Abstract: Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma have a high prevalence and disease burden. Blended self-management interventions, which combine eHealth with face-to-face interventions, can help reduce the disease burden. Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aims to examine the effectiveness of blended self-management interventions on health-related effectiveness and process outcomes for people with COPD or asthma. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, COCHRANE Library, Emcare, and Embase were searched in December 2018 and updated in November 2020. Study quality was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias (ROB) 2 tool and the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation. Results: A total of 15 COPD and 7 asthma randomized controlled trials were included in this study. The meta-analysis of COPD studies found that the blended intervention showed a small improvement in exercise capacity (standardized mean difference [SMD] 0.48; 95% CI 0.10-0.85) and a significant improvement in the quality of life (QoL; SMD 0.81; 95% CI 0.11-1.51). Blended intervention also reduced the admission rate (relative ratio [RR] 0.61; 95% CI 0.38-0.97). In the COPD systematic review, regarding the exacerbation frequency, both studies found that the intervention reduced exacerbation frequency (RR 0.38; 95% CI 0.26-0.56). A large effect was found on BMI (d=0.81; 95% CI 0.25-1.34); however, the effect was inconclusive because only 1 study was included. Regarding medication adherence, 2 of 3 studies found a moderate effect (d=0.73; 95% CI 0.50-0.96), and 1 study reported a mixed effect. Regarding self-management ability, 1 study reported a large effect (d=1.15; 95% CI 0.66-1.62), and no effect was reported in that study. No effect was found on other process outcomes. The meta-analysis of asthma studies found that blended intervention had a small improvement in lung function (SMD 0.40; 95% CI 0.18-0.62) and QoL (SMD 0.36; 95% CI 0.21-0.50) and a moderate improvement in asthma control (SMD 0.67; 95% CI 0.40-0.93). A large effect was found on BMI (d=1.42; 95% CI 0.28-2.42) and exercise capacity (d=1.50; 95% CI 0.35-2.50); however, 1 study was included per outcome. There was no effect on other outcomes. Furthermore, the majority of the 22 studies showed some concerns about the ROB, and the quality of evidence varied. Conclusions: In patients with COPD, the blended self-management interventions had mixed effects on health-related outcomes, with the strongest evidence found for exercise capacity, QoL, and admission rate. Furthermore, the review suggested that the interventions resulted in small effects on lung function and QoL and a moderate effect on asthma control in patients with asthma. There is some evidence for the effectiveness of blended self-management interventions for patients with COPD and asthma; however, more research is needed. Trial Registration: PROSPERO International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews CRD42019119894; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=119894
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Presentatie gegeven over de review in Brussel Objectives: In the past decades many psychosocial interventions for elderly people with dementia have been developed and implemented. Relatively little research has been done on the extent to which these interventions were implemented in the daily care. The aim of this study was to obtain insight into strategies for successful implementation of psychosocial interventions in the daily residential dementia care. Using a modified RE-AIM framework, the indicators that are considered important for effective and sustainable implementation were defined.
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Background: In their research reports, scientists are expected to discuss limitations that their studies have. Previous research showed that often, such discussion is absent. Also, many journals emphasize the importance of avoiding overstatement of claims. We wanted to see to what extent editorial handling and peer review affects self-acknowledgment of limitations and hedging of claims.Methods: Using software that automatically detects limitation-acknowledging sentences and calculates the level of hedging in sentences, we compared the submitted manuscripts and their ultimate publications of all randomized trials published in 2015 in 27 BioMed Central (BMC) journals and BMJ Open. We used mixed linear and logistic regression models, accounting for clustering of manuscript-publication pairs within journals, to quantify before-after changes in the mean numbers of limitation-acknowledging sentences, in the probability that a manuscript with zero self-acknowledged limitations ended up as a publication with at least one and in hedging scores.Results: Four hundred forty-six manuscript-publication pairs were analyzed. The median number of manuscripts per journal was 10.5 (interquartile range 6-18). The average number of distinct limitation sentences increased by 1.39 (95% CI 1.09-1.76), from 2.48 in manuscripts to 3.87 in publications. Two hundred two manuscripts (45.3%) did not mention any limitations. Sixty-three (31%, 95% CI 25-38) of these mentioned at least one after peer review. Changes in mean hedging scores were negligible.Conclusions: Our findings support the idea that editorial handling and peer review lead to more self-acknowledgment of study limitations, but not to changes in linguistic nuance.
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Based on an intensive literature review, this paper investigates and presents generalized answers to the two basic questions of port governance, namely who governs and what is governed. There are totally 77 studies selected as the core literature sample according to a five-step approach. The results from literature review show evidences in favor of the important roles played by governmental organizations and port organizations as the main governing bodies of port governance. Furthermore, our analysis shows first, that multilevel governance has become a notable feature of port governance. Second, there are increasing involvements by national or regional levels of government in some countries such as the USA, Brazil, China. Third, port authorities at local level are generally holding the centre-stage position with further autonomy in managing port operations. Fourth, not-for-profit organizations related to port activities play the role of coordinators in port governance. Finally, different governance regimes with different specific governing actors for different port classifications can be identified for many nations. This study shows that fundamentally institutional arrangements and specific port activities are the two basic categories of what is governed. The institutional arrangements determine the port governance configuration and allocation of responsibilities of port activities. There are 12 groups of specific port activities within five categories identified in port governance.
