Elements of cultural competence in an Australian Aboriginal maternity program

Background

Pregnancy, labour and neonatal health outcomes for Australian Aboriginal women and their infants are frequently worse than those of the general population. Provision of culturally competent services may reduce these differences by improving access to timely and regular antenatal care. In an effort to address these issues, the Aboriginal Maternity Group Practice Program commenced in south metropolitan Perth, Western Australia, in 2011. The program employed Aboriginal Grandmothers, Aboriginal Health Officers and midwives working in a partnership model with pre-existing maternity services in the area.

Expert Systems

Summary

Expert systems are computer programs which embody the expertise of a human expert in order to consult and advise on a specific problem. It is now becoming feasible to apply expert systems technology to problems in the human services. This article describes what expert systems technology is and how it may be applied in human service practice. Finally, some of the promises and pitfalls of this new technology are addressed.     

Social services and deviation from the Bismarckian model in Italy: the absence of a nationwide trend of change

This article analyses the processes of deviation from the Bismarckian welfare model in Italy, with a focus on social assistance. The sector was reformed in 2000, with new service provision functions being assigned to local institutions and the affirmation of a universalistic principle of access. However, an analysis of social expenditure data and a review of the process of implementation of the reform demonstrate that many local governments have been unable to enact the innovation and that a homogeneous nationwide trend of deviation from the Bismarckian tradition is absent. This absence is explained by looking both at the local institutional arrangements that have historically characterized the different Italian territories and at the present relationships among national, regional, and local governments.     

当前中国城市社区矛盾冲突的新特点

2005-2007年,课题组对24个东北城市社区进行调研时发现东,北城市社区矛盾冲突呈现多样化、复杂化的趋势,这些特点既体现了东北城市社区矛盾冲突的特殊性,又具有中国城市社区矛盾冲突的一般性.由此,可以洞见当前中国城市社区发展中所面临的主要矛盾冲突问题.     

基于ITIL的远程教育IT服务管理模型设计

为了解决目前远程教育中IT服务存在的问题,对网络教育学院的IT服务和信息技术基础设施库（ITIL）标准进行了深入研究,提出了适合远程教育的IT服务管理（ITSM）模型,并以北京邮电大学网络教育学院为例,重点描述了模型中的需求分析及需求变更管理、远程教育组织结构设计、应用和基础设施监控管理三个核心流程的设计与实施,该模型为远程教育IT服务提供了解决方案。     

美国网上银行服务策略分析及其启示

互联网应用使得网上银行服务成为银行服务业快速发展的一个重要因素。本文通过分析美国网上银行服务的概况及其特点,从中获得借鉴并得到启示,提出了有利于我国网上银行服务发展与创新的一些对策。     

Leadership Dimensions,the Critical Link for the Evolution of Collaboration

Abstract

This article traces the history of one community's efforts to coordinate services to address family violence. The current mazeof organizations in communities is overwhelming to the professionals who work in them, the political leaders who authorize them, the foundations and United Ways who fund them, and, most assuredly, to the persons for whom the various organizations were established. A review of the literature on coordination and collaboration is included as well as a discussion of leadership challenges during the various stages in the evolutionary process to provide confidential, culturally sensitive, comprehensive, accountable, and user-friendly community social service systems.     

Prevalence,people and processes: a consideration of the implications of Lord Laming's progress report on the protection of children in England

Media coverage of the death of Baby P revived national concerns about the standard of child safeguarding practice in England following the implementation of widespread structural changes in response to the Victoria Climbié Inquiry chaired by Lord Laming in 2003. This paper discusses the recommendations of Lord Laming's recent Progress Report. It questions whether the scale of the challenge in improving child protection is fully recognised and considers briefly the culture of social care in the UK and the barriers to effective reform. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.