Analyzing free-text survey responses: An accessible strategy for developing patient-centered programs and program evaluation

Despite widespread availability of yoga in the Veterans Health Administration (VA), it remains unclear how to best evaluate yoga programs. This is particularly problematic for programs aimed at veterans with mental health concerns, as evaluation typically focuses narrowly upon mental health symptom severity, even though program participants may have other health-related priorities. We analyzed responses to free-text questions on 237 surveys completed by veterans with mental health concerns enrolled in a yoga program at six VA clinics in Louisiana to characterize veteran participants’ experiences with yoga. Qualitative analysis resulted in 15 domains reflecting veterans’ individual health-related values and priorities. We use results to illustrate the potential for analysis of free-text responses to reveal valuable insights into patient experiences, demonstrating how these data can inform patient-centered program evaluation. The approach we present is more accessible to those responsible for decision-making about local programs than conventional methods of analyzing qualitive evaluation data.     

Navigating infant feeding supports after migration: Perspectives of Arabic and Chinese mothers and health professionals in Australia

Optimal feeding practices can establish lifelong, transgenerational and global health benefits. Migration and cultural factors impact infant feeding practices and the support mothers receive for optimal infant feeding. This qualitative study explored support for infant feeding among Arabic and Chinese speaking migrant mothers in Australia.Semi-structured focus groups were conducted in language with 24 Arabic and 22 Chinese-Mandarin speaking migrant mothers with children under five years of age. Individual interviews were conducted in English with 20 health professionals working with Arabic or Chinese speaking migrant families. Data were thematically analysed using the framework method.Traditional family networks and trusted bi-cultural doctors were influential infant feeding supports for mothers. Health professionals perceived maternal and child health services to be poorly understood, and some mothers who accessed services felt they were not always culturally sensitive. Mothers sought additional information and support through online sources and peers. Both mothers and health professionals recognised the challenges of managing conflicting infant feeding advice and seeking best-practice support.The findings of this study highlight opportunities for health professionals to better support migrant mothers’ infant feeding practices, for example through engaging families and working with doctors. There is a need for greater cultural sensitivity within maternal and child health services and culturally relevant programs to support healthy infant feeding practices among migrant communities.     

Towards an assessment for organizational participatory research health partnerships: A systematic mixed studies review with framework synthesis

Within the health sciences, organizational participatory research (OPR) is defined as a blend of research and action, in which academic researchers partner with health organization members. OPR is based on a sound partnership between all stakeholders to improve organizational practices. However, little research on the evaluation of OPR health partnership exists. This systematic mixed studies review sought to produce a new theoretical model that structures the evaluation of the OPR processes and related outcomes of OPR health partnerships. Six bibliographic databases were searched together with grey literature sources for OPR health partnership evaluation questionnaires. Six questionnaires were included, from which a pool of 95 OPR health partnership evaluation items were derived. The included questionnaires were appraised for the quality of their origin, development and measurement properties. A framework synthesis was performed using an existing OPR framework by organizing questionnaire items in a matrix using a hybrid thematic analysis. This led to our proposed Organizational Participatory Research Evaluation Model (OPREM) that includes three axes, Trust, Collective Learning and Sustainability (with specific dimensions) and 95 items. This model provides information to help stakeholders comprehensively structure the evaluation of their partnerships and subsequent improvement; thus, potentially helping to improve health organization practices.     

Parents’ perspectives of social support and social cohesion in urban contexts of diversity

Although provisions for young children are increasingly considered as ideal places to foster an inclusive and socially just society by embracing issues of social support and social cohesion, there is no in-depth understanding of the role these provisions can play in enabling supportive and cohesive encounters in contexts of diversity. Even more striking is the absence of parents’ voices in this discussion. Based on an analysis of qualitative interviews with 18 parents who use childcare services in urban contexts of diversity, our findings show the relevance of ephemeral contacts with diverse people that could offer bridging opportunities in terms of social connectedness to familiarise within diversity while decoding the other in urban contexts of diversity. However, neither bonding nor bridging contacts appear as self-evident. Our research shows that the role of childcare services might be vital in creating light and temporal communities as the prerequisite for social cohesion to flourish, in both individual as well as collective dimensions.     

The Effects of Neighborhood Variables on Needs of Social Care: A Hierarchical Multiple Regression of Senior Residents in China

Community-based elder care has become a dominant model in the world. However, the role of community-level factors in helping or hindering the individuals concerned in obtaining the needed care has not received much attention. This research aims to investigate how community-level factors, including neighborhood disadvantage, residential instability, and social service environment affect the need for instrumental, medical, and emotional services of Chinese senior residents. Employing the hierarchical multiple regression analysis, the results show that instrumental activities of daily living impairment contributed significantly to the need for instrumental, medical and emotional services. Living alone was found to be associated with the need for medical and emotional services. Objective socioeconomic status was only significantly related to the need for medical care. The type of urban community was positively associated with the need for instrumental services and was negatively related to the need for medical care. Residential instability was positively associated with of the need for instrumental services and medical care. Social service environments had heterogeneous effects on the need for social services. However, neighborhood disadvantage had no significant impact on the need for social services. Implications for future research and policy reform were also discussed.     

福建省养老服务问题及对策初探

在分析福建省养老服务事业发展所面临的问题基础上,对发展福建省养老服务事业提出对策和建议,指出要以科学发展观为指导,发展养老服务理念;加快政府职能转变,推进养老服务体系建设;建立社会多元筹资模式,鼓励社会力量投入养老产业;提升社区服务水平,优化社区养老服务体系运行机制;建立专业化养老工作者队伍,充分发挥志愿者作用,力图为发展养老服务需求提供政策理论依据,积极有效地应对福建省人口老龄化以及社会变迁。     

日本电信价格规制评析

日本政府在电信民营化和电信规制改革的推进过程中,充分吸收了欧美等国电信价格规制经验。经过多次法律调整和制度完善,逐渐形成了现行的以基础电信服务、指定电信服务和特定电信服务等公共电信服务为规制对象的价格规制体系。在实行价格上限规制的基础上,日本电信市场逐渐形成了全方位竞争的市场格局。     

Exploring Partial Order of European Countries

Partial Order Theory has been recently more and more employed in applied science to overcome the intrinsic disadvantage hidden in aggregation, if a multiple attribute system is available. Despite its numerous positive features, there are many practical cases where the interpretation of the partial order can be rather troublesome. In these cases the analysis of underlying dimensions could be useful to uncover particular data structures. The paper shows a way of addressing the problem with the help of an actual case study, which deals with European opinions on services of general interest. In particular, a partial order of countries is firstly provided and then a method to detect dimensions is discussed and applied. The analysis stems directly from the Partially Order Set (poset) and Lattice theory with particular references to dimension theory and Formal Concept Analysis. The study is eventually able to pinpoint role and relevance of different attributes characterizing EU countries which are used to define the partial order.

金融业中新服务开发的一般过程与门径管理模式研究

国内大多数金融服务机构的新服务开发 (NSD ,NewServiceDevelopment)活动 ,在相当程度上处于凭经验办事、随意性大的状态 ,缺乏新服务管理的专业意识和技能。基于多行业比较实证研究的国内金融业NSD一般过程总结 ,和构筑在流程解析之上的门径管理模式 ,是提高金融业务创新管理效率的有效途径     

以科技资源开放共享提升上海科研公共服务水平

上海处于“创新驱动、转型发展”、建设创新型城市的关键时期,迫切需要充分利用各类科技资源,完善创新服务体系,不断提升自主创新能力：一方面,要进一步强化科技资源共享和优化配置,提升科技资源综合利用率;另一方面,更要推动“创新资源集聚”向“创新支撑服务”升级,促进科技研发公共服务发展,服务企业发展和产业技术创新。为此,上海应完善科技研发公共服务平台体系,推动企业创新发展;建立“科技资源数据中心”,优化科技创新资源配置;打造科技创新服务基地,培育壮大科技公共服务产业。