Caring for families experiencing stillbirth: Evidence-based guidance for maternity care providers

BackgroundEvidence-based guidance is needed to inform care provided to mothers and families who experience stillbirth. This paper focuses upon how meaningful and culturally appropriate care can be provided to mothers and families from when they are informed that their baby will be stillborn to many years after the experience. Avoidable suffering may be occurring in the clinical setting.AimsTo promote and inform meaningful and culturally appropriate evidence-informed practice amongst maternity care providers caring for mothers and families who experience stillbirth.MethodsA comprehensive systematic review was conducted which primarily synthesised relevant qualitative research studies. An expert advisory group comprised of stillbirth researchers, clinicians, and parents who have experienced stillbirth provided guidance for the review and the development of implications for practice.FindingsGrieving parents want staff to demonstrate sensitivity and empathy, validate their emotions, provide clear, information, and be aware that the timing of information may be distressing. Parents want support and guidance when making decisions about seeing and holding their baby. Sensitivity, respect, collaboration, and information are essential throughout the experience of stillbirth. Culturally appropriate care is important and may require staff to accommodate different cultural practices.ConclusionThe findings of the review and expert consensus inform the provision of meaningful and culturally appropriate care for mothers and families that have experienced stillbirth. Evidence informed implications for practice are provided to guide the actions, communication, and behaviours of maternity care providers.     

论大学英语水平统一测试的优越性

我国现行有两套考试系统用以测试大学英语水平:大学英语46、级考试(CET-4/6)用来衡量非英语专业学生的英语水平,而英语专业48、级(TEM-4/8)考试则用来测评英语专业学生的英语水平。依据Bachman和Palmer语言测试原则,为了保证语言测试的有效性,语言测试任务应该与语言应用任务相对应,这种对应是语言测试的出发点和目的。既然如此,对于非母语的中国大学生而言,就没有必要以英语专业或非英语专业的区分用不同的测试来区分他们的英语水平。从这一点出发,完全可以将现行测试非英语专业学生CET-4/6和测试英语专业学生的TEM-4/8合二为一。问卷调查分析也表明,实行全国大学英语统一测试比分成两套考试系统的英语测试更具优越性。     

Early Pregnancy Assessment Services in Australia: What psychosocial support is available? A qualitative study

ProblemWomen commonly experience emotional distress following miscarriage but do not receive the support they need from healthcare providers.BackgroundMiscarriage can result in psychological morbidity; however, appropriate support at the time of a miscarriage can lead to better psychological outcomes. Early Pregnancy Assessment Services (EPASs) are dedicated outpatient services considered the “gold standard” for miscarriage care. Little is known about the psychosocial support EPASs provide in Australia.AimsThe aim of this study was to explore the provision of psychosocial support in Australian EPASs.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 29 purposively sampled key-informants from 13 EPASs. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and thematically analysed.FindingsConsiderable variation was found in how EPASs functioned and their provision of psychosocial support. Many services were co-located with antenatal services, run by doctors with limited experience and most did not offer any psychosocial training to staff specific to EPAS. Referrals for additional support were generally not offered for first trimester miscarriages, and follow-up typically focused on physical management rather than emotional wellbeing. All EPAS staff demonstrated a strong commitment to providing best possible care to women within their own clinical setting and acknowledged the need for improved psychosocial support.ConclusionThis study provides the first exploration of Australian EPASs’ provision of psychosocial support. It has shown that while health care professionals working in EPASs are dedicated to providing the best possible care to women within their clinical setting, psychosocial support is very limited and could be improved.     

