Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heimburger, H.

1988-08-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ottosson, C.

1989-05-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haenninen, R.; Koponen, H.; Nevander, O.; Paltemaa, R.; Poellaenen, I.; Rannila, P.; Valtonen, K.; Vilkamo, O.

1988-02-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haenninen, R.

1988-09-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hzard to the personnel or the environment

Hypertension guideline implementation: experiences of Finnish primary care nurses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alanen, Seija; Ijäs, Jarja; Kaila, Minna

2008-01-01

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Evidence-based guidelines on hypertension have been developed in many western countries. Yet, there is little evidence of their impact on the clinical practices of primary care nurses. METHOD: We assessed the style of implementation and adoption of the national...... Hypertension Guideline (HT Guideline) in 32 Finnish health centres classified in a previous study as 'disseminators' (n = 13) or 'implementers' (n = 19). A postal questionnaire was sent to all nurses (n = 409) working in the outpatient services in these health centres. Additionally, senior nursing officers...... were telephoned to enquire if the implementation of the HT Guideline had led to a new division of labour between nurses and doctors. RESULTS: Questionnaires were returned from 327 nurses (80.0%), while all senior nursing officers (n = 32) were contacted. The majority of nurses were of the opinion...

Integrating mental health services: the Finnish experience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ville Lehtinen

2001-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to give a short description of the most important developments of mental health services in Finland during the 1990s, examine their influences on the organisation and provision of services, and describe shortly some national efforts to handle the new situation. The Finnish mental health service system experienced profound changes in the beginning of the 1990s. These included the integration of mental health services, being earlier under own separate administration, with other specialised health services, decentralisation of the financing of health services, and de-institutionalisation of the services. The same time Finland underwent the deepest economic recession in Western Europe, which resulted in cut-offs especially in the mental health budgets. Conducting extensive national research and development programmes in the field of mental health has been one typically Finnish way of supporting the mental health service development. The first of these national programmes was the Schizophrenia Project 1981–97, whose main aims were to decrease the incidence of new long-term patients and the prevalence of old long-stay patients by developing an integrated treatment model. The Suicide Prevention Project 1986–96 aimed at raising awareness of this special problem and decreasing by 20% the proportionally high suicide rate in Finland. The National Depression Programme 1994–98 focused at this clearly increasing public health concern by several research and development project targeted both to the general population and specifically to children, primary care and specialised services. The latest, still on-going Meaningful Life Programme 1998–2003 which main aim is, by multi-sectoral co-operation, to improve the quality of life for people suffering from or living with the threat of mental disorders. Furthermore, the government launched in 1999 a new Goal and Action Programme for Social Welfare and Health Care 2000–2003, in

Safety-related occurrences at the Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viitasaari, O.; Rantavaara, A.

1984-03-01

This report contains detailed descriptions of operating incidents and other safety-related matters at the Finnish nuclear power plants regarded as significant by the regulatory authority, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety. In this connection, an account is given of the practical actions caused by the incidents, and their significance to reactor safety is evaluated. The main features of the incidents are also described in the general Quartely Report for this period, Operation of Finnish Nuclear Power Plants (STL-B-RTO-83/7), which is supplemented by this report intended principally for experts. (author)

Finnish Kalevala and Estonian Kalevipoeg / Jaan Puhvel

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

Puhvel, Jaan, 1932-

2003-01-01

Tõlgitud kogumikust: The world of the Kalevala : essays in celebration of the 150 year jubilee of the publication of the Finnish national epic / ed. Kai Laitinen. Los Angeles : UCLA Centre for the Study of Folklore & Mythology, 1987

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reponen, H.; Viitasaari, O.

1985-01-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants in the second quarter of the year 1984 concentrates on such events and discoveries related to reactor and radiation safety that the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as significant. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment and tabulated data on the production and availability of the plants. (author)

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reponen, H.; Viitasaari, O.

1985-05-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants in the third quarter of the year 1984 concentrates on such events and discoveries related to reactor and radiation safety that the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as significant. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment and tabulated data on the production and capacity factors of the plants. (author)

Doctor-patient interaction in Finnish primary health care as perceived by first year medical students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mäntyselkä Pekka

2005-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In Finland, public health care is the responsibility of primary health care centres, which render a wide range of community level preventive, curative and rehabilitative medical care. Since 1990's, medical studies have involved early familiarization of medical students with general practice from the beginning of the studies, as this pre-clinical familiarisation helps medical students understand patients as human beings, recognise the importance of the doctor-patient relationship and identify practicing general practitioners (GPs as role models for their professional development. Focused on doctor-patient relationship, we analysed the reports of 2002 first year medical students in the University of Kuopio. The students observed GPs' work during their 2-day visit to primary health care centres. Methods We analysed systematically the texts of 127 written reports of 2002, which represents 95.5% of the 133 first year pre-clinical medical students reports. The reports of 2003 (N = 118 and 2004 (N = 130 were used as reference material. Results Majority of the students reported GPs as positive role models. Some students reported GPs' poor attitudes, which they, however, regarded as a learning opportunity. Students generally observed a great variety of responsibilities in general practice, and expressed admiration for the skills and abilities required. They appreciated the GPs' interest in patients concerns. GPs' communication styles were found to vary considerably. Students reported some factors disturbing the consultation session, such as the GP staring at the computer screen and other team members entering the room. Working with marginalized groups, the chronically and terminally ill, and dying patients was seen as an area for development in the busy Finnish primary health care centres. Conclusion During the analysis, we discovered that medical students' perceptions in this study are in line with the previous findings about the

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1994-06-01

Quarterly reports on the operation of the Finnish NPPs describe nuclear and radiation safety related events and observations which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety considers significant. Safety improvements at the plants and general matters relating to the use of nuclear energy are also reported. A summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and the environment, and tabulated data on the plants' production and load factors are also given. One event during the last quarter of 1993 was rated on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) as level 1. During this event at Loviisa 2, the secondary circuit emergency feedwater system was erroneously isolated from automatic start-up readiness. The error went unnoticed for 4.5 hours. During 1993 one level 2 incident and three level 1 incidents occurred at the Finnish NPPs. (8 figs., 4 tabs.)

Late-life functional capacity and health among Finnish war veterans:Veteran Project 1992 and 2004 surveys

OpenAIRE

Leskinen, R. (Riitta)

2015-01-01

Abstract Becoming involved in war is an experience that has the potential to shape later-life health. The aim of the present study was to explore Finnish Second World War veterans’ health status and the determinants of self-rated health (SRH) and functional capacity, especially the ability to walk, and to identify risk factors and their combinations that predict late-life mortality among veterans. The study population comprised Finnish Second World War veterans who participated in the ...

Exporting Finnish teacher education: Transnational pressures on national models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jennifer Chung

2017-07-01

Full Text Available This article analyses empirical data to assess the possible transfer of Finnish teacher education policy, and more specifically, the university training school, into another context. Transnational organisations increasingly pressure nation-states to carry out education policy change, especially due to dissatisfaction with international assessment outcomes. As a high performer in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA, administered by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD, Finland has been at the centre of international attention. PISA revealed that the high quality of Finnish teachers contributes to the overall calibre of the country’s education system. Thus, Finnish teacher education has become a model for other education systems. This article uses empirical research to explore the export possibilities of the Finnish normaalikoulu, or university training school. It implements qualitative methodology, using semi-structured interviews with Finnish educationalists to explore the possible export of Finnish education, the implications in terms of policy transfer, and the migration of ideas, specifically the university-affiliated, teacher training school. The export and migration of Finnish education and its impact on education policy are discussed in this article, along with educational export’s position in transnational policy formation.

Reporting nuclear power plant operation to the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

The Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear safety (STUK) is the authority in Finland responsible for controlling the safety of the use of nuclear energy. The control includes, among other things, inspection of documents, reports and other clarification submitted to the STUK, and also independent safety analyses and inspections at the plant site. The guide presents what reports and notifications of the operation of the nuclear facilities are required and how they shall be submitted to the STUK. The guide does not cover reports to be submitted on nuclear material safeguards addressed in the guide YVL 6.10. Guide YVL 6.11 presents reporting related to the physical protection of nuclear power plants. Monitoring and reporting of occupational exposure at nuclear power plants is presented in the guide YVL 7.10 and reporting on radiological control in the environment of nuclear power plants in the guide YVL 7.8

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lehtinen, Pekka

1987-05-01

These general reviews of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrate on such events and discoveries related to reactor and radiation safety that the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the perssonnel or the environment. For remedying certain defects found in the administrative procedures concerning plant operation and maintenance, the Loviisa power plant was shut down for several days

Co-occurrence of substance use related and mental health problems in the Finnish social and health care system.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuussaari, Kristiina; Hirschovits-Gerz, Tanja

2016-03-01

Many studies have noted that substance abuse and mental health problems often occur simultaneously. The aim of the work reported here was to study the co-occurrence of mental health problems and problems related to substance use in a sample of clients visiting the Finnish social and health care services for issues related to substance use. We collected background information on the clients and considered the parts of the treatment system in which these clients were treated. Survey data on intoxicant-related cases in the Finnish health care and social services were gathered on a single day in 2011. During the 24 hours of data collection, all intoxicant-related cases were reported and data were obtained for 11,738 intoxicant-related cases. In this analysis we took into account the clients' background variables, mental health variables, information on the treatment type and the main reasons for the client being in treatment. The χ(2) test, Fisher's exact test and binary logistic regression analysis were used. Half of the visiting clients had both substance use related and mental health problems. The strongest factors associated with the co-occurrence of substance use related and mental health problems were female sex, younger age and single marital status. Clients with co-occurring problems were more often treated in the health care services, whereas clients with only substance use related problems were primarily treated in specialized services for the treatment of substance abuse. It is important to identify clients with co-occurring substance use related and mental health problems. In this study, half of the clients presenting to the Finnish social and health care treatment system had both these problems. © 2015 the Nordic Societies of Public Health.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lehtinen, Pekka

1987-07-01

These general reviews of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrate on such events and discoveries related to reactor and radiation safety that the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. No event in the report period, or in the whole year of 1986, essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment. For remedying certain defects found in the adminstrative procedures concerning plant operation and maintenance, the Loviisa power plant was shut down for several days in September

Health and behavioral survey of over 8000 Finnish cats

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katariina Vapalahti

2016-08-01

Full Text Available A comprehensive feline health survey was conducted to reveal breed-specific inheritable diseases in Finnish pedigree cats for genetic research. Prevalences of 19 disease categories and 227 feline diseases were defined in a study population of 8175 cats belonging to 30 breeds. Dental and oral diseases with a prevalence of 28% and dental calculus and gingivitis (21% and 8%, respectively were the most prevalent disease category and diseases among all cats and in most of the breeds. An exception was Korats, which were more often affected by the diseases of the respiratory tract (23% and asthma (19%. Other prevalent disease categories affected various organ systems such as the skin (12%, the urinary system (12%, the digestive tract (11%, eyes, (10%, the musculoskeletal system (10%, and genitals of female cats (17%. Prevalent health or developmental issues included repetitive vomiting (4%, tail kink (4%, feline odontoclastic resorption lesion (FORL (4%, urinary tract infections (4%, as well as caesarean section (6% and stillborn kittens (6% among female cats. We found 57 breed-specific conditions by Fisher’s exact tests and logistic regression analyses, including 32 previously described and 19 new breed-specific diseases. The genetic defect has already been found in six of them: polycystic kidney disease (PKD, progressive retinal atrophy (PRA, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM and three types of tail malformations. Behavioral profiling revealed breed-specific traits, such as an increased human avoidance in British Short and Longhairs and a higher level of aggression in Turkish vans. Our epidemiological study reveals the overall health profile in Finnish pure and mixed breed cats and identifies many breed-specific conditions without molecular identity for genetic research.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3rd quarter, 1994

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tossavainen, K. [ed.

1995-03-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe nuclear and radiation safety related events and observations which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants and general matters relating to the use of nuclear energy are also reported. A summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment, and tabulated data on the plants` production and load factors are also given. (4 figs., 4 tabs.).

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3rd quarter, 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1995-03-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe nuclear and radiation safety related events and observations which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants and general matters relating to the use of nuclear energy are also reported. A summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment, and tabulated data on the plants' production and load factors are also given. (4 figs., 4 tabs.)

Public health care providers and market competition: the case of Finnish occupational health services.

Science.gov (United States)

Kankaanpää, Eila; Linnosmaa, Ismo; Valtonen, Hannu

2011-02-01

As reforms in publicly funded health systems rely heavily on competition, it is important to know if and how public providers react to competition. In many European countries, it is empirically difficult to study public providers in different markets, but in Finnish occupational health services, both public and private for-profit and non-profit providers co-exist. We studied possible differences in public providers' performance (price, intensity of services, service mix-curative medical services/prevention, productivity and revenues) according to the competitiveness of the market. The Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (FIOH) collected data on clients, services and personnel for 1992, 1995, 1997, 2000 and 2004 from occupational health services (OHS) providers. Employers defray the costs of OHS and apply for reimbursement from the Social Insurance Institution (SII). The SII data was merged with FIOH's questionnaire. The unbalanced panel consisted of about 230 public providers, totalling 1,164 observations. Local markets were constructed from several municipalities based on commuting practices and regional collaboration. Competitiveness of the market was measured by the number of providers and by the Herfindahl index. The effect of competition was studied by ordinary least square regression analysis and panel models. The more competitive the environment was for a public provider the higher were intensity, productivity and the share of medical care. Fixed panel models showed that these differences were not due to differences and changes in the competitiveness of the market. Instead, in more competitive markets public providers had higher unit prices and higher revenues.

Finnish energy technology programmes 1998

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-12-01

The Finnish Technology Development Centre (Tekes) is responsible for the financing of research and development in the field of energy production technology. A considerable part of the financing goes to technology programmes. Each technology programme involves major Finnish institutions - companies, research institutes, universities and other relevant interests. Many of the energy technology programmes running in 1998 were launched collectively in 1993 and will be completed at the end of 1998. They are complemented by a number of other energy-related technology programmes, each with a timetable of its own. Because energy production technology is horizontal by nature, it is closely connected with research and development in other fields, too, and is an important aspect in several other Tekes technology programmes. For this reason this brochure also presents technology programmes where energy is only one of the aspects considered but which nevertheless contribute considerably to research and development in the energy production sector

"Virtuoso Ideal Daddy": Finnish Children's Perceptions of Good Fatherhood

Science.gov (United States)

Hietanen, Riika; Määttä, Kaarina; Uusiautti, Satu

2013-01-01

Changes in family structures, such as the increase in the number of cohabiting couples, divorces, and blended families pose new challenges for fatherhood and research on fatherhood has been mainly adult-centred. This research studied how Finnish children perceive good fatherhood and what expectations they set for fathers. The following research…

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 3. quarter 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koponen, H.

1989-02-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environment

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 2. quarter 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koponen, H.

1988-12-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel or the environement

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3. quarter 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haenninen, R.

1988-06-01

This general review of the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants concentrates on such events and discoveries related to nuclear and radiation safety as the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, regards as noteworthy. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the report period, no event essentially degraded plant safety nor posed a radiation hazard to the personnel o the environment

Communications highlights of the Finnish nuclear industry in 1997

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heininen-Ojanperae, Marke

1998-01-01

Full text: The Poster will contain two major issues i.e. description of the information Centre Renovation Project at Loviisa Power Plant and a presentation with material of the Sunray III Project. The Sunray Project: The Sunray Project is a national radiation project intended for all ninth graders in the Finnish school system. The project started two years ago. Attention has been focused on the topic of radiation. The topic has been dealt with in connection with different subject as history, English, Swedish, French, Finnish, mathematics, physics, chemistry, geography, health and home economics, as well as vocational counselling. The aim of the project is to provide extensive information on the subject of radiation and radioactivity, to investigate benefits and disadvantages and to help pupils understand units and see things in correct proportions. Sunray I focused on radon, Sunray II on light. Sunray III will start this autumn and its main theme will be risk perception. The programme of the Sunray III is structured as follows: Part One: Articles on risk provided by experts from different fields. Part Two: A risk management game Part Three: A special view on natural radiation. The project is coordinated by Economic Information Bureau in cooperation with the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety and two major power companies Imatran Voima and Teollisuuden Voima. The coordinator of the Sunray III Project is Mr. Matti Lattu. The Information Centre Renovation Project (ICRP) The ICRP has been a two-year project which was completed for the 20th anniversary celebration of Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant in February 1997. The main emphasis was to harness the local natural environment as much as possible. The focal point of the project was presented by a new, large-sized map as a water-colour painting (a printed version), a bird-eye view of the Haestholinen Island environment. The information signs system was completely renewed. A large sea-water aquarium containing

Finnish NGOs promoting health equity in the context of welfare economy.

Science.gov (United States)

Rouvinen-Wilenius, Päivi; Ahokas, Jussi; Kiukas, Vertti; Aalto-Kallio, Mervi

2018-04-05

Health inequality is a national challenge in Finland. The WHO global strategy of Health for All implies that all people should have an equal opportunity to develop and maintain their health through fair and just access to health resources. This article examines the role of Finnish Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) in strengthening the health equity. The article presents the strategy and specific criteria constructed by the NGOs to promote health equity in society. The health equity criteria and welfare economy strategy are combined to a framework which NGOs can utilize in their work to promote health equity. The welfare economy strategy describes the important issues that NGOs have to address when working towards a specific societal goal, in this case equity. The health equity criteria in turn are an instrument for the practical implementation of the preconditions of equity.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1990-03-01

In the Quarterly Reports on the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants such incidents and observations are described relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the regulatory body, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, considers safety-related. During the third quarter of 1989 the Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 and TVO I and II were in commercial operation for most of the time. Nuclear electricity accounted for 39.0% of the total Finnish electricity production in this quarter. The load factor average of the nuclear power plant units was 78.9%. At Loviisa 1, two holes were found in the feedwater distributor of one steam generator. Corresponding wall thinning corrosion was also detected in the walls of two other distributors. The holes were found on the feedwater distributor upper surface in the joint of the secondary circuit feedwater pipe. One hole was about 20 mm x 50 mm in size and the other was a pit hole ca 5 mm in diameter. Metal power had entered the primary circuit at TVO I. This was observed during a post-scram plant start-up. Several control rod drive units had become jammed so tight that control rod withdrawal failed. Metal powder did not hamper reactor scram under the prevailing circumstances because the drive units are prone to jamming only after a control rod is almost fully inserted and because the forces which insert a control rod by various means (electrical, hydraulic) are 6-8 fold compared with the withdrawing force

Psychometric properties of the Finnish version of the Women's Health Questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Katainen, Riina E; Engblom, Janne R; Vahlberg, Tero J; Polo-Kantola, Päivi

2017-08-01

The Women's Health Questionnaire (WHQ) is a validated and commonly used instrument for measuring climacteric-related symptoms. A revised version was previously developed. However, validation in a Finnish population is lacking. As it is important to use qualified instruments, we performed a validation study of the WHQ in a Finnish population. In all, 3,421 women, aged 41 to 54 years, formed the study population. In the original 36-item WHQ, the items were rated on a 1 to 4 scale and on a binary scale (0-1). The scaling of the revised 23-item WHQ was 0 to 100. We evaluated the psychometric properties (internal consistency, correlations between the symptom domains, factor structure, and sampling adequacy) in all three versions. For the 1 to 4 scale and on the revised version of the WHQ, the internal consistency was acceptable (the Cronbach's α coefficients >0.70) for most of the domains. On the binary scale, the majority of the coefficient values were below the acceptable level. The original symptom domains, especially those on the revised version, were recognizable from the factors in the exploratory factor analysis, but there were some limitations. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin values were high. The WHQ is a valid instrument for measuring climacteric-related symptoms in Finnish middle-aged women. The psychometric properties of the revised 23-item WHQ were as good or even better than those of the original 36-item WHQ. Thus, we encourage use of the revised version.

Users and non-users of web-based health advice service among Finnish university students – chronic conditions and self-reported health status (a cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Castrén Johanna

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Internet is increasingly used by citizens as source of health information. Young, highly educated adults use the Internet frequently to search for health-related information. Our study explores whether reported chronic conditions or self-reported health status differed among Finnish university students using the Finnish Student Health Services web-based health advice service compared with those not using the service. Methods Cross-sectional study performed by a national postal survey in 2004. Material: A random sample (n = 5 030 of a population of 101 805 undergraduate Finnish university students aged 19–35. The response rate: 63% (n = 3 153. Main outcome measures: Proportion of university students reporting use a of web-based health advice service, diagnosed chronic conditions, and self-reported health status of users and non-users of a web-based health advice service. Statistical methods: Data were presented with frequency distributions and cross-tabulations and the χ2 test was used. Results 12% (n = 370 of Finnish undergraduate students had used the web-based health advice service and were identified as 'users'. The proportion of male students reporting allergic rhinitis or conjunctivitis was greater among users than non-users (24%, n = 22 vs. 15%, n = 154, χ2, P = .03. The proportion of female students reporting chronic mental health problems was greater among users than non-users (12%, n = 34 vs. 8%, n = 140, χ2, P = .03. There was no statistical significance between the group differences of male or female users and non-users in self-reported health status (good or fairly good, average, rather poor or poor. Conclusion Among young, highly educated adults the use of a web-based health advice service is not associated with self-reported health status. However, a web-based health advice service could offer support for managing several specific chronic conditions. More research data is needed to evaluate the role of

Finnish energy technologies for the future

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2007-01-01

The global energy sector is going through major changes: the need for energy is growing explosively, while at the same time climate change is forcing US to find new, and cleaner, ways to generate energy. Finland is one of the forerunners in energy technology development, partly because of its northern location and partly thanks to efficient innovations. A network of centres of expertise was established in Finland in 1994 to boost the competitiveness and internationalisation of Finnish industry and, consequently, that of the EU region. During the expertise centre programme period 2007-2013, substantial resources will be allocated to efficient utilisation of top level expertise in thirteen selected clusters of expertise. The energy cluster, focusing on developing energy technologies for the future, is one of these

FIN-EPOS - Finnish national initiative of the European Plate Observing System: Bringing Finnish solid Earth infrastructures into EPOS

Science.gov (United States)

Vuorinen, Tommi; Korja, Annakaisa

2017-04-01

FIN-EPOS consortium is a joint community of Finnish national research institutes tasked with operating and maintaining solid-earth geophysical and geological observatories and laboratories in Finland. These national research infrastructures (NRIs) seek to join EPOS research infrastructure (EPOS RI) and further pursue Finland's participation as a founding member in EPOS ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium). Current partners of FIN-EPOS are the University of Helsinki (UH), the University of and Oulu (UO), Finnish Geospatial Research Institute (FGI) of the National Land Survey (NLS), Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), Geological Survey of Finland (GTK), CSC - IT Center for Science and MIKES Metrology at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd. The consortium is hosted by the Institute of Seismology, UH (ISUH). The primary purpose of the consortium is to act as a coordinating body between various NRIs and the EPOS RI. FIN-EPOS engages in planning and development of the national EPOS RI and will provide support in EPOS implementation phase (IP) for the partner NRIs. FIN-EPOS also promotes the awareness of EPOS in Finland and is open to new partner NRIs that would benefit from participating in EPOS. The consortium additionally seeks to advance solid Earth science education, technologies and innovations in Finland and is actively engaging in Nordic co-operation and collaboration of solid Earth RIs. The main short term objective of FIN-EPOS is to make Finnish geoscientific data provided by NRIs interoperable with the Thematic Core Services (TCS) in the EPOS IP. Consortium partners commit into applying and following metadata and data format standards provided by EPOS. FIN-EPOS will also provide a national Finnish language web portal where users are identified and their user rights for EPOS resources are defined.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1993-09-01

Quarterly reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations, relating to nuclear safety and radiation protection which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety considers safety significant. Safety-enhancing modifications at the nuclear power plants and issues relating to the use of nuclear energy which are of general interest are also reported. The reports include a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. In the first quarter of 1993, a primary feedwater system pipe break occurred at Loviisa 2, in a section of piping after a feedwater pump. The break was erosion-corrosion induced. Repairs and inspections interrupted power generation for seven days. On the International Nuclear Event Scale the event is classified as a level 2 incident. Other events in the first quarter of 1993 had no bearing on nuclear safety and radiation protection

Trends in Socioeconomic Differences in Finnish Perinatal Health 1991-2006

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gissler, Mika; Rahkonen, Ossi; Arntzen, Annett

2009-01-01

singletons recorded between 1991 and 2006 in the Finnish Medical Birth Register. Information on socioeconomic position was based on maternal occupation. Perinatal health was measured with six different indicators. RESULTS: The proportions of preterm, low-birth weight and SGA (small-for-gestational......-age) births remained stable during the study period, but decreased for LGA (large-for-gestational-age) births and perinatal death. After adjustment for maternal background variables, the socioeconomic differences in preterm and low-birth weight births decreased in the late 1990s and remained low thereafter...

Ensuring the operational safety of finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vuorinen, A.

1991-01-01

The Finnish nuclear energy programme has been successful both from the safety and economical point of view. These achievements are based on different factors which are discussed in the paper. Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) has specified the technical requirements and procedures to be followed in the design, construction, commissioning and operation of NPPs in a series of guides. The guides are quite demanding and latest results of safety research and technical development are taken into account. Regulatory supervision of Finnish NPPs is comprehensive. As an example of this the regulatory inspection program for operational phase is presented. An important way to ensure operational safety of a NPP is to define a set of limits and conditions to identify limiting safety envelope for plant operation. Practices in Finland are reviewed in the paper. The strategy of Defence in Depth is amongst the fundamental principles of nuclear safety. Two corollary principles of defence of depth are accident prevention and accident mitigation. Means used in following these principles are discussed. (author)

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 2nd quarter 1996

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sillanpaeae, T.

1996-11-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants are also described. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment and tabulated data on the plants' production and load factors. In the second quarter of 1996, the Finnish nuclear power plant units were in power operation except for the annual maintenance outages of TVO plant units and the Midsummer shutdown at TVO II which was due to low electricity demand, a turbine generator inspection and repairs. The load factor average of all plant units was 88.9 %. Events in the second quarter of 1996 were classified level 0 on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES)

Health risks, social relations and class: an analysis of occupational health discourse in Finnish newspaper and women's magazine articles 1961-2008.

Science.gov (United States)

Varje, Pekka; Väänänen, Ari

2016-03-01

In this article we examine the treatment of psychosocial risks in public occupational health discourse in Finnish newspaper and magazine articles between the 1960s and 2000s, using discourse analysis. Building on class theories, our aim is to investigate how class expectations have been linked with the redefinition of occupational health risks during this period. Our results suggest that as social relations at the workplace became problematised in the occupational health discussions after the 1970s, the image of the hierarchical and naturally conflictual organisation was replaced by idealised middle-class notions of smoothly functioning, harmonious organisations that offered rewarding work experiences. However, this same period since the late 1970s has also been characterised by increasing economic competition and neoliberal market ideology. We conclude that the concern about work-related psychosocial risks and health problems expressed in Finnish newspaper and magazine articles during the last three decades has been shaped in many respects by a collision between the dominant middle-class expectations of harmony and equality and the neoliberal production of competition and inequality. © 2015 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness.

From Canon to Chaos Management: Blogging as a Learning Tool in a Modern Finnish Literature Course

Science.gov (United States)

Jokinen, Elina; Vaarala, Heidi

2015-01-01

This article is based on the teaching experiment implemented in summer 2013 in a modern Finnish literature course organised by the Centre for International Mobility (CIMO) and the University of Jyväskylä Language Centre. In order to break away from the traditional conception of literature and text, students' independent blogging was chosen as the…

Cultural Differences in the Health Information Environments and Practices between Finnish and Japanese University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Askola, Kreetta; Atsushi, Toshimori; Huotari, Maija-Leena

2010-01-01

Introduction: The aim of this study was to identify cultural differences in the information environment and information practices, namely active seeking and encountering, of web-based health information between Finnish and Japanese university students. Method: The data were gathered with a Web-based survey among first-year university students at…

The 1993 Finnish Interdisciplinary Seminar on SETI - A review of aims, approaches and conclusions

Science.gov (United States)

Seppanen, Jouko

1993-10-01

The communications of the International Interdisciplinary Seminar on SETI, held on March 6-7, 1993 in Vantaa, Finland, are reviewed and the contents and conclusions of papers summarized. The seminar was organized jointly by the Finnish Artificial Intelligence Society (FAIS), Finnish Astronomical Society, Ursa Astronomical Association and Heureka - The Finnish Science Centre. As the ninth in a series of intelligence-related seminars of FAIS, SETI was chosen as the topic for spring 1993, noting the new ten year NASA SETI program HRMS (High Resolution Micro-wave Survey), commenced on Columbus Day, October 12, 1992. The aims and the interdisciplinary format of the seminar are described, the main results and conclusions of papers are restated, and the seminar publications introduced. The summaries of papers are based on their abstracts and contain excerpts from texts.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1991-08-01

In the Quarterly Reports on the operation of the Finnish nuclear power plants such events and observations are described relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety considers safety significant. Also other events of general interest are reported. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of the plants' workers and the environment, as well as tabulated data on the production and load factors of the plants. The Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 as well as TVO I and II were in commercial operation during the whole first quarter of 1991. The load factor average was 99.1 %. Failures have been detected in the uppermost spacing lattices of nuclear fuel bundles removed from the Loviisa nuclear reactors. Further investigations into the significance of the failures have been initiated. In this quarter, renewed cooling systems for the instrumentation area were introduced at Loviisa 1. The modifications made in the systems serve to ensure reliable cooling of the area even during the hottest summer months when the possibility exists that the temperature of the automation equipment could rise too high causing malfunctions which could endanger plant safety. Occupational radiation doses and external releases of radioactivity were below prescribed limits in this quarter. Only small amounts of radioactive substances originating in nuclear power plants were detected in samples taken in the vicinity of nuclear power plants

Environmental monitoring in Finland 2006-2008

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Niemi, J.

2006-01-01

This publication presents environmental monitoring carried out in Finland in 2006-2008. It is a summary of the environmental monitoring activities of the following national institutes: Geological Survey of Finland, Finnish Meteorological Institute, National Public Health Institute, Plant Production Inspection Centre, Finnish Museum of Natural History, Agrifood Research Finland, Finnish Institute of Marine Research, Finnish Forest Research Institute, Information Centre of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute, Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Statistics Finland, Finnish Environment Institute, and Regional Environment Centres. Monitoring of natural resources, environmental pressures, state of the environment, water and health, land use and environmental policy are presented. The objective was to compile the information on national environmental monitoring and to activate information exchange and cooperation in this field. (orig.)

Constructions of Bilingualism in Finnish Government Programmes and a Newspaper Discussion Site Debate

Science.gov (United States)

Pöyhönen, Sari; Saarinen, Taina

2015-01-01

The concept of bilingualism in Finnish political discourse is predominantly used in the meaning of official or state bilingualism, focusing on the two constitutionally defined "national languages;" that is, Finnish and Swedish. Legally, both Finnish and Swedish-speakers have a right for public services, such as schooling or health care,…

SAFIR2014. The Finnish Research Programme on Nuclear Power Plant Safety 2011-2014. Interim Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simola, K. [ed.

2013-02-15

The Finnish Nuclear Power Plant Safety Research Programme 2011-2014, SAFIR2014, is a 4-year publicly funded national technical and scientific research programme on the safety of nuclear power plants. The programme is funded by the State Nuclear Waste Management Fund (VYR), as well as other key organisations operating in the area of nuclear energy. The programme provides the necessary conditions for retaining knowledge needed for ensuring the continuance of safe use of nuclear power, for developing new know-how and for participation in international co-operation. The SAFIR2014 Steering Group, responsible of the strategic alignements of the programme, consists of representatives of the Finnish Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Ministry of Employment and the Economy (MEE), Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT), Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO), Fortum Power and Heat Oy (Fortum), Fennovoima Oy, Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT), Aalto University (Aalto), Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes), Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (TTL) and the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM). The research programme is divided into nine areas: Man, organisation and society, Automation and control room, Fuel research and reactor analysis, Thermal hydraulics, Severe accidents, Structural safety of reactor circuits, Construction safety, Probabilistic risk analysis (PRA), and Development of research infrastructure. A reference group is assigned to each of these areas to respond for the strategic planning and to supervise the projects in its respective field. Research projects are selected annually based on a public call for proposals. Most of the projects are planned for the entire duration of the programme, but there can also be shorter one- or two-year projects. The annual volume of the SAFIR2014 programme in 2011-2012 has been 9,5-9,9 M euro. Main funding organisations were the State Nuclear Waste Management Fund (VYR) with over 5 M euro and

SAFIR2014. The Finnish Research Programme on Nuclear Power Plant Safety 2011-2014. Interim Report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simola, K.

2013-02-01

The Finnish Nuclear Power Plant Safety Research Programme 2011-2014, SAFIR2014, is a 4-year publicly funded national technical and scientific research programme on the safety of nuclear power plants. The programme is funded by the State Nuclear Waste Management Fund (VYR), as well as other key organisations operating in the area of nuclear energy. The programme provides the necessary conditions for retaining knowledge needed for ensuring the continuance of safe use of nuclear power, for developing new know-how and for participation in international co-operation. The SAFIR2014 Steering Group, responsible of the strategic alignements of the programme, consists of representatives of the Finnish Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Ministry of Employment and the Economy (MEE), Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT), Teollisuuden Voima Oyj (TVO), Fortum Power and Heat Oy (Fortum), Fennovoima Oy, Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT), Aalto University (Aalto), Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes), Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (TTL) and the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority (SSM). The research programme is divided into nine areas: Man, organisation and society, Automation and control room, Fuel research and reactor analysis, Thermal hydraulics, Severe accidents, Structural safety of reactor circuits, Construction safety, Probabilistic risk analysis (PRA), and Development of research infrastructure. A reference group is assigned to each of these areas to respond for the strategic planning and to supervise the projects in its respective field. Research projects are selected annually based on a public call for proposals. Most of the projects are planned for the entire duration of the programme, but there can also be shorter one- or two-year projects. The annual volume of the SAFIR2014 programme in 2011-2012 has been 9,5-9,9 M euro. Main funding organisations were the State Nuclear Waste Management Fund (VYR) with over 5 M euro and

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3rd, quarter 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sillanpaeae, T.

1996-05-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants are also described. The Report includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment and tabulated data on the plants' production and load factors. Except for the annual maintenance outages of Loviisa plant units and for TVO II's brief outage to repair a failed component, Finnish nuclear power plant units were in power operation in the third quarter of 1995. The load factor average of all plant units was 90.4 %. Events in this quarter were level 0 on the INES scale. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Radioactive substances were measurable in samples collected around the plants in such quantities only as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. (orig.) (4 figs., 4 tabs.)

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3rd, quarter 1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sillanpaeae, T [ed.

1996-05-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants are also described. The Report includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment and tabulated data on the plants` production and load factors. Except for the annual maintenance outages of Loviisa plant units and for TVO II`s brief outage to repair a failed component, Finnish nuclear power plant units were in power operation in the third quarter of 1995. The load factor average of all plant units was 90.4 %. Events in this quarter were level 0 on the INES scale. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Radioactive substances were measurable in samples collected around the plants in such quantities only as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. (orig.) (4 figs., 4 tabs.).

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, Finland. Annex I [Example of TSOs and their Interaction with Key Stakeholders

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2018-01-01

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland was established January 16, 1942. In January 1, 2015 VTT was transformed into a limited liability company by the Act on the Limited Liability Company Called VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd (8761/2014). VTT is a non-profit research and technology organisation. The Ministry of Employment and the Economy is responsible for state ownership steering. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd is a Finnish state-owned limited liability company. The liabilities and obligations of the company’s governing bodies are as defined in applicable Finnish law. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd as the parent company together with its subsidiary companies forms the VTT Group of companies. The tasks carried out by VTT to the Finnish Regulatory Body Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) or any other Regulatory Body as support to their licensing or any other regulatory function are 100 % funded by the Regulatory Body as a customer to VTT.

Gold Medal for Finnish Health in All Policies Book

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ray Lewis

2014-02-01

Full Text Available This article is a review of the book “Health in All Policies: Seizing opportunities, implementing policies” edited by Kimmo Leppo, Eeva Ollila, Sebastián Peña, Matthias Wismar, and Sarah Cook. This book (printed and online publication was published by the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Finland in 2013 (1. The book is freely available at http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/188809/Health-in-All-Policies-final.pdf. The main features, structure, and highlighted contents of the book are briefly sketched out in this review. The book promotes understanding of a Health in All Policies (HiAP approach, the history, and the scientific evidence of effectiveness available to apply the HiAP concept in order to overcome challenges faced by policy-makers. HiAP is a relatively novel approach which arises from the traditional idea that health is not only medicine (2. The book offers lessons to policy-makers and managers on how to apply the HiAP approach. It further highlights the health sector’s role in developing healthy public policies. In addition, the book provides examples of structures to foster collaboration, coherence, and participation among stakeholders from different government portfolios and responsibilities. The book further provides invaluable insights for politicians, researchers, and civil society advocates.

A cohort effect on serum testosterone levels in Finnish men

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perheentupa, A; Mäkinen, J; Laatikainen, T

2013-01-01

To investigate whether a population-level decline in serum testosterone exists in Finnish men. In comparison with other European populations, Finnish men have compared well in the studies of reproductive health (i.e. semen quality, incidence of cryptorchidism and testicular cancer); thus, we...... expected no significant cohort-dependent decrease in serum testosterone....

The Desired Learning Outcomes of School-Based Nutrition/Physical Activity Health Education: A Health Literacy Constructed Delphi Survey of Finnish Experts

Science.gov (United States)

Ormshaw, Michael James; Kokko, Sami Petteri; Villberg, Jari; Kannas, Lasse

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to utilise the collective opinion of a group of Finnish experts to identify the most important learning outcomes of secondary-level school-based health education, in the specific domains of physical activity and nutrition. Design/ Methodology/ Approach: The study uses a Delphi survey technique to collect the…

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 4th quarter 1996

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1997-05-01

Quarterly reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants are also described. The report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment and tabulated data on the plants's production and load factors. In the fourth quarter of 1996, the Finnish nuclear power plant units were in power operation except for the annual maintenance outage of Loviisa 2 and a shutdown at Olkiluoto 1 to repair a condensate system stop valve. The load factor average of all plant units was 96.5%. Events in the fourth quarter of 1996 were level 0 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Radioactive substances were measurable in samples collected around the plants in such quantities only as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. (orig.)

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 2nd quarter, 1995

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tossavainen, K. [ed.

1995-10-01

Quarterly reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Fasety improvements at the plants are also described. The report includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the evironment and tabulated data on the plants` production and load factors. Except for the annual maintenance outages of the TVO plant units and for TVO II`s Midsummer outage which was due to low electricity demand, the Finnish nuclear power plants were in power operation during the second quarter of 1995. The load factor average of all four plant units was 91.2 %. Events during the second annual quarter were level 0 on the INES scale. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorized limits. Radioactive substances were measurable in samples collected around the plants in such quantities only as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. (4 figs., 4 tabs.).

Intercomparison of Finnish and Russian whole-body counters used for the determination of 137Cs body burden in reindeer-herding populations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahola, T.; Tillander, M.

1995-01-01

Intercalibration is a very important quality control in whole-body counting, as the human body is a very difficult ''sample'' to calibrate for. In 1994 the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK), the Laboratory of Radiochemistry of the University of Helsinki and the Institute of Radiation Hygiene (IRH) of St. Petersburg agreed to undertake the first Finnish-Russian intercalibration project for whole-body counters. The monitoring of body burdens of indigenous inhabitants in the far north of Russia, from the Kola Peninsula to Chuhodka, has been the responsibility of the ISH since 1960; the above-.mentioned Finnish institutes have monitored reindeer breeders in Finnish Lapland since 1961. The intercalibration was done in the field by measuring the same persons with both systems in Finnish Lapland and in the Kola Peninsula. Mean body burdens in the reindeer-herding population in the areas of current interest are presented in the present paper. 7 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab

The fifth Finnish national aerosol symposium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mikkanen, P.; Haemeri, K.; Kauppinen, E.

1993-01-01

The Fifth Finnish Aerosol Symposium was held June 1-3, 1993. Symposium is jointly organized by FAAR, Aerosol Technology Group of Technical Research Centre of Finland and Helsinki University, Department of Physics. Aerosols, the suspensions of solid and liquid particles and gases, are receiving increasing importance in many areas of science and technology. These include industrial hygiene, ambient and indoor air pollution, pollution control technologies, cloud physics, nuclear safety engineering, combustion science and engineering, clean manufacturing technologies and material processing. The importance of aerosol issues during the development of advanced fuel conversion and material processing technologies can be realized when looking at the numerous papers presented on these topics at the Symposium

Assessment of primary health care in a rural health centre in Enugu South east Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

M Chinawa, Josephat; T Chinawa, Awoere

2015-01-01

Primary health care (PHC) is a vital in any community. Any health centre with a well implemented PHC program can stand the test of time in curbing under five mortality and morbidity. This study was therefore aimed at assessing the activities in a health centre located in a rural area in Enugu state and to determine the pattern and presentation of various diseases in the health centre. This is retrospective study undertaken in a primary health care centre in Abakpa Nike in Enugu east LGA of Enugu State of Nigeria from December 2011 to December 31(st) 2013. Data retrieved were collected with the aid of a structured study proforma and analyzed using SPSS Version 18. Total number of children that attended immunization program in the health centre over 20 months period was 25,438 (12,348 males and 13090 females), however only 17745 children (7998 males and 9747 females) were actually registered in the hospital records. None of the children was immunized for DPT2 and OPV(0) and HBV(1) in the course of this study. The dropout rate using DPT1, 2 and 3 (DPT1-DPT2/DPT3) was very high (494%). The mean immunization coverage rate was 8.3%. Family planning activities, integrated management of childhood illnesses program were also carried out in the health centre but at very low level. The major fulcrum of events in the health centre which include immunization coverage, IMCI, and management of common illnesses were simply non operational. However the health centre had a well knitted referral system.

The Life-course Approach in Assessment of Dental Health: A Cross Sectional Study among Finnish and Turkish Pre-adolescents

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cinar, Ayse Basak; Murtomaa, Heikki; Tseveenjav, Battsetseg

2008-01-01

Interest is growing on conceptualizing dental disease aetiology under the life-course approach. The aim of this study was to assess the association of dental caries experience with the major components of life-course approach, health- and behavioral capital, among Turkish and Finnish pre-adolesce...

Finnish Kullervo and chinese martial arts stories

OpenAIRE

Chen, Chapmen

2006-01-01

Introduction: There are many important Finnish plays but, due to language barrier, Finnish drama is seldom exported, particularly to Hong Kong and China.. Objective: To find out differences in mentality between the Finnish and Chinese peoples by comparing the partially localized Chinese translation of Aleksis Kivi’s tragedy, Kullervo, with genuine Chinese martial arts literature. Methodology: 1. Chapman Chen has translated the Finnish classic, Kullervo, directly from Finnish...

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1993-12-01

Quarterly reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations related to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety considers safety significant. Safety-enhancing plant modifications and general matters relating to the use of nuclear energy are also reported. A summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and the environment, and tabulated data on the plants' production and their load factors are also given. At the Loviisa 1 plant unit one of two specially-backed AC busbars was lost during the second quarter of 1993. A ca. 30 minute voltage break caused malfunctions in the plant unit's electrical equipment and rendered inoperable certain components important to safety. The event is rated on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES) at level 1. In inspections carried out at TVO II during the annual maintenance outage, the number of cracks detected in control rod structural material was higher than usual. When cracks occur, part of boron carbide, the power regulating medium in control rods, may wash into the reactor water and control rod shutdown capability may be impaired. The event is rated on the INES at level 1. Other events in the second quarter of 1993 had no bearing on nuclear or radiation safety. (4 figs., 5 tabs.)

Using Exemption Examinations to Assess Finnish Business Students' Non-Formal and Informal Learning of ESP: A Pilot Study

Science.gov (United States)

Tuomainen, Satu

2014-01-01

In recent years Finnish university language centres have increasingly developed procedures for assessing and recognising the skills in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) that students acquire in various non-formal and informal learning environments. This article describes the procedures developed by the University of Eastern Finland Language…

A national collaboration process: Finnish engineering education for the benefit of people and environment.

Science.gov (United States)

Takala, A; Korhonen-Yrjänheikki, K

2013-12-01

The key stakeholders of the Finnish engineering education collaborated during 2006-09 to reform the system of education, to face the challenges of the changing business environment and to create a national strategy for the Finnish engineering education. The work process was carried out using participatory work methods. Impacts of sustainable development (SD) on engineering education were analysed in one of the subprojects. In addition to participatory workshops, the core part of the work on SD consisted of a research with more than 60 interviews and an extensive literature survey. This paper discusses the results of the research and the work process of the Collaboration Group in the subproject of SD. It is suggested that enhancing systematic dialogue among key stakeholders using participatory work methods is crucial in increasing motivation and commitment in incorporating SD in engineering education. Development of the context of learning is essential for improving skills of engineering graduates in some of the key abilities related to SD: systemic- and life-cycle thinking, ethical understanding, collaborative learning and critical reflection skills. This requires changing of the educational paradigm from teacher-centred to learner-centred applying problem- and project-oriented active learning methods.

Essential drugs in primary health centres of north central Nigeria ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

To assess the availability of essential drugs and the perceptions of clients on drugs situation in the primary health centres of Tafa Local Government Area, north central Nigeria. Checklist consisting ofminimum drugs expected in a generic primary health centre developed by the National Primary Health Care Development ...

At the Roots of Finnish Elementary Education – How Were Children Raised in the First Finnish Elementary Schools?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Satu UUSIAUTTI

2013-03-01

Full Text Available This study dissects the history of Finnish elementary education and the way children were raised during the initial phase of Finnish education in the 18th century. The development of Finnish education was studied through contemporary decrees and laws and studies of Finnish school history. The preliminary aim was to focus on the principles and practices of raising children in Finnish schools. This study focuses on (1 describing the birth, goals, and practices of Finnish elementary education and development toward compulsory education, (2 describing the way children were raised toward the contemporary goals, and (3 dissecting the connection between teacher training and the goals of raising children in Finnish schools. All these viewpoints are discussed from the viewpoint of how the aspirations and objectives were realized and implemented in practice in raising children. As a conclusion, we discuss the influence of the past in today’s educational practices.

At the Roots of Finnish Elementary Education –How Were Children Raised in the First Finnish Elementary Schools?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Satu UUSIAUTTI

2013-03-01

Full Text Available This study dissects the history of Finnish elementary education and the way children were raised during the initial phase of Finnish education in the 18th century. The development of Finnish education was studied through contemporary decrees and laws and studies of Finnish school history. The preliminary aim was to focus on the principles and practices of raising children in Finnish schools. This study focuses on (1 describing the birth, goals, and practices of Finnish elementary education and development toward compulsory education, (2 describing the way children were raised toward the contemporary goals, and (3 dissecting the connection between teacher training and the goals of raising children in Finnish schools. All these viewpoints are discussed from the viewpoint of how the aspirations and objectives were realized and implemented in practice in raising children. As a conclusion, we discuss the influence of the past in today’s educational practices.

“PHC Leadership: Are Health Centres in Good Hands?Perspectives ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study aimed to document the kinds of leadership styles are practiced at health centres (H/C) and how these styles can be explained by the contexts, characteristics of the health centre in charge (IC) and subordinate trained health staff (STHS). Methods A well-researched leadership style model was applied, which ...

Swasti: An International Health Resource Centre

OpenAIRE

Kumar, N.S.

2013-01-01

Swasti, an International Health Resource Centre was established in 2002 in India. The objective was to enhance the health and well-being of communities, particularly the marginalized. Swasti’s main focus lies in the areas of primary health, sexual and reproductive health including HIV, communicable and non-communicable diseases, water, sanitation and hygiene and gender based violence. The organization, during the last decade has grown in leaps and bounds reaching out to the most affected comm...

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report, 3rd quarter 1996

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sillanpaeae, T.

1997-02-01

Quarterly Reports on the operation of Finnish nuclear power plants describe events and observations relating to nuclear and radiation safety which the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK) considers safety significant. Safety improvements at the plants are also described. The Report also includes a summary of the radiation safety of plant personnel and of the environment and tabulated data on the plants' production and load factors. In the third quarter of 1996, the Finnish nuclear power plant units were in power operation except for the annual maintenance outages of Loviisa plant units and a shutdown at Olkiluoto 1 to identify and repair malfunctions of a high pressure turbine control valve. The load factor average of all plant units was 77.2%. Events in the third quarter of 1996 were classified level 0 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Radioactive substances were measurable in samples collected around the plants in such quantities only as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. The names of Teollisuuden Voima Oy's plant units have changed. Olkiluoto 1 and Olkiluoto 2 now replace the names TVO I and TVO II previously used in quarterly reports. (orig.)

Ideal cardiovascular health and psychosocial risk factors among Finnish female municipal workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Veromaa, Veera; Kautiainen, Hannu; Saxen, Ulla; Malmberg-Ceder, Kirsi; Bergman, Elina; Korhonen, Päivi E

2017-02-01

Ideal cardiovascular health has been defined by the American Heart Association as the absence of disease and the presence of seven key health factors and behaviours. However, little is known about the mental aspects associated with ideal cardiovascular health metrics. The objective of this study was to assess the relationships between psychosocial risk factors and ideal cardiovascular health metrics among Finnish women at municipal work units. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Finland among 732 female employees (mean±SD age 48±10 years) from ten work units in 2014. Ideal cardiovascular health metrics were evaluated with a physical examination, laboratory tests, medical history and self-administrated questionnaires. Psychosocial risk factors (social isolation, stress, depressive symptoms, anxiety, hostility and type D personality) were assessed with core questions as suggested by the European Society of Cardiology. The prevalence of having 5-7 ideal cardiovascular health metrics was 183 (25.0%), of whom 54.1% had at least one psychosocial risk factor. Anxiety (31.3%), work stress (30.7%) and type D personality (26.1%) were the most prevalent of the psychosocial risk factors. The prevalence of depressive symptoms ( ppsychosocial risk factors at municipal work units. Although the association is possibly bidirectional, screening and treating depression and dealing with type D personality might be crucial in improving cardiovascular health among women.

Energy centre microgrid model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pasonen, R.

2011-09-15

A simulation model of Energy centre microgrid made with PSCAD simulation software version 4.2.1 has been built in SGEM Smart Grids and Energy Markets (SGEM) work package 6.6. Microgrid is an autonomous electric power system which can operate separate from common distribution system. The idea of energy centre microgrid concept was considered in Master of Science thesis 'Community Microgrid - A Building block of Finnish Smart Grid'. The name of energy centre microgrid comes from a fact that production and storage units are concentrated into a single location, an energy centre. This centre feeds the loads which can be households or industrial loads. Power direction flow on the demand side remains same compared to the current distribution system and allows to the use of standard fuse protection in the system. The model consists of photovoltaic solar array, battery unit, variable frequency boost converter, inverter, isolation transformer and demand side (load) model. The model is capable to automatically switch to islanded mode when there is a fault in outside grid and back to parallel operation mode when fault is removed. The modelled system responses well to load changes and total harmonic distortion related to 50Hz base frequency is kept under 1.5% while operating and feeding passive load. (orig.)

Finnish nurses' views on their research activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuuppelomäki, Merja; Tuomi, Jouni

2003-07-01

The purpose of the study reported here was to describe Finnish nurses' research and publication activities, as well as their views on the availability and utilization of research results in nursing practice. The data were collected using a structured questionnaire in which obstacles to the utilization of research results were measured with a previously developed instrument. A total of 400 nurses from community health centres, a central hospital and a central university hospital took part. Most of the nurses had carried out research on their own. Age, experience, training in research and development and other further training, as well as reading the nursing literature, were associated with doing research. Some of the reasons why the nurses had not carried out research were revealed. Publication of results was very rare. There were problems with the availability of research results. The most common obstacles to research utilization had to do with the presentation of results and the setting. In research utilization, respondents received most support from the ward manager and least support from doctors. If we want to encourage nurses to do research and increase the utilization of research results, greater effort should be invested in teaching research methodology, in introducing more flexible working hours and in developing other support systems.

Exposure of Finnish population to ultraviolet radiation and radiation measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoikkala, M.; Lappalainen, J.; Leszczynski, K.; Paile, W.

1990-01-01

This report is based on a survey of the literature on radiation risks involved in sunbathing and the use of solaria. The purpose of the report is to provide background information for the development of regulations on solaria and for informing the public about the risks posed by solaria and the sun. The report gives an overview of the properties and biological effects of ultraviolet radiation. The most important regulations and recommendations issued in various countries are presented. The connection between ultraviolet radiation and the risks of skin cancer is examined both on a general level and in reference to information obtained from the Finnish Cancer Registry. In Finland, the incidence of melanomas nearly tripled between 1960 and 1980. The most important cause is considered to be the population's increased exposure to the su's ultraviolet radiation. There are no reliable data on the connection between the use of solaria and the risks of skin cancer. It is estimated, however, that solaria account for less than 10 per cent of the skin cancer risk of the whole population. There are some difficult physical problems associated with the measurement of ultraviolet radiation emitted by both natural sources and solaria. A preliminary study of these problems has been undertaken by means of a survey of the available literature, supplemented by a review of measurements performed by the Finnish Centre For Radiation and Nuclear Safety. The estimated inaccuracy of the Optronic 742 spectroradiometer used by the Centre in the measurement of ultraviolet radiation emitted by the sun and solaria is about +-14%

Balancing Health Information Exchange and Privacy Governance from a Patient-Centred Connected Health and Telehealth Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuziemsky, Craig E; Gogia, Shashi B; Househ, Mowafa; Petersen, Carolyn; Basu, Arindam

2018-04-22

 Connected healthcare is an essential part of patient-centred care delivery. Technology such as telehealth is a critical part of connected healthcare. However, exchanging health information brings the risk of privacy issues. To better manage privacy risks we first need to understand the different patterns of patient-centred care in order to tailor solutions to address privacy risks.  Drawing upon published literature, we develop a business model to enable patient-centred care via telehealth. The model identifies three patient-centred connected health patterns. We then use the patterns to analyse potential privacy risks and possible solutions from different types of telehealth delivery.  Connected healthcare raises the risk of unwarranted access to health data and related invasion of privacy. However, the risk and extent of privacy issues differ according to the pattern of patient-centred care delivery and the type of particular challenge as they enable the highest degree of connectivity and thus the greatest potential for privacy breaches.  Privacy issues are a major concern in telehealth systems and patients, providers, and administrators need to be aware of these privacy issues and have guidance on how to manage them. This paper integrates patient-centred connected health care, telehealth, and privacy risks to provide an understanding of how risks vary across different patterns of patient-centred connected health and different types of telehealth delivery. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart.

Problematic digital gaming behavior and its relation to the psychological, social and physical health of Finnish adolescents and young adults

OpenAIRE

M?nnikk?, Niko; Billieux, Jo?l; K??ri?inen, Maria

2015-01-01

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The aim of this study was to identify problematic gaming behavior among Finnish adolescents and young adults, and evaluate its connection to a variety of psychological, social, and physical health symptoms. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted with a random sample of 293 respondents aged from 13 to 24 years. Participants completed an online survey. Problematic gaming behavior was measured with the Game Addiction Scale (GAS). Self-reports covered health measur...

The Finnish "social wilderness"

Science.gov (United States)

Ville Hallikainen

2000-01-01

The cultural roots and images of the Finnish wilderness lie in its use as a source of livelihood practiced in southern and central Finland during the Middle Ages. There are statutory wilderness areas in Finland, but Finnish people consider many other areas as wilderness. It is important for management of the areas, statutory wilderness areas and the other wilderness-...

Finnish bioenergy research programme

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Asplund, D. [VTT Energy, Jyvaeskylae (Finland)

1996-12-31

Finland is a leading country in the use of biofuels and has excellent opportunities to increase the use of biofuels by up to 25-30 %. The Finnish Government has set an objective for the promotion of bioenergy. The aim is to increase the use of bioenergy by about 25 % from the present level by 2005, and the increment corresponds to 1.5 million tonnes of oil equivalent (toe) per year. The R and D work has been considered as an important factor to achieve this ambitious goal. Energy research was organised into a series of research programmes in 1988 in accordance with the proposal of Finnish Energy Research Committee. The object of the research programmes is to enhance research activities and to bundle individual projects together into larger research packages. The common target of the Finnish energy research programmes is to proceed from basic and applied research to product development and pilot operation, and after that to the first commercial applications, e.g. demonstrations. As the organisation of energy research to programmes has led to good results, the Finnish Ministry of Trade and Industry decided to go on with this practice by launching new six-year programmes in 1993-1998. One of these programmes is the Bioenergy Research Programme and the co-ordination of this programme is carried out by VTT Energy. Besides VTT Energy the Finnish Forest Research Institute, Work Efficiency Institute, Metsaeteho and University of Joensuu are participating in the programme 7 refs.

Finnish bioenergy research programme

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Asplund, D [VTT Energy, Jyvaeskylae (Finland)

1997-12-31

Finland is a leading country in the use of biofuels and has excellent opportunities to increase the use of biofuels by up to 25-30 %. The Finnish Government has set an objective for the promotion of bioenergy. The aim is to increase the use of bioenergy by about 25 % from the present level by 2005, and the increment corresponds to 1.5 million tonnes of oil equivalent (toe) per year. The R and D work has been considered as an important factor to achieve this ambitious goal. Energy research was organised into a series of research programmes in 1988 in accordance with the proposal of Finnish Energy Research Committee. The object of the research programmes is to enhance research activities and to bundle individual projects together into larger research packages. The common target of the Finnish energy research programmes is to proceed from basic and applied research to product development and pilot operation, and after that to the first commercial applications, e.g. demonstrations. As the organisation of energy research to programmes has led to good results, the Finnish Ministry of Trade and Industry decided to go on with this practice by launching new six-year programmes in 1993-1998. One of these programmes is the Bioenergy Research Programme and the co-ordination of this programme is carried out by VTT Energy. Besides VTT Energy the Finnish Forest Research Institute, Work Efficiency Institute, Metsaeteho and University of Joensuu are participating in the programme 7 refs.

Big data in Finnish financial services

OpenAIRE

Laurila, M. (Mikko)

2017-01-01

Abstract This thesis aims to explore the concept of big data, and create understanding of big data maturity in the Finnish financial services industry. The research questions of this thesis are “What kind of big data solutions are being implemented in the Finnish financial services sector?” and “Which factors impede faster implementation of big data solutions in the Finnish financial services sector?”. ...

Work Ability of Finnish Physical Education Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Mäkelä, Kasper; Hirvensalo, Mirja

2015-01-01

In the physical education (PE) teachers' profession, physical tasks comprise a large part of the job. PE teachers identify their health as good, and they are satisfied with their job. Nevertheless, the work ability of PE teachers may be decreasing. Purpose: The purpose of this article was to explore the work ability of Finnish PE teachers. What…

Health promoting interactive technology: Finnish, Norwegian, Russian and Swedish students' reflections.

Science.gov (United States)

Kostenius, Catrine; Hertting, Krister

2016-09-01

The aim of this study was to elucidate Finnish, Norwegian, Russian and Swedish students' reflections and ideas on how interactive technology can be used to promote health in school. The data were collected in the northern part of these four countries, and 630 students aged 13-15 filled out the World Health Organization's 'Health Behavior in School-Aged Children' self-completion questionnaire with one additional open question, which is analyzed in this article (n = 419). The phenomenological analysis resulted in four themes: A sense of control, Balancing enjoyable options, Sharing with others and Learning made easier. The students point out that interactive technology promotes empowerment and independence, reduces stress and makes learning easier. They argue for a healthy balance of Internet use for it to be health promoting. According to the students, good relationships increase well-being; and interactive technology can offer a way to socialize, provide a tool for meeting and making new friends, help when not feeling well and give support when encouraging classmates. We argue, based on the findings of the present study and previous research, that students need a combination of freedom and meaningful relationships with adults who have an empowered child perspective, to fully take advantage of the empowering effects of interactive technology. We suggest, as implications for practice, that teachers, school leaders and health care professionals find ways to act as partners using an appreciative process, asking questions on what works well, to make interactive technology an enabling technology to increase health literacy, thus improving health and well-being in students. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Screening for congenital heart malformations in child health centres

OpenAIRE

Juttmann, Rikard

1999-01-01

textabstractThe objective of this thesis is to clarify the effectiveness and the efficiency of screening for congenital heart malformations in Dutch child health centres and the possibilities to optimise this prevention programme. To this end the following main questions will be addressed. 1. Does screening for congenital heart malformations, as actually performed in Dutch child health centres, prevent adverse outcomes of these disorders in the short and long run? What would be the answer to ...

FFUSION yearbook 1996. Annual report of the Finnish research unit. Association EURATOM-TEKES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karttunen, S; Paettikangas, T [eds.; VTT Energy, Espoo (Finland)

1997-05-01

Finnish fusion programme (FFUSION) is one of the eleven national energy research programmes funded by the Technological Development Centre of Finland (TEKES). The FFUSION programme was fully integrated into European Fusion Programme just after Finland joined the European Union. The contract of Association Euratom and Tekes was signed in 1995 and extends to the end of 1999. Finland became a member of JET Joint Undertaking in 1996, other contracts with Euratom include NET agreement and the Staff Mobility Agreement. FFUSION programme with participating research institutes and universities forms the Fusion Research Unit of the Association Euratom-Tekes. This annual report summarises the research activities of the Finnish Research Unit in 1996. The programme consists of two parts: Physics and Technology. The research areas of the physics are: Fusion plasma engineering, Radio-frequency heating and plasma diagnostics, and Plasma-wall interactions - ion-beam studies. The technology is focused into three areas: Fusion reactor materials (first wall components and joining techniques), Remote handling and viewing systems, and Superconductors

Finnish in America: Two Kinds of Finglish.

Science.gov (United States)

Karttunen, Frances; Moore, Kate

The Finnish language spoken by Finns who emigrated to America is often called "Finglish;" two distinct varieties are discussed in this paper. American Finnish differs from native Finnish in its assimilation of a substantial number of loan words that augment and sometimes replace the original vocabulary. Many loan words deal with employment,…

Evaluation of health centre community nurse team.

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, P N; Trounson, E

1969-02-01

This report gives an account of the work during six months of a community nurse team attached to the doctors working from a new health centre. The team consisted of two community nurses, who had both health visiting and Queen's nursing qualifications, and a State-enrolled nurse. The community nurses, in addition to undertaking all the health visiting for the population at risk, assessed the social and nursing needs of patients at the request of the general practitioners and ensured that these needs were met. When necessary they undertook practical nursing tasks in the home and in the health centre, but most of the bedside nursing in the home was done by the State-enrolled nurse.The needs of the population at risk were such that only one State-enrolled nurse could usefully be employed, and this proved to be a considerable disadvantage. Despite this, the experimental work pattern held advantages to patients, doctors, and nurses, and is potentially capable of providing a satisfying and economic division of responsibilities, with different tasks being carried out by the individual most appropriately qualified.

Job boredom and its correlates in 87 Finnish organizations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Harju, Lotta; Hakanen, Jari J.; Schaufeli, Wilmar B.

2014-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the correlates of job boredom in 87 Finnish workplaces (N = 11,468) and to examine the associations between job boredom, health outcomes, and job attitudes. METHODS: We applied the Dutch Boredom Scale to measure job boredom. Hierarchical logistic regression analysis and

Social determinants of mental health: a Finnish nationwide follow-up study on mental disorders.

Science.gov (United States)

Paananen, Reija; Ristikari, Tiina; Merikukka, Marko; Gissler, Mika

2013-12-01

Most mental disorders start in childhood and adolescence. Risk factors are prenatal and perinatal, genetic as well as environmental and family related. Research evidence is, however, insufficient to explain the life-course development of mental disorders. This study aims to provide evidence on factors affecting mental health in childhood and adolescence. The 1987 Finnish Birth Cohort covers all children born in Finland in 1987 (N=59 476) who were followed up until the age of 21 years. The study covers detailed health, social welfare and sociodemographic data of the cohort members and their parents from Finnish registers. Altogether, 7578 (12.7%) cohort members had had a diagnosed mental disorder. Several prenatal, perinatal and family-related risk factors for mental disorders were found, with sex differences. The main risk factors for mental disorders were having a young mother (OR 1.30 (1.16 to 1.47)), parents' divorce (OR 1.33 (1.26 to 1.41)), death of a parent (OR 1.27 (1.16 to 1.38)), parents' short education (OR 1.23(1.09 to 1.38)), childhood family receiving social assistance (OR 1.61 (1.52 to 1.71)) or having a parent treated at specialised psychiatric care (OR 1.47 (1.39 to 1.55)). Perinatal problem (OR 1.11 (1.01 to 1.22)) and prenatal smoking (OR 1.09 (1.02 to 1.16)) were risk factors for mental disorders, even after controlling for background factors. Elevated risk was seen if the cohort member had only basic education (OR 3.37 (3.14 to 3.62)) or had received social assistance (OR 2.45 (2.30 to 2.60)). Mental disorders had many social risk factors which are interlinked. Although family difficulties increased the risk for mental disorders, they were clearly determined by the cohort member's low education and financial hardship. This study provides evidence for comprehensive preventative and supporting efforts. Families with social adversities and with parental mental health problems should be supported to secure children's development.

The ethnic gap in mobility: a comparison of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin migrants and the general Finnish population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Rask

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Many ethnic minority populations have poorer health than the general population. However, there is limited knowledge on the possible ethnic gap in physical mobility. We aim to examine the prevalence of mobility limitations in working-age Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin migrants in comparison to the general population in Finland. We also determine whether the association between ethnic group and mobility limitation remains after taking into account socio-economic and health-related factors. Methods We used data from the Finnish Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study (Maamu and the Finnish Health 2011 Survey. The participants comprised 1880 persons aged 29–64 years. The age-adjusted prevalence of difficulties in various mobility tasks was calculated using predictive margins. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between socio-economic, health- and migration-related factors and mobility limitation (self-reported difficulty in walking 500 m or stair climbing. The association between ethnic group and mobility limitation was calculated using logistic regression analysis. Results Mobility limitations were much more prevalent among Somali origin women (46 % and Kurdish origin men (32 % and women (57 % compared to men and women in the general Finnish population (5–12 %. In Russian origin men and women, the prevalence of mobility limitation (7–17 % was similar to the general Finnish population. Socio-economic and health-related factors, but not migration-related factors (time lived in Finland and language proficiency in Finnish or Swedish, were found to be associated with mobility limitation in the studied populations. Somali and Kurdish origin migrants were found to have increased odds for mobility limitation compared to the general Finnish population, even after adjusting for socio-economic and health-related factors (Somalis odds ratio [OR] 3.61; 95 % confidence interval [CI] 2.07–6.29, Kurds

GPS positioning and desktop mapping. Applications to environmental monitoring. Report on task JNT B898 on the Finnish support programme to IAEA safeguards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kansanaho, A.; Ilander, T.; Toivonen, H.

1995-10-01

Satellite navigation has been used for in-field applications by the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety since 1993. Because of this experience, training in the use of GPS positioning and desktop mapping was chosen as a task under the Finnish Support programme to IAEA safeguards. A lecture and a field experiment was held in the training course on environmental monitoring at the IAEA headquarters in June 1995. Real-time mapping of the co-ordinates and storing information on sampling sites and procedures can make safeguards implementation more efficient and effective. Further software development are needed for these purposes. (author) (6 figs.)

Finnish perspectives of wireless in healthcare.

Science.gov (United States)

Alasaarela, Esko

2009-01-01

Wireless solutions are a good choice for healthcare development in Finland. A survey of 135 experts in Finland show that (1) the competences needed for developing wireless solutions exist (2) the Finnish healthcare system is integrated enough and (3) the technology industry in this area is too weak for global marketing. The following recommendations can be concluded: (1) Cooperate internationally (2) Develop integrated solutions and health managing concepts for the important health problems (such as diabetes), (3) Harness the healthcare system to act as a test bed for new solutions and (4) Help companies to grow and take global roles.

Dental treatment injuries in the Finnish Patient Insurance Centre in 2000-2011.

Science.gov (United States)

Karhunen, Sini; Virtanen, Jorma I

2016-01-01

Objective The Patient Insurance Centre in Finland reimburses patients who sustained injuries associated with medical and dental care without having to demonstrate malpractice. The aim was to analyse all dental injuries claimed through the Patient Insurance Centre over a 12-year period in order to identify factors affecting reimbursement of claims. Methods This study investigated all dental patient insurance claims in Finland during 2000-2011. The injury cases were grouped as (K00-K08) according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10). Calendar year, claimant's age and gender, dental disease group and health service sector were the explanatory factors and the outcome was the decision of a claim. Multiple logistic regression modelling was used in the statistical analyses. Results The total number of decisions related to dental claims at the PIC in 2000-2011 was 7662, of which women claimed a clear majority (72%). Diseases of the pulp and periapical tissues (K04) and dental caries (K02) were the major disease groups (both 29%). Of the claims 40% were eligible for reimbursement, 27% were classified as insignificant or unavoidable injuries and 32% were rejected for other reasons. The proportion of reimbursed claims declined during the period. Patients from the private sector were more likely to be eligible for compensation than were those from the public sector (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.71-2.10). Conclusions The number of dental patient insurance claims in Finland clearly rose, while the proportion of reimbursed claims declined. More claims received compensation in the private sector than in the public sector.

Evaluating quality of health services in health centres of Zanjan district of Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohammadi, Ali; Mohammadi, Jamshid

2012-01-01

To assess quality of health services in Zanjan health centres based on clients' expectations and perceptions. The study was conducted by using service quality (SERVQUAL) scale on a sample of 300 females, clients of health care centres in the district of Zanjan, selected by cluster sampling. The results indicated that there were negative quality gaps at five SERVQUAL dimensions. The most and least negative quality gap mean scores were in reliability dimension (-2.1) and tangible (-1.13) respectively. There was statistically significant difference between clients' perceptions and expectations mean scores at all of the five service quality dimensions (P<0.001). The negative quality gap level in health service dimensions can be used as a guideline for redistribution of resources and managerial attempts to reduce quality gaps and improvement of health care quality.

Speech perception and vocabulary growth: A longitudinal study of Finnish-Russian bilinguals and Finnish monolinguals from infancy to three years

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Silvén, M.; Voeten, M.J.M.; Kouvo, A.M.; Lundén, M.

2014-01-01

Growth modeling was applied to monolingual (N = 26) and bilingual (N = 28) word learning from 14 to 36 months. Level and growth rate of vocabulary were lower for Finnish-Russian bilinguals than for Finnish monolinguals. Processing of Finnish speech sounds at 7 but not at 11 months predicted level,

Effects of heat and cold on health, with special reference to Finnish sauna bathing.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinonen, Ilkka; Laukkanen, Jari A

2018-05-01

Environmental stress such as extremely warm or cold temperature is often considered a challenge to human health and body homeostasis. However, the human body can adapt relatively well to heat and cold environments, and recent studies have also elucidated that particularly heat stress might be even highly beneficial for human health. Consequently, the aim of the present brief review is first to discuss general cardiovascular and other responses to acute heat stress, followed by a review of beneficial effects of Finnish sauna bathing on general and cardiovascular health and mortality as well as dementia and Alzheimer's disease risk. Plausible mechanisms included are improved endothelial and microvascular function, reduced blood pressure and arterial stiffness, and possibly increased angiogenesis in humans, which are likely to mediate the health benefits of sauna bathing. In addition to heat exposure with physiological adaptations, cold stress-induced physiological responses and brown fat activation on health are also discussed. This is important to take into consideration, as sauna bathing is frequently associated with cooling periods in cold(er) environments, but their combination remains poorly investigated. We finally propose, therefore, that possible additive effects of heat- and cold-stress-induced adaptations and effects on health would be worthy of further investigation.

FFUSION yearbook 1997. Annual report of the Finnish fusion research unit. Association EURATOM-TEKES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karttunen, S; Paettikangas, T [eds.; VTT Energy, Espoo (Finland)

1998-02-01

Finnish fusion programme (FFUSION) is one of the eleven national energy research programmes funded by the Technological Development Centre of Finland (TEKES). The FFUSION programme was fully integrated into European Fusion Programme just after Finland joined the European Union. The contract of Association Euratom and Tekes was signed in 1995 and extends to the end of 1999. Finland became a member of JET Joint Undertaking in 1996, other contracts with Euratom include NET agreement and the Staff Mobility Agreement. FFUSION programme with participating research institutes and universities forms the Fusion Research Unit of the Association Euratom-Tekes. This annual report summarises the research activities of the Finnish Research Unit in 1997. The programme consists of two parts: Physics and Technology. The research areas of the physics are: Fusion plasma engineering, and Radio-frequency heating and Plasma diagnostics. The technology is focused into three areas: Fusion reactor materials (first wall components and joining techniques), Remote handling and viewing systems, and Superconductors

Mental, physical and social health problems of call centre workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P Bhuyar

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Call centre workers in BPO face unique occupational hazards - mental, physical and psychosocial. Material & Method: A sample 100 call centre workers of both sexes and from two cities Pune and Mumbai were surveyed by both qualitative and quantitative methods for the above health problems. Results: A high proportion of workers faced sleep disturbances and associated mental stress and anxiety. Sleep disturbance and anxiety was significantly more in international call centres compared to domestic. There was also disturbance in circadian rhythms due to night shift. Physical problems such as musculoskeletal disorders, obesity, eye, and hearing problems were also present. Psychosocial problems included disruption in family life, use of tobacco and alcohol, and faulty eating habits. Conclusion: Better personal management, health education and more research is indicated to study the health problems in this emerging occupation.

Organisational innovation in health services: lessons from the NHS treatment centres

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Gabbay, J

2011-01-01

... design and methods References Index 103 133 147 149 155 165 v List of abbreviationsOrganisational innovation in health services List of abbreviations A&E ACAD DH DTC GP G-Supp NHS NIHR PCT PFI SDO SHA TC accident and emergency (department) Ambulatory Care and Diagnostic Centre Department of Health ('the Department') diagnosis and treatment centr...

Awareness and use of the Heart Symbol by Finnish consumers.

Science.gov (United States)

Lahti-Koski, Marjaana; Helakorpi, Satu; Olli, Mari; Vartiainen, Erkki; Puska, Pekka

2012-03-01

To study the awareness of the Heart Symbol in different age and educational groups, and changes in the awareness over a 9-year period. In addition, the reported use of products with the symbol was examined. A series of annual cross-sectional postal surveys on Health Behaviour and Health among the Finnish Adult Population. A random sample (n 5000 per annum) from the Finnish population aged 15-64 years, drawn from the National Population Register, received a questionnaire. Men and women (n 29 378) participating in the surveys in 2000-2009. At the early 2000s, 48 % of men and 73 % of women reported to be familiar with the symbol. The corresponding rates were 66 % for men and 91 % for women in 2009. The reported use of products with the symbol increased from 29 % to 52 % in men and from 40 % to 72 % in women. In men, the awareness did not vary by age, whereas older women (45-64 years) were less likely to be aware of the symbol compared with younger women (25-34 years). Men and women with the highest education were best aware of the symbol and more likely to use the products in the early 2000s. The educational differences diminished or disappeared during the study period. The majority of Finnish adults are familiar with the Heart Symbol, and the reported use of such products increased in all age and educational groups, especially among the less educated. The symbol may work as an effective measure to diminish nutrition-related health inequalities.

Sense of mastery differences between working-age Swedish- and Finnish-speaking Finns: a population-based study.

Science.gov (United States)

Reini, Kaarina; Nyqvist, Fredrica

2017-06-01

To examine the probability of a high sense of mastery in a population-representative sample of working-age people and to study the differences in mastery between Finnish-speaking and Swedish-speaking Finns in particular. The data originates from the Western Finland Mental Health Surveys (2008-2014). Associations between sense of mastery and language groups were analyzed with logistic regressions. Swedish-speaking Finns have a higher sense of mastery and the association is mediated by social support. Moreover, a difference in a high sense of mastery is found between Swedish- and Finnish-speaking married women that are outside the labor market. Our findings imply that Finnish-speaking women that are outside the labor market, e.g. on maternity leave or taking care of the household, should be recognized in health and social care services as a group that can benefit from additional support.

Service quality perceptions in primary health care centres in Greece

Science.gov (United States)

Papanikolaou, Vicky; Zygiaris, Sotiris

2012-01-01

Abstract Context  The paper refers to the increased competition between health care providers and the need for patient‐centred services in Greece. Using service quality methodology, this paper investigates service quality perceptions of patients in Greek public primary health centres. Objective  To test the internal consistency and applicability of SERVQUAL in primary health care centres in Greece. Strategy  SERVQUAL was used to examine whether patients have different expectations from health care providers and whether different groups of patients may consider some dimensions of care more important than others. Results  The analysis showed that there were gaps in all dimensions measured by SERVQUAL. The largest gap was detected in empathy. Further analysis showed that there were also differences depending on gender, age and education levels. A separate analysis of expectations and perceptions revealed that this gap was because of differences in patients’ perceptions rather than expectations. Discussion and conclusions  This paper raises a number of issues that concern the applicability of SERVQUAL in health care services and could enhance current discussions about SERVQUAL improvement. Quality of health care needs to be redefined by encompassing multiple dimensions. Beyond a simple expectations–perceptions gap, people may hold different understandings of health care that, in turn, influence their perception of the quality of services. PMID:22296402

Service quality perceptions in primary health care centres in Greece.

Science.gov (United States)

Papanikolaou, Vicky; Zygiaris, Sotiris

2014-04-01

The paper refers to the increased competition between health care providers and the need for patient-centred services in Greece. Using service quality methodology, this paper investigates service quality perceptions of patients in Greek public primary health centres. To test the internal consistency and applicability of SERVQUAL in primary health care centres in Greece. SERVQUAL was used to examine whether patients have different expectations from health care providers and whether different groups of patients may consider some dimensions of care more important than others. The analysis showed that there were gaps in all dimensions measured by SERVQUAL. The largest gap was detected in empathy. Further analysis showed that there were also differences depending on gender, age and education levels. A separate analysis of expectations and perceptions revealed that this gap was because of differences in patients' perceptions rather than expectations. THIS paper raises a number of issues that concern the applicability of SERVQUAL in health care services and could enhance current discussions about SERVQUAL improvement. Quality of health care needs to be redefined by encompassing multiple dimensions. Beyond a simple expectations-perceptions gap, people may hold different understandings of health care that, in turn, influence their perception of the quality of services. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

'Smashed by the National Health'? A Closer Look at the Demise of the Pioneer Health Centre, Peckham.

Science.gov (United States)

Conford, Philip

2016-04-01

The Pioneer Health Centre, based in South London before and after the Second World War, remains a source of interest for advocates of a positive approach to health promotion in contrast with the treatment of those already ill. Its closure in 1950 for lack of funds has been blamed on the then recently established National Health Service, but this article argues that such an explanation is over-simplified and ignores a number of other factors. The Centre had struggled financially during the 1930s and tried to gain support from the Medical Research Council. The Council appeared interested in the Centre before the war, but was less sympathetic in the 1940s. Around the time of its closure and afterwards, the Centre was also involved in negotiations with London County Council; these failed because the Centre's directors would not accept the changes which the Council would have needed to make. Unpublished documents reveal that the Centre's directors were uncompromising and that their approach to the situation antagonised their colleagues. Changes in medical science also worked against the Centre. The success of sulphonamide drugs appeared to render preventive medicine less significant, while the development of statistical techniques cast doubt on the Centre's experimental methods. The Centre was at the heart of the nascent organic farming movement, which opposed the rapid growth of chemical cultivation. But what might be termed 'chemical triumphalism' was on the march in both medicine and agriculture, and the Centre was out of tune with the mood of the times.

Comparison of knowledge, attitudes and behaviour regarding smoking among Estonian and Finnish physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Pärna, Kersti; Rahu, Kaja; Barengo, Noël C; Rahu, Mati; Sandström, Patrick H; Jormanainen, Vesa J; Myllykangas, Markku T

2005-01-01

To compare smoking behaviour, attitudes and opinions towards smoking and smoking cessation among Estonian and Finnish physicians. A cross-sectional postal survey using a self-administered questionnaire was carried out among 2,480 Estonian and 2,075 Finnish physicians. Daily smoking prevalence was higher among Estonian physicians than among their Finnish counterparts in both male (18.6% and 6.7%) and female (6.6% and 3.6%). Compared to Estonia, physicians in Finland more often agreed that smoking is very harmful to their health, that trying to convince people to stop smoking is their responsibility and that smoking prevention should be part of the normal and special training of health professionals. In both countries, non-smoking physicians held more unfavourable attitudes towards smoking than those who were smoking. Physicians' own smoking patterns and quitting behaviour are important because physicians serve as models for their patients and play a key role in the reinforcement of smoke-free health facilities. These results remain a challenge to medical educators, especially in Estonia. Estonia needs to improve medical education in terms of motivating physicians to ask about the smoking patterns of their patients and of training medical students and resident physicians to counsel their patients to stop smoking.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1991-12-01

The Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 as well as TVO 1 and II were in operation for almost the whole second quarter of 1991. The load factor average was 87.4 %. In consequence of a fire, which broke out in the switchgear building, connections to both external grids were lost and TVO II relied on power supplied by four back-up diesels for 7.5 hrs. The event is classified as Level 2 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. The process of examining the non-leaking fuel bundles removed from the Loviisa nuclear reactors has continued. The examinations have revealed, so far, that the uppermost spacing lattices of the bundles exhibit deformations similar to those detected in the leaking fuel bundles removed from the reactors. This event is classified as Level 1 on the International Nuclear Event Scale. Other events in this quarter which are classified according to the International Nuclear Event Scale are Level Zero (Below Scale) on the Scale. The Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety has assessed the safety of the Loviisa and Olkiluoto nuclear power plants based on the new regulations issued on 14.2.1991 by the Council of State. The safety regulations are much more stringent than those in force when the Loviisa and Olkiluoto nuclear power plants were built. The assessment indicated that the TVO nuclear power plant meets these safety regulations. The Loviisa nuclear power plant meets the requirements with the exception of certain requirements related to the ensuring of safety functions and provision for accidents. At the Loviisa nuclear power plant there are several projects under consideration to enhance safety

Rapid health assessments of evacuation centres in areas affected by Typhoon Haiyan

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Ruth Alma Ramos

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Typhoon Haiyan caused thousands of deaths and catastrophic destruction, leaving many homeless in Region 8 of the Philippines. A team from the Philippine Field Epidemiology Training Program conducted a rapid health assessment survey of evacuation centres severely affected by Haiyan. Methods: A descriptive study was conducted whereby a convenience sample of evacuation centres were assessed on the number of toilets per evacuee, sanitation, drinking-water, food supply source and medical services. Results: Of the 20 evacuation centres assessed, none had a designated manager. Most were located in schools (70% with the estimated number of evacuees ranging from 15 to 5000 per centre. Only four (20% met the World Health Organization standard for number of toilets per evacuee; none of the large evacuation centres had even half the recommended number of toilets. All of the evacuation centres had available drinking-water. None of the evacuation centres had garbage collection, vector control activities or standby medical teams. Fourteen (70% evacuation centres had onsite vaccination activities for measles, tetanus and polio virus. Many evacuation centres were overcrowded. Conclusion: Evacuation centres are needed in almost every disaster. They should be safely located and equipped with the required amenities. In disaster-prone areas such as the Philippines, schools and community centres should not be designated as evacuation centres unless they are equipped with adequate sanitation services.

FFUSION yearbook 1995. Annual report of the Finnish research unit. Association EURATOM-TEKES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karttunen, S; Paettikangas, T [eds.; VTT Energy, Espoo (Finland)

1996-03-01

Finnish Fusion Research Programme (FFUSION) is one of the eleven national energy research programmes funded by the Technological Development Centre of Finland (TEKES). All fusion related research in Finland is included in the FFUSION programme and it made it possible to establish a dialogue with the European Fusion Programme already two years before Finland joined the European Union. The process led to the founding of the Association Euratom-TEKES in early 1995. The contract of Association was signed in Helsinki on March 13 1995, to establish the 14th Association in the EU FFusion Programme. This annual report summarises the research activities of the Finnish Research Unit in 1995. The emphasis is on research supported by the EU Commission. The programme consists of two parts: Physics and Technology. The research areas of the physics are: Fusion plasma engineering, Radio-frequency heating and plasma diagnostics, and Plasma-wall interactions - ion-beam studies of the reactor materials. The technology is focused into three areas: Fusion reactor materials (first wall components and joining techniques), and Remote handling

The role of the Finnish Meteorological Institute

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Savolainen, A.L.; Valkama, I.

1993-01-01

The Finnish Meteorological Institute is responsible for the dispersion forecasts for the radiation control in Finland. In addition to the normal weather forecasts the duty forecaster has the work station based three dimensional trajectory model and the short range dispersion model YDINO at his disposal. For expert use, dispersion and dose model TRADOS is available. The TRADOS, developed by the Finnish Meteorological Institute and by the Technical Research Centre of Finland, includes a meteorological data base that utilizes the numerical forecasts of the High Resolution Limited Area Model (HIRLAM) weather prediction model. The transport is described by three-dimensional air-parcel trajectories. For each time step the integrated air concentrations as well as dry and wet deposition for selected groups of radionuclides are computed. In the operational emergency application only external dose rates are computed. In the statistical version also individual and population dose estimates via several external and internal pathways can be made. The TRADOS is currently run under two separate user interfaces. The trajectory and dispersion model interface includes ready-made lists of the nuclear power plants and other installations. The dose model has a set of release terms for several groups of radionuclides. There is also a graphical module that enables the computed results to be presented in grid or also isolines. A new graphical user interface and presentation lay-outs redesigned as visual and end-user friendly as possible and with the aim of possible and with the aim of possible adoption as a Nordic standard will be installed in the near future. (orig.)

Smoking, alcohol use, socioeconomic background and oral health among young Finnish adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanner, Tarja; Päkkilä, Jari; Karjalainen, Kaisa; Kämppi, Antti; Järvelin, Marjo-Riitta; Patinen, Pertti; Tjäderhane, Leo; Anttonen, Vuokko

2015-10-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of smoking and alcohol use in association with dental caries experience and signs of periodontal disease in a Finnish male group born in the early 1990s. The impacts of health behaviour and socioeconomic factors were included in the analyses. Oral health of 8539 conscripts was screened in a cross-sectional study (DT, DMFT and CPI). They also answered a questionnaire covering their habits of smoking and alcohol use as well as other behaviours and background factors. The bleeding on probing index (BOP) was available on 6529 conscripts. Cross-tabulation together with a chi-squared test and generalized linear mixed models were used in the analyses. A mosaic figure was used to illustrate associations of smoking frequency, use of dental services and toothache. Majority (80.9%) in the study group consumed alcohol at least once a month, and 39.4% were daily smokers. Smoking was statistically significantly associated with high caries experience and high bleeding values of gums. Consumption of alcohol was not associated with dental caries and periodontal disease. The high BOP value had the strongest association with infrequent tooth brushing and smoking. The participant's own education level was the main protective factor of oral health. The smokers used dental services more frequently compared to the non-smokers mostly for acute care. Young men's health behaviour, especially of those with low education, does not promote oral health, which may indicate need for extensive healthcare services in the future. Health promotion should not be neglected. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Health in All Policies: From rhetoric to implementation and evaluation - the Finnish experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Ståhl, Timo

2018-02-01

The principles of the Health in All Policies (HiAP) approach are not new. Their international roots can be traced back to 1978 and the Alma-Ata Declaration and the 1986 Ottawa Charter. In Finland, the roots of HiAP go back to 1972 when the Economic Council of Finland, chaired by the Prime Minister, launched the 'Report of the working group exploring the goals of health'. The paper discusses the history, rationale, and implementation of the principles underlying the umbrella concept of HiAP. A rationale for implementing a new concept - HiAP in 2006 during the Finnish European Union presidency - is given. The focus here will be on implementation of HiAP. International material supporting the implementation is introduced and practical examples from Finland presented. The Benchmarking System for Health Promotion Capacity Building is introduced, since it has been used as a primary source of information for monitoring and evaluating HiAP in Finland at the local level. The experience from Finland clearly indicates that HiAP as an approach and as a way of working requires long-term commitment and vision. For working across sectors it is crucial to have data on health and health determinants and analyses of the links between health outcomes, health determinants, and policies across sectors and levels of governance. Intersectoral structures, processes, and tools for the identification of problems and solutions, decisions, and implementation across sectors are prerequisites of HiAP. Legislative backing has proven to be useful, especially in providing continuation and sustainability.

Length of stay in asylum centres and mental health in asylum seekers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hallas, Peter; Hansen, Anne R; Staehr, Mia A

2007-01-01

BACKGROUND: The length of stay in asylum centres is generally mentioned as a possible health risk to asylum seekers. Medical staff working with asylum seekers has claimed that long lengths of stay in asylum centres might cause or aggravate mental disorders. We used records from a large, multiethnic...... specialists. If an asylum seeker needed more than three specialist consultations for mental illness or five consultations for physical illness the referrals had to be approved by The Danish Immigration Service. Between July 2001 - December 2002 the Red Cross prospectively registered health related data on all......: Length of stay in asylum centres was associated with an increase in referrals for mental disorders in a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers. The present study supports the view that prolonged length of stay in an asylum centre is a risk factor for mental health. The risk of psychiatric illness...

Delivery of eye and vision services in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary health care centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anthea M Burnett

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Routine eye and vision assessments are vital for the detection and subsequent management of vision loss, which is particularly important for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who face higher rates of vision loss than other Australians. In order to guide improvements, this paper will describe patterns, variations and gaps in these eye and vision assessments for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Methods: Clinical audits from 124 primary health care centres (sample size 15,175 from five Australian States and Territories were conducted during 2005-2012. Main outcome measure was adherence to current guidelines for delivery of eye and vision assessments to adults with diabetes, those without a diagnosed major chronic disease and children attending primary health care centres. Results: Overall delivery of recommended eye and vision assessments varied widely between health centres. Of the adults with diabetes, 45% had a visual acuity assessment recorded within the previous 12 months (health centre range 0-88%, and 33% had a retinal examination recorded (health centre range 0-73%. Of the adults with no diagnosed major chronic disease, 31% had a visual acuity assessment recorded within the previous two years (health centre range 0-30%, and 13% had received an examination for trichiasis (health centre range 0-40%. In children, 49% had a record of a vision assessment (health centre range 0-97%, and 25% had a record of an examination for trachoma within the previous 12 months (health centre range 0-63%. Conclusions: There was considerable range, and variation in the recorded delivery of scheduled eye and vision assessments across health centres. Sharing the successful strategies of the better-performing health centres to support focused improvements in key areas of need may increase overall rates of eye examinations – important for the timely detection, referral and treatment of eye conditions affecting Aboriginal and

LEAN thinking in Finnish healthcare.

Science.gov (United States)

Jorma, Tapani; Tiirinki, Hanna; Bloigu, Risto; Turkki, Leena

2016-01-01

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to evaluate how LEAN thinking is used as a management and development tool in the Finnish public healthcare system and what kind of outcomes have been achieved or expected by using it. The main focus is in managing and developing patient and treatment processes. Design/methodology/approach - A mixed-method approach incorporating the Webropol survey was used. Findings - LEAN is quite a new concept in Finnish public healthcare. It is mainly used as a development tool to seek financial savings and to improve the efficiency of patient processes, but has not yet been deeply implemented. However, the experiences from LEAN initiatives have been positive, and the methodology is already quite well-known. It can be concluded that, because of positive experiences from LEAN, the environment in Finnish healthcare is ready for the deeper implementation of LEAN. Originality/value - This paper evaluates the usage of LEAN thinking for the first time in the public healthcare system of Finland as a development tool and a management system. It highlights the implementation and achieved results of LEAN thinking when used in the healthcare environment. It also highlights the expectations for LEAN thinking in Finnish public healthcare.

Technical efficiency of public district hospitals and health centres in Ghana: a pilot study

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Kirigia Joses M

2005-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The Government of Ghana has been implementing various health sector reforms (e.g. user fees in public health facilities, decentralization, sector-wide approaches to donor coordination in a bid to improve efficiency in health care. However, to date, except for the pilot study reported in this paper, no attempt has been made to make an estimate of the efficiency of hospitals and/or health centres in Ghana. The objectives of this study, based on data collected in 2000, were: (i to estimate the relative technical efficiency (TE and scale efficiency (SE of a sample of public hospitals and health centres in Ghana; and (ii to demonstrate policy implications for health sector policy-makers. Methods The Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA approach was used to estimate the efficiency of 17 district hospitals and 17 health centres. This was an exploratory study. Results Eight (47% hospitals were technically inefficient, with an average TE score of 61% and a standard deviation (STD of 12%. Ten (59% hospitals were scale inefficient, manifesting an average SE of 81% (STD = 25%. Out of the 17 health centres, 3 (18% were technically inefficient, with a mean TE score of 49% (STD = 27%. Eight health centres (47% were scale inefficient, with an average SE score of 84% (STD = 16%. Conclusion This pilot study demonstrated to policy-makers the versatility of DEA in measuring inefficiencies among individual facilities and inputs. There is a need for the Planning and Budgeting Unit of the Ghana Health Services to continually monitor the productivity growth, allocative efficiency and technical efficiency of all its health facilities (hospitals and health centres in the course of the implementation of health sector reforms.

Strategic aspects of the purchasing process in the Finnish hearing instruments business.

Science.gov (United States)

Petäjävaara, A

1995-01-01

Discusses the Finnish hearing instrument market which, in the past decade, has been characterized by both closed and shared markets. Indicates there has been some formal competition, but real price competition has not influenced the resharing of market shares. Finds that the current recession has forced hospitals to re-evaluate their purchasing criteria. Investigates the process with the help of industrial marketing theories to determine the strategic means which can be used to create competitive advantages. The new automatic data-processing (ADP)-based high technology in the hearing-instrument business provides opportunities for identifying these advantages. Surveys the abilities of hearing-centre personnel in university hospitals to take advantage of ADP-based tools. Shows that hearing-centre personnel have a low level of ADP knowledge and, thus, a great need for ADP training. Discusses the ADP-based strategy chosen to be AP Medical Hearing Ltd's main strategy and emphasizes the importance of ADP-based training in high technology.

Construct validity and reliability of the Finnish version of the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score.

Science.gov (United States)

Multanen, Juhani; Honkanen, Mikko; Häkkinen, Arja; Kiviranta, Ilkka

2018-05-22

The Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) is a commonly used knee assessment and outcome tool in both clinical work and research. However, it has not been formally translated and validated in Finnish. The purpose of this study was to translate and culturally adapt the KOOS questionnaire into Finnish and to determine its validity and reliability among Finnish middle-aged patients with knee injuries. KOOS was translated and culturally adapted from English into Finnish. Subsequently, 59 patients with knee injuries completed the Finnish version of KOOS, Western Ontario and McMaster Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC), Short-Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36) and Numeric Pain Rating Scale (Pain-NRS). The same KOOS questionnaire was re-administered 2 weeks later. Psychometric assessment of the Finnish KOOS was performed by testing its construct validity and reliability by using internal consistency, test-retest reliability and measurement error. The floor and ceiling effects were also examined. The cross-cultural adaptation revealed only minor cultural differences and was well received by the patients. For construct validity, high to moderate Spearman's Correlation Coefficients were found between the KOOS subscales and the WOMAC, SF-36, and Pain-NRS subscales. The Cronbach's alpha was from 0.79 to 0.96 for all subscales indicating acceptable internal consistency. The test-retest reliability was good to excellent, with Intraclass Correlation Coefficients ranging from 0.73 to 0.86 for all KOOS subscales. The minimal detectable change ranged from 17 to 34 on an individual level and from 2 to 4 on a group level. No floor or ceiling effects were observed. This study yielded an appropriately translated and culturally adapted Finnish version of KOOS which demonstrated good validity and reliability. Our data indicate that the Finnish version of KOOS is suitable for assessment of the knee status of Finnish patients with different knee complaints. Further studies are needed to

Seniors centre-based health intervention programmes in the United States and South Korea: A systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Misoon; Seo, Kyoungsan; Choi, Suyoung; Choi, Jeongshil; Ko, Hana; Lee, Soo Jin

2017-10-01

Despite the great need for health interventions among seniors centre participants, this matter has received little attention. This systematic review aimed to identify what types of health interventions are effective and feasible for seniors centre participants. MEDLINE, Ovid, CINAHL, Google Scholar, EMBASE, and RISS were searched. We searched for health intervention studies conducted in seniors centres published in English and Korean between 1990 and 2014. Of 907 screened articles, 22 studies of all types of experimental designs were selected. Selected studies were grouped by intervention domain: health promotion (n = 8), safety (n = 5), chronic disease management (n = 6), and comprehensive wellness (n = 3). Overall, 59.1% of the interventions were provided by nurses. The health interventions resulted in positive effects on seniors centre participants' knowledge, health behaviours, clinical indices, and hospitalization rates. Few studies reported on feasibility outcomes such as satisfaction and cost-effectiveness. Considering the impact and ease of access to older people at seniors centres, health interventions and services within seniors centres should be strengthened. There is potential for nursing to spearhead seniors centre health intervention programmes to enhance active ageing for participants. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

The Finnish customs to introduce more efficient radiation control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sevon, H.

1995-01-01

The customs authorities have started to control the import of radioactive substances and nuclear materials. Regular radiation measurements will be introduced at various frontier crossing points. Cooperation with the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety has also been intensified. The control measures apply primarily to goods traffic coming from - or through - Russia and the Baltic countries. The first stationary radiation measuring equipment for vehicles and their loads is in use at Vaalimaa customs station. All the busiest customs stations on Finland's eastern frontier will be provided with stationary radiation meters. The measurements will focus on scrap metal loads and loads that come either from the environs of certain nuclear facilities in the area of former Soviet Union or from areas that are particularly polluted. (orig.) (2 figs.)

A relational conceptual framework for multidisciplinary health research centre infrastructure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johnson Joy L

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Although multidisciplinary and team-based approaches are increasingly acknowledged as necessary to address some of the most pressing contemporary health challenges, many researchers struggle with a lack of infrastructure to facilitate and formalise the requisite collaborations. Specialised research centres have emerged as an important organisational solution, yet centre productivity and sustainability are frequently dictated by the availability and security of infrastructure funds. Despite being widely cited as a core component of research capacity building, infrastructure as a discrete concept has been rather analytically neglected, often treated as an implicit feature of research environments with little specification or relegated to a narrow category of physical or administrative inputs. The terms research infrastructure, capacity, and culture, among others, are deployed in overlapping and inconsistent ways, further obfuscating the crucial functions of infrastructure specifically and its relationships with associated concepts. The case is made for an expanded conceptualisation of research infrastructure, one that moves beyond conventional 'hardware' notions. Drawing on a case analysis of NEXUS, a multidisciplinary health research centre based at the University of British Columbia, Canada, a conceptual framework is proposed that integrates the tangible and intangible structures that interactively underlie research centre functioning. A relational approach holds potential to allow for more comprehensive accounting of the returns on infrastructure investment. For those developing new research centres or seeking to reinvigorate existing ones, this framework may be a useful guide for both centre design and evaluation.

The science and practice of people-centred health systems | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2014-12-02

Dec 2, 2014 ... How can we secure people-centred health systems? ... by some 2000 participants at the Third Global Symposium on Health Systems Research in ... project investigated the unique collaborative dynamics of innovation and i.

Bibliometric evaluation of Finnish astronomy

OpenAIRE

Isaksson, Eva

2007-01-01

Finnish astronomy publishing provides us with an interesting data sample. It is small but not too small: approximately one thousand articles have been published in a decade. There are only four astronomy institutes to be compared. An interesting paradox also emerges in the field: while Finnish science assessments usually value highly the impact of scientific publishing, no serious evaluations using real bibliometric data have been made. To remedy this, a comprehensive ten-year database of ref...

Occupational injuries in the Finnish furniture industry.

Science.gov (United States)

Aaltonen, M V

1996-06-01

The purpose of the study was to determine the types of occupational injuries that occur in the Finnish furniture industry and to see whether they differ as regards production type and company size. During a one-year registration period accident events, the actual and potential severity of the injuries, the causes of the accidents, and the measures needed to prevent such accidents were examined in 18 Finnish furniture factories of different types. An analysis of covariance determined the variables affecting the actual and potential severity of the injuries. The 214 accidents registered were lost-time injuries; two of them resulted in slight partial loss of fingertips. The disabling injury rate was 14.4 per 100 workers per year. Wooden furniture production and kitchen cupboard production in large companies had the highest rate. Accidents involving machines comprised half of the material. Saws were the most common machine type. Forty-two percent of the injuries could have been more severe; one injury could have been fatal. The injured persons and their foremen identified the causal factors of the accidents and the needed safety countermeasures well. Sixty-six percent of the causes and 65% of the safety countermeasures were associated with the actions of the workers and the workplace procedures. Nevertheless, only 6% of the identified safety countermeasures were put into force. It was estimated that, in 1987, 2000 on-site accidents leading to at least first-aid at some health care center occurred in the Finnish furniture industry. Special efforts should be taken to improve safety in furniture production in Finland.

The science and practice of people-centred health systems | CRDI ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

She said of the supplement, “it does justice to the heart and science of health systems research and is a foundational start to the term 'people-centred health systems'." The full text articles are freely available on the website of the Health Policy and Planning journal. Read about IDRC's support to health systems research.

The structure and dynamics of health centres in the Netherlands: an institutional analysis.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Batenburg, R.; Eyck, A.

2011-01-01

Context: Health centres are seen as a preferred organization of the modernized and integrated primary care. they are expected to facilitate an accessible contact point for medical care as close to people’s homes. Also, health centres are expected to deliver care in an efficient and effective way,

Satisfaction of clients with disabilities with services offered at primary health care centres in Ndola, Zambia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Mlenzana

2012-12-01

Full Text Available To establish satisfaction level of persons with disabilitiesregarding health services at primary health care centres in Ndola, Zambia.Key stakeholders views on satisfaction of services is an important componentof service rendering thus obtaining information is important in assistingwith the evaluation of health care service delivery. This will assist in improvingeffectiveness and availability of health care services to persons with physicaldisabilities.All persons with disabilities attending both rehabilitation centres andprimary health care centres in Ndola, Zambia, were targeted for this study. Willing participants were convenientlyselected to take part in the study.A cross sectional, descriptive study design using quantitative methods of data collection was used. The GeneralPractice Assessment Questionnaire was adjusted, piloted for Ndola population and used in this study to establishsatisfaction of participants. The study was ethically cleared at the University of the Western Cape and Zambia.Information and consent forms were signed by participants.Quantitative data was analysed descriptively and was reported in percentages.In the current study there were 191 participants of whom 56% were male and 44% were female with age rangefrom 18-65 years. Fifty-two percent of the participants presented with learning disabilities and 38% of persons withphysical disabilities. Majority of clients (54% were dissatisfied with availability of services and health care servicesat the health care centres. Areas that clients were dissatisfied with were accessibility, consultation with health professionals,waiting times and opening hours of the health care centres.Clients with disabilities who accessed health care services from selected health centres in Ndola were dissatisfiedwith aspects of health services. Accessibility, consultation with health professionals, waiting times and opening hoursof the health care centres were the origin of client dissatisfaction

Burnout among Finnish and Chinese university students.

Science.gov (United States)

Hernesniemi, Elina; Räty, Hannu; Kasanen, Kati; Cheng, Xuejiao; Hong, Jianzhong; Kuittinen, Matti

2017-10-01

In this study the levels of experienced burnout of Finnish and Chinese university students are compared using School Burnout Inventory (SBI). This study is motivated by earlier studies, which suggest that the level of student burnout is different in the culturally distinct Finnish and Chinese university systems, but which are based on different research instruments for the two groups. The sample studied consisted of 3,035 Finnish students and 2,309 Chinese students. Because of the cross-cultural nature of this study the level of structural equivalence of SBI between the cultural groups was examined and the effect of different response styles on the results was taken into account. Both standard and robust statistical methods were used for the analyses. The results showed that SBI with two extracted components is suitable for cross-cultural analysis between Finnish and Chinese university students. Virtually no difference was found in experienced overall burnout between the Finnish and Chinese students, which means that both university systems contain factors causing similar levels of student burnout. This study also verified that controlling for the response styles is important in cross-cultural studies as it was found to have a distinct effect on the results obtained from mean-level comparisons. © 2017 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Finnish experiences on licensing and using of programmable digital systems in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haapanen, P.; Maskuniitty, M.; Heimburger, H.; Hall, L.E.; Manninen, T.

1993-01-01

Finnish utility companies, Imatran Voima Oy (IVO) and Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), and the licensing authority, the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK), are preparing for a new nuclear power plant in Finland. Plant vendors are proposing programmable digital automation systems for both the safety-related and the operational I and C (instrumentation and control) systems in this new unit. Also in existing plant units the replacement of certain old analog systems with state-of-the-art digital ones will become necessary in the years to come. Licensing of programmable systems for safety critical applications requires a new approach due to the special properties and failure modes of these systems. The major difficulties seem to be in the assessment and quantification of software reliability. The Technical Research Centre of Finland has in co-operation with the authority and the utilities conducted a project (AJA) to develop domestically applicable licensing requirements, guidelines and practices. International standards, guidelines and licensing practices have been analyzed in order to specify national licensing requirements. The paper describes and discusses the findings and experiences of the AJA project so far. The experience in introducing advanced programmable digital control and computer systems in the operating nuclear power plants will be covered briefly. Although these systems are not safety-related but systems of more general interest regarding nuclear safety, some routines regarding the licensing of safety- related systems have been followed. In these backfitting and replacement projects some experience have been gained in how to license safety-related programmable systems. (Author) 31 refs., 2 figs

Marketing communication in Finnish industrial companies

OpenAIRE

Vuorio, Mikko

2010-01-01

Marketing communication has a significant role for profitable businesses in industrial markets, and its role is only expected to rise in the future. Especially, integrated marketing communication (IMC) and customer-oriented approach are universally regarded fundamental developments in the field of marketing. Secondly, Finnish companies’ marketing competences are commonly considered insufficient in general. The purpose of this study was to describe how Finnish industrial companies execute t...

Evaluation of the Finnish CERN activities panel report

CERN Document Server

Paul, Peter; Juuti, Pauli; Kullander, Sven; Ikonen, Eeva; Maalampi, Jukka

2001-01-01

The Academy of Finland decided in November 2000 that Finnish CERN-activities should be evaluated. The first ten years of the Finnish membership in CERN have been successful. Also in the future, Finland has great opportunities and benefits of the collaboration with CERN. The Finnish presentations clearly show the rapid development in experimental physics since the joining of CERN. Still, Finland can be considered as a relatively young Member State in CERN, but one of the most dynamic new partners for CERN.

Finnish psychiatry--past and present.

Science.gov (United States)

Pylkkänen, Kari

2012-03-01

The history of Finnish psychiatry has been characterized by polarizations: priority in hospitals vs. outpatient care, centralized vs. decentralized organization, independent vs. integrated administration, biological vs. psychological treatments, private vs. public production, special psychiatric policies vs. general health policies. The independent psychiatric organizations on District level lasted from the 1920s until 1990. Since then, the formerly independent psychiatry was subordinated to General Hospital administration and the centralized system of state planning and financing of healthcare was gradually decentralized and run down. During the heavy Finnish economic recession of the early 1990 s, the cuts of the public sector were unfortunately focused most heavily on psychiatric services. The main focus of research and teaching has shifted from earlier emphasis on psychoanalytical approach to biological psychiatry since the late 1980s. The administrative position of psychiatry has been repeatedly changing and unstable during the last 20 years. At the level of the contents of the services, however, there have been many very positive and promising developments. Psychiatry has come closer to other specialties from its formerly isolated position, when the separate administrations have been integrated. Provision of outpatient services has increased remarkably, while the number of hospital beds has decreased radically. Interest and resources in research have increased remarkably, and numerous new and good quality psychiatric research reports are being published.

Problematic digital gaming behavior and its relation to the psychological, social and physical health of Finnish adolescents and young adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Männikkö, Niko; Billieux, Joël; Kääriäinen, Maria

2015-12-01

The aim of this study was to identify problematic gaming behavior among Finnish adolescents and young adults, and evaluate its connection to a variety of psychological, social, and physical health symptoms. This cross-sectional study was conducted with a random sample of 293 respondents aged from 13 to 24 years. Participants completed an online survey. Problematic gaming behavior was measured with the Game Addiction Scale (GAS). Self-reports covered health measures such as psychological health (psychopathological symptoms, satisfaction with life), social health (preferences for social interaction), and physical health (general health, Body Mass Index [BMI], body discomfort, physical activity). Problematic gaming behavior was found to relate to psychological and health problems, namely fatigue, sleep interference, depression and anxiety symptoms. Multiple linear regression indicated that the amount of weekly gaming, depression and a preference for online social interaction predicted increased problematic gaming symptoms. This research emphasized that problematic gaming behavior had a strong negative correlation to a variety of subjective health outcomes.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 4th quarter, 1994 and annual summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1995-05-01

The Loviisa NPP units were in power operation the whole last quarter, with the exception of a reactor scram at Loviisa 1. The load factor average of all Finnish plant units was 100.2 %. The annual average was 90.0 %. All events in the fourth annual quarter were assigned level 0 (no safety significance) on the international INES scale. Four events in 1994 were classified level 1 (an anomaly). The Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety in December approved Imatran Voima Oy's application to extend the operation of the reactor pressure vessel of Loviisa 2 until the annual maintenance outage of 2010. During this quarter, a batch of spent fuel from Loviisa power plant was transported to Russia. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Only such quantities of plant-based radioactive materials were measurable in samples collected around the plants as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. The report includes a summary of all the items described in the Quarterly Reports of 1994. (8 figs., 4 tabs.)

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 4th quarter, 1994 and annual summary

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tossavainen, K [ed.

1995-05-01

The Loviisa NPP units were in power operation the whole last quarter, with the exception of a reactor scram at Loviisa 1. The load factor average of all Finnish plant units was 100.2 %. The annual average was 90.0 %. All events in the fourth annual quarter were assigned level 0 (no safety significance) on the international INES scale. Four events in 1994 were classified level 1 (an anomaly). The Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety in December approved Imatran Voima Oy`s application to extend the operation of the reactor pressure vessel of Loviisa 2 until the annual maintenance outage of 2010. During this quarter, a batch of spent fuel from Loviisa power plant was transported to Russia. Occupational doses and radioactive releases off-site were below authorised limits. Only such quantities of plant-based radioactive materials were measurable in samples collected around the plants as have no bearing on the radiation exposure of the population. The report includes a summary of all the items described in the Quarterly Reports of 1994. (8 figs., 4 tabs.).

[Patients' perception on attention received from Health Centres non-sanitary staff].

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz Moral, R; Alba Dios, A; Jiménez García, C; González Neubauer, V; García Torres, M; Pérula de Torres, L A; Barrios Blasco, L

2011-01-01

To know patients' perceptions about relational aspects and technical procedures when they are attended by the administrative staff in Health Centres. To assess the utility of two ways for measuring satisfaction. Cross-sectional study carried out in people attending the administrative sections of Health Centres for diverse reasons. Just after the interaction with the administrative they were interviewed using two different questions for assessing their opinions and satisfaction with communicational and technical aspects related with their demands. Descriptive analysis. Significant differences among mean was explored by χ(2) test. Open-ended questions were grouped in categories in a process involving three researchers independently. Over than 90% (360) of the attendees declared to be satisfied or very satisfied with the service received from the staff personal. Nevertheless, among 18-36% gave suggestions for improving the service after their consultation. Independently the domain explored, people suggested the communicational, personal capability, quality and quantity of explanations and waiting time as the main aspects to be improved. Surveys with open-ended questions are more useful to assess the quality of the attention the citizens receive from no-sanitary staff in Health Centres. These type of questions are also more useful for detecting problems and planning new interventions. Relational and informative issues seem to be the most prioritary areas to improve in this section of Health Centres. Copyright © 2010 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Finnish Teachers’ Ethical Sensitivity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elina Kuusisto

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The study examined the ethical sensitivity of Finnish teachers (=864 using a 28-item Ethical Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire (ESSQ. The psychometric qualities of this instrument were analyzed, as were the differences in self-reported ethical sensitivity between practicing and student teachers and teachers of different subjects. The results showed that the psychometric qualities of the ESSQ were satisfactory and enabled the use of an explorative factor analysis. All Finnish teachers rated their level of ethical sensitivity as high, which indicates that they had internalized the ethical professionalism of teaching. However, practicing teachers’ assessments were higher than student teachers’. Moreover, science as a subject was associated with lower self-ratings of ethical sensitivity.

Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, designated as a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Primary Oral Health Care.

Science.gov (United States)

Behbehani, J M

2014-01-01

The Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, was designated as a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Primary Oral Health Care (POHC) in 2011. This article aimed to describe the following: (1) the background for this nomination, (2) the WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC, its terms of reference and 5 activities, (3) the primary health care concept as it was established in Alma-Ata, (4) the oral health situation in Kuwait and in the Middle-East region and, finally, (5) how POHC policy should be implemented in Kuwait and this region. It can be concluded that, because the caries experience is very high in Kuwait and in the other countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region, good POHC programmes should be designed and implemented in this region. The Faculty of Dentistry will strengthen its research tradition and as a WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC will try to collect information and experience from POHC in this region and exchange ideas between POHC experts in this region on how these programmes could be further developed. This will happen according to the terms of reference and activity plans of the WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC approved by the WHO Global Oral Health Programme. © 2014 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, Designated as a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre for Primary Oral Health Care

Science.gov (United States)

Behbehani, J.M.

2014-01-01

The Faculty of Dentistry, Kuwait University, was designated as a World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centre for Primary Oral Health Care (POHC) in 2011. This article aimed to describe the following: (1) the background for this nomination, (2) the WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC, its terms of reference and 5 activities, (3) the primary health care concept as it was established in Alma-Ata, (4) the oral health situation in Kuwait and in the Middle-East region and, finally, (5) how POHC policy should be implemented in Kuwait and this region. It can be concluded that, because the caries experience is very high in Kuwait and in the other countries of the Eastern Mediterranean region, good POHC programmes should be designed and implemented in this region. The Faculty of Dentistry will strengthen its research tradition and as a WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC will try to collect information and experience from POHC in this region and exchange ideas between POHC experts in this region on how these programmes could be further developed. This will happen according to the terms of reference and activity plans of the WHO Collaborating Centre for POHC approved by the WHO Global Oral Health Programme. PMID:24504110

A new Finnish nuclear power unit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

In Finland, nuclear power is considered a natural part of a sustainable energy system. The Finnish Parliament has decided that development of nuclear power is consistent with the overall interests of society when climate issues, environmental targets, supply security and stable and competitive prices of electric power are considered as a whole. In 2002, the Finnish Parliament approved the Government's decision in principle to build a fifth nuclear power plant. The new project is the most advanced energy project in the Nordic countries with respect to the availability of energy free of carbon dioxide. The decision is also welcomed by the EU. The new reactor will be of the EPR (European Pressurized Water Reactor) type. In addition to supplying power to the Finnish industries, the plant is considered necessary if Finland is to comply with international conventions on CO 2 emissions

Piloting Snapchat for Finnish Defence Forces

OpenAIRE

Immonen, Helena

2016-01-01

This thesis is about piloting Snapchat for Finnish Defence Forces. The goals for the thesis are to find out how Snapchat can be used as part of Finnish Defence Forces’ social media communication and strategy. Conscripts are the most important target group for social media communication in the Defence Forces. Young conscripts are the main target group for Snapchat. This thesis is theoretically based on organizational communication, stakeholder communication and social media communicati...

Various Portraits of Finnish Open University Students

Science.gov (United States)

Jauhiainen, Arto; Nori, Hanna; Alho-Malmelin, Marika

2007-01-01

This article describes and analyses the background and goals of students at the Finnish open university in the beginning of the twenty-first century. The material consists of statistics based on the student records of the Finnish open university in 2000 (n = 9080) and of the stories, educational autobiographies written by the adult learners (n =…

Closing the gender leadership gap: a multi-centre cross-country comparison of women in management and leadership in academic health centres in the European Union.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuhlmann, Ellen; Ovseiko, Pavel V; Kurmeyer, Christine; Gutiérrez-Lobos, Karin; Steinböck, Sandra; von Knorring, Mia; Buchan, Alastair M; Brommels, Mats

2017-01-06

Women's participation in medicine and the need for gender equality in healthcare are increasingly recognised, yet little attention is paid to leadership and management positions in large publicly funded academic health centres. This study illustrates such a need, taking the case of four large European centres: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Germany), Karolinska Institutet (Sweden), Medizinische Universität Wien (Austria), and Oxford Academic Health Science Centre (United Kingdom). The percentage of female medical students and doctors in all four countries is now well within the 40-60% gender balance zone. Women are less well represented among specialists and remain significantly under-represented among senior doctors and full professors. All four centres have made progress in closing the gender leadership gap on boards and other top-level decision-making bodies, but a gender leadership gap remains relevant. The level of achieved gender balance varies significantly between the centres and largely mirrors country-specific welfare state models, with more equal gender relations in Sweden than in the other countries. Notably, there are also similar trends across countries and centres: gender inequality is stronger within academic enterprises than within hospital enterprises and stronger in middle management than at the top level. These novel findings reveal fissures in the 'glass ceiling' effects at top-level management, while the barriers for women shift to middle-level management and remain strong in academic positions. The uneven shifts in the leadership gap are highly relevant and have policy implications. Setting gender balance objectives exclusively for top-level decision-making bodies may not effectively promote a wider goal of gender equality. Academic health centres should pay greater attention to gender equality as an issue of organisational performance and good leadership at all levels of management, with particular attention to academic enterprises

Leisure time physical activity and subsequent physical and mental health functioning among midlife Finnish, British and Japanese employees: a follow-up study in three occupational cohorts

OpenAIRE

Lahti, Jouni; Sabia, S?verine; Singh-Manoux, Archana; Kivim?ki, Mika; Tatsuse, Takashi; Yamada, Masaaki; Sekine, Michikazu; Lallukka, Tea

2016-01-01

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine whether leisure time physical activity contributes to subsequent physical and mental health functioning among midlife employees. The associations were tested in three occupational cohorts from Finland, Britain and Japan. DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Finland, Britain and Japan. PARTICIPANTS: Prospective employee cohorts from the Finnish Helsinki Health Study (2000-2002 and 2007, n=5958), British Whitehall II study (1997-1999 and 2003-2004, n=4...

The key elements for genetic response in Finnish dairy cattle breeding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jarmo Juga

1998-01-01

Full Text Available This paper reviews some key elements of Finnish animal breeding research contributing to the Finnish dairy cattle breeding programme and discusses the possibilities and problems in collecting data for genetic evaluation, prediction of breeding values both within and across countries, estimation of the economic value of important traits, and selection of bulls and cows. Economic values are calculated for fertility, udder health and production traits when one genetic standard deviation unit (gen. sd. is changed in each trait independently and the financial returns from selection response in the Finnish dairy cattle breeding programme are estimated. The following components were used to calculate the economic value of mastitis treatments: 1 cost of mastitis including discarded milk and treatment costs, 2 reduction in milk price due to higher somatic cell count, 3 replacement costs and 4 lower production level of the herd due to involuntary culling of cows because of udder problems. A high somatic cell count lowers the price of milk and eventually leads to involuntary culling. For treatments for fertility disorders the following costs were included: 1 treatment costs 2 higher replacement costs and 3 decreased milk production in the herd. Days open included the following costs: 1 extra insemination, 2 reduced annual milk yield and 3 fewer calves born. Animal breeding was found to be a very cost effective investment, yielding returns of FIM 876.9 per cow from one round of selection when the gene flow was followed for over 25 years in the Finnish dairy cattle breeding programme.

[The experience of a health centre undergoing an ecological transition].

Science.gov (United States)

Bironneau, Rémy

2018-03-01

A health centre and its staff have undertaken a sustainable health approach which aims to reduce the impact of the environment on health. One of the initiatives focused on the improvement of indoor air quality. A change to practices was possible thanks to a participative approach, the support of the staff and constant communication. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Excess mortality in winter in Finnish intensive care.

Science.gov (United States)

Reinikainen, M; Uusaro, A; Ruokonen, E; Niskanen, M

2006-07-01

In the general population, mortality from acute myocardial infarctions, strokes and respiratory causes is increased in winter. The winter climate in Finland is harsh. The aim of this study was to find out whether there are seasonal variations in mortality rates in Finnish intensive care units (ICUs). We analysed data on 31,040 patients treated in 18 Finnish ICUs. We measured severity of illness with acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) scores and intensity of care with therapeutic intervention scoring system (TISS) scores. We assessed mortality rates in different months and seasons and used logistic regression analysis to test the independent effect of various seasons on hospital mortality. We defined 'winter' as the period from December to February, inclusive. The crude hospital mortality rate was 17.9% in winter and 16.4% in non-winter, P = 0.003. Even after adjustment for case mix, winter season was an independent risk factor for increased hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio 1.13, 95% confidence interval 1.04-1.22, P = 0.005). In particular, the risk of respiratory failure was increased in winter. Crude hospital mortality was increased during the main holiday season in July. However, the severity of illness-adjusted risk of death was not higher in July than in other months. An increase in the mean daily TISS score was an independent predictor of increased hospital mortality. Severity of illness-adjusted hospital mortality for Finnish ICU patients is higher in winter than in other seasons.

Differences in Sickness Allowance Receipt between Swedish Speakers and Finnish Speakers in Finland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kaarina S. Reini

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Previous research has documented lower disability retirement and mortality rates of Swedish speakers as compared with Finnish speakers in Finland. This paper is the first to compare the two language groups with regard to the receipt of sickness allowance, which is an objective health measure that reflects a less severe poor health condition. Register-based data covering the years 1988-2011 are used. We estimate logistic regression models with generalized estimating equations to account for repeated observations at the individual level. We find that Swedish-speaking men have approximately 30 percent lower odds of receiving sickness allowance than Finnish-speaking men, whereas the difference in women is about 15 percent. In correspondence with previous research on all-cause mortality at working ages, we find no language-group difference in sickness allowance receipt in the socially most successful subgroup of the population.

Finnish participation in the European utility requirements work

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patrakka, E.

2000-01-01

The Finnish participation in the EUR process started already in April 1994 when IVO (Imatran Voima Oy presently Fortum Oyj) and TVO (Teollisuuden Voima Oy) were asked to comment EUR Volume 1 and 2 Revision A in April 1994. A formal application for the Finnish membership in the EUR organisation was sent on 20 November 1995, and Finland was accepted as an associated member on the next day. The Finnish representatives in the various EUR bodies were appointed in March 1996, at which time the formal participation in these bodies commenced. On 7 November 1996, EUR Steering Committee approved a full membership of IVO and TVO that are joint EUR members representing Finland together. A major Finnish contribution was made in 1997 when IVO and TVO performed a comparison between the EUR document and YVL guides. The period of the Finnish membership has been characterised by the compilation of EUR Volume 3 subsets, in which process IVO/Fortum and TVO have been actively participating. From the Finnish point of view, the EUR work can also be seen as a part of getting prepared to proceed with a possible new NPP project. The EUR document is a substantial aid when preparing the technical specifications for a NPP bid inquiry. The information received in connection with the detailed assessment work for Volume 3 subsets is very valuable when considering the feasibility of NPP concepts. In addition. the experiences gained in the Volume 3 activities enable to develop even better requirements that are manifested by Revision C of Volumes 1 and 2. (author)

Anabolic-androgenic steroid use among young Finnish males.

Science.gov (United States)

Mattila, V M; Rimpelä, A; Jormanainen, V; Sahi, T; Pihlajamäki, H

2010-04-01

The aim of the present study was to describe the lifetime occurrence and associated factors of anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) among young Finnish males. Of the 10 829 male conscripts (median age 19), 10 396 (96%) answered a questionnaire during the first days of their conscription in the years 2001-2007. The main outcome was lifetime AAS use. We also studied associations between 13 socioeconomic, health, and health behavioral background variables and AAS use by logistic regression. Eighty-nine (0.9%) respondents reported having used AAS. In addition, 26 (0.3%) respondents reported that they would use AAS if they could obtain them. In multivariate analysis, which included all significant variables and age, the strongest associated factors were weight training at fitness centers more than three times a week [odds ratio (OR) 11.8; 95% confidence interval (CI): 7.1-19.6], low educational status (OR 3.7; 95% CI: 2.0-7.0), and weekly drunkenness as drinking style (OR 2.4; 95% CI: 1.4-4.5). Sports other than weight training were not associated with AAS in our sample. The use of AAS is relatively uncommon among Finnish males. It is strongly associated with weight training at fitness centers but also with lower educational status and a drunkenness-oriented lifestyle. Prevention should be targeted at those males participating in weight training.

Electricity prices in the Finnish retail market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lehto, Eero

2011-01-01

This study focuses, firstly, on the pricing of electricity in the Finnish retail market. In particular, the impact of the ownership structure on prices is tested empirically. Secondly, the influence of low-cost electricity sources on retail prices is considered. The question about whether the average fuel costs rather than the wholesale price determine the retail prices is thus addressed. The supply side behaviour characterised may explain the passivity of client activity in the seemingly competitive Finnish market. - Research highlights: → Ownership has a strong impact on retail prices in the Finnish electricity market. → Locally owned companies' rates are 5-15 per cent lower than investor owned companies' rates. → Own low cost acquisition of electricity helps local firms to keep prices at low levels.

Oral health-related self-efficacy beliefs and toothbrushing: Finnish and Turkish pre-adolescents' and their mothers' responses

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cinar, Ayse Basak; Tseveenjav, Battsetseg; Murtomaa, Heikki

2009-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between cognitive and behavioural factors of preadolescents and those of their mothers, assessed in terms of self-efficacy beliefs and toothbrushing among Turkish and Finnish population in the framework of Social Cognitive Theory. The speci....... The specific objective was to test if this possible association worked regardless of cultural differences.......The aim of this study was to investigate the association between cognitive and behavioural factors of preadolescents and those of their mothers, assessed in terms of self-efficacy beliefs and toothbrushing among Turkish and Finnish population in the framework of Social Cognitive Theory...

Ernst Mach and the Epistemological Ideas Specific for Finnish Science Education

Science.gov (United States)

Siemsen, Hayo

2011-03-01

Where does Finnish science education come from? Where will it go? The following outside view reflects on relations, which Finns consider "normal" (and thus unrecognizable in introspection) in science education. But what is "normal" in Finnish culture cannot be considered "normal" for science education in other cultures, for example in Germany. The following article will trace the central ideas, which had a larger influence in the development of this difference. The question is, if and why the Finnish uniqueness in the philosophy of science education is empirically important. This puts Finnish science education into the perspective of a more general epistemological debate around Ernst Mach's Erkenntnistheorie (a German term similar to the meaning of history and philosophy of science, though more general; literally translated "cognition/knowledge theory"). From this perspective, an outlook will be given on open questions within the epistemology of Finnish science education. Following such questions could lead to the adaptation of the "successful" ideas in Finnish science education (indicated by empirical studies, such as the OECD PISA study) as well as the further development of the central ideas of Finnish science education.

Ethical concerns and dilemmas of Finnish and Dutch health professionals.

Science.gov (United States)

Hopia, Hanna; Lottes, Ilsa; Kanne, Mariël

2016-09-01

Healthcare professionals encounter ethical dilemmas and concerns in their practice. More research is needed to understand these ethical problems and to know how to educate professionals to respond to them. To describe ethical dilemmas and concerns at work from the perspectives of Finnish and Dutch healthcare professionals studying at the master's level. Exploratory, qualitative study that used the text of student online discussions of ethical dilemmas at work as data. Participants' online discussions were analyzed using inductive content analysis. The sample consisted of 49 students at master's level enrolled in professional ethics courses at universities in Finland and the Netherlands. Permission for conducting the study was granted from both universities of applied sciences. All students provided their informed consent for the use of their assignments as research data. Participants described 51 problematic work situations. Among these, 16 were found to be ethical dilemmas, and the remaining were work issues with an ethical concern and did not meet criteria of a dilemma. The most common problems resulted from concerns about quality care, safety of healthcare professionals, patients' rights, and working with too few staff and inadequate resources. The results indicated that participants were concerned about providing quality of care and raised numerous questions about how to provide it in challenging situations. The results show that it was difficult for students to differentiate ethical dilemmas from other ethical work concerns. Online discussions among healthcare providers give them an opportunity to relate ethical principles to real ethical dilemmas and problems in their work as well as to critically analyze ethical issues. We found that discussions with descriptions of ethical dilemmas and concerns by health professionals provide important information and recommendations not only for education and practice but also for health policy. © The Author(s) 2015.

Market competition, ownership, payment systems and the performance of health care providers - a panel study among Finnish occupational health services providers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kankaanpää, Eila; Linnosmaa, Ismo; Valtonen, Hannu

2013-10-01

Many health care reforms rely on competition although health care differs in many respects from the assumptions of perfect competition. Finnish occupational health services provide an opportunity to study empirically competition, ownership and payment systems and the performance of providers. In these markets employers (purchasers) choose the provider and prices are market determined. The price regulation of public providers was abolished in 1995. We had data on providers from 1992, 1995, 1997, 2000 and 2004. The unbalanced panel consisted of 1145 providers and 4059 observations. Our results show that in more competitive markets providers in general offered a higher share of medical care compared to preventive services. The association between unit prices and revenues and market environment varied according to the provider type. For-profit providers had lower prices and revenues in markets with numerous providers. The public providers in more competitive regions were more sensitive to react to the abolishment of their price regulation by raising their prices. Employer governed providers had weaker association between unit prices or revenues and competition. The market share of for-profit providers was negatively associated with productivity, which was the only sign of market spillovers we found in our study.

Does foreign aid crowd out government investments? Evidence from rural health centres in Rwanda

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Chunling; Cook, Benjamin; Desmond, Chris

2017-01-01

Background Rural healthcare facilities in low-income countries play a major role in providing primary care to rural populations. We examined the link of foreign aid with government investments and medical service provision in rural health centres in Rwanda. Methods Using the District Health System Strengthening Tool, a web-based database built by the Ministry of Health in Rwanda, we constructed two composite indices representing provision of (1) child and maternal care and (2) HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria services in 330 rural health centres between 2009 and 2011. Financing variables in a healthcare centre included received funds from various sources, including foreign donors and government. We used multilevel random-effects model in regression analyses and examined the robustness of results to a range of alternative specification, including scale of dependent variables, estimation methods and timing of aid effects. Findings Both government and foreign donors increased their direct investments in the 330 rural healthcare centres during the period. Foreign aid was positively associated with government investments (0.13, 95% CI 0.06 to 0.19) in rural health centres. Aid in the previous year was positively associated with service provision for child and maternal health (0.008, 95% CI 0.002 to 0.014) and service provision for HIV, TB and malaria (0.014, 95% CI 0.004 to 0.022) in the current year. The results are robust when using fixed-effects models. Conclusions These findings suggest that foreign aid did not crowd out government investments in the rural healthcare centres. Foreign aid programmes, conducted in addition to government investments, could benefit rural residents in low-income countries through increased service provision in rural healthcare facilities. PMID:29082015

Finnish Official Development Aid for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Sub-Saharan Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riikka Shemeikka

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Finland is one of the donor countries that is most supportive in family planning (FP, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR and gender issues. This study examines Finnish ODA for FP and SRHR: its decision-making structure, other stakeholders and funding levels. Data consists of documents from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA and interviews conducted at the MFA and with other experts. While Parliament decides on the overall level of ODA funding, the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development has considerable autonomy. Other stakeholders such as the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Population and Development and the Family Federation of Finland (Vestliitto engage in advocacy work and have influenced development policy. Although the Development Policy 2007 mentions the importance of health and SRHR issues and HIV/AIDS is a cross-cutting issue, interviewees stated that the importance of health and SRHR in ODA has declined and that the implementation of cross-cutting issues is challenging. Multilateral funding for UNFPA, UNAIDS and GFATM, and thus the proportion of SRHR funding within the health sector, is however currently rising. Funding for population-related activities has increased and represented 4.8% of Finlands total ODA in 2009. Almost all of this funding is directed towards basic reproductive health and HIV/AIDS issues and the majority is directed through multilateral channels (78% in 2009, mainly UNFPA and UNAIDS. IPPF, Ipas and Marie Stopes International also receive support.

Finnish Society of Soil Sciences

Science.gov (United States)

Rankinen, Katri; Hänninen, Pekka; Soinne, Helena; Leppälammi-Kujansuu, Jaana; Salo, Tapio; Pennanen, Taina

2017-04-01

In 1998 the organization of the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS) was renewed to better support national activities. That was also the new start in the operation of the Finnish Society of Soil Sciences, which became affiliated to the IUSS. The society was originally established in 1971 but it remained relatively inactive. Currently, there are around 200 members in the Finnish Society of Soil Sciences. The members of the executive board cover different fields of soil science from geology to microbiology. Mission statement of the society is to promote the soil sciences and their application in Finland, to act as a forum for creation of better links between soil scientists, interested end users and the public, and to promote distribution and appreciation of general and Finnish research findings in soil science. Every second year the society organizes a national two-day long conference. In 2017 the theme 'circular economy' collected all together 57 presentations. The members of the incoming student division carried responsibility in practical co-ordination committee, acting also as session chairs. In the intervening years the society organizes a weekend excursion to neighboring areas. Lately we have explored the use of biochar in landscaping of Stockholm.

How Do Finnish Teacher Educators Implement Entrepreneurship Education?

Science.gov (United States)

Seikkula-Leino, Jaana; Satuvuori, Timo; Ruskovaara, Elena; Hannula, Heikki

2015-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to ascertain how the people who train Finnish teachers implement entrepreneurship education in the guidance they provide. The authors show how learning through, for and about entrepreneurship manifests in the self-evaluations of Finnish teacher educators. Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected in…

Health technology assessment in Finland

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mäkelä, Marjukka; Roine, Risto P

2010-01-01

Since the 1990s, health policy makers in Finland have been supportive of evidence-based medicine and approaches to implement its results. The Finnish Office for Health Technology Assessment (Finohta) has grown from a small start in 1995 to a medium-sized health technology assessment (HTA) agency,...... findings. The Managed Uptake of Medical Methods program links the hospital districts to agree on introduction of technologies. The Ohtanen database provides Finnish-language summaries of major assessments made in other countries.......Since the 1990s, health policy makers in Finland have been supportive of evidence-based medicine and approaches to implement its results. The Finnish Office for Health Technology Assessment (Finohta) has grown from a small start in 1995 to a medium-sized health technology assessment (HTA) agency......, with special responsibility in providing assessments to underpin national policies in screening. External evaluations enhanced the rapid growth. In the Finnish environment, decision making on health technologies is extremely decentralized, so Finohta has developed some practical tools for implementing HTA...

Changes in primary health care centres over the transition period in Slovenia.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Albreht, T.; Delnoij, D.M.J.; Klazinga, N.

2006-01-01

BACKGROUND: Primary health care centres (PHCCs) were a characteristic of the former Yugoslav health care system introduced widely in Slovenia. Transition brought structural changes to health care and the position of the PHCC's was challenged. This paper investigates (i) PHCCs' perception of

Changes in primary health care centres over the transition period in Slovenia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Albreht, Tit; Delnoij, Diana M. J.; Klazinga, Niek

2006-01-01

BACKGROUND: Primary health care centres (PHCCs) were a characteristic of the former Yugoslav health care system introduced widely in Slovenia. Transition brought structural changes to health care and the position of the PHCC's was challenged. This paper investigates (i) PHCCs' perception of

Screening for congenital heart malformations in child health centres

NARCIS (Netherlands)

R.E. Juttmann (Rikard)

1999-01-01

textabstractThe objective of this thesis is to clarify the effectiveness and the efficiency of screening for congenital heart malformations in Dutch child health centres and the possibilities to optimise this prevention programme. To this end the following main questions will be addressed. 1. Does

Human-centred methods in the design of an e-health solution for patients undergoing weight loss treatment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Das, Anita; Svanæs, Dag

2013-01-01

Background and objective Patients undergoing weight loss treatment require follow-up as part of the treatment process. E-health solutions may be used for this purpose. We have used an iterative design approach to develop a patient-centred e-health solution for patients undergoing weight loss...... in the design process. Our findings imply that involving stakeholders separately during specific human-centred activities is important in order to capture subtle, but critical aspects of the users’ requirements. Conclusion Applying human-centred methods in the design of e-health solutions requires...... that designers must take particular considerations when patients and healthcare professionals are involved in the design process. Keywords E-health; Participatory design; User-centred design; Obesity; Weight loss treatment...

Reliability and validity study of the Finnish version 2.0 of the oswestry disability index.

Science.gov (United States)

Pekkanen, Liisa; Kautiainen, Hannu; Ylinen, Jari; Salo, Petri; Häkkinen, Arja

2011-02-15

Prospective clinical validation study. The aims of this study were to translate into Finnish and culturally adapt and study the psycho-metric properties of the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) version 2.0. The ODI is one of the most commonly reported back-specific disability questionnaires. It is widely used both in clinical work and in medical studies. To date, no validated Finnish version of the ODI version 2.0 has been reported. The ODI version 2.0 was translated into the Finnish language. A total of 115 patients with back pain, referred by the primary care physician to the outpatient clinic of the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation, were recruited for this study. The patients answered a questionnaire package that included the Finnish ODI 2.0, Back Pain Questionnaire for Visual Analogue Assessment (Million-VAS), Visual Analogue Scales of back and leg pain (VASback, VASleg), the Depressions Scale, and a question on their subjectively perceived health. The package was administered twice; 2 weeks before and at the arrival to the clinic. Reproducibility of the ODI was 0.90 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.85-0.94) and the internal consistency was 0.86 (95% CI = 0.81-0.90). Factor analysis showed that the ODI was loaded on 2 factors, which explained 51% of the total variance. In testing convergent validity ODI correlated with Million-VAS, r = 0.75 (95% CI = 0.64-0.84); VASback, r = 0.48 (95% CI = 0.32-0.62); and VAS leg, r = 0.41 (95% CI = 0.23-0.57). The Finnish ODI version 2.0 proved to be a valid and reliable instrument that showed psychometric properties comparable with the original English version. Therefore, it can be used in assessing the disability among Finnish-speaking patients with back pain for both clinical and scientific purposes.

Association of the World War II Finnish Evacuation of Children With Psychiatric Hospitalization in the Next Generation.

Science.gov (United States)

Santavirta, Torsten; Santavirta, Nina; Gilman, Stephen E

2018-01-01

Although there is evidence that adverse childhood experiences are associated with worse mental health in adulthood, scarce evidence is available regarding an emerging concern that the next generation might also be affected. To compare the risk of psychiatric hospitalization in cousins whose parents were vs were not exposed to the Finnish evacuation policy that involved a mean 2-year stay with a Swedish foster family. This multigenerational, population-based cohort study of Finnish individuals and their siblings born between January 1, 1933, and December 31, 1944, analyzed the association of evacuee status as a child during World War II in the first generation with the risk of psychiatric hospitalization among offspring in the second generation. Evacuee status during World War II was determined using the Finnish National Archive's registry of participants in the Finnish evacuation. Data on evacuee status were linked to the psychiatric diagnoses in the Finnish Hospital Discharge Register from January 1, 1971, through December 31, 2012, for offspring (n = 93 391) born between January 1, 1950, and December 31, 2010. Sex-specific Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to estimate hazard ratios for risk of psychiatric hospitalization during the follow-up period. Because offspring of evacuees and their nonevacuated siblings are cousins, the Cox proportional hazards regression models included fixed effects to adjust for confounding factors in families. Data analysis was performed from June 15, 2016, to August 26, 2017. Parental participation in the evacuation during World War II (coded 1 for parents who were evacuated and placed in foster care and 0 for those not evacuated). Offspring's initial admission to the hospital for a psychiatric disorder, obtained from the Finnish Hospital Discharge Register from January 1, 1971, through December 31, 2012. Of the 93 391 study persons, 45 955 (49.2%) were women and 47 436 (50.8) were men; mean (SD) age in

Leisure time physical activity and subsequent physical and mental health functioning among midlife Finnish, British and Japanese employees: a follow-up study in three occupational cohorts.

Science.gov (United States)

Lahti, Jouni; Sabia, Séverine; Singh-Manoux, Archana; Kivimäki, Mika; Tatsuse, Takashi; Yamada, Masaaki; Sekine, Michikazu; Lallukka, Tea

2016-01-06

The aim of this study was to examine whether leisure time physical activity contributes to subsequent physical and mental health functioning among midlife employees. The associations were tested in three occupational cohorts from Finland, Britain and Japan. Cohort study. Finland, Britain and Japan. Prospective employee cohorts from the Finnish Helsinki Health Study (2000-2002 and 2007, n=5958), British Whitehall II study (1997-1999 and 2003-2004, n=4142) and Japanese Civil Servants Study (1998-1999 and 2003, n=1768) were used. Leisure time physical activity was classified into three groups: inactive, moderately active and vigorously active. Mean scores of physical and mental health functioning (SF-36) at follow-up were examined. Physical activity was associated with better subsequent physical health functioning in all three cohorts, however, with varying magnitude and some gender differences. Differences were the clearest among Finnish women (inactive: 46.0, vigorously active: 49.5) and men (inactive: 47.8, active vigorous: 51.1) and British women (inactive: 47.3, active vigorous: 50.4). In mental health functioning, the differences were generally smaller and not that clearly related to the intensity of physical activity. Emerging differences in health functioning were relatively small. Vigorous physical activity was associated with better subsequent physical health functioning in all three cohorts with varying magnitude. For mental health functioning, the intensity of physical activity was less important. Promoting leisure time physical activity may prove useful for the maintenance of health functioning among midlife employees. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Indoor climate and the performance of ventilation in Finnish residences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ruotsalainen, R.; Roennberg, R.; Saeteri, J.; Majanen, A.; Seppaenen, O.; Jaakkola, J.J.K.

1992-01-01

The purpose of the study was to gather information about the actual ventilation and indoor air quality and to evaluate the differences between houses and apartments with different ventilation systems. A sample of 242 dwellings in the Helsinki metropolitan area was studied over periods of two weeks during the 1988-1989 heating season. The mean air-exchange rates had a high variation (average 0.52 l/h, range 0.07-1.55 l/h). The ASHRAE minimum value of 0.35 l/h was not achieved in 28% of the dwellings. The air-exchange rates were significantly lower in the houses than in the apartments (averages 0.45/0.64 l/h, p 3 (range 5-866 Bq/m 3 ); the Finnish target value of 200 Bq/m 3 was exceeded in 17% of the houses but in none of the apartments. The measurements indicate that the indoor air quality in Finnish dwellings is not always satisfactory with reference to human health and comfort. (au)

Assessment of drug treatment quality in two Danish health-care centres

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Andersen, Stig Ejdrup; Edfors, Kajsa

2011-01-01

Bridging the primary and secondary sector, health-care centres aim to reduce morbidity and prevent further hospitalization in patients with chronic heart diseases. The aim of this study was to describe the quality of drug treatment in patients with chronic heart diseases in two Copenhagen health-care...

Mortality and health-related habits in 900 Finnish former elite athletes and their brothers.

Science.gov (United States)

Kontro, Titta Katariina; Sarna, Seppo; Kaprio, Jaakko; Kujala, Urho M

2018-01-01

There is conflicting evidence on the associations between participation in vigorous sports, health habits, familial factors and subsequent mortality. We investigated all-cause mortality and health-related behaviour among former elite athletes and their brothers. The mortality of Finnish male former elite athletes, who had represented Finland between 1920 and 1965 (n=900) and their age-matched brothers (n=900), was followed from the time when athlete started an elite athlete career until 31 December 2015. The age-adjusted HRs were calculated by a paired Cox proportional hazards model. In 2001, surviving participants (n=199 athletes and n=199 age-matched brothers) reported their self-rated health (SRH), physical activity, alcohol consumption and smoking habits in the questionnaire. During the total follow-up period, 1296 deaths (72% of the cohort) occurred. The age-adjusted HRs for all-cause mortality in former athletes was 0.75 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.87, Ppower sports athletes, and 77.5, 73.7 and 72.2 years for their age-matched brothers, respectively. In 2001, compared with their brothers, former athletes smoked less (P<0.001), were more physically active (P<0.05) and rated their health more often as very good (P<0.05). Former elite athletes are more physically active, smoke less, have better self-rated health and live longer than their brothers. Genetic differences between athletes and brothers, aerobic training for endurance elite sports and a healthier lifestyle may all contribute to reduced mortality. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Physical and mental health factors associated with work engagement among Finnish female municipal employees: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Veromaa, Veera; Kautiainen, Hannu; Korhonen, Päivi Elina

2017-10-05

Work engagement is related to mental health, but studies of physical health's association with work engagement are scarce. This study aims to evaluate the relationship between physical health, psychosocial risk factors and work engagement among Finnish women in municipal work units. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2014 among 726 female employees from 10 municipal work units of the city of Pori, Finland. Work engagement was assessed with the nine-item Utrecht Work Engagement Scale. The American Heart Association's concept of ideal cardiovascular health (CVH) was used to define physical health (non-smoking, body mass index work engagement. In subjects without psychosocial risk factors (36.7%), work engagement was high and stable. Presence of even one psychosocial risk factor was associated with a lower level of work engagement regardless of the sum of ideal CVH metrics. Both physical and mental health factors have a positive relationship with work engagement, whereas the presence of even one psychosocial risk factor has a negative association regardless of the level of classic cardiovascular risk factors. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Finnish and Swedish business cycles in a global context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bergman, Ulf Michael

2008-01-01

This paper evaluates the decisions made by the Finnish government to join EMU and the Swedish government not to join EMU in the early 1990s. Focusing on the characteristics of business cycles during the postwar period, we find that output fluctuations in Sweden and Finland are correlated to two...... measures of the international business cycle, a European and a non-European cycle. The Finnish cycle has become more synchronized to the European cycle but less synchronized to the non-EU cycle after 1999. For Sweden we find the opposite result. The decision by the Finnish government to join EMU...

[Characteristics of beneficiaries of a GP-centred health care contract in Germany].

Science.gov (United States)

Freund, Tobias; Szecsenyi, Joachim; Ose, Dominik

2010-11-01

Since 2004, primary care in Germany has increasingly been provided in special general practitioner (GP)-centred health care contracts (HZV). To date there is limited evidence about the characteristics of their beneficiaries regarding morbidity burden and health care utilization. We analysed insurance claims data from all beneficiaries of the "Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse (AOK) Baden-Württemberg" listed in 10 general practices that contracted in a special GP-centred health care contract (HZV). We compared beneficiaries enrolled in the HZV with those who were not enrolled in the contract. Comparisons included the number of hospital admissions in 2007-2008 and the Charlson comorbidity index. Insurance claims data of 6,026 beneficiaries were available for analysis. In the third quarter of 2009, 51% (3,066) of the beneficiaries were enrolled in the HZV. They were significantly older (mean 61 years [SD 18 years] vs. 49 years [SD 22 years]; p contract tended to be older and suffered from a higher morbidity burden when compared with beneficiaries of the same health care fund who were not enrolled in the contract. Besides, beneficiaries of the contract had higher numbers of hospital admissions during the two year period before enrolment. These findings have substantial implications for individualized care management approaches that may be offered to beneficiaries of GP-centred health care contracts.

Visual impairment in Finnish Usher syndrome type III.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Plantinga, R.F.; Pennings, R.J.E.; Huygen, P.L.M.; Sankila, E.M.; Tuppurainen, K.; Kleemola, L.; Cremers, C.W.R.J.; Deutman, A.F.

2006-01-01

PURPOSE: To evaluate visual impairment in Finnish Usher syndrome type 3 (USH3) and compare this with visual impairment in Usher syndrome types 1b (USH1b) and 2a (USH2a). METHODS: We carried out a retrospective study of 28 Finnish USH3 patients, 24 Dutch USH2a patients and 17 Dutch USH1b patients.

Work-related violence, lifestyle, and health among special education teachers working in Finnish basic education.

Science.gov (United States)

Ervasti, Jenni; Kivimäki, Mika; Pentti, Jaana; Salmi, Venla; Suominen, Sakari; Vahtera, Jussi; Virtanen, Marianna

2012-07-01

Studies have reported higher levels of absenteeism due to illness among special education teachers compared to other teachers, but it is not known which factors might contribute to this difference. We examined whether health, health behaviors, and exposure to violence at work differed between special education and general education teachers in Finnish basic education. Survey data from 5760 general and special education teachers were analyzed with multilevel logistic models adjusted for individual- and school-level confounding factors. No difference was found between the health behaviors of general and special education teachers. The differences in physical and mental health between the two groups were also relatively small. With regard to work-related violence, however, male special education teachers were 3 times more likely to be exposed to mental abuse, and 5 times more likely to be exposed to physical violence when compared to their male colleagues in general education. Although female special educators were also at an increased risk of mental abuse and physical violence compared to their female general teacher colleagues, their odds ratios for such an encounter were smaller (2- and 3-fold, respectively) than those of male special education teachers. The school-level variance of physical violence toward teachers was large, which indicates that while most schools have little physical violence toward teachers, schools do exist in which teachers' exposure to violence is common. These findings suggest that special education teachers may benefit from training for handling violent situations and interventions to prevent violence at schools. © 2012, American School Health Association.

Obligation for transparency regarding treating physician credentials at academic health centres.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Paul J; Skill, N James; Koniaris, Leonidas G

2018-02-26

Academic health centres have historically treated patients with the most complex of diseases, served as training grounds to teach the next generations of physicians and fostered an innovative environment for research and discovery. The physicians who hold faculty positions at these institutions have long understood how these key academic goals are critical to serve their patient community effectively. Recent healthcare reforms, however, have led many academic health centres to recruit physicians without these same academic expectations and to partner with non-faculty physicians at other health systems. There has been limited transparency in regard to the expertise among the physicians and the academic faculty within these larger entities. Such lack of transparency may lead to confusion among patients regarding the qualifications of who is actually treating them. This could threaten the ethical principles of patient autonomy, benevolence and non-maleficence as patients risk making uninformed decisions that might lead to poorer outcomes. Furthermore, this lack of transparency unjustly devalues the achievements of physician faculty members as well as potentially the university they represent. In this paper, it is suggested that academic health centres have an obligation to foster total transparency regarding what if any role a physician has at a university or medical school when university or other academic monikers are used at a hospital. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

The styles of the Finnish nuclear waste policy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kojo, Matti

2010-09-01

The Finnish government determined the aims and schedule for nuclear waste management in 1983. Nearly three decades later spent nuclear fuel (SNF) management is approaching the construction licensing phase of the repository, on schedule. The parliamentary decision on the final disposal of SNF was taken almost unanimously in 2001. The location of the SNF facility was chosen at the same time. The smoothness of this raises questions about the main factors behind the progress in Finland. The aim of the paper is to analyse the Finnish nuclear waste policy from the point of view of policy style. In the paper policy style is defined as 'the interaction between (a) the government's approach to problem-solving and (b) the relationship between government and the other actors in policy process'. According to this definition by Richardson, Gustafsson and Jordan, the focus of style is both on policymaking and on implementation. The policy style approach is used to identify the standard operating procedures of Finnish nuclear waste policy. The paper aims to contribute to the discussion on the formation of national nuclear waste policy and its institutions by analysing the Finnish case

Received and needed social support at the workplace in Norwegian and Finnish stage 1 breast cancer survivors: a study from the Nordic Study Group of Cancer and Work (NOCWO).

Science.gov (United States)

Gudbergsson, Saevar B; Fosså, Sophie D; Lindbohm, Marja-Liisa; Dahl, Alv A

2009-01-01

Cross-cultural studies of comparable patients can identify differences of health care services and point to issues of possible improvement. In this cross-sectional study we compared self-reported received and needed social support at the workplace of disease-free breast cancer survivors (BCSs) stage I from Norway and Finland. Age-matched samples of 135 BCSs from Norway and 148 from Finland were examined using a questionnaire including socio-demographic factors, employment data, measurements of social support at work from supervisors, colleagues and the occupational health service (OHS), and several other measurements. Finnish BCSs had significantly higher education and a higher rate of full-time employment than Norwegian ones. With adjustment for education and work time, Finnish compared to Norwegian BCSs reported significantly less received social support from supervisors, while they received significantly more social support from OHS. No differences were observed in received support from colleagues between Finnish and Norwegian BCSs. Somatic health was most strongly associated with received and needed support from supervisors, colleagues and OHS. The differences in received and needed social support at work observed between Norwegian and Finnish BCSs treated for stage I disease challenge strengthening of OHS for Norwegian BCSs and increased attention by supervisors in Finnish BCSs.

Genotyping and surveillance for scrapie in Finnish sheep

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hautaniemi Maria

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The progression of scrapie is known to be influenced by the amino acid polymorphisms of the host prion protein (PrP gene. There is no breeding programme for TSE resistance in sheep in Finland, but a scrapie control programme has been in place since 1995. In this study we have analysed PrP genotypes of total of 928 purebred and crossbred sheep together with the data of scrapie survey carried out in Finland during 2002–2008 in order to gain knowledge of the genotype distribution and scrapie prevalence in Finnish sheep. Results The ARQ/ARQ genotype was the most common genotype in all breeds studied. ARR allele frequency was less than 12% in purebred Finnish sheep and in most genotypes heterozygous for ARR, the second allele was ARQ. The VRQ allele was not detected in the Grey race sheep of Kainuu or in the Aland sheep, and it was present in less than 6% of the Finnish Landrace sheep. Leucine was the most prominent amino acid found in codon 141. In addition, one novel prion dimorphisms of Q220L was detected. During the scrapie survey of over 15 000 sheep in 2002–2008, no classical scrapie cases and only five atypical scrapie cases were detected. Conclusions The results indicate that the Finnish sheep populations have genetically little resistance to classical scrapie, but no classical scrapie was detected during an extensive survey in 2002–2008. However, five atypical scrapie cases emerged; thus, the disease is present in the Finnish sheep population at a low level.

On the early history of the Finnish Meteorological Institute

Science.gov (United States)

Nevanlinna, H.

2014-03-01

This article is a review of the foundation (in 1838) and later developments of the Helsinki (Finland) magnetic and meteorological observatory, today the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI). The main focus of the study is in the early history of the FMI up to the beginning of the 20th century. The first director of the observatory was Physics Professor Johan Jakob Nervander (1805-1848). He was a famous person of the Finnish scientific, academic and cultural community in the early decades of the 19th century. Finland was an autonomously part of the Russian Empire from 1809 to 1917, but the observatory remained organizationally under the University of Helsinki, independent of Russian scientific institutions, and funded by the Finnish Government. Throughout the late-19th century the Meteorological Institute was responsible of nationwide meteorological, hydrological and marine observations and research. The observatory was transferred to the Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters under the name the Central Meteorological Institute in 1881. The focus of the work carried out in the Institute was changed gradually towards meteorology. Magnetic measurements were still continued but in a lower level of importance. The culmination of Finnish geophysical achievements in the 19th century was the participation to the International Polar Year programme in 1882-1883 by setting up a full-scale meteorological and magnetic observatory in Sodankylä, Lapland.

Quality comparisons between privately and publicly managed health care centres in a suburban area of Stockholm, Sweden.

Science.gov (United States)

Hansagi, H; Calltorp, J; Andréasson, S

1993-03-01

As in many other countries, the health care system in Sweden is currently undergoing rapid changes. Within a framework of public financing, the delivery of health care is to an increasing extent being transferred to various entrepreneurs; private, public or cooperatives. A privately run, but publicly financed, health care centre was evaluated with regard to quality and costs. Quality was defined in terms of the central guidelines for Swedish primary health care: first level responsibility, accessibility, a holistic view of the patient, and continuity of care and safety. The services offered by the private health care centre were evaluated by different methods--questionnaires, health care utilization data and economic analyses--and found to be of similar quality but produced at a lower cost than by three publicly managed health care centres.

Audit of antenatal care at a community health centre in Tshwane ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: Few studies document the level of compliance with antenatal care protocols in primary health care in South Africa. The aim of this study was to conduct an audit of antenatal care at a community health centre in Tshwane North subdistrict in order to measure the level of compliance of maternity staff with antenatal ...

Leisure-time youth centres as health-promoting settings: Experiences from multicultural neighbourhoods in Sweden.

Science.gov (United States)

Fredriksson, Ingela; Geidne, Susanna; Eriksson, Charli

2018-02-01

The aim of this paper is to advocate for the importance of meaningful leisure time for young people from a health-promotion perspective using experiences from two youth centres in multicultural neighbourhoods in Sweden. In this practice-based study, data were collected between 2012 and 2014 at two youth centres in multicultural, socially deprived suburbs in Sweden using surveys with 12- to 16-year-old adolescents ( n = 207), seven individual interviews with staff and three cooperation partners in the neighbourhoods, and six group interviews with adolescents (50% girls). Quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods were used for analysis. As part of the youth centres' strategies, they are open and inclusive, foster supportive relationships, emphasise youth empowerment, and integrate family, school and community in their work. The youth centres are health-promoting settings with regard to four of the action areas in the Ottawa Charter: build healthy public policy, create supportive environments, strengthen community actions and develop personal skills. There is a need for a variety and a combination of various structured and unstructured leisure-time activities because young people's background and life situation plays a role for their participation in leisure-time activities. We conclude that youth centres are well placed to be or to become health-promoting settings if the activities takes place in a structured environment.

Bibliography of Finnish forestry literature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The bibliography consists primarily of material from Finnish publications. Although, relevant articles published outside Finland are also included in the bibliography. The references listed in the bibliography include articles on forestry sciences taken from 200 different Finnish journals as well as all the material in the journals published by the various departments of forestry of the University of Helsinki, the Society of Forestry in Finland and the Finnish Forest Research Institute. The bibliography is published four times per year, and is compiled annually in a single volume. The bibliography consists of about 2000 references per year. The material is categorized according to the FDC (Forest Decimal Classification, formerly Oxford Decimal Classification). The bibliography contains material of following subject categories: (0) Forests, forestry and the utilization of forest products (general). Dictionaries. Bibliographies. (1) Factors of the environment. Biology. (2) Silviculture. (3) Work science (Work studies). Harvesting of wood: Logging and transport. Forest engineering. (4) Forest injuries and protection. (5) Forest mensuration. Increment; development and structure of stands. Surveying and mapping. (6) Forest management. Business economics of forestry. Administration and organization of forest enterprises. (7) Marketing of forest products: Economics of forest transport and the wood industries. (8) forest products and their utilization. (9) Forests and forestry from the national point of view. Social economics of forestry. The bibliography includes author and subject indexes

Bibliography of Finnish forestry literature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

The bibliography consists primarily of material from Finnish publications. Although, relevant articles published outside Finland are also included in the bibliography. The references listed in the bibliography include articles on forestry sciences taken from 200 different Finnish journals as well as all the material in the journals published by the various departments of forestry of the University of Helsinki, the Society of Forestry in Finland and the Finnish Forest Research Institute. The bibliography is published four times per year, and is compiled annually in a single volume. The bibliography consists of about 2000 references per year. The material is categorised according to the FDC (Forest Decimal Classification, formerly Oxford Decimal Classification). The bibliography contains material of following subject categories: (0) Forests, forestry and the utilisation of forest products (general). Dictionaries. Bibliographies. (1) Factors of the environment. Biology. (2) Silviculture. (3) Work science (Work studies). Harvesting of wood: Logging and transport. Forest engineering. (4) Forest injuries and protection. (5) Forest mensuration. Increment; development and structure of stands. Surveying and mapping. (6) Forest management. Business economics of forestry. Administration and organisation of forest enterprises. (7) Marketing of forest products: Economics of forest transport and the wood industries. (8) forest products and their utilisation. (9) Forests and forestry from the national point of view. Social economics of forestry. The bibliography includes author and subject indexes

Work Placements as Learning Environments for Patient Safety: Finnish and British Preregistration Nursing Students' Important Learning Events

Science.gov (United States)

Tella, Susanna; Smith, Nancy-Jane; Partanen, Pirjo; Turunen, Hannele

2016-01-01

Learning to ensure patient safety in complex health care environments is an internationally recognised concern. This article explores and compares Finnish (n = 22) and British (n = 32) pre-registration nursing students' important learning events about patient safety from their work placements in health care organisations. Written descriptions were…

Fellowship Program in Health System Improvement: A novel approach integrating leadership development and patient-centred health system transformation.

