Comparison of COPD Assessment Test and Clinical COPD Questionnaire to predict the risk of exacerbation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jo YS

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Yong Suk Jo,1 Ho Il Yoon,2 Deog Kyeom Kim,3 Chul-Gyu Yoo,1 Chang-Hoon Lee1 1Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, 2Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seongnam, Gyeonggi, 3Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul Metropolitan Government-Seoul National University Boramae Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea Background and objective: Guidelines recommend the use of simple but comprehensive tools such as COPD Assessment Test (CAT and Clinical COPD Questionnaire (CCQ to assess health status in COPD patients. We aimed to compare the ability of CAT and CCQ to predict exacerbation in COPD patients. Methods: We organized a multicenter prospective cohort study that included COPD patients. The relationships between CAT, CCQ, and other clinical measurements were analyzed by correlation analysis, and the impact of CAT and CCQ scores on exacerbation was analyzed by logistic regression analyses and receiver operating characteristic curve. Results: Among 121 COPD patients, CAT and CCQ score correlated with other symptom measures, lung function and exercise capacity as well. Compared with patients who did not experience exacerbation, those who experienced exacerbation (n=45; 38.2% exhibited more severe airflow limitation, were more likely to have a history of exacerbation in the year prior to enrollment, and demonstrated higher CAT scores. CCQ scores were not significantly associated with exacerbations. A CAT score of ≥15 was an independent risk factor for exacerbation (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.40; 95% CI, 1.03–6.50; P=0.04. Furthermore, CAT scores of ≥15 demonstrated an increased predictive ability for exacerbation compared with currently accepted guidelines for the use of CAT (≥10 and CCQ (≥1 in the assessment of COPD

Development of a brief questionnaire to assess contraceptive intent.

Science.gov (United States)

Raine-Bennett, Tina R; Rocca, Corinne H

2015-11-01

We sought to develop and validate an instrument that can enable providers to identify young women who may be at risk of contraceptive non-adherence. Item response theory based methods were used to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Contraceptive Intent Questionnaire, a 15-item self-administered questionnaire, based on theory and prior qualitative and quantitative research. The questionnaire was administered to 200 women aged 15-24 years who were initiating contraceptives. We assessed item fit to the item response model, internal consistency, internal structure validity, and differential item functioning. All items fit a one-dimensional model. The separation reliability coefficient was 0.73. Participants' overall scores covered the full range of the scale (0-15), and items appropriately matched the range of participants' contraceptive intent. Items met the criteria for internal structure validity and most items functioned similarly between groups of women. The Contraceptive Intent Questionnaire appears to be a reliable and valid tool. Future testing is needed to assess predictive ability and clinical utility. The Contraceptive Intent Questionnaire may serve as a valid tool to help providers identify women who may have problems with contraceptive adherence, as well as to pinpoint areas in which counseling may be directed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The heritability of cluster A personality disorders assessed by both personal interview and questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Kendler, Kenneth S; Myers, John; Torgersen, Svenn; Neale, Michael C; Reichborn-Kjennerud, Ted

2007-05-01

Personality disorders (PDs) as assessed by questionnaires and personal interviews are heritable. However, we know neither how much unreliability of measurement impacts on heritability estimates nor whether the genetic and environmental risk factors assessed by these two methods are the same. We wish to know whether the same set of PD vulnerability factors are assessed by these two methods. A total of 3334 young adult twin pairs from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health Twin Panel (NIPHTP) completed a questionnaire containing 91 PD items. One to 6 years later, 1386 of these pairs were interviewed with the Structured Interview for DSM-IV Personality (SIDP-IV). Self-report items predicting interview results were selected by regression. Measurement models were fitted using Mx. In the best-fit models, the latent liabilities to paranoid personality disorder (PPD), schizoid personality disorder (SPD) and schizotypal personality disorder (STPD) were all highly heritable with no evidence of shared environmental effects. For PPD and STPD, only unique environmental effects were specific to the interview measure whereas both environmental and genetic effects were found to be specific to the questionnaire assessment. For SPD, the best-fit model contained genetic and environmental effects specific to both forms of assessment. The latent liabilities to the cluster A PDs are highly heritable but are assessed by current methods with only moderate reliability. The personal interviews assessed the genetic risk for the latent trait with excellent specificity for PPD and STPD and good specificity for SPD. However, for all three PDs, the questionnaires were less specific, also indexing an independent set of genetic risk factors.

Development of a questionnaire to measure heart disease risk knowledge in people with diabetes: the Heart Disease Fact Questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagner, Julie; Lacey, Kimberly; Chyun, Deborah; Abbott, Gina

2005-07-01

This paper describes a paper and pencil questionnaire that measures heart disease risk knowledge in people with diabetes. The Heart Disease Fact Questionnaire (HDFQ) is a 25-item questionnaire that was developed to tap into respondents' knowledge of major risk factors for the development of CHD. Approximately half of these items specifically address diabetes-related CHD risk factors. Based on extensive pilot data, the current study analyzed responses from 524 people with diabetes to assess the psychometric properties. The HDFQ is readable to an average 13-year old and imposes little burden. It shows good content and face validity. It demonstrates adequate internal consistency, with Kuder-Richardson-20 formula = 0.77 and good item-total correlations. Item analysis showed a desirable range in P-values. In discriminant function analyses, HDFQ scores differentiated respondents by knowledge of their own cardiovascular health, use of lipid lowering medications, health insurance status, and educational attainment, thus indicating good criterion related validity. This measure of heart disease risk knowledge is brief, understandable to respondents, and easy to administer and score. Its potential for use in research and practice is discussed. Future research should establish norms as well as investigate its test-retest reliability and predictive validity.

Nutritional Risk Screening 2002, Short Nutritional Assessment Questionnaire, Malnutrition Screening Tool, and Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool Are Good Predictors of Nutrition Risk in an Emergency Service.

Science.gov (United States)

Rabito, Estela Iraci; Marcadenti, Aline; da Silva Fink, Jaqueline; Figueira, Luciane; Silva, Flávia Moraes

2017-08-01

There is an international consensus that nutrition screening be performed at the hospital; however, there is no "best tool" for screening of malnutrition risk in hospitalized patients. To evaluate (1) the accuracy of the MUST (Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool), MST (Malnutrition Screening Tool), and SNAQ (Short Nutritional Assessment Questionnaire) in comparison with the NRS-2002 (Nutritional Risk Screening 2002) to identify patients at risk of malnutrition and (2) the ability of these nutrition screening tools to predict morbidity and mortality. A specific questionnaire was administered to complete the 4 screening tools. Outcomes measures included length of hospital stay, transfer to the intensive care unit, presence of infection, and incidence of death. A total of 752 patients were included. The nutrition risk was 29.3%, 37.1%, 33.6%, and 31.3% according to the NRS-2002, MUST, MST, and SNAQ, respectively. All screening tools showed satisfactory performance to identify patients at nutrition risk (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve between 0.765-0.808). Patients at nutrition risk showed higher risk of very long length of hospital stay as compared with those not at nutrition risk, independent of the tool applied (relative risk, 1.35-1.78). Increased risk of mortality (2.34 times) was detected by the MUST. The MUST, MST, and SNAQ share similar accuracy to the NRS-2002 in identifying risk of malnutrition, and all instruments were positively associated with very long hospital stay. In clinical practice, the 4 tools could be applied, and the choice for one of them should be made per the particularities of the service.

Equivalence of online and clinician administration of a patellar tendinopathy risk factor and severity questionnaire

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Morton, S; Morrissey, D; Valle, X

2015-01-01

The VISA-P is a questionnaire for assessing the severity of patellar tendinopathy (PT). Our study aim was to evaluate the equivalence of self-administration of the VISA-P online with the addition of risk factor questions to develop a tool suitable for high-volume remote use. A crossover study...... for risk factor questions was excellent at 0.89 (CI: 0.84-0.93) with no mean difference (P = 1.00). The online questionnaire enables equivalent collection of VISA-P data and risk factor information and may well improve further with the suggested modifications to the instructions for questions 7 and 8....... There is potential to use this questionnaire electronically to generate large databases in future research....

