Michael Petterson, Lanka Nanayakkara, Norgay Konchok, Rebecca Norman, Sonam Wangchuk and Malin Linderoth
The purpose of this paper is to apply the concept of “Interconnected Geoscience” to a disaster and risk reduction (DRR) case study at SECMOL College, near Leh, Ladakh, N. India…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to apply the concept of “Interconnected Geoscience” to a disaster and risk reduction (DRR) case study at SECMOL College, near Leh, Ladakh, N. India. Interconnected geoscience is a model that advocates holistic approaches to geoscience for development. This paper reports research/practical work with Ladakhi students/staff, undertaking community-oriented DRR exercises in hazard awareness, DRR themed village/college mapping, vulnerability assessments and DRR management scenario development. The geoscientific hazard analysis work is published within a separate sister paper, with results feeding into this work. This work addresses aspects of, and contributes to, the DRR research(science)-policy-interface conversation.
Design/methodology/approach
Interconnected geoscience methodologies for DRR here are: the application of geoscience for hazard causality, spatial distribution, frequency and impact assessment, for earthquakes, floods and landslides, within the SECMOL area; the generation of community-developed DRR products and services of use to a range of end-users; the development of a contextual geoscience approach, informed by social-developmental-issues; and the active participation of SECMOL students/teachers and consequent integration of local world-views and wisdom within DRR research. Initial DRR awareness levels of students were assessed with respect to earthquakes/floods/landslides/droughts. Following hazard teaching sessions, students engaged in a range of DRR exercises, and produced DRR themed maps, data, tables and documented conversations of relevance to DRR management.
Findings
Students levels of hazard awareness were variable, generally low for low-frequency hazards (e.g. earthquakes) and higher for hazards such as floods/landslides which either are within recent memory, or have higher frequencies. The 2010 Ladakhi flood disaster has elevated aspects of flood-hazard knowledge. Landslides and drought hazards were moderately well understood. Spatial awareness was identified as a strength. The application of an interconnected geoscience approach immersed within a student+staff college community, proved to be effective, and can rapidly assess/build upon awareness levels and develop analytical tools for the further understanding of DRR management. This approach can assist Ladakhi regional DRR management in increasing the use of regional capability/resources, and reducing the need for external inputs.
Practical implications
A series of recommendations for the DRR geoscience/research-policy-practice area include: adopting an “interconnected geoscience” approach to DRR research, involving scientific inputs to DRR; using and developing local capability and resources for Ladakhi DRR policy and practice; using/further-developing DRR exercises presented in this paper, to integrate science with communities, and further-empower communities; taking account of the findings that hazard awareness is variable, and weak, for potentially catastrophic hazards, such as earthquakes, when designing policy and practice for raising DRR community awareness; ensuring that local values/world views/wisdom inform all DRR research, and encouraging external “experts” to carefully consider these aspects within Ladakh-based DRR work; and further-developing DRR networks across Ladakh that include pockets of expertise such as SECMOL.
Originality/value
The term “interconnected geoscience” is highly novel, further developing thinking within the research/science-policy-practice interface. This is the first time an exercise such as this has been undertaken in the Ladakh Himalaya.
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David Punter and Glennis Byron note how the Gothic novel has been divided into two categories: the ‘Male’ and ‘Female’ Gothic. Where the former emphasizes violence and ghosts, the…
Abstract
David Punter and Glennis Byron note how the Gothic novel has been divided into two categories: the ‘Male’ and ‘Female’ Gothic. Where the former emphasizes violence and ghosts, the latter focuses on female representation and the disavowal of the supernatural. The Hollywood Gothic films of the 1940s can be said to translate this aspect of the Female Gothic onto the cinema screen: Rebecca (1940), Gaslight (1944) and Secret Beyond the Door (1947) all feature narratives stressing the haunting nature of domestic spaces but there are no actual ghosts present. Robert Zemeckis’s What Lies Beneath (2000) breaks this convention. The film clearly draws on the Female Gothic lineage, situating Claire as a Gothic heroine, and yet there is an important difference: the supernatural is now an integral – and acknowledged – part of the story. This chapter explores this twenty-first century change, arguing that whilst the inclusion of the supernatural can be said to break with previous definitions of the Female Gothic, What Lies Beneath’s depiction of a ghost actually re-imagines and re-emphasizes the concerns at the centre of this tradition: the dramatization of marital and domestic experiences; an interrogation of feminine perception; and the reality of male violence against women.
