A peer-driven community-based supervisory model: development from an evaluation of an ethics workshop for doctoral students undertaking research with children

Differing doctoral supervision models currently exist. Three key conceptual supervisory models relevant to doctoral students from within the healthcare professions were identified from a literature review: the ‘functional pre-modern’ model, the ‘team’ model and the ‘community group’ model. However, whilst these models exist, for the most part, supervision remains embedded within home academic institutions. Method and material: (1) An extensive review of the literature was undertaken, drawing on: Australian Education Index, British Education Index, the British Humanities Index, the British Nursing Index, EBSCOHOST EJS and Google™ Scholar; (2) an outcome-oriented evaluation of a workshop delivered to seven current or prospective doctoral candidates from within the health care professions and researching with children and/or young people, concerning the conduct of ethical research was undertaken Results: Five key categories related to ‘best things about the day’ were identified from a four-item, anonymous questionnaire appraising the day. These concerned: round table discussions, plenary seminars, workshop organisation, value of experiential learning and future workshop opportunities. From these themes an ‘innovative’ peer-driven, community based model of doctoral supervision was developed that is extrinsic to and complements the supervision provided in students’ home academic institutions. Conclusions: The innovative supervisory model developed through an outcome-oriented evaluation of a workshop for doctoral candidates has particular relevance for doctoral students who are healthcare professionals generally and nurses in particular, especially those studying in highly specialised areas where there may be a dearth of subject specific supervisors

When is Galois cohomology free or trivial?

Let p be a prime and F a field containing a primitive pth root of unity. Let E/F be a cyclic extension of degree p and G_E < G_F the associated absolute Galois groups. We determine precise conditions for the cohomology group H^n(E)=H^n(G_E,Fp) to be free or trivial as an Fp[Gal(E/F)]-module. We examine when these properties for H^n(E) are inherited by H^k(E), k>n, and, by analogy with cohomological dimension, we introduce notions of cohomological freeness and cohomological triviality. We give examples of H^n(E) free or trivial for each n in N with prescribed cohomological dimension.Comment: 29 pages; removed hypothesis on perfect fields in main results, and added reference

Collaborating to develop an online resource for parents

Background The development and evaluation of Online Parent Information and Support (OPIS) involved the creation of a web resource for parents who needed support for the home-based management of their child's chronic kidney disease (CKD)

Emerging communities of child-healthcare practice in the management of long-term conditions such as chronic kidney disease: Qualitative study of parents' accounts

Background: Parents of children and young people with long-term conditions who need to deliver clinical care to their child at home with remote support from hospital-based professionals, often search the internet for care-giving information. However, there is little evidence that the information available online was developed and evaluated with parents or that it acknowledges the communities of practice that exist as parents and healthcare professionals share responsibility for condition management. Methods. The data reported here are part of a wider study that developed and tested a condition-specific, online parent information and support application with children and young people with chronic-kidney disease, parents and professionals. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 fathers and 24 mothers who had recently tested the novel application. Data were analysed using Framework Analysis and the Communities of Practice concept. Results: Evolving communities of child-healthcare practice were identified comprising three components and several sub components: (1) Experiencing (parents making sense of clinical tasks) through Normalising care, Normalising illness, Acceptance & action, Gaining strength from the affected child and Building relationships to formalise a routine; (2) Doing (Parents executing tasks according to their individual skills) illustrated by Developing coping strategies, Importance of parents' efficacy of care and Fear of the child's health failing; and (3) Belonging/Becoming (Parents defining task and group members' worth and creating a personal identity within the community) consisting of Information sharing, Negotiation with health professionals and Achieving expertise in care. Parents also recalled factors affecting the development of their respective communities of healthcare practice; these included Service transition, Poor parent social life, Psycho-social affects, Family chronic illness, Difficulty in learning new procedures, Shielding and avoidance, and Language and cultural barriers. Health care professionals will benefit from using the communities of child-healthcare practice model when they support parents of children with chronic kidney disease. Conclusions: Understanding some of the factors that may influence the development of communities of child-healthcare practice will help professionals to tailor information and support for parents learning to manage their child's healthcare. Our results are potentially transferrable to professionals managing the care of children and young people with other long-term conditions. © 2014 Carolan et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd