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In Deutschland werden 80% der auf Pflege angewiesenen Menschen im häuslichen Umfeld versorgt, 56 % davon aufgrund sozialer Beziehungen ausschließlich von informell pflegenden Personen. Die Anzahl häuslicher Pflegearrangements steigt seit Jahren kontinuierlich bei bereits erreichter Kapazitätsgrenze existierender ambulanter Dienste. Um einen Beitrag zum wissenschaftlichen Verständnis pflegerischer Versorgung im häuslichen Setting zu leisten, wurden insgesamt 18 narrative Interviews zu Wunsch und Wirklichkeit häuslicher Pflege mit pflegebedürftigen und pflegenden Personen sowie zwei Expert*innen geführt und nach den Prinzipien der Grounded Theory ausgewertet. Die entwickelte Akzeptanztheorie bietet einen grundsätzlichen Erklärungsansatz informeller Pflege und verweist auf die dringliche und unabdingbar notwendige Weiterentwicklung ambulanter Versorgungsstrukturen, sollen Pflegearrangements in großer Anzahl weiterhin Bestand haben.
Response of petunia to wood fibre amended peat substrate under ebb-and-flow irrigation (Abstract)
(2024)
The development of non-precious metal-based electrodes that actively and stably support the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in water electrolysis systems remains a challenge, especially at low pH levels. The recently published study has conclusively shown that the addition of haematite to H2 SO4 is a highly effective method of significantly reducing oxygen evolution overpotential and extending anode life. The far superior result is achieved by concentrating oxygen evolution centres on the oxide particles rather than on the electrode. However, unsatisfactory Faradaic efficiencies of the OER and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) parts as well as the required high haematite load impede applicability and upscaling of this process. Here it is shown that the same performance is achieved with three times less metal oxide powder if NiO/H2 SO4 suspensions are used along with stainless steel anodes. The reason for the enormous improvement in OER performance by adding NiO to the electrolyte is the weakening of the intramolecular O─H bond in the water molecules, which is under the direct influence of the nickel oxide suspended in the electrolyte. The manipulation of bonds in water molecules to increase the tendency of the water to split is a ground-breaking development, as shown in this first example.
In der Schriftenreihe „Voneinander Lehren lernen“ publiziert das LearningCenter der Hochschule Osnabrück anwendungsbezogene Beiträge zur Qualitätsentwicklung in Studium und Lehre. Die Schriftenreihe ist an das Konzept des „Scholarship of Teaching and Learning“ (SoTL) angelehnt. Demnach soll sie insbesondere den Fachlehrenden verschiedener Studiengänge als Plattform dienen, um ihre eigenen Erfahrungen, Ideen und Konzepte zur Lehr- und Studiengangentwicklung systematisch zu reflektieren und entsprechende Erkenntnisse für andere nutzbar zu machen. Ziel ist es, den Diskurs über hochschuldidaktische Themen in die Fächer zu tragen und so die Qualität der Lehr-Lernprozesse in den Studiengängen zu fördern. In diesem fünften Band der Schriftenreihe werden Projekte der Hochschule Osnabrück beschrieben, deren Umsetzung durch verschiedene Förderlinien oder durch Studienqualitätsmittel unterstützt wurde. Die Textbeiträge sind sowohl inhaltlich als auch didaktisch-methodisch sehr vielschichtig. Eine Gemeinsamkeit liegt jedoch darin, dass sie jeweils eine konstruktive hochschuldidaktische Reaktion auf zukunftsbezogene Trends und daraus resultierende Kompetenz-Anforderungen an Hochschulabsolvent*innen widerspiegeln. Der Terminologie des Zukunftsinstituts folgend sind es primär die Megatrends „Konnektivität“, „New Work“, „Gesundheit“, „Wissenskultur“ und „Globalisierung“, die in den Beiträgen implizit oder explizit thematisiert werden.
Purpose
This study operationalizes risks in stakeholder dialog (SD). It conceptualizes SD as co-produced organizational discourse and examines the capacities of organizers' and stakeholders' practices to create a shared understanding of an organization’s risks to their mutual benefit. The meetings and online forum of a German public service media (PSM) organization were used as a case study.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors applied corpus-driven linguistic discourse analysis (topic modeling) to analyze citizens' (n = 2,452) forum posts (n = 14,744). Conversation analysis was used to examine video-recorded online meetings.
Findings
Organizers suspended actors' reciprocity in meetings. In the forums, topics emerged autonomously. Citizens' articulation of their identities was more diverse than the categories the organizer provided, and organizers did not respond to the autonomous emergence of contextualizations of citizens' perceptions of PSM performance in relation to their identities. The results suggest that risks arise from interactionally achieved occasions that prevent reasoned agreement and from actors' practices, which constituted autonomous discursive formations of topics and identities in the forums.
Originality/value
This study disentangles actors' practices, mutuality orientation and risk enactment during SD. It advances the methodological knowledge of strategic communication research on SD, utilizing social constructivist research methods to examine the contingencies of organization-stakeholder interaction in SD.
Compliance of agricultural AI systems : app-based legal verification throughout the development
(2024)
Significant advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have been achieved; however, practical implementation in agriculture remains limited. Compliance with emerging regulations, such as the EU AI Act and GDPR, is now vital, even for non-critical AI systems. Developers need tools to assess legal compliance, which is complex, often requiring full legal advice. To address this issue, we are developing a support app that simplifies the legal aspects of AI system development, covering the entire lifecycle, from conception to distribution. The current app, which covers the key legal area of copyright and will soon include GDPR and the AI Act, aims to bridge the gap between AI research and agriculture. An evaluation of our app by experts from both the legal and the IT domains shows that the app assists the developers so that they make legally correct statements. Consequently, it promotes legal compliance and awareness among developers, contributing to the seamless integration of AI into agriculture. The need for compliant AI systems in various industries, including agriculture, will only increase as regulations evolve.
Artificial intelligence (AI) promises transformative impacts on society, industry, and agriculture, while being heavily reliant on diverse, quality data. The resource-intensive "data
problem" has initialized a shift to synthetic data. One downside of synthetic data is known as the "reality gap", a lack of realism. Hybrid data, combining synthetic and real data, addresses this. The paper examines terminological inconsistencies and proposes a unified taxonomy for real, synthetic, augmented, and hybrid data. It aims to enhance AI training datasets in smart agriculture, addressing the challenges in the agricultural data landscape. Utilizing hybrid data in AI models offers improved prediction performance and adaptability.
Introduction: Patients undergoing revision total hip surgery (RTHS) have a high prevalence of mild and moderate preoperative anemia, associated with adverse outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of perioperative allogeneic blood transfusions (ABT) and postoperative complications in preoperatively mild compared to moderate anemic patients undergoing RTHS who did not receive a diagnostic anemia workup and treatment before surgery. Methods: We included 1,765 patients between 2007 and 2019 at a university hospital. Patients were categorized according to their severity of anemia using the WHO criteria of mild, moderate, and severe anemia in the first Hb level of the case. Patients were grouped as having received no ABT, 1–2 units of ABT, or more than 2 units of ABT. Need for intraoperative ABT was assessed in accordance with institutional standards. Primary endpoint was the compound incidence of postoperative complications. Secondary outcomes included major/minor complications and length of hospital and ICU stay. Results: Of the 1,765 patients, 31.0% were anemic of any cause before surgery. Transfusion rates were 81% in anemic patients and 41.2% in nonanemic patients. The adjusted risks for compound postoperative complication were significantly higher in patients with moderate anemia (OR 4.88, 95% CI: 1.54–13.15, p = 0.003) but not for patients with mild anemia (OR 1.93, 95% CI: 0.85–3.94, p < 0.090). Perioperative ABT was associated with significantly higher risks for complications in nonanemic patients and showed an increased risk for complications in all anemic patients. In RTHS, perioperative ABT as a treatment for moderate preoperative anemia of any cause was associated with a negative compound effect on postoperative complications, compared to anemia or ABT alone. Discussion: ABT is associated with adverse outcomes of patients with moderate preoperative anemia before RTHS. For this reason, medical treatment of moderate preoperative anemia may be considered.
Background
Beta-blocker (BB) therapy plays a central role in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. An increasing number of patients with cardiovascular diseases undergoe noncardiac surgery, where opioids are an integral part of the anesthesiological management. There is evidence to suggest that short-term intravenous BB therapy may influence perioperative opioid requirements due to an assumed cross-talk between G-protein coupled beta-adrenergic and opioid receptors. Whether chronic BB therapy could also have an influence on perioperative opioid requirements is unclear.
Methods
A post hoc analysis of prospectively collected data from a multicenter observational (BioCog) study was performed. Inclusion criteria consisted of elderly patients (≥ 65 years) undergoing elective noncardiac surgery as well as total intravenous general anesthesia without the use of regional anesthesia and duration of anesthesia ≥ 60 min. Two groups were defined: patients with and without BB in their regular preopreative medication. The administered opioids were converted to their respective morphine equivalent doses. Multiple regression analysis was performed using the morphine-index to identify independent predictors.
Results
A total of 747 patients were included in the BioCog study in the study center Berlin. 106 patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Of these, 37 were on chronic BB. The latter were preoperatively significantly more likely to have arterial hypertension (94.6%), chronic renal failure (27%) and hyperlipoproteinemia (51.4%) compared to patients without BB. Both groups did not differ in terms of cumulative perioperative morphine equivalent dose (230.9 (BB group) vs. 214.8 mg (Non-BB group)). Predictive factors for increased morphine-index were older age, male sex, longer duration of anesthesia and surgery of the trunk. In a model with logarithmised morphine index, only gender (female) and duration of anesthesia remained predictive factors.
Conclusions
Chronic BB therapy was not associated with a reduced perioperative opioid consumption.
Test von Schnellverfahren zur Bestimmung der Benetzungseigenschaften von Kultursubstraten (Abstract)
(2024)
Anwendungen wie ChatGPT oder WOMBO Dream machen es leicht, Studierende ohne Programmierkenntnisse für die Anwendung von künstlicher Intelligenz (KI) zu begeistern. Deshalb sind angesichts der zunehmenden Bedeutung von KI in allen Disziplinen innovative Strategien erforderlich, um Studierende ohne Programmierkenntnisse so auszubilden, dass die Anwendung von KI als Future Skill in die Studienmodule integriert werden kann. In diesem Artikel wird ein didaktisches Planungsraster für angewandte KI vorgestellt. Es orientiert sich am Prozess der KI-Programmierung (KI-Anwendungspipeline) und verknüpft KI-Konzepte mit studienrelevanten Themen. Diese Verknüpfung eröffnet einen neuen Lösungsraum und fördert das Interesse und das Verständnis für die Potenziale und Risiken von KI bei den Studierenden. Anhand einer Beispielvorlesungsreihe für Studierende der Energiewirtschaft wird gezeigt, wie KI nahtlos in den Unterricht integriert werden kann. Dafür wird das Planungsraster für angewandte KI an die Fachvorlesung angepasst. Dadurch können die Studierenden eine fachspezifische Aufgabenstellung Schritt für Schritt mit der KI-Anwendungspipeline lösen. So zeigt die Anwendung des didaktischen Planungsrasters für angewandte KI die praktische Umsetzung der theoretischen Konzepte der KI. Darüber hinaus wird eine Checkliste vorgestellt, anhand derer beurteilt werden kann, ob KI in der entsprechenden Vorlesung eingesetzt werden kann. KI als Future Skill muss von den Studierenden anhand von Anwendungsfällen erlernt werden, die für das Studienfach relevant sind. Aus diesem Grund sollte sich die KI-Ausbildung nahtlos in verschiedene Curricula einfügen lassen, auch wenn die Studierenden aufgrund ihres Studienfachs keinen Programmierhintergrund haben.
Zukünftige Nonprofit-Manager*innen sind mit komplexen Herausforderungen in einem sich stetig wandelnden Umfeld konfrontiert. Themen wie Klimaschutz, soziale Ungleichheit oder auch Demokratieförderung haben einen starken Einfluss auf die Arbeitsfelder der Nonprofit-Organisationen. Eine zentrale Aufgabe der Führungskräfte ist daher in dieser Komplexität konstruktiv agieren zu können. Dafür sind Kompetenzen erforderlich: Ganz zentral ist die Fähigkeit, sich initiativ und eigenverantwortlich mit den Herausforderungen unserer Zeit auseinanderzusetzen und im besten Fall geeignete Lösungen dafür zu finden sowie diese zielführend kommunizieren zu können. Aus diesem Grund wird genau diese Fähigkeit bei Studierenden aus den Masterstudiengängen Management in Nonprofit-Organisationen und Soziale Arbeit der Hochschule Osnabrück gefördert. Im Rahmen des Moduls Handlungsfelder II entwickelten rund 30 Studierende im Wintersemester 2022/2023 in einer Denkwerkstatt Forschungsergebnisse und Lösungsideen zum Thema „Osnabrück 2030 – Demokratie leben“. Die Studierenden wählten in einem partizipativen Prozess ihre eigenen Schwerpunktthemen wie zum Beispiel Mobilität oder Bildung aus und arbeiteten dann ein Semester lang an den Inhalten. Bei der Erarbeitung wurden sie durch Marlene Eimterbäumer begleitet, die Modelle, Methoden und Coaching zur Unterstützung bereit stellte. Die Modelle und Methoden finden sich teilweise in den Beiträgen der Studierenden wieder (unter anderem das Social Ecological Model und der Business Model Canvas). Am Ende des Semesters stand eine Präsentation vor den Kommiliton*innen, der Lehrenden und auch vor externen Gästen, die aus unterschiedlichen Expertisegebieten im Themenbereich „Demokratie“ kamen und dementsprechend Feedback aus der Praxis geben konnten. Das Modul selbst wurde von der Hochschule im Rahmen der Innovativen Lehre an der Fakultät Wirtschafts- und Sozialwissenschaften gefördert. Für die Studierenden stellte das Modul durchaus eine Herausforderung dar, denn in der Denkwerkstatt musste unter hoher Komplexität stark prozessbezogen gearbeitet werden im Gegensatz zu der sonstigen hohen Ergebnisorientierung. Die durchweg sehr guten Ergebnisse zeigen, dass der Einsatz und die kontinuierliche Kommunikation und Zusammenarbeit sich gelohnt haben. Aufgeteilt ist das vorliegende Buch in die fünf Themen: Wahlen, Partizipation, Partizipative Raumentwicklung, Politische Bildung und Medienkompetenz. Zu diesen Themen finden Sie jeweils erst einen Beitrag der Forscher*innen und darauffolgend einen Beitrag zur Darstellung einer Lösungsidee.
Besides yield reduction weeds have positive effects, like enhancing biodiversity or reducing soil erosion. The aim of the work is to enhance biodiversity without yield losses. In growing season 2021/22 a field experiment with winter triticale was conducted to experience the impact of mechanical weed control, sowing date and sowing rate. Especially hoeing had a positive impact on vegetative growth and grain yield while weed growth was inhibited but weed biodiversity stayed equal or increased. A lower seed rate or an earlier sowing date made in general no difference at flowering or harvesting stage.
Um die Ausgaben der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung in Deutschland zu senken, wurde mit dem GKV-Finanzstabilisierungsgesetz neben anderen Maßnahmen die Aufhebung der Neupatientenregelung zum Jahresbeginn 2023 durchgesetzt. In politischen Kreisen wurde die Aufhebung der Regelung unter Verweis auf einen erschwerten Patientenzugang im ambulanten Sektor teils deutlich kritisiert. Um zu überprüfen, wie es um die Bereitschaft zur Aufnahme von Neupatienten nach Aufhebung der Neupatientenregelung bestellt ist, wurden im Rahmen einer randomisierten empirischen Feldstudie im Zeitraum von März bis April 2023 insgesamt 180 niedersächsische Hausärzte angerufen. Dabei gab sich der Studienautor als zugezogener Neupatient aus, der auf der Suche nach einem neuen Hausarzt sei. Da im Vorfeld eine schlechte telefonische Erreichbarkeit erwartet worden war, wurden jeder Arztpraxis bis zu drei Anrufversuche gewährt. Es zeigte sich, dass gut zwei Drittel der erreichten Praxen zur Aufnahme eines Neupatienten bereit sind. Außerdem konnte festgestellt werden, dass ein hoher regionaler Versorgungsgrad mit einer schlechten telefonischen Erreichbarkeit der Arztpraxen in Verbindung steht. Bezüglich der Organisationsformen und der Anzahl an Ärzten je Praxis konnten keine signifikanten Korrelationen festgestellt werden. Montags war die telefonische Erreichbarkeit der Praxen deutlich geringer als mittwochs und freitags. Die vorliegende Bachelorarbeit beschreibt die für die Studiendurchführung relevanten Grundlagen der hausärztlichen Versorgung in Deutschland, begründet die verwendete Methodik und diskutiert die Studienergebnisse.
Bamboo is an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional materials in mechanical engineering such as steel or aluminium. Bamboo is the fastest growing plant in the world. Instead of releasing CO2 during the manufacturing process, bamboo absorbs CO2 as it grows.
In addition to the sustainability aspect, bamboo tubes also offer excellent properties as a lightweight construction material, which have been optimised through evolution. Bamboo tubes have high strength and stiffness at low weight when used as tension-compression bars or bending beams. Bamboo has strong, high-density fibres at the boundary area, where bending stresses are greatest. Towards the inside, where the stresses are lower, the bamboo becomes porous to optimise weight. This, together with knots arranged in regular intervals, counteracts buckling.
In mobile applications such as cars and bicycles, lightweight construction is sought for energy efficiency reasons. Because of its excellent lightweight properties, the project investigated whether bamboo could be used in mobile, automotive or agricultural engineering. For example, a bamboo bicycle frame has been developed with the aim to be as light as possible. There are bamboo bicycles on the market, but they can only be made one at a time by hand. The bamboo tubes are joined together and functional elements such as the bottom bracket and headset are integrated by wrapping them in resin-impregnated natural or carbon fibres. This makes the joints very heavy. A different approach is taken here: the bamboo tubes are drilled out slightly to achieve a defined internal diameter, and then short aluminium tubes are glued into the bamboo canes from the inside. To prevent the cane from breaking in the circumferential direction, i.e. perpendicular to the fibre direction, the bamboo tubes are wrapped in a thin layer of natural or carbon fibre impregnated with synthetic resin. The aluminium tubes and functional elements are welded or soldered together beforehand.
The design of the bicycle frame, i.e. the dimensioning of the bamboo tubes and joints, was based on extensive bending and tensile tests to determine the strength properties of the natural material bamboo. The bonding between the bamboo cane and the aluminium tube was also investigated experimentally. Finally, several prototype bicycle frames were made and tested for durability according to DIN-EN-14764. The frames passed the tests.
The result is a bamboo bicycle that is manufactured with standardised connectors and joints. The assembly concept developed allows both fully automated and semi-automated series production of bamboo bicycles.
Biomechanical analyses are capable of capturing and evaluating human motions. In addition to the major biomechanical fields of kinetics and kinematics, electromyography (EMG) provides a reliable way to analyse neuromuscular activities, e.g. inter- and intramuscular coordination or fatigue behavior. Based on these parameters it is possible to conclude to clinically relevant parameters such as motor control, muscular coordination or compensation strategies with different loads. In addition to this, EMG can be used in treatment itself, e.g. biofeedback-training with an EMG is an effective and evidenced based tool to improve neuromuscular control. The purpose of this workshop is to show the advantages of implementing EMG in performing artists´ health and to demonstrate additional therapy and diagnostic options.
This workshop briefly introduces the theoretical principles of EMG and the clinical applications in the context of performing artists´ health. It explains why EMG provides an additional value in the clinical reasoning process and supports the therapist, but decision making in the clinical reasoning process should never be based on EMG solely.
In the further course of the workshop the use of EMG in diagnostics and therapy (biofeedback) with performing artists is practically demonstrated and discussed with the participants.
Approach of Presentation:
1. Short presentation: introduction and understanding of EMG (educational objective 1)
2. Short case presentation of a performing artist to introduce EMG in the field of performing artists´ health and clinical reasoning (educational objective 2)
3. Interactive practical demonstration (diagnosis and biofeedback-training) as the central part of the workshop. Questions and comments will be discussed directly throughout the group (educational objective 3)
Clinical Significance:
EMG based functional neuromuscular diagnostics and biofeedback-training provides both the therapist as well as the performing artist with additional value in their clinical work.
Educational Objectives:
At the end of the workshop, the participants will be able to…
1. understand and describe the basic principles of EMG
2. understand and describe the importance of EMG in the context of performing artists´ health, physical therapy and clinical reasoning
3. use EMG on performing artists in the performance process
Unter Enclothed Cognition versteht die Wissenschaft den Einfluss der Kleidung einer Person auf ihre eigenen kognitiven Prozesse. In vergangenen Studien erzielten etwa Pro-band:innen in Arztkitteln höhere Werte bei Konzentrationstests und formell gekleidete Personen beschrieben ihren Charakter mit anderen Adjektiven als Menschen in neutraler Kleidung. Sofern solche intrapersonellen Effekte der eigenen Kleidung auf die mensch-liche Kognition konstant und in verschiedenen Kontexten auftreten sollten, sind sie von Interesse, wann immer Fähigkeiten und Persönlichkeit eines Menschen valide einge-schätzt werden sollen. Dies ist etwa in Personalauswahlverfahren der Fall, weil dort von den Ergebnissen der verwendeten Tests und Fragebögen oft wichtige Personalentschei-dungen abhängen. Um zu untersuchen, inwiefern die Kleidung eines Bewerbers oder ei-ner Bewerberin durch intrapersonelle Effekte die Ergebnisse von Auswahlverfahren be-einflusst, wurde von Mai bis November 2021 ein Laborexperiment mit studentischen 100 Proband:innen im nordwestdeutschen Osnabrück durchgeführt. Dabei wurden die Ver-suchspersonen unter Verhüllung des eigentlichen Studienzwecks entweder einer formel-len (Sakko/Blazer und Hemd/Bluse) oder einer zwanglosen Kleidungskondition (Kapu-zenpullover und Jeans) zugewiesen, in der sie zum Experiment erscheinen sollten. Dort wurden sie verschiedenen Fragebögen und Tests unterzogen. Es zeigte sich weder in der allgemeinen und situationsspezifischen Selbstwirksamkeit noch in Leistungsmotivation, Konzentration und kognitiver Leistung ein Unterschied zwischen formeller und zwang-loser Kleidung. Die vorliegende Arbeit beschreibt den theoretischen Hintergrund und die Methoden der Studie und diskutiert ihre Ergebnisse.
In modern times, closed-loop control systems (CLCSs) play a prominent role in a wide application range, from production machinery via automated vehicles to robots. CLCSs actively manipulate the actual values of a process to match predetermined setpoints, typically in real time and with remarkable precision. However, the development, modeling, tuning, and optimization of CLCSs barely exploit the potential of artificial intelligence (AI). This paper explores novel opportunities and research directions in CLCS engineering, presenting potential designs and methodologies incorporating AI. Combining these opportunities and directions makes it evident that employing AI in developing and implementing CLCSs is indeed feasible. Integrating AI into CLCS development or AI directly within CLCSs can lead to a significant improvement in stakeholder confidence. Integrating AI in CLCSs raises the question: How can AI in CLCSs be trusted so that its promising capabilities can be used safely? One does not trust AI in CLCSs due to its unknowable nature caused by its extensive set of parameters that defy complete testing. Consequently, developers working on AI-based CLCSs must be able to rate the impact of the trainable parameters on the system accurately. By following this path, this paper highlights two key aspects as essential research directions towards safe AI-based CLCSs: (I) the identification and elimination of unproductive layers in artificial neural networks (ANNs) for reducing the number of trainable parameters without influencing the overall outcome, and (II) the utilization of the solution space of an ANN to define the safety-critical scenarios of an AI-based CLCS.
Background: Multilingual children with suspected SLCN are often overlooked or their needs not accurately differentiated regarding the necessity of language support or therapy. The purpose of the study was to conceptualize, carry out and evaluate a local language support (LS) project within linguistically and culturally diverse (LCD) families and its effects on all collaborating participants.
Methods: Eight SLT students and one lecturer took part in the LS-project, alongside equivalent numbers of family liaison personnel. Students visited more than 10 young children aged between 2-6 years, and for each child 10 weekly home visits were carried out. Language enhancement was documented, several case studies with children and interviews with five liaison personnel conducted.
Results: All SLT students perceived changes in the behaviour and communication of participating children. Children in the case studies developed from pre-verbal to verbal means of communication and family liaison personnel reported positive changes alongside parental wishes to continue the support.
Conclusion: Local language support projects with LCD families can lead to positive differences regarding their children's communication development and better inclusion in mainstream society. SLT students benefit from working with LCD families and their collaborative support together with family liaison personnel, and vice versa.
Learning Outcomes: To differentiate the influence of language enhancement vs. formalized SLT therapy. To enhance the relationship with LCD clientele and collaboration with liaison personnel in SLCN settings. To incorporate life-long learning and intercultural sensitization.
Purpose
Sedentary behaviour (SED) and low level of physical activity (PA) might be associated with the development or worsening of pain. Still, studies assessing physical behaviours by accelerometry in individuals with orofacial pain are limited. This study aims to assess whether women with temporomandibular disorders (TMD) present different patterns of physical behaviours in days with (DWP) or without pain (DWoP).
Methods
Twenty-nine out of forty-four women (mean age 29.21 sd 7.96) were diagnosed with TMD and monitored over seven days using a thigh-worn accelerometer. DWP was determined when subjects presented pain in one of the craniocervical regions (head, jaw and neck) with intensity of at least 3 in the numerical rating scale. To be considered a DWoP, the individual presented less than 3 points in the three regions. Daily time-use compositions were described in terms of SED in short (<30 min) and long (≥30 min) bouts, light PA (LPA), moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), and time-in-bed. Isometric log-ratios (ilr) were calculated to express the ratio of time-in-bed to time spent awake, SED relative to LPA and MVPA, SED in short relative to long bouts, and LPA relative to MVPA. Differences between DWP and DWoP were examined using MANOVA, followed by univariate post-hoc tests of pairwise differences.
Results
During DWP, women with TMD spent more time in SED in short (239 min) and long bouts (419 min), less time in LPA (245 min), MVPA (68 min), and in bed (468 min) compared with DWoP (235, 378, 263, 70 and 493 min, respectively). The MANOVA showed that all sets of ilrs did not differ statistically (ηp2 = 0.19, p = 0.25). Still, the post-hoc tests showed a trend that time spent SED relative to LPA and MVPA was larger in DWP than in DWoP (Cohen’s d = 0.36, p = 0.05).
Conclusions
Women with TMD did not show different patterns of physical behaviours in DWP or DWoP. However, there is a trend of more sedentary behaviour and less physical activity in DWP compared to DWoP. Future studies should consider other pain intensity cut-offs, isolated pain locations, and larger sample sizes to confirm these results.
The aim of this European interprofessional Health Informatics (HI) Summer School was (i) to make advanced healthcare students familiar with what HI can offer in terms of knowledge development for patient care and (ii) to give them an idea about the underlying technical and legal mechanisms. According to the students’ evaluation, interprofessional education was very well received, problem-based learning focussing on cases was rated positively and the learning goals were met. However, it was criticised that the online material provided was rather detailed and comprehensive and could have been a bit overcharging for beginners. These drawbacks were obviously compensated by the positive experience of working in international and interprofessional groups and a generally welcoming environment.
Background and Aims
Early identification of nerve lesions and associated neuropathic pain in spine-related pain disorders is important for tailored treatment. Management may consist of surgical intervention for compressive neural lesions.
With a growing waitlist for public surgical outpatient clinics in Western Australia and wait times exceeding the recommended wait time for initial assessment (Category 1 – assessment within 1 months, Category 2 within 3 months, category 3 within 12 months), a call to support new models of care has been made1, including the evaluation and expansion of workforce models supporting advanced skills in allied health.1
An Advanced Scope Physiotherapy (ASP) led Neurosurgery Spinal Clinic operates at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Western Australia. The ASPs (2FTE) examine patients from the neurosurgery waitlist for their suitability for spinal surgery. Recommendation of either further investigation and possible assessment by a neurosurgeon or appropriate non-surgical management of the patients’ pain condition is suggested. Patient assessment is conducted either ‘in person’ at the hospital or via telehealth due to the remoteness of some rural patients. Patient cases are discussed with a neurosurgery consultant on a weekly basis. The aim of this project is to evaluate the ASP service in the year 2022.
Method
A retrospective descriptive analysis of patient data captured in 2022 was performed.
Results
In 2022, 1337 new patient referrals were managed plus 267 follow-ups from the previous year. Category 1 patients (n=81) waited on average 31 days for their first appointment, Category 2 patients (n=394) waited 76 days and Category 3 patients (n=854) waited 376 days.
287 (18%) referrals were discharged without physical assessment of the patient (DNA, cancellations, declined). Of the 1317 patients physically assessed by the ASPs (57%) were discharged directly after assessment, for 290 patients (22%) their outcome was still pending at time of analysis (March 2023) and 281 (22%) patients were referred for review with a neurosurgeon. Of the 229 patients assessed by a neurosurgeon (including patients from 2022), 103 patients (45%) were offered surgery, 52 (23%) were not offered surgery, 46 ( 20%) patients had to be reviewed, and for the remaining (n=18) their outcome was unknown.
Conclusion
Of the 1604 patients managed in the Neurosurgery Spinal Clinic, only 17% needed to see a neurosurgeon. The conversion rate to surgery of 45% is higher compared to an estimated 5%-10% in a non-triaged clinic.
The ASP model of care has proved invaluable to (i) provide access of patient care within the recommended wait times (ii) optimize neurosurgeons’ time, (iii) educate patients and, in case of non-suitability for surgery, advise and refer them for alternative appropriate management.
Relevance for Patient Care
The Advanced Scope Physiotherapy model of care at the Neurosurgery Spinal Clinic allows timely assessment of patients with spine-related disorders and supports targeted management of their condition.
Ethical Permissions
This project is registered as a Quality Improvement Project at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (QI35728) and as per the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research was exempt from review by the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Human Research and Ethics Committee
References
1Sustainable Health Review (2019). Sustainable Health Review: Final report to the Western Australian Government of Health, Western Australia
Workshop: “‘Sciatica’: neuropathic or not and does it matter? Outcomes from a NeuPSIG working group”
(2023)
The identification of neuropathic pain in persons with spine-related leg pain is important as this information guides treatment and management, including self-management. The NeuPSIG neuropathic pain grading system was developed to assist clinicians and researchers in determining whether patients have neuropathic pain and the level of confidence associated with that decision. Based on clinical and laboratory examination findings, patients are classified as having no neuropathic pain, possible, probable or definite neuropathic pain. Whereas this grading system works nicely in people with systemic neuropathies where sensory findings and diagnostic tests are mostly present, its application in patients with spine-related leg pain, particular in radicular pain, can be challenging. For example, in the absence of sensory changes and MRI findings, patients with radicular pain would at best reach a classification of possible neuropathic pain according to the current neuropathic pain grading system.
In this presentation I will explain the adaptations to the neuropathic pain grading system for spine-related leg pain recommended by the NeuPSIG working group. I will demonstrate its application in clinical practice using case studies and provide clarity for how the system can be incorporated in clinical trials. This will be an interactive session with audience participation.
In dieser Studie wird die Umsetzbarkeit von solarthermischen Großanlagen in der südafrikanischen Getränkeindustrie mit üblicherweise großen Produktionsanlagen in den Provinzen Gauteng und Western Cape untersucht. Für die technischökonomische Bewertung werden verschiedene kommerziell verfügbare Kollektortypen gegenübergestellt, charakteristische Energiebedarfsprofile für „ready-to-drink“ Getränke definiert und Simulationen in Polysun für verschiedene Konfigurationen, mit und ohne Speicher, durchgeführt. Es zeigt sich, dass Parabolrinnenkollektoren in den wichtigsten Wirtschaftszentren Südafrikas rentabel sein können, um Gas, Schweröl, Diesel und sogar Kohle zu ersetzen, Dieser Ansatz könnte breiter auf den Lebensmittel- und Getränkesektor angewendet werden, wo die meisten Dampfheizsysteme zu finden sind.
Dairy farming has been the subject of public debate on animal welfare for a number of years now. Animal welfare discussions on dairy farming often include the demand for more nature connectedness in this area. This study focuses on the divergent perspectives of consumers and scientists on the importance of more nature connectedness for animal welfare strategies in German dairy farming. Within Europe, Germany is the main producer of cow’s milk and an important industry in many rural areas in Germany is dairy farming. The insights presented are based on qualitative interviews with dairy farming and livestock researchers from Germany and Austria. A key finding of this study is that we need to look more closely at the actual content of nature claims in animal welfare debates. The scientists interviewed tend to see idealized conditions in animal welfare discussions with images of nature which in fact seldom lead to improved conditions in dairy farming and, even then, only to a limited extent. The scientists interviewed rate calls for more nature connectedness in dairy farming from the nonagricultural public as anti-modern, complexity-reducing, and normative. Nevertheless, some of the scientists interviewed did have valuable insights into the nonagricultural public’s criticism of dairy farming practices. These scientists argued, however, that animal welfare needs to differentiate between nature connectedness and the innate needs of cattle when it comes to animal welfare strategies. An important conclusion of the study is that more discussion formats are needed to promote the exchange of ideas between different social groups attempting to understand animal welfare in dairy farming.
Das Interesse am Lehrkonzept des Inverted Classroom (ICM) erfreut sich in den letzten Jahren zunehmender Beliebtheit und mit Beginn der Corona-Pandemie und dem damit verbundenen Umstieg auf Online-gestützt Lehrformate ist es noch einmal deutlich gestiegen. Beim ICM wird die Phase der Wissensvermittlung aus der Präsenzphase der traditionellen Lehrveranstaltung umgedreht: Was bisher während der gemeinsamen Veranstaltungszeit präsentiert wurde, wird nun über Texte, Videos u.a. in eine vorgelagerte Selbstlernphase aus der Veranstaltungszeit ausgelagert. Die gemeinsame Präsenzzeit wird für aktives Lernen, Vertiefung, Diskussion oder andere aktive Formate genutzt. Das Inverted Classroom Modell wird Disziplin- und veranstaltungsübergreifend in der Lehre sowohl in Schulen wie auch Hochschulen genutzt.
Die von Sutherland und Schwaber entwickelte Scrum-Methodik ist ein etabliertes Vorgehensmodell in der Software-Entwicklung und dem Projektmanagement. Scrum bietet durch definierte Rollen, Artefakte und Ereignisse einen Rahmen in dem inkrementell an der Entwicklung eines Produktes gearbeitet werden kann. Diese Inkremente werden in Arbeitszyklen (Sprints) erarbeitet, bei denen die stetige Verbesserung des Produktes und der Arbeitsweise im Fokus stehen. Mit eduScrum oder Scrum4Schools wird Scrum in die Lehre übertragen.
Es liegt auf der Hand, dass sich die Konzepte des ICM und Scrum sehr gut ergänzen und die Scrum Methodik einen formalen Rahmen für ICM bieten kann.
Der Beitrag beschreibt die Umsetzung dieser Kombination agiler Methodiken aus Scrum im Kontext des Inverted Classroom in einer Informatik-Grundlagenveranstaltung an der Hochschule Osnabrück.