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Rebecca Trowman Day, Richard Norman and Suzanne Robinson
Worldwide, there is significant growth in the cost of (and demand for) healthcare, which often clashes with a requirement to contain expenditure. This duality leads to an…
Abstract
Purpose
Worldwide, there is significant growth in the cost of (and demand for) healthcare, which often clashes with a requirement to contain expenditure. This duality leads to an increasing need for a systematic approach to disinvestment in health technologies. The purpose of this paper is to consider the challenges and opportunities for disinvestment policy decisions in Australia. It discusses the implementation of the Choosing Wisely campaign and the need for rigorous evaluation of such campaigns in the Australian healthcare system.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors highlight characteristics of disinvestment: what it is and what it is not and discuss international examples of identifying low value care, including the recent Choosing Wisely initiative. The authors discuss the barriers to implementing initiatives such as Choosing Wisely and the complexities in evaluating their effectiveness.
Findings
While the primary purpose of the Choosing Wisely campaign is improved decision making through clinical engagement, it is expected that implementation could lead to resource savings alongside improvements in patient safety and service quality. While there is research looking to understand the barriers and facilitators to the implementation of initiatives such as Choosing Wisely, little is known about broader patient impacts, and more attention on the quantification of their effect on both patient outcomes and resource use is needed.
Originality/value
This work highlights the limited knowledge around implementation of disinvestment strategies and the paucity of research around the impact of strategies such as Choosing Wisely in the Australian public hospital system. This is important as future research in this area will give greater certainty about the benefits and consequences of Choosing Wisely leading to improved opportunities for resource savings and patient safety and quality.
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Sophie Moore, Rebecca Wotus, Alyson Norman, Mark Holloway and Jackie Dean
Brain Injury Case Managers (BICMs) work closely with individuals with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI), assessing needs, structuring rehabilitation interventions and providing support…
Abstract
Purpose
Brain Injury Case Managers (BICMs) work closely with individuals with Acquired Brain Injury (ABI), assessing needs, structuring rehabilitation interventions and providing support, and have significant experience of clients with impairments to decision making. The purpose of this paper is to explore the application of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and its guidance when applied to ABI survivors. This research aimed to: first, highlight potential conflicts or tensions that application of the MCA might pose, and second, identify approaches to mitigate the problems of the MCA and capacity assessments with ABI survivors. It is hoped that this will support improvements in the services offered.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a mixed method approach, 93 BICMs responded to an online questionnaire about decision making following ABI. Of these, 12 BICMs agreed to take part in a follow-up semi-structured telephone interview.
Findings
The data revealed four main themes: disagreements with other professionals, hidden disabilities, vulnerability in the community and implementation of the MCA and capacity assessments.
Practical implications
The findings highlight the need for changes to the way mental capacity assessments are conducted and the need for training for professionals in the hidden effects of ABI.
Originality/value
Limited research exists on potential limitations of the application of the MCA for individuals with an ABI. This paper provides much needed research on the difficulties surrounding mental capacity and ABI.
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Liza Barbour, Rebecca Armstrong, Patrick Condron and Claire Palermo
Communities of practice (CoPs) exist to enable people to share knowledge, innovate and progress a common field of practice. This paper aims to identify whether CoPs have a…
Abstract
Purpose
Communities of practice (CoPs) exist to enable people to share knowledge, innovate and progress a common field of practice. This paper aims to identify whether CoPs have a measured impact on public health practice and the tools used to measure the impact and potential barriers and facilitators that may have been identified during the implementation of these CoPs.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review of the literature was conducted using PRISMA guidelines. Searches of six databases, Google Scholar and a citation search were completed. Included studies were from 1986 to 2016, involved the public health workforce and an evaluation of a CoP -like intervention. A narrative synthesis of the findings was conducted.