国际化学院的课程体验调查分析

北京航空航天大学中法工程师学院通过中外合作的办学模式以实现国际化人才的培养,其重要途径之一就是通过对课程体系进行的改革,而人才培养的质量很大程度上也取决于所授课程的质量。运用一种在国际上普遍采用的课程质量调查方法———大学生课程体验调查,结合国际化学院的特殊背景修订问卷,对北航中法工程师学院与普通学院的学生进行课程体验的调查。调查发现,北航中法工程师学院学生对课程的满意程度高于普通学院学生,特别在良好教学与资源获取方面明显好于普通学院学生,但在课程收获和学业负担方面仍需改进。     

Methods to assess measurement error in questionnaires of sedentary behavior

Sedentary behavior has already been associated with mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. Questionnaires are an affordable tool for measuring sedentary behavior in large epidemiological studies. Here, we introduce and evaluate two statistical methods for quantifying measurement error in questionnaires. Accurate estimates are needed for assessing questionnaire quality. The two methods would be applied to validation studies that measure a sedentary behavior by both questionnaire and accelerometer on multiple days. The first method fits a reduced model by assuming the accelerometer is without error, while the second method fits a more complete model that allows both measures to have error. Because accelerometers tend to be highly accurate, we show that ignoring the accelerometer's measurement error, can result in more accurate estimates of measurement error in some scenarios. In this article, we derive asymptotic approximations for the mean-squared error of the estimated parameters from both methods, evaluate their dependence on study design and behavior characteristics, and offer an R package so investigators can make an informed choice between the two methods. We demonstrate the difference between the two methods in a recent validation study comparing previous day recalls to an accelerometer-based ActivPal.     

关于上市公司募集资金行为动机的一项调查分析

通过分析我国上市公司募集资金过程中存在的股权融资偏好、频繁变更募集资金投向、信息披露不真实等现象,并结合对东北三省上市公司的调查问卷结果,揭示了上市公司募集资金的行为动机。指出我国上市公司通过发行股票筹资改善公司的资本结构、提高公司的知名度是上市公司募集资金的动机之一,而追求少数利益集团的利益才是企业争相上市的根本动因。在此基础上,对证券监管部门给出了相应的政策建议。     

当代西方孤独感研究进展

西方学者近30年来对孤独感的研究主要涉及对孤独感概念和理论的探讨、孤独感测量工具的编制、孤独感预测指标的测量和影响因素的分析、孤独感应付方式等内容.尽管西方学者关于孤独感的研究取得了丰硕的成果,但该领域的研究仍是不成熟的.     

高等师范教育需要怎样的古代文学教学

近年来高中语文教育进行了重要改革,给高等学校汉语言文学专业提出了新的要求,而对于高师教育今后培养怎样的语文教育师资问题尤为突出。文章从古代文学课程教学如何应对提出六点建议:认为古代文学教师的配角角色应重新归位;古代文学教学重点需重新定位;突出创新能力的培养;加强文论修养和古代文化知识的学习;与中学古文教学形成有意义的链接;改进教学方法。     

新农村建设视域中的农民意愿考察与对策——以湖南农民意愿调查数据为例

建设社会主义新农村,要以科学发展观为指导,做到了解民心、体察民情、尊重民意。农民意愿考察就是对当前农村经济、政治、社会、文化四方面的农村社区民意进行系统的收集、整理和分析,并据此提出相应对策。     

Psychosocial Correlates of Interpersonal Sensitivity: A Meta-Analysis

This meta-analysis examines how interpersonal sensitivity (IS), defined as accurate judgment or recall of others’ behavior or appearance, is related to psychosocial characteristics of the perceiver, defined as personality traits, social and emotional functioning, life experiences, values, attitudes, and self-concept. For 215 independent studies reported in 96 published sources, higher IS was generally associated with favorable or adaptive psychosocial functioning. Significant mean correlations were found for 27 of the 40 categories of psychosocial variables; these categories covered many different personality traits, indicators of mental health, and social and work-related competencies. Moreover, many additional studies that fell outside these conceptual categories also showed significant positive relations between IS and numerous other psychosocial variables. Taken together, the results support the construct validity of IS tests and demonstrate that IS is associated with many important aspects of personal and social functioning.