Adaptation and validation of a questionnaire about risk behaviors for AIDS among drug users

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pechansky Flavio

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: To initiate the process of validation of an instrument based on an American self-reported questionnaire named RAB (Risk Assessment Battery -- called CRA in its Brazilian version --, which covers aspects related to drug use, HIV testing, sexual behavior and concern with the transmission of the virus. The questionnaire was back-translated and its concurrent validity was tested, as well as the utility of an Overall Risk Score (ORS for the transmission of the HIV virus or of subscores for Drug Use (SDU or Sexual Risk (SSR. Methods: Case vignettes of ten typical cases had their questionnaire scores compared with the impression of independent referees. Results: There were systematic differences in the comparison with the specific referees for each area, suggesting that only the ORS has clinical validity, specifically regarding the exposure to risk of infection/reinfection by HIV. Conclusion: The questionnaire in its current use and format is not adequate to express impairment already caused by exposure to the virus. The specific subscores were not clinically valid to express such risk, and the instrument needs the addition of a more comprehensive section about intravenous drug use to be used in future studies.

[Questionnaire for the mobbing risk: CDL2.0].

Science.gov (United States)

Gilioli, R; Cassitto, M G; Campanini, P; Punzi, S; Consonni, D; Rengo, C; Fattorini, E; Foá, V

2005-01-01

The aim of the study is to develop and validate a questionnaire able to evaluate the risk of mobbing at the workplace. A multiple-choice questionnaire has been developed which contains, among the different items, only one revealing a mobbing situation. The questionnaire has been administered to two groups (group A--243 subjects in a mobbing situation and group B--63 subjects without exposure to mobbing) and the differences in the scores obtained have been analysed. The questionnaire has proved to be valid and reliable. The results show that the presence of five mobbing actions is sufficient to define the workplace situation as potentially at risk for mobbing. The study reveals some limits in the selection of the two samples thus needing some adjustment. However, the questionnaire, also in the present form, can be considered a tool able to detect the mobbing situations.

Systematic review: questionnaires for assessment of gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Bolier, E A; Kessing, B F; Smout, A J; Bredenoord, A J

2015-01-01

Numerous questionnaires with a wide variety of characteristics have been developed for the assessment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Four well-defined dimensions are noticeable in these GERD questionnaires, which are symptoms, response to treatment, diagnosis, and burden on the quality of life of GERD patients. The aim of this review is to develop a complete overview of all available questionnaires, categorized per dimension of the assessment of GERD. A systematic search of the literature up to January 2013 using the Pubmed database and the Embase database, and search of references and conference abstract books were conducted. A total number of 65 questionnaires were extracted and evaluated. Thirty-nine questionnaires were found applicable for the assessment of GERD symptoms, three of which are generic gastrointestinal questionnaires. For the assessment of response to treatment, 14 questionnaires were considered applicable. Seven questionnaires with diagnostic purposes were found. In the assessment of quality of life in GERD patients, 18 questionnaires were found and evaluated. Twenty questionnaires were found to be used for more than one assessment dimension, and eight questionnaires were found for GERD assessment in infants and/or children. A wide variety of GERD questionnaires is available, of which the majority is used for assessment of GERD symptoms. Questionnaires differ in aspects such as design, validation and translations. Also, numerous multidimensional questionnaires are available, of which the Reflux Disease Questionnaire is widely applicable. We provided an overview of GERD questionnaires to aid investigators and clinicians in their search for the most appropriate questionnaire for their specific purposes. © 2013 International Society for Diseases of the Esophagus.

Risk-Based Questionnaires Fail to Detect Adolescent Iron Deficiency and Anemia.

Science.gov (United States)

