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1
Perez, Robert, Jan Nilsen, Joel Tessier, John Lugo, Robert Perez, Jan Nilsen, Joel Tessier, and John Lugo. "Logistics support of naval expeditionary units." Thesis, Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/9911.
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MBA Professional ReportApproved for public release, distribution is unlimited
MBA Professional Report
Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited
This project is an assessment of the NAVCENT logistics system as it relates to support of naval expeditionary units such as Naval Construction Forces (NCF), Naval Special Warfare (NSW) forces, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) units, and Fleet Hospitals. Based on literature from strategic management, logistics, and supply chain management, the research evaluates the existing theater logistics capabilities and the requirements of the supported expeditionary units. Due to the current world situation and availability of information, the focus is on the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) Area o Responsibility (AOR). A key finding is that the NAVCENT logistics system is adequate, but inefficient. Adequacy points to the fact that the resources and capabilities are in place in theater, while the inefficiencies are explained by lack of execution. The report recommends increased integration, awareness and doctrinal understanding in order to improve the NAVCENT logistics system. Sponsorship is provided by the Naval Operational Logistics Support Center, a newly created organization that serves as the focal point for operational logistics in the Navy and Marine Corps.
This project is an assessment of the NAVCENT logistics system as it relates to support of naval expeditionary units such as Naval Construction Forces (NCF), Naval Special Warfare (NSW) forces, Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) units, and Fleet Hospitals. Based on literature from strategic management, logistics, and supply chain management, the research evaluates the existing theater logistics capabilities and the requirements of the supported expeditionary units. Due to the current world situation and availability of information, the focus is on the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) Area o Responsibility (AOR). A key finding is that the NAVCENT logistics system is adequate, but inefficient. Adequacy points to the fact that the resources and capabilities are in place in theater, while the inefficiencies are explained by lack of execution. The report recommends increased integration, awareness and doctrinal understanding in order to improve the NAVCENT logistics system. Sponsorship is provided by the Naval Operational Logistics Support Center, a newly created organization that serves as the focal point for operational logistics in the Navy and Marine Corps.
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Frisberg, Olle. "Placement support for signal intelligence units." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Avdelningen för datalogi, 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-386419.
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The goal of this thesis was to develop an optimization model that automatically finds optimal groupings for signal intelligence units, aiming to maximize surveillance capability in a user-defined target area. Consideration was taken to transportation possibilities, type of terrain, and the requirement of radio communication between the direction finders. Three scenarios were tested, each providing its own topographical challenges. Several different derivative-free optimization methods were implemented and evaluated, including global methods to find approximate groupings using a geometrical model that was developed, and the local method pattern search that was using the already existing model. Particle swarm and a genetic algorithm turned out to be the best global solvers. A grouping found by the global method was later improved by pattern search by evaluating possible groupings nearby. The greatest practical challenge for particle swarm and pattern search was the ability to find feasible placement points given a desired direction and step length. Workarounds were developed, allowing for more dynamic search patterns. For future use, the placement support should be tested on more scenarios with different prerequisites, and the approved terrain types have to be adjusted according to the kind of vehicle carrying the direction finder.
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Kundra, Suneet, Lamont Brown, and Charles Donaldson. "Assessment of logistical support for expeditionary units." Thesis, Monterey, California: Naval Postgraduate School, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/42666.
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Approved for public release; distribution is unlimitedThe purpose of this MBA Professional Report is to study the current state of expeditionary logistical support in the Navy and to identify logistical challenges faced in expeditionary environments. Expeditionary supply chain or logistics refers to the activities and capabilities needed to provide operational units in an expeditionary environment with services and supplies such as fuel, food, water, ammunition, etc. An expeditionary supply chain also includes responsibilities such as establishment of ports of embarkation and debarkation, container management, financial management, and inventory and distribution management. Two hypothetical case studies illustrating the current logistic challenges facing the Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Naval Special Warfare communities are presented in this report. Strategic management and supply chain management theories and techniques are used to analyze these challenges and to provide specific recommendations for areas of improvement. This study then identifies opportunities for further study concerning the Naval Logistics Support System for Expeditionary Forces.
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Zhang, Hang. "Distributed Support Vector Machine With Graphics Processing Units." ScholarWorks@UNO, 2009. http://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/991.
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Training a Support Vector Machine (SVM) requires the solution of a very large quadratic programming (QP) optimization problem. Sequential Minimal Optimization (SMO) is a decomposition-based algorithm which breaks this large QP problem into a series of smallest possible QP problems. However, it still costs O(n2) computation time. In our SVM implementation, we can do training with huge data sets in a distributed manner (by breaking the dataset into chunks, then using Message Passing Interface (MPI) to distribute each chunk to a different machine and processing SVM training within each chunk). In addition, we moved the kernel calculation part in SVM classification to a graphics processing unit (GPU) which has zero scheduling overhead to create concurrent threads. In this thesis, we will take advantage of this GPU architecture to improve the classification performance of SVM.
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Sarantopoulos, S. S. "Offshore-based support units for multi-bodies compensation systems." Thesis, University of Strathclyde, 1987. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.382435.
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Weidenbach, Kimberly. "Evaluation of TEMS Support Efficacy in Four Representative Tactical Units." Thesis, The University of Arizona, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/626902.
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Venable, Laura Leigh. "A decision support system for the location of Naval Surface Reserve Units." Thesis, Monterey, Calif. : Springfield, Va. : Naval Postgraduate School ; Available from National Technical Information Service, 1998. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA349580.
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Thesis (M.S. in Management) Naval Postgraduate School, March 1998."March 1998." Thesis advisor(s): William R. Gates, Mark A. Murphy. Includes bibliographical references (p. 47). Also available online.
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Wang, Ang. "Hybrid modelling and decision support for ventilator management in intensive care units." Thesis, University of Sheffield, 2008. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.489681.
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Mechanical ventilation is a life-saving therapy for patient treatments in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). The management of mechanical ventilation is a very challenging task. It has long been recognised that a computer-based bedside decision support system is r desirable for optimal ventilator management in ICUs. In this thesis, a closed-loop adaptive model-based ventilator management decision support system is developed. A previously developed ventilated patient mathematical model is further improved and extended with respect to the model parameter estimation and the simulation of the patients as their clinical states evolve. A hybrid modelling strategy is implemented by combining mathematical modelling and data-driven modelling techniques. With the availability of rich data in ICU and the improvements made in the model parameter estimation, the model is able to represent patient state evolution and provide accurate blood gas and tidal volume predictions. An adaptive decision support system is, thereafter developed based on the patient model using an optimisation approach and the system is evaluated via a series of closed-loop simulations. Results show that the srstem can generate good ventilator setting advice subject to the patient state changes and competing ventilator management targets. In addition, a future ventilator management tool, named Electrical Impedance Tomography CElT), is investigated in this thesis in relation to its data processing and feature extraction. The integration of EIT into the current decision support system represents a very promising research direction for the optimal ventilator management decision support.
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Friedman, Carol Ann. "Using Evidence to Develop Best Practices Strengthening Breastfeeding Support on Perinatal Units." ScholarWorks, 2015. http://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/1440.
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Ample research has been found to suggest that there is no substitute, either nutritionally or emotionally, that can replace the benefits of human milk for human infants. Despite this recognition, the attitude still exists that infant formula is a reasonable alternative. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), World Health Organization (WHO), and United Nation Children's Fund (UNICEF) share policy statements endorsing human milk as the optimal infant nutrition for the first 15 months. Accordingly, WHO and UNICEF launched The Baby-friendly Hospital Initiative established in 1991 to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding. Despite this unilateral support of breastfeeding, nursing and physician educational curriculums do not include lactation education, which limits the knowledge of those who provide care to the mother and newborn dyad. The purpose of this project is to promote staff lactation education and training on the infant feeding practices by encouraging breastfeeding in a hospital setting. This project includes lactation education and hands-on training for staff. A 20-hour didactic lactation education course will meet the requirements to ensure that staff training will assist in supporting patients with the early initiation of breastfeeding. Furthermore, training will include clinical competencies to evaluate the knowledge, practice patterns, and confidence of the staff. Lactation education for providers will be provided through an online course designed to improve their ability to support breastfeeding among their patients. The result of this project will assist hospital leadership to determine specific education and training for staff in increasing exclusive breastfeeding rates among their patient population.
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Dennison, Fiona Joan. "Application of Life Cycle Assessment in the water industry as a tool to support strategic decision-making." Thesis, University of Surrey, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.325722.
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Murphy, Mark A. "An automated spatial decision support system for the relocation of Army Reserve Units." Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 1997. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/8013.
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Approved for public release; distribution is unlimitedThis research analyzes the process used to evaluate potential relocation sites for Army Reserve units from the perspective of military readiness. A comparative decision model (based upon Multi-Attribute Utility Theory), augmented by a Geographic Information System (GIS), was designed and implemented in an automated Spatial Decision Support System (SDSS). This SDSS provides a flexible structure that can be generalized to serve as an executable conceptual model for a wide range of decisions containing significant geographic or location related components. The Army Reserve Installation Evaluation System (ARIES) integrates several commercial software products in a seamless and synergistic manner. Data extracted from numerous large databases is spatially processed by a commercial mapping engine, and then overlaid onto a formal decision model. The decision maker can rely on a single, simplified interface that consistently applies the professional judgement of a panel of experts to produce standardized reports, or choose from a robust suite of methods for model management, sensitivity analysis, and the display of results. A process that previously required weeks can now be completed in minutes. More important, this approach improves the decision maker's effectiveness by conveniently providing insights into the nature of the source data and the decision process
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Keech, Janet L. "Use of availability based sparing in support of deploying U.S. Marine Corps Units." Thesis, Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/32654.
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The U. S. Marine Corps realizes its goal of being ready to fight in any location primarily through the Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). An important component of the MEU's readiness is the availability of critical equipment repair parts when they are needed. We test with three sets of past MEU data an availability based sparing model that builds repair parts blocks and show that the model outperforms the current methodology in every case.
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Christensen, Carsten Douglas. "An Agent-Based Decision Support Framework for sUAS Deployment in Small Infantry Units." BYU ScholarsArchive, 2020. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/8525.
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Small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) will become a disruptive force on the modern battlefield. In recent years, sUAS size and cost have decreased while their capability has increased. They have forced a reconsideration of the air superiority paradigm held since the First World War. Perhaps their most attractive, and worrisome, feature is the huge range of combat roles that they might fulfill. The presence of sUAS on future battlefields is certain, but the role they will play and their impact on those battlefields are not. This work presents a decision support framework for sUAS deployment in small infantry units. The framework is designed to explore and evaluate multiple sUAS-small-unit deployment concepts' impact on small unit effectiveness in a combat scenario of interest. The framework helps decision makers identify high-level sUAS deployment principles for testing and validation in physical experiments before sUAS are implemented on the battlefield. The decision support framework comprises the following: 1) a definition of the sUAS-small-unit deployment concept design space and combat scenario, 2) an agent-based computer model for exploring sUAS deployment concepts, 3) a set of analysis tools for evaluating sUAS deployment impact on combat effectiveness, and 4) suggestions for synthesizing high-level sUAS deployment principles from the analysis. In this work, the decision support framework for sUAS-small-unit deployment is used to explore and evaluate the impact of deploying an infantry platoon with between one and nine unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) operating in a reconnaissance role while executing one of several sUAS patrol pattern variants. In a scenario in which a defending platoon uses sUAS to intercept and aid in indirect fires targeting against a platoon of attacking infantry, the sUAS were shown to markedly improve the defending platoon's combat effectiveness. The framework is used to synthesize several key principles for sUAS deployment in the scenario. It shows that, when fewer UAVs are deployed, short-range sUAS patrols improve defender combat effectiveness. Conversely, when more UAVs are deployed, long-range sUAS patrols improve the defenders' ability to target attacking units with indirect fires, increasing the firepower concentrated against opponents. The analysis also shows that increasing the number of deployed UAVs improves the likelihood of defending warfighters surviving the engagement and the defenders' ability to detect and engage the attackers with indirect fires. Finally, the framework shows that sUAS can force alterations in attacker behavior, removing them from combat by non-violent, but highly effective, means.
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Ndango, Immaculate Nyonka. "Parents’ perception of nursing support in neonatal intensive care units in private hospitals in the Western Cape." University of the Western Cape, 2018. http://hdl.handle.net/11394/6867.
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Magister Curationis - MCurParents undergo negative experiences that include parental anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress when their new-born babies are hospitalised in neonatal intensive care unit. During this stressful period, parents need assistance from staff in order to cope. A quantitative, descriptive survey design was used to describe parents’ perception of nursing support during their baby’s admission in neonatal intensive care units (NICU) at three selected private hospitals in the city of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province. A structured existing 21- item Likert type questionnaire, the Nurse-Parent Support Tool (NPST) was used to collect data from an all-inclusive sample of 85 parents with a response rate of 78.8% (n=67). The purpose of the questionnaire was to determine their perception of information giving and communication by nurses; emotionally supportive behaviours by nurses; care given support or instrumental support and to identify parents’ perception of esteem or appraisal support while in the NICU environment. The data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24. The findings of this study suggested that the overall mean score for parents’ perception of nursing support was high 4.6 (±0.5) out of a possible of 5. There was no significant difference in the overall mean perceived support score between the different facilities. No significant differences were found in terms of all the demographics characteristics with regard to perceptions of the support that was received, thus indicating that there was no relationship between the demographic variables and perception of support. The findings suggested that though high parental support was reported, the area of involving parents in the care of their babies i.e. letting them decide whether to stay or leave during procedures need improvement.
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Hoffenberg, Rebecca. "An Investigation into Teacher Support of Scientific Explanation in High School Science Inquiry Units." Thesis, Portland State University, 2013. http://pqdtopen.proquest.com/#viewpdf?dispub=1542562.
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The Framework for K-12 Science Education, the foundation for the Next Generation Science Standards, identifies scientific explanation as one of the eight practices "essential for learning science." In order to design professional development to help teachers implement these new standards, we need to assess students' current skill level in explanation construction, characterize current teacher practice surrounding it, and identify best practices for supporting students in explanation construction. This multiple-case study investigated teacher practice in eight high school science inquiry units in the Portland metro area and the scientific explanations the students produced in their work samples. T
eacher Instructional Portfolios (TIPs) were analyzed with a TIP rubric based on best practices in teaching science inquiry and a qualitative coding scheme. Written scientific explanations were analyzed with an explanation rubric and qualitative codes. Relationships between instructional practices and explanation quality were examined.
The study found that students struggle to produce high quality explanations. They have the most difficulty including adequate reasoning with science content. Also, teachers need to be familiar with the components of explanation and use a variety of pedagogical techniques to support students' explanation construction. Finally, the topic of the science inquiry activity should be strongly connected to the content in the unit, and students need a firm grasp of the scientific theory or model on which their research questions are based to adequately explain their inquiry results.
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Schmid, Steven J. "Developing the best methods of internal contracting support for deployed Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU)." Thesis, Monterey, Calif. : Springfield, Va. : Naval Postgraduate School ; Available from National Technical Information Service, 2001. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA401602.
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Thesis (M.S. in Management) Naval Postgraduate School, Dec. 2001.Thesis advisor(s): Cuskey, Jeffrey R.; Lamm, David V. "December 2001." Includes bibliographical references (p. 69-71). Also available in print.
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Bajaj, Preeta. "Physical environmental cues that support activities of residents with dementia in special care units." [Gainesville, Fla.] : University of Florida, 2003. http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/UFE0001080.
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Hoffenberg, Rebecca Sue. "An Investigation into Teacher Support of Science Explanation in High School Science Inquiry Units." PDXScholar, 2013. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/1103.
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The Framework for K-12 Science Education, the foundation for the Next Generation Science Standards, identifies scientific explanation as one of the eight practices "essential for learning science." In order to design professional development to help teachers implement these new standards, we need to assess students' current skill level in explanation construction, characterize current teacher practice surrounding it, and identify best practices for supporting students in explanation construction. This multiple-case study investigated teacher practice in eight high school science inquiry units in the Portland metro area and the scientific explanations the students produced in their work samples.
Teacher Instructional Portfolios (TIPs) were analyzed with a TIP rubric based on best practices in teaching science inquiry and a qualitative coding scheme. Written scientific explanations were analyzed with an explanation rubric and qualitative codes. Relationships between instructional practices and explanation quality were examined.
The study found that students struggle to produce high quality explanations. They have the most difficulty including adequate reasoning with science content. Also, teachers need to be familiar with the components of explanation and use a variety of pedagogical techniques to support students' explanation construction. Finally, the topic of the science inquiry activity should be strongly connected to the content in the unit, and students need a firm grasp of the scientific theory or model on which their research questions are based to adequately explain their inquiry results.
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Tashkandi, Araek Sami [Verfasser]. "Intelligent Medical Decision Support for Predicting Patients at Risk in Intensive Care Units / Araek Sami Tashkandi." Göttingen : Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen, 2021. http://d-nb.info/1225121647/34.