Findings
From 3,021 publications, 12 studies met inclusion criteria and described the impact of ten CoPs amongst public health practitioners from America, Canada, Australasia and the United Kingdom. CoPs support the prevention workforce to change their practice when they provide structured problem-solving, reflective practice and networking opportunities. None of the studies described the impact of CoPs on public health outcomes.
Practical implications
CoPs that provide structured problem-solving, reflective practice and diverse networking may effectively support the public health workforce. Existing methods used to evaluate CoPs lack rigour; thus, the true impact of CoPs on population health remains unknown.
Originality/value
This is the first known systematic review that has measured the impact of CoPs on the preventative health workforce and the conditions in which they have an impact.
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The deadhead subculture – centered around the band Grateful Dead – has been active for 50+ years. Despite its longevity, academic work is sparse compared to other music…
Abstract
The deadhead subculture – centered around the band Grateful Dead – has been active for 50+ years. Despite its longevity, academic work is sparse compared to other music subcultures. Given its durability and resilience, this subculture offers an opportunity to explore subcultural development and maintenance. I employ a contemporary, symbolic interactionist approach to trace the development of deadhead subculture and subcultural identity. Although identity is a basic concept in subculture research, it is not well defined: I suggest that the co-creation and maintenance of subcultural identity can be seen as a dialectic between collective identity and symbolic interactionist conceptions of individual role-identity.
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Rebecca L. Gardner, Ellen Calhoun and Jeanne E. Boyle
In 1990 we compiled an annotated bibliography of official state lists of endangered, threatened, and rare species. In gathering information for that bibliography, which appeared…
Abstract
In 1990 we compiled an annotated bibliography of official state lists of endangered, threatened, and rare species. In gathering information for that bibliography, which appeared in Reference Services Review in Spring 1991, we found numerous unofficial sources of state lists, such as those developed by universities, institutes, and Natural Heritage Programs, which also provide valuable information on statuses of endangered, threatened, and rare species. A comprehensive search for unofficial lists results in this second bibliography.
Catherine C. Quatman-Yates, Mark V. Paterno, Mariann L. Strenk, Michelle A. Kiger, Tory H. Hogan, Brian Cunningham and Rebecca Reder
The importance of culture is often emphasized for continuous learning and quality improvement within health care organizations. Limited empirical evidence for cultivating a…
Abstract
The importance of culture is often emphasized for continuous learning and quality improvement within health care organizations. Limited empirical evidence for cultivating a culture that supports continuous learning and quality improvement in health care settings is currently available.
The purpose of this report is to characterize the evolution of a large division of physical therapists and occupational therapists in a pediatric hospital setting from 2005 to 2018 to identify key facilitators and barriers for cultivating a culture empowered to engage in continuous learning and improvement.
An ethnographic methodology was used including participant observation, document review, and stakeholder interviews to acquire a deep understanding and develop a theoretical model to depict insights gained from the investigation.
A variety of individual, social, and structural enablers and motivators emerged as key influences toward a culture empowered to support continuous learning and improvement. Features of the system that helped create sustainable, positive momentum (e.g., systems thinking, leaders with grit, and mindful design) and factors that hindered momentum (e.g., system uncertainty, staff turnover, slow barrier resolution, and competing priorities) were also identified.
Individual-level, social-level, and structural-level elements all influenced the culture that emerged over a 12-year period. Several cultural catalysts and deterrents emerged as factors that supported and hindered progress and sustainability of the emergent culture.
Cultivating a culture of continuous learning and improvement is possible. Purposeful consideration of the proposed model and identified factors from this report may yield important insights to advance understanding of how to cultivate a culture that facilitates continuous learning and improvement within a health care setting.