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Background Anxiety and challenging behaviour (CB) often occur simultaneously in people with intellectual disabilities (ID). Understanding the associations between anxiety and CB may contribute to more accurate diagnoses and management of both anxiety and CB in this population. Aims To examine the relationship between anxiety and CB. Methods A literature review covering the period from January 2000 to January 2012. Results Seven studies about the relationship between psychiatric disorders, including anxiety, and CB were identified. These studies confirm the relationship between anxiety and CB in people with ID, although the precise nature of this relationship remains unclear. Conclusions The study points toward the existence of a moderate association between anxiety and CB. Further research is needed to clarify the complex nature of the association between anxiety and CB.
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Recently, the Dutch government raised the retirement age of workers in the Netherlands. In this study we focused on the work values of low-skilled older workers, the extent to which their jobs fulfill these values, and the effect of work values on the willingness of these workers to extend their working life. This study is based on a literature review and a secondary analysis on a large database of persons aged 45 and older (STREAM). The study shows that extrinsic work values are more important for low-skilled older workers, and intrinsic work values more relevant for high-skilled older workers. The most important work values for low-skilled older workers are fulfilled slightly more often than those of high-skilled older workers. The extent to which important work values are fulfilled in the jobs of low-skilled older workers is positively correlated with job satisfaction and with their own assessment of whether or not to continue working for another 12 months. Based on this research, we formulated recommendations for HR practices on the employability of low-skilled older workers
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The increasing demand for Prunus africana resources is an opportunity for its conservation and commercial use to support livelihoods in Africa. The objective for this study was to investigate major steps to advance production of P. africana for long-term commercial use in Uganda. Specific objectives were to explore potential production schemes, setbacks in production and strategies to advance it. The study was done by review of literature, documents and interviews with experts. Results indicated Agroforestry and large plantations to be useful schemes for production. Identified setbacks are: low trade in P. africana, unknown returns from production, competing land uses, long growth period, limited market assurance and information. The lack of a resource assessment for P. africana in forests contributes to its low trade which undermines related economic benefits for national development and incentives to commercial production. We propose that a national Quantitative resource assessment of P. africana in forests is one of the crucial steps that should be undertaken to carefully organise and advance sustainable trade to provide rational incentives for commercial production. Subsequently, production should be localised in suitable sites and producers be organised into cooperatives. Further research to improve returns from commercial production of P. africana is needed.
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Abstract: Electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) is growing fast. The purpose of this study is to examine young consumers’ purchase intention of refurbished electronic devices (REDs) such as laptop, tablet, mobile phone and game console. From literature review the factors that influence young consumers’ purchase intention were identified as ‘environmental awareness’, ‘social acceptance’, ‘seller/brand reputation and availability’, and ‘affordability and value’. For each factor a few statements were developed and used as independent variables in a questionnaire. One statement was added about purchase intention as dependent variable. A Pearson correlation coefficient test us showed a clear positive correlation of ‘environmental awareness’ and ‘affordability and value’ with the intention to purchase REDs, but not for the other two factors. This analysis contributes to knowledge on young consumers’ perceptions of refurbished electronic devices and can inform the design of innovative value propositions and new business models for REDs that contribute to a circular economy
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In this article we provide the results of a review study on parental involvement in children’s education with a focus on the specific position of illiterate parents. Research results indicate that parental involvement in children’s education matters. It matters for their achievement, motivation and wellbeing at school. Over the last decade, parents and teachers are supposed to collaborate more andmore as partners in education. To establish these partnerships, the primacy is placed on teachers and schools as they are the professional partners. The results of our review study reveal different good practices to enhance parental involvement: from parent and teacher training programs to reorganization of the school structure and family interventions. When illiterate parents want to be involved in their children’s education, they are faced with many difficulties. Remarkably, the research findings on the involvement of illiterate parents appeared to be limited, in contrast with the resultsof our literature search on the topic of parental involvement in children’s education in general, which was very extensive. However, we have found some good practices to foster the involvement of illiterateparents in their children’s education.
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Summary Project objectives This study fits into a larger research project on logistics collaboration and outsourcing decisions. The final objective of this larger project is to analyze the logistics collaboration decision in more detail to identify thresholds in these decisions. To reach the overall objectives, the first step is to get a clearer picture on the chemical and logistics service providers industry, sectors of our study, and on logistics collaboration in these sectors. The results of this first phase are presented in this report. Project Approach The study consists of two parts: literature review and five case studies within the chemical industry. The literature covers three topics: logistics collaboration, logistics outsourcing and purchasing of logistics services. The five case studies are used to refine the theoretical findings of the literature review. Conclusions Main observations during the case studies can be summarized as follows: Most analyzed collaborative relationships between shippers and logistics service providers in the chemical industry are still focused on operational execution of logistics activities with a short term horizon. Supply management design and control are often retained by the shippers. Despite the time and cost intensive character of a logistics service buying process, shippers tendering on a very regular basis. The decision to start a new tender project should more often be based on an integral approach that includes all tender related costs. A lower frequency of tendering could create more stability in supply chains. Beside, it will give both, shippers and LSPs, the possibility to improve the quality of the remaining projects. Price is still a dominating decision criterion in selecting a LSP. This is not an issue as long as the comparison of costs is based on an integral approach, and when shippers balance the cost criterion within their total set of criteria for sourcing logistics services. At the shippers' side there is an increased awareness of the need of more solid collaboration with logistics service providers. Nevertheless, in many cases this increased awareness does not actually result in the required actions to establish more intensive collaboration. Over the last years the logistics service providers industry was characterized by low profit margins, strong fragmentation and price competition. Nowadays, the market for LSPs is changing, because of an increasing demand for logistics services. To benefit from this situation a more pro-active role of the service providers is required in building stronger relationships with their customers. They should pay more attention on mid and long term possibilities in a collaborative relation, in stead of only be focused on running the daily operation.
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