Science.gov (United States)

Philippon, Donald J; Montesanti, Stephanie; Stafinski, Tania

2018-03-01

This article highlights a novel approach to professional development, integrating leadership, development and patient-centred health system transformation in the new Fellowship Program in Health System Improvement offered by the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta. Early assessment of the program is also provided.

Finnish support programme to IAEA safeguards. Annual report 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tarvainen, M.

1995-05-01

Implementation of the Finnish Support Programme to IAEA Safeguards (FINSP) during the calender year in question is summarized. FINSP is carried out trough separate tasks concentrating on verification of nuclear material, training and expert services to the IAEA. In addition to the Finnish summary, the report includes detailed description of each task in English

Psychosocial correlates of police-registered youth crime. A Finnish population-based study.

Science.gov (United States)

Elonheimo, Henrik; Sourander, Andre; Niemelä, Solja; Nuutila, Ari-Matti; Helenius, Hans; Sillanmäki, Lauri; Ristkari, Terja; Parkkola, Kai

2009-01-01

This study is focused on psychosocial correlates of youth crime in a sample of 2330 Finnish boys born in 1981. Two kinds of data were combined: questionnaires completed by the boys at call-up in 1999 and crime registered in the Finnish National Police Register between 1998 and 2001. One-fifth of the boys were registered to offending during the 4-year period in late adolescence; 14% were registered for one or two offences, 4% for three to five offences, and 3% for more than five offences. Crime accumulated heavily in those with more than five offences, as they accounted for 68% of all crime. Independent correlates of crime were living in a small community, parents' low educational level and divorce, having a regular relationship, self-reported delinquency, daily smoking, and weekly drunkenness, whereas anxious-depressiveness was reversely associated with crime. Most psychosocial problems covaried linearly with offending frequency, being particularly manifested by multiple recidivists. However, recidivists had very rarely used mental health services. The results indicate that offending and various psychosocial problems accumulate in a small minority of boys not reached by mental health services.

Practice-centred evaluation and the privileging of care in health information technology evaluation.

Science.gov (United States)

Darking, Mary; Anson, Rachel; Bravo, Ferdinand; Davis, Julie; Flowers, Steve; Gillingham, Emma; Goldberg, Lawrence; Helliwell, Paul; Henwood, Flis; Hudson, Claire; Latimer, Simon; Lowes, Paul; Stirling, Ian

2014-06-05

Our contribution, drawn from our experience of the case study provided, is a protocol for practice-centred, participative evaluation of technology in the clinical setting that privileges care. In this context 'practice-centred' evaluation acts as a scalable, coordinating framework for evaluation that recognises health information technology supported care as an achievement that is contingent and ongoing. We argue that if complex programmes of technology-enabled service innovation are understood in terms of their contribution to patient care and supported by participative, capability-building evaluation methodologies, conditions are created for practitioners and patients to realise the potential of technologies and make substantive contributions to the evidence base underpinning health innovation programmes. Electronic Patient Records (EPRs) and telemedicine are positioned by policymakers as health information technologies that are integral to achieving improved clinical outcomes and efficiency savings. However, evaluating the extent to which these aims are met poses distinct evaluation challenges, particularly where clinical and cost outcomes form the sole focus of evaluation design. We propose that a practice-centred approach to evaluation - in which those whose day-to-day care practice is altered (or not) by the introduction of new technologies are placed at the centre of evaluation efforts - can complement and in some instances offer advantages over, outcome-centric evaluation models. We carried out a regional programme of innovation in renal services where a participative approach was taken to the introduction of new technologies, including: a regional EPR system and a system to support video clinics. An 'action learning' approach was taken to procurement, pre-implementation planning, implementation, ongoing development and evaluation. Participants included clinicians, technology specialists, patients and external academic researchers. Whilst undergoing these

Perceptions of antenatal care services by pregnant women attending government health centres in the Buea Health District, Cameroon: a cross sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Edie, Gregory Edie Halle Ekane; Obinchemti, Thomas Egbe; Tamufor, Emmanuel Njuma; Njie, Martin Mafany; Njamen, Theophile Nana; Achidi, Eric Akum

2015-01-01

User'sperception of quality of ANC services crucially impacts continuity of use of these services and hence pregnancy outcome. However in our community, ANC user's perceptions of quality are not known. An observational analytic cross-sectional study was carried out amongst pregnant women attending selected government health centres in the Buea Health District. We recruited 385 consenting pregnant women for the study. Demographic and clinical data were collected using structured questionnaires. The data was entered into Microsoft Excel and exported toEpi-Info (Version 3.5.1) for analysis. Geographical accessibility and perceived quality of care were the predominant reasons for choosing or changing a site for ANC. One third of respondents (30.1%) attended a health centre out of their catchment health area with Buea Town health centre receiving the highest proportion of women out of the health area (56.8% of attendees). Knowledge about antenatal care varied and majority of respondents (96.4%) were satisfied with the antenatal services received. However, there were elements of dissatisfaction with health centre services, poor sitting facilities, amenities, few health education talks and poor nursing skills. High educational level (high school and university) (X(2) = 8.714; p = 0.01) and first time pregnancy(X(2)= 4.217; p= 0.04) were significantly associated with poor satisfaction. Policy makers should implement changes in the health care delivery system taking into account the users' preferences, more so in the light of increasing female education in Cameroon.

Reliability and Validity Study of the Finnish Adaptation of Scoliosis Research Society Questionnaire Version SRS-30.

Science.gov (United States)

Kyrölä, Kati; Järvenpää, Salme; Ylinen, Jari; Mecklin, Jukka-Pekka; Repo, Jussi Petteri; Häkkinen, Arja

2017-06-15

A prospective clinical study to test and adapt a Finnish version of the Scoliosis Research Society 30 (SRS-30) questionnaire. The aim of this study was to perform cross-cultural adaptation and evaluate the validity of the adapted Finnish version of the SRS-30 questionnaire. The SRS-30 questionnaire has proved to be a valid instrument in evaluating health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adolescent and adult population with spine deformities in the United States. Multinational availability requires cross-cultural and linguistic adaptation and validation of the instrument. The SRS-30 was translated into Finnish using accepted methods for translation of quality-of-life questionnaires. A total of 274 adult patients with degenerative radiographic sagittal spinal disorder answered the questionnaire with sociodemographic data, RAND 36-item health survey questionnaire (RAND Corp. Health, Santa Monica, CA, US), Oswestry disability index, DEPS depression scale, and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) back and leg pain scales within 2 weeks' interval. The cohort included patients with and without previous spine surgery. Internal consistency and validity were tested with Cronbach α, intraclass correlation (ICC), standard error of measurement, and Spearman correlation coefficient with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The internal consistency of SRS-30 was good in both surgery and nonsurgery groups, with Cronbach α 0.853 (95% CI, 0.670 to 0.960) and 0.885 (95% CI, 0.854 to 0.911), respectively. The test-retest reproducibility ICC of the SRS-30 total and subscore domains of patients with stable symptoms was 0.905 (95% CI, 0.870-0.930) and 0.904 (95% CI, 0.871-0.929), respectively. The questionnaire had discriminative validity in the pain, self-image, and satisfaction with management domains compared with other questionnaires. The SRS-30 questionnaire proved to be valid and applicable in evaluating HRQoL in Finnish adult spinal deformity patients. It has two domains related to deformity

Literacy Development among Language Minority Background and Dyslexic Children in Finnish Orthography Context

Science.gov (United States)

Sikiö, Riitta; Siekkinen, Martti; Holopainen, Leena

2016-01-01

This study examines the development of reading and writing from first to second grade in transparent orthography (Finnish) among three groups: language minority children (n = 49), Finnish children at risk of reading difficulties (n = 347), and Finnish speaking children (n = 1747). Findings indicated that reading and writing skills in the language…

Structural Development of Finnish Universities: Achieving Competitiveness and Academic Excellence

Science.gov (United States)

Tirronen, Jarkko; Nokkala, Terhi

2009-01-01

This paper discusses strategic instruments that are used to enhance the competitiveness of Finnish universities in the context of globalisation, internationalisation and commercialisation of research and education. The Finnish higher education system is currently undergoing a major policy reform, which aims to enhance the competitiveness of…

Hypertension care at a Cape Town community health centre | Lunt ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objectives. To describe the demographic profile of hypertensive patients and the quality of care for hypertension at a Cape Town community health centre (CHC). Design. Prospective, descriptive study. Setting and subjects. Medium-sized CHC, attended by 1098 hypertensive patients during a 1-year period from 1 January ...

Quality of Health Assistants in primary Health centres in Rural Maharashtra, India

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Enakshi Ganguly

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction Health assistants are important functionaries of the primary health care system in India. Their role is supervision of field-based services among other things. A quality assurance mechanism for these health assistants is lacking. The present study was undertaken with the objectives of developing a tool to assess the quality of health assistants in primary health centres (PHCs and to assess their quality using this tool. Methodology Health assistants from three PHCs in the Wardha district of India were observed for a year using a tool developed from primary health care management Aavancement program modules. Data was collected by direct observation, interview, and review of records for quality of activities. Results Staff strength of health assistants was 87.5%. None of the health assistants were clear about their job descriptions. A supervisory schedule for providing supportive supervision to auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs was absent; most field activities pertaining to maternal and child health received poor focus. Monthly meetings lacked a clear agenda, and comments on quality improvement of services provided by the ANMs were missing. Conclusion Continuous training with sensitization on quality issues is required to improve the unsatisfactory quality.

The association between team climate at work and mental health in the Finnish Health 2000 Study.

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Sinokki, M; Hinkka, K; Ahola, K; Koskinen, S; Klaukka, T; Kivimäki, M; Puukka, P; Lönnqvist, J; Virtanen, M

2009-08-01

Depression, anxiety and alcohol use disorders are common mental health problems in the working population. However, the team climate at work related to these disorders has not been studied using standardised interview methods and it is not known whether poor team climate predicts antidepressant use. This study investigated whether team climate at work was associated with DSM-IV depressive, anxiety and alcohol use disorders and subsequent antidepressant medication in a random sample of Finnish employees. The nationally representative sample comprised 3347 employees aged 30-64 years. Team climate was measured with a self-assessment scale. Diagnoses of depressive, anxiety and alcohol use disorders were based on the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Data on the purchase of antidepressant medication in a 3-year follow-up period were collected from a nationwide pharmaceutical register of the Social Insurance Institution. In the risk factor adjusted models, poor team climate at work was significantly associated with depressive disorders (OR 1.61, 95% CI 1.10 to 2.36) but not with alcohol use disorders. The significance of the association between team climate and anxiety disorders disappeared when the model was adjusted for job control and job demands. Poor team climate also predicted antidepressant medication (OR 1.53, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.30). A poor team climate at work is associated with depressive disorders and subsequent antidepressant use.

A knowledge translation project on community-centred approaches in public health.

Science.gov (United States)

Stansfield, J; South, J

2018-03-01

This article examines the development and impact of a national knowledge translation project aimed at improving access to evidence and learning on community-centred approaches for health and wellbeing. Structural changes in the English health system meant that knowledge on community engagement was becoming lost and a fragmented evidence base was seen to impact negatively on policy and practice. A partnership started between Public Health England, NHS England and Leeds Beckett University in 2014 to address these issues. Following a literature review and stakeholder consultation, evidence was published in a national guide to community-centred approaches. This was followed by a programme of work to translate the evidence into national strategy and local practice.The article outlines the key features of the knowledge translation framework developed. Results include positive impacts on local practice and national policy, for example adoption within National Institute for Health and Care Evidence (NICE) guidance and Local Authority public health plans and utilization as a tool for local audit of practice and commissioning. The framework was successful in its non-linear approach to knowledge translation across a range of inter-connected activity, built on national leadership, knowledge brokerage, coalition building and a strong collaboration between research institute and government agency.

Sex inequalities in physical and mental functioning of British, Finnish, and Japanese civil servants: role of job demand, control and work hours.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekine, Michikazu; Tatsuse, Takashi; Kagamimori, Sadanobu; Chandola, Tarani; Cable, Noriko; Marmot, Michael; Martikainen, Pekka; Lallukka, Tea; Rahkonen, Ossi; Lahelma, Eero

2011-08-01

In general, women report more physical and mental symptoms than men. International comparisons of countries with different welfare state regimes may provide further understanding of the social determinants of sex inequalities in health. This study aims to evaluate (1) whether there are sex inequalities in health functioning as measured by the Short Form 36 (SF-36), and (2) whether work characteristics contribute to the sex inequalities in health among employees from Britain, Finland, and Japan, representing liberal, social democratic, and conservative welfare state regimes, respectively. The participants were 7340 (5122 men and 2218 women) British employees, 2297 (1638 men and 659 women) Japanese employees, and 8164 (1649 men and 6515 women) Finnish employees. All the participants were civil servants aged 40-60 years. We found that more women than men tended to have disadvantaged work characteristics (i.e. low employment grade, low job control, high job demands, and long work hours) but such sex differences were relatively smaller among employees from Finland, where more gender equal policies exist than Britain and Japan. The age-adjusted odds ratio (OR) of women for poor physical functioning was the largest for British women (OR = 2.08), followed by for Japanese women (OR = 1.72), and then for Finnish women (OR = 1.51). The age-adjusted OR of women for poor mental functioning was the largest for Japanese women (OR = 1.91), followed by for British women (OR = 1.45), and then for Finnish women (OR = 1.07). Thus, sex differences in physical and mental health was the smallest in the Finnish population. The larger the sex differences in work characteristics, the larger the sex differences in health and the reduction in the sex differences in health after adjustment for work characteristics. These results suggest that egalitarian and gender equal policies may contribute to smaller sex differences in health, through smaller differences in disadvantaged work

Radionuclide analysis of environmental field trial samples at STUK. Report on Task FIN A 847 of the Finnish Support Programme to IAEA Safeguards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rantavaara, A.; Klemola, S.; Saxen, R.; Ikaeheimonen, T.K.; Moring, M.

1994-12-01

Radionuclide determinations on seventeen field trial test samples were carried out for the International Atomic Energy Agency by the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK). All the samples, i.e., samples of sea water, grass and biota were analysed for gamma emitting nuclides. 3 H was determined in water, 90 Sr in grass and 238 Pu, 239 Pu, 240 Pu and 241 Am in biota samples. To avoid losses of radionuclides before gamma activity measurements, the sequence of treatments was adjusted considering the unknown radionuclide composition. The radionuclide contents found in the samples were roughly the same or lower than contents in same types of environmental samples in the Northern hemisphere. The ratios of Pu and Am nuclides in two of the biota samples referred to an origin other than the global atmospheric fallout. The work was carried out under Task FIN A 847 of the Finnish Support Programme to IAEA Safeguards. (orig.) (21 refs., 3 figs., 7 tabs.)

Distribution of Malaria Case in Simpenan Public Health Centre Sukabumi District in 2011

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Hubullah Fuadzy

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The number of malaria in Simpenan public health centre area needs a quick step in the patients finding by malaria microscopic officers, both by Active Case Detection (ACD and Passive Case Detection (PCD. The objective of th is article is to determine the distribution of malaria cases at Simpenan public health centre in Sukabumi during 2011. Data collection was carried out by malaria officersfrom Simpenan public health centre by identifying malaria parasite with microscope to any gold miners who just got home and was having a highfever. Malaria cases during the year 2011 experienced an increasing trend (R2 = 0.0175 from January (8.86% to December (15.18%, 79 cases of malaria was found and the peak of cases happened in December. Malaria was notfound in the age group of 0-14 years, but cases ofmalaria were found in productive age group (15-44 years old = 83%, 45-59 years old = 14%, 2: 60 years old = 3%, and also to all people working as gold miners in malaria-endemic areas i.e. Aceh, Bangka, Jambi, Kalimantan, Medan, Papua, Riau, and Sumbawa. This indicated that malaria in Simpenan was predicted as import cases.

Occupational Health and Safety of Finnish Dairy Farmers Using Automatic Milking Systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Karttunen, Janne P; Rautiainen, Risto H; Lunner-Kolstrup, Christina

2016-01-01

Conventional pipeline and parlor milking expose dairy farmers and workers to adverse health outcomes. In recent years, automatic milking systems (AMS) have gained much popularity in Finland, but the changes in working conditions when changing to AMS are not well known. The aim of this study was to investigate the occupational health and safety risks in using AMS, compared to conventional milking systems (CMS). An anonymous online survey was sent to each Finnish dairy farm with an AMS in 2014. Only those dairy farmers with prior work experience in CMS were included in the final analysis consisting of frequency distributions and descriptive statistics. We received 228 usable responses (131 male and 97 female; 25.2% response rate). The majority of the participants found that AMS had brought flexibility to the organization of farm work, and it had increased leisure time, quality of life, productivity of dairy work, and the attractiveness of dairy farming among the younger generation. In addition, AMS reduced the perceived physical strain on the musculoskeletal system as well as the risk of occupational injuries and diseases, compared to CMS. However, working in close proximity to the cattle, particularly training of heifers to use the AMS, was regarded as a high-risk work task. In addition, the daily cleaning of the AMS and manual handling of rejected milk were regarded as physically demanding. The majority of the participants stated that mental stress caused by the monotonous, repetitive, paced, and hurried work had declined after changing to AMS. However, many indicated increased mental stress because of the demanding management of the AMS. Nightly alarms caused by the AMS, lack of adequately skilled hired labor or farm relief workers, and the 24/7 standby for the AMS were issues that also caused mental stress. Based on this study, AMS may have significant potential in the prevention of adverse health outcomes in milking of dairy cows. In addition, AMS may improve

Finnish market entry planning of franchising Kungfu catering

OpenAIRE

Liu, Yun

2011-01-01

The purpose of this thesis was to carry out a market entry planning by franchising Kungfu catering in Finland. Kungfu catering was a typical Chinese fast food restaurant, of which there was a gap in Finnish fast food market. McDonald’s and Hesburger were succesful examples of franchise business, experiences of those 2 restaurants were used for reference to create a suitable franchise strategy for Kungfu Finland. Finnish market entry planning of Kungfu Finland has been explained from several a...

Towards automated processing of clinical Finnish: sublanguage analysis and a rule-based parser.

Science.gov (United States)

Laippala, Veronika; Ginter, Filip; Pyysalo, Sampo; Salakoski, Tapio

2009-12-01

In this paper, we present steps taken towards more efficient automated processing of clinical Finnish, focusing on daily nursing notes in a Finnish Intensive Care Unit (ICU). First, we analyze ICU Finnish as a sublanguage, identifying its specific features facilitating, for example, the development of a specialized syntactic analyser. The identified features include frequent omission of finite verbs, limitations in allowed syntactic structures, and domain-specific vocabulary. Second, we develop a formal grammar and a parser for ICU Finnish, thus providing better tools for the development of further applications in the clinical domain. The grammar is implemented in the LKB system in a typed feature structure formalism. The lexicon is automatically generated based on the output of the FinTWOL morphological analyzer adapted to the clinical domain. As an additional experiment, we study the effect of using Finnish constraint grammar to reduce the size of the lexicon. The parser construction thus makes efficient use of existing resources for Finnish. The grammar currently covers 76.6% of ICU Finnish sentences, producing highly accurate best-parse analyzes with F-score of 91.1%. We find that building a parser for the highly specialized domain sublanguage is not only feasible, but also surprisingly efficient, given an existing morphological analyzer with broad vocabulary coverage. The resulting parser enables a deeper analysis of the text than was previously possible.

How Is Interreligious Sensitivity Related to Finnish Pupils' Religiousness Profiles?

Science.gov (United States)

Kuusisto, Elina; Kuusisto, Arniika; Kallioniemi, Arto

2016-01-01

This paper examines, through a non-probability sample of 451 Finnish lower secondary-school pupils belonging to the 15- to 16-year-old age group, how interreligious sensitivity is related to religiousness profiles of Finnish youth. The data were gathered in two geographical locations: Helsinki, Finland's capital, and a smaller municipality in the…

Finnish Pupils' Views on the Place of Religion in School

Science.gov (United States)

Kuusisto, Arniika; Poulter, Saila; Kallioniemi, Arto

2017-01-01

This mixed method study examines Finnish pupils' (N = 825; age groups 12-13, 15-16) views on the place of religion in the public school. Religious landscape in Finnish society has changed significantly in recent years, as the "new" diversity (Vertovec 2015) has supplemented the "old" one. The role of institutionalized religion…

HANSENULA WICKERHAMII SP. N., A NEW YEAST FROM FINNISH SOIL

Science.gov (United States)

Capriotti, Augusto

1961-01-01

Capriotti, Augusto (l'Università di Perugia, Perugia, Italy). Hansenula wickerhamii sp. n., a new yeast from Finnish soil. J. Bacteriol. 82:259–360. 1961.—Hansenula wickerhamii sp. n. is described; it was isolated from a Finnish soil, and is named in honor of Lynferd J. Wickerham. Images PMID:13690638

Building up careers in translational neuroscience and mental health research: Education and training in the Centre for Biomedical Research in Mental Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Rapado-Castro, Marta; Pazos, Ángel; Fañanás, Lourdes; Bernardo, Miquel; Ayuso-Mateos, Jose Luis; Leza, Juan Carlos; Berrocoso, Esther; de Arriba, Jose; Roldán, Laura; Sanjuán, Julio; Pérez, Victor; Haro, Josep M; Palomo, Tomás; Valdizan, Elsa M; Micó, Juan Antonio; Sánchez, Manuel; Arango, Celso

2015-01-01

The number of large collaborative research networks in mental health is increasing. Training programs are an essential part of them. We critically review the specific implementation of a research training program in a translational Centre for Biomedical Research in Mental Health in order to inform the strategic integration of basic research into clinical practice to have a positive impact in the mental health system and society. Description of training activities, specific educational programs developed by the research network, and challenges on its implementation are examined. The Centre for Biomedical Research in Mental Health has focused on training through different activities which have led to the development of an interuniversity master's degree postgraduate program in mental health research, certified by the National Spanish Agency for Quality Evaluation and Accreditation. Consolidation of training programs within the Centre for Biomedical Research in Mental Health has considerably advanced the training of researchers to meet competency standards on research. The master's degree constitutes a unique opportunity to accomplish neuroscience and mental health research career-building within the official framework of university programs in Spain. Copyright © 2014 SEP y SEPB. Published by Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Challenges to creating primary care teams in a public health centre ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

CNP) is essential to the provision of quality primary care in the South African context. The Worcester Community Health Centre (CHC) is situated in a large town and offers primary care to the rural Breede Valley Sub-District of the Western ...

SAFIR. The Finnish research programme on nuclear power plant safety 2003-2006. Executive summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Puska, E.

2006-12-01

Major part of Finnish public research on nuclear power plant safety during the years 2003-2006 has been carried out in the SAFIR programme. The programme has been administrated by the steering group that was nominated by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (KTM). The steering group of SAFIR has consisted of representatives from Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK), Ministry of Trade and Industry (KTM), Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT), Teollisuuden Voima Oy (TVO), Fortum Power and Heat Oy, Fortum Nuclear Services Oy (Fortum), Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes), Helsinki University of Technology (TKK) and Lappeenranta University of Technology (LTY). The key research areas of SAFIR have been (1) reactor fuel and core, (2) reactor circuit and structural safety, (3) containment and process safety functions, that was divided in 2005 into (3a) thermal hydraulics and (3b) severe accidents, (4) automation, control room and IT, (5) organisations and safety management and (6) risk-informed safety management. The research programme has included annually from 20 up to 24 research projects, whose volume has varied from a few person months to several person years. The total volume of the programme during the four year period 2003-2006 has been 19.7 million euros and 148 person years. The research in the programme has been carried out primarily by Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT). Other research units responsible for the projects include Lappeenranta University of Technology, Fortum Nuclear Services Oy, Helsinki University of Technology and RAMSE Consulting Oy. In addition, there have been a few minor subcontractors in some projects. The programme management structure has consisted of the steering group, a reference group in each of the seven research areas and a number of ad hoc groups in the various research areas. This report gives a short summary of the results of the SAFIR programme for the period January 2003 - November

Ecommerce drivers and marketing partnerships in successful export marketing of Finnish born globals

OpenAIRE

Penttinen, Jukka

2015-01-01

This study examines the utilization of ecommerce and marketing partnerships as part of born global internationalization strategies. The study will combine the existing literature of born global internationalization, export marketing strategies and ecommerce as part of internationalization to form an understanding on how two Finnish health and welfare sector born globals internationalize, and how ecommerce drivers affect their internationalization. Because of the explorative nature of the stud...

Outsourcing Equality: Migrant Care Worker Imaginary in Finnish Media

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Camilla Nordberg

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Implications from the restructuring of Nordic eldercare include the incorporation of new categories of care workers and a redefinition of the terms of citizenship and participation in working life. Drawing on the idea that policy actors script care worker subjectivities, this article examines print media as a key arena where the cultural imaginary of care work is played out. The media has the potential to accommodate ideological complexity through the possible range of participatory actors. From the scripts promoted through the mediascape, we can learn about the positions understood as being (inappropriate for migrant care workers. This study draws on the analysis of news and feature stories from 2003 to 2013 in the largest Finnish daily, Helsingin Sanomat, and in the periodical Kuntalehti, published by the Finnish Association of Local and Regional Authorities. The article points to tensions in Finnish media discourse, identifying ambiguous occupational scripts for migrant care workers—rooted in neoliberal repertoires of self-sufficiency and normative individualism on the one hand and helplessness and naivety on the other hand. It draws attention to an unsettling construction whereby migrant care workers are excluded from a long-term contract with the Finnish care labor market, and where social equality is conditioned to global redistribution.

Characteristics and international comparability of the Finnish matrix sentence test in cochlear implant recipients.

Science.gov (United States)

Dietz, Aarno; Buschermöhle, Michael; Sivonen, Ville; Willberg, Tytti; Aarnisalo, Antti A; Lenarz, Thomas; Kollmeier, Birger

2015-01-01

The first Finnish sentence-based speech test in noise--the Finnish matrix sentence test--was recently developed. The aim of this study was to determine the characteristics of the new test with respect to test-retest reliability, speech recognition curve, and international comparability in Finnish cochlear implant (CI) recipients. The speech reception thresholds (SRT) were measured by means of an adaptive test procedure and compared with the results of the traditional Finnish word test. Additional measurements for concurrent slope and SRT estimation were conducted to determine the speech recognition curve and to check the test-retest reliability. The measurements were performed on 78 Finnish CI recipients. In a subset of 25 patients, additional measurements for test-retest reliability and slope determination were performed. The mean SRT was -3.5 ± 1.7 dB SNR, with only a weak correlation with the Finnish word test. Test-retest reliability was within ± 1 dB and the mean slope of the speech recognition curve was 14.6 ± 3.6 %/dB. The rehabilitation results were similar to the results published for the German matrix test. The Finnish matrix test was found to be suitable and efficient in CI recipients with similar characteristics as the German matrix test.

Spiritually Ours, Factually Yours: Karelia and Russia in Finnish Public Consciousness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Laine, J.; Velde, B.M.R. van der

2017-01-01

Based on an analysis of the leading Finnish newspaper, Helsingin Sanomat, this paper explores Finnish attitudes towards and understandings of Russia. It pays special attention to the so-called Karelia Question and the way it has shaped public discussion in Finland. The article seeks to investigate

[Behaviour concerning smoking among the patients making use of advice in women health centres].

Science.gov (United States)

Kowalska, Alina; Szymański, Przemysław; Rzeźnicki, Adam; Stelmach, Włodzimierz

2007-01-01

The level of knowledge in the society about the harmful influence of smoking is increasing systematically. But there are still many people ignoring the warnings and prohibitions concerning smoking. The results of the research show that it is highly worrying that there are people for whom smoking is incredibly dangerous, e.g. children, youth, women, especially pregnant women. The aim of the work was to establish the percentage of smoking women among the patients of the women health centre, with the special focus on pregnant women. There were 120 women encompassed in this study in the health centre in Opoczno and 120 women using a similar health centre in Lodz between the 1st and the 15th March 2007, using a auditoria survey questionnaire. The collected data was worked out statistically. In the group of 240 tested people, 87 admitted to smoking, which is 36.3% of the respondents. Among the 185 women who were not pregnant, but were smoking, there were 75 (40.5%) and in the group of 55 pregnant women, there were 12 who smoked (f=0.22). Over 22% of the smoking women smoked over 10 cigarettes a day. From among 87 of the surveyed, 35.6% claimed they smoked everywhere they wanted. Majority of the respondents that is 52.9% lived with at least one other smoking person. Over 70% of them would like to quit smoking. Almost 48% stated their doctor has never talked with them about the influence of smoking on their health and almost 42% stated that no nurse or midwife has ever talked to them about this subject. Frequency of smoking among the tested people who were using the women health centre was high. Especially worrying was the percentage of the smoking pregnant women--every fifth of them smoked.

Source Taxation of Technological Services in Finnish Tax Treaties

OpenAIRE

Kiviranta, Tuomas

2016-01-01

In this study, I analyze the various means of source taxation of technological and other services permitted by Finnish double taxation conventions and the future of source taxation of technological and other services. I attempt to shed light on the various means of source taxation of technological services permitted by Finnish tax treaties and by tax treaties also more generally. I analyze 1) the taxation of technological services in the source country as the profits of a permanent establishm...

[Young first-time parents' experiences with family-centred postpartal health care in Switzerland].

Science.gov (United States)

Kläusler-Troxler, Marianne; Kurth, Elisabeth; Spirig, Rebecca

2014-08-01

Routine postnatal care normally addresses only the mother and her child. In Switzerland, counselling for all parents and their children is provided by family nurses in a community-based health care setting. We implemented a new approach to ensure father involvement within the framework of the Calgary Family Assessment (CFAM) and the Calgary Intervention Model CFIM of Wright and Leahey (2013) in the northwest of Switzerland. This qualitative study explored how mothers and fathers experienced the newly developed family-centred consultation. Data collection was performed by means of participant observation and semi- structured interviews with a sample of five first-time parents with healthy neonates. Data were analysed by using content analysis according to Mayring. Mothers and fathers experienced family-centred consultation as effective. They felt more secure and confident "to handle the new situation" and obtained trustful, concrete and professional support to take care of their baby, particularly with regard to breast feeding, crying and sleeping patterns. Fathers felt included into postnatal care from the beginning. Family nursing offers a useful framework for family-centred postnatal health care.

Musical Sophistication and the Effect of Complexity on Auditory Discrimination in Finnish Speakers

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, Caitlin; Aalto, Daniel; Šimko, Juraj; Vainio, Martti; Tervaniemi, Mari

2017-01-01

Musical experiences and native language are both known to affect auditory processing. The present work aims to disentangle the influences of native language phonology and musicality on behavioral and subcortical sound feature processing in a population of musically diverse Finnish speakers as well as to investigate the specificity of enhancement from musical training. Finnish speakers are highly sensitive to duration cues since in Finnish, vowel and consonant duration determine word meaning. Using a correlational approach with a set of behavioral sound feature discrimination tasks, brainstem recordings, and a musical sophistication questionnaire, we find no evidence for an association between musical sophistication and more precise duration processing in Finnish speakers either in the auditory brainstem response or in behavioral tasks, but they do show an enhanced pitch discrimination compared to Finnish speakers with less musical experience and show greater duration modulation in a complex task. These results are consistent with a ceiling effect set for certain sound features which corresponds to the phonology of the native language, leaving an opportunity for music experience-based enhancement of sound features not explicitly encoded in the language (such as pitch, which is not explicitly encoded in Finnish). Finally, the pattern of duration modulation in more musically sophisticated Finnish speakers suggests integrated feature processing for greater efficiency in a real world musical situation. These results have implications for research into the specificity of plasticity in the auditory system as well as to the effects of interaction of specific language features with musical experiences. PMID:28450829

Musical Sophistication and the Effect of Complexity on Auditory Discrimination in Finnish Speakers.

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, Caitlin; Aalto, Daniel; Šimko, Juraj; Vainio, Martti; Tervaniemi, Mari

2017-01-01

Musical experiences and native language are both known to affect auditory processing. The present work aims to disentangle the influences of native language phonology and musicality on behavioral and subcortical sound feature processing in a population of musically diverse Finnish speakers as well as to investigate the specificity of enhancement from musical training. Finnish speakers are highly sensitive to duration cues since in Finnish, vowel and consonant duration determine word meaning. Using a correlational approach with a set of behavioral sound feature discrimination tasks, brainstem recordings, and a musical sophistication questionnaire, we find no evidence for an association between musical sophistication and more precise duration processing in Finnish speakers either in the auditory brainstem response or in behavioral tasks, but they do show an enhanced pitch discrimination compared to Finnish speakers with less musical experience and show greater duration modulation in a complex task. These results are consistent with a ceiling effect set for certain sound features which corresponds to the phonology of the native language, leaving an opportunity for music experience-based enhancement of sound features not explicitly encoded in the language (such as pitch, which is not explicitly encoded in Finnish). Finally, the pattern of duration modulation in more musically sophisticated Finnish speakers suggests integrated feature processing for greater efficiency in a real world musical situation. These results have implications for research into the specificity of plasticity in the auditory system as well as to the effects of interaction of specific language features with musical experiences.

The XXXV annual conference of the Finnish physical society. Proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kolhinen, V.; Eskola, K.J.; Ruuskanen, V.; Tuominen, K.

2001-01-01

The 35th Physics Days of the Finnish Physical Society will have the traditional structure with plenary lectures, short contributions of young researchers, poster sessions, and social events. The number of members of the society has exceeded 1000 and nearly half of them, more than 400, are expected to participate the Physics Days. The Finnish physicists and the Society can be proud of keeping up this tradition. The annual meeting of the Finnish Physical Society will take place during the Physics Days. I wish all the members of the Finnish Physical Society to attend the meeting and continue the discussions more informally at the conference dinner following the annual meeting. The fifth Magnus Ehrnrooth Price for Physics will be given during the opening ceremony of the Physics Days. Also the winners of the SOLIS competition for high school students will be announced. Traditionally, the Days will end by giving prices for the best poster and the best talk. The 35th Physics Days are held in the new congress center Jyvaeskylae Paviljonki and arranged by the University of Jyvaeskylae. The proceedings includes all the abstracts of the presentations given during the 35th Physics Days

Finnish and English Children's Color Use to Depict Affectively Characterized Figures

Science.gov (United States)

Burkitt, Esther; Tala, Katri; Low, Jason

2007-01-01

Recent research has shown that children use colors systematically in relation to how they feel about certain colors and the figures that they draw. This study explored cultural differences between Finnish and English children's use of color to represent figures with contrasting emotional characters. One hundred and eight children (54 Finnish, 54…

WHO/INRUD patient care and facility-specific drug use indicators at primary health care centres in Eastern province, Saudi Arabia.

Science.gov (United States)

El Mahalli, A A; Akl, O A M; Al-Dawood, S F; Al-Nehab, A A; Al-Kubaish, H A; Al-Saeed, S; Elkahky, A A A; Salem, A M A A

2012-11-01

This study aimed to measure the performance of primary health care centres in Eastern province, Saudi Arabia, using the WHO/International Network of Rational Use of Drugs patient care and facility-specific drug use indicators. In a cross-sectional study, 10 health centres were selected using systematic random sampling. A total of 300 patients were interviewed while visiting the centre from January to March 2011 and 10 pharmacists from the same centres were interviewed. Average consultation time was 7.3 min (optimal > or = 30 min), percentage of drugs adequately labelled was 10% (optimal 100%) and patient's knowledge of correct dosage was 79.3% (optimal 100%). The percentage of key drugs in stock was only 59.2% (optimal 100%). An overall index of rational facility-specific drug use was calculated and applied to rank the health centres for benchmarking.

Finnish Fusion Research Programme Yearbook 1993-1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karttunen, S.; Paettikangas, T.

1995-05-01

Finnish Fusion Research Programme (FFUSION) is one of the national energy research programmes funded by the Ministry of Trade and Industry and from 1995 by TEKES. National organization for fusion research is necessary for efficient and successful participation in international fusion programmes. FFUSION programme serves well for this purpose and it made possible to establish relations and the dialogue with the European Fusion Programme. The process led to the Finnish Association Euratom-TEKES in early 1995. The first period of the FFUSION programme (1993-1994) was preparation for the association to the Community Programme. The strategy was to emphasize fusion technology parallel with the basic fusion and plasma physics and to activate the related Finnish industry to collaborate and participate in the FFUSION programme and later in the European Fusion Programme. The key element in the strategy is the focusing our fairly small R and D effort to a few topics, which increases possibilities to be competitive in Europe. The physics programme in FFUSION deals mainly with theoretical and computational studies of radio-frequency heating in tokamak plasmas. Technology programme started with prestudies in 1993 and it concentrates into two areas: fusion reactor materials and remote handling systems. (8 figs., 3 tabs.)

Awareness of child sex tourism among young Finnish travellers

OpenAIRE

Calderon Nurmi, Sara Liliana

2014-01-01

This bachelor’s thesis is written about one of the dark sides of tourism: child sex tourism. It is commisioned by a Finnish NGO, Reilun Matkailun Yhdistys and the aim was to conduct a research in order to find out about the awareness and attitudes of young Finnish travelers about child sex tourism. The theoretical framework consists of theory about child sex tourism and abot the much wider problem from which child sex tourism is origined: commercial sexual exploitation of children. Furth...

East and West on the Finnish Screen. Early Transnational Television in Finland

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pajala, Mari

2014-01-01

abstractResearch on Finnish television history has so far emphasized Western influences. However, the Finnish television environment was also in many ways shaped by contacts with socialist television cultures. This article analyses the first volume (1960) of the television magazine Katso to trace

Improving accountability through alignment: the role of academic health science centres and networks in England.

Science.gov (United States)

Ovseiko, Pavel V; Heitmueller, Axel; Allen, Pauline; Davies, Stephen M; Wells, Glenn; Ford, Gary A; Darzi, Ara; Buchan, Alastair M

2014-01-20

As in many countries around the world, there are high expectations on academic health science centres and networks in England to provide high-quality care, innovative research, and world-class education, while also supporting wealth creation and economic growth. Meeting these expectations increasingly depends on partnership working between university medical schools and teaching hospitals, as well as other healthcare providers. However, academic-clinical relationships in England are still characterised by the "unlinked partners" model, whereby universities and their partner teaching hospitals are neither fiscally nor structurally linked, creating bifurcating accountabilities to various government and public agencies. This article focuses on accountability relationships in universities and teaching hospitals, as well as other healthcare providers that form core constituent parts of academic health science centres and networks. The authors analyse accountability for the tripartite mission of patient care, research, and education, using a four-fold typology of accountability relationships, which distinguishes between hierarchical (bureaucratic) accountability, legal accountability, professional accountability, and political accountability. Examples from North West London suggest that a number of mechanisms can be used to improve accountability for the tripartite mission through alignment, but that the simple creation of academic health science centres and networks is probably not sufficient. At the heart of the challenge for academic health science centres and networks is the separation of accountabilities for patient care, research, and education in different government departments. Given that a fundamental top-down system redesign is now extremely unlikely, local academic and clinical leaders face the challenge of aligning their institutions as a matter of priority in order to improve accountability for the tripartite mission from the bottom up. It remains to be

[Interdisciplinary healthcare centres--a way of organising healthcare in the future from a health insurer's perspective].

Science.gov (United States)

Hecke, Torsten L; Hoyer, Jens Martin

2009-01-01

The German healthcare system modernization act enables healthcare providers to fund interdisciplinary healthcare centres. The Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) is a statutory health sickness fund that has contracted with some of the interdisciplinary healthcare centres named ATRIO-MED to achieve high-quality medical care and healthcare management. A range of patient-centred services is described in the cooperation agreement; in addition to central medical patient records one of the core competencies includes integrated pathways for defined diagnosis. The concept of the interdisciplinary healthcare centre is highly accepted among patients. It will serve as a platform for future TK healthcare policies.

New Finnish reference for head circumference from birth to 7 years.

Science.gov (United States)

Karvonen, Marjo; Hannila, Marja-Leena; Saari, Antti; Dunkel, Leo

2012-06-01

In the evaluation of the growth of head circumference (HC), charts depicting normal growth are of paramount importance. Current Finnish HC growth charts are based on data from only 130 children born 1953-1964. As a secular trend in HC growth has been reported, we updated the HC charts using a large sample of contemporary HC data. Mixed cross-sectional HC data of 19,715 healthy subjects aged 0-7 years were collected from primary health care providers. References for HC for age and HC/height ratio for age were fitted using generalized additive models for location, scale, and shape (GAMLSS). Increased HC for age was seen particularly after 2 years of age in both genders compared to the 1953-1964 reference. The SD for HC was remarkably larger in the 1953-1964 reference. The proportion of 1986-2008 reference subjects exceeding the +2 SD limit of the 1953-1964 reference was much bigger than the proportion below -2 SD. Because of the secular change in HC growth, the HC reference has to be renewed periodically. The new Finnish reference for HC for age should be implemented for monitoring HC growth of children in Finland.

Brief Report: Syndromes in Autistic Children in a Finnish Birth Cohort

Science.gov (United States)

Timonen-Soivio, Laura; Vanhala, Raija; Malm, Heli; Hinkka-Yli-Salomäki, Susanna; Gissler, Mika; Brown, Alan; Sourander, Andre

2016-01-01

We studied the association between specific congenital syndromes and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in the large Finnish Register material. Our data include all children diagnosed with ASD (n = 4441) according to Finnish Hospital Discharge Register in 1987-2000. Four controls per each case were matched to sex, birthplace, date of birth (±30 days)…

Health centre versus home presumptive diagnosis of malaria in southern Ghana: implications for home-based care policy.

Science.gov (United States)

Dunyo, S K; Afari, E A; Koram, K A; Ahorlu, C K; Abubakar, I; Nkrumah, F K

2000-01-01

A study was conducted in 1997 to compare the accuracy of presumptive diagnosis of malaria in children aged 1-9 years performed by caretakers of the children to that of health centre staff in 2 ecological zones in southern Ghana. Similar symptoms were reported in the children at home and at the health centre. In the home setting, symptoms were reported the same day that they occurred, 77.6% of the children with a report of fever were febrile (axillary temperature > or = 37.5 degrees C) and 64.7% of the reports of malaria were parasitologically confirmed. In the health centre, the median duration of symptoms before a child was seen was 3 days (range 1-14 days), 58.5% of the children with a report of fever were febrile and 62.6% of the clinically diagnosed cases were parasitologically confirmed. In the 2 settings almost all the infections were due to Plasmodium falciparum. Parasite density was 3 times higher in the health centre cases compared to the home-diagnosed cases. Early and appropriate treatment of malaria detected in children by caretakers may prevent complications that arise as a result of persistence of symptoms and attainment of high parasitaemic levels.

Energy potential of Finnish peatlands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Virtanen, K. (Geological Survey of Finland, Kuopio (Finland)); Valpola, S. (Geological Survey of Finland, Kokkola (Finland)), e-mail: kimmo.virtanen@gtk.fi, e-mail: samu.valpola@gtk.fi

2011-07-01

One-third of the Finnish land area is covered by mires and peat. GTK has investigated 2.0 million ha of the 9.3 million ha area covered by mires in Finland. According to the EU Commission, the broadly-based Finnish energy economy, with various energy sources, is the best in the EU. As a fuel, peat fulfils the goals of the EU energy policy in Finland well: it is local, its availability is good and the price is stable. The use of peat also enhances national security. At present, peat is used in around one hundred larger applications that co-generate electricity and heat. In Finland, the development of mires has led to several mire complex types and three main types: raised bogs in Southern Finland, aapa mires in Ostrobothnia and Lapland, and palsa mires in Northern Lapland. Peat layers are deepest in southern Finland and partly in the southern Finnish Lake area, the Region of North Karelia and in the area of central Lapland. The mean depth of geological mires is 1.41 m and the thickest drilled peat is 12.3 m. According to peat investigations, the national peat reserve totals 69.3 billion m3 in situ (peatlands larger than 20 hectares). The dry solids of peat are estimated at 6.3 billion tones. Sphagnum peat accounts for 54% and Carex peat for 45% of feasible peat reserves. Peatlands that are technically suitable for the peat industry cover a total area of 1.2 million ha and contain 29.6 billion m3 of peat in situ. Slightly humified peat suitable for horticultural and environmental use totals 5.9 billion m3 in situ. The energy peat reserve is 23.7 billion m3 in situ and its energy content is 12 800 TWh. (orig.)

International outreach for promoting open geoscience content in Finnish university libraries - libraries as the advocates of citizen science awareness on emerging open geospatial data repositories in Finnish society

Science.gov (United States)

Rousi, A. M.; Branch, B. D.; Kong, N.; Fosmire, M.

2013-12-01

In their Finnish National Spatial Strategy 2010-2015 the Finland's Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry delineated e.g. that spatial data skills should support citizens everyday activities and facilitate decision-making and participation of citizens. Studies also predict that open data, particularly open spatial data, would create, when fully realizing their potential, a 15% increase into the turnovers of Finnish private sector companies. Finnish libraries have a long tradition of serving at the heart of Finnish information society. However, with the emerging possibilities of educating their users on open spatial data a very few initiatives have been made. The National Survey of Finland opened its data in 2012. Finnish technology university libraries, such as Aalto University Library, are open environments for all citizens, and seem suitable of being the first thriving entities in educating citizens on open geospatial data. There are however many obstacles to overcome, such as lack of knowledge about policies, lack of understanding of geospatial data services and insufficient know-how of GIS software among the personnel. This framework examines the benefits derived from an international collaboration between Purdue University Libraries and Aalto University Library to create local strategies in implementing open spatial data education initiatives in Aalto University Library's context. The results of this international collaboration are explicated for the benefit of the field as a whole.

‘Smashed by the National Health’? A Closer Look at the Demise of the Pioneer Health Centre, Peckham

Science.gov (United States)

Conford, Philip

2016-01-01

The Pioneer Health Centre, based in South London before and after the Second World War, remains a source of interest for advocates of a positive approach to health promotion in contrast with the treatment of those already ill. Its closure in 1950 for lack of funds has been blamed on the then recently established National Health Service, but this article argues that such an explanation is over-simplified and ignores a number of other factors. The Centre had struggled financially during the 1930s and tried to gain support from the Medical Research Council. The Council appeared interested in the Centre before the war, but was less sympathetic in the 1940s. Around the time of its closure and afterwards, the Centre was also involved in negotiations with London County Council; these failed because the Centre’s directors would not accept the changes which the Council would have needed to make. Unpublished documents reveal that the Centre’s directors were uncompromising and that their approach to the situation antagonised their colleagues. Changes in medical science also worked against the Centre. The success of sulphonamide drugs appeared to render preventive medicine less significant, while the development of statistical techniques cast doubt on the Centre’s experimental methods. The Centre was at the heart of the nascent organic farming movement, which opposed the rapid growth of chemical cultivation. But what might be termed ‘chemical triumphalism’ was on the march in both medicine and agriculture, and the Centre was out of tune with the mood of the times. PMID:26971599

Health status of children with cerebral palsy living in Europe: a multi-centre study

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beckung, E; White-Koning, M; Marcelli, M

2008-01-01

AIM: The aim of this report is to describe the health status of 8-12-year-old children with cerebral palsy (CP) of all severities in Europe using the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ). METHOD: A total of 818 children with CP from nine centres in defined geographical areas participated. CP type...

An overview of a possible approach to calculate rock movements due to earthquakes at Finnish nuclear waste repository sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LaPointe, P.R.; Cladouhos, T.T.

1999-02-01

The report outlines a possible approach to estimating rock movements due to earthquakes that may diminish canister safety. The method is based upon an approach developed for studying similar problems in Sweden at three generic Swedish sites. In the first part of the report, the problem of rock movements during earthquakes is described. The second section of the report outlines the approach used to estimate rock movements in Sweden, and discusses how the approach could be adapted to evaluating movements at Finnish repositories. This section also discusses data needs and potential problems in applying the approach in Finland. The next section presents some simple earthquake calculations for the four Finnish sites. These simulations use the discrete fracture network model geometric parameters developed by VTT (Technical Research Centre of Finland) for the use in hydrological calculations. The calculations are not meant for performance assessment purposes for reasons discussed in the report, but are designed to show (1) the importance of fracture size, intensity and orientation on induced displacement magnitudes; (2) the need for additional studies with regards to fracture size and intensity; and (3) the need to resolve issues regarding the role of post-glacial faulting, glacial rebound and tectonic processes in present-day and future earthquakes. (orig.)

Guidelines for Finnish start-ups on how to utilize crowdfunding

OpenAIRE

Rouhiainen, Anneli

2016-01-01

This thesis aims to show how a Finnish start-up could benefit from crowdfunding.Other funding methods are explained shortly in the beginning and the rest of the thesis focusing on crowdfunding. The current Finnish legislation does not yet include anything aimed directly at crowdfunding, but a proposal is to be presented in spring 2016 to the ministry of Finance. There are some crowdfunding websites operating in Finland, including Mesenaatti.me and Invesdor.com. Other more popular we...

Length of stay in asylum centres and mental health in asylum seekers: a retrospective study from Denmark.

Science.gov (United States)

Hallas, Peter; Hansen, Anne R; Staehr, Mia A; Munk-Andersen, Ebbe; Jorgensen, Henrik L

2007-10-11

The length of stay in asylum centres is generally mentioned as a possible health risk to asylum seekers. Medical staff working with asylum seekers has claimed that long lengths of stay in asylum centres might cause or aggravate mental disorders. We used records from a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers to study if the incidence of mental disorders increased with length of stay. The study population was asylum seekers in Danish asylum centres run by the Danish Red Cross. General medical care was provided by Red Cross staff who could refer selected cases to medical specialists. If an asylum seeker needed more than three specialist consultations for mental illness or five consultations for physical illness the referrals had to be approved by The Danish Immigration Service. Between July 2001 - December 2002 the Red Cross prospectively registered health related data on all new applications (n = 4516) to the Immigration Service regarding referrals to medical specialists. We used these records to analyse the association between length of stay in the asylum centres and overall rate of referral for mental disorders. Data was analysed using weighted linear regression. We found that referrals for mental disorders increased with length of stay in asylum centres in a large, multiethnic population of asylum seekers. The association was found in all the categories of psychiatric illness studied and for a majority of the nationality groups studied. Length of stay in asylum centres was associated with an increase in referrals for mental disorders in a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers. The present study supports the view that prolonged length of stay in an asylum centre is a risk factor for mental health. The risk of psychiatric illness among asylum seekers should be addressed by political and humanitarian means, giving prevention of illness the highest priority.

Length of stay in asylum centres and mental health in asylum seekers: a retrospective study from Denmark

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stæhr Mia A

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The length of stay in asylum centres is generally mentioned as a possible health risk to asylum seekers. Medical staff working with asylum seekers has claimed that long lengths of stay in asylum centres might cause or aggravate mental disorders. We used records from a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers to study if the incidence of mental disorders increased with length of stay. Methods The study population was asylum seekers in Danish asylum centres run by the Danish Red Cross. General medical care was provided by Red Cross staff who could refer selected cases to medical specialists. If an asylum seeker needed more than three specialist consultations for mental illness or five consultations for physical illness the referrals had to be approved by The Danish Immigration Service. Between July 2001 – December 2002 the Red Cross prospectively registered health related data on all new applications (n = 4516 to the Immigration Service regarding referrals to medical specialists. We used these records to analyse the association between length of stay in the asylum centres and overall rate of referral for mental disorders. Data was analysed using weighted linear regression. Results We found that referrals for mental disorders increased with length of stay in asylum centres in a large, multiethnic population of asylum seekers. The association was found in all the categories of psychiatric illness studied and for a majority of the nationality groups studied. Conclusion Length of stay in asylum centres was associated with an increase in referrals for mental disorders in a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers. The present study supports the view that prolonged length of stay in an asylum centre is a risk factor for mental health. The risk of psychiatric illness among asylum seekers should be addressed by political and humanitarian means, giving prevention of illness the highest priority.

Comparison of radionuclide data analysis results of the CTBTO/IDC and the Finnish NDC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ansaranta, T.; Ala-Heikkilae, J.; Aarnio, P. [Helsinki University of Technology, Espoo (Finland)

2001-06-01

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) is to operate a world-wide radionuclide monitoring network consisting of 80 measuring stations that transmit daily gamma-ray spectra measured from air filter samples to the International Data Centre (IDC). All spectra are analysed automatically and the results are reviewed interactively by an analyst. Quality of the automated analysis has a substantial impact on the reliability and efficiency of the analysis operation. The Finnish National Data Centre (FiNDC) receives the analysis results and raw spectral data from the IDC and performs radionuclide analysis of the spectra using dedicated Finnish software packages. This work evaluates the differences between the analysis results of the IDC and the FiNDC. The results are studied with respect to the spectrum peak finding, fitting and explaining performance. Furthermore, nuclides associated with the peaks are considered, and an effort is made to approximate the number of spurious nuclide identifications. The material of this work consists of representative sets containing 500 to 1500 spectra and their respective analysis result pairs. The spectra were measured by the five certified radionuclide stations and three prototype stations that were operating between August 1, 2000 and March 26, 2001. In the set of 1500 spectra from eight stations, the FiNDC analysis software package was found to detect 4.2 more peaks per spectrum and to explain 5.6 more peaks per spectrum than the IDC software package, which, in turn, left 1.4 more peaks per spectrum unexplained. The median peak explanation percentages of the FiNDC and IDC were 96.7 and 92.3, respectively. The FiNDC analysis software package was found to report 0.7 more spurious nuclides than the IDC analysis software package. When only the CTBTO relevant nuclides were considered, the difference decreased to 0.05. The throughput times involved with the IDC raw measuring data transfer and automatic analysis result

Design considerations of a total energy power system for a rural health centre in Nigeria

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chendo, M A.C. [Lagos Univ. (NG). Dept. of Physics; Salawu, R I [Lagos Univ. (NG). Dept. of Electrical Engineering

1989-01-01

A conceptual total energy (hybrid) system design considerations are presented for a Rural Health Centre in a remote village in Nigeria. The design uses a spectrally selective beam splitting technique. The system provides both electrical and thermal energy with electrical needs of the centre being provided by the photoquantum convertor while the hot water and sterilization requirements are met by the spectrally selective heat transfer liquid in the thermally decoupled loop. A critical analysis of the electrical and thermal energy requirements of the health centre including its laboratories, water supply, refrigeration, lighting, etc. and its technoeconomic aspects is also discussed. With appropriate sizing of panels, storage, choice of the spectrally selective heat transfer liquid and other accessories, the PV/PT system using moderately concentrated sunlight is attractive for such application in areas with no national grid lines and normally considered uneconomical for electrification by the extension of the national grid or by the provision of generators which require constant supply of fuel and servicing. (author).

Out-of-pocket expenditure and catastrophic health spending on maternal care in public and private health centres in India: a comparative study of pre and post national health mission period.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohanty, Sanjay K; Kastor, Anshul

2017-09-18

The National Health Mission (NHM), one of the largest publicly funded maternal health programs worldwide was initiated in 2005 to reduce maternal, neo-natal and infant mortality and out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) on maternal care in India. Though evidence suggests improvement in maternal and child health, little is known on the change in OOPE and catastrophic health spending (CHS) since the launch of NHM. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive estimate of OOPE and CHS on maternal care by public and private health providers in pre and post NHM periods. The unit data from the 60th and 71st rounds of National Sample Survey (NSS) is used in the analyses. Descriptive statistics is used to understand the differentials in OOPE and CHS. The CHS is estimated based on capacity to pay, derived from household consumption expenditure, the subsistence expenditure (based on state specific poverty line) and household OOPE on maternal care. Data of both rounds are pooled to understand the impact of NHM on OOPE and CHS. The log-linear regression model and the logit regression models adjusted for state fixed effect, clustering and socio-economic and demographic correlates are used in the analyses. Women availing themselves of ante natal, natal and post natal care (all three maternal care services) from public health centres have increased from 11% in 2004 to 31% by 2014 while that from private health centres had increased from 12% to 20% during the same period. The mean OOPE on all three maternal care services from public health centres was US$60 in pre-NHM and US$86 in post-NHM periods while that from private health center was US$170 and US$300 during the same period. Controlling for socioeconomic and demographic correlates, the OOPE on delivery care from public health center had not shown any significant increase in post NHM period. The OOPE on delivery care in private health center had increased by 5.6 times compared to that from public health centers in pre NHM

Entrepreneurship in a Finnish public institution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marin Burcea

2012-12-01

Full Text Available During the last decades the idea of entrepreneurship in public institutions has been the subject of intense debates, activities and academic research. The scopes of our article are to briefly underline the importance of developing an entrepreneurial spirit by presenting a case study from a Finnish local public administration and making aware the proactive aspect in the process of managing public institutions in Romania. Our hypotheses have been mainly of an interrogative nature. Hypothesis testing was achieved through the analysis of statistical data and conducting a set of sociological interviews with key people from Finnish institutions which were used in the survey. The results of the research emphasize that where there is an entrepreneurial behaviour with the local administration management, the community undergoes a process of conservation and development. The way in which they relate to community partners (such as entrepreneurs, non-profit organizations, citizens is essential to the entrepreneurial spirit within the local public institution.

20th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CHILDREN'S HEALTH AND EXERCISE CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF EXETER, UK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Craig Sharp

2007-09-01

Full Text Available 20th ANNIVERSARY OF THE CHILDREN'S HEALTH AND EXERCISE CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF EXETER, UK In recent years, partly because of the ever-younger exten-sion of high quality sport representation and partly, para-doxically, due to ever-increasing levels of obesity in the young, the discipline of paediatric physiology has moved from being an interesting curiosity to an extremely impor-tant area of practical knowledge. For example, children thermoregulate qualitatively and quantitatively differently from adults - before puberty their sweat rate per square metre of skin is less than half their adult level - and they may well have, proportionate to mass, 40% greater body surface area than an adult. On the musculo-skeletal side, they come late into 'kinetic-balance', into an appropriately economic mode of running or walking, so such effort is harder for them. In many other areas children, especially younger children, differ importantly from adults, and those involved in any aspects of their exercise, sport or medicine should be well aware of this. Hence the impor-tance of the discipline, and hence the reason for a very hearty celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Chil-dren's Health and Exercise Centre (CHERC, which, as is demonstrated here, has pioneered and expanded the entire discipline, as one of the world's leading paediatric labora-tories.To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Children's Health and Exercise Centre (1987-2007 past and present mem-bers of the centre were invited to contribute a review article on paediatric exercise science. The collection of reviews, written by current and former PhD students, visiting research fellows and professors, visiting interns and current members of CHERC, discusses an array of topics, which have helped shaped the work of our centre. We would also like to take the opportunity to acknowl-edge all those associated with CHERC over the past 20 years, in particular the many children who have partici-pated in our

Finnish industry's energy requirement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Punnonen, J.

2000-01-01

Industry uses around half of the electricity consumed in Finland. In 1999, this amounted to 42.3 TWh and 420 PJ of fuel. Despite the continual improvements that have been made in energy efficiency, energy needs look set to continue growing at nearly 2% a year. Finnish industrial output rose by some 5.5% in 1999. In energy-intensive sectors such as pulp and paper, output rose by 3.4%, in the metal industry by 4%, and in the chemical industry by 3.1%. Growth across Finnish industry is largely focused on the electrical and electronics industries, however, where growth last year was 24.3% The Finnish forest products industry used a total of 26.1 TWh of electricity last year, up 1% on 1998. This small increase was the result of the industry's lower-than-average operating rate in the early part of the year The metal industry used 7.2 TWh of electricity, an increase of 5.8% on 1998. Usage in the chemical industry rose by 2% to 5.2 TWh. Usage by the rest of industry totalled 3.8 TWh, up 2.3% on 1998. All in all, industry's use of electricity rose by 2% in 1999 to 42,3 TWh. Increased demand on industry's main markets in Europe will serve to boost industrial output and export growth this year. This increased demand will be particularly felt in energy-intensive industries in the shape of an increased demand for electricity. Overall, electricity demand is expected to grow by 3% this year, 1% more than industry's longterm projected electricity usage growth figure of 2%. The structure of industry's fuel use in Finland has changed significantly over the last 25 years. Oil, for example, now accounts for only some 10% of fuel use compared to the 40% typical around the time of the first oil crisis. Oil has been replaced by biofuels, peat, and natural gas. The pulp and paper industry is the largest industrial user of renewable energy sources in Finland, and uses wood-related fuels to cover nearly 70% of its fuel needs

Sociodemographic and socioeconomic differences in sleep duration and insomnia-related symptoms in Finnish adults

OpenAIRE

Lallukka Tea; Sares-Jäske Laura; Kronholm Erkki; Sääksjärvi Katri; Lundqvist Annamari; Partonen Timo; Rahkonen Ossi; Knekt Paul

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: Poor sleep tends to be patterned by sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors. The aim of this study was to examine the associations of sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors with sleep duration and insomnia-related symptoms across life course. METHODS: We used cross-sectional Health 2000 Survey (2000-2001) among a total of 5,578 adult Finns, aged 30-79 years, representative of adult Finnish population. Data about sociodemographic and socioeconomic circumstances, insomnia-rel...

Food waste volume and origin: Case studies in the Finnish food service sector.

Science.gov (United States)

Silvennoinen, Kirsi; Heikkilä, Lotta; Katajajuuri, Juha-Matti; Reinikainen, Anu

2015-12-01

We carried out a project to map the volume and composition of food waste in the Finnish food service sector. The amount, type and origin of avoidable food waste were investigated in 51 food service outlets, including schools, day-care centres, workplace canteens, petrol stations, restaurants and diners. Food service outlet personnel kept diaries and weighed the food produced and wasted during a one-week or one-day period. For weighing and sorting, the food waste was divided into two categories: originally edible (OE) food waste was separated from originally inedible (OIE) waste, such as vegetable peelings, bones and coffee grounds. In addition, food waste (OE) was divided into three categories in accordance with its origins: kitchen waste, service waste and customer leftovers. According to the results, about 20% of all food handled and prepared in the sector was wasted. The findings also suggest that the main drivers of wasted food are buffet services and overproduction. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Engines without Fuel?--Empirical Findings on Finnish Higher Education Institutions as Education Exporters

Science.gov (United States)

Schatz, Monika

2016-01-01

In 2010, the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture formulated Finland's first education export strategy. This policy document attributed Finnish Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) a significant role in the emerging sector by declaring them as "engines" of education export. Situated in a phenomenological approach towards…

Finnish High Tech in China - A Study of Business Culture

OpenAIRE

Suhonen, Petri

2013-01-01

The objective of this thesis was to study the challenges caused by differences in Finnish and Chinese business cultures in the high technology industry. The study explains the main characteristics of the Chinese national and business cultures which every company operating in China will be dealing with, and offers examples of how these affect a high tech company. The study was conducted as a case study of a Finnish high technology company running a project in China. The company encountere...

Management by Results at Finnish Universities

Science.gov (United States)

Kuoppala, Kari

2005-01-01

The funding of Finnish Universities has been based on a "management by results" strategy since 1991. This paper analyses the effects of this strategy on university management and administration. Empirically the study is based on material collected from four multidisciplinary universities. Theoretically it is based on organization theory…

Cross-language similarity and difference in quantity categorization of Finnish and Japanese

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yoshida, Kenji; J de Jong, Kenneth; Kruschke, John K

2015-01-01

quantity categorization was conducted with 22 Finnish and 20 Japanese listeners, using natural speech stimuli with systematically manipulated closure durations. Stimuli were created from Finnish and Japanese productions of both long and short plosives. In the naturally produced stimuli, the duration...... to be language specific, and such durational differences may interfere with categorization in an unfamiliar language....

Internationalizing Services : Market research on exporting Finnish educational solutions to Nigeria

OpenAIRE

Asemokha, Agnes

2012-01-01

This thesis is aimed to bring clarity to the concept of internationalization and service (education) exports as an International Business tool. The study is commissioned by Finpros’ (The Finnish export organization) Future Learning Finland project an umbrella programme whose objective is internationalizing and exporting Finnish educational solutions to other countries. The commissioning party aims to use the study in its marketing activities. Therefore, this paper is built based on a hypothet...

Illness management and recovery (IMR) in Danish community mental health centres

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dalum, Helle Stentoft; Korsbek, Lisa; Mikkelsen, John Hagel

2011-01-01

is a randomised, assessor-blinded, multi-centre, clinical trial of the IMR program compared with treatment as usual for 200 participants diagnosed with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder under the care of two community mental health centres in the Capital Region of Denmark. The primary outcome is level......Background: Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are severe mental illnesses that can have a significant disabling impact on the lives of people. Psychosocial interventions that stress hope and recovery as a part of a multidimensional approach are possibly indicated to support people with severe...... mental illness in facilitating recovery. Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) is a curriculum-based psychosocial intervention designed as structured program with a recovery-oriented approach. The aim of IMR is to rehabilitate people with severe mental illnesses by helping them acquire knowledge...

Finnish vocational education and training in comparison: Strengths and weaknesses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maarit Virolainen

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The study investigates how the Finnish model of providing initial vocational education and training (IVET has succeeded in terms of enhancing educational progress and employability. A relatively high level of participation in IVET makes the Finnish model distinctive from those of three other Nordic countries: Denmark, Norway and Sweden. All four Nordic countries have wellorganised labour markets and universal types of welfare states. Priority is given to goals related to equal opportunities and social inclusion. At the same time, these countries have different models of IVET. While the study compares the Finnish model of organising IVET to those of other Nordic countries, it also examines the German and UK models, which represent differing societal approaches to IVET. The differences in the outcomes of the IVET systems are described and analysed through reviewing secondary data provided by Eurydice and Eurostat, along with country reports produced in a Nordic comparative project, Nord-VET.

Radionuclide analysis of environmental field trial samples at STUK/II. Second report on task FIN A 847 of the Finnish support programme to IAEA safeguards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikaeheimonen, T.K.; Rantavaara, A.; Moring, M.; Klemola, S.

1995-06-01

Radionuclide determinations of 35 environmental samples of eight different materials were carried out for the International Atomic Energy Agency by the Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (STUK). All the samples were analysed for gamma emitting nuclides, 90 Sr, 238 Pu and 239 , 240 Pu. In most of the samples the found radionuclide contents were roughly at the same levels as in the same types of environmental samples in the northern hemisphere. However, some samples of grass, moss, lichen and sheep faeces showed exceptionally great contents of radionuclides measured. The maximum contents of 90 Sr, 137 Cs, 238 Pu and 239 , 240 Pu were found in the sam individual samples. The ratios of nuclide concentrations in these samples also deviated from ratios in other samples. This referred to an origin of these nuclides other than the global fallout. The work was a continuation to the study carried out under the Task FIN A 847 of the Finnish Support Programme to IAEA Safeguard. (orig.) (1 ref., 1 fig., 4 tabs.)

'From Start to Finnish': Handbook For Exporting A Theatre Play

OpenAIRE

Tanskanen, Milka; Mäkinen, Annemari

2014-01-01

Exporting Finnish culture is one of the themes the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture has carried out over the last few years. ‘From Start to Finnish’ project was a mission to strenghten the state of theatre export in Finland. In the project, government subsidised theatres in Finland export their plays to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the largest arts festival in the world. The thesis is product-based as the authors created a handbook to combine all the steps to be taken when expo...

Workplace conflict resolution and the health of employees in the Swedish and Finnish units of an industrial company.

Science.gov (United States)

Hyde, Martin; Jappinen, Paavo; Theorell, Tores; Oxenstierna, Gabriel

2006-10-01

New patterns of working, the globalisation of production and the introduction of information technologies are changing the way we work. This new working environment has eliminated some risks whilst introducing others. The importance of the psychosocial working environment for the health of employees is now well documented, but the effects of managerial style have received relatively little attention. Yet management is an increasingly important aspect of companies' policies. In this paper, we examine the relationship between conflict management in the workplace and self-reported measures of stress, poor general health, exhaustion and sickness absence due to overstrain or fatigue. Our sample consists of non-supervisory employees (N = 9309) working in the Swedish and Finnish plants of a multinational forestry company who were surveyed in 2000. Bivariate analyses show that those who report that differences are resolved through discussion are least likely to report stress, poor general health, exhaustion or sickness absence. Those who report that authority is used or that no attempts are made to resolve differences have quite similar rates across all measures. Binary logistic regression analyses were performed for all health outcomes controlling for age, sex, occupational group, job complexity, job autonomy and support from superiors. Results show significantly lower likelihoods of reporting stress, poor general health, exhaustion or sickness absence amongst employees who report that differences of opinion are resolved through discussion compared to those who report that no attempts are made. No significant differences were found between those who reported that differences were resolved through use of authority and subjects in the 'no attempt' category. These results suggest that the workplace conflict resolution is important in the health of employees in addition to traditional psychosocial work environment risk factors.

Service users' expectations of treatment and support at the Community Mental Health Centre in their recovery.

Science.gov (United States)

Biringer, Eva; Davidson, Larry; Sundfør, Bengt; Ruud, Torleif; Borg, Marit

2017-09-01

Focus on service users' needs, coping and empowerment, user involvement, and comprehensiveness are supposed to be key elements of the Community Mental Health Centres in Norway. Taking a user-oriented approach means acknowledging the individual's own expectations, aims and hopes. However, studies that have investigated service users' expectations of treatment and support at Community Mental Health Centres are hard to find. The aim of the study was therefore to explore service users' expectations at the start of treatment at a Community Mental Health Centre. Within a collaborative framework, taking a hermeneutic-phenomenological approach, ten service users participated in in-depth interviews about their expectations, hopes and aims for treatment and recovery. The participants sought help due to various mental health issues that had interfered with their lives and created disability and suffering. A data-driven stepwise approach in line with thematic analysis was used. The study was approved by the Norwegian Social Science Data Services. The following four main themes representing participants' expectations at the start of treatment were elicited: hope for recovery, developing understanding, finding tools for coping and receiving counselling and practical assistance. Participants' expectations about treatment were tightly interwoven with their personal aims and hopes for their future life, and expectations were often related to practical and financial problems, the solution of which being deemed necessary to gain a safe basis for recovery in the long run. The transferability of the results may be limited by the small number of participants. The study emphasises how important it is that service users' personal aims and expectations guide the collaborative treatment process. In addition to providing treatment aimed at improving symptoms, Community Mental Health Centres should take a more comprehensive approach than today by providing more support with family issues

Length of stay in asylum centres and mental health in asylum seekers: a retrospective study from Denmark

OpenAIRE

Hallas, Peter; Hansen, Anne R; St?hr, Mia A; Munk-Andersen, Ebbe; Jorgensen, Henrik L

2007-01-01

Abstract Background The length of stay in asylum centres is generally mentioned as a possible health risk to asylum seekers. Medical staff working with asylum seekers has claimed that long lengths of stay in asylum centres might cause or aggravate mental disorders. We used records from a large, multiethnic group of asylum seekers to study if the incidence of mental disorders increased with length of stay. Methods The study population was asylum seekers in Danish asylum centres run by the Dani...

‘I Was a Model Student’: Illness Knowledge Seeking and Self-care Among Finnish Kidney Recipients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susanne Ådahl

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The customer based ideology currently in use in the Finnish welfare state, as elsewhere, has transformed health care. Responsibility for health, that used to be lodged within society, has become the responsibility of the individual. Self-care is part of this growing trend, where there is an inherent assumption that informed patients are more capable of making decisions about their medical regime, which in turn empowers them. Finnish kidney transplant recipients are, through various sources and forms of health information, encouraged to follow the moral imperative of engaging in certain types of health maintaining behaviour that safeguards the transplant kidney. Being informed and sharing illness related information with peers is a manner of showing gratitude towards the state; a way to, in some fashion, reciprocating the valuable gift of a kidney through caring. Taking my lead from Mol’s (2008 notion of care as a practice, as something that is done by all those involved in giving care, I ask how knowledge seeking and sharing on illness can be a form of self-caring. The aim of the article is, thus, to discuss what role illness-related information has in the process of caring for kidney failure. The data consists of in-depth interviews with 18 kidney transplant recipients narrating their illness trajectory, and additional information solicited on a number of central themes, two of which were the access to illness-related information and involvement in peer support activities.

BRCA2 Mutations in 154 Finnish Male Breast Cancer Patients

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Kirsi Syrjäkoski

2004-09-01

Full Text Available The etiology and pathogenesis of male breast cancer (MBC are poorly known. This is due to the fact that the disease is rare, and large-scale genetic epidemiologic studies have been difficult to carry out. Here, we studied the frequency of eight recurrent Finnish BRCA2 founder mutations in a large cohort of 154 MBC patients (65% diagnosed in Finland from 1967 to 1996. Founder mutations were detected in 10 patients (6.5%, eight of whom carried the 9346(-2 A>G mutation. Two novel mutations (4075 delGT and 5808 del5 were discovered in a screening of the entire BRCA2 coding region in 34 samples. However, these mutations were not found in the rest of the 120 patients studied. Patients with positive family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer were often BRCA2 mutation carriers (44%, whereas those with no family history showed a low frequency of involvement (3.6%; P < .0001. Finally, we found only one Finnish MBC patient with 999 dell, the most common founder mutation in Finnish female breast cancer (FBC patients, and one that explains most of the hereditary FBC and MBC cases in Iceland. The variation in BRCA2 mutation spectrum between Finnish MBC patients and FBC patients in Finland and breast cancer patients in Iceland suggests that modifying genetic and environmental factors may significantly influence the penetrance of MBC and FBC in individuals carrying germline BRCA2 mutations in some populations.

The impact of nutrition education at three health centres in Central Province, Kenya

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hoorweg, J.C.; Niemeijer, R.

1980-01-01

This report contains an account of a study of the effects of nutrition education as given at three health centres in different ecological zones in Central Province, Kenya. Two groups of mothers in similar social and economic situations were selected for interviewing: frequent and infrequent

Finnish Secondary School Students' Interreligious Sensitivity

Science.gov (United States)

Holm, Kristiina; Nokelainen, Petri; Tirri, Kirsi

2014-01-01

The aim of this study was to assess the self-evaluations of Finnish secondary school students' (N?=?549) interreligious sensitivity. The data were collected from 12-16-year-old young people with a 15-item Interreligious Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire (IRRSSQ). The IRRSSQ is based on Abu-Nimer's Developmental Model of Interreligious Sensitivity,…

Viral haemorrhagic septicaemia (VHS) outbreaks in Finnish-rainbow trout farms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Raja-Halli, M.; Vehmas, T.K.; Rimaila-Parnanen, E.

2006-01-01

and NV gene regions of Finnish VHSV isolates collected between 2000 and 2004 revealed that all isolates were closely related, with 99.3 to 100% nucleotide identity, which suggests the same origin of infection. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that they were closely related to the old freshwater isolates...... from rainbow trout in Denmark and to one old marine isolate from cod in the Baltic Sea, and that they were located close to the presumed ancestral source. As the Finnish isolates induce lower mortality than freshwater VHSV isolates in infection experiments, they could represent an intermediate stage...

Decree-Law N0 678 of 26 November 1981 concerning the creation of local health centres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-01-01

This Decree-Law provides for direct employment of workers by the Regions in connection with the creation of adequate health centres and radioactive decontamination centres, following nuclear emergencies in areas where nuclear power plants are located. This Decree-Law was converted into Act N 0 12 of 26th January 1982 and published in the Official Gazette of 27th January 1982. (NEA) [fr

[Health situation of prisoners at a prison compliance centre, Chile].

Science.gov (United States)

Osses-Paredes, C; Riquelme-Pereira, N

2013-02-01

There are population groups nowadays that are regarded as vulnerable, one of which is the prison population, considered to have major health needs. Nonetheless, people deprived of liberty maintain inherent human rights such as that of health care, which in some situations may take second place. Cross-sectional descriptive study, carried out at El Manzano Prison compliance centre, Concepción, from October 2011 to February 2012 with the implementation of a preventive health exam and a socio-demographic and health questionnaire, for 18+, female and male prisoners in a closed system, on reception of written informed consent. in the study, the population was 85% men, the average age was 34 years, 91.2% receive visits, average term of imprisonment 38 months. At least 45% have a diagnosed disease, prioritizing mental disorders, and respiratory and circulatory system diseases. 56% of prisoners have requested health care infrequently, 33% of which were very satisfied and 32% satisfied with prison health services. The health of the prison population is more impaired than that of the general population, with a larger number of needs that are also different, but there is a positive perception of health by prisoners and a high degree of satisfaction with health services.

People-centred science: strengthening the practice of health policy and systems research

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Health policy and systems research (HPSR) is a transdisciplinary field of global importance, with its own emerging standards for creating, evaluating, and utilizing knowledge, and distinguished by a particular orientation towards influencing policy and wider action to strengthen health systems. In this commentary, we argue that the ability of the HPSR field to influence real world change hinges on its becoming more people-centred. We see people-centredness as recognizing the field of enquiry as one of social construction, requiring those conducting HPSR to locate their own position in the system, and conduct and publish research in a manner that foregrounds human agency attributes and values, and is acutely attentive to policy context. Change occurs at many layers of a health system, shaped by social, political, and economic forces, and brought about by different groups of people who make up the system, including service users and communities. The seeds of transformative practice in HPSR lie in amplifying the breadth and depth of dialogue across health system actors in the conduct of research – recognizing that these actors are all generators, sources, and users of knowledge about the system. While building such a dialogic practice, those conducting HPSR must strive to protect the autonomy and integrity of their ideas and actions, and also clearly explain their own positions and the value-basis of their work. We conclude with a set of questions that health policy and systems researchers may wish to consider in making their practice more people-centred, and hence more oriented toward real-world change. PMID:24739525

Efficacy of the pentavalent rotavirus vaccine, RotaTeq®, in Finnish infants up to 3 years of age: the Finnish Extension Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Vesikari, Timo; Karvonen, Aino; Ferrante, Shannon Allen; Ciarlet, Max

2010-11-01

Rotavirus Efficacy and Safety Trial (REST) enrolled nearly 70,000 infants, of whom more than 23,000 were from Finland. REST determined the efficacy of the pentavalent rotavirus vaccine (RV5) against rotavirus-related hospitalisations and emergency department (ED) visits in the first year after vaccination. Finnish infants initially in REST transitioned into the Finnish Extension Study (FES), where they were followed for rotavirus-related hospitalisations and ED visits through their second year of life and beyond. FES identified 150 (31%) additional rotavirus gastroenteritis (RVGE) cases beyond those identified in REST in the Finnish participants. Overall, RV5 reduced RVGE hospitalisations and ED visits, regardless of the rotavirus serotype, by 93.8% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 90.8-95.9%) for up to 3.1 years following the last vaccine dose. Vaccine efficacy against combined hospitalisations and ED visits between ages 4 months to 11 months, 12 months to 23 months, and 24 months to 35 months was 93.9% (95% CI: 89.1-96.9%), 94.4% (95% CI: 90.2-97.0%), and 85.9% (95% CI: 51.6-97.2%), respectively. The reduction of hospitalisations and ED visits due to any acute gastroenteritis, rotavirus or not, was 62.4% (95% CI: 57.6-66.6%) over the entire follow-up period. The results from FES confirm that RV5 induces high and sustained protection against rotavirus-related hospitalisations and ED visits, and has a very substantial impact on all gastroenteritis-related hospitalisations and ED visits into the third year of life in Finnish children.

Exposure of Finnish population to solar UV radiation and consequent carcinogenic effects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huurto, L; Jansen, C [Turku Univ. Hospital, Turku (Finland); Jokela, K [Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, Helsinki (Finland)

1997-12-31

Depletion of stratospheric ozone increases irradiance of terrestrial ultraviolet (UV) radiation at short wavelengths, which may be harmful to the human health. To understand quantitatively the risks caused by increasing UV radiation to the Finnish population, the actual UV exposure of the population has to be assessed. It was shown that the snow reflection increases the UV exposure to the face and eyes particularly in the northern Finland. In 1993 exceptionally low ozone levels persisted up to the end of May, which resulted in a theoretical increase in the annual UV dose ranging from 8 % to 13 % in Finland. The maximal increase in the measured erythemally effective dose rate was 34 % on 23 April, when compared with the theoretical normal value. During this study exposure models have been developed. The models have been combined them with Green`s radiation transfer model to estimate annual facial UV doses received by different groups of Finnish population. Also, an updated estimate for increase in skin cancer incidence due to the ozone depletion is presented. It is estimated that the maximal increase in UV doses caused by the depletion of the stratospheric ozone will be 12 % in the first years of the next century in Finland. This may result in increase in skin carcinomas by 20-30 % if the people do not improve their protection against solar UV radiation. At the moment the annual facial UV dose of the Finnish indoor worker varies from 3 % to 6 % of the annual ambient dose. In the worst case an outdoor worker may receive even 16% of the annual ambient dose. However, the doses received by indoor workers during vacation to an untanned skin may be more harmful due to the increased risk of malignant melanoma.

Exposure of Finnish population to solar UV radiation and consequent carcinogenic effects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huurto, L.; Jansen, C. [Turku Univ. Hospital, Turku (Finland); Jokela, K. [Finnish Centre for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, Helsinki (Finland)

1996-12-31

Depletion of stratospheric ozone increases irradiance of terrestrial ultraviolet (UV) radiation at short wavelengths, which may be harmful to the human health. To understand quantitatively the risks caused by increasing UV radiation to the Finnish population, the actual UV exposure of the population has to be assessed. It was shown that the snow reflection increases the UV exposure to the face and eyes particularly in the northern Finland. In 1993 exceptionally low ozone levels persisted up to the end of May, which resulted in a theoretical increase in the annual UV dose ranging from 8 % to 13 % in Finland. The maximal increase in the measured erythemally effective dose rate was 34 % on 23 April, when compared with the theoretical normal value. During this study exposure models have been developed. The models have been combined them with Green`s radiation transfer model to estimate annual facial UV doses received by different groups of Finnish population. Also, an updated estimate for increase in skin cancer incidence due to the ozone depletion is presented. It is estimated that the maximal increase in UV doses caused by the depletion of the stratospheric ozone will be 12 % in the first years of the next century in Finland. This may result in increase in skin carcinomas by 20-30 % if the people do not improve their protection against solar UV radiation. At the moment the annual facial UV dose of the Finnish indoor worker varies from 3 % to 6 % of the annual ambient dose. In the worst case an outdoor worker may receive even 16% of the annual ambient dose. However, the doses received by indoor workers during vacation to an untanned skin may be more harmful due to the increased risk of malignant melanoma.

Self-Reported Bruxism and Symptoms of Temporomandibular Disorders in Finnish University Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Huhtela, Outi S; Näpänkangas, Ritva; Joensuu, Tiina; Raustia, Aune; Kunttu, Kristina; Sipilä, Kirsi

2016-01-01

To evaluate the prevalence of self-reported bruxism and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and to investigate their association in academic and applied science university students in Finland. The data were gathered from 4,403 Finnish students included in the Finnish Student Health Survey 2012. The comprehensive questionnaire included five questions concerning bruxism and TMD symptoms. Bivariate associations between self-reported bruxism and TMD symptoms were evaluated using chi-square tests, and logistic regression model was used with age and gender as factors. Sleep bruxism was reported by 21.0% of women and by 12.5% of men, awake bruxism by 2.0% of women and by 2.8% of men, and both sleep and awake bruxism by 7.2% of women and by 3.2% of men. TMD pain was reported by 25.9% of women and by 11.4% of men and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain on jaw movement by 9.6% of women and by 4.2% of men. Report of sleep bruxism increased the risk for all TMD symptoms in both genders. Among women, report of awake bruxism increased the risk for TMD pain and TMJ pain on jaw movement. Reporting stress as a perpetuating factor for TMD pain increased the risk for both sleep and awake bruxism in both genders. The logistic regression analysis (including age and gender) showed that report of sleep bruxism and/or awake bruxism was associated with TMD pain (Odds Ratio [OR] = 5.71; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.86-6.70), TMJ pain on jaw movement (OR = 4.49; 95% CI = 3.54-5.69), and TMJ locking (OR = 2.98; 95% CI = 2.17-4.10). Bruxism and TMD symptoms are frequent in Finnish university students. Self-reported bruxism is associated with TMD symptoms, confirming earlier findings.

Health related quality of life among insulin-dependent diabetics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aalto, A M; Uutela, A; Aro, A R

1997-01-01

This crossectional questionnaire study examined the associations of health factors and psychosocial factors with Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) in a sample of adult type I diabetic patients (n = 385). Health related quality of life was measured by the Finnish version of MOS SF-20. Psychos......This crossectional questionnaire study examined the associations of health factors and psychosocial factors with Health Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) in a sample of adult type I diabetic patients (n = 385). Health related quality of life was measured by the Finnish version of MOS SF-20...

Dematerialization in Finnish energy use, 1972-1996

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sun, J.W. [Turku School of Economics, P.O. Box 110, FIN-20521, Turku (Finland)

2003-01-01

This paper analyzes dematerialization, particularity decarbonization and energy saving with regard to Finnish energy use. The results show that Finland has achieved good results in decarbonization and energy saving. However, the results are not as impressive when compared to other developed countries.

Cross-Sectional Study on the Prevalence of Intestinal Parasites and Associated Risk Factors in Teda Health Centre, Northwest Ethiopia

OpenAIRE

Abate, Abraraw; Kibret, Biniam; Bekalu, Eylachew; Abera, Sendeku; Teklu, Takele; Yalew, Aregawi; Endris, Mengistu; Worku, Ligabaw; Tekeste, Zinaye

2013-01-01

Objective. To assess the magnitude of intestinal parasitic infection and associated risk factors in Teda Health Centre, Northwest Ethiopia. Method. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Teda Health Centre from February to April, 2011. Stool samples were collected from 410 study participants and analysed by direct wet mount and formal ether concentration techniques. Furthermore, sociodemographic data were collected by using standardized questionnaire. Result. The overall prevalence of intes...

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1990-08-01

During the first quarter of 1990 the Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 and TVO I and II were in commercial operation for most of the time. Nuclear electricity accounted for 32.5% of the total Finnish electricity production during this quarter. The load factor average of the nuclear power plant units was 99.0%. An international nuclear event scale has been introduced for the classification of nuclear power plant events according to their nuclear and radiation safety significance. The scale first undergoes about a year long trial period in several countries. on the scale, events are divided into levels from 1 to 7 of which events at Level 7 are the most serious. Furthermore, Level 0 (Below Scale) is used for events with no safety significance. All events which occurred at the Finnish nuclear power plants this quarter are classified as Level 0. Occupational radiation doses and external releases of radioactivity were considerably below authorised limits. At the Loviisa plant, a back-up emergency feedwater system independent of the plant's other systems has been introduced which offers a new, alternative means of removing residual heat from the reactor. Owing to this system, the risk of a severe accident has been further reduced. At the TVO plants, systems have been introduced by which accident sequences which lead to containment failure could be eliminated and the consequences of a potential severe accident could be mitigated. In this report, also the release of short-lived radioactive materials along the transfer route of an irradiated sample is described which occured at the FiR 1 research reactor. The amounts of radioactive materials individuals received in their bodies in connection with this event were very low

Foreign-language teaching and studying in Chilean and Finnish classrooms as seen by teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Harjanne Pirjo

2017-09-01

Full Text Available This article reports Chilean and Finnish foreign-language (FL teachers’ perceptions of teaching and study realities in their own FL classrooms. Communicative language teaching (CLT is used as the teaching–studying–learning methodological framework of an international KIELO project (= the acronym for Finnish “kieltenopetus” meaning “language teaching”, whose online survey was used to collect data for this article. We aim at answering the following research question: What are the FL teachers’ main approaches to teaching and studying in Chilean and Finnish FL classrooms and what is the FL classroom teaching and study reality like in these two countries? The data were collected from 83 Chilean and 147 Finnish FL teachers through an online survey covering 15 key themes of CLT and including 115 Likert-scale statements and 8 open-ended questions. In the descriptive data analysis, both Chilean and Finnish FL teachers claim that they encourage their students to use the target language considerably and that they use communicative oral tasks. For both groups of participants, however, teacher-centeredness and use of textbook score relatively high. The two-cluster analysis revealed a context-dependent cluster and a context-independent cluster. Context-dependent teachers tended to favor communicative oral tasks, real-life tasks and their own language tasks, whereas context-independent teachers favored more non-communicative tasks. Context-dependent teachers proved more student-centered than context-independent teachers. For Chilean and Finnish research participants, the use of mother tongue in foreign language classrooms appears to be an issue despite the growing need of foreign language communication.

Mental Health in Cypriot Citizens of the Rural Health Centre Kofinou

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georgios Stavrou

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Objective: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the mental health of Cypriot citizens living in the current difficult period of economic recession. The specific objective was to investigate the different factors (gender, age, socio-economic factors, etc. that may affect the levels of emotional distress, anxiety, and depression in patients attending the Rural Health Centre of Kofinou. Materials and Methods: The sample consisted of a total of 300 Cypriots who visited Kofinou Health Centre in the period between July and September 2015. For the middle-aged citizens, the Greek version of the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS was applied to 150 persons [1], while for the visiting senior citizens (aged over 65 years, the Greek version of the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS was used [2]. Results: HADS: A total of 150 people of average age 47 ± 11.5 years (min 23–max 64 participated in the study. Fifty-six percent were women. Seventy-seven percent stated they had a reduction in income (mean reduction 35% ± 25% and 46.7% suffered from chronic disease. The 36.6% and 28.7% of the visitors showed moderate or severe forms of anxiety and depression, accordingly. Higher emotional distress is associated with lower educational level (b = −2.63, p < 0.001, lower income (b = −1.07, p = 0.017, and the presence of a chronic disease (b = 5.45, p < 0.001. The same factors are significantly associated with higher anxiety (Education: b = −1.20, p = 0.003; Income: b = −0.64, p = 0.01; Chronic disease: b = 2.82, p = 0.001. Additionally, a reduction in income (>35% is associated with increased depression (p = 0.028. GDS: 150 patients out of which 77 were women (51.3%. The average age of participants was 72 ± 5.5 years. Ninety-three (62% participants declared a reduction in income due to the financial crisis (mean reduction 20% ± 8%, while 139 (92.7% stated that they had chronic disease. Fifty-three participants (35.3% thought they had

Occlusion in the primary and early mixed dentitions in a group of Tanzanian and Finnish children.

Science.gov (United States)

Kerosuo, H

1990-01-01

Two high and two low socioeconomic areas were selected for the Tanzanian portion of this study, with all nursery schools located in those areas included, for a subtotal of 580 children. The Finnish group was comprised of a total of 575 Caucasian children examined. The Tanzanian children (83 percent Black African, 10 percent Asian, 7 percent Arab) had fewer occlusal anomalies than the Finnish children did. Finnish children had a 13-percent incidence rate of lateral cross-bite; among African children, 8 percent showed anterior crossbite; and among the combined Asian/Arab group of children, 10 percent had an anterior open bite. African children had significantly fewer prevalences of distal bite, lateral crossbite and crowding than Finnish children did.

Police-registered offenses and psychiatric disorders among young males : the Finnish "From a boy to a man" birth cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Elonheimo, Henrik; Niemelä, Solja; Parkkola, Kai; Multimäki, Petteri; Helenius, Hans; Nuutila, Ari-Matti; Sourander, Andre

2007-06-01

To study associations between crime and psychiatric disorders among adolescent males in a representative population-based cohort study. The sample includes 2,712 Finnish boys born in 1981. Information on criminality consists of offenses registered in the Finnish National Police Register 1998-2001. Crime was classified according to frequency and type (drug, violent, property, traffic, and drunk driving offenses). Information on psychiatric diagnoses between 1999 and 2004 was collected from the Finnish National Military Register. Of the 2,712 boys, 22% had a crime registration during the 4-year period, and 10% had at least one psychiatric disorder according to the Military Register. Those with psychiatric disorders accounted for 49% of all crimes. Of those with more than five crimes (n = 98), 59% had psychiatric diagnoses. After adjusting for other crime types and childhood socio-economic status, property crime was independently associated with several diagnoses: antisocial personality (APD), substance use (SUD), psychotic, anxiety, and adjustment disorders. Drug offending was independently associated with APD, SUD, and psychotic disorder, and traffic offenses with APD. Youth crime is predominantly associated with antisocial personality and substance use disorders. Crime prevention efforts should focus on boys showing a risk for antisocial and substance use problems. In particular, property, drug, and repeat offenders need mental health and substance use assessment. There is a need to develop integrated mental health and substance use treatment services for young offenders within or alongside the criminal justice system.

"PHC leadership: are health centres in good hands? Perspectives from 3 districts in Malawi".

Science.gov (United States)

Hana, J; Maleta, K; Kirkhaug, R; Hasvold, T

2012-09-01

The study aimed to document the kinds of leadership styles are practiced at health centres (H/C) and how these styles can be explained by the contexts, characteristics of the health centre in charge (IC) and subordinate trained health staff (STHS). A well-researched leadership style model was applied, which included task, relation and change styles. This is a cross-sectional study using self-administered questionnaires in 47 H/C in 3 districts. 347 STHSs (95%) and 46 ICs (98%) responded. Questions explored background data and perceived leadership behaviour. Style items were factor analysed, and bivariate analyses and hierarchical regressions determined how styles could be explained. Two leadership styles were revealed: "Trans" style contained all relation and the majority of task and change items; "Control" style focused on health statistics (Health Management Information System), reporting and evaluation. STHS and IC had a median age/median work experience of 34/5 years and 38,5/2 years, respectively. 48% of IC reported having no management training. CHAM H/Cs had the lowest score on "Control" style. Distance to referral hospital had no impact on style scores. No contexts or STHS characteristics predicted any leadership styles. For ICs, young age and increasing work experience were significant predictors for both styles, while Nurse ICs were negative predictors for "Control style". Management training was not a significant predictor for any style. Frontline PHC leadership may be forced by situation and context to use a comprehensive style which could lack the diversity and flexibility needed for effective leadership. The missing associations between staff characteristics and leadership styles might indicate that this group is not sufficiently considered and included in leadership processes in the PHC organization. Leadership competency for the ICs seems not to be based on formal training, but substituted by young age and work experience. Health centre organization

Wide variation in sexually transmitted infection testing and counselling at Aboriginal primary health care centres in Australia: analysis of longitudinal continuous quality improvement data.

Science.gov (United States)

Nattabi, Barbara; Matthews, Veronica; Bailie, Jodie; Rumbold, Alice; Scrimgeour, David; Schierhout, Gill; Ward, James; Guy, Rebecca; Kaldor, John; Thompson, Sandra C; Bailie, Ross

2017-02-15

Chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis are readily treatable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) which continue to occur at high rates in Australia, particularly among Aboriginal Australians. This study aimed to: explore the extent of variation in delivery of recommended STI screening investigations and counselling within Aboriginal primary health care (PHC) centres; identify the factors associated with variation in screening practices; and determine if provision of STI testing and counselling increased with participation in continuous quality improvement (CQI). Preventive health audits (n = 16,086) were conducted at 137 Aboriginal PHC centres participating in the Audit and Best Practice for Chronic Disease Program, 2005-2014. STI testing and counselling data were analysed to determine levels of variation in chlamydia, syphilis and gonorrhoea testing and sexual health discussions. Multilevel logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with higher levels of STI-related service delivery and to quantify variation attributable to health centre and client characteristics. Significant variation in STI testing and counselling exists among Aboriginal PHC centres with health centre factors accounting for 43% of variation between health centres and jurisdictions. Health centre factors independently associated with higher levels of STI testing and counselling included provision of an adult health check (odds ratio (OR) 3.40; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 3.07-3.77) and having conducted 1-2 cycles of CQI (OR 1.34; 95% CI 1.16-1.55). Client factors associated with higher levels of STI testing and counselling were being female (OR 1.45; 95% CI 1.33-1.57), Aboriginal (OR 1.46; 95% CI 1.15-1.84) and aged 20-24 years (OR 3.84; 95% CI 3.07-4.80). For females, having a Pap smear test was also associated with STI testing and counselling (OR 4.39; 95% CI 3.84-5.03). There was no clear association between CQI experience beyond two CQI cycles and higher levels of

Can you model growth of trust? A study of the sustainability of a rural community health centre in North India

OpenAIRE

Smith, H. K.; Harper, Paul Robert

2015-01-01

Trust in the service provided by any health facility is of vital importance to its sustainability, whether it is a community clinic in a rural area of a developing country or an international telemedicine service. Community health centres can be used as a means of delivering highly accessible, low-cost health service in the developing world. A major strategic issue for planners of such centres is the expected level of uptake of services throughout a region and its effect on sustainability of ...

[Health promotion in day-care centres in Reykjavík--intervention and result of actions].

Science.gov (United States)

Gudmarsdóttir, Agústa; Tómasson, Kristinn

2007-03-01

The purpose of the study was to compare wellbeing, health and work environment before and after intervention among employees of Reykjavík city day-care centre. The study is a prospective interventions study. In the year 2000 employees of 16 day-care centres responded to a questionnaire regarding work environment, health and wellbeing. Work environment evaluation was completed and the centre classified into four groups accordingly. Subsequently, the "equipment was renewed" noise protection improved and the employee received education concerning occupational health. Six months, after interventions, in the year 2002 the same questionnaire was readministered. Response rate in 2002 was 88% (n=267) but 90% in the year 2000. Work environment had improved. More employees had received instruction on good workposture and good work technique than 2 years earlier. Fewer employees used awkward posture than before. Better workspace resulted in reduced number of symptoms, also for the youngest employees. Symptoms were also fewer where unskilled employees were in majority and where the fewest of them had received proper education on work posture. In the year 2002, psychosocial wellbeing was better or equal than two years earlier. This was associated with better education and higher age even despite less workspace. Employees awareness towards noise was greatly improved. It is possible to improve work methods and work environment of employees with goal directed intervention, thus laying the ground for wellbeing at work. The interplay between the factors education and age is complex, though. Thus it is important, that all workplaces, adopt the process of "risk assessment", intervention, and then reassessment of the work environment. By doing so the goals of health promotion and good occupational health can be reached.

Change in economic difficulties and physical and mental functioning: Evidence from British and Finnish employee cohorts.

Science.gov (United States)

Lallukka, Tea; Ferrie, Jane E; Rahkonen, Ossi; Shipley, Martin J; Pietiläinen, Olli; Kivimäki, Mika; Marmot, Michael G; Lahelma, Eero

2013-09-01

The main aims of this longitudinal study were to (i) examine associations between changes in economic difficulties and health functioning among middle-aged employees and (ii) assess whether the associations remained after considering conventional domains of socioeconomic position. The associations were tested in two European welfare state occupational cohorts to strengthen the evidence base and improve generalizability. Data came from two cohorts: the Finnish Helsinki Health Study (baseline 2000-2002, follow-up 2007, N = 6328) and the British Whitehall II Study (baseline 1997-1999, follow-up 2003-2004, N = 4350). Responses to the survey item "finding it hard to afford adequate food and clothes and pay bills" repeated at baseline and follow-up were used to examine persistent, increasing, and decreasing economic difficulties. Poor physical and mental health functioning were denoted as being in the lowest quartile of the Short Form 36 physical and mental component summary. Logistic regression analyses were adjusted for sex, age, childhood economic difficulties, household income at baseline and follow-up, employment status at follow-up, and baseline health functioning. We observed strong sex- and age-adjusted associations between increasing [odds ratio (OR) range 1.69-2.96] and persistent (OR range 2.54-3.21) economic difficulties and poorer physical and mental health functioning in both British and Finnish occupational cohorts. These associations remained after full adjustments. Those reporting decreasing difficulties over follow-up also had poorer functioning (OR range 1.30-1.61) compared to those who did not have difficulties at baseline, possibly reflecting residual effects of economic difficulties at baseline. Changes in economic difficulties are associated with poorer physical and mental health functioning independent of income, employment status, and baseline health functioning.

Mind the gap: Person-centred delivery of mental health information to post-secondarystudents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laura Lynne Armstrong

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Mental illnesses are rapidly escalating on university and college campuses. It is well known that postsecondary institutions are not doing enough to address mental health concerns: this represents a significant gap in our attempts to meet the mental health needs of young people. Deficits in mental health knowledge are now proposed as a major contributing factor to both stigma and low service access, but little research as explored this issue. There is also little research to date concerning what young people want to know about mental health and how best to disseminate mental health knowledge. Without such information, knowledge may not be shared in a person-centred, meaningful manner that youth will use. We explored these issues in the present study. First year postsecondary students (N = 271; n = 183 females; n = 85 males; n = 3 other from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada participated in the online survey. Almost half of the postsecondary youth participants, particularly males, had difficulty recognizing common mental illnesses, such as anxiety, eating disorders, and psychosis. Youth held inaccurate beliefs and stigma, as well as attitudes not in favour of help-seeking. They primarily wanted to know about symptoms of mental illnesses as well as how to cope with stress. Post-secondary students wanted to learn about mental health issues through public presentations, the Internet, and media. The present research suggests the need for an awareness and acknowledgement among policy-makers of first year post-secondary students' knowledge gaps and youth appropriate knowledge sharing. Assessing mental health knowledge, what post-secondary students want to know about mental health, and knowledge transfer preferences could aid in the development of a framework to address the significant gap in the mental health needs of post-secondary students in a person centred manner.

To have and to hold: personnel shortage in a Finnish healthcare organisation.

Science.gov (United States)

Heilmann, Pia

2010-07-01

Retirements of baby boomers will create a talent shortage in Finnish health care. Concurrently, difficulties exist in recruiting new personnel. This paper provides an overview concerning the bottlenecks in talent management in a Finnish hospital, and finds solutions for recruitment and retention problems of healthcare professionals (nurses and physicians). Because the healthcare staffing shortage is worldwide, the results of this paper are also useful internationally. The research was a qualitative case study and the research method used was group interview. Background data was gathered from the public media and healthcare trade organisations. The bottlenecks of talent management in hospital organisation seem to relate to retaining actions of senior personnel. Concurrently, the organisation should develop new practices for attracting new personnel. Very few efforts on image marketing and recruitment have been done. The Internet has not been fully exploited and recruitment information has not been sent even to the neighbouring nursing college. Job rotation has not been used as a help in recruitment and competence development. Difficulties exist in transmitting tacit knowledge from a retiring nurse to a junior nurse. Leadership skills of the superior seem to be important when retaining and committing senior personnel. Recruitment and retention problems encourage organisations to develop new recruitment and commitment practices as well as management and leadership skills.

Finnish Archaeologists’ Contacts with the Baltic Countries during the Second World War

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Timo Salminen

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Finnish archaeologists, especially Aarne Michaël Tallgren, had established contacts with their colleagues in the Baltic countries before the Second World War. In the summer of 1939, the world situation became a dominant theme in letters between archaeologists. The outbreak of war in Europe and the military base negotiations in Moscow evoked increasing concern. After the Soviet attack on Finland, only a few Finnish and Baltic archaeologists stayed in contact, but communications revived quickly after the Finnish-Soviet peace treaty of 1940. Estonian archaeologist Harri Moora saw the trials of war as a punishment for forgetting all spiritual values in previous years. The Soviet occupation of the Baltic countries in 1940 broke all contacts for longer than a year. After Germany had occupied the Baltic countries in 1941 and was allied with Finland in war against the Soviet Union, connections could be resumed to some extent. Tallgren, together with the Swedish State Antiquarian Sigurd Curman, now started planning the evacuation of children from Estonia to Sweden. In 1942, scholarly discussion returned to the correspondence, although only on a practical level, but already in early 1943 all correspondence became impossible. At the same time, Finnish archaeologists were in contact with Baltic refugees, especially Francis Balodis from Latvia. There were also Scandinavian and British archaeologists with whom Finnish researchers exchanged information about colleagues in the Baltic countries. The communications mainly focused on three things: getting and spreading information regarding the current situation, offering both practical help and psychological support to colleagues in the Baltic countries, and attempting to re-establish the exchange of ideas within the scholarly community.

A new model of collaborative research: experiences from one of Australia's NHMRC Partnership Centres for Better Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Wutzke, Sonia; Redman, Sally; Bauman, Adrian; Hawe, Penelope; Shiell, Alan; Thackway, Sarah; Wilson, Andrew

2017-02-15

There is often a disconnection between the creation of evidence and its use in policy and practice. Cross-sectoral, multidisciplinary partnership research, founded on shared governance and coproduction, is considered to be one of the most effective means of overcoming this research-policy-practice disconnect. Similar to a number of funding bodies internationally, Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council has introduced Partnership Centres for Better Health: a scheme explicitly designed to encourage coproduced partnership research. In this paper, we describe our experiences of The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre, established in June 2013 to explore the systems, strategies and structures that inform decisions about how to prevent lifestyle-related chronic disease. We present our view on how the Partnership Centre model is working in practice. We comment on the unique features of the Partnership Centre funding model, how these features enable ways of working that are different from both investigator-initiated and commissioned research, and how these ways of working can result in unique outcomes that would otherwise not have been possible. Although not without challenges, the Partnership Centre approach addresses a major gap in the Australian research environment, whereby large-scale, research-policy-practice partnerships are established with sufficient time, resources and flexibility to deliver highly innovative, timely and accessible research that is of use to policy and practice.

The Future of the Retail Advertising: Implications for the Finnish Newspaper Industry

OpenAIRE

FLINK, SOILE-MARI

2011-01-01

Starting point for this research was the future changes Internet will cause to Finnish newspaper economies. When evaluating the economic importance of future development to newspapers? economies, one of the most important areas is retail advertising and its shifting to online environment. So far Finnish retail advertising has been very much focused on printed newspapers and retailers? online investments have been moderate and conservative. The change is about to happen and this research answe...

An analysis of online health information on schizophrenia or related conditions: a cross-sectional survey

Science.gov (United States)

2013-01-01

Background Around 20% of those who seek health information online, search specifically for mental health. However, little is known about the nature of the online health information offered by two European countries, Finland and Greece, which are characterized by markedly differing levels of Internet access and online health information seeking. This study aims to assess, describe and compare websites, written in two European, non-English languages (Finnish and Greek) that appear first after performing an online search concerning schizophrenia or related conditions. Methods The first 20 results from four search terms (searched in Finnish and Greek) in the Web search engine ‘Google’ were screened. A total of 160 websites were retrieved (80 Finnish, 80 Greek) and evaluated using a preformulated coding system which consisted of websites’ indicators, such as: types, characteristics, accountability, interactivity, aesthetics and content. Differences between websites were evaluated with Chi-Square or Fisher’s Exact tests for categorical data and independent t-tests for parametric data. Results Twenty-four Finnish and thirty-four Greek websites (36% in total) were included. Almost two-thirds (62%, n=36) were owned by an organization, compared to 17% (n=10) by an individual. In both countries, aesthetics had the highest score (possible range 0–4, mean = 2.6, SD = .62), while interactivity the lowest (range 0–5, mean = 1.79, SD = .87). There were no statistically significant differences among the accountability, interactivity and aesthetics scores of the Finnish and Greek websites. Conclusions All assessed indicators suggest there is a need to improve Finnish and Greek online information about schizophrenia or related conditions. The poor website interactivity is of particular concern given the challenges faced by the target group. The findings can be used to guide the development and dissemination of online mental health information aimed at Finnish and Greek

A qualitative study on barriers in the prevention of anaemia during pregnancy in public health centres: perceptions of Indonesian nurse-midwives.

Science.gov (United States)

Widyawati, Widyawati; Jans, Suze; Utomo, Sutarti; van Dillen, Jeroen; Janssen, A L M Lagro

2015-02-26

Anemia in pregnancy remains a major problem in Indonesia over the past decade. Early detection of anaemia in pregnancy is one of the components which is unsuccessfully implemented by nurse-midwives. This study aims to explore nurse-midwives' experiences in managing pregnant women with anaemia in Public Health Centres. We conducted a qualitative study with semi-structured face to face interviews from November 2011 to February 2012 with 23 nurse-midwives in five districts in Yogyakarta Special Province. Data analysis was thematic, using the constant comparison method, making comparison between participants and supported by ATLAS.ti software. Twelve nurse-midwives included in the interviews had less than or equal to 10 years' working experience (junior nurse-midwives) and 11 nurse-midwives had more than 10 years' working experience (senior nurse-midwives) in Public Health Centres. The senior nurse-midwives mostly worked as coordinators in Public Health Centres. Three main themes emerged: 1) the lack of competence and clinical skill; 2) cultural beliefs and low participation of family in antenatal care programme; 3) insufficient facilities and skilled support staff in Public Health Centres. The nurse-midwives realized that they need to improve their communication and clinical skills to manage pregnant women with anaemia. The husband and family involvement in antenatal care was constrained by the strength of cultural beliefs and lack of health information. Moreover, unfavourable work environment of the Public Health Centres made it difficult to apply antenatal care the pregnant womens' need. The availability of facilities and skilled staffs in Public Health Centre as well as pregnant women's husbands or family members contribute to the success of managing anaemia in pregnancy. Nurse-midwives and pregnant women need to be empowered to achieve the optimum result of anaemia management. We recommend a more comprehensive approach in managing pregnant women with anaemia

Visual impairment in Finnish Usher syndrome type III.

Science.gov (United States)

Plantinga, Rutger F; Pennings, Ronald J E; Huygen, Patrick L M; Sankila, Eeva-Marja; Tuppurainen, Kaija; Kleemola, Leenamaija; Cremers, Cor W R J; Deutman, August F

2006-02-01

To evaluate visual impairment in Finnish Usher syndrome type 3 (USH3) and compare this with visual impairment in Usher syndrome types 1b (USH1b) and 2a (USH2a). We carried out a retrospective study of 28 Finnish USH3 patients, 24 Dutch USH2a patients and 17 Dutch USH1b patients. Cross-sectional regression analyses of the functional acuity score (FAS), functional field score (FFS*) and functional vision score (FVS*) related to age were performed for all patients. The FFS* and FVS* were calculated using the isoptre V-4 test target instead of the usual III-4 target. Statistical tests relating to regression lines and Student's t-test were used to compare between USH3 patients and the other genetic subtypes of Usher syndrome. Cross-sectional analyses revealed significant deterioration in the FAS (1.3% per year), FFS* (1.4% per year) and FVS* (1.8% per year) with advancing age in the USH3 patient group. At a given age the USH3 patients showed significantly poorer visual field function than the USH2a patients. The rate of deterioration in visual function in Finnish USH3 patients was fairly similar to that in Dutch USH1b or USH2a patients. At a given age, visual field impairment in USH3 patients was similar to that in USH1b patients but poorer than in USH2a patients.

Rational use of energy. Finnish technology cases

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-11-01

This publication has been produced within the THERMIE B project `Interactive Promotion of Energy Technologies between Finland and Other EUCountries and to Estonia` (STR-0622-95-FI) as carried out for DG XVII of the European Commission. MOTIVA of Finntech Finnish Technology Ltd Oy has acted as the project co-ordinating body, with Ekono B.E., Ekono Energy Ltd and Friedemann and Johnson Consultants GmbH as partners. The main aim of the second phase of the project, as documented here, was to produce a publication in English on Finnish energy technologies, primarily in the building, industry and traffic sectors. The target distribution for this publication is primarily the EU countries through public and commercial information networks. During the work, the latest information on Finnish energy technologies has been collected, reviewed, screened and analysed in relation to the THERMIE programme. The following presentation consists of descriptions of case technologies; their background, technical aspects and energy saving potentials where applicable. The three RUE sectors; buildings, industry and traffic, are put forward in separate chapters. The building sector concentrates mostly in different control systems. New lighting and heating systems increase energy savings both in the large industrial sites and in private homes. In the industry sector new enhanced processes are introduced along with new products to increase energy efficiency. Traffic sector concentrates in traffic control and reducing exhaust gas emissions by new systems and programmes. The aim in Finland is to reduce exhaust gas emissions both by controlling the traffic efficiently and by developing fuels with lower emission levels. A lot is being done by educating the drivers and the public in efficient driving methods

Implementation of cold risk management in occupational safety, occupational health and quality practices. Evaluation of a development process and its effects at the finnish maritime administration.

Science.gov (United States)

Risikko, Tanja; Remes, Jouko; Hassi, Juhani

2008-01-01

Cold is a typical environmental risk factor in outdoor work in northern regions. It should be taken into account in a company's occupational safety, health and quality systems. A development process for improving cold risk management at the Finnish Maritime Administration (FMA) was carried out by FMA and external experts. FMA was to implement it. Three years after the development phase, the outcomes and implementation were evaluated. The study shows increased awareness about cold work and few concrete improvements. Concrete improvements in occupational safety and health practices could be seen in the pilot group. However, organization-wide implementation was insufficient, the main reasons being no organization-wide practices, unclear process ownership, no resources and a major reorganization process. The study shows a clear need for expertise supporting implementation. The study also presents a matrix for analyzing the process.

Supporting Communication and Decision Making in Finnish Intensive Care with Language Technology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hanna J. Suominen

2010-01-01

Full Text Available A fluent flow of health information is critical for health communication and decision making. However, the flow is fragmented by the large amount of textual records and their specific jargon. This creates risks for both patient safety and cost-effective health services. Language technology for the automated processing of textual health records is emerging. In this paper, we describe method development for building topical overviews in Finnish intensive care. Our topical search methods are based on supervised multi-label classification and regression, as well as supervised and unsupervised multi-class classification. Our linguistic analysis methods are based on rule-based and statistical parsing, as well as tailoring of a commercial morphological analyser. According to our experimental results, the supervised methods generalise for multiple topics and human annotators, and the unsupervised method enables an ad hoc information search. Tailored linguistic analysis improves performance in the experiments and, in addition, improves text comprehensibility for health professionals and laypeople. In conclusion, the performance of our methods is promising for real-life applications.

Socioeconomic inequalities in physical and mental functioning of British, Finnish, and Japanese civil servants: role of job demand, control, and work hours.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekine, Michikazu; Chandola, Tarani; Martikainen, Pekka; Marmot, Michael; Kagamimori, Sadanobu

2009-11-01

This study aims to evaluate whether the pattern of socioeconomic inequalities in physical and mental functioning as measured by the Short Form 36 (SF-36) differs among employees in Britain, Finland, and Japan and whether work characteristics contribute to some of the health inequalities. The participants were 7340 (5122 men and 2218 women) British employees, 2297 (1638 men and 659 women) Japanese employees, and 8164 (1649 men and 6515 women) Finnish employees. All the participants were civil servants aged 40-60 years. Both male and female low grade employees had poor physical functioning in all cohorts. British and Japanese male low grade employees tended to have poor mental functioning but the associations were significant only for Japanese men. No consistent employment-grade differences in mental functioning were observed among British and Japanese women. Among Finnish men and women, high grade employees had poor mental functioning. In all cohorts, high grade employees had high control, high demands and long work hours. The grade differences in poor physical functioning and disadvantaged work characteristics among non-manual workers were somewhat smaller in the Finnish cohort than in the British and Japanese cohorts. Low control, high demands, and both short and long work hours were associated with poor functioning. When work characteristics were adjusted for, the socioeconomic differences in poor functioning were mildly attenuated in men, but the differences increased slightly in women. This study reconfirms the generally observed pattern of socioeconomic inequalities in health for physical functioning but not for mental functioning. The role of work characteristics in the relationship between socioeconomic status and health differed between men and women but was modest overall. We suggest that these differences in the pattern and magnitude of grade differences in work characteristics and health among the 3 cohorts may be attributable to the different welfare

Final disposal of spent nuclear fuel in the Finnish bedrock

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-12-01

Teollisuuden Voima Oy (TVO) studies Finnish bedrock for the final disposal of the spent nuclear fuel from the Olkiluoto nuclear power plant. The study is in accordance with the decision in principle by Finnish government in 1983. The report is the summary of the preliminary site investigations carried out during the years 1987-1992. On the basis of these investigations a few areas will be selected for detailed site investigation. The characterization comprises five areas selected from the shortlist of potential candidate areas resulted in the earlier study during 1983-1985. Areas are located in different parts of Finland and they represent the main formations of the Finnish bedrock. Romuvaara area in Kuhmo and Veitsivaara area in Hyrynsalmi represent the Archean basement. Kivetty area in Konginkangas consists of mainly younger granitic rocks. Syyry in Sievi is located in transition area of Svecofennidic rocks and granitic rocks. Olkiluoto in Eurajoki represents migmatites in southern Finland. For the field investigations area-specific programs were planned and executed. The field investigations have comprised airborne survey by helicopter, geophysical surveys, geological mappings and samplings, deep and shallow core drillings, geophysical and hydrological borehole measurements and groundwater samplings

Are Students Customers in Finnish Higher Education?

Science.gov (United States)

Vuori, Johanna

2013-01-01

This study examines Finnish higher education students' perceptions of whether students are customers, based on qualitative interview data. The article contributes to the discussion on students as customers by giving attention to students' own voices from a country where tuition fees are not generally collected. The data are presented and analysed…

Finnish Students’ Engagement in Science Lessons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Janna Linnansaari

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The decreasing number of students who are engaged in science learning has been recognised as a problem. The pre-conditions of engagement and actual engagement were examined using a novel research method to obtain detailed information on Finnish students’ engagement in different situations and to gain a better understanding of this phenomenon. The study’s participants consisted of 68 students (31 girls, 37 boys from 9th grade and 67 students (46 girls, 21 boys from 1st grade in upper secondary school. The research aimed to answer the following question: How does Finnish students’ engagement occur in exact and life science lessons? Participants received smartphones equipped with a smartphone application that included an experience sampling method questionnaire. The smartphones were programmed to emit a signal during every science lesson and otherwise randomly during the day (from 8 am to 8 pm. The results reveal that situation and grade had significant effects on students’ pre-conditions of engagement and actual engagement. Our results also show that girls had the highest interest in life science lessons and boys in exact science lessons.

Updated survey of Fusarium species and toxins in Finnish cereal grains.

Science.gov (United States)

Hietaniemi, Veli; Rämö, Sari; Yli-Mattila, Tapani; Jestoi, Marika; Peltonen, Sari; Kartio, Mirja; Sieviläinen, Elina; Koivisto, Tauno; Parikka, Päivi

2016-05-01

The aim of the project was to produce updated information during 2005-14 on the Fusarium species found in Finnish cereal grains, and the toxins produced by them, as the last comprehensive survey study of Fusarium species and their toxins in Finland was carried out at the turn of the 1960s and the 1970s. Another aim was to use the latest molecular and chemical methods to investigate the occurrence and correlation of Fusarium species and their mycotoxins in Finland. The most common Fusarium species found in Finland in the FinMyco project 2005 and 2006 were F. avenaceum, F. culmorum, F. graminearum, F. poae, F. sporotrichioides and F. langsethiae. F. avenaceum was the most dominant species in barley, spring wheat and oat samples. The occurrence of F. culmorum and F. graminearum was high in oats and barley. Infection by Fusarium fungi was the lowest in winter cereal grains. The incidence of Fusarium species in 2005 was much higher than in 2006 due to weather conditions. F. langsethiae has become much more common in Finland since 2001. F. graminearum has also risen in the order of importance. A highly significant correlation was found between Fusarium graminearum DNA and deoxynivalenol (DON) levels in Finnish oats, barley and wheat. When comparing the FinMyco data in 2005-06 with the results of the Finnish safety monitoring programme for 2005-14, spring cereals were noted as being more susceptible to infection by Fusarium fungi and the formation of toxins. The contents of T-2 and HT-2 toxins and the frequency of exceptionally high DON concentrations all increased in Finland during 2005-14. Beauvericin (BEA), enniatins (ENNs) and moniliformin (MON) were also very common contaminants of Finnish grains in 2005-06. Climate change is leading to warmer weather, and this may indicate more changes in Finnish Fusarium mycobiota and toxin contents and profiles in the near future.

Mutational analysis of the HGO gene in Finnish alkaptonuria patients

Science.gov (United States)

de Bernabe, D. B.-V.; Peterson, P.; Luopajarvi, K.; Matintalo, P.; Alho, A.; Konttinen, Y.; Krohn, K.; de Cordoba, S. R.; Ranki, A.

1999-01-01

Alkaptonuria (AKU), the prototypic inborn error of metabolism, has recently been shown to be caused by loss of function mutations in the homogentisate-1,2-dioxygenase gene (HGO). So far 17 mutations have been characterised in AKU patients of different ethnic origin. We describe three novel mutations (R58fs, R330S, and H371R) and one common AKU mutation (M368V), detected by mutational and polymorphism analysis of the HGO gene in five Finnish AKU pedigrees. The three novel AKU mutations are most likely specific for the Finnish population and have originated recently.


Keywords: alkaptonuria; homogentisate-1,2-dioxygenase; Finland PMID:10594001

Sociodemographic and socioeconomic differences in sleep duration and insomnia-related symptoms in Finnish adults

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lallukka Tea

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Poor sleep tends to be patterned by sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors. The aim of this study was to examine the associations of sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors with sleep duration and insomnia-related symptoms across life course. Methods We used cross-sectional Health 2000 Survey (2000–2001 among a total of 5,578 adult Finns, aged 30–79 years, representative of adult Finnish population. Data about sociodemographic and socioeconomic circumstances, insomnia-related symptoms over the previous month as well as average sleep duration were collected by questionnaires. Multinomial logistic regression models were adjusted first for gender and age, second for sociodemographic factors, third additionally for socioeconomic factors, and fourth for all covariates and self-perceived health simultaneously. Results On average 70% of Finnish adults slept 7–8 hours a day. Frequent insomnia-related symptoms were more prevalent among women (14% than men (10%. Not being married, not having children, having low education, low income, being unemployed, and being a disability retiree were associated with frequent insomnia-related symptoms. Similar factors were associated with short and long sleep duration. However, childhood socioeconomic position was mostly unrelated to sleep in adulthood except parental education had some associations with short sleep duration. Conclusions Disadvantaged socioeconomic position in adulthood, in particular income and employment status, is associated with poorer sleep. When promoting optimal sleep duration and better sleep quality, families with low incomes, unemployed people, and disability retirees should be targeted.

Objectively measured physical activity in Finnish employees: a cross-sectional study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mutikainen, Sara; Helander, Elina; Pietilä, Julia; Korhonen, Ilkka; Kujala, Urho M

2014-12-10

To objectively measure the amount of intensity-specific physical activity by gender and age with respect to body mass index (BMI) during workdays and days off among Finnish employees. A cross-sectional study. Primary care occupational healthcare units. A sample of 9554 Finnish employees (4221 men and 5333 women; age range 18-65 years; BMI range 18.5-40 kg/m(2)) who participated in health assessments related to occupational health promotion. The amount of moderate-to-vigorous (MVPA) and vigorous (VPA) physical activity (≥3 and ≥6 metabolic equivalents, respectively) was assessed by estimating the minute-to-minute oxygen consumption from the recorded beat-to-beat R-R interval data. The estimation method used heart rate, respiration rate and on/off response information from R-R interval data calibrated by age, gender, height, weight and self-reported physical activity class. The proportion of participants fulfilling the aerobic physical activity recommendation of ≥150 min/week was calculated on the basis of ≥10 min bouts, by multiplying the VPA minutes by 2. Both MVPA and VPA were higher among men and during days off, and decreased with increasing age and BMI (pphysical activity recommendation was highest for normal weight men (65%; 95% CI 62% to 67%) and lowest for obese women (10%; 95% CI 8% to 12%). Objectively measured physical activity is higher among men and during days off, and decreases with increasing age and BMI. The amount of VPA is very low among obese, overweight and older women. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Why low doses at Finnish NPPs?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wahlstroem, B.; Vaehaemaa, T.

1995-01-01

The Finnish nuclear power units - two BWRs (ABB Atom) and two PWRs (VVER) -are known for their high load factors. Finland's reactors have topped the world ranking list for more than ten years. This explains why their collective radiation doses are among the lowest in the world. During normal operation a collective dose of less than ten millisieverts per month is received at one site

Management of work-related stress by Finnish occupational physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Kinnunen-Amoroso, M; Liira, J

2013-07-01

Occupational stress is a serious threat to the well-being of employees and organizations and may cause ill-health and loss of productivity. Determining the methods that occupational health (OH) services and employers use to manage work-related stress can help to detect both barriers and facilitating factors for effective stress management. To examine stress management methods used by OH physicians in Finland. Anonymous, self-administered e-mail questionnaire to Finnish OH physicians. A total of 222 OH physicians responded. Neither OH services nor their client organizations used standardized tools to assess or manage work-related stress. Work-related stress was assessed using patient interviews. Physicians reported that the main method used to manage occupational stress was supporting the individual employee. Half of the physicians attempted to involve workplaces in stress management by asking their patients to contact their supervisors regarding stress issues. In order to tackle work-related stress consistently and effectively employers and OH services should have agreed standardized protocols for managing stress in the workplace.

Finnish research programmes on nuclear power plant safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Puska, E. K.

2010-01-01

The current Finnish national research programme on nuclear power plant safety SAFIR2010 for the years 2007-2010 as well as the coming SAFIR2014 programme for the years 2011-2014 are based on the chapter 7a, 'Ensuring expertise', of the Finnish Nuclear Energy Act. The objective of this chapter is realised in the research work and education of experts in the projects of these research programmes. SAFIR2010 research programme is divided in eight research areas that are Organisation and human, Automation and control room, Fuel and reactor physics, Thermal hydraulics, Severe accidents, Structural safety of reactor circuit, Construction safety, and Probabilistic Safety Analysis (PSA). All the research areas include both projects in their own area and interdisciplinary co-operational projects. Research projects of the programme are chosen on the basis of annual call for proposals. In 2010 research is carried out in 33 projects in SAFIR2010. VTT is the responsible research organisation in 26 of these projects and VTT is also the coordination unit of SAFIR2010 and SAFIR2014. In 2007-2009 SAFIR2010 produced 497 Specified research results (Deliverables), 618 Publications, and 33 Academic degrees. SAFIR2010 programme covers approximately half of the reactor safety research volume in Finland currently. In 2010 the programme volume is EUR 7.1 million and 47 person years. The major funding partners are VYR with EUR 2.96 million, VTT with EUR 2.66 million, Fortum with EUR 0.28 million, TVO with EUR 0.19 million, NKS with EUR 0.15 million, EU with only EUR 0.03 million and other partners with EUR 0.85 million. The new decisions-in-principle on Olkiluoto unit 4 for Teollisuuden Voima and new nuclear power plant for Fennovoima ratified by the Finnish Parliament on 1 July 2010 increase the annual funding collected according to the Finnish Nuclear Energy Act from Fennovoima, Fortum and Teollisuuden Voima for the SAFIR2014 programme to EUR 5.2 million from the current level of EUR 3

The associations of household wealth and income with self-rated health--a study on economic advantage in middle-aged Finnish men and women.

Science.gov (United States)

Aittomäki, Akseli; Martikainen, Pekka; Laaksonen, Mikko; Lahelma, Eero; Rahkonen, Ossi

2010-09-01

The economic resources available to an individual or a household have been hypothesised to affect health through the direct material effects of living conditions as well as through social comparison and experiences of deprivation. The focus so far has been mainly on current individual or household income, and there is a lack of studies on wealth, a potentially relevant part of household resources. We studied the associations of household wealth and household income with self-rated health, and addressed some theoretical issues related to economic advantage and health. The data were from questionnaire survey of Finnish men and women aged from 45 to 67 years, who were employed by the City of Helsinki from five to seven years before the collection of the data in 2007. We found household wealth to have a strong and consistent association with self-rated health, poor health decreasing with increasing wealth. The relationship was only partly attributable to the association of wealth with employment status, household income, work conditions and health-related behaviour. In contrast, the association of household income with self-rated health was greatly attenuated by taking into account employment status and wealth, and even further attenuated by work conditions. The results suggested a significant contribution of wealth differentials to differences in health status. The insufficiency of current income as the only measure of material welfare was demonstrated. Conditions associated with long-term accumulation of material welfare may be a significant aspect of the causal processes that lead to socioeconomic inequalities in ill health. Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Finnish research programme on climate change. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roos, J [ed.

1997-12-31

This is the final report of the Finnish Research Programme on Climate Change (SILMU). This report includes the final results and conclusions made by the individual research groups. The aim of this report is to lay out the research work, and to present the main results and conclusions obtained during the six-year work. The Finnish Research Programme on Climate Change (SILMU) was a multidisciplinary national research programme on climate and global change. The principal goals of SILMU were: (1) to increase our knowledge on climate change, its causes, mechanisms and consequences, (2) to strengthen the research on climate change in Finland, (3) to increase the participation of Finnish researchers in international research programmes, and (4) to prepare and disseminate information for policy makers on adaptation and mitigation. The key areas of the research were: (1) quantification of the greenhouse effect and the magnitude of anticipated climatic changes,(2) assessment of the effects of changing climate on ecosystems, and (3) development of mitigation and adaptation strategies. The research programme started in June 1990, and it comprised more than 80 individual research projects, ranging from atmospheric chemistry to economics. There were approximately two hundred scientists working within the programme in seven universities and eleven research institutions. The research activities that comprise SILMU were grouped into four interdisciplinary subprogrammes: atmosphere, waters, terrestrial ecosystems and integration and human interactions

The Finnish research programme on climate change. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roos, J. [ed.

1996-12-31

This is the final report of the Finnish Research Programme on Climate Change (SILMU). This report includes the final results and conclusions made by the individual research groups. The aim of this report is to lay out the research work, and to present the main results and conclusions obtained during the six-year work. The Finnish Research Programme on Climate Change (SILMU) was a multidisciplinary national research programme on climate and global change. The principal goals of SILMU were: (1) to increase our knowledge on climate change, its causes, mechanisms and consequences, (2) to strengthen the research on climate change in Finland, (3) to increase the participation of Finnish researchers in international research programmes, and (4) to prepare and disseminate information for policy makers on adaptation and mitigation. The key areas of the research were: (1) quantification of the greenhouse effect and the magnitude of anticipated climatic changes,(2) assessment of the effects of changing climate on ecosystems, and (3) development of mitigation and adaptation strategies. The research programme started in June 1990, and it comprised more than 80 individual research projects, ranging from atmospheric chemistry to economics. There were approximately two hundred scientists working within the programme in seven universities and eleven research institutions. The research activities that comprise SILMU were grouped into four interdisciplinary subprogrammes: atmosphere, waters, terrestrial ecosystems and integration and human interactions

Is the Australian 75+ Health Assessment person-centred? A qualitative descriptive study of older people's perceptions.

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Kay; Grimmer, Karen; Foot, Jan

2017-12-01

Objective The aim of the present study was to explore the perspectives of older people following their recent participation in a 75+ Health Assessment (75+HA) and interrogate these perspectives using a person-centred lens. Methods A qualitative descriptive study design was used within a larger study funded by the Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute. Nineteen participants from four different general practices in one Australian state described their perceptions of the 75+HA in a face-to-face interview. Data were then analysed using a qualitative content analysis approach. Results The purpose of the 75+HA was not well understood by participants. Participant responses reveal that where, when, who and how a primary health professional conducted the 75+HA affected what older people talked about, the guidance they sought to deal with issues and, in turn, the actioning of issues that were discussed during the 75+HA. Conclusion To enable older people to make informed decisions about and successfully manage their own health and well being, and to choose when to invite others to act on their behalf, primary health professionals need to ask questions in the 75+HA within a person-centred mindset. The 75+HA is an opportunity to ensure older people know why they need support, which ones, and agree to, supports and services they require. What is known about the topic? The Australian Medicare Benefits Schedule includes the 75+HA, developed as a proactive primary care opportunity for general practitioners and practice nurses to identify issues affecting community-dwelling older people's health and well being. The aim of the 75+HA is to consider a broad range of factors that could affect physical, psychological and social functioning, which, in turn, affects overall health, and the capacity of older people to live independently in the community. Underlying the 75+HA is the importance of detecting early functional decline to enable healthy aging. What does this paper add

Evaluation of the Finnish nuclear waste management programme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-05-01

In response to a request from Finland in November 1992, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) set up a Team of four experts (representatives from Belgium, Canada, Germany and Switzerland) to review the Finnish nuclear waste management programme within the auspices of IAEA's Waste Management programme (WATRP). During the early summer of 1993, the Team reviewed a large amount of documentation supplied by the Finnish industry, government and research organizations. The radioactive waste management programme areas within the Team's terms of reference included: (1) work being done in siting and building a conditional facility for spent nuclear fuel and siting and constructing a co-located repository, (2) the plans and activities for conditioning and disposing of the low and intermediate level waste from Finland's NPPs and (3) the plans for decommissioning Finland's reactors when that becomes necessary. The evaluation work and the recommendations of the Team are detailed in the report

Empowerment, patient centred care and self-management.

Science.gov (United States)

Pulvirenti, Mariastella; McMillan, John; Lawn, Sharon

2014-06-01

Patient or person centred care is widely accepted as the philosophy and practice that underpins quality care. An examination of the Australian National Chronic Disease Strategy and literature in the field highlights assumptions about the self-manager as patient and a focus on clinical settings. This paper considers patient or person centred care in the light of empowerment as it is understood in the health promotion charters first established in Alma Ata in 1977. We argue that patient or person centred care can be reconfigured within a social justice and rights framework and that doing so supports the creation of conditions for well-being in the broader context, one that impacts strongly on individuals. These arguments have broader implications for the practice of patient centred care as it occurs between patient and health professional and for creating shared responsibility for management of the self. It also has implications for those who manage their health outside of the health sector. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Redesign of a health science centre: reflections on co-leadership.

Science.gov (United States)

MacTavish, M; Norton, P

1995-01-01

Since 1988, the Sunnybrook Health Science Centre has been proactive in re-designing its system toward decentralized management, the purpose being to further enhance patient care. This process has involved numerous changes, among which were the establishment of three large clinical units. These clinical units are not defined following the historic medical model, but group patients with similar service and care needs. Subsequently, each of the clinical units defined Patient Service Units (PSUs). The hospital has chosen a co-leadership model for the lead management at each of the unit levels. This paper describes the model for clinical units.

Finnish Higher Education Expansion and Regional Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Saarivirta, Toni

2010-01-01

This paper concentrates on the expansion of Finnish higher education between the 1960s and 1970s, exposes its background in the light of the policy decisions that were made, compares the unique features of this expansion with those of certain other countries, discusses the impact of the controlled "top down" governance of higher…

Individualized Sex Equality in Transforming Finnish Academia

Science.gov (United States)

Lätti, Johanna

2017-01-01

This article examines the equality agenda in the context of Finnish university reform in the 21st century. In Finland, the academic regime went through an organizational transformation after the Universities Act in 2009. However, little attention has been paid to the questions of sex or equality. Since the policy influences on equality in…

Orofacial pain and symptoms of temporomandibular disorders in Finnish and Thai populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Sipilä, Kirsi; Tolvanen, Mimmi; Mitrirattanakul, Somsak; Sitthisomwong, Panupen; Järvelin, Marjo-Riitta; Taanila, Anja; Anttonen, Vuokko; Lahti, Satu

2015-07-01

Cultural or ethnic factors may play an important role in subjects' pain reports. The aim of the study was to compare the prevalence of orofacial pain symptoms between Finnish and Thai populations. The Finnish study population comprised the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966, of which 5696 subjects participated in the present study. The Thai sample consisted of 1501 randomly selected people living in 10 different districts in Bangkok. Data on orofacial pain was collected based on questionnaires. After adjusting for age, gender and education, the logistic regression analysis showed that Thai subjects had an increased risk for reporting oral pain (OR = 4.5, 95% CI = 3.7-5.4), tooth pain (OR = 2.0, 95% CI = 1.8-2.4) and pain in the face (OR = 1.5, 95% CI = 1.2-1.7). It can be concluded that Thai people report more orofacial pain symptoms than Finnish subjects. Cross-cultural factors exist in the background of reporting pain symptoms in the oral and facial area.

A new model of collaborative research: experiences from one of Australia’s NHMRC Partnership Centres for Better Health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia Wutzke

2017-02-01

Full Text Available There is often a disconnection between the creation of evidence and its use in policy and practice. Cross-sectoral, multidisciplinary partnership research, founded on shared governance and coproduction, is considered to be one of the most effective means of overcoming this research–policy–practice disconnect. Similar to a number of funding bodies internationally, Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council has introduced Partnership Centres for Better Health: a scheme explicitly designed to encourage coproduced partnership research. In this paper, we describe our experiences of The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre, established in June 2013 to explore the systems, strategies and structures that inform decisions about how to prevent lifestyle-related chronic disease. We present our view on how the Partnership Centre model is working in practice. We comment on the unique features of the Partnership Centre funding model, how these features enable ways of working that are different from both investigator-initiated and commissioned research, and how these ways of working can result in unique outcomes that would otherwise not have been possible. Although not without challenges, the Partnership Centre approach addresses a major gap in the Australian research environment, whereby large-scale, research–policy–practice partnerships are established with sufficient time, resources and flexibility to deliver highly innovative, timely and accessible research that is of use to policy and practice.

The DIY Digital Medical Centre.

Science.gov (United States)

Timmis, James Kenneth; Timmis, Kenneth

2017-09-01

Healthcare systems worldwide are confronted with major economic, organizational and logistical challenges. Historic evolution of health care has led to significant healthcare sector fragmentation, resulting in systemic inefficiencies and suboptimal resource exploitation. To attain a sustainable healthcare model, fundamental, system-wide improvements that effectively network, and ensure fulfilment of potential synergies between sectors, and include and facilitate coherent strategic planning and organisation of healthcare infrastructure are needed. Critically, they must be specifically designed to sustainably achieve peak performance within the current policy environment for cost-control, and efficiency and quality improvement for service delivery. We propose creation of a new healthcare cluster, to be embedded in existing healthcare systems. It consists of (i) local 24/7 walk-in virtually autonomous do-it-yourself Digital Medical Centres performing routine diagnosis, monitoring, prevention, treatment and standardized documentation and health outcome assessment/reporting, which are online interfaced with (ii) regional 24/7 eClinician Centres providing on-demand clinical supervision/assistance to Digital Medical Centre patients. Both of these are, in turn, online interfaced with (iii) the National Clinical Informatics Centre, which houses the national patient data centre (cloud) and data analysis units that conduct patient- and population-level, personalized and predictive(-medicine) intervention optimization analyses. The National Clinical Informatics Centre also interfaces with biomedical research and prioritizes and accelerates the translation of new discoveries into clinical practice. The associated Health Policy Innovation and Evaluation Centre rapidly integrates new findings with health policy/regulatory discussions. This new cluster would synergistically link all health system components in a circular format, enable not only access by all arms of the health

Human Centred Design Considerations for Connected Health Devices for the Older Adult

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard P. Harte

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Connected health devices are generally designed for unsupervised use, by non-healthcare professionals, facilitating independent control of the individuals own healthcare. Older adults are major users of such devices and are a population significantly increasing in size. This group presents challenges due to the wide spectrum of capabilities and attitudes towards technology. The fit between capabilities of the user and demands of the device can be optimised in a process called Human Centred Design. Here we review examples of some connected health devices chosen by random selection, assess older adult known capabilities and attitudes and finally make analytical recommendations for design approaches and design specifications.

Establishing a culturally specific nursing home for Finnish-speaking older persons in Sweden: A case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hadziabdic, Emina; Hjelm, Katarina

2018-04-01

The study aims to describe the establishment of a culturally specific nursing home for Finnish-speaking older persons in Sweden. A descriptive qualitative study. A descriptive case study based on a review of 14 public documents and individual interviews with two experts in the area, analysed with qualitative content analysis. This study found that shared language, preservation of customs and habits and collaboration between the representatives of the municipality, Finnish-speaking migrant associations and staff at the nursing home influenced the development of the culturally specific nursing home for older Finnish-speaking people intended to avoid loneliness, isolation and misunderstandings among older Finnish-speaking. Collaboration between healthcare service for older persons and minority people resulted in an optimal culturally specific nursing home, simultaneously encountering the majority culture. Nursing and healthcare services need to be aware of positive effects of collaboration with stakeholders to achieve optimal culturally specific nursing homes.

Dr Jekels' health resort in Bystra near Bielsko: the first treatment centre which adopted psychoanalysis in Poland.

Science.gov (United States)

Dembińska, Edyta; Rutkowski, Krzysztof

2017-08-29

The paper sets out to present the history of a health resort and hydrotherapy centre in Bystra near Bielsko from 1898 to 1912. At that time Dr Ludwik Jekels, one of the Polish psychoanalysis forerunners, was the owner of the centre. Initially, Dr Jekels was very enthusiastic about climatic treatment and hydrotherapy, until 1905 when he got interested in psychoanalysis. Shortly afterwards he became its staunch supporter and adopted it as a curative procedure in his health resort. That was the first documented case of psychoanalysis use in Poland. This paper presents the development of the therapeutic centre in Bystra and the characteristic of typical patients receiving treatment there. It also briefly reports on medical histories of the conditions of patients who received psychoanalytic treatment. The paper also focuses on another significant area of Dr Jekels'contact with Sigmund Freud ranging from an accidental meeting in Vienna around 1898, through the summer of 1910 when Jekels looked after Freud's daughters in his spa, to 1912 which saw Jekels'receiving psychoanalytic treatment from Freud. It also presents a detailed analysis of hypotheses why Jekels decided to sell the health resort and move to Vienna. Finally, the significance of Jekels'currently underrated therapeutic work for the development of the Polish psychoanalysis is reiterated.

Use of the Finnish Information System on Occupational Exposure (FINJEM) in epidemiologic, surveillance, and other applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Kauppinen, Timo; Uuksulainen, Sanni; Saalo, Anja; Mäkinen, Ilpo; Pukkala, Eero

2014-04-01

This paper reviews the use of the Finnish Information System on Occupational Exposure (Finnish job-exposure matrix, FINJEM) in different applications in Finland and other countries. We describe and discuss studies on FINJEM and studies utilizing FINJEM in regard to the validity of exposure estimates, occupational epidemiology, hazard surveillance and prevention, the assessment of health risks and the burden of disease, the assessment of exposure trends and future hazards, and the construction of job-exposure matrices (JEMs) in countries other than Finland. FINJEM can be used as an exposure assessment tool in occupational epidemiology, particularly in large register-based studies. It also provides information for hazard surveillance at the national level. It is able to identify occupations with high average exposures to chemical agents and can therefore serve the priority setting of prevention. However, it has only limited use at the workplace level due to the variability of exposure between workplaces. The national estimates of exposure and their temporal trends may contribute to the assessment of both the recent and future burden of work-related health outcomes. FINJEM has also proved to be useful in the construction of other national JEMs, for example in the Nordic Occupational Cancer study in the Nordic countries. FINJEM is a quantitative JEM, which can serve many purposes and its comprehensive documentation also makes it potentially useful in countries other than Finland.

Quality assurance of malaria case management in an urban and in sub-rural health centres in Goma, Congo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Prosper M. Lutala

2011-10-01

Objectives: Our aim was to assess the quality of malaria case management in two primary health care centres in the Goma health district. Specific objectives were the assessment of quality accuracy in the dosage, the duration of treatment, the intervals between administrations, and the routes of administration of anti-malarial medication in two health centres, as well as the subsequent comparison of those two sites. Method: A descriptive retrospective study was conducted using the malaria register’s review to assess two health centres in the Goma health district. Socio-demographical and clinical data were recorded and the quality was assessed against the national guidelines. Descriptive statistics with percentages and Chi-square values were computed. Results: Under-dosage was more common in CCLK (Centre Chrétien du Lac Kivu [Lake Kivu Christian Centre] with 55 patients (62.5%; 95% CI, 52% – 71.8% patients, whilst the over-dosage was present in 64 patients (80%; 95% CI, 69.9% – 87.2% in CASOP (Caisse de Solidarité Ouvrière et Paysanne [Fund of Solidarity Workers and Peasants]. The duration of treatment was shorter in CCLK in 15 patients (93.7%; 95% CI, 71.6% – 98.8%; CASOP had a high rate of inappropriate intervals between the administration of drugs in 14 patients (82.3%; 95% CI, 58.9% – 93.8%. Intravenous administration rates were high in both sites with respectively 102 patients in CASOP (62.5%; 95% CI, 54.9% – 69.6% and 61 patients in CCLK (37.4%; 95% CI, 30.3% – 45.0%. Significant differences were found between the two sites with regard to intervals of administration (χ2 = 7.11, p = 0.007, duration of treatment (χ2 = 8.51, p = 0.003, dosage (χ2 = 3.91, p = 0.05. The routes of administration were used in a similar manner, however, in the two sites (χ2 = 0.78, p = 0.37. Conclusion: Abnormalities in dosage, in the duration of treatment, in the intervals between administration and in the routes of administration were found in both sites

Background information for NDT qualification of Finnish disposal canisters of spent fuel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sarkimo, M.; Pitkaenen, J.

2013-12-01

This report presents a review to basic concepts, which are applied in the qualification of non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques. The qualification systems developed and used in some countries are briefly described in the beginning of the report. Anyway the report mainly discusses the qualification practices applied in the Finnish nuclear industry. The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) in the YVL Guide 3.8 define the Finnish qualification approach applied for the in-service inspections. The principles presented in this document follow the views of the international organisations: Nuclear Regulator Working Group (NRWG) and European Network for Inspection and Qualification (ENIQ). For the practical qualification work a national guideline is established using so called SP-documents that include specific rules and instructions for execution of qualifications in accordance with YVL Guide 3.8 principles. Altogether the Finnish qualification system can be seen very well to follow the European (ENIQ) methodology. The report discusses several qualification terms and documents. Thus the normally necessary tasks and parts of a qualification are described. The qualification can be seen as a project that includes several tasks, which will be performed by different parties. Enough resources and time should be reserved for the planning and control of a qualification project to ensure its fluent progress. Some tasks are discussed in the report taking into account the situation in the qualification cases that are seen to be linked to the inspections of disposal canisters of spent fuel. (orig.)

Background information for NDT qualification of Finnish disposal canisters of spent fuel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sarkimo, M. [VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Espoo (Finland); Pitkaenen, J.

2013-12-15

This report presents a review to basic concepts, which are applied in the qualification of non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques. The qualification systems developed and used in some countries are briefly described in the beginning of the report. Anyway the report mainly discusses the qualification practices applied in the Finnish nuclear industry. The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) in the YVL Guide 3.8 define the Finnish qualification approach applied for the in-service inspections. The principles presented in this document follow the views of the international organisations: Nuclear Regulator Working Group (NRWG) and European Network for Inspection and Qualification (ENIQ). For the practical qualification work a national guideline is established using so called SP-documents that include specific rules and instructions for execution of qualifications in accordance with YVL Guide 3.8 principles. Altogether the Finnish qualification system can be seen very well to follow the European (ENIQ) methodology. The report discusses several qualification terms and documents. Thus the normally necessary tasks and parts of a qualification are described. The qualification can be seen as a project that includes several tasks, which will be performed by different parties. Enough resources and time should be reserved for the planning and control of a qualification project to ensure its fluent progress. Some tasks are discussed in the report taking into account the situation in the qualification cases that are seen to be linked to the inspections of disposal canisters of spent fuel. (orig.)

Factors explaining priority setting at community mental health centres: a quantitative analysis of referral assessments.

Science.gov (United States)

Grepperud, Sverre; Holman, Per Arne; Wangen, Knut Reidar

2014-12-14

Clinicians at Norwegian community mental health centres assess referrals from general practitioners and classify them into three priority groups (high priority, low priority, and refusal) according to need where need is defined by three prioritization criteria (severity, effect, and cost-effectiveness). In this study, we seek to operationalize the three criteria and analyze to what extent they have an effect on clinical-level priority setting after controlling for clinician characteristics and organisational factors. Twenty anonymous referrals were rated by 42 admission team members employed at 14 community mental health centres in the South-East Health Region of Norway. Intra-class correlation coefficients were calculated and logistic regressions were performed. Variation in clinicians' assessments of the three criteria was highest for effect and cost-effectiveness. An ordered logistic regression model showed that all three criteria for prioritization, three clinician characteristics (education, being a manager or not, and "guideline awareness"), and the centres themselves (fixed effects), explained priority decisions. The relative importance of the explanatory factors, however, depended on the priority decision studied. For the classification of all admitted patients into high- and low-priority groups, all clinician characteristics became insignificant. For the classification of patients, into those admitted and non-admitted, one criterion (effect) and "being a manager or not" became insignificant, while profession ("being a psychiatrist") became significant. Our findings suggest that variation in priority decisions can be reduced by: (i) reducing the disagreement in clinicians' assessments of cost-effectiveness and effect, and (ii) restricting priority decisions to clinicians with a similar background (education, being a manager or not, and "guideline awareness").

Readability levels of health pamphlets distributed in hospitals and health centres in Athens, Greece.

Science.gov (United States)

Kondilis, B K; Akrivos, P D; Sardi, T A; Soteriades, E S; Falagas, M E

2010-10-01

Health literacy is important in the medical and social sciences due to its impact on behavioural and health outcomes. Nevertheless, little is known about it in Greece, including patients' level of understanding health brochures and pamphlets distributed in Greek hospitals and clinics. Observational study in the greater metropolitan area of Athens, Greece. Pamphlets and brochures written in the Greek language were collected from 17 hospitals and healthcare centres between the spring and autumn of 2006. Readability of pamphlets using the Flesch-Kincaid, Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) and Fog methods was calculated based on a Greek readability software. Out of 70 pamphlets collected from 17 hospitals, 37 pamphlets met the criteria for the study. The average readability level of all scanned pamphlets was ninth to 10th grade, corresponding to a readability level of 'average'. A highly significant difference (PPamphlets from private hospitals were one grade more difficult than those from public hospitals. Approximately 43.7% of the Greek population aged ≥20 years would not be able to comprehend the available pamphlets, which were found to have an average readability level of ninth to 10th grade. Further research examining readability levels in the context of health literacy in Greece is warranted. This effort paves the way for additional research in the field of readability levels of health pamphlets in the Greek language, the sources of health information, and the level of understanding of key health messages by the population. Copyright © 2010 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Command and Control in Virtual Environments: Using Contingency Theory to Understand Organization in Virtual Worlds

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

Educational Communications & Technology (AECT): Bloomington, IN  The Association of Finnish eLearning Centre  Biomedicine Research Labs  Bridges for... Global Kids, Inc.: New York, NY, USA  Huna International: "Volcano, HI, USA"  Institut für Wissensmedien  Institute of Rural Health: Idaho,USA

MARKETING STRATEGY FOR THE FINNISH TOURIST COMPANY BASED ON SAINT PETERSBURG MARKET RESEARCH

OpenAIRE

Miroshnichenko, Julia

2014-01-01

The goal of this thesis is to get a marketing strategy for proposed tourist business through the field-work marketing research. The purpose of this marketing research was to investigate the attitudes of Russian tourists in Saint Pe-tersburg towards Finland as a destination. The research examines the respondents’ own evaluation of the Finnish tourism possibilities, as well as the expert evaluation (made by the professionals of tourist agencies in Saint Petersburg) of the Finnish tourist ma...

Open source in Finnish software companies

OpenAIRE

Seppä, Arto

2006-01-01

This paper explores survey data focusing on open source software supply collected from 170 Finnish software firms using descriptive statistical analysis. The first half of the report contains general data about software companies and the differences between proprietary and open source firms. The second half focuses on open source firms. A subject of analysis are copyrights, products and services supply, the firms’ relationships with the open source community, and their views on opportunities ...

The Australian centre for RF bioeffects research (ACRBR) - an NHMRC centre of research excellence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wood, A.; Croft, R.; Abramson, M.; Anderson, V.; Cosic, I.; Finnie, J.; McKenzie, R.

2004-01-01

Full text: The Australian Centre for Radiofrequency Bioeffects Research (ACRBR) is a newly established multi-institutional research centre which seeks to research questions pertaining to possible health effects of exposure to radiofrequency devices, such as mobile phones and which is funded under the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Centres of Research Excellence funding program. The Centre of Research Excellence in Electromagnetic Energy is combining the efforts of engineers, epidemiologists, physicists, psychophysiologists and veterinary pathologists from RMIT University, the Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science in South Australia (IMVS), Monash University, Swinburne University of Technology and Telstra Research Laboratories (TRL). The centre is funded at $2.5 M over five years and will undertake a program of research to address the issue of exposure to radiofrequency (RF) devices and health. It will also train new scientists, keep the community informed of ongoing developments and help the development of government policies in this area of considerable public concern. The 5-year program has the following components: Neurobiology: One important area where there is a perceived research gap is in the area of potential neurological effects, which will hence be a major focus of this Centre. The proposed studies range from in vitro and in vivo research studies of RF effects on neuron and neural system functioning in rodents, to that of RF effects on simple neural function, cognition and subjective report in humans. The latter series of studies have been developed to account for the consensus view that more emphasis needs to be placed on possible differences in RF population sensitivity (e.g. youth versus aged, and ' electromagnetic hypersensitives'). Epidemiological studies are an important tool in studying the impact on public health from exposure of whole populations to modern radio technologies. Cancer outcomes in this area of

Romance Tourism and Finnish Women

OpenAIRE

Jussila, Johanna

2015-01-01

Romance tourism is a discussed quite a lot in media both in Finland and abroad. The media has create a certain kind of image of women`s romance tourism. The main aim of this study was to study how Finnish women perceive the romance tourism. The research questions were: does women travel to abroad to seek for holiday romance and why do they travel to abroad to seek for the romance. To find out women’s mental images of romance tourism was also one aim of the research. The phenomenon of women’s ...

The SKVR Database of Ancient Poems of the Finnish People in Kalevala Meter and the Semantic Kalevala

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lauri Harvilahti

2013-10-01

Full Text Available This essay presents the principal aims of establishing a web-based infrastructure for epic research and demonstrates possibilities for using this infrastructure for textual research on epics. The web infrastructure discussed here has developed out of the Finnish Literature Society’s pioneering open-access digitized edition of Kalevala-meter poetry Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (“The Ancient Poems of the Finnish People”; 34 volumes, SKVR and the Semantic Kalevala, an electronic indexing of the Finnish national epic Kalevala that uses the Culture Sampo web portal.

[The contribution of the Russian Research Centre of Medical Rehabilitation and Balneotherapeutics to the development of the health resort business in this country].

Science.gov (United States)

Povazhnaia, E A; Bobrovnitskiĭ, I P

2013-01-01

The definition of the notion of health resort business is proposed in the context of the legislation pertinent to the natural therapeutic resources, health and recreational localities, spa and resort facilities currently in force in this country. The main landmark events in the history of the Russian Research Centre of Rehabilitative Medicine and Balneotherapeutics are highlighted, its role in the development of balneotherapeutic science and health resort business is described. The major achievements of the Centre in the investigations of therapeutic properties of natural physical factors (climate, mineral waters, peloids, etc.), their action on the human organism, the possibilities of their application for the treatment and prevention of various pathological conditions in and outside health resort facilities are presented. The contribution of the specialists of the Centre to the search for and discovery of new resort resources is emphasized. Community needs in balneotheraputic treatment are estimated, scientific basis for its organization, principles and normatives of health resort business are discussed along with the problems of sanitary control and protection. The activities of the Centre as an organizer of the unique system of rehabilitative and balneotherapeutic aid to the population are overviewed. Scientifically substantiated indications and contraindications for the spa and resort-based treatment of various diseases are proposed in conjunction with the methods for the application of physiotherapeutic factors. The tasks currently facing the Centre and prospects for its future research activities in the fields of rehabilitative medicine and balneotherapeutics are discussed.

Reference values of inspiratory spirometry for Finnish adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Kainu, Annette; Timonen, Kirsi L; Vanninen, Esko; Sovijärvi, Anssi R

2018-03-07

Inspiratory spirometry is used in evaluation of upper airway disorders e.g. fixed or variable obstruction. There are, however, very few published data on normal values for inspiratory spirometry. The main aim of this study was to produce reference values for inspiratory spirometry for healthy Finnish adults. Inspiratory spirometry was preplanned to a sample of the Finnish spirometry reference values sample. Data was successfully retrieved from 368 healthy nonsmoking adults (132 males) between 19 and 83 years of age. Reference equations were produced for forced inspiratory vital capacity (FIVC), forced inspiratory volume in one second (FIV1), FIV1/FIVC, peak inspiratory flow (PIF) and the ratios of FIV1/forced expiratory volume in one second and PIF/peak expiratory flow. The present values were compared to PIF values from previously used Finnish study of Viljanen et al. (1982) reference values and Norwegian values for FIV1, FIVC and FIV1/FIVC presented by Gulsvik et al. (2001). The predicted values from the Gulsvik et al. (2001), provided a good fit for FIVC, but smaller values for FIV1 with mean 108.3 and 109.1% of predicted values for males and females, respectively. PIF values were 87.4 and 91.2% of Viljanen et al. (1982) predicted values in males and females, respectively. Differences in measurement methods and selection of results may contribute to the observed differences. Inspiratory spirometry is technically more demanding and needs repeatability criteria to improve validity. New reference values are suggested to clinical use in Finland when assessing inspiratory spirometry. Utility of inspiratory to expiratory values indices in assessment of airway collapse need further study.

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Finnish Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) in 590 Professional Musicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Vastamäki, Heidi; Vastamäki, Martti; Laimi, Katri; Saltychev, Michail

2017-07-01

Poorly functioning work environments may lead to dissatisfaction for the employees and financial loss for the employers. The Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) was designed to measure social and psychological characteristics of work environments. To investigate the factor construct of the Finnish 14-item version of JCQ when applied to professional orchestra musicians. In a cross-sectional survey, the questionnaire was sent by mail to 1550 orchestra musicians and students. 630 responses were received. Full data were available for 590 respondents (response rate 38%).The questionnaire also contained questions on demographics, job satisfaction, health status, health behaviors, and intensity of playing music. Confirmatory factor analysis of the 2-factor model of JCQ was conducted. Of the 5 estimates, JCQ items in the "job demand" construct, the "conflicting demands" (question 5) explained most of the total variance in this construct (79%) demonstrating almost perfect correlation of 0.63. In the construct of "job control," "opinions influential" (question 10) demonstrated a perfect correlation index of 0.84 and the items "little decision freedom" (question 14) and "allows own decisions" (question 6) showed substantial correlations of 0.77 and 0.65. The 2-factor model of the Finnish 14-item version of JCQ proposed in this study fitted well into the observed data. The "conflicting demands," "opinions influential," "little decision freedom," and "allows own decisions" items demonstrated the strongest correlations with latent factors suggesting that in a population similar to the studied one, especially these items should be taken into account when observed in the response of a population.

Airborne fallout mapping of 137Cs Finnish defence forces team

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kettunen, M.; Heininen, T.; Pulakka, M.

1997-01-01

The main task of the team was to create a fallout map of 137 Cs in a specified area in Padasjoki Auttoinen village. The team used an MI-8 helicopter of the Finnish Air Force. The team had an HPGe system (relative efficiency 70%) to measure nuclide specific ground contamination level. For navigation the team took advantage of the DGPS service provided by Finnish Broadcasting company utilizing the RDS-channel to get position accuracy within 2 meters. The correction signal is reachable nationwide on the FM transmitter network. The system produced a distribution map for 40 K and fallout maps for 134,137 Cs using a Micro Station Program with TerraModeler application. The maximum measured 137 Cs ground contamination exceeded 130-140 kBqm -2 . (au)

Patient-centred improvements in health-care built environments: perspectives and design indicators.

Science.gov (United States)

Douglas, Calbert H; Douglas, Mary R

2005-09-01

To explore patients' perceptions of health-care built environments, to assess how they perceived health-care built facilities and designs. To develop a set of patient-centred indicators by which to appraise future health-care designs. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies, including futures group conferencing, autophotographic study, novice-expert exchanges and a questionnaire survey of a representative sample of past patients. The research was carried out at Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Trust (SRHT), Greater Manchester, UK, selected for the study because of planned comprehensive redevelopment based on the new NHS vision for hospital care and service delivery for the 21st century. Participants included 35 patients who took part in an autophotographic study, eight focus groups engaged in futures conferencing, a sample of past inpatients from the previous 12 months that returned 785 completed postal questionnaires. The futures group provided suggestions for radical improvements which were categorized into transport issues; accessibility and mobility; ground and landscape designs; social and public spaces; homeliness and assurance; cultural diversity; safety and security; personal space and access to outside. Patients' autophotographic study centred on: the quality of the ward design, human interactions, the state and quality of personal space, and facilities for recreation and leisure. The novices' suggestions were organized into categories of elemental factors representing patient-friendly designs. Experts from the architectural and surveying professions and staff at SRHT in turn considered these categories and respective subsets of factors. They agreed with the novices in terms of the headings but differed in prioritizing the elemental factors. The questionnaire survey of past patients provided opinions about ward designs that varied according to where they stayed, single room, bay ward or long open ward. The main concerns were limitation of private space

Implications of the Bologna Process for Throughput in the Higher Education Sector: An Empirical Illustration Based on a Finnish-British Comparison

Science.gov (United States)

Lindberg, Matti

2014-01-01

This study illustrates the differences between Finnish and British graduates in the higher education-to-work transition and related market mechanisms in the year 2000. Specifically, the differences between the Finnish and British students' academic careers and ability to find employment after graduation were evaluated in relation to the Finnish HE…

Finnish HLW disposal programme : site selection in 2000

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryhsnen, Veijo

1997-01-01

This paper covers the technical concepts for final disposal in the Finnish geological conditions, the approach for site selection and implementation, the safety assessments and development of criteria, the environmental impact assessment, the licensing stages and acceptance, and the financial provisions, the project organization in 1997 - 2000. 2 refs., 9 figs

Finnish HLW disposal programme : site selection in 2000

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ryhsnen, Veijo [Posiva Oy, Helsinki (Finland)

1997-12-31

This paper covers the technical concepts for final disposal in the Finnish geological conditions, the approach for site selection and implementation, the safety assessments and development of criteria, the environmental impact assessment, the licensing stages and acceptance, and the financial provisions, the project organization in 1997 - 2000. 2 refs., 9 figs.

[Implementation of good quality and safety practices. Descriptive study in a occupational mutual health centre].

Science.gov (United States)

Manzanera, R; Plana, M; Moya, D; Ortner, J; Mira, J J

2016-01-01

To describe the level of implementation of quality and safety good practice elements in a Mutual Society health centre. A Cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the level of implementation of good practices using a questionnaire. Some quality dimensions were also assessed (scale 0 to 10) by a set of 87 quality coordinators of health centres and a random sample of 54 healthcare professionals working in small centres. Seventy quality coordinators and 27 professionals replied (response rates 80% and 50%, respectively. There were no differences in the assessment of quality attributes between both groups. They identified as areas for improvement: use of practice guidelines (7.6/10), scientific and technical skills (7.5/10), and patient satisfaction (7.7/10). Availability and accessibility to clinical reports, informed consent, availability of hydro-alcoholic solution, and to record allergies, were considered of high importance to be implemented, with training and research, improvements in equipment and technology plans, adherence to clinical practice guidelines and the preparation of risk maps, being of less importance. The good practices related to equipment and resources have a higher likelihood to be implemented, meanwhile those related to quality and safety attitudes have more barriers before being implemented. The mutual has a similar behaviour than other healthcare institutions. Copyright © 2015 SECA. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

A qualitative study of the role of workplace and interpersonal trust in shaping service quality and responsiveness in Zambian primary health centres.

Science.gov (United States)

Topp, Stephanie M; Chipukuma, Julien M

2016-03-01

Human decisions, actions and relationships that invoke trust are at the core of functional and productive health systems. Although widely studied in high-income settings, comparatively few studies have explored the influence of trust on health system performance in low- and middle-income countries. This study examines how workplace and inter-personal trust impact service quality and responsiveness in primary health services in Zambia. This multi-case study included four health centres selected for urban, peri-urban and rural characteristics. Case data included provider interviews (60); patient interviews (180); direct observation of facility operations (two weeks/centre) and key informant interviews (14) that were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Case-based thematic analysis incorporated inductive and deductive coding. Findings demonstrated that providers had weak workplace trust influenced by a combination of poor working conditions, perceptions of low pay and experiences of inequitable or inefficient health centre management. Weak trust in health centre managers' organizational capacity and fairness contributed to resentment amongst many providers and promoted a culture of blame-shifting and one-upmanship that undermined teamwork and enabled disrespectful treatment of patients. Although patients expressed a high degree of trust in health workers' clinical capacity, repeated experiences of disrespectful or unresponsive care undermined patients' trust in health workers' service values and professionalism. Lack of patient-provider trust prompted some patients to circumvent clinic systems in an attempt to secure better or more timely care. Lack of resourcing and poor leadership were key factors leading to providers' weak workplace trust and contributed to often-poor quality services, driving a perverse cycle of negative patient-provider relations across the four sites. Findings highlight the importance of investing in both structural factors and organizational

A qualitative study of the role of workplace and interpersonal trust in shaping service quality and responsiveness in Zambian primary health centres

Science.gov (United States)

Topp, Stephanie M; Chipukuma, Julien M

2016-01-01

Background: Human decisions, actions and relationships that invoke trust are at the core of functional and productive health systems. Although widely studied in high-income settings, comparatively few studies have explored the influence of trust on health system performance in low- and middle-income countries. This study examines how workplace and inter-personal trust impact service quality and responsiveness in primary health services in Zambia. Methods: This multi-case study included four health centres selected for urban, peri-urban and rural characteristics. Case data included provider interviews (60); patient interviews (180); direct observation of facility operations (two weeks/centre) and key informant interviews (14) that were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Case-based thematic analysis incorporated inductive and deductive coding. Results: Findings demonstrated that providers had weak workplace trust influenced by a combination of poor working conditions, perceptions of low pay and experiences of inequitable or inefficient health centre management. Weak trust in health centre managers’ organizational capacity and fairness contributed to resentment amongst many providers and promoted a culture of blame-shifting and one-upmanship that undermined teamwork and enabled disrespectful treatment of patients. Although patients expressed a high degree of trust in health workers’ clinical capacity, repeated experiences of disrespectful or unresponsive care undermined patients’ trust in health workers’ service values and professionalism. Lack of patient–provider trust prompted some patients to circumvent clinic systems in an attempt to secure better or more timely care. Conclusion: Lack of resourcing and poor leadership were key factors leading to providers’ weak workplace trust and contributed to often-poor quality services, driving a perverse cycle of negative patient–provider relations across the four sites. Findings highlight the importance

Developments in the instruction of biostatistics at the Kuwait University Health Science Centre in a decade.

Science.gov (United States)

Moussa, Mohamed A A

2002-01-01

Kuwait has witnessed many changes that influenced, among other things, the structure of medical education including biostatistics. This article describes the developments in biostatistics instruction and curriculum in the Health Science Centre, University of Kuwait, during the past 10 years. Instead of teaching biostatistics as an independent component, the university has developed an integrated course (35 hr of lectures and 12 hr of tutorial sessions) of biostatistics, epidemiology, and demography that is taught to undergraduate medical and dentistry students to ensure interdisciplinary interaction, to remove redundancies, and to standardize terminology across the three disciplines. The core curriculum of the biostatistics course is compatible with the recommendations of the American Statistical Association. Separate biostatistics courses are also offered to pharmacy and allied health students to address their diverse interests. In addition, new biostatistics and computer applications instruction courses were developed and are taught to the students of the Master of Science (MSc), Master of Public Health (MPH), and PhD programs. For continuing medical education, a workshop on biostatistics and computer applications is organized annually for the medical profession as a collaboration between the Health Science Centre and the Kuwait Institute for Medical Specialization. The instructor and curriculum content of the biostatistics courses are confidentially evaluated and independently analyzed by the office of the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs. Overall, students evaluate the biostatistics instructors highly and are pleased with the content of the biostatistics curriculum. During the last decade, biostatistics instruction in the Kuwait Health Science Centre had many new developments. An integrated course on biostatistics, epidemiology, and demography was developed with emphasis on problem solving and small group learning. Another biostatistics course is offered to the

Family-centred care delivery

Science.gov (United States)

Mayo-Bruinsma, Liesha; Hogg, William; Taljaard, Monica; Dahrouge, Simone

2013-01-01

Abstract Objective To determine whether models of primary care service delivery differ in their provision of family-centred care (FCC) and to identify practice characteristics associated with FCC. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting Primary care practices in Ontario (ie, 35 salaried community health centres, 35 fee-for-service practices, 32 capitation-based health service organizations, and 35 blended remuneration family health networks) that belong to 4 models of primary care service delivery. Participants A total of 137 practices, 363 providers, and 5144 patients. Main outcome measures Measures of FCC in patient and provider surveys were based on the Primary Care Assessment Tool. Statistical analyses were conducted using linear mixed regression models and generalized estimating equations. Results Patient-reported FCC scores were high and did not vary significantly by primary care model. Larger panel size in a practice was associated with lower odds of patients reporting FCC. Provider-reported FCC scores were significantly higher in community health centres than in family health networks (P = .035). A larger number of nurse practitioners and clinical services on-site were both associated with higher FCC scores, while scores decreased as the number of family physicians in a practice increased and if practices were more rural. Conclusion Based on provider and patient reports, primary care reform strategies that encourage larger practices and more patients per family physician might compromise the provision of FCC, while strategies that encourage multidisciplinary practices and a range of services might increase FCC. PMID:24235195

Genome-Wide Meta-Analysis of Sciatica in Finnish Population.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susanna Lemmelä

Full Text Available Sciatica or the sciatic syndrome is a common and often disabling low back disorder in the working-age population. It has a relatively high heritability but poorly understood molecular mechanisms. The Finnish population is a genetic isolate where small founder population and bottleneck events have led to enrichment of certain rare and low frequency variants. We performed here the first genome-wide association (GWAS and meta-analysis of sciatica. The meta-analysis was conducted across two GWAS covering 291 Finnish sciatica cases and 3671 controls genotyped and imputed at 7.7 million autosomal variants. The most promising loci (p<1x10-6 were replicated in 776 Finnish sciatica patients and 18,489 controls. We identified five intragenic variants, with relatively low frequencies, at two novel loci associated with sciatica at genome-wide significance. These included chr9:14344410:I (rs71321981 at 9p22.3 (NFIB gene; p = 1.30x10-8, MAF = 0.08 and four variants at 15q21.2: rs145901849, rs80035109, rs190200374 and rs117458827 (MYO5A; p = 1.34x10-8, MAF = 0.06; p = 2.32x10-8, MAF = 0.07; p = 3.85x10-8, MAF = 0.06; p = 4.78x10-8, MAF = 0.07, respectively. The most significant association in the meta-analysis, a single base insertion rs71321981 within the regulatory region of the transcription factor NFIB, replicated in an independent Finnish population sample (p = 0.04. Despite identifying 15q21.2 as a promising locus, we were not able to replicate it. It was differentiated; the lead variants within 15q21.2 were more frequent in Finland (6-7% than in other European populations (1-2%. Imputation accuracies of the three significantly associated variants (chr9:14344410:I, rs190200374, and rs80035109 were validated by genotyping. In summary, our results suggest a novel locus, 9p22.3 (NFIB, which may be involved in susceptibility to sciatica. In addition, another locus, 15q21.2, emerged as a promising one, but failed to replicate.

Preliminary Finnish measures of eating competence suggest association with health-promoting eating patterns and related psychobehavioral factors in 10-17 year old adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanja, Tilles-Tirkkonen; Outi, Nuutinen; Sakari, Suominen; Jarmo, Liukkonen; Kaisa, Poutanen; Leila, Karhunen

2015-05-21

Eating competence is an attitudinal and behavioral concept, based on The Satter Eating Competence Model. In adults, it has been shown to be associated with a higher quality of diet. Eating competence or its association with the quality of diet has not been studied in adolescents. The aim of the current study was to explore the utility of using a preliminary Finnish translation of the ecSI 2.0 for evaluating presumed eating competence and its association with food selection, meal patterns and related psychobehavioral factors in 10-17 year old adolescents. Altogether 976 10-17 years old Finnish adolescents filled in the study questionnaire. When exploring the construct validity of ecSI 2.0, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated acceptable model fit and all four components of the ecSI 2.0 (eating attitudes, food acceptance, internal regulation of food intake, management of eating context) correlated with each other and were internally consistent. Over half (58%) of the adolescents scored 32 or higher and were thus classified as presumably eating competent (pEC). Eating competence was associated with greater meal frequency, more frequent consumption of vegetables and fruits, and more health-promoting family eating patterns. In addition the pEC, adolescents more often perceived their body size as appropriate, had less often tried to lose weight and had a higher self-esteem and a stronger sense of coherence than the not pEC ones. Family eating patterns and self-esteem were the main underlying factors of eating competence. In conclusion, this preliminary study suggests eating competence could be a useful concept to characterize eating patterns and related behaviors and attitudes in adolescents. However, these preliminary findings need to be confirmed in further studies with an instrument fully validated for this age group.

Discharged of the nuclear wastes by health service centres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazur, G.; Jednorog, S.

1993-01-01

In this paper Polish national regulation in radiation protection on nuclear medical domain was discussed. The method of utilized nuclear wastes in medical and science centres was deliberate. From many years activity of wastes from Nuclear Medicine Department of Central Clinical Hospital Armed Forces Medical Academy and Radiation Protection Department of Armed Forces Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology was measured. In debate centres radiation monitoring was performed. In this purpose the beta global activity and gamma spectrometry measurement of discharged wastes occurred. From last year in discussed centres wastes activity do not increased permissible levels. (author). 3 refs, 5 tabs

Distributed leadership in Finnish and Shanghai schools

OpenAIRE

Tian, Meng

2016-01-01

The present research employed mixed-methods approach to further theorise distributed leadership and to investigate its manifestations in Finnish and Shanghai schools. The whole research comprised two phases. The first phase contained a meta-analysis (Sub-study I), which systematically reviewed 85 key distributed leadership articles published between 2002 and 2013. The meta-analysis identified two main research paradigms: the descriptive-analytical paradigm and the prescrip...

Chinese and Finnish Undergraduates’ Online Shopping Behaviour

OpenAIRE

Wan, Ning

2015-01-01

The main goal of the thesis was to recognise similar and different characteristics of online shopping behaviour between Chinese and Finnish undergraduates. Additionally, this thesis would give meaningful proposals for merchants and managers on offering better online marketing. This thesis report was conducted in both theoretical and practical parts. The theoretical parts include marketing research and online shopping consumption behaviour. The study describes the marketing research progre...

International risk factors affecting Finnish energy supplies. Suomen energiahuollon kansainvaeliset uhkatekijaet

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kasanen, P.; Koponen, M.; Kaekoenen, J. (Oulu Univ., Oulu (Finland). Dept. of Geography)

1989-01-01

An examination is made of the structure and development of Finnish fuel imports, world fuel market trends and prospects, and the impact of global environmental concerns on Finnish energy supplies. Attention is focused on the political and economic developments to be expected in the major fuel producing or consuming countries. The aim is to look for factors that could treaten the functioning of Finnish fuel supplies and to suggest ways to avoid or overcome these threats. The research is based on Finnish and international energy statistics, published forecasts for the development of the fuel trade and fuel resources and the latest literature on energy economics and political science. Finland is heavily dependent on foreign fuels, over two thirds of her fuels supply being imported. By far the most important source of imports is the Soviet Union, although Poland is a major supplier of coal. The increase in domestic demands for fuels in these countries, will make it necessary for Finland to diversify the sources of her fuel imports. The suggestions made here include the following: Saudi-Arabia and Kuwait should be considered as possible new sources of oil. Coal could be imported from South Africa, provided that the apartheid policy is discontinued. Norway could provide some natural gas, although a Nordic pipeline system would be needed for this to be possible. Finland should invest in fuel resource exploration and development and in building the necessary infrastructure in the producing countries in order to improve the possibilities for reaching long-term agreements on fuel imports. Imporovements in the effiency of the end users of energy and an increase in the proportion of renewable sources of energy would not only be steps towards a sustainable fuel economy, but would also reduce the country's dependence on imported fuels.

Studies of potential severe accidents in Finnish nuclear power plants. Quarterly report 3. quarter 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aro, Ilari.

1989-07-01

This thesis is based on six publications dealing with severe accident studies in Finnish nuclear power plants. Main emphasis has been put on general technical bases and methodologies applied in severe accident evaluation in Finland. As an example of the use of the analysis and evaluation methods, the analysis of one representative accident sequence, t otal loss of AC power , has been presented for both Finnish power plant types. This accident sequence is required to be analyzed in the Finnish safety guide YVL 2.2 which deals with transient and accident analyses as a basis of technical solutions at nuclear powr plants. Two different analysis methods, MAAP 3.0 and MARCH 3/STCP have been used for receiving as complete a picture as possible of the flow of events and for verifying the models to some extent. Besides the use of the two different models, the method of sensitivity analysis has been used for evaluating the effects of some important technical parameters on the accident flow. Finally, conclusions of the applicability of the two methods for analyzing severe accident sequences in Finnish plants have been discussed

The population distribution of the sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) and SAD/height ratio among Finnish adults.

Science.gov (United States)

Kahn, H S; Rissanen, H; Bullard, K M; Knekt, P

2014-12-01

Sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD; 'abdominal height' measured in supine position) may improve upon conventional anthropometry for predicting incident cardiometabolic diseases. However, the SAD is used infrequently by practitioners and epidemiologists. A representative survey of Finnish adults in 2000-2001 collected body measurements including SAD (by sliding-beam calliper) using standardized protocols. Sampled non-pregnant adults (ages 30+ years; 79% participation) provided 6123 SAD measurements from 80 health centre districts. Through stratified, complex survey design, these data represented 2.86 million adults at ages 30+ years. SAD ranged from 13.5 to 38.0 cm, with a population mean (standard error) of 21.7 (0.05) cm and median (interquartile range) of 21.0 (19.1-23.4). Median SAD was higher at ages 50+ years compared with ages 30-49 both for men (22.4 [20.5-24.6] vs. 20.8 [19.3-22.7]) and women (21.7 [19.6-23.9] vs. 19.4 [17.8-21.4]). The SAD/height ratio was similar (0.118) for both sexes at 30-39 years, rising more steeply with age for women than men. Attaining only a basic education, compared with a high level, was associated with increased mean (95% confidence interval) SADs for men (22.6 [22.3-22.8] vs. 22.0 [21.7-22.2]) and women (21.8 [21.5-22.0] vs. 20.6 [20.4-20.8]). Finland's early experience with nationally representative SAD measurements provides normative reference values and physiological insights useful for investigations of cardiometabolic risk. © 2014 World Obesity.

Who should decide how much and what information is important in person-centred health care?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kaltoft, Mette Kjer; Nielsen, Jesper Bo; Salkeld, Glenn

2015-01-01

implicitly segues into the patient having made a 'good decision'. In person-centred health care, whether, in what form, and with what weight, 'information' is included as a criterion of decision quality is a matter for the person involved, to decide in the light of their own values, preferences, and time...

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1990-12-01

During the second quarter of 1990 the Finnish nuclear plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 and TVO and II were in commercial operation for most of the time. The feedwater pipe rupture at Loviisa 1 and the resulting inspections and repairs at both Loviisa plant units brought about an outage the overall duration of which was 32 days. The annual maintenance outages of the TVO plant units were arranged during the report period and their combined duration was 31.5 days. Nuclear electricity accounted for 35.3% of the total Finnish electricity production during this quarter. The load factor average of the nuclear power plant units was 83.0%. Three events occurred during the report period which are classified as Level 1 on the International Nuclear Event Scale: feedwater pipe rupture at Loviisa 1, control rod withdrawal at TVO I in a test during an outage when the hydraulic scram system was rendered inoperable and erroneous fuel bundle transfers during control rod drives maintenance at TVO II. Other events during this quarter are classified as Level Zero (Below Scale) on the International Nuclear Event Scale. Occupational radiation doses and external releases of radioactivity were considerably below authorised limits. Only small amounts of nuclides originating in nuclear power plants were detected in samples taken in the vicinity of nuclear power plants

Pre-pregnancy body mass index and inter-pregnancy weight change among women of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin and the general Finnish population.

Science.gov (United States)

Bastola, Kalpana; Koponen, Päivikki; Härkänen, Tommi; Gissler, Mika; Kinnunen, Tarja I

2017-05-01

We studied the differences in the mean pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) and mean inter-pregnancy weight change in women of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin and women in the general Finnish population. The population-based samples were from the Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study and the Health 2011 Survey conducted in six cities in Finland in 2010-2012. This study included women with at least one birth in Finland. Data on their previous pregnancies in Finland were obtained from the National Medical Birth Register for 318 Russian, 584 Somali and 373 Kurdish origin women and for 243 women in the general Finnish population (reference group). Data on pre-pregnancy weight and height were self-reported in early pregnancy. Linear logistic regression was the main method of analysis. The unadjusted mean pre-pregnancy BMI was higher in Somali (27.0 kg/m 2 , p<0.001) and Kurdish (25.8 kg/m 2 , p<0.001) women, but lower in Russian (22.2 kg/m 2 , p<0.001) women than in the reference group (24.1 kg/m 2 ). The adjusted coefficients for the difference in the mean pre-pregnancy BMI were -1.93 (95% CI -2.77 to -1.09) for Russian, 1.82 (95% CI 0.89-2.75) for Somali and 1.30 (95% CI 0.43-2.17) for Kurdish women compared with the reference group. Among women with at least two births, no statistically significant difference was observed in the mean inter-pregnancy weight change between the migrant groups and the reference group. Somali and Kurdish women had higher mean pre-pregnancy BMIs than women in the general Finnish population and may need special support and health promotion strategies for weight management.

ADHD in the Context of Finnish Basic Education

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Honkasilta, J.; Sandberg, E.; Närhi, V.; Jahnukainen, M.

2014-01-01

Students with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are a growing group served under special education services in many western societies. This article describes the history and current state of the services, as well as the assessment procedure. Our conclusion is that the status of students with ADHD in Finnish basic education (Grades 1…

A woman-centred childbirth model | Maputle | Health SA Gesondheid

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A model for woman-centred childbirth was developed through four phases in accordance with the objectives of the study, namely, a description of mothers' experiences of childbirth and that of attending midwives of managing mothers during childbirth concept analysis of woman-centred care, model development, and an ...

Religious Conviction, Morality and Social Convention among Finnish Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Vainio, Annukka

2011-01-01

The assumptions of Kohlberg, Turiel and Shweder regarding the features of moral reasoning were compared empirically. The moral reasoning of Finnish Evangelical Lutheran, Conservative Laestadian and non-religious adolescents was studied using Kohlberg's Moral Judgment Interview and Turiel Rule Transgression Interview methods. Religiosity and choice…

Personality Preferences and Career Expectations of Finnish Business Students.

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Jarlstrom, Maria

2000-01-01

Predominant Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) scores for 533 Finnish business students were as follows: 67% extraverted, 53% intuitive, 67% thinking, and 33% feeling. For Schein's career anchors, 26% preferred Technical Competence, 17% Managerial Competence, and 14% Independence. Significant relationships between MBTI preferences and career…

A Finnish validation study of the SCL-90.

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Holi, M M; Sammallahti, P R; Aalberg, V A

1998-01-01

The Symptom Check-List-90 (SCL-90) is a widely used psychiatric questionnaire which has not yet been validated in Finland. We investigated the utility of the translated version of the SCL-90 in the Finnish population, and set community norms for it. The internal consistency of the original subscales was checked and found to be good. Discriminant function analysis, based on the nine original subscales, showed that the power of the SCL-90 to discriminate between patients and the community is good. Factor analysis of the items of the questionnaire yielded a very strong unrotated first factor, suggesting that a general factor may be present. This together with the fact that high intercorrelations were found between the nine original subscales suggests that the instrument is not multidimensional. The SCL-90 may be useful in a research setting as an instrument for measuring the change in symptomatic distress, or as a screening instrument. The American community norms should be used with caution, as the Finnish community sample scored consistently higher on all subscales.

Analysis of factors influencing the outpatient workload at Chinese health centres

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Yin Ping

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Although the community health service system is now established in China, the utilisation of the community health service institutions is low due to the lack of a gate-keeping role of the primary health service providers and referrals among the three-tiered health service institutions. In addition to this, patients who can afford to pay, often seek best services in big hospitals to guarantee the quality of care. Thus, the need of guiding the patients to the community health services and increasing the utilisation of the community health service institutions is becoming an urgent problem, which hinders the future development of community health services. This study focuses on the question of how to increase the utilisation of Chinese community health centres (HCs. Methods A cross-sectional Base-line Survey of Chinese City Community Health Service System Building using the multi-staged cluster sampling was conducted to collect data from all HCs in 28 key contact cities. Relevant indicators of totally 1790 HCs were analysed. The statistical methods included ANONVA and logistic regression. Results and Conclusions The analysis suggested several key factors for increasing the outpatient workload (OW at the HCs: establishing an adequate referral system among the different levels of the health system; enhancing the qualification of health personnel and increasing the compensation by the health insurance for services provided at HCs. Other key factors with a positive effect on the OW included: the government ownership of the HCs, the scale of the institutions, the medical equipment used, the mix of health services provided, and the women in childbearing age in the residence.

The impact of nutrition education at three health centres in Central Province, Kenya

OpenAIRE

Hoorweg, J.C.; Niemeijer, R.

1980-01-01

This report contains an account of a study of the effects of nutrition education as given at three health centres in different ecological zones in Central Province, Kenya. Two groups of mothers in similar social and economic situations were selected for interviewing: frequent and infrequent visitors. They were compared on the following indicators: nutritional knowledge, maternal food preferences, food consumption of the children during the previous day and nutritional status of the children. ...

Patient-centred care: a review for rehabilitative audiologists.

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Grenness, Caitlin; Hickson, Louise; Laplante-Lévesque, Ariane; Davidson, Bronwyn

2014-02-01

This discussion paper aims to synthesise the literature on patient-centred care from a range of health professions and to relate this to the field of rehabilitative audiology. Through review of the literature, this paper addresses five questions: What is patient-centred care? How is patient-centred care measured? What are the outcomes of patient-centred care? What are the factors contributing to patient-centred care? What are the implications for audiological rehabilitation? Literature review and synthesis. Publications were identified by structured searches in PubMed, Cinahl, Web of Knowledge, and PsychInfo, and by inspecting the reference lists of relevant articles. Few publications from within the audiology profession address this topic and consequently a review and synthesis of literature from other areas of health were used to answer the proposed questions. This paper concludes that patient-centred care is in line with the aims and scope of practice for audiological rehabilitation. However, there is emerging evidence that we still need to inform the conceptualisation of patient-centred audiological rehabilitation. A definition of patient-centred audiological rehabilitation is needed to facilitate studies into the nature and outcomes of it in audiological rehabilitation practice.

The Finnish EPR dependent on a bridge

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dupin, L.

2010-01-01

A new conflict has emerged between the main contractor Areva and its client TVO, the Finnish energy group. The qualification of a handling bridge has delayed the OL3 project of third EPR reactor at Olkiluoto, Finland. The disagreement concerns the testing procedure and may induce a two year delay in the completion of the project which is now planned for 2012 instead of 2010 initially. (J.S.)

Identifying and Improving the image of Vietnam Tourism as a Tourism destination among Finnish tourist

OpenAIRE

Pham, Anh

2012-01-01

This writing attempts to identify the images of Vietnam as a tourism destination for Finnish tourists and suggests marketing solution for Vietnamese traveling company to improve the images of Vietnam by enhancing marketing activities in the Finnish market. Saigontourist Transportation Corporation (STC), Vietnam which is a commissioner of this thesis project, has provided updated information about the current situation of tourism in Vietnam as well as marketing activities of company durin...

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Finnish Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ in 590 Professional Musicians

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Heidi Vastamäki

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Poorly functioning work environments may lead to dissatisfaction for the employees and financial loss for the employers. The Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ was designed to measure social and psychological characteristics of work environments. Objective: To investigate the factor construct of the Finnish 14-item version of JCQ when applied to professional orchestra musicians. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, the questionnaire was sent by mail to 1550 orchestra musicians and students. 630 responses were received. Full data were available for 590 respondents (response rate 38%.The questionnaire also contained questions on demographics, job satisfaction, health status, health behaviors, and intensity of playing music. Confirmatory factor analysis of the 2-factor model of JCQ was conducted. Results: Of the 5 estimates, JCQ items in the “job demand” construct, the “conflicting demands” (question 5 explained most of the total variance in this construct (79% demonstrating almost perfect correlation of 0.63. In the construct of “job control,” “repetitive work” (question 10 demonstrated a perfect correlation index of 0.84 and the items “little decision freedom” (question 14 and “allows own decisions” (question 6 showed substantial correlations of 0.77 and 0.65. Conclusion: The 2-factor model of the Finnish 14-item version of JCQ proposed in this study fitted well into the observed data. The “conflicting demands,” “repetitive work,” “little decision freedom,” and “allows own decisions” items demonstrated the strongest correlations with latent factors suggesting that in a population similar to the studied one, especially these items should be taken into account when observed in the response of a population.

An audit of tuberculosis health services in prisons and immigration removal centres.

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Mehay, Anita; Raj, Thara; Altass, Lynn; Newton, Autilia; O'Moore, Eamonn; Railton, Cathie; Tan, Hong; Story, Al; Frater, Alison

2017-06-01

Tuberculosis (TB) is the second leading cause of death worldwide due to a single infectious agent. Rates of active TB in places of prescribed detention (PPD), which include Prisons, Young Offender Institutions and Immigration Removal Centres, are high compared with the general population. PPD therefore present an opportunity to develop targeted health programmes for TB control. This audit aims to assess current service provisions and identify barriers to achieving best practice standards in PPD across London. Twelve healthcare teams within PPD commissioned by NHS England (London Region) were included in the audit. Services were evaluated against the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence standards for TB best practice. None of the health providers with a digital X-ray machine were conducting active case finding in new prisoners and no health providers routinely conduct Latent TB infection testing and preventative treatment. Barriers to implementing standards include the lack of staff skills and staff skills mix, structural and technical barriers, and demands of custodial and health services. This audit restates the importance of national public health TB strategies to consider healthcare provisions across PPD. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The Finnish power market: Are imports from Russia low-cost?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ochoa, Camila; Gore, Olga

2015-01-01

Electricity market integration of high- and low-price areas is expected to bring benefits to the consumers in a high-price area. However, these potential benefits are highly dependent on the market characteristics and the policy interventions. We use simulation to study the effects of different alternatives for the expansion and operation of the interconnector Finland–Russia on the Finnish market (a high-price area). Our results show that the current trading arrangement, where a single trader owns the transmission rights, and limits the trade during peak hours to avoid capacity charges in Russia, is beneficial for Finland at the current interconnection capacity. However, if the interconnector is expanded, the behaviour of the trader would create significant distortions in the Finnish market. We also analyse the pros and cons of maintaining a strategic reserve in Finland in combination with the different scenarios of interconnection expansion and trading arrangements. We conclude that in the absence of trust in imports, the need for a strategic reserve is undeniable. This will slightly reduce the economic benefits of integration for Finnish consumers, but it will significantly improve reliability. - Highlights: • We model the likely long-term dynamics of the interconnection Finland–Russia. • Different cross-border arrangements and capacity adequacy policies are considered. • Discriminatory access to the interconnector undermines the benefits of integration. • Market coupling reduces supply costs but creates reliability concerns. • Keeping a strategic reserve reduces the benefits of market coupling

The effect of an occupational therapy mental health day treatment centre on the use of inpatient services in the Western Cape, South Africa.

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Engelbrecht, Riekie; Plastow, Nicola; Botha, Ulla; Niehaus, Djh; Koen, Liezl

2018-04-27

The aim of this study was to determine whether attendance at an occupational therapy-led day treatment centre for mental health care users affects the use of inpatient services in South Africa. A retrospective pre-test/post-test quasi-experimental study design was used to compare admissions and days spent in hospital during the 24 months before and after attendance at the centre, using the hospital's electronic records. Total population sampling yielded data for 44 mental health care users who made first contact with the service between July 2009 and June 2010. Data were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test, Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test and Mann-Whitney U test. There was a significant decrease in the number of admissions (z = -4.093, p = 0.00) and the number of days spent in hospital (z = -4.730, p = 0.00). Participants were admitted to psychiatric care 33 times less in the 24 months' post-intervention, indicating a medium effect (r = 0.436). They also spend 2569 days less in hospital, indicating a large effect (r = 0.504). The findings suggest that an occupational therapy-led day treatment centre could be effective in reducing the use of inpatient mental health services in South Africa. Implications for Rehabilitation Attendance at an occupational therapy-led community day treatment centre decreases the number of admissions and number of days spent in hospital and is therefore beneficial to mental health care users and service providers. The study indicates that the successful implementation of a community day treatment centre for mental health care users on the grounds of a tertiary hospital by utilising existing resources is possible.

Television as a medium for psycho-education in South Africa: analysis of calls to a mental health information centre after screening of a TV series on psychiatric disorders.

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Wessels, C; Van Kradenberg, J; Mbanga, I; Emsley, R A; Stein, D J

1999-01-01

As one of the most powerful media, television may have an important role to play in providing psycho-education in both developed and developing countries. The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) recently screened a TV series that focused on the signs and symptoms of the main psychiatric disorders. The aim of this paper is to describe calls to our Mental Health Information Centre after screening of the series. The TV series "Improve Your Frames of Mind" was developed by an independent producer in collaboration with the Society of Psychiatrists of South Africa, and was screened by the SABC. At the end of each show, the telephone number of our Mental Health Information Centre was given to viewers. All calls to our centre were entered into a database and later analysed. A mental Health Information Centre in South Africa. Callers to the Mental Health Information Centre. Almost 3,000 calls were taken by three psychiatric nurses working at the Mental Health Information Centre. Calls related to each of the major psychiatric disorders, particularly the mood and anxiety disorders. Callers expressed satisfaction with the information that they received from the Centre. A TV series on psychiatric disorders appeared successful in encouraging viewers to seek additional information. Indeed, additional telephone lines would have allowed even more calls to be fielded. Further research is necessary to determine whether it would be useful for TV to portray specific treatment interventions.

Peptides in fermented Finnish milk products

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Minna Kahala

1993-09-01

Full Text Available This study was conducted to investigate the rate of proteolysis and peptide profiles of different Finnish fermented milk products. The highest rate of proteolysis was observed in Biokefir, while the greatest change in the rate of proteolysis was observed in Gefilus®. Differences in starters and manufacturing processes reflected on the peptide profiles of the products. Most of the identified peptides originated from either the N- or C-terminal region of β-casein or from the N-terminal region of αs1-casein.

Inconsistency in health care professional work: Employment in independent sector treatment centres.

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Bishop, Simon; Waring, Justin

2011-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of recent outsourcing and public-private partnership (PPPs) arrangements on the consistency of professional employment in health care. A case study methodology is applied. The paper finds that multiple arrangements for employment within the ISTC creates numerous sources for inconsistency in employment: across the workplace, within professional groups and with national frameworks for health care employment. These are identified as having implications for organisational outcomes, threatening the stability of current partnerships, and partially stymieing intended behavioural change. The study is a single case study of an independent sector treatment centre. Future research is required to investigate wider trends of employment in heterogeneous outsourcing and PPP arrangements. The paper informs both managers and clinical professionals of the unanticipated complexities and practical challenges that can arise in partnerships and outsourcing arrangements. The paper presents a unique in-depth investigation of employment within recently established ISTCs, and highlights important employment changes for the core health care workforce and high-status professionals in the evolving health care organisational landscape.

Attitudes toward guidelines in Finnish primary care nursing: a questionnaire survey

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Seija, Alanen; Kaila, Minna; Välimäki, Marita

2009-01-01

to be shaped by perceptions of others, which makes the role of organizational implementation interventions interesting. AIMS: This article describes primary care nurses' attitudes toward guidelines among Finnish primary care nurses and the associations between attitudes, implementation interventions...... more positively and that guidelines were more easily available. Further, nurses who were familiar or very familiar with the guidelines had more positive attitudes toward them. Attitudes were also associated with self-reported guideline use. CONCLUSIONS: The evidence-based guidelines were accepted...... as a reliable source of advice in patient care in Finnish primary care. It seems that implementation interventions improve attitudes toward guidelines and enhance guideline use. These interventions might also be important from another point of view; they presumably improve familiarity with guidelines, which...

Primers As Socializing Agents in American and Finnish Schools.

Science.gov (United States)

Hyona, Jukka; And Others

1995-01-01

Content analysis of 12 Finnish and 18 American primers for grades 3 through 6 published primarily during the 1980s examined story type, plot setting, protagonist's characteristics, dramatic tasks, portrayals of family structure and parental responsibility, and extrafamilial peer and adult relationships. Results suggest that a nation's cultural…

On Moral Education in the Finnish Comprehensive School Curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

Hakkarainen, Pentti

1978-01-01

Basic values of moral education in Finnish schools come from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Moral tenets are taught in religion and civics. The textbooks deal with moral questions mainly on the individual level and provide limited opportunities for practice necessary for the internalization of values. (Author/SJL)

Practice what you preach: developing person-centred culture in inpatient mental health settings through strengths-based, transformational leadership.

Science.gov (United States)

Beckett, Paul; Field, John; Molloy, Luke; Yu, Nickolas; Holmes, Douglas; Pile, Emily

2013-08-01

The experience of nursing staff and consumers in inpatient mental health wards is often reported as being negative. Efforts to improve culture and practice have had limited success, with ineffective leadership, staff resistance, and unresponsive organisational culture identified as common barriers to change. Practice development has been promoted as an approach to developing person-centred culture that enables professional development through participation, learning and empowerment. For person-centred practice to flourish, organisational leadership at all levels must reflect the same principles. In preparation for the opening of a new integrated mental health service, an inpatient mental health team participated in a practice development project. An action research approach was used to facilitate a series of "away days," initially with the nursing team and then other members of the multidisciplinary team (MDT). Transformational leadership principles were adopted in the facilitation of team activities underpinned by strengths and solution-focused practices. Evaluation of the project by staff members was very positive and there was a high level of participation in practice development activities. The project resulted in the creation of a development plan for the ward, which prioritised five key themes: person-centred care, personal recovery, strengths-based principles, and evidence-based and values-based care. The project outcomes highlight the importance of leadership, which parallels the ideals promoted for clinical practice.

Preliminary Finnish Measures of Eating Competence Suggest Association with Health-Promoting Eating Patterns and Related Psychobehavioral Factors in 10–17 Year Old Adolescents

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Tilles-Tirkkonen Tanja

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Eating competence is an attitudinal and behavioral concept, based on The Satter Eating Competence Model. In adults, it has been shown to be associated with a higher quality of diet. Eating competence or its association with the quality of diet has not been studied in adolescents. The aim of the current study was to explore the utility of using a preliminary Finnish translation of the ecSI 2.0 for evaluating presumed eating competence and its association with food selection, meal patterns and related psychobehavioral factors in 10–17 year old adolescents. Altogether 976 10–17 years old Finnish adolescents filled in the study questionnaire. When exploring the construct validity of ecSI 2.0, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA indicated acceptable model fit and all four components of the ecSI 2.0 (eating attitudes, food acceptance, internal regulation of food intake, management of eating context correlated with each other and were internally consistent. Over half (58% of the adolescents scored 32 or higher and were thus classified as presumably eating competent (pEC. Eating competence was associated with greater meal frequency, more frequent consumption of vegetables and fruits, and more health-promoting family eating patterns. In addition the pEC, adolescents more often perceived their body size as appropriate, had less often tried to lose weight and had a higher self-esteem and a stronger sense of coherence than the not pEC ones. Family eating patterns and self-esteem were the main underlying factors of eating competence. In conclusion, this preliminary study suggests eating competence could be a useful concept to characterize eating patterns and related behaviors and attitudes in adolescents. However, these preliminary findings need to be confirmed in further studies with an instrument fully validated for this age group.

Preliminary Finnish Measures of Eating Competence Suggest Association with Health-Promoting Eating Patterns and Related Psychobehavioral Factors in 10–17 Year Old Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Tanja, Tilles-Tirkkonen; Outi, Nuutinen; Sakari, Suominen; Jarmo, Liukkonen; Kaisa, Poutanen; Leila, Karhunen

2015-01-01

Eating competence is an attitudinal and behavioral concept, based on The Satter Eating Competence Model. In adults, it has been shown to be associated with a higher quality of diet. Eating competence or its association with the quality of diet has not been studied in adolescents. The aim of the current study was to explore the utility of using a preliminary Finnish translation of the ecSI 2.0 for evaluating presumed eating competence and its association with food selection, meal patterns and related psychobehavioral factors in 10–17 year old adolescents. Altogether 976 10–17 years old Finnish adolescents filled in the study questionnaire. When exploring the construct validity of ecSI 2.0, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated acceptable model fit and all four components of the ecSI 2.0 (eating attitudes, food acceptance, internal regulation of food intake, management of eating context) correlated with each other and were internally consistent. Over half (58%) of the adolescents scored 32 or higher and were thus classified as presumably eating competent (pEC). Eating competence was associated with greater meal frequency, more frequent consumption of vegetables and fruits, and more health-promoting family eating patterns. In addition the pEC, adolescents more often perceived their body size as appropriate, had less often tried to lose weight and had a higher self-esteem and a stronger sense of coherence than the not pEC ones. Family eating patterns and self-esteem were the main underlying factors of eating competence. In conclusion, this preliminary study suggests eating competence could be a useful concept to characterize eating patterns and related behaviors and attitudes in adolescents. However, these preliminary findings need to be confirmed in further studies with an instrument fully validated for this age group. PMID:26007335

Addiction research centres and the nurturing of creativity The Norwegian Centre for Addiction Research (SERAF).

Science.gov (United States)

Bramness, Jørgen G; Clausen, Thomas; Duckert, Fanny; Ravndal, Edle; Waal, Helge

2011-08-01

The Norwegian Centre for Addiction Research (SERAF) at the University of Oslo is a newly established, clinical addiction research centre. It is located at the Oslo University Hospital and has a major focus on opioid dependency, investigating Norwegian opioid maintenance treatment (OMT), with special interest in OMT during pregnancy, mortality, morbidity and criminality before, during and after OMT and alternatives to OMT, such as the use of naltrexone implants. The well-developed health registries of Norway are core assets that also allow the opportunity for other types of substance abuse research. This research includes health services, abuse of prescription drugs and drugs of abuse in connection with traffic. The centre also focuses upon comorbidity, investigating the usefulness and limitations of psychometric instruments, drug abuse in different psychiatric treatment settings and internet-based interventions for hazardous alcohol consumption. © 2010 The Authors, Addiction © 2010 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Distribution and medical impact of loss-of-function variants in the Finnish founder population.

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Elaine T Lim

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Exome sequencing studies in complex diseases are challenged by the allelic heterogeneity, large number and modest effect sizes of associated variants on disease risk and the presence of large numbers of neutral variants, even in phenotypically relevant genes. Isolated populations with recent bottlenecks offer advantages for studying rare variants in complex diseases as they have deleterious variants that are present at higher frequencies as well as a substantial reduction in rare neutral variation. To explore the potential of the Finnish founder population for studying low-frequency (0.5-5% variants in complex diseases, we compared exome sequence data on 3,000 Finns to the same number of non-Finnish Europeans and discovered that, despite having fewer variable sites overall, the average Finn has more low-frequency loss-of-function variants and complete gene knockouts. We then used several well-characterized Finnish population cohorts to study the phenotypic effects of 83 enriched loss-of-function variants across 60 phenotypes in 36,262 Finns. Using a deep set of quantitative traits collected on these cohorts, we show 5 associations (p<5×10⁻⁸ including splice variants in LPA that lowered plasma lipoprotein(a levels (P = 1.5×10⁻¹¹⁷. Through accessing the national medical records of these participants, we evaluate the LPA finding via Mendelian randomization and confirm that these splice variants confer protection from cardiovascular disease (OR = 0.84, P = 3×10⁻⁴, demonstrating for the first time the correlation between very low levels of LPA in humans with potential therapeutic implications for cardiovascular diseases. More generally, this study articulates substantial advantages for studying the role of rare variation in complex phenotypes in founder populations like the Finns and by combining a unique population genetic history with data from large population cohorts and centralized research access to National Health

Learning Patient Safety in Academic Settings: A Comparative Study of Finnish and British Nursing Students' Perceptions.

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Tella, Susanna; Smith, Nancy-Jane; Partanen, Pirjo; Turunen, Hannele

2015-06-01

Globalization of health care demands nursing education programs that equip students with evidence-based patient safety competences in the global context. Nursing students' entrance into clinical placements requires professional readiness. Thus, evidence-based learning activities about patient safety must be provided in academic settings prior to students' clinical placements. To explore and compare Finnish and British nursing students' perceptions of learning about patient safety in academic settings to inform nursing educators about designing future education curriculum. A purpose-designed instrument, Patient Safety in Nursing Education Questionnaire (PaSNEQ) was used to examine the perceptions of Finnish (n = 195) and British (n = 158) nursing students prior to their final year of registration. Data were collected in two Finnish and two English nursing schools in 2012. Logistic regressions were used to analyze the differences. British students reported more inclusion (p motivation" related to patient safety in their programs. Both student groups considered patient safety education to be more valuable for their own learning than what their programs had provided. Training patient safety skills in the academic settings were the strongest predictors for differences (odds ratio [OR] = 34.69, 95% confidence interval [CI] 7.39-162.83), along with work experience in the healthcare sector (OR = 3.02, 95% CI 1.39-6.58). To prepare nursing students for practical work, training related to clear communication, reporting errors, systems-based approaches, interprofessional teamwork, and use of simulation in academic settings requires comprehensive attention, especially in Finland. Overall, designing patient safety-affirming nursing curricula in collaboration with students may enhance their positive experiences on teaching and learning about patient safety. An international collaboration between educators could help to develop and harmonize patient safety education and to better

Is working in culturally diverse working environment associated with physicians' work-related well-being? A cross-sectional survey study among Finnish physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Aalto, Anna-Mari; Heponiemi, Tarja; Väänänen, Ari; Bergbom, Barbara; Sinervo, Timo; Elovainio, Marko

2014-08-01

International mobility of health care professionals is increasing, though little is known about how working in a culturally diverse team affects the native physicians' psychosocial work environment. We examined Finnish physicians' perceptions of work-related wellbeing according to whether they had foreign-born colleagues (FBCs) in their work unit. We also examined whether work-related resources moderate the potential association between work-related wellbeing and working alongside FBCs. A cross-sectional survey was conducted for a random sample of physicians in Finland in 2010 (3826 respondents, response rate 55%). Analyses were restricted to native Finnish physicians working in public health care. The results were analyzed by ANCOVA. In unadjusted analyses, having FBCs was related to poor team climate (pwork unit (p=0.007 for interaction between FBCs and procedural justice and pculturally diverse work units face challenges related to team climate and job satisfaction. The results also show that leadership plays an important role in culturally diverse work units. The potential challenges of culturally diverse teams for native physicians may be reduced by fair decision-making and by increasing physicians' job control. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Exports of Finnish wind power technology gaining momentum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

In the 1990s, Finnish companies in the wind power sector focused on supplying advanced components and materials. This capability has now extended to cover entire turbines and wind farms. Winwind Oy, based in northern Finland, has developed a new type of solution for the export market, combining the advantages of modem direct drives with those of traditional high-speed gear systems

Gatekeepers of health: A qualitative assessment of child care centre staff's perspectives, practices and challenges to enteric illness prevention and management in child care centres

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adams Cindy L

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Enteric outbreaks associated with child care centres (CCC have been well documented internationally and in Canada. The current literature focuses on identifying potential risk factors for introduction and transmission of enteric disease, but does not examine why these risk factors happen, how the risk is understood and managed by the staff of CCCs, or what challenges they experience responding to enteric illness. The purpose of this study was to explore the understanding, knowledge and actions of CCC staff regarding enteric illness and outbreaks, and to identify challenges that staff encounter while managing them. Methods Focus groups were conducted with staff of regulated CCCs in Southern Ontario. Five focus groups were held with 40 participants. An open ended style of interviewing was used. Data were analyzed using content analysis. Results CCC staff play an important role in preventing and managing enteric illness. Staff used in-depth knowledge of the children, the centre and their personal experiences to assist in making decisions related to enteric illness. The decisions and actions may differ from guidance provided by public health officials, particularly when faced with challenges related to time, money, staffing and parents. Conclusion CCC staff relied on experience and judgment in coordination with public health information to assist decision-making in the management of enteric illness and outbreaks. Advice and guidance from public health officials to CCC staff needs to be consistent yet flexible so that it may be adapted in a variety of situations and meet regulatory and public health requirements.

Rural health centres, communities and malaria case detection in Zambia using mobile telephones: a means to detect potential reservoirs of infection in unstable transmission conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamanga, Aniset; Moono, Petros; Stresman, Gillian; Mharakurwa, Sungano; Shiff, Clive

2010-04-15

Effective malaria control depends on timely acquisition of information on new cases, their location and their frequency so as to deploy supplies, plan interventions or focus attention on specific locations appropriately to intervene and prevent an upsurge in transmission. The process is known as active case detection, but because the information is time sensitive, it is difficult to carry out. In Zambia, the rural health services are operating effectively and for the most part are provided with adequate supplies of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT) as well as effective drugs for the diagnosis and treatment of malaria. The tests are administered to all prior to treatment and appropriate records are kept. Data are obtained in a timely manner and distribution of this information is important for the effective management of malaria control operations. The work reported here involves combining the process of positive diagnoses in rural health centres (passive case detection) to help detect potential outbreaks of malaria and target interventions to foci where parasite reservoirs are likely to occur. Twelve rural health centres in the Choma and Namwala Districts were recruited to send weekly information of rapid malaria tests used and number of positive diagnoses to the Malaria Institute at Macha using mobile telephone SMS. Data were entered in excel, expressed as number of cases per rural health centre and distributed weekly to interested parties. These data from each of the health centres which were mapped using geographical positioning system (GPS) coordinates were used in a time sensitive manner to plot the patterns of malaria case detection in the vicinity of each location. The data were passed on to the appropriate authorities. The seasonal pattern of malaria transmission associated with local ecological conditions can be seen in the distribution of cases diagnosed. Adequate supplies of RDT are essential in health centres and the system can be expanded throughout the

Rural health centres, communities and malaria case detection in Zambia using mobile telephones: a means to detect potential reservoirs of infection in unstable transmission conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamanga Aniset

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Effective malaria control depends on timely acquisition of information on new cases, their location and their frequency so as to deploy supplies, plan interventions or focus attention on specific locations appropriately to intervene and prevent an upsurge in transmission. The process is known as active case detection, but because the information is time sensitive, it is difficult to carry out. In Zambia, the rural health services are operating effectively and for the most part are provided with adequate supplies of rapid diagnostic tests (RDT as well as effective drugs for the diagnosis and treatment of malaria. The tests are administered to all prior to treatment and appropriate records are kept. Data are obtained in a timely manner and distribution of this information is important for the effective management of malaria control operations. The work reported here involves combining the process of positive diagnoses in rural health centres (passive case detection to help detect potential outbreaks of malaria and target interventions to foci where parasite reservoirs are likely to occur. Methods Twelve rural health centres in the Choma and Namwala Districts were recruited to send weekly information of rapid malaria tests used and number of positive diagnoses to the Malaria Institute at Macha using mobile telephone SMS. Data were entered in excel, expressed as number of cases per rural health centre and distributed weekly to interested parties. Results These data from each of the health centres which were mapped using geographical positioning system (GPS coordinates were used in a time sensitive manner to plot the patterns of malaria case detection in the vicinity of each location. The data were passed on to the appropriate authorities. The seasonal pattern of malaria transmission associated with local ecological conditions can be seen in the distribution of cases diagnosed. Conclusions Adequate supplies of RDT are essential in

Recent adverse trends in semen quality and testis cancer incidence among Finnish men

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jorgensen, N.; Vierula, M.; Jacobsen, R.

2011-01-01

Impaired semen quality and testicular cancer may be linked through a testicular dysgenesis syndrome of foetal origin. The incidence of testis cancer has been shown to increase among Finnish men, whereas there is no recent publication describing temporal trends in semen quality. Therefore, we...... carried out a prospective semen quality study and a registry study of testis cancer incidence among Finnish men to explore recent trends. A total of 858 men were investigated in the semen quality study during 1998-2006. Median sperm concentrations were 67 (95% CI 57-80) million/mL, 60 (51-71) and 48 (39...

Founder representation and effective population size in old versus young breeds-genetic diversity of Finnish and Nordic Spitz.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumpulainen, M; Anderson, H; Svevar, T; Kangasvuo, I; Donner, J; Pohjoismäki, J

2017-10-01

Finnish Spitz is 130-year-old breed and has been highly popular in Finland throughout its history. Nordic Spitz is very similar to Finnish Spitz by origin and use, but is a relatively recent breed with much smaller population size. To see how breed age and breeding history have influenced the current population, we performed comprehensive population genetic analysis using pedigree data of 28,119 Finnish and 9,009 Nordic Spitzes combined with genomewide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data from 135 Finnish and 110 Nordic Spitzes. We found that the Finnish Spitz has undergone repeated male bottlenecks resulting in dramatic loss of genetic diversity, reflected by 20 effective founders (f a ) and mean heterozygosity (Hz) of 0.313. The realized effective population size in the breed based on pedigree analysis (N¯ec) is 168, whereas the genetic effective population size (N eg ) computed the decay of linkage disequilibrium (r 2 ) is only 57 individuals. Nordic Spitz, although once been near extinction, has not been exposed to similar repeated bottlenecks than Finnish Spitz and had f a of 27 individuals. However, due to the smaller total population size, the breed has also smaller effective population size than Finnish Spitz (N¯ec = 98 and N eg  = 49). Interestingly, the r 2 data show that the effective population size has contracted dramatically since the establishment of the breed, emphasizing the role of breed standards as constrains for the breeding population. Despite the small population size, Nordic Spitz still maintains SNP heterozygosity levels similar to mixed breed dogs (mean Hz = 0.409). Our study demonstrates that although pedigree analyses cannot provide estimates of the present diversity within a breed, the effective population sizes inferred from them correlate with the genotyping results. The genetic relationships of the northern Spitz breeds and the benefits of the open breed registry are discussed. © 2017 Blackwell Verlag GmbH.

Quality assurance of malaria case management in an urban and in sub-rural health centres in Goma, Congo

Science.gov (United States)

Kasereka, Claude M.; Kasagila, Eric K.; Inipavudu, John B.; Toranke, Suleiman I.

2011-01-01

Abstract Background Every year, up to three million deaths throughout the world occur as a result of malaria, 90% of which occur in Africa. Despite training providers in malaria case management and the availability of appropriate medical suppliers, there are still weaknesses in the management chain of malaria. Objectives Our aim was to assess the quality of malaria case management in two primary health care centres in the Goma health district. Specific objectives were the assessment of quality accuracy in the dosage, the duration of treatment, the intervals between administrations, and the routes of administration of anti-malarial medication in two health centres, as well as the subsequent comparison of those two sites. Method A descriptive retrospective study was conducted using the malaria register's review to assess two health centres in the Goma health district. Socio-demographical and clinical data were recorded and the quality was assessed against the national guidelines. Descriptive statistics with percentages and Chi-square values were computed. Results Under-dosage was more common in CCLK (Centre Chrétien du Lac Kivu [Lake Kivu Christian Centre]) with 55 patients (62.5%; 95% CI, 52% – 71.8%) patients, whilst the over-dosage was present in 64 patients (80%; 95% CI, 69.9% – 87.2%) in CASOP (Caisse de Solidarité Ouvrière et Paysanne [Fund of Solidarity Workers and Peasants]). The duration of treatment was shorter in CCLK in 15 patients (93.7%; 95% CI, 71.6% – 98.8%); CASOP had a high rate of inappropriate intervals between the administration of drugs in 14 patients (82.3%; 95% CI, 58.9% – 93.8%). Intravenous administration rates were high in both sites with respectively 102 patients in CASOP (62.5%; 95% CI, 54.9% – 69.6%) and 61 patients in CCLK (37.4%; 95% CI, 30.3% – 45.0%). Significant differences were found between the two sites with regard to intervals of administration (χ2 = 7.11, p = 0.007), duration of treatment (χ2 = 8.51, p = 0

People-centred health systems, a bottom-up approach: where theory meets empery.

Science.gov (United States)

Sturmberg, Joachim P; Njoroge, Alice

2017-04-01

Health systems are complex and constantly adapt to changing demands. These complex-adaptive characteristics are rarely considered in the current bureaucratic top-down approaches to health system reforms aimed to constrain demand and expenditure growth. The economic focus fails to address the needs of patients, providers and communities, and ultimately results in declining effectiveness and efficiency of the health care system as well as the health of the wider community. A needs-focused complex-adaptive health system can be represented by the 'healthcare vortex' model; how to build a needs-focused complex-adaptive health system is illustrated by Eastern Deanery AIDS Relief Program approaches in the poor neighbourhoods of Nairobi, Kenya. A small group of nurses and community health workers focused on the care of terminally ill HIV/AIDS patients. This work identified additional problems: tuberculosis (TB) was underdiagnosed and undertreated, a local TB-technician was trained to run a local lab, a courier services helped to reach all at need, collaboration with the Ministry of Health established local TB and HIV treatment programmes and philanthropists helped to supplement treatment with nutrition support. Maternal-to-child HIV-prevention and adolescent counselling services addressed additional needs. The 'theory of the healthcare vortex' indeed matches the 'empery of the real world experiences'. Locally developed and delivered adaptive, people-centred health systems, a bottom-up community and provider initiated approach, deliver highly effective and sustainable health care despite significant resource constraints. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Staff perceptions of community health centre team function in Ontario.

Science.gov (United States)

Rayner, Jennifer; Muldoon, Laura

2017-07-01

To examine perceptions of different staff groups about team functioning in mature, community-governed, interprofessional primary health care practices. Cross-sectional online survey. The 75 community health centres (CHCs) in Ontario at the time of the study, which have cared for people with barriers to access to traditional health services in community-governed, interprofessional settings, providing medical, social, and community services since the 1970s. Managers and staff of primary care teams in the CHCs. Scores on the short version of the Team Climate Inventory (with subscales addressing vision, task orientation, support for innovation, and participative safety), the Organizational Justice Scale (with subscales addressing procedural justice and interactional justice), and the Organizational Citizenship Behavior Scale, stratified by staff group (clinical manager, FP, nurse practitioner [NP], registered nurse, medical secretary, social worker, allied health provider, counselor, outreach worker, and administrative assistant). A total of 674 staff members in 58 of 75 (77%) CHCs completed surveys. All staff groups generally reported positive perceptions of team function. The procedural justice subscale showed the greatest variation between groups. Family physicians and NPs rated procedural justice much lower than nurses and administrators did. This study provides a unique view of the perceptions of different groups of staff in a long-standing interprofessional practice model. Future research is needed to understand why FPs and NPs perceive procedural justice more negatively than other team members do, and whether such perceptions affect outcomes such as staff turnover and health outcomes for patients. Copyright© the College of Family Physicians of Canada.

Finnish Play Becomes Chinese Local Opera

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

1993-01-01

IN the fall of 1992 an unusualpremiere took place in Xi′an:Totisesti totisesti,adapted from aFinnish stage play,was performed asan opera in Chinese by the HuaOpera Troupe,a part of the ShaanxiOpera Research Institute.Ms.InkeriKilpinen,the playwright,and Ms.Leena Laulajainen,vice-chairman ofFinland Writers′Association,cameto see the performance.Hua opera,also known as“Wanwan Opera,”is one of the localforms of opera in Shaanxi Province.It was originally performed in theform of shadow play,and was for-

Are Cross-National Differences in IQ Profiles Stable? A Comparison of Finnish and U.S. WAIS Norms

Science.gov (United States)

Roivainen, Eka

2013-01-01

To study the concept of national IQ profile, we compared U.S. and Finnish WAIS, WAIS-R, and WAIS III nonverbal and working memory subtest norms. The U.S. standardization samples had consistently higher scores on the Coding and Digit span subtests, while the Finnish samples had higher scores on the Block design subtest. No stable cross-national…

Sleep apnoea: Finnish National guidelines for prevention and treatment 2002-2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Laitinen, L A; Anttalainen, U; Pietinalho, A; Hämäläinen, P; Koskela, K

2003-04-01

(1) After negotiations with the Finnish Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, a national programme to promote prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of sleep apnoea for the years 2002-2012 has been prepared by the Finnish Lung Health Association on the basis of extensive collaboration. The programme needs to be revised as necessary, because of the rapid development in medical knowledge, and in appliance therapy in particular. (2) Sleep apnoea deteriorates slowly. Its typical features are snoring, interruptions of breathing during sleep and daytime tiredness. Sleep apnoea affects roughly 3% of middle-aged men and 2% of women. In Finland, there are approx. 150,000 sleep apnea patients, of which 15,000 patients have a severe disease, 50,000 patients are moderate and 85,000 have a mild form of the disease. Children are also affected by sleep apnea. A typical sleep apnea patient is a middle-aged man or a postmenopausal woman. (3) The obstruction of upper airways is essential in the occurrence of sleep apnoea. The obstruction can be caused by structural and/or functional factors. As for structural factors, there are various methods of intervention, such as to secure children's nasal respiration, to remove redundant soft tissue, as well as to correct malocclusions. It is possible to have an effect on the functional factors by treating well diseases predisposing to sleep apnoea, by reducing smoking, the consumption of alcohol and the use of medicines impairing the central nervous system. The most important single risk factor for sleep apnoea is obesity. (4) Untreated sleep apnoea leads to an increase morbidity and mortality through heart circulatory diseases and through accidents by tiredness. Untreated or undertreated sleep apnoea deteriorates a person's quality of life and working capacity. (5) The goals of the Programme for the prevention and treatment of sleep apnoea are as follows: (1) to decrease the incidence of sleep apnoea, (2) to ensure that as many patients

The history of Finnish nuclear non-proliferation policy during the cold war. What did the Finns know about nuclear weapons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahosniemi, A.

2004-03-01

This article is a summary of the Finnish historical survey during the Cold War. In the article, I try to show how the Finnish Nuclear Non-Proliferation Policy during the Cold War is linked to the broader context of the Finnish foreign and security policy. In the research report I have focused on several questions. One of the most important is the following: What did the Finns know about nuclear weapons during the Cold War? And in this context scientific knowledge is meant by knowing something about nuclear weapons. Basically, the Finnish national based survey of nuclear non-proliferation policy attempted to investigate issues like the kind of research concerning Nuclear Technology in general, Nuclear weapons, and Nuclear weapon policies of super powers in Finland during the Cold War era. (author)

Assessment of reliability and maintenance of motor operated valves at Finnish NPPS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laakso, K.; Haenninen, S.; Simola, K.

1994-01-01

This paper summarizes two studies on motor operated valve (MOV) failure and maintenance experiences in Finnish nuclear power plants. In the first study, described in section 2 of this paper, the failure reports of MOVs at Finnish BWR units from a nine years' time period were analyzed in a systematic way. The dominant failure mechanisms were identified and time-dependencies in failure occurrence were studied. This study initiated an experience based reliability centered maintenance (RCM) analysis of motor operated valve drives, which is summarized in chapter 3 of this paper. The RCM analysis resulted in the identification and proposal of the most suitable and effective maintenance tasks for consideration. 9 refs, 3 figs, 1 tab

Procurement of timber for the Finnish forest industries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hakkila, P.

1995-01-01

The procurement of timber to the forest industries in the Nordic countries is based on the log-length or shortwood system, and employs load-carrying forwarders and chainsaw of single-grip harvesters. This technology is characterized by high productivity, safety, suitability for small-sized trees, high recovery of timber, and environmental friendliness. About one fourth of the industrial timber in the whole world is harvested using the log-length system. The challenge of ecological sustainability, multiple use of forests, adoption of thinnings as a tool of management, trend toward improved utilization of forest biomass, and shift from natural forests to plantations all increase the global interest in the log-length system. The paper presents a review of the Finnish forest sector, the technology of timber harvesting and transport, productivity of logging work, and costs of timber at the mill. The highly mechanized logging systems of the forest industries and the lighter technology of self-employed forest owners are discussed separately. Furthermore, the use of residual biomass as a source of clean and renewable energy, the Finnish logging machine industry, and forest operations research in Finland are also reviewed. (46 refs., 35 figs., 8 tabs.)

The impact of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) service scale-up on mechanisms of accountability in Zambian primary health centres: a case-based health systems analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Topp, Stephanie M; Black, Jim; Morrow, Martha; Chipukuma, Julien M; Van Damme, Wim

2015-02-18

Questions about the impact of large donor-funded HIV interventions on low- and middle-income countries' health systems have been the subject of a number of expert commentaries, but comparatively few empirical research studies. Aimed at addressing a particular evidence gap vis-à-vis the influence of HIV service scale-up on micro-level health systems, this article examines the impact of HIV scale-up on mechanisms of accountability in Zambian primary health facilities. Guided by the Mechanisms of Effect framework and Brinkerhoff's work on accountability, we conducted an in-depth multi-case study to examine how HIV services influenced mechanisms of administrative and social accountability in four Zambian primary health centres. Sites were selected for established (over 3 yrs) antiretroviral therapy (ART) services and urban, peri-urban and rural characteristics. Case data included provider interviews (60); patient interviews (180); direct observation of facility operations (2 wks/centre) and key informant interviews (14). Resource-intensive investment in HIV services contributed to some early gains in administrative answerability within the four ART departments, helping to establish the material capabilities necessary to deliver and monitor service delivery. Simultaneous investment in external supervision and professional development helped to promote transparency around individual and team performance and also strengthened positive work norms in the ART departments. In the wider health centres, however, mechanisms of administrative accountability remained weak, hindered by poor data collection and under capacitated leadership. Substantive gains in social accountability were also elusive as HIV scale-up did little to address deeply rooted information and power asymmetries in the wider facilities. Short terms gains in primary-level service accountability may arise from investment in health system hardware. However, sustained improvements in service quality and

Treatment of fibromyalgia at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway. A six-month follow-up study.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, L B; Mikkelsen, K; Haugen, M; Pripp, A H; Førre, Ø T

2009-01-01

Treatments offered at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway are based on Maharishi Vedic medicine, which is also known as Maharishi Ayurveda. It is a consciousness based revival of the ancient Ayurvedic medicine tradition in India and is established by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique. To conduct a pilot study of the effect of the treatment program at the Health Centre on fibromyalgia patients. Thirty-one women with diagnosed fibromyalgia received an individually designed Maharishi Vedic physiological purification therapy. All subjects received personal advice on diet based on Ayurvedic principles, including a novel approach to food into-lerance, and daily routines. In addition they were offered instruction in TM (for stress and pain management and personal development) (four subjects started), and recommended Ayurvedic herbal food products for home treatment. A modified Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire included a visual analogue scale for each of the seven outcomes: working ability, generalised pain, tiredness, stiffness, tiredness on arising, anxiety and depression. Pre-treatment scores were compared with scores at six-month follow-up for levels of statistical significance. Twenty-eight subjects (90%) completed the follow-up. The outcome measures were reduced by 25 to 46% by the study's endpoint: working ability (pmeditating control group the TM-subgroup showed statistically significant improvements for all outcome measures except depression. In this pilot study fibromyalgia patients undergoing treatment at Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway showed significant improvements six months post treatment. Because fibromyalgia is considered a treatment-resistant condition, these encouraging results warrant further research.

Airborne fallout mapping of {sup 137}Cs Finnish defence forces team

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kettunen, M.; Heininen, T. [Finnish Defence Forces Research Centre, Lakiala (Finland); Pulakka, M. [Finnish Air Force Depot, Tampere (Finland)

1997-12-31

The main task of the team was to create a fallout map of {sup 137}Cs in a specified area in Padasjoki Auttoinen village. The team used an MI-8 helicopter of the Finnish Air Force. The team had an HPGe system (relative efficiency 70%) to measure nuclide specific ground contamination level. For navigation the team took advantage of the DGPS service provided by Finnish Broadcasting company utilizing the RDS-channel to get position accuracy within 2 meters. The correction signal is reachable nationwide on the FM transmitter network. The system produced a distribution map for {sup 40}K and fallout maps for {sup 134,137}Cs using a Micro Station Program with TerraModeler application. The maximum measured {sup 137}Cs ground contamination exceeded 130-140 kBqm{sup -2}. (au).

Airborne fallout mapping of {sup 137}Cs Finnish defence forces team

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kettunen, M; Heininen, T [Finnish Defence Forces Research Centre, Lakiala (Finland); Pulakka, M [Finnish Air Force Depot, Tampere (Finland)

1998-12-31

The main task of the team was to create a fallout map of {sup 137}Cs in a specified area in Padasjoki Auttoinen village. The team used an MI-8 helicopter of the Finnish Air Force. The team had an HPGe system (relative efficiency 70%) to measure nuclide specific ground contamination level. For navigation the team took advantage of the DGPS service provided by Finnish Broadcasting company utilizing the RDS-channel to get position accuracy within 2 meters. The correction signal is reachable nationwide on the FM transmitter network. The system produced a distribution map for {sup 40}K and fallout maps for {sup 134,137}Cs using a Micro Station Program with TerraModeler application. The maximum measured {sup 137}Cs ground contamination exceeded 130-140 kBqm{sup -2}. (au).

Glycaemic control of diabetic patients in an urban primary health care setting in Sarawak: the Tanah Puteh Health Centre experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, J S; Rahimah, N

2004-08-01

Achieving glycaemic goals in diabetics has always been a problem, especially in a developing country with inadequate facilities such as in Sarawak in Malaysia. There are no reported studies on the control of diabetes mellitus in a diabetic clinic in the primary health care setting in Sarawak. This paper describes the profile of 1031 patients treated in Klinik Kesihatan Tanah Puteh Health Centre. The mean age was 59 years, the mean BMI 27 kg/m2. There was a female preponderance and mainly type-2 diabetes. Mean HbA1c was 7.4%. Glycaemic control was optimal in 28% (HbA1c 7.5%). Reasonable glycaemic control can be achieved in the primary health care setting in Sarawak.

Satisfaction of health professionals after implementation of a primary care hospital emergency centre in Switzerland: A prospective before-after study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hess, Sascha; Sidler, Patrick; Chmiel, Corinne; Bögli, Karin; Senn, Oliver; Eichler, Klaus

2015-10-01

The increasing number of patients requiring emergency care is a challenge and leads to decreased satisfaction of health professionals at emergency departments (EDs). Thus, a Swiss hospital implemented a hospital-associated primary care centre at the ED. The study aim was to investigate changes in job satisfaction of ED staff before and after the implementation of this new service model and to measure hospital GPs' (HGPs) satisfaction at the hospital-associated primary care centre. This study was embedded in a large prospective before-after study over two years. We examined changes in job satisfaction with a questionnaire followed by selected interviews approaching all of the involved 25 ED staff members and 38 HGPs. The new emergency care model increased job satisfaction of ED staff and HGPs in all measured dimensions. The overall job satisfaction of ED employees improved from 76.5 to 83.9 points (visual analogue scale 0-100; difference 7.4 points [95% CI: 1.3 to 13.5, p = 0.02]). 86% of 29 HGPs preferred to provide their out-of-hours service at the new hospital-associated primary care centre. The hospital-associated primary care centre is a promising option to improve job satisfaction of different health professionals in emergency care. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Objectively measured sedentary behavior and physical activity in a sample of Finnish adults: a cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pauliina Husu

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Regular physical activity (PA confers many positive effects on health and well-being. Sedentary behavior (SB, in turn, is a risk factor for health, regardless of the level of moderate to vigorous PA. The present study describes the levels of objectively measured SB, breaks in SB, standing still and PA among Finnish adults. Methods This cross-sectional analysis is based on the sub-sample of the population-based Health 2011 Study of Finnish adults. The study population consisted of 18-to-85-year old men and women who wore a waist-worn triaxial accelerometer (Hookie AM 20 for at least 4 days, for at least 10 h per day (n = 1587 during a week. PA and SB were objectively assessed from the raw accelerometric data using novel processing and analysis algorithms with mean amplitude deviation as the processing method. The data was statistically analyzed using cross-tabulations, analysis of variance and analysis of covariance. Results The participants were on average 52 years old, 57 % being women. Participants were sedentary 59 % of their waking wear time, mainly sitting. They spent 17 % of the time standing still, 15 % in light intensity PA, 9 % in moderate PA and less than 1 % in vigorous PA. Participants aged 30–39 years had the highest number of breaks in SB per day. Younger participants (<30 years of age had more moderate and vigorous PA than older ones (≥60 years of age, and 30–60-year-olds had the greatest amount of light PA. Conclusions Participants spent nearly 60 % of their waking time sedentary, and the majority of their daily PA was light. From a public health perspective it is important to find effective ways to decrease SB as well as to increase the level of PA. Our analysis method of raw accelerometer data may allow more precise assessment of dose-response relationships between objectively measured PA and SB and various indicators of health and well-being.

Ground beetle (Coleoptera, Carabidae diversity in Finnish arable land

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.K. HELENIUS

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Carabid data compiled from six independent studies, consisting of 97 799 individuals trapped by pitfalls from Finnish agricultural fields and identified to 111 species were analyzed. Shannon-Wiener H' diversity index was typically around 2.5 and expected species number rarefied to 600 trapped individuals was typically around 30 species. The five most abundant species accounted for 42% of the total catch, and the thirty most abundant species made up 98% of the total catch. Percentage similarities among the assemblages by PS-index were from 16% to 48%. In comparison to published data about carabid diversity in boreal forests, which form the dominating habitat matrix in which Finnish farmland is embedded as relatively small patches, arable fields harbor more species rich assemblages, with more even rank-abundance distributions but variable species composition. Importance of landscape (regional level, instead of spatial level of crop fields, in understanding carabid diversity in farmland is discussed. Inclusion of carabids into monitoring schemes of agro-biodiversity at landscape level is suggested.

Ozone and UV research at Finnish Meteorological Inst.: review of selected results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Taalas, P; Koskela, T; Damski, J; Supperi, A [Finnish Meteorological Inst., Helsinki (Finland). Section of Ozone and UV Research; Kyroe, E [Finnish Meteorologican Inst., Sodankylae (Finland). Sodankylae Observatory; Ginzburg, M [Servicio Meteorologico Nacional, Buenos Aires (Argentina); Dijkhuis, J L [Finnish Meteorological Inst., Helsinki (Finland). EUMETSAT

1996-12-31

Ozone and UV radiation research have become an important part of atmospheric research at Finnish Meteorological Institute after the discovery of chlorine based ozone loss in the Antarctic stratosphere

Ozone and UV research at Finnish Meteorological Inst.: review of selected results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Taalas, P.; Koskela, T.; Damski, J.; Supperi, A. [Finnish Meteorological Inst., Helsinki (Finland). Section of Ozone and UV Research; Kyroe, E. [Finnish Meteorologican Inst., Sodankylae (Finland). Sodankylae Observatory; Ginzburg, M. [Servicio Meteorologico Nacional, Buenos Aires (Argentina); Dijkhuis, J.L. [Finnish Meteorological Inst., Helsinki (Finland). EUMETSAT

1995-12-31

Ozone and UV radiation research have become an important part of atmospheric research at Finnish Meteorological Institute after the discovery of chlorine based ozone loss in the Antarctic stratosphere

Organisational culture and post-merger integration in an academic health centre: a mixed-methods study.

Science.gov (United States)

Ovseiko, Pavel V; Melham, Karen; Fowler, Jan; Buchan, Alastair M

2015-01-22

Around the world, the last two decades have been characterised by an increase in the numbers of mergers between healthcare providers, including some of the most prestigious university hospitals and academic health centres. However, many mergers fail to bring the anticipated benefits, and successful post-merger integration in university hospitals and academic health centres is even harder to achieve. An increasing body of literature suggests that organisational culture affects the success of post-merger integration and academic-clinical collaboration. This paper reports findings from a mixed-methods single-site study to examine 1) the perceptions of organisational culture in academic and clinical enterprises at one National Health Service (NHS) trust, and 2) the major cultural issues for its post-merger integration with another NHS trust and strategic partnership with a university. From the entire population of 72 clinician-scientists at one of the legacy NHS trusts, 38 (53%) completed a quantitative Competing Values Framework survey and 24 (33%) also provided qualitative responses. The survey was followed up by semi-structured interviews with six clinician-scientists and a group discussion including five senior managers. The cultures of two legacy NHS trusts differed and were primarily distinct from the culture of the academic enterprise. Major cultural issues were related to the relative size, influence, and history of the legacy NHS trusts, and the implications of these for respective identities, clinical services, and finances. Strategic partnership with a university served as an important ameliorating consideration in reaching trust merger. However, some aspects of university entrepreneurial culture are difficult to reconcile with the NHS service delivery model and may create tension. There are challenges in preserving a more desirable culture at one of the legacy NHS trusts, enhancing cultures in both legacy NHS trusts during their post-merger integration, and

Finnish support programme to IAEA safeguards. Annual report 1994; Suomen tukiohjelma IAEA:n safeguards-valvonnalle. Vuoden 1994 toimintakertomus

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tarvainen, M [ed.

1995-05-01

Implementation of the Finnish Support Programme to IAEA Safeguards (FINSP) during the calender year in question is summarized. FINSP is carried out trough separate tasks concentrating on verification of nuclear material, training and expert services to the IAEA. In addition to the Finnish summary, the report includes detailed description of each task in English.

From Ridiculed Deviants towards Normal Citizens. The Representation of Homosexuals in the Finnish Media 1990 - 2010

OpenAIRE

Ylppö, Myrsky

2016-01-01

This thesis explores how the Finnish media’s representations of homosexual men and women changed between 1990 and 2010, from negative public portrayals towards more positive ones. The thesis also examines if these changes reflect attitudes and opinions of the Finnish society and population overall during this time period. The primary sources consist of newspaper articles from the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, along with material from other newspapers, tabloids, and supporting research material...

FFUSION research programme 1993-1998. Final report of the Finnish fusion research programme

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Karttunen, S.; Heikkinen, J.; Korhonen, R. [VTT Energy, Espoo (Finland)] [and others

1998-12-31

This report summarizes the results of the Fusion Energy Research Programme, FFUSION, during the period 1993-1998. After the planning phase the programme started in 1994, and later in March 1995 the FFUSION Programme was integrated into the EU Fusion Programme and the Association Euratom-Tekes was established. Research areas in the FFUSION Programme are (1) fusion physics and plasma engineering, (2) fusion reactor materials and (3) remote handling systems. In all research areas industry is involved. Recently, a project on environmental aspects of fusion and other future energy systems started as a part of the socio-economic research (SERF) in the Euratom Fusion Programme. A crucial component of the FFUSION programme is the close collaboration between VTT Research Institutes, universities and Finnish industry. This collaboration has guaranteed dynamic and versatile research teams, which are large enough to tackle challenging research and development projects. Regarding industrial fusion R and D activities, the major step was the membership of Imatran Voima Oy in the EFET Consortium (European Fusion Engineering and Technology), which further strengthened the position of industry in the engineering design activities of ITER. The number of FFUSION research projects was 66. In addition, there were 32 industrial R and D projects. The total cost of the FFUSION Programme in 1993-1998 amounted to FIM 54 million in research at VTT and universities and an additional FIM 21 million for R and D in Finnish industry. The main part of the funding was provided by Tekes, 36%. Since 1995, yearly Euratom funding has exceeded 25%. The FFUSION research teams have played an active role in the European Programme, receiving excellent recognition from the European partners. Theoretical and computational fusion physics has been at a high scientific level and the group collaborates with the leading experimental laboratories in Europe. Fusion technology is focused on reactor materials, joining

FFUSION research programme 1993-1998. Final report of the Finnish fusion research programme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karttunen, S.; Heikkinen, J.; Korhonen, R.

1998-01-01

This report summarizes the results of the Fusion Energy Research Programme, FFUSION, during the period 1993-1998. After the planning phase the programme started in 1994, and later in March 1995 the FFUSION Programme was integrated into the EU Fusion Programme and the Association Euratom-Tekes was established. Research areas in the FFUSION Programme are (1) fusion physics and plasma engineering, (2) fusion reactor materials and (3) remote handling systems. In all research areas industry is involved. Recently, a project on environmental aspects of fusion and other future energy systems started as a part of the socio-economic research (SERF) in the Euratom Fusion Programme. A crucial component of the FFUSION programme is the close collaboration between VTT Research Institutes, universities and Finnish industry. This collaboration has guaranteed dynamic and versatile research teams, which are large enough to tackle challenging research and development projects. Regarding industrial fusion R and D activities, the major step was the membership of Imatran Voima Oy in the EFET Consortium (European Fusion Engineering and Technology), which further strengthened the position of industry in the engineering design activities of ITER. The number of FFUSION research projects was 66. In addition, there were 32 industrial R and D projects. The total cost of the FFUSION Programme in 1993-1998 amounted to FIM 54 million in research at VTT and universities and an additional FIM 21 million for R and D in Finnish industry. The main part of the funding was provided by Tekes, 36%. Since 1995, yearly Euratom funding has exceeded 25%. The FFUSION research teams have played an active role in the European Programme, receiving excellent recognition from the European partners. Theoretical and computational fusion physics has been at a high scientific level and the group collaborates with the leading experimental laboratories in Europe. Fusion technology is focused on reactor materials, joining

Teaching Islamic Education in Finnish Schools: A Field of Negotiations

Science.gov (United States)

Rissanen, Inkeri

2012-01-01

The challenges of contemporary multicultural societies have resulted in changing aims for religious education and the necessity to adjust teacher education accordingly. The processes of negotiation related to the coexistence of different religious and cultural groups are intertwined in the Finnish curriculum for religious education. This case…

Clinico-epidemiological profile of malaria: Analysis from a primary health centre in Karnataka, Southern India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramachandra Kamath

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Malaria continues to be a major public health problem in India and worldwide. The present study was based on records from a primary health centre in Karnataka. Morbidity patterns and important features of malaria transmission specific to Udupi district were investigated. The incidence of malaria and various morbidity patterns during 2010 and 2011 were compared and analyzed. Factors such as rapid urbanization, increased construction activities and influx of migratory workers were highlighted as the leading causes for the advent of malaria in the area. Recommendations have been provided for implementation in the near future.

Clinico-epidemiological profile of malaria: Analysis from a primary health centre in Karnataka, Southern India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ramachandra Kamath

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Malaria continues to be a major public health problem in India and worldwide. The present study was based on records from a primary health centre in Karnataka. Morbidity patterns and important features of malaria transmission specific to Udupi district were investigated. The incidence of malaria and various morbidity patterns during 2010 and 2011 were compared and analyzed. Factors such as rapid urbanization, increased construction activities and influx of migratory workers were highlighted as the leading causes for the advent of malaria in the area. Recommendations have been provided for implementation in the near future.

Knowledge and Attitude about Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis among Healthcare Workers in Public Health Centres

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Bony Wiem Lestari

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Multidrug-resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB is a significant public health problem and poses a threat to global tuberculosis (TB control. In 2015, at least 504 new MDR-TB cases were identified in Indonesia. Treating MDR-TB patients is very challenging. It may take more than two years for MDR-TB treatment. Therefore, it is crucial healthcare workers (HCWs are knowledgeable about MDR-TB. The aim of this study was to measure level of knowledge and attitude regarding MDR-TB among HCWs in public health centres. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at 73 Public Health Centres in Bandung the capital of West Java Province from August until November 2015. The samples were 73 TB nurses and 32 laboratory staff. A self-administered questionnaire was given comprising 27 knowledge questions and 29 attitude questions. Correlation between knowledge and attitude scores was calculated by Pearson correlation test. Results: The majority of study participants were women (82.9%, married (92.4%, nursing staff (65.7% with history of TB training (98.1%. Most of the participants were 40-59 years old (69.5% with working experience in TB programme < 10 years (69.5%. Less than half (38.1% of study participants had good knowledge. In terms of attitude, more than half (53.3% of study participants had a positive attitude towards MDR-TB. Conclusions: The level of knowledge among HCWs about MDR-TB is still at an unacceptable level. Certain educational interventions aim to ensure prompt diagnosis, implement infection control and accurate treatment should be established among those HCWs.

Transnational sense of place: cinematic scenes of Finnish war child memories

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Anna-Kaisa Kuusisto-Arponen

2011-05-01

Full Text Available In this article I discuss the role of popular geopolitics and people's performative repertoires in voicing the social silence. I have selected for close-reading some of the episodes of the film Mother of Mine, which tells the story of a Finnish war child. In my analysis I ask what the transnational memory sites of forced displacement are, how they are depicted, and in general what kind of socio-spatial identity struggles they are involved in. Moreover, in this article I argue that the many forms through which silence becomes expressive need to be studied on the scale of the body and daily performative practices. Thus, I conclude that through several daily practices the Finnish war children unconsciously developed transnational agencies in order to survive and re-create the existential social and spatial ties of belonging.

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1991-02-01

During the third quarter of 1990 the Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 and TVO I and II were in commercial operation for most of the time. The annual maintenance outages of the Loviisa plant units were held during the report period. All events during this quarter are classified as Level hero (Below Scale) on the International Nuclear Event Scale. Occupational radiation doses and external releases of radioactivity were below authorised limits. Only small amounts of radioactive substances originating in nuclear power plants were detected in samples taken in the vicinity of nuclear power plants

Operation of Finnish nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tossavainen, K.

1992-09-01

The Finnish nuclear power plant units Loviisa 1 and 2 as well as TVO I and II were in operation for almost all the time in the first quarter of 1992. The load factor average was 99.8%. All events which are classified on the International Nuclear Event Scale were level 0/below scale on the Scale. Occupational radiation doses and releases of radioactive material off-site remained well below authorised limits. Only quantities of radioactive material insignificant to radiation exposure, originating from the nuclear power plants, were detected in samples collected in the vicinity of the nuclear power plants

Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of Flavobacterium psychrophilum from Finnish fish farms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madetoja, J.; Hanninen, M.L.; Hirvela-Koski, V.

2001-01-01

Finnish isolates (n = 37) of Flavobacterium psychrophilum isolated from farmed salmonids were studied using phenotypic and genotypic characteristics. The characteristics of isolates were compared with the characteristics of Swedish and Estonian F. psychrophilum isolates and the type strain, F...

Health effects of 12 weeks of team-sport training and fitness training in a community health centre for sedentary men with lifestyle diseases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Trine Kjeldgaard Tang; Nielsen, Tina-Thea; Andersen, René

2018-01-01

This study compares the effects of team-sport training, for sedentary men with lifestyle diseases, with fitness training in a pragmatic set-up in a community health centre (CHC). Thirty-two men in the fitness group (FiG) and 36 men in the team-sport group (TsG) completed the training and trained...

Are equity aspects communicated in Nordic public health documents?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Povlsen, Lene; Eklund Karlsson, Leena; Regber, Susann

2014-01-01

Aims: To explore if the term equity was applied and how measures for addressing social inequalities in health and reducing inequity were communicated in selected Nordic documents concerning public health. Methods: Documents from Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden were collected and analysed...... by Nordic authors. Data included material from websites of ministries and authorities responsible for public health issues, with primary focus on steering documents, action programmes, and reports from 2001 until spring 2013. Results: Most strategies applied in Danish, Finnish, and Swedish documents focused...... on the population in general but paid special attention to vulnerable groups. The latest Danish and Finnish documents communicate a clearer commitment to address social inequalities in health. They emphasise the social gradient and the need to address the social determinants in order to improve the position...

Effective Mathematics Teaching in Finnish and Swedish Teacher Education Discourses

Science.gov (United States)

Hemmi, Kirsti; Ryve, Andreas

2015-01-01

This article explores effective mathematics teaching as constructed in Finnish and Swedish teacher educators' discourses. Based on interview data from teacher educators as well as data from feedback discussions between teacher educators and prospective teachers in Sweden and Finland, the analysis shows that several aspects of the recent…

Computer-Based Molecular Modelling: Finnish School Teachers' Experiences and Views

Science.gov (United States)

Aksela, Maija; Lundell, Jan

2008-01-01

Modern computer-based molecular modelling opens up new possibilities for chemistry teaching at different levels. This article presents a case study seeking insight into Finnish school teachers' use of computer-based molecular modelling in teaching chemistry, into the different working and teaching methods used, and their opinions about necessary…

Work-related stress management between workplace and occupational health care.

Science.gov (United States)

Kinnunen-Amoroso, Maritta; Liira, Juha

2016-06-13

Work-related stress has been evaluated as one of the most important health risks in Europe. Prevention of work related stress and interventions to reduce risk factors for stress in the workplace are conducted together by the enterprise and occupational health services. The aim of the study was to examine the experiences of Finnish occupational physicians on the stress management with enterprises. From the Finnish Association of Occupational Health Physicians membership list 207 physicians responded to self-administered anonymous questionnaire. The data were analysed using SPSS 17.0. The client enterprises contacted occupational health services frequently about work-related stress. Collaboration between occupational health and enterprises was strongest in companies' own occupational health services and generally with most experienced physicians. Occupational health services and enterprises shared responsibility for managing work-related stress. Professional experience and close contact with organisation management favours successful stress management between occupational health and enterprises.

Risk analysis of Finnish peacekeeping in Kosovo.

Science.gov (United States)

Lehtomäki, Kyösti; Pääkkönen, Rauno J; Rantanen, Jorma

2005-04-01

The research team interviewed over 90 Finnish battalion members in Kosovo, visited 22 units or posts, registered its observations, and made any necessary measurements. Key persons were asked to list the most important risks for occupational safety and health in their area of responsibility. Altogether, 106 accidents and 40 cases of disease resulted in compensation claims in 2000. The risks to the peacekeeping force were about twice those of the permanent staff of military trainees in Finland. Altogether, 21 accidents or cases of disease resulted in sick leave for at least 3 months after service. One permanent injury resulted from an explosion. Biological, chemical, and physical factors caused 8 to 9 occupational illnesses each. Traffic accidents, operational factors, and munitions and mines were evaluated to be the three most important risk factors, followed by occupational hygiene, living conditions (mold, fungi, dust), and general hygiene. Possible fatal risks, such as traffic accidents and munitions and explosives, received a high ranking in both the subjective and the objective evaluations. One permanent injury resulted from an explosion, and two traffic accidents involved a fatality, although not of a peacekeeper. The reduction of sports and military training accidents, risk-control programs, and, for some tasks, better personal protection is considered a development challenge for the near future.

Monitoring the referral system through benchmarking in rural Niger: an evaluation of the functional relation between health centres and the district hospital

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Miyé Hamidou

2006-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The main objective of this study is to establish a benchmark for referral rates in rural Niger so as to allow interpretation of routine referral data to assess the performance of the referral system in Niger. Methods Strict and controlled application of existing clinical decision trees in a sample of rural health centres allowed the estimation of the corresponding need for and characteristics of curative referrals in rural Niger. Compliance of referral was monitored as well. Need was matched against actual referral in 11 rural districts. The referral patterns were registered so as to get an idea on the types of pathology referred. Results The referral rate benchmark was set at 2.5 % of patients consulting at the health centre for curative reasons. Niger's rural districts have a referral rate of less than half this benchmark. Acceptability of referrals is low for the population and is adding to the deficient referral system in Niger. Mortality because of under-referral is highest among young children. Conclusion Referral patterns show that the present programme approach to deliver health care leaves a large amount of unmet need for which only comprehensive first and second line health services can provide a proper answer. On the other hand, the benchmark suggests that well functioning health centres can take care of the vast majority of problems patients present with.

Finnish Government contribution in Haiphong Water Supply, Drainage, Sewerage and Sanitation Management Programs in Hai Phong city, Vietnam : A Case Study

OpenAIRE

Nguyen Hoang, Duy

2015-01-01

The objective of the thesis is to bring out a general point of view in the contribution of the Finnish aid of Finnish Government, targeted in the development of urban area as well as water supply and sanitation of Hai Phong city, the most Northern port city of Vietnam, which holds an important role in the economy system of Vietnam. Moreover, Hai Phong is one of three targeted cities that get Foreign Direct Investment as well as support from Finnish government for the development of local wate...

Economic Co-operation Across the Finnish-Russian Border - Factors of Sluggish Development and Success of Enterprises

OpenAIRE

Rautio, V.; Tykkylaeinen, M.

2000-01-01

The post-Cold War era in Europe in the 1990s has caused people to recognize the complexity of economic development and economic co-operation. The opening of borders has not always meant an increase cross-border economic activities in general. On the contrary, the adverse socio-economic development of many border areas has been unanticipated. The Finnish-Russian border is one example of this dissonance. This paper analyses the operation of Finnish companies in economic activities in Russ...

Long term mental health outcomes of Finnish children evacuated to Swedish families during the second world war and their non-evacuated siblings: cohort study.

Science.gov (United States)

Santavirta, Torsten; Santavirta, Nina; Betancourt, Theresa S; Gilman, Stephen E

2015-01-05

To compare the risks of admission to hospital for any type of psychiatric disorder and for four specific psychiatric disorders among adults who as children were evacuated to Swedish foster families during the second world war and their non-evacuated siblings, and to evaluate whether these risks differ between the sexes. Cohort study. National child evacuation scheme in Finland during the second world war. Children born in Finland between 1933 and 1944 who were later included in a 10% sample of the 1950 Finnish census ascertained in 1997 (n = 45,463; women: n = 22,021; men: n = 23,442). Evacuees in the sample were identified from war time government records. Adults admitted to hospital for psychiatric disorders recorded between 1971 and 2011 in the Finnish hospital discharge register. We used Cox proportional hazards models to estimate the association between evacuation to temporary foster care in Sweden during the second world war and admission to hospital for a psychiatric disorder between ages 38 and 78 years. Fixed effects methods were employed to control for all unobserved social and genetic characteristics shared among siblings. Among men and women combined, the risk of admission to hospital for a psychiatric disorder did not differ between Finnish adults evacuated to Swedish foster families and their non-evacuated siblings (hazard ratio 0.89, 95% confidence interval 0.64 to 1.26). Evidence suggested a lower risk of admission for any mental disorder (0.67, 0.44 to 1.03) among evacuated men, whereas for women there was no association between evacuation and the overall risk of admission for a psychiatric disorder (1.21, 0.80 to 1.83). When admissions for individual psychiatric disorders were analyzed, evacuated girls were significantly more likely than their non-evacuated sisters to be admitted to hospital for a mood disorder as an adult (2.19, 1.10 to 4.33). The Finnish evacuation policy was not associated with an increased overall risk of admission to hospital

The association between experiences with patient-centred care and health-related quality of life in women with endometriosis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Apers, Silke; Dancet, Eline A. F.; Aarts, Johanna W. M.; Kluivers, Kirsten B.; D'Hooghe, Thomas M.; Nelen, Willianne L. D. M.

2018-01-01

In this cross-sectional study, we investigated whether patient-centred endometriosis care (PCEC) is associated with health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Dutch-speaking women with endometriosis, treated by laparoscopy in a university clinic between 2009 and 2010, were eligible (n = 194).

Conversion rate optimization in Finnish online businesses

OpenAIRE

Ratia, Miramaria; Ruoho, Vilma

2016-01-01

Conversion rate optimization (CRO) is an unfamiliar term to many online business owners even though it has become almost as important as search engine optimization is in e-commerce today. It is a method that is used to turn passive visitors into active users in order to improve a website’s performance. The main objective of this thesis was to find out what kinds of conversion rate optimization methods do Finnish small and medium-sized online businesses use. The thesis also studies what ar...

Project Management in the Finnish Music Industry

OpenAIRE

Hypén, Joel

2009-01-01

The term project is a widely used phrase in today’s working life. This thesis explains what project management theory is, how it has evolved through history and how it is applied in managing modern business projects in the contexts of the Finnish music business sector. The literature review contains a description of the key phases a project is typically organised in as well as the terms and tools used to plan and run a successful project. Through qualitative research means the thesis inves...

Monitoring of radioactivity in the environs of Finnish nuclear power stations in 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sjoeblom, K.-L.; Klemola, S.; Ilus, E.; Arvela, H.; Blomqvist, L.

1989-06-01

Results of the environmental programmes for monitoring radioactive contamination around Finnish nuclear power plants in 1987 are reported. Fallout from the Chernobyl accident, which took place in April 1986, was still dominating the artificial radiation situation in Finland. Thus, large amounts of 137 Cs and other long-lived fallout nuclides predominated in the environmental samples taken in the vicinity of nuclear power plants. The extremely small airborne releases from Finnish nuclear power plants were almost totally covered by fallout nuclides. The somewhat higher aquatic releases were easier to distinguish, and it was possible to follow their spread in the marine environment. The contribution of locally discharged nuclides to radiation doses of the population was insignificant

Finnish Cooperating Physics Teachers' Conceptions of Physics Teachers' Teacher Knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Asikainen, Mervi A.; Hirvonen, Pekka E.

2010-01-01

This article examines Finnish cooperating physics teachers' conceptions of teacher knowledge in physics. Six experienced teachers were interviewed. The data was analyzed to form categories concerning the basis of teacher knowledge, and the tradition of German Didaktik and Shulman's theory of teacher knowledge were used in order to understand the…

Implementing the Finnish Literacy Curriculum in a First-Grade Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Räisänen, Sari; Korkeamäki, Riitta-Liisa

2015-01-01

This study investigated the first author's process of implementing new literacy practices as a teacher in a Finnish first-grade classroom from a poststructuralist perspective by using nexus analysis (NA). We concentrated on two essential concepts in NA, Bourdieu's habitus and Goffman's interaction order, which we linked to Grundy's curriculum…

Exploring Finnish university students' perceived level of critical thinking

OpenAIRE

Orszag, Aaron

2015-01-01

Critical thinking is believed to be a 21 st century skill that many employers consider crucial when hiring recent graduates. However, it is debated whether critical thinking should be taught in academic foreign language courses at the tertiary level, which primarily aim to develop students’ language and communication skills. This localized, exploratory research examines Finnish university students’ self-reported critical thinking skills a...

A student-centred electronic health record system for clinical education.

Science.gov (United States)

Elliott, Kristine; Judd, Terry; McColl, Geoff

2011-01-01

Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems are an increasingly important feature of the national healthcare system [1]. However, little research has investigated the impact this will have on medical students' learning. As part of an innovative technology platform for a new masters level program in medicine, we are developing a student-centred EHR system for clinical education. A prototype was trialed with medical students over several weeks during 2010. This paper reports on the findings of the trial, which had the overall aim of assisting our understanding of how trainee doctors might use an EHR system for learning and communication in a clinical setting. In primary care and hospital settings, EHR systems offer potential benefits to medical students' learning: Longitudinal tracking of clinical progress towards established learning objectives [2]; Capacity to search across a substantial body of records [3]; Integration with online medical databases [3]; Development of expertise in creating, accessing and managing high quality EHRs [4]. While concerns have been raised that EHR systems may alter the interaction between teachers and students [3], and may negatively influence physician-patient communication [6], there is general consensus that the EHR is changing the current practice environment and teaching practice needs to respond. Final year medical students on clinical placement at a large university teaching hospital were recruited for the trial. Following a four-week period of use, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants. Audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and data analysed for emerging themes. Study participants were also surveyed about the importance of EHR systems in general, their familiarity with them, and general perceptions of sharing patient records. Medical students in this pilot study identified a number of educational, practical and administrative advantages that the student-centred EHR system offered over their existing ad

Cyber risk management in the Finnish healthcare sector

OpenAIRE

Hellstén, Hanne

2018-01-01

Advances in technology and digitalization have been widely adopted by Finnish healthcare organizations. This development has led to improvements in the efficiency and outcomes of patient care, but has also exposed healthcare providers to new kinds of risks. Cyber risks are becoming an increasingly common occurrence in the healthcare sector, and can lead to serious consequences for patients and organizations alike. The significance of cyber risks within healthcare has been projected to grow...

Genetic variation of loin and ham quality in Finnish Landrace and Large White pigs

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M-L. SEVÓN-AIMONEN

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Selection potential for meat quality of economically important loin (longissimus and ham muscles (adductor, semimembranosus, biceps femoris has been assessed. Ultimate pH (pHu, meat colour (lightness, redness and yellowness, drip loss and two visually scored colour traits were recorded from 483 Finnish Landrace and 494 Finnish Large White station test pigs in a half-sib design. A univariate restricted maximum likelihood procedure was used to estimate variance components. The statistical model contained age at beginning of test, sex and time lapse from slaughter to dissection as fixed effects and slaughter batch, common environment of littermates and additive genetic effect of the animal as random effects. The average pHu values in adductor and semispinalis were between 5.6 and 6.1. The pHu were on average 5.4 and 5.5 in longissimus and semimembranosus respectively, with the latter two being lower than optimum values of 5.6 to 5.9. Lightness for semimembranosus turned to be clearly lighter (62 than for other muscles. Lightness for longissimus (56 was slightly lighter than optimum (from 48 to 54. The heritability varied from zero to 0.45 for pHu, from 0.02 to 0.34 for lightness, from 0.17 to 0.56 for redness, from zero to 0.28 for yellowness and from 0.05 to 0.16 for drip loss. Heritability for redness values was considerably higher than heritability for other meat quality traits. The heritability of quality traits spoke for possibilities for genetic improvement of meat quality. Genetic correlations between quality traits (pHu and lightness and average daily gain varied strongly among breeds and muscles. Genetic correlations between meat-% and pHu were in most cases high and unfavourable (rg from –0.36 to –0.68 except in longissimus, where it was 0.11. Genetic correlations between meat-% and lightness were unfavourable in Finnish Large White (from 0.47 to 0.92 but in Finnish Landrace estimates varied among muscles (from –0.40 to 0.47. Due to

DIGITALISATION IN FINNISH MUSEUMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Magdalena Laine-Zamojska

2014-01-01

Full Text Available W artykule omówiono generalny obraz digitalizacji w fińskim sektorze muzealnym. Przedstawiono szacunkowe liczby dotyczące digitalizacji dziedzictwa kulturowego na podstawie przeprowadzonych statystycznych badań, oraz zaprezentowano wiele projektów związanych z ucyfrowieniem fińskich muzeów.\tFiński sektor muzealny jest niezwykle zróżnicowany, podobnie jak stopień skatalogowania i zdigitalizowania kolekcji. W projektach rozwojowych aktywnie uczestniczy cały sektor muzealny. W ostatnich latach, dzięki wielu inicjatywom i badaniom udało się uzyskać szczegółowy obraz fińskiego sektora muzealnego. Największą inicjatywą jest projekt utworzenia Narodowej Biblioteki Cyfrowej, podlegający Ministerstwu Edukacji i Kultury. Celem projektu jest połączenie i udostępnienie zasobów z instytucji pamięci (bibliotek, archiwów i muzeów. Towarzyszą mu rozległe projekty digitalizacji.\tW związku z ogromną różnorodnością systemów do zarządzania kolekcją i praktykami katalogowymi w muzeach, w 2011 r. Państwowy Urząd Muzealny (Museovirasto / National Board of Antiquities, Fiński Związek Muzeów (Suomen museoliitto / Finnish Museums Association i Państwowa Galeria Sztuki (Valtion taidemuseo / Finnish National Gallery zainicjowały projekt Muzeum2015 (Museo2015 / Museum2015. Jego głównymi celami są: unifikacja procesów związanych z zarządzaniem kolekcją, stworzenie architektury korporacyjnej dla zarządzania muzealną kolekcją, stworzenie modelu zarządzania dla architektury korporacyjnej, oraz określenie i stworzenie warunków do zakupu i implementacji ogólnofińskiego systemu zarządzania kolekcją.\tRozwój cyfrowych narzędzi dla najmniejszych, prowadzonych przez wolontariuszy, muzeów lokalnych jest jednym z celów projektu badawczego ViMuseo, prowadzonego na Uniwersytecie w Jyväskylä (Jyväskylän yliopisto / University of Jyväskylä.

The finnish guide to radon-resistant homes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arvela, H.

2006-01-01

Full text of publication follows: New regulations of the National Finnish Building Code require consideration of radon risks and as a main rule radon technical design in the building permission documents. Slab-on-grade is the prevalent substructure in Finnish low-rise residential buildings. Building statistics show that the prevalent practices in foundation construction promote the flow of radon-bearing soil air into living spaces. Without prevention the normal practices would result in high indoor radon concentrations in Finland. In wide areas more than 50% of houses exceed the reference level of 200 Bq/m 3 given for new buildings. The new guide published in 2003 requires installation of protective sheet in the slab-on-ground foundation and a preparatory radon piping. A protective sheet of durable reinforced bitumen felt with a width of 50 - 100 cm should be installed in the slab-foundation wall joint. Careful sealing of lead-troughs plays also an important role. In the case the sealing work does not result in low indoor radon concentration, the radon piping should be activated through radon-fan installation. Careful implementation of the sealing work reduces indoor radon concentration to a level of less than 50 Bq/m 3 , also in areas where the normal building practices result in indoor radon concentrations exceeding the reference level of 200 Bq/m 3 in more than 50% of new houses. Recent experiences from the implementation of the guide will be considered. (author)

Displaying Now-Understanding: The Finnish Change-of-State Token "aa"

Science.gov (United States)

Koivisto, Aino

2015-01-01

This article discusses the use of the Finnish change-of-state token "aa" that has previously not been identified. The central claim is that even though "aa" indicates a cognitive shift experienced by the speaker, it does not function as a receipt of new information. Instead, the token "aa" indicates that the speaker…

Treatment of fibromyalgia at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway II--a 24-month follow-up pilot study.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Lars Bjørn; Mikkelsen, Knut; Haugen, Margaretha; Pripp, Are H; Fields, Jeremy Z; Førre, Øystein T

2012-05-01

Treatments offered at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway are based on Maharishi Vedic Medicine (MVM). MVM is a consciousness-based revival by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) program of the ancient Ayurvedic medicine tradition in India. To extend from 6 to 24 months, a pilot study of the effects of the treatment program at the Health Centre on fibromyalgia. Retesting 2 years after a clinical trial. In this intention to treat study, 31 women with a diagnosis of fibromyalgia received an individually tailored program of (1) physiological purification therapy (Maharishi Panchakarma) and (2) Ayurvedic recommendations regarding daily routine and diet including a novel approach to food intolerance. Five subjects chose to learn TM for stress reduction, pain management and personal development. All were recommended Ayurvedic herbal products for follow-up treatment. A modified Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ) that included seven dimensions. Scores at 24 months follow-up were compared with pre-treatment scores. At 24-months follow-up, there were significant reductions (26% to 44%) in six of the seven fibromyalgia dimensions: impairment of working ability, pain, tiredness, morning tiredness, stiffness and anxiety. The 7th, depression, decreased 32% (borderline significant). At 24 months, the four subjects who continued practising TM, had almost no symptoms and significantly lower FIQ change scores (-92% to 97%) than the non-meditators on all outcomes. This pilot study suggests that the treatments and health promotion programs offered at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway lead to long-term reductions in symptoms of fibromyalgia, which is considered a treatment-resistant condition, and further studies are warranted.