules of teachers often impede regular mindfulness practice. Virtual reality (VR) technology offers a novel solution by providing an immersive environment conducive to mindfulness. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of VR-assisted mindfulness practices among educational professionals.
Design/methodology/approach
This study evaluated the effectiveness of VR-assisted mindfulness practices among 35 educational professionals. Participants, recruited via email, completed pre- and post-intervention surveys and engaged in a 10-min mindfulness session using an Oculus Go headset, which simulated a 360-degree forest environment accompanied by audio-guided practice.
Findings
The findings suggest that VR can be an effective tool for facilitating mindfulness among teachers, offering a more accessible and engaging way to practice. This study underscores the importance of the quality of the virtual environment and relevant audio cues in enhancing mindfulness experiences. However, limitations include the small sample size and single-session intervention. Future research should explore larger-scale studies, long-term effects and improvements in VR hardware to enhance comfort.
Originality/value
VR technology has the potential to serve as an effective adjunct to traditional mindfulness training, helping educators manage stress and prevent burnout. These insights contribute to the growing literature on VR-assisted therapies and provide a foundation for future research.
Details
Keywords
WE hope that all London librarians will give full consideration to the project of the London Branch of the Library Association to provide a union catalogue of the non‐fiction…
Abstract
WE hope that all London librarians will give full consideration to the project of the London Branch of the Library Association to provide a union catalogue of the non‐fiction Stocks of Metropolitan libraries. They are to be asked if they will co‐operate in the scheme by providing cards of their Stock of uniform size, or by making some contribution (a more difficult matter this) to the cost of the catlogue. Such a catalogue kept at the Central Library for Students, combined with the telephone and general goodwill, would bring about a co‐ordination of libraties on a voluntary basis with results in good as yet scarcely realized. The idea is not novel; it was rejected a score of years ago as visionary or impractable. It may have been visionary then; it is not so now. Modern librarians simply must get together if they wish to avoid being made to do so.
The action taken by the Council of the British Medical Association in promoting a Bill to reconstitute the Local Government Board will, it is to be hoped, receive the strong…
Abstract
The action taken by the Council of the British Medical Association in promoting a Bill to reconstitute the Local Government Board will, it is to be hoped, receive the strong support of public authorities and of all who are in any way interested in the efficient administration of the laws which, directly or indirectly, have a bearing on the health and general well‐being of the people. In the memorandum which precedes the draft of the Bill in question it is pointed out that the present “Board” is not, and probably never was, intended to be a working body for the despatch of business, that it is believed never to have met that the work of this department of State is growing in variety and importance, and that such work can only be satisfactorily transacted with the aid of persons possessing high professional qualifications, who, instead of being, as at present, merely the servants of the “Board” tendering advice only on invitation, would be able to initiate action in any direction deemed desirable. The British Medical Association have approached the matter from a medical point of view—as might naturally have been expected—and this course of action makes a somewhat weak plank in the platform of the reformers. The fourth clause of the draft of the Bill proposes that there should be four “additional” members of the Board, and that, of such additional members, one should be a barrister or solicitor, one a qualified medical officer of health, one a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, and one a person experienced in the administration of the Poor‐law Acts. The work of the Local Government Board, however, is not confined to dealing with medical, engineering, and Poor‐law questions, and the presence of one or more fully‐qualified scientific experts would be absolutely necessary to secure the efficient administration of the food laws and the proper and adequate consideration of matters relating to water supply and sewage disposal. The popular notion still exists that the “doctor” is a universal scientific genius, and that, as the possessor of scientific knowledge and acumen, the next best article is the proprietor of the shop in the window of which are exhibited some three or four bottles of brilliantly‐coloured liquids inscribed with mysterious symbols. The influence of these popular ideas is to be seen in the tendency often exhibited by public authorities and even occasionally by the legislature and by Government departments to expect and call upon medical men to perform duties which neither by training nor by experience they are qualified to undertake. Medical Officers of Health of standing, and medical men of intelligence and repute are the last persons to wish to arrogate to themselves the possession of universal knowledge and capacity, and it is unfair and ridiculous to thrust work upon them which can only be properly carried out by specialists. If the Local Government Board is to be reconstituted and made a thing of life—and in the public interest it is urgently necessary that this should be done—the new department should comprise experts of the first rank in all the branches of science from which the knowledge essential for efficient administration can be drawn.
Clive Bingley, Edwin Fleming, Allan Bunch and Kate Hills
ONE OF OUR readers has suggested that, to help a busy eye scan the pages of this section of NLW for instant recognition of topics of interest to it, these notelets should…
Abstract
ONE OF OUR readers has suggested that, to help a busy eye scan the pages of this section of NLW for instant recognition of topics of interest to it, these notelets should highlight in bold type certain keywords which give a clue to their content. Then harassed children's librarians, for example, can ignore the small type immediately surrounding the accentuated words ‘opulent bosom’ as being quite obviously beyond his/her realm of professional interest.
Elizabeth Anne Weigle and Laura McAndrews
The purpose of this paper is to investigate Generation Z's physical expectations of being pregnant and their outlook for maternity wear shopping.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate Generation Z's physical expectations of being pregnant and their outlook for maternity wear shopping.
Design/methodology/approach
Females in this cohort (n = 207) participated in an online survey that included questions about perceptions of pregnancy, physical self-concept and forecasted shopping behaviors.
Findings
Results indicated that this group is concerned with physical changes of pregnancy and expect to treat each area of the body in a different way. Women's expected physical concerns of pregnancy predict how much they anticipate accentuating their pregnant body. Gen Z anticipates wearing loose maternity garments and they envision a thoughtful, in-store shopping experience for styles that are equally fashionable and comfortable, such as dresses.
Research limitations/implications
This study should be extended to future generational cohorts like Generation Alpha, along with Gen Z outside of the United States and women in the United States who are non-white. Further studies should take a longitudinal approach to gauge changes in this cohort's expectations as they progress through pregnancy.
Practical implications
This paper provides maternity wear retail brands and designers a foundation for product development and marketing geared toward this large cohort.
Originality/value
The study is the first to inquire about Gen Z's outlook on pregnancy, specifically their envisioned changes to each body area and the role of maternity garments to fulfill needs and concerns.