Im Modul Algorithmen und Datenstrukturen ist das Inverted Classroom Modell mit der Scrum-Methodik kombiniert. Die Studierenden erarbeiten die Inhalte des Moduls im Lernmanagementsystem mithilfe von Videoaufzeichnungen, digitalem Skript und interaktiven Übungseinheiten. Der Wegfall der klassischen Vorlesung ermöglicht mehr Zeit zur Beantwortung von Fragen, Diskussionen sowie der Reflexion des Erlernten durch Hörsaal-Quizze. Die Themen der Veranstaltung werden vorgegeben, aber die Bearbeitung erfolgt individuell und die Studierenden gestalten ihre eigenen Lernprozesse. Theorie und Praxis der Veranstaltung werden analog zur Scrum-Methodik in mehrwöchigen Sprints im Team bearbeitet. Die Aufgaben sind in den Kontext einer virtuellen Betriebssystemumgebung eingebettet und bauen aufeinander auf. Das Softwareprojekt wird hierzu als GitLab-Repository zur Verfügung gestellt. Die Verwendung von Git und integrierten Test-Routinen entsprechen einer realitätsnahen Vorgehensweise, wie sie in der Softwareentwicklung allgemein gängige Praxis ist.
Wie können wir die Lehre heute gestalten, wenn wir nicht wissen, was morgen gebraucht wird?
Unter dieser Perspektive werden aktuelle Herausforderungen und Chancen universitärer Bildung betrachtet. Ausgehend von einer höheren organisatorischen Perspektive übergehend zu der Mikroperspektive einer einzelnen Lehrveranstaltung. Die Rolle von generativen KI-Systemen wird betrachtet.
Der Begriff New Learning im Kontext von New Work wird aufgegriffen und in Anlehnung an das Agile Manifesto der SW-Entwicklung wird ein agiles Manifest für die Lehre formuliert. Dieses wird in den Zusammenhang mit den sog. Zukunftskompetenzen oder Future Skills gebracht.
In der Schriftenreihe „Voneinander Lehren lernen“ publiziert das LearningCenter der Hochschule Osnabrück anwendungsbezogene Beiträge zur Qualitätsentwicklung in Studium und Lehre. Die Schriftenreihe ist an das Konzept des „Scholarship of Teaching and Learning“ (SoTL) angelehnt. Demnach soll sie insbesondere den Fachlehrenden verschiedener Studiengänge als Plattform dienen, um ihre eigenen Erfahrungen, Ideen und Konzepte zur Lehr- und Studiengangentwicklung systematisch zu reflektieren und entsprechende Erkenntnisse für andere nutzbar zu machen. Ziel ist es, den Diskurs über hochschuldidaktische Themen in die Fächer zu tragen und so die Qualität der Lehr-Lernprozesse in den Studiengängen zu fördern. In diesem vierten Band der Schriftenreihe werden Projekte der Hochschule Osnabrück beschrieben, die im Rahmen des Programms „Innovative Lehr- und Lernkonzepte: Innovation plus“ des Landes Niedersachsen gefördert wurden. Der Fokus liegt dabei auf abgeschlossenen Projekten der ersten beiden Ausschreibungsrunden. Gemeinsam ist den vorgestellten Initiativen, dass sie nicht nur das fachbezogene Lernen unterstützen, sondern auch zur Förderung überfachlicher Kompetenzen im Rahmen curricularer Lehre beitragen. Ergänzt werden die Texte der Fachlehrenden daher durch einen Aufsatz, in dem Mitarbeitende des LearningCenters diesen integrativen Ansatz und alternative Herangehensweisen zur Förderung überfachlicher Kompetenzen diskutieren.
In September 2022, the interprofessional European Summer School on the topic “Information in Healthcare – From Data to Knowledge” was held at the University of Porto. This Summer School included the topics Interoperability, Data Protection and Security and Data Analytics and consisted of an online preparation phase and an attendance phase in Porto. The didactic concept involved problem-based learning using a case study. A variety of course materials were developed and used to achieve the learning objectives. There are plans to continue the Summer School concept at participating institutions in the future, starting with a Spring School 2023 in Osnabrück.
IO6 is a report of the evaluation of the online courses and Summer School. The project plan of eHealth4all@EU guides the evaluation. The aim of the evaluation is to present the strengths and developing parts of the project. The main evaluation themes are eHealth, inter-professional education, and problem-based learning. For the funder’s perspective, evaluation focusing themes of digital support, lifelong learning, an active citizen, and the future. Evaluation of the project assign around all these themes and will find out students’ and teachers’ feelings of satisfaction, efficiency, and quality of the learning experience.
Interoperability, Data Protection and Security and Data Analytics are of high relevance for the future of eHealth and interprofessional care. Three online courses were therefore designed and delivered for these topics, all of which followed the same structure. A variety of materials were developed and different tools for knowledge transfer, communication and collaboration were used.
Primary Liver Cancers : Connecting the Dots of Cellular Studies and Epidemiology with Metabolomics
(2023)
Liver cancers are rising worldwide. Between molecular and epidemiological studies, a research gap has emerged which might be amenable to the technique of metabolomics. This review investigates the current understanding of liver cancer’s trends, etiology and its correlates with existing literature for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) and hepatoblastoma (HB). Among additional factors, the literature reports dysfunction in the tricarboxylic acid metabolism, primarily for HB and HCC, and point mutations and signaling for CCA. All cases require further investigation of upstream and downstream events. All liver cancers reported dysfunction in the WNT/β-catenin and P13K/AKT/mTOR pathways as well as changes in FGFR. Metabolites of IHD1, IDH2, miRNA, purine, Q10, lipids, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, acylcarnitine, 2-HG and propionyl-CoA emerged as crucial and there was an attempt to elucidate the WNT/β-catenin and P13K/AKT/mTOR pathways metabolomically.
The University of Eastern Finland was the responsible partner of IO1: European eHealth Education: Policy and Practice Review. The aim of this intellectual output was to customize and validate the already existing international health informatics recom-mendations. Based on that the aim was also to describe the priorities of core compe-tencies and learning outcomes particularly in the fields addressed by this project. The methods used were a scoping review and focus group interviews. The aim of the scoping review was to explore how education in health informatics (HI) has been taught by evaluating the existing international frameworks and reported ed-ucations in HI. The scoping review was conducted based on the instructions of Joanna Briggs Institute to find English language publications published between 2016 and 2020. All publications found in the bibliographical database MEDLINE via PubMed, Scopus and Web of Sciences were included. The results indicated that education in HI is essential to everyone, and everyone needs skills and knowledge in both technical and non-technical skills in HI. Education in HI should be introduced already in the first year of the education and with time increase the knowledge to a more advanced level. The teaching methods can vary between lectures in class to a more hybrid method. The aim of the online focus group interview was to investigate the needs of HI compe-tencies in health care. To achieve the answers, two main questions were used as a base of the interview. The first question focused on how knowledge and competencies in health informatics could contribute to improving health care. The second question focused on which HI competencies are seen as important to learn and how to achieve them. Online focus group interviews were conducted in each of the three countries. The interviews were done the own languages (German, Portuguese, and Finnish) and later summarized and translated to English. The focus group interviews concluded that there are challenges and possibilities in health informatics. It also highlighted the com-petencies seen as important to have in daily working life. For example, skills in appli-cations in patient care, knowledge in IT-background and IT related management are considered important.
Problem-based learning (PBL) has become established as a successful didactic approach far beyond the field of medicine. Although there is no single concept of PBL, there is agreement on its objectives and implementation. Of central importance is the case that supports autonomous and reflective learning. Even before COVID-19, digital methods were used in traditional PBL. These served to support, for example, the provision of learning materials. As a result of university closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, technical solutions were made available at an unprecedented speed, which made it possible to implement the different requirements of traditional PBL in a digital PBL (DPBL). The present study results based on two scoping reviews demonstrated that PBL can be implemented digitally and that different digital methods, both asynchronous and synchronous, are available for the different steps. They show that DPBL not only leads to comparable student performance, but can also develop further competences, e.g. digital communication. With the findings, a concept for the implementation of DPBL as well as recommendations for the further development of DPBL are available.