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Witiuk, Sidney Wayne. "A spatial decision support system for autodistricting collection units for the taking of the Canadian Census." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/26058.
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Mooi, Nomaxabiso Mildred. "Investigating the provision of nutritional support to critically ill hospitalised patients by registered nurses in East London public and private hospitals in the Eastern Cape." Thesis, University of Fort Hare, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10353/d1015533.
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Critical illness is typically associated with a catabolic stress state in which patients commonly demonstrate a systemic inflammatory response that brings about changes in their body systems. Changes in the body systems make the critically ill dependent on mechanical ventilation and inotropic support for longer periods in order to survive. However, this inflammatory response can be attenuated by the timely introduction of nutritional support to provide energy and nutrients to diminish catabolism and promote anabolism. The result could be a decrease in the morbidity and mortality rates, as well as the financial burden on the patients, institutions and the state. Since registered nurses initiate and utilise feeding protocols to achieve target goals, there is a strong need for nurse-initiated feeding protocols. These protocols should be coupled with a comprehensive nurse-directed nutritional educational intervention that will focus on their safe and effective implementation. This focus on nursing nutrition education represents a major shift away from traditional education which has focused on dietitians and physicians. Evidence suggests that incorporating guideline recommendations into nurse-initiated protocols for starting and advancing enteral feedings is an effective strategy to improve the delivery of nutritional support. The study was aimed at exploring the provision of nutritional support to critically ill hospitalised patients by registered nurses to identify and describe possible gaps in the practice, through determining the potential relationship between the provision of nutritional support and characteristics of its providers. A quantitative, descriptive correlational study was undertaken. Seventy registered nurses working in neonatal/paediatric and adult critical care units in two public and three private hospitals in East London in the Eastern Cape participated in the study. The sample also included public critical care students. The results showed that registered nurses in private hospitals have more knowledge about the importance of nutritional support than their public hospital counterparts and students. The mean score was on the question was 80.3% with the highest score of 91% which was for the private hospital nurses, followed by 77.2% for public and 71.4% for students. Again, the mean score for knowledge on timing of initiating nutritional support was 48%, the highest score being 69.4% for students followed by private hospital nurses with 49.6%. Close to 63% (n = 44) of these nurses were either unsure about the availability of nutritional protocols or clearly attested to their non-availability. This is seen as an issue of concern because a protocol is meant to be a standard document with which all members of the ICU should be familiar. It is meant to guide and facilitate the manner of working in the unit. While facilitation of maintenance of nutritional support to patients is the responsibility of registered nurses, according to Regulation 2598(1984) section 45 (1) (q) of the South African Nursing Council, 68% (n = 48) of the respondents felt that this was in the practising scope of doctors and dietitians. The study concluded that the nurses are knowledgeable about the importance of nutritional support but knowledge gaps have been identified as far as the timing of initiating nutritional support is concerned. Some attested to unavailability of standard guidelines that are tailored into protocols guiding the provision of nutritional support by registered nurses in the critical care units. Nutrition should be prioritised as an important therapy for improving the outcomes of critically ill patients. Nurses need to analyse its provision, identify barriers to nutritional strategies and engage in nutritional education to empower themselves regarding the practice. Most importantly, there is a need for nurse-initiated nutritional protocols that are tailored from the broad nutritional guidelines and aligned with the local context and ways of practising. Nutritional support should be included as a key component of the curriculum in academic programmes that specialise in critical care nursing.
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Tongur, Aykut. "Organizational support, organizational citizenship behavior, and perceived performance analysis of crime scene investigation units of Turkish National Police." Doctoral diss., University of Central Florida, 2011. http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ETD/id/5070.
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Policing is more difficult than ever before in today's world since types of crime and criminal profiles change as a result of technological development and globalization. Police organizations should review their organizational and operational strategies to improve the fight against contemporary crimes and criminals. Behaviors and performance of police officers are very important in fighting crime. In this struggle, especially today, officers should exhibit organizational citizenship behaviors and perform better. One of the most important factors affecting these two concepts in organizations is organizational support. The literature stresses the social exchange cycle and reciprocity rules in the relationships of organizations and their members. In this cycle, if the organization cares about its members and if members perceive that the organization is supportive, they feel obliged to behave positively, perform better, and help the organization to reach its goals and objectives. If they don't perceive organizational support, they won't care about the organization, either. Hypotheses were developed based on these assumptions in the literature. This study tested these assumptions in Crime Scene Investigation units of the Turkish National Police (TNP). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the relationships among variables of Perceived Organizational Support (POS), Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB), and Perceived Performance (PP). Measurement models for these three latent constructs were developed by deriving the indicators from the literature. Most earlier studies tried to figure out reasons of the OCB. This study has a different perspective that investigates both reasons and results of OCB. A survey was developed to measure the latent variables of the study, and 405 of approximately 3,000 Crime Scene Investigators in the Turkish National Police responded to the survey.; Results of the study showed that the relationship between POS and OCB is positive and significant. This is consistent with the literature. The relationship between OCB and PP is also positive and significant, and this is also consistent with the literature. However, the relationship between POS and PP is negative and insignificant. This result contradicts the results of previous studies in the literature and can be attributed to the subjective nature of measuring individuals' perceptions. According to the literature, perceptions are subjective rather than objective; therefore, data coming from reports of individual perceptions may not reflect the actual situation. Demographic information of the participants served as the control variables of the study. Information about the education level, rank, age, gender, size of the unit, and tenure of the respondents was collected by way of the conducted survey, and the effects of these variables were analyzed on the endogenous variable of the study, Perceived Performance. This study found no significant relationships between these control variables and Perceived Performance. Therefore, all these control variables were removed from the Structural Equation Model of the study. This study revealed that the TNP needs to be more supportive toward its members in order to have officers show organizational citizenship behavior and perform better. The TNP should revise its policies, especially regarding rotations from one province to another, working hours, rewards, and overtime pay. These are all indicators of organizational support and will result in a higher performance level among officers.ID: 030422782; System requirements: World Wide Web browser and PDF reader.; Mode of access: World Wide Web.; Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Central Florida, 2011.; Includes bibliographical references (p. 132-143).
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Gearey, Wayne Maxwell. "Towards a model for defining and assembling areal units to support health research using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology." Thesis, Coventry University, 2006. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.436268.
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Ichijima, Emiko. "Nursing Roles in Parental Support: A cross-cultural comparisons between Neonatal Intensive Care Units in New Zealand and Japan." Thesis, University of Canterbury. Health Sciences Centre, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/2372.
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Introduction: Past studies have indicated that nursing support reduces parental stress and anxiety during a child’s NICU hospitalisation and therefore fosters the parents’ abilities to cope with the difficulties they are facing. The importance of parental support has been emphasised in numerous studies in Western countries, however the nursing support which is responsive to the parents may vary between different cultures. The cultural norms of medical and nursing care environments can affect parental stress-related experiences as well as nursing roles in the NICUs across different countries. The aims of this study are, first, to compare the medical and nursing care environments of the two NICUs. Second, the study establishes any similarities and differences in sources of parental stress in the two NICUs. Third, the study illustrates the underlying philosophy of Doane and Varcoe’s (2005) relational approach to family nursing and highlights the importance of relational inquiry in the process of determining the parental support which best responds to individual families’ needs in the NICU.
Methods: This study analyses the nursing roles that support parents of children hospitalised in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). It is a cross-cultural comparison between two NICUs, one in Christchurch, New Zealand and the other in Tokyo, Japan, with both quantitative and qualitative components. Thirty-one families participated voluntarily in the study from each NICU (n=121). The three main sources of data were a NICU staff interview, parental interview, and parental questionnaire using the Parental Stress Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS: NICU) (Miles, 2002). A thematic analysis was used in order to examine parental comments.
Results: The differences between the two NICUs in terms of the NICU care environment, including NICU regulations and routine nursing care, were identified by the staff interviews, highlighting the contrasting dominant ideologies of individualism and collectivism reflected in each culture. The three sources of parental stress, measured by PSS: NICU: Sights and Sounds; Baby’s Appearance and Behaviour; the Parental Role Alteration, were examined. The sources most responsible for parental stress differed between the four groups of parents. Overall, The Tokyo parents seemed to be most concerned about the infant’s condition. The Christchurch parents, however, perceived the change in parental role to be most stressful. Additionally, only the Tokyo fathers experienced stress in association with Sights and Sounds more often than other areas of stress. The infant’s medical/nursing care requirements, oxygen therapy and/or tube feeding, were associated with a high degree of stress for each of the parents’ groups except that of the Christchurch fathers. There was a positive relationship between parental NICU visiting and stress level among the Tokyo parents while this was not the case for the Christchurch parents. The infants’ and parental characteristics were found to be associated with stress level for the Tokyo mothers and Christchurch fathers only. The thematic analysis of interview data revealed three key themes of NICU parental experiences: Uncertainty, NICU contexts and Communication with staff. These themes were identical between the two NICUs.
Discussion: This study highlighted the influence of the norms of each NICU, particularly the NICU regulations and nursing care on parental stress-related experiences, and the importance of reflecting upon these norms to critique those professional beliefs which may hamper parental coping abilities. The areas of parental support needing attention were different between the two NICUs. These areas were: the establishment of oral feeding, and infants’ nursing care-related decision-making for the Christchurch NICU whilst parental information/involvement in the early stage of hospitalisation, the influence of visiting regulations, and importing Western-based NICU intervention for the Tokyo NICU. In providing these areas of parental support, the importance of effective, meaningful communication between parents and staff was equally evident in the two NICU settings. In the light of the relational approach to family nursing, this study demonstrated that how nurses communicate with families is not universal: one way to reach across the differences is to listen to parents, and this, it is clear, is crucial to the role of nurses in NICU settings.
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Fell, Elizabeth. "A qualitative study exploring the support experienced by staff members following client related violence in inpatient mental health units." Thesis, University of Liverpool, 2014. http://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/19833/.
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Aim: To explore mental health inpatient staff members’ experiences of the support they have received following client related aggressive incidents. Background: Mental health inpatient staff members are exposed to verbal and physical violence and aggression from their clients. It is important to understand how staff make sense of their experiences, the support they receive and what support they would prefer following future aggressive incidents. Design: A single-cohort study employing qualitative, in-depth interviews. Qualitative thematic analysis was conducted within a social constructionist perspective. Methods: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews conducted in 2013 in the North West of England. Fourteen mental health inpatient unit staff were recruited using purposive sampling. Findings: Thematic analysis identified five overarching themes: opportunities for reflection, making sense, staff self-esteem, feeling valued, and avoidant coping strategies. A thematic map was created to demonstrate the relationships between these themes, and their relevant subthemes. Conclusion: Inpatient mental health staff requested opportunities to reflect as a source of support after incidents of violence and aggression, and for management to acknowledge these difficult experiences. Participants suggested that their professional self-esteem and interaction with clients could be positively affected if they were given an opportunity to reflect after violent and aggressive incidents. Staff self-esteem was further influenced by feeling valued by management and other teams. If opportunities for reflection and managerial support are not provided there may be an increased risk that staff will rely on avoidant coping strategies. Further research could explore the relationships between the concepts of support described in this study.
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Jansson, Daniel, and Rasmus Blomstrand. "REAL-TIME PREDICTION OF SHIMS DIMENSIONS IN POWER TRANSFER UNITS USING MACHINE LEARNING." Thesis, Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för innovation, design och teknik, 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-45615.
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Brand, Steven R. "A Software-based network infrastructure for mobile ad hoc data networking in support of small tactical units using the SINCGARS radio." Thesis, Monterey, Calif. : Springfield, Va. : Naval Postgraduate School ; Available from National Technical Information Service, 2006. http://library.nps.navy.mil/uhtbin/hyperion/06Mar%5FBrand.pdf.
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Thesis (M.S. in Computer Science)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2006."March 2006." Thesis Advisor(s): Geoffrey Xie, John Gibson. Includes bibliographical references (p. 83-84). Also available online.
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Vadapalli, Hima Bindu. "Recognition of facial action units from video streams with recurrent neural networks : a new paradigm for facial expression recognition." University of the Western Cape, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/11394/5415.
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Philosophiae Doctor - PhDThis research investigated the application of recurrent neural networks (RNNs) for recognition of facial expressions based on facial action coding system (FACS). Support vector machines (SVMs) were used to validate the results obtained by RNNs. In this approach, instead of recognizing whole facial expressions, the focus was on the recognition of action units (AUs) that are defined in FACS. Recurrent neural networks are capable of gaining knowledge from temporal data while SVMs, which are time invariant, are known to be very good classifiers. Thus, the research consists of four important components: comparison of the use of image sequences against single static images, benchmarking feature selection and network optimization approaches, study of inter-AU correlations by implementing multiple output RNNs, and study of difference images as an approach for performance improvement. In the comparative studies, image sequences were classified using a combination of Gabor filters and RNNs, while single static images were classified using Gabor filters and SVMs. Sets of 11 FACS AUs were classified by both approaches, where a single RNN/SVM classifier was used for classifying each AU. Results indicated that classifying FACS AUs using image sequences yielded better results than using static images. The average recognition rate (RR) and false alarm rate (FAR) using image sequences was 82.75% and 7.61%, respectively, while the classification using single static images yielded a RR and FAR of 79.47% and 9.22%, respectively. The better performance by the use of image sequences can be at- tributed to RNNs ability, as stated above, to extract knowledge from time-series data. Subsequent research then investigated benchmarking dimensionality reduction, feature selection and network optimization techniques, in order to improve the performance provided by the use of image sequences. Results showed that an optimized network, using weight decay, gave best RR and FAR of 85.38% and 6.24%, respectively. The next study was of the inter-AU correlations existing in the Cohn-Kanade database and their effect on classification models. To accomplish this, a model was developed for the classification of a set of AUs by a single multiple output RNN. Results indicated that high inter-AU correlations do in fact aid classification models to gain more knowledge and, thus, perform better. However, this was limited to AUs that start and reach apex at almost the same time. This suggests the need for availability of a larger database of AUs, which could provide both individual and AU combinations for further investigation. The final part of this research investigated use of difference images to track the motion of image pixels. Difference images provide both noise and feature reduction, an aspect that was studied. Results showed that the use of difference image sequences provided the best results, with RR and FAR of 87.95% and 3.45%, respectively, which is shown to be significant when compared to use of normal image sequences classified using RNNs. In conclusion, the research demonstrates that use of RNNs for classification of image sequences is a new and improved paradigm for facial expression recognition.
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Lagmyr, Anna. "Den lilla gruppen : en arbetsform för elever med behov av extra stöd." Thesis, Linköping University, Department of Thematic Studies, 2004. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-2517.
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Den lilla gruppen, stödundervisning, eller vad man nu kallar den är ett arbetssätt som en del skolor arbetar med för att ge barn i behov av extrastöd en lämplig form av undervisning. Den lilla gruppen bildas genom att elever från olika klasser samlas i ett särskilt undervisningsrum tillsammans med en lärare/pedagog/specialpedagog. Vilka är då de elever som placeras i den lilla gruppen och är dessa hjälpta av denna undervisningsform? I den undersökning jag genomförde genom intervjuer, fanns det två grupper av elever med svårigheter. Den ena gruppen bestod av elever med invandrarbakgrund och gick i liten grupp för att få svenskundervisning. Den andra gruppen bestod av elever som hade problem med matematiken. Jag kom fram till att eleverna i båda dessa grupper var hjälpta av arbetet i liten grupp. Det tyckte både de själva och pedagogerna. Jag sände också ut enkäter till rektorer för att se om de använde sig av arbetssättet liten grupp och vilka problem eleverna i dessa hade. Utifrån svaren har jag försökt se om dessa elever har möjlighet att bli hjälpta i liten grupp genom att läsa om problemen. De problem rektorerna angav var DAMP, ADHD, autism och koncentrationssvårigheter. Utifrån det jag läst om dessa problem kan jag se att vissa är hjälpta av arbetet i liten grupp medan andra inte är det.
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Gyawali, Sanij. "Dynamic Load Modeling from PSSE-Simulated Disturbance Data using Machine Learning." Thesis, Virginia Tech, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/100591.
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Load models have evolved from simple ZIP model to composite model that incorporates
the transient dynamics of motor loads. This research utilizes the latest trend on Machine
Learning and builds reliable and accurate composite load model. A composite load model
is a combination of static (ZIP) model paralleled with a dynamic model. The dynamic
model, recommended by Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), is an induction
motor representation. In this research, a dual cage induction motor with 20 parameters
pertaining to its dynamic behavior, starting behavior, and per unit calculations is used as
a dynamic model. For machine learning algorithms, a large amount of data is required.
The required PMU field data and the corresponding system models are considered Critical
Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) and its access is limited. The next best option for
the required amount of data is from a simulating environment like PSSE. The IEEE 118 bus
system is used as a test setup in PSSE and dynamic simulations generate the required data
samples. Each of the samples contains data on Bus Voltage, Bus Current, and Bus Frequency
with corresponding induction motor parameters as target variables. It was determined that
the Artificial Neural Network (ANN) with multivariate input to single parameter output
approach worked best. Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) is also experimented side by side
to see if an additional set of information of timestamps would help the model prediction.
Moreover, a different definition of a dynamic model with a transfer function-based load
is also studied. Here, the dynamic model is defined as a mathematical representation of
the relation between bus voltage, bus frequency, and active/reactive power flowing in the
bus. With this form of load representation, Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM), a variation
of RNN, performed better than the concurrent algorithms like Support Vector Regression
(SVR). The result of this study is a load model consisting of parameters defining the load
at load bus whose predictions are compared against simulated parameters to examine their
validity for use in contingency analysis.Master of Science
Independent system Operators (ISO) and Distribution system operators (DSO) have a responsibility to provide uninterrupted power supply to consumers. That along with the longing to keep operating cost minimum, engineers and planners study the system beforehand and seek to find the optimum capacity for each of the power system elements like generators, transformers, transmission lines, etc. Then they test the overall system using power system models, which are mathematical representation of the real components, to verify the stability and strength of the system. However, the verification is only as good as the system models that are used. As most of the power systems components are controlled by the operators themselves, it is easy to develop a model from their perspective. The load is the only component controlled by consumers. Hence, the necessity of better load models. Several studies have been made on static load modeling and the performance is on par with real behavior. But dynamic loading, which is a load behavior dependent on time, is rather difficult to model. Some attempts on dynamic load modeling can be found already. Physical component-based and mathematical transfer function based dynamic models are quite widely used for the study. These load structures are largely accepted as a good representation of the systems dynamic behavior. With a load structure in hand, the next task is estimating their parameters. In this research, we tested out some new machine learning methods to accurately estimate the parameters. Thousands of simulated data are used to train machine learning models. After training, we validated the models on some other unseen data. This study finally goes on to recommend better methods to load modeling.
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Dunne, Jonathan P. "Transformation of Marine Corps artillery in support of the 2015 expeditionary force." Quantico, VA : Marine Corps Command and Staff College, 2008. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA490934.
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Engelmann, James E. "An Information Management and Decision Support tool for Predictive Alerting of Energy for Aircraft." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1595779161412401.
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Koprivec, Christopher S., and Peter J. Holdorf. "An analysis of establishing a West Coast training site at Alameda, California, to maximize training efficiencies and overall readiness of the Navy Expeditionary Logistics Support Group (NAVELSG) subordinate units." Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/10495.
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MBA Professional ReportCurrently, there is only one training site for the entire cargo handling force in the U.S. Navy, and it is located on the East Coast at Williamsburg, Virginia (commonly referred to as Cheatham Annex). This study analyzes the cost and readiness implications of establishing a second cargo handling training site at Alameda, California. We investigate the training process and scheduling from the Fleet Readiness Training Plan (FRTP), and comment on how it aligns the lower echelon command with the strategic training objectives of the cargo handling force. The primary objectives of this study are to: (1) determine the necessary capacity, infrastructure, Table of Allowance (TOA), and asset utilization for an Alameda training site; (2) determine and establish the benchmark standard of the capacity, infrastructure, Table of Allowance (TOA), and asset utilization of the East Coast training site in Williamsburg, Virginia (CAX); and (3) recommend an efficient use of those assets to increase the mission readiness capability of the FIFTH Navy Expeditionary Logistics Regiment (NELR) units.
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Phipps, Kathy, and n/a. "Comparative study of teachers in N.S.W. Department of Education support units (South Coast Region) and teachers in N.S.W. Department of Education special schools (South Coast Region) relating to the implementation of curriculum document for students with severe intellectual disability." University of Canberra. Education, 1993. http://erl.canberra.edu.au./public/adt-AUC20061112.124101.
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The following research project was a comparative study of
teachers in Support Units and teachers in Special Schools. They were
teachers currently involved with the implementation of the 1989 NSW
Department of Education Mandatory Curriculum Change for the
education of students with severe intellectual disability.
The purpose of the research was to present a comparative
study on teachers' responses, in both educational settings, examining
their understanding of the curriculum change, the concerns of
individuals and the levels of curriculum usage in relation to the factors
affecting implementation.
The application of the Concerns-Based Adoption Model of
Change (Hall and Loucks, 1987), enabled the study to focus on the
various forms of the innovation, including the innovation configuration,
stages of concern, and the levels of use from the two given
perspectives, teachers in Support Units and teachers in Special
Schools, in relation to the major factors affecting implementation.
The study findings highlighted that in both educational
settings, change is accomplished by individuals and is a highly personal
experience, demanding adequate support by facilitators of the change
through appropriate actions, in order to assist effective and successful
implementation of the change.
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Ljung, Mikael, and Linnea Månsson. "Klassificering av engagemangsnivå hos en samtalsdeltagare med hjälp av maskininlärning." Thesis, KTH, Skolan för elektroteknik och datavetenskap (EECS), 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-262046.
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The work presented in this study is based on the long-term goal of developing a social robot that can be involved in leading a conversation in a language café. In detail, the study has investigated whether it is possible to classify involvement with a conversation participant based on its facial expression and gaze two factors that previous studies have shown to be central to human engagement. To perform the assessment, the software Openface has extracted said parameters from a previous field study which has then been processed with the machine learning model Support Vector Machine. After a lot of hyperparameter tuning, the final model managed to predict engagement on a three-point scale with 54.5% accuracy. Furthermore, the study has also examined the potential of the new technological paradigm that the social robot represents. The potential has been analyzed on the basis of Dosi’s four dimensions: technological possibilities, appropriability of innovation, cumulativeness of technical advances and properties of the knowledge base. The analysis clarifies that the paradigm has the potential to revolutionize a number of industries as a result of its technological opportunities and worldwide stakeholders, but also faces challenges in the form of technical and ethical difficulties.Arbetet som presenteras i den här studien grundar sig i det långsiktiga målet att utveckla en social robot som kan vara med och leda samtalssessioner på ett språkcafé. I detalj har studien undersökt om det går att klassificera engagemang hos en samtalsdeltagare utifrån dess ansiktsuttryck och blickriktning – två faktorer som tidigare studier visat sig vara centrala för människans engagemang. För att utföra bedömningen har mjukvaran Openface extraherat nämnda parametrar från en tidigare fältstudie vilka sedan har processats med maskininlärningsmodellen Support Vector Machine. Efter gedigna försök att finna optimala värden på hyperparametrar till modellen lyckades den slutligen predicera engagemang på en tregradig skala med 54,5% accuracy. Vidare har studien också undersökt potentialen för det nya teknologiska paradigmet som den sociala roboten utgör. Potentialen har analyserats med utgångspunkt i Dosis fyra dimensioner: teknologiska möjligheter, möjliga vinster från innovation, kumulativ höjd på teknologiska framsteg och egenskaper i kunskapsbasen. Analysen klargör att paradigmet har förutsättningar att revolutionera ett flertal industrier till följd av dess teknologiska möjligheter och världsomfattande intressenter, men står också inför utmaningar i form av tekniska och etiska svårigheter.
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Hindin-Miller, Jennifer Margaret. "Re-storying identities: Young women's narratives of teenage parenthood and educational support." Thesis, University of Canterbury. Educational Studies and Human Development, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10092/7228.
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Teenage parenting is widely constructed in prevailing research and public discourse as a social problem, with poor outcomes for parent and child. Teenage parents are regarded as a drain on state funds, too young to parent well, and at high risk of social exclusion, both educationally and economically. This thesis proposes that teenage motherhood is a turning point in a young woman’s life and identity, which can be an opportunity, rather than a problem, if there is adequate support for the mother and her child. It considers the role of a New Zealand School for Teenage Parents in providing this support.
Using qualitative narrative methodology, ten young women, six family members and nine other members of the School community were interviewed about their experiences of its culture and practices. Six of the young women were also interviewed to gather their life stories. Informed by the narrative understanding that we story our identities from the narrative possibilities available to us within the varied discursive contexts of our lives, this thesis draws on these life stories to explore how the young women storied the fashioning of their own identities as young women, as learners and as young parents. It presents their stories of childhood and family life, teenage-hood and schooling, pregnancy and parenthood, their experiences at the School for Teenage Parents, and their lives since leaving the School, in order to consider the role of the School in supporting the positive refashioning of their identities.
This thesis draws on social constructionist and narrative theories to interpret the storied contexts of the young women’s lives, and the role these often constraining and difficult contexts played in the fashioning of their multiple identities. Māori culturally responsive pedagogical theories are also drawn on to interpret the culture of the School for Teenage Parents, and its attempts to provide a supportive and affirming family or whānau environment for its students, in order to offer them more positive narrative possibilities of self and identity as young women, as learners and as young parents.
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Sheikh, Munaf. "Robust recognition of facial expressions on noise degraded facial images." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2011. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&action=viewtitle&id=gen8Srv25Nme4_7054_1306828003.
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We investigate the use of noise degraded facial images in the application of facial expression recognition. In particular, we trained Gabor+SVMclassifiers to recognize facial expressions images with various types of noise. We applied Gaussian noise, Poisson noise, varying levels of salt and pepper noise, and speckle noise to noiseless facial images. Classifiers were trained with images without noise and then tested on the images with noise. Next, the classifiers were trained using images with noise, and then on tested both images that had noise, and images that were noiseless. Finally, classifiers were tested on images while increasing the levels of salt and pepper in the test set. Our results reflected distinct degradation of recognition accuracy. We also discovered that certain types of noise, particularly Gaussian and Poisson noise, boost recognition rates to levels greater than would be achieved by normal, noiseless images. We attribute this effect to the Gaussian envelope component of Gabor filters being sympathetic to Gaussian-like noise, which is similar in variance to that of the Gabor filters. Finally, using linear regression, we mapped a mathematical model to this degradation and used it to suggest how recognition rates would degrade further should more noise be added to the images.
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Cronqvist, Agneta. "The moral enterprise in intensive care nursing." Doctoral thesis, Stockholm, 2004. http://diss.kib.ki.se/2004/91-7349-942-0/.
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Poles, Kátia. "O desenvolvimento do conceito de morte digna na UTI Pediátrica." Universidade de São Paulo, 2008. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/7/7136/tde-06052009-121507/.
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O objetivo deste estudo foi desenvolver o conceito de morte digna da criança na Unidade de Terapia Intensiva pediátrica. O Modelo Híbrido de Desenvolvimento de Conceitos foi aplicado em suas três fases: Teórica, de Campo e Analítica Final. Na Fase Teórica, foram analisados 49 artigos nas áreas Médica e de Enfermagem que estudaram e focalizaram a morte digna da criança. A Fase de Campo foi conduzida através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com nove enfermeiras e sete médicos que atuavam em UTI pediátrica. Os dados da Fase de Campo foram analisados utilizando-se os resultados da Fase Teórica como eixo teórico e a Análise de Conteúdo como referencial metodológico. Na Fase Analítica Final, os resultados da Fase Teórica e de Campo foram comparados, analisados e integrados. Os dados evidenciam que a MORTE DIGNA na UTI pediátrica é ter um tratamento clínico de excelência no final de vida, com honra aos benefícios da evolução natural da doença, respeito aos aspectos socioculturais, conforto físico e bem-estar. A morte digna ocorre em um contexto de veracidade e parceria entre a equipe e a família, no qual é possível expressar expectativas e receios. O resultado da morte digna é o alívio do sofrimento tanto da criança quanto da família. Os dados da Fase Teórica apontam os antecedentes, atributos e conseqüências da morte digna como situações protocolares, porém, na Fase de Campo foi possível identificar o componente experiencial que está por trás das condutas dos profissionais diante da criança em final de vida. Assim, pôde-se compreender como se dá a manifestação do conceito na prática clínica, possibilitando a ampliação dos dados identificados na Fase Teórica. Clarificar o conceito de morte digna na UTI pediátrica permite fortalecer teorias sobre os cuidados no final de vida à criança e à família, bem como possibilita aos profissionais que atuam na prática clínica refletirem sobre as motivações que pautam atitudes e decisões diante da criança fora de possibilidade de curaThe purpose of this research was to develop the concept of dignified death for children in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. The Hybrid Model of Concept Development was applied in its three phases: Theoretical, Fieldwork and Final Analytical. In the Theoretical Phase 49 papers in the Medical and Nursing fields were analyzed, which studied and focused on the dignified death for children. The Fieldwork was conducted through semi-structured interviews with nine doctors and seven registered nurses who worked in pediatric ICUs. The data from the Fieldwork Phase was analyzed having the results of Theoretical Phase as the theoretical axis and the Content Analysis as the methodology. In the Final Analytical Phase, the results from the Theoretical and Fieldwork Phases and were compared, analyzed and integrated. The data show that the DIGNIFIED DEATH for children in the pediatric ICU means having a clinical treatment of excellence at the end-of-life, honoring the benefits of the natural evolution of the disease, respecting the socio-cultural aspects, physical comfort and welfare. A dignified death occurs in a context of veracity and partnership between the team and the family, in which it is possible to express hopes and fears. The result of the dignified death is the relief of suffering from both the child and the family. Data from the Theoretical Phase suggests that the antecedents, attributes and consequences of dignified death as being protocol situations, however, in the Fieldwork it was possible to identify the component of the experience behind the conduct of the professionals when dealing with children at end-of-life. Thus, it was possible to understand how the manifestation of the concept occurs in clinical practice, allowing the expansion of the data identified in the Theoretical Phase. Clarifying the concept of dignified death in the pediatric ICU can strengthen theories about end-of-life care to children and families and makes it possible to professionals who work in clinical practice to reflect on the motivations that guide their attitudes and decisions when dealing with a child in life-sustaining condition
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Oliveira, José Pedro de. "Desenvolvimento de uma metodologia para identificação de região cardíaca em imagens de tomografia de impedância elétrica de perfusão pulmonar por meio da transformada wavelet." Universidade de São Paulo, 2009. http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/5/5144/tde-18032010-110618/.
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A Tomografia de Impedância Elétrica (TIE) é uma técnica de imageamento, ainda em desenvolvimento, por meio da qual são extraídas imagens correspondentes à distribuição da impedância elétrica de uma seção transversal de um objeto sob análise a partir de medidas elétricas realizadas em sua superfície. Apesar de seus benefícios e vantagens sobre outras técnicas de imageamento, suas imagens não oferecem uma boa resolução espacial. Em imagens TIE de tórax, um dos maiores desafios reside no tratamento da perfusão pulmonar, pois as perspectivas de uso clínico são inúmeras. Assim sendo, melhorar a localização de seus principais órgãos é um dos grandes objetivos. Com o intuito de melhorar a resolução anatômica foi desenvolvida uma metodologia para identificação de região cardíaca em imagens de tomografia de impedância elétrica de perfusão pulmonar por meio da transformada wavelet, utilizando imagens TIE de porcos. Inicialmente foi realizada uma série de estudos de diferentes abordagens com vistas a identificar aquelas características que pudessem indicar similaridades ou diferenças intrínsecas entre os pixels de diferentes regiões anatômicas. Com base nestes estudos, cinco métodos baseados na análise wavelet foram desenvolvidos. Um primeiro conjunto de experimentos, realizado em um único porco, foi utilizado no desenvolvimento e aperfeiçoamento dos métodos. Posteriormente, outros experimentos, envolvendo quatro porcos em diferentes condições fisiológicas, foram utilizados na avaliação de desempenho destes métodos. As imagens de perfusão wavelet foram comparadas com as imagens de perfusão obtidas pelo método de injeção de uma solução hipertônica, considerada como padrão de referência das imagens de perfusão. A metodologia wavelet proposta por este trabalho foi o método, dentre os cinco desenvolvidos, que obteve os melhores resultados. Ela foi capaz de identificar a região cardíaca de cinco porcos submetidos a diversas condições fisiológicas, demonstrando robustez e resultados muito satisfatórios, não apenas em termos quantitativos, com uma área média da curva ROC de 0,86, mas também na qualidade das imagens obtidas, onde os contornos delimitando a região cardíaca ficaram bem definidos e de formato circular, de acordo com o que se esperava. Portanto, o objetivo maior deste trabalho que era melhorar a resolução espacial de imagens TIE de perfusão pulmonar, foi atingido com excelentes resultados e vantagens adicionais, como por exemplo, a possibilidade de sua implementação em equipamentos TIE de monitoramento do tórax e desta forma colaborar no aperfeiçoamento de sistemas de apoio à decisão médica em ambientes críticos, como é o caso das Unidades de Terapia Intensiva (UTIs).Electrical Impedance Tomography (EIT) is an imaging technique, still in development, which allows imaging of the distribution of conductivity in a cross section of an object under analysis from electrical measures made on its surface. Despite its benefits and advantages over other imaging techniques, its images still do not offer a good spatial resolution. One of the biggest challenges in EIT thorax images is the treatment of the lung perfusion because the perspectives for clinical use are numerous. Thus, there is a great interest in improving the localization of its main organs. In order to improve the anatomical resolution was developed a methodology for identification of cardiac region in images of electrical impedance tomography of pulmonary perfusion by means of wavelet transform, using EIT images of pigs. Some preliminary studies of different approaches were performed in order to identify those characteristics that would indicate intrinsic similarities or differences among the pixels of different anatomical regions. These studies propitiated the development of five methods based on wavelet transform. A first set of experiments, performed in a single pig, was used in developing and improving of the methods. Subsequently, other experiments, involving four pigs in different physiological conditions, were performed to evaluate the performance of these methods. The wavelet perfusional images were compared with the perfusional images obtained by the method of injection of a hypertonic solution, considered as the perfusional reference standard images. Amongst the five developed methods, the best of them was selected as the wavelet methodology proposed by this work. It was capable to identify the heart region of five pigs under different physiological conditions, demonstrating to robustness and very satisfactory results, not only in quantitative terms, with an average area of the ROC curve of 0.86, but also in the quality of the images, where the contours delimiting the cardiac region were well defined and of circular format, according to what was expected. Therefore, the main objective of this work, that was to improve the spatial resolution of EIT images of pulmonary perfusion, was reached with excellent results and additional benefits such as the possibility of its implementation in EIT equipments for monitoring thorax and thus collaborate in improving of medical decision support systems in critical environments, as for example the Intensive Care Units (ICUs).
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Pehrson, Jakob, and Sara Lindstrand. "Support Unit Classification through Supervised Machine Learning." Thesis, KTH, Skolan för elektroteknik och datavetenskap (EECS), 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-281537.
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The purpose of this article is to evaluate the impact a supervised machine learning classification model can have on the process of internal customer support within a large digitized company. Chatbots are becoming a frequently used utility among digital services, though the true general impact is not always clear. The research is separated into the following two questions: (1) Which supervised machine learning algorithm of naïve Bayes, logistic regression, and neural networks can best predict the correct support a user needs and with what accuracy? And (2) What is the effect on the productivity and customer satisfaction of using machine learning to sort customer needs? The data was collected from the internal server database of a large digital company and was then trained on and tested with the three classification algorithms. Furthermore, a survey was collected with questions focused on understanding how the current system affects the involved employees. A first finding indicates that neural networks is the best suited model for the classification task. Though, when the scope and complexity was limited, naïve Bayes and logistic regression performed sufficiently. A second finding of the study is that the classification model potentially improves productivity given that the baseline is met. However, a difficulty exists in drawing conclusions on the exact effects on customer satisfaction since there are many aspects to take into account. Nevertheless, there is a good potential to achieve a positive net effect.Syftet med artikeln är att utvärdera den påverkan som en klassificeringsmodell kan ha på den interna processen av kundtjänst inom ett stort digitaliserat företag. Chatbotar används allt mer frekvent bland digitala tjänster, även om den generella effekten inte alltid är tydlig. Studien är uppdelad i följande två frågeställningar: (1) Vilken klassificeringsalgoritm bland naive Bayes, logistisk regression, och neurala nätverk kan bäst förutspå den korrekta hjälpen en användare är i behov av och med vilken noggrannhet? Och (2) Vad är effekten på produktivitet och kundnöjdhet för användandet av maskininlärning för sortering av kundbehov? Data samlades från ett stort, digitalt företags interna databas och används sedan i träning och testning med de tre klassificeringsalgoritmerna. Vidare, en enkät skickades ut med fokus på att förstå hur det nuvarande systemet påverkar de berörda arbetarna. Ett första fynd indikerar att neurala nätverk är den mest lämpade modellen för klassificeringen. Däremot, när omfånget och komplexiteten var begränsat presenterade även naive Bayes och logistisk regression tillräckligt. Ett andra fynd av studien är att klassificeringen potentiellt förbättrar produktiviteten givet att baslinjen är mött. Däremot existerar en svårighet i att dra slutsatser om den exakta effekten på kundnöjdhet eftersom det finns många olika aspekter att ta hänsyn till. Likväl finns en god potential i att uppnå en positiv nettoeffekt.
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Edge, Shaun Joseph. "The growing role of Special Forces in modern warfare with specific reference to the United States of America." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/27310.
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The objective of this study is to assess the growing role of Special Forces in modern warfare, with specific reference to the United States of America. The main question that the study seeks to address is what are the implications of the growing role of Special Forces in modern warfare? The study also seeks to ascertain why exactly this growth is occurring and whether or not this will have a bearing on the future of not only the manner in which the US conducts conflict but also global conflict as a whole. In order to address these issues the study will look at conventional and unconventional warfare and forces; the roles and missions of Special Forces and the composition of US Special Forces; the role of US Special Forces in modern warfare prior to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks; and the role of the US Special Forces in the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. An analysis of conventional and unconventional warfare as concepts, as well as the forces that constitute conventional and unconventional forces was first done in order to provide some perspective into what these concepts and forces are and more specifically, what differentiates them. Specific reference was made here to the United States’ approach to warfare from the days of the American Revolution up to and including the end of the Cold War. Emphasis is placed on the growing role of US Special Forces throughout the study and this is achieved through the use of four major case studies, namely the 1991 Gulf War; Somalia (1992-1993); the Balkans (1995-2001); and the 2001 ‘Special Forces war’ in Afghanistan. The case studies that dealt with the 1991 Gulf War, Somalia and the Balkans elucidated the growing role of both unconventional warfare and specifically US Special Forces and Special Mission Units since the end of the Cold War. The case study of the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan provided the culmination of the shift from conventional to unconventional warfare and the execution of the campaign as a ‘Special Forces war.’ The study demonstrates that since the end of the Cold War in the 1990’s, unconventional warfare has increasingly become more ubiquitous and can be said to be replacing, or at least equalling in stature, conventional warfare. This has the possibility of dramatically affecting how warfare is executed both currently and more importantly, in the future. The study went on to show that unconventional warfare is not akin to conventional warfare, especially with regard to the forces needed to respond to such conflicts and that Special Forces are the forces most applicable and most effective in dealing with unconventional warfare. The study confirms that Special Forces are the solution to the growing prominence of unconventional warfare and that countries, and specifically the United States can more effectively counter the threat of unconventional warfare and unconventional forces by shifting Special Forces from a supporting component to conventional forces to a supported component. This would require a massive shift in alignment both for the United States as well as other major states’ militaries but as the study has shown, this is pertinent given that unconventional warfare and forces will most likely remain the primary threat that states and militaries will now faceDissertation (MSS)--University of Pretoria, 2010.
Political Sciences
unrestricted
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Stevens, Wendy L. "Intergovernmental unity of effort in support of biological threat prevention." Thesis, Monterey California. Naval Postgraduate School, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10945/37724.
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CHDS State/LocalThe purpose of this thesis is to examine ways to prevent the terrorist use of a biological weapon of mass destruction. Intelligence sources from around the globe report that terrorist groups are developing the capability and the intention to deliver biological weapons of mass destruction. Four coalitions of governments were studied to examine stated health security policies and reported outcome of a large biological threat incident of H1N1 global pandemic influenza of 20092010. This thesis presented the results and proposed methods to enhance intergovernmental connectivity and information sharing to prevent a biological threat.
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Vaidya, Rohan. "Optimum Support Structure Generation for Additive Manufacturing using Unit Cell Structures and Support Removal Constraint." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2017. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1490354059543447.
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Dalen, Anne van. "Two-unit adhesive cantilevers supported." [S.l. : Amsterdam : s.n.] ; Universiteit van Amsterdam [Host], 2006. http://dare.uva.nl/document/39368.
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Singh, Inderjeet. "A Mapping Study of Automation Support Tools for Unit Testing." Thesis, Mälardalens högskola, Akademin för innovation, design och teknik, 2012. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:mdh:diva-15192.
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Unit testing is defined as a test activity usually performed by a developer for the purpose of demonstrating program functionality and meeting the requirements specification of module. Nowadays, unit testing is considered as an integral part in the software development cycle. However, performing unit testing by developers is still considered as a major concern because of the time and cost involved in it. Automation support for unit testing, in the form of various automation tools, could significantly lower the cost of performing unit testing phase as well as decrease the time developer involved in the actual testing. The problem is how to choose the most appropriate tool that will suit developer requirements consisting of cost involved, effort needed, level of automation provided, language support, etc. This research work presents results from a systematic literature review with the aim of finding all unit testing tools with an automation support. In the systematic literature review, we initially identified 1957 studies. After performing several removal stages, 112 primary studies were listed and 24 tools identified in total. Along with the list of tools, we also provide the categorization of all the tools found based on the programming language support, availability (License, Open source, Free), testing technique, level of effort required by developer to use tool, target domain, that we consider as good properties for a developer to make a decision on which tool to use. Additionally, we categorized type of error(s) found by some tools, which could be beneficial for a developer when looking at the tool’s effectiveness. The main intent of this report is to aid developers in the process of choosing an appropriate unit testing tool from categorization table of available tools with automation unit testing support that ease this process significantly. This work could be beneficial for researchers considering to evaluate efficiency and effectiveness of each tool and use this information to eventually build a new tool with the same properties as several others.
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Weyand, Sabine A. "Development and Usability Testing of a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Physician-Parent Decision Support Tool (PPADS)." Thèse, Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/20141.
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This thesis presents the development and evaluation of a computerized physician-parent decision support tool for a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), known as Physician and Parent Decision Support (PPADS). The NICU is a specialized hospital unit that treats very-ill neonates. Many difficult care decisions are made daily for this vulnerable population. The PPADS tool aims to augment current NICU decision-making by helping parents and physicians make more informed decisions, improving physician-parent communication, increasing parent decision-making satisfaction, decreasing conflict, and increasing decision efficiency. The development of the PPADS tool followed a five-step methodology: assessing the clinical environment, establishing the design criteria, developing the system design, implementing the system, and performing usability testing. Usability testing of the PPADS tool was performed on neonatologists and on parents of neonates who have graduated (survived) from a tertiary level NICU. The usability testing demonstrated the usefulness and ease of use of the tool.
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Van, Blerk Daryl Anthony. "The experiences of learning support unit managers and students in London." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/50151.
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Thesis(MEdPsych)--University of Stellenbosch, 2004.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Following the United Kingdoms of Great Britain Government's commitment to social inclusion in the 1990s, dramatic changes have taken place in education policy. A large amount of time and money has been invested into the development of inclusive practices, one of the more recent programmes being the Learning Support Unit (LSU). The LSU programme is seen as a way forward for social inclusion and now it is playing a growing role in the context of national strategies to improve behaviour and attendance. As little evaluation research has been done, this study aims to verify good practice in relation to the guidelines set out by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES, 2002b) and identify whether the LSU programme is truly an inclusive model. Given the commitment to inclusive education the world over, this study also seeks to assess whether the LSU programme would work within the South African Inclusive Education and Training Policy. An interpretive approach was applied to the research undertaking a programme evaluation. The qualitative techniques of interviewing, observations and discussions were used for data collection. Interviews were conducted with LSU managers and their pupils, which were then triangulated with data obtained from observations, informal and focus group discussions. Using an interpretive approach allowed me to become immersed in the research process and develop an intuitive feel for the subject. This enabled more effective verification of good practice in use. Interpreting the experiences and beliefs of LSU managers and their pupils in the London Borough of Hillingdon has verified a range of good practices. It is particularly important that LSUs are an extension of, and fully integrated into, whole school behaviour policy. The LSU programme promotes social inclusion by offering in-school support to pupils with behavioural, social and emotional development needs. These needs are addressed through a short-term fixed period stay in the LSU while the pupils still engage in the curriculum and their reintegration back into class facilitated. The LSU programme could compliment the South African Inclusive Education and Training Policy by offering a viable programme to address challenging behaviour in an inclusive manner. In conclusion, the LSUs have proved to be effective in introducing social inclusion in schools. This is achieved through their uniqueness, which allows them to target the greatest needs in their school.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Onderwysbeleid in die Verenigde Koninkryk het dramatiese veranderinge ondergaan ná die regering van die Verenigde Koninkryk se verbintenis tot sosiale insluiting in die negentigerjare van die vorige eeu. 'n Groot hoeveelheid tyd en geld is bestee aan die ontwikkeling van inklusiewe praktyke. Een van die jongste programme is die Leerondersteuningseenheid (LSE). Die LSE-program word gesien as 'n stap vorentoe in die rigting van sosiale insluiting en dit speel tans toenemend 'n rol in die bepaling van nasionale strategieë vir die verbetering van gedrag en bywoning. Aangesien min evalueringsnavorsing tot dusver gedoen is, beoog hierdie navorsing om goeie praktyk in die lig van die riglyne soos uiteengesit deur die Departement van Onderwys en Vaardighede van die Verenigde Koninkryk (DfES, 2002b) te ondersoek en om te vas te stelof die LSE-program 'n waarlik inklusiewe model is. Met inagneming van die verbintenis tot inklusiewe onderwys wêreldwyd, poog hierdie navorsing ook om te bepaal of die LSE-program binne die Suid-Afrikaanse inklusiewe Onderwys- en Opleidingsbeleid met sukses aangewend sou kon word. 'n Interpretatiewe benadering is gevolg met betrekking tot die navorsing waartydens 'n evaluering van die programme gemaak is. Die kwalitatiewe tegnieke van onderhoudvoering, waarneming en bespreking is gebruik vir die insameling van data. Onderhoude is gevoer met Leerondersteuningseenheid-bestuurders en hulle leerders, wat dan weer getrianguleer is met data wat uit waarnemings, informele besprekings en fokusgroep-besprekings verkry is. Die gebruik van 'n interpretatiewe benadering het die navorser in staat gestelom verdiep te raak in die navorsingsproses en 'n intuïtiewe aanvoeling vir die onderwerp te ontwikkel. Dit het doeltreffender verifikasie van goeie praktyk wat tans gebruik word, moontlik gemaak. Die interpretasie van die ervaringe en oortuigings van Leerondersteuningseenheidbestuurders en hulle leerlinge in die distrik Hillingdon, Londen, het bewys gelewer van 'n reeks goeie praktyke. Dit is veral belangrik dat die LSE-program 'n uitbreiding is van geheelskool- gedragsbeleid, en ook ten volle daarin geïntegreer is. Die LSE-program werk sosiale insluiting in die hand deur inskoolse ondersteuning aan leerlinge met gedrags-, sosiale en emosionele ontwikkelingsbehoeftes te bied. Daar word tydens 'n vasgestelde korttermynbywoning van die LSE na hierdie behoeftes omgesien terwyl die leerlinge steeds by die kurrikulum betrokke is en hulle heropname in die klas gefasiliteer word. Die LSE-program sou as aanvulling tot die Suid-Afrikaanse Beleid van Inklusiewe Onderwys en Opleiding kon dien deurdat dit 'n lewensvatbare program aanbied waardeur uitdagende gedrag op 'n inklusiewe wyse aandag kry. Ten slotte kan genoem word dat die LSE-program as doeltreffend bewys is by die invoer van sosiale insluiting in skole. Dit is vermag deur hulle eensoortigheid waardeur die grootste behoeftes in die besondere skool bereik kan word.
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Kubheka, Thulile Patience. "Support needs of enrolled nurses working in an intensive care unit." Diss., University of Pretoria, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/2263/72756.
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INTRODUCTION
In South Africa, the Department of Health stipulates that “providing quality care to patients requires training skilled health workers and establishing a culture that values lifelong learning and recognises its important role in improving quality”. For several years, professional nurses have been a scarce resource in South Africa and many countries, hospitals are faced with an escalating critical shortage of trained intensive care professional nurses. In many cases currently, hospitals utilize enrolled nurses in the intensive care environment. These enrolled nurses are faced with the challenge and demands of having to work, function and cope in the intensive care units, despite their limited scope of practice. To address the shortage of professional nurses in the intensive care units, enrolled nurses have been deployed to work in the intensive care environment.
AIM
The aim of the study was to explore and describe the support needs of enrolled nurses working in an intensive care unit of a selected private hospital in Tshwane, Gauteng Province, South Africa.
METHODOLOGY
In this study, the population included enrolled nurses working in the intensive care unit of the selected private hospital in Tshwane. the researcher selected only enrolled nurses who had worked in intensive care unit for at least six months in order to explore and describe the support needs of enrolled nurses working in the intensive care unit of the selected hospital. in this study, data was collected by means of a focus group, an appreciative inquiry interview approach was used. The researcher wished to explore and describe the participants’ support needs when working in the intensive care unit.
FINDINGS
Five themes were identified from the participants’ peak experiences, namely professionalism, support, knowledge, procedures and equipment. Three themes emerged in wishes, namely belonging to a team, professional development, and gaining more knowledge.Dissertation (MCur)--University of Pretoria, 2019.
Nursing Science
MCur
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Mansfield, Allison N. "Nutrition Support Protocols and Early Feeding in the Intensive Care Unit." Bowling Green State University / OhioLINK, 2008. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=bgsu1210191094.
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