Sekhar, Deepa L; Murray-Kolb, Laura E; Schaefer, Eric W; Paul, Ian M

2017-08-01

To evaluate the predictive ability of screening questionnaires to identify adolescent women at high-risk for iron deficiency or iron deficiency anemia who warrant objective laboratory testing. Cross-sectional study of 96 female individuals 12-21 years old seen at an academic medical center. Participants completed an iron deficiency risk assessment questionnaire including the 4 Bright Futures Adolescent Previsit Questionnaire anemia questions, along with depression, attention, food insecurity, and daytime sleepiness screens. Multiple linear regression controlling for age, race, and hormonal contraception use compared the predictive ability of 2 models for adolescent iron deficiency (defined as ferritin anemia (hemoglobin iron deficiency and 5% (5/96) had iron deficiency anemia. Model 1 (Bright Futures) poorly predicted ferritin and hemoglobin values (R 2  = 0.03 and 0.08, respectively). Model 2 demonstrated similarly poor predictive ability (R 2  = 0.05 and 0.06, respectively). Mean differences for depressive symptoms (0.3, 95% CI -0.2, 0.8), attention difficulty (-0.1, 95% CI -0.5, 0.4), food insecurity (0.04, 95% CI -0.5, 0.6), daytime sleepiness (0.1, 95% CI -0.1, 0.3), and body mass index percentile (-0.04, 95% CI -0.3, 0.2) were not significantly associated with ferritin in model 2. Mean differences for hemoglobin were also nonsignificant. Risk-based surveys poorly predict objective measures of iron status using ferritin and hemoglobin. Next steps are to establish the optimal timing for objective assessment of adolescent iron deficiency and anemia. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Some problems in use of the “Questionnaire for the assessment of risk for those sentenced to imprisonment for up to three years”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petković Nikola

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The questionnaire for the assessment of risk for those sentenced to imprisonment for up to three years is the main instrument of assessment used in penitentiary institutions in Serbia. The results obtained with this instrument create the basis of categorization, re-categorization of persons within penal institutions, as well as an argument in deciding in various criminal matters such as the procedure on the petition for conditional release. Because objective assessment is a necessity of forensic and educational work, the validity and reliability of the results obtained by these instruments is of great importance. In this sense, this paper carries basic information about the structure and content of the relevant Questionnaire, clarification on the method of scoring, as well as critical analysis in relation to its elements. Finally, with regard to perceived opportunities to improve national practices, this paper offers some suggestions of correction assessment procedures of convicts.

Evaluating the Risk of Child Abuse: The Child Abuse Risk Assessment Scale (CARAS)

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Ko Ling

2012-01-01

The present study developed the Child Abuse Risk Assessment Scale (CARAS), an actuarial instrument for the assessment of the risk of physical child abuse. Data of 2,363 Chinese parents (47.7% male) living in Hong Kong were used in the analyses. Participants were individually interviewed with a questionnaire assessing their perpetration of child…

A questionnaire to measure melanoma risk, knowledge and protective behaviour: assessing content validity in a convenience sample of Scots and Australians.

Science.gov (United States)

Gillespie, Helen S; Watson, Tony; Emery, Jon D; Lee, Amanda J; Murchie, Peter

2011-08-25

The aim of this study was to assess the content validity of a questionnaire to measure melanoma risk, knowledge and protective behaviour in a convenience sample of Scots and Australians. Australia has the highest melanoma incidence worldwide but has developed a culture of skin cancer avoidance with a long history of skin cancer primary prevention campaigns of proven effectiveness. Scotland has lower incidence, but has shown a greater rate of increase between 1985 and 2007. There is an urgent need in Scotland, therefore, to identify those groups at greatest risk and provide them with effective preventative advice. A self-administered postal survey was completed by four groups formed from convenience samples in two geographical locations (Northeast Scotland and Western Australia). In univariate analysis scores on personal risk, level of concern, protective behaviour, and knowledge were compared by nationality, previous skin cancer diagnosis and personally knowing someone with melanoma. Multivariate linear regression analysis modelled the influence of potential predictor variables upon each of the scores. 540 people completed the questionnaire, 273 Scots (50.6%). 133 (24.6%) Scots and 83 (15.4%) Australians previously had melanoma or non-melanoma skin cancer, whilst 120 (22.2%) Scots and 190 (35.2%) Australians personally knew someone with melanoma. Australians had higher knowledge (p behaviour (p behaviours in Australians than in Scottish people. This was expected and supports the content validity of the questionnaire and its value as a future research tool in the Scottish population.

Questionnaire of core beliefs related to drug use and craving for assessment of relapse risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Martínez-González, José Miguel; Vilar López, Raquel; Lozano-Rojas, Oscar; Verdejo-García, Antonio

2017-07-12

This study was aimed at designing a questionnaire for the assessment of addiction-related core beliefs and craving. The sample comprised 215 patients (85.8% males and 14.2% females) in treatment for dependence to alcohol (40%), cocaine (36.3%) and cannabis (23.7%). Descriptive statistics were used to characterize the sample. Variance, regression and factorial analyses were conducted to study the questionnaire structure and its relation with variables such as abstinence and craving. Items about drug-related beliefs yielded a four-factor structure: what patient think that they could not do without drug use, lack of withdrawal, conditions required to use drugs again, and use of drugs as the only way to feel good. Items related to craving yielded three factors: negative emotions as precipitants of drug use, positive emotions, and difficulties attributed to coping with craving. Furthermore, beliefs were more important to predict craving than abstinence time. The present questionnaire allows to assess a set of significant factors to design prevention relapse programs.

Risk perception and information processing: the development and validation of a questionnaire to assess self-reported information processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Smerecnik, Chris M R; Mesters, Ilse; Candel, Math J J M; De Vries, Hein; De Vries, Nanne K

2012-01-01

The role of information processing in understanding people's responses to risk information has recently received substantial attention. One limitation of this research concerns the unavailability of a validated questionnaire of information processing. This article presents two studies in which we describe the development and validation of the Information-Processing Questionnaire to meet that need. Study 1 describes the development and initial validation of the questionnaire. Participants were randomized to either a systematic processing or a heuristic processing condition after which they completed a manipulation check and the initial 15-item questionnaire and again two weeks later. The questionnaire was subjected to factor reliability and validity analyses on both measurement times for purposes of cross-validation of the results. A two-factor solution was observed representing a systematic processing and a heuristic processing subscale. The resulting scale showed good reliability and validity, with the systematic condition scoring significantly higher on the systematic subscale and the heuristic processing condition significantly higher on the heuristic subscale. Study 2 sought to further validate the questionnaire in a field study. Results of the second study corresponded with those of Study 1 and provided further evidence of the validity of the Information-Processing Questionnaire. The availability of this information-processing scale will be a valuable asset for future research and may provide researchers with new research opportunities. © 2011 Society for Risk Analysis.

INSTRUMENTS OF HIGH RISK SEXUAL BEHAVIOR ASSESSMENT: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW.

Science.gov (United States)

Mirzaei, Mojtaba; Ahmadi, Khodabakhsh; Saadat, Seyed-Hassan; Ramezani, Mohammad Arash

2016-02-01

Sexual behavior is a complex activity affecting all aspects of human's life. Risky sexual behaviors impose negative outcomes on family, relationships and health. Unsafe sex is the second most leading cause of disability adjusted life years worldwide. Valid and reliable tools for assessment of risky sexual behaviors are necessary for implementing preventive measures. we searched Medline and the Cochrane Library of Systematic Reviews, with the keywords of "risky sexual behavior assessment", "sexual risk assessment", "high risk sexual behavior", "sexual risk taking". By reviewing references of the articles, some complementary studies were added. Assessment can be performed by questionnaire or non-questionnaire instruments. Questionnaires vary depending on their target population, evaluation of risky sexual behavior as a whole or focusing on an associated risk factor. In order to avoid usual biases in self reports, objective biomarker assessment of unprotected sex are employed. These markers include prostate specific antigen, chromosome Y DNA and Seminogelin. Risky sexual behavior can be assessed by various subjective and objective methods. While self-reports are more feasible, objective methods offer a higher degree of reliability. Further studies for finding more feasible methods of using biomarkers are recommended.

A systematic review and appraisal of methods of developing and validating lifestyle cardiovascular disease risk factors questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Nse, Odunaiya; Quinette, Louw; Okechukwu, Ogah

2015-09-01

Well developed and validated lifestyle cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors questionnaires is the key to obtaining accurate information to enable planning of CVD prevention program which is a necessity in developing countries. We conducted this review to assess methods and processes used for development and content validation of lifestyle CVD risk factors questionnaires and possibly develop an evidence based guideline for development and content validation of lifestyle CVD risk factors questionnaires. Relevant databases at the Stellenbosch University library were searched for studies conducted between 2008 and 2012, in English language and among humans. Using the following databases; pubmed, cinahl, psyc info and proquest. Search terms used were CVD risk factors, questionnaires, smoking, alcohol, