Factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gaborone,Botswana

Thesis ( MPH.) -- University of Limpopo, 2015The purpose of the study was to find out factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. The study was conducted in Gaborone district targeting all primary healthcare clinics. The specific focus was drawn to all registered nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. The objective of the study was to investigate factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. A quantitative study was carried out in this study. A sample of 106 respondents was used in the study. Purposive sampling was employed to select respondents that were included in the study. Data was collected through a self-administered questionnaire which comprised of close and open ended questions. Informed consent was obtained from the participants who participated in the study. The study revealed that a higher percentage (74%) of nurses have ever experienced occupational stress. The results also revealed that females 80 percent respondents experienced stress compared to their male counterparts. The results also show that all of the respondents mentioned that they had experienced stress related to work. Respondents also mentioned that work relationship, shortage of staff, and workload contribute to stress among the nurses. On the other hand, the results of the study also found that staff welfare issues also contribute to stress among the nurses. These include lack of recognition, no personal growth, lack of support and unfriendly work environment. From the results most of the respondents indicated that there are no interventions dealing with stress in the workplace therefore the study recommends that interventions in the workplace needs to be introduced to address occupational stress among the nurse. Furthermore there is a need to create wellness programs, reduce work overload and motivate staff by promotions and other means in order to increase level of job satisfaction

Factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gabarone, Botswana

Thesis (MPH.) --University of Limpopo, 2015The purpose of the study was to find out factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. The study was conducted in Gaborone district targeting all primary healthcare clinics. The specific focus was drawn to all registered nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. The objective of the study was to investigate factors associated with occupational stress among nurses working in clinics in Gaborone. A quantitative study was carried out in this study. A sample of 106 respondents was used in the study. Purposive sampling was employed to select respondents that were included in the study. Data was collected through a self-administered questionnaire which comprised of close and open ended questions. Informed consent was obtained from the participants who participated in the study. The study revealed that a higher percentage (74%) of nurses have ever experienced occupational stress. The results also revealed that females 80 percent respondents experienced stress compared to their male counterparts. The results also show that all of the respondents mentioned that they had experienced stress related to work. Respondents also mentioned that work relationship, shortage of staff, and workload contribute to stress among the nurses. On the other hand, the results of the study also found that staff welfare issues also contribute to stress among the nurses. These include lack of recognition, no personal growth, lack of support and unfriendly work environment. From the results most of the respondents indicated that there are no interventions dealing with stress in the workplace therefore the study recommends that interventions in the workplace needs to be introduced to address occupational stress among the nurse. Furthermore there is a need to create wellness programs, reduce work overload and motivate staff by promotions and other means in order to increase level of job satisfaction

Financial Deepening And Economic Competitiveness In Kenya: The Strides To Being An Economic Power House

Economists have long held the view that financial deepening and economic development are closely intertwined. Kenya’s development blue print, Vision 2030, is anchored on this belief and aims to create a vibrant, globally competitive financial sector, envisioning Kenya as a leading financial centre in Eastern and Southern Africa. Using descriptive survey design, this study investigated the state of financial deepening in Kenya and how this enhances the country’s economic competitiveness. Data was collected from a key informant in the four largest banks by asset base that have subsidiaries/branches in other East African countries using a structured questionnaire. It focused on Mobile banking, Agency banking and credit referencing as indicators of financial deepening and established that Kenya has made remarkable strides in financial deepening, which has enhanced the country’s competitiveness through wider access of financial services, reduced operation and transaction costs, product diversification, superior customer experience and reduced loan default rates

A Survey of Supermarkets in Kakamega Town

Abstract Supplier quality management is one of the very many simple concepts that make a lot of sense to any well meaning organization. Unfortunately, implementing the concept is not very simple and over the years, companies have crumbled due to failure to master the best practices in supplier quality management. Practices such as measuring the performance of suppliers, engaging suppliers in quality management systems, supplier audits, supplier development, integration and competitive supplier selection are a great opportunity to improve organizational performance in terms of customer service delivery levels and operational costs reduction. However, it is worth noting that there are numerous challenges encountered in having such practices accepted by all the stakeholders. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of supplier quality management on organizational performance, covering all the supermarkets in Kakamega town. The study employed a descriptive survey design and the study population was the procurement managers of the supermarkets. Data was collected using structured questionnaires which were administered by the researchers through a drop and pick technique and it was descriptively analyzed. The study also explored the potential integration of supplier quality management practices into an organization’s operations, focussing on the currently available applications. The study recommended that suppliers should maintain reliable records, errors to be identified early, supermarkets to decentralize their management structures, suppliers should conform to specifications and that senior level management should be fully committed especially in supplier development programmes so as to overcome the challenges faced in supplier quality management. Finally, suggestions for further research were given. Key words: Organizational performance, Supplier, Supplier Quality Managemen

Financial Innovation as a Competitive Strategy: The Kenyan Financial Sector

The world business environment is rapidly changing and becoming intensely competitive. In this context, most organizations are realizing that knowledge is the most important resource in creating sustainable competitive advantage. Knowledge management (KM) as a discipline is designed to provide strategy, process, and technology to increase organizational efficiency and effectiveness. The survival and success of a firm are dependent on the capacity of management to generate new ideas. One such a topical idea is financial innovations. Economies and businesses across the world have embraced creativity and innovation to circumvent market imperfections. Kenya as an economy has been hailed as a regional financial hub. This paper is a narrative review seeking to establish the extent of financial innovation in Kenya and how this enhances competitiveness. The research finds out that the Kenyan financial sector has made some remarkable strides towards financial innovations. However, it is noted that there is still enormous untapped potential that can enhance Kenya’s economy further. Keywords: knowledge management (KM), financial innovations, market imperfection

A standardized online clinical education and assessment tool for neurology clerkship students assigned to multiple sites

Abstract The Drexel neurology clerkship experience can vary from large groups at a university hospital inpatient unit to smaller groups at private physician offices. Evaluations are based on the site director's subjective assessment and performance on the National Board of Medical Examiners neurology shelf examination. We are developing a standardized online clinical neurology course and quiz for the whole clerkship. We piloted the course and quiz at a single site for one academic year and compared their test scores with a control group of students at other clerkship sites who took the online quiz without viewing the course. Students at the pilot site achieved higher scores both on the neurology shelf examination and the clinical quiz and also reported higher teaching satisfaction scores than students at all other sites. There was a 97 % participation rate in the online quiz from the other sites. Use of this online course and quiz provides effective standardized clinical neurology teaching and evaluation that can be applied to students across multiple sites

Patient Perspectives on Self-Management Technologies for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is a debilitating medical con­dition that is characterized by a range of physical, cognitive and social impairments. This paper investigates CFS patients’ perspectives on the potential for technological support for self-management of their symptoms. We report findings from three studies in which people living with CFS 1) prioritized symptoms that they would like technologies to address, 2) ar­ticulated their current approaches to self-management along­ side challenges they face, and 3) reflected on their experiences with three commercial smartphone apps related to symptom management. We contribute an understanding of the specific needs of the ME/CFS population and the ways in which they currently engage in self-management using technology. The paper ends by describing five high-level design recommen­dations for ME/CFS self-management technologies

Identify Survey: Community and advocacy report

The Identify survey is the largest study focused on rainbow young people (aged 14-26) in Aotearoa New Zealand to date. This survey was live between February and August 2021. The research team is a diverse array of rainbow community youth organisations, leaders and researchers. The research team are united in our belief that excellent survey results can help inform ways in which we can improve rainbow lives in Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond. In total, 4784 rainbow young people and 434 of their allies took part in the survey. The findings in this report are based on the survey responses of rainbow young people. Identify was very successful at generating a wide and diverse sample of rainbow young people, including 2045 (43%) who were currently in secondary education, 1640 (34%) who were in post-secondary education, and 1099 (23%) who were not in education but were either in paid or unpaid employment, or were unemployed. There was a good spread of ethnicities reported, and at a total-response level, 12% were Māori; 4% Pacific; 9% Asian; and 71% Pākehā, NZ European, or another European identity. There were also around 1% respectively of participants who were Middle Eastern, Latin American, African, or North American. For this age bracket, this distribution is disproportionally white and underrepresents Pacific populations, which is a limitation we recognise in our recommendations. Participants reported a wide array of gender identities and modalities. Broadly, 52% of participants were classified as cisgender women/girls (39%) or men/ boys (13%), 14% as trans men/boys or trans women/girls, 30% as non-binary and 4% as questioning their gender. Similarly, a wide array of sexualities was reported. Participants with intersex variations or variations of sex characteristics were also registered, accounting for approximately 1% of the cohort. Just over two in five participants were identified as disabled

Remediation programmes for practising doctors to restore patient safety: the RESTORE realist review

Background An underperforming doctor puts patient safety at risk. Remediation is an intervention intended to address underperformance and return a doctor to safe practice. Used in health-care systems all over the world, it has clear implications for both patient safety and doctor retention in the workforce. However, there is limited evidence underpinning remediation programmes, particularly a lack of knowledge as to why and how a remedial intervention may work to change a doctor’s practice. Objectives To (1) conduct a realist review of the literature to ascertain why, how, in what contexts, for whom and to what extent remediation programmes for practising doctors work to restore patient safety; and (2) provide recommendations on tailoring, implementation and design strategies to improve remediation interventions for doctors. Design A realist review of the literature underpinned by the Realist And MEta-narrative Evidence Syntheses: Evolving Standards quality and reporting standards. Data sources Searches of bibliographic databases were conducted in June 2018 using the following databases: EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PsycINFO, Education Resources Information Center, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts, and Health Management Information Consortium. Grey literature searches were conducted in June 2019 using the following: Google Scholar (Google Inc., Mountain View, CA, USA), OpenGrey, NHS England, North Grey Literature Collection, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Evidence, Electronic Theses Online Service, Health Systems Evidence and Turning Research into Practice. Further relevant studies were identified via backward citation searching, searching the libraries of the core research team and through a stakeholder group. Review methods Realist review is a theory-orientated and explanatory approach to the synthesis of evidence that seeks to develop programme theories about how an intervention produces its effects. We developed a programme theory of remediation by convening a stakeholder group and undertaking a systematic search of the literature. We included all studies in the English language on the remediation of practising doctors, all study designs, all health-care settings and all outcome measures. We extracted relevant sections of text relating to the programme theory. Extracted data were then synthesised using a realist logic of analysis to identify context–mechanism–outcome configurations. Results A total of 141 records were included. Of the 141 studies included in the review, 64% related to North America and 14% were from the UK. The majority of studies (72%) were published between 2008 and 2018. A total of 33% of articles were commentaries, 30% were research papers, 25% were case studies and 12% were other types of articles. Among the research papers, 64% were quantitative, 19% were literature reviews, 14% were qualitative and 3% were mixed methods. A total of 40% of the articles were about junior doctors/residents, 31% were about practicing physicians, 17% were about a mixture of both (with some including medical students) and 12% were not applicable. A total of 40% of studies focused on remediating all areas of clinical practice, including medical knowledge, clinical skills and professionalism. A total of 27% of studies focused on professionalism only, 19% focused on knowledge and/or clinical skills and 14% did not specify. A total of 32% of studies described a remediation intervention, 16% outlined strategies for designing remediation programmes, 11% outlined remediation models and 41% were not applicable. Twenty-nine context–mechanism–outcome configurations were identified. Remediation programmes work when they develop doctors’ insight and motivation, and reinforce behaviour change. Strategies such as providing safe spaces, using advocacy to develop trust in the remediation process and carefully framing feedback create contexts in which psychological safety and professional dissonance lead to the development of insight. Involving the remediating doctor in remediation planning can provide a perceived sense of control in the process and this, alongside correcting causal attribution, goal-setting, destigmatising remediation and clarity of consequences, helps motivate doctors to change. Sustained change may be facilitated by practising new behaviours and skills and through guided reflection. Limitations Limitations were the low quality of included literature and limited number of UK-based studies. Future work Future work should use the recommendations to optimise the delivery of existing remediation programmes for doctors in the NHS. Study registration This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42018088779. Funding This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 9, No. 11. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information. </jats:sec

College buddies

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