Hintergrund und Ziele:
In der Physio- und Ergotherapie sowie in der Logopädie in Deutschland herrscht bereits seit mehreren Jahren ein Fachkräftemangel. Die Gründe für diesen Mangel sind vielschichtig, in vorhandenen Studien werden jedoch nur einzelne Ursachen genauer beleuchtet. Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es daher auf der einen Seite, die Einflussgrößen auf die Fachkräfteentwicklung zusammenzustellen. Da durch Diskussionen immer wieder die These aufgestellt wird, dass eine Vollakademisierung einen negativen Effekt auf die Fachkräfteentwicklung hat, sollen auf der anderen Seite die Veränderungen der Studierenden-, Absolventen- und Beschäftigtenzahlen in Österreich und der Schweiz vor und nach der Akademisierung untersucht und dargestellt werden.
Methode:
Zur Untersuchung der verschiedenen Gründe für den Fachkräftemangel in den Therapieberufen wurde eine systematische Literaturrecherche im Sinne eines Scoping Reviews durchgeführt. Die Daten zu Studierenden-, Absolventen- und Beschäftigtenzahlen in Österreich und der Schweiz wurden als Sekundärdatenanalyse erhoben und interpretiert.
Ergebnisse:
Die Gründe für den Fachkräftemangel in den Therapieberufen sind viel-schichtig. Als Kategorien wurden der demografische Wandel, die Bedingungen der Ausbildung sowie die Berufsflucht recherchiert. Die Ursachen zum Verlassen des Berufes findet man in finanziellen Aspekten, den Arbeitsbedingungen insgesamt und der fehlenden Anerkennung und Wertschätzung. Die erhobenen Daten aus Österreich und der Schweiz zeigen insgesamt einen positiven Trend in den letzten Jahren. Die Studierenden- und Absolventenzahlen sind in den genannten Ländern stetig gestiegen und führten daher auch zu einer Erhöhung der Beschäftigtenzahlen.
Schlussfolgerung:
Die verschiedenen Gründe für den Fachkräftemangel konzentrieren sich grundsätzlich darauf, dass die Attraktivität der Berufsfelder gesteigert werden muss, um Schulabsolventen für die Berufe zu gewinnen und Beschäftigte im Beruf zu halten. Als Lösungsmöglichkeit wird die Akademisierung gefordert, die zu einer Attraktivitätssteigerung führen könnte. Die Zahlen aus Österreich und der Schweiz zeigen, dass es durch die Akademisierung nicht zu einem Einbruch der Zahlen von Personen in Ausbildung in den untersuchten Berufsgruppen gekommen ist und weiterhin sehr viele junge Menschen an einer akademischen Ausbildung in den Heilmittelberufen interessiert sind.
Der vorliegende Leitfaden wurde von der AG „Diversität in Studium und Lehre“ im Rahmen des hochschulweiten Strategieprozesses im Bereich „Studium und Lehre“ erstellt. Vor dem Hintergrund des im Grundsatzpapier „Das Gute besser machen: Strategie 2023 für Studium und Lehre“ (2018) behandelten Querschnittsthemas „Diversität“ sollte zum einen ein gemeinsames Verständnis von Diversität erarbeitet und zum anderen Handlungsoptionen für die Lehre gebündelt werden. Der Leitfaden enthält demnach sowohl theoretische Überlegungen zum Diversitätsverständnis als auch zahlreiche konkrete Tipps und didaktische Anregungen für eine diversitätsorientierte Lehre. Die Materialien/Methoden, auf die im Leitfaden verwiesen wird, sind in einer separaten Materialsammlung/Toolbox zu finden. Die AG wurde vom Vizepräsidenten für Studium und Lehre, Prof. Dr. Alexander Schmehmann, mit der Erstellung der Handlungsempfehlungen im April 2019 beauftragt. Sie setzt sich aus Mitgliedern aller Statusgruppen und Fakultäten zusammen.
This report summarizes and discusses the development, main achievements and overall progress of The Interprofessional European eHealth Programme in Higher Education (eHealth4all@EU) project. The project evolved through a strong partnership between members of the consortium, grounding its activities on previous initiatives like TIGER and taking them one step further while looking into the digital health competencies required by graduate students working in health and care and providing teaching approaches and other initiatives to extend further a set of core competencies: Health Information Systems Interoperability, Data Security and Privacy and Data Analytics. Although the project activities underwent during the pandemic period, a condition that forced reorganization and adaptation of the workplan, the main initiatives like the identification of significant areas of interest for digital health competencies and related relevant teaching methods that foster active learning paved the way for the construction of learning content structured around a syllabus aimed at distance learning and faceto- face learning moments developed with the intent for reuse and fostering the development of these set of competences in future Health Professionals. To this purpose, we are convinced that grounding steps have been taken with these eHealth4All@EU activities and initiatives.
Aims and Objectives:
Preventive home visits are a low-threshold counselling and support approach. They have been reported to achieve heterogeneous effects. However, preventive home visits have the potential to reduce the risk of becoming dependent on long-term care. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of preventive home visits as a nursing intervention on health-related quality of life of older people in a longitudinal survey and to develop recommendations for which target groups preventive home visits have the highest benefit. The sample consisted of 75 people, aged between 65 and 85, who were able to understand and speak German, had not yet been eligible for benefits from the long-term care insurance and lived in the municipality under study.
Methodological Design and Justification:
A quantitative longitudinal study in order to investigate the effects of preventive home visits.
Ethical Issues and Approval:
There were no ethical concerns. Accordingly, ethical approval was granted.
Research Methods, Results and Conclusions:
The health-related quality of life was recorded four times between 01/2017 and 08/2020 with the Short-Form- Health- Survey- 12 and analysed using descriptive statistics. Results reveal that the physical health status cannot be easily influenced over a short period of time. The main effect, however, is that preventive home visits have a significant positive effect on the mental health status. The main topics during the home visits were mobility, nutrition and social participation. Increased knowledge and motivation for preventive behaviour extended the autonomy of older people. Accordingly, preventive home visits can support a self-determined life in a familiar environment. The results of the present study show that preventive home visits as a nursing intervention in rural areas are successful. In Germany, preventive home visits have not yet been implemented on a regular basis. In order to do so, a general definition of the concept is needed. Preventive home visits should be officially included in the regular health care services in Germany.
Nach dem Auslaufen der 20-jährigen Förderung über eine Einspeisevergütung im Rahmen des Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetzes (EEG) gibt es für deutsche Biogasanlagen diverse technische Möglichkeiten für einen Weiterbetrieb. Neben der Wirtschaftlichkeit sind die Anlagenbetreibenden ein wesentlicher Entscheidungsfaktor für den Weiterbetrieb der Anlage. Somit ergibt sich die zentrale Fragestellung „Welche Treiber und Hemmnisse für Betreibende von Bestandsbiogasanlagen in Deutschland bestehen in den verschiedenen Nutzungspfaden für Biogas, sowie für kooperative Geschäftsmodelle?“. Die Erkenntnisse können unter anderem dafür genutzt werden, die Situation der Anlagenbetreibenden besser zu verstehen, um notwendige Unterstützung für einen Weiterbetrieb, beispielsweise durch Kommunen, zur Verfügung stellen zu können.
While developing traffic-based cognitive enhancement technology (CET), such as bike accident prevention systems, it can be challenging to test and evaluate them properly. After all, the real-world scenario could endanger the subjects’ health and safety. Therefore, a simulator is needed, preferably one that is realistic yet low cost. This paper introduces a way to use the video game Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V) and its sophisticated traffic system as a base to create such a simulator, allowing for the safe and realistic testing of dangerous traffic situations involving cyclists, cars, and trucks. The open world of GTA V, which can be explored on foot and via various vehicles, serves as an immersive stand-in for the real world. Custom modification scripts of the game give the researchers control over the experiment scenario and the output data to be evaluated. An off-the-shelf bicycle equipped with three sensors serves as a realistic input device for the subject’s movement direction and speed. The simulator was used to test two early-stage CET concepts enabling cyclists to sense dangerous traffic situations, such as trucks approaching from behind the cyclist. Thus, this paper also presents the user evaluation of the cycling simulator and the CET used by the subjects to sense dangerous traffic situations. With the knowledge of the first iteration of the user-centered design (UCD) process, this paper concludes by naming improvements for the cycling simulator and discussing further research directions for CET that enable users to sense dangerous situations better.
Lab@Home ist eine Open-Source-Experimentierplattform für Laborpraktika in der Regelungstechnik, der Automationstechnik und der Informatik. Sie besteht aus einer elektronisch-mechanischen Bau-gruppe, einer webbasierten Experimentiersoftware sowie der Dokumentation verschiedener differen-zierbarer Lernmodule. Die Bauteile für eine Einheit kosten unter 30€ und können innerhalb von 30min zusammengebaut werden. Für die Durchführung der Experimente stehen eine webbasierte Be-nutzerschnittstelle (WebApp) und eine Schnittstelle zu WinFACT Boris zur Verfügung. Lab@Home wird seit mehreren Semestern in verschiedenen Lehrveranstaltungen erfolgreich eingesetzt.
The energy transition involves various challenges. One key aspect is the decentralization of power generation, which requires new actors. In order to integrate these into the system in the best possible way, there are various approaches e.g. in cooperation in citizens' initiatives or cooperatives (Dorniok, 2016).
Cooperation in general can enable the implementation of certain business models or can increase profitability by the exploitation of economies of scale (Skovsgaard & Jacobsen, 2017; Theurl, 2010). Synergy effects result from the utilization of know-how, different technologies or resources of the partners involved to complement the own competencies and services (Eggers & Engelbrecht, 2005; Sander, 2009). Cooperation exists in various industries and enable the participating companies to compensate their size-related resource deficits (Glaister & Buckley, 1996; Todeva & Knoke, 2005). This creates the opportunity to develop innovations, open up new markets, exploit newly created economies of scale and share costs and risks (Franco & Haase, 2015). In agriculture, cooperation in the form of cooperatives have been of essential importance for a long time, especially with the aim of exploiting synergy effects (Bareille et al., 2017). In the field of renewable energy development, cooperation in form of citizen cooperatives make a significant contribution to the participation of citizens in political, social and financial aspects of the energy transition (Huybrechts & Mertens, 2014). Energy cooperatives are frequently discussed as a potential actor in the energy transition and are increasingly being established to advance the common interests of stakeholders. For example, the joint operation of decentralized power generation plants can involve new actors in the energy transition through regional cooperation (Walk, 2014).
Existing biogas plants in Germany need new business models after the 20-year Renewable Energy Sources Act feed-in tariff expires. For continued operation, a business model innovation is needed, which can be realized based on the different technical utilization pathways. Cooperation can have a significant impact on the profitability of the different business models, especially by exploiting synergy effects (Karlsson et al., 2019). In addition, cooperation can help to ensure that existing plants continue to operate at all.
Currently, the most widespread use of biogas in Germany is in the coupled generation of electricity and heat. Additionally, there is the possibility of upgrading biogas to biomethane or biogenic hydrogen path (Mertins & Wawer, 2022).
Different options for cooperative business models that exist in the biogas utilization pathways are presented. The focus is on explaining the advantages of a joint approach compared to single-farm business models and identifying the relevant actors. Subsequently, drivers and barriers for the different cooperative business models are identified and classified based on 20 semi-structured interviews with plant operators in the administrative district of Osnabrück. The aim is to identify drivers and barriers for cooperative post-EEG operation. As a result, political instruments are to be found that make it possible to involve relevant actors and thus stimulate the best possible continued operation from the point of view of the energy system. The results are structured according to the PESTEL analysis. This assigns drivers and barriers to the categories political, economic, sociocultural, technological, ecological and legal (Kaufmann, 2021). The analysis of the interviews is supplemented and validated by a literature review.
Drivers and barriers for cooperative business models are manifold and can vary mainly depending on the plant and the operator.
Drivers
• Political
o Promotion of renewable energies: reduce dependence on fossil (Russian) fuels
• Economic
o Expectation of synergies (information sharing, shared risk, economies of scale)
o Planning security (fixed supply or purchase contracts)
o Access to new markets (not accessible by single-farm business models)
o Cost savings by sharing infrastructure, technology
o Positive return expectation
• Sociocultural
o Motivating, innovative environment
o Lowers barriers to participation in new markets
o Target-oriented partnerships
o Better use of capacities and strengths
o Strengthening regional value creation
• Technological
o Economies of scale (efficiency)
o Available, mature technology
o Storable, transportable gas
o Well-developed infrastructure
• Ecological
o Increase in plant efficiency
o Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
o Promotion of the circular economy by utilization of organic waste and agricultural residues
o Improving soil quality (fermentation residues as fertilizer)
Barriers
• Political
o Competition to other renewable energies
• Economic
o Uncertainty about future development of energy markets
o Disagreements between the cooperation partners
o Lack of flexibility due to longer-term contractual obligations
o Allocation of profits
• Sociocultural
o Cooperation with current competitor
o Cultural differences and lack of trust
o Acceptance by the general public (e.g. overproduction of maize)
• Technological
o Different technology that is difficult to combine
o Data protection
• Ecological
o Competition for agricultural land
o Use of monocultures
o Emissions from plant
o Pollution from transport
• Legal
o Legal requirements and regulations
o Unfavorable regulatory environment, e.g. long permitting process
One finding is that uncertainty is a major barrier for plant operators. This includes uncertainty about regulatory frameworks and political requirements, as well as about the general development of the energy markets. In addition, social factors such as lack of reliability and disagreement about revenue sharing are a potential barrier. A key driver for the implementation of cooperative business models is the expectation of synergy effects. In addition, operators are driven by a positive expectation of returns and the responsibility for securing the energy supply in times of crisis.
The drivers identified can now be used to develop strategies to advance cooperative business models. In particular, synergy effects should be exploited so that operators can benefit from cooperation. The advantages can also be highlighted and communicated to increase acceptance among the general public. Another important step is to reduce the barriers discussed above. In order to reduce social barriers in particular, it may be advisable to include an external partner in the cooperation, such as a municipal utility that operates an upgrading plant and concludes purchase agreements with the individual partners. In addition, it would be politically expedient to provide the operators with a clear framework for the future in order to reduce uncertainties. As a further aspect, knowledge transfer on new technologies and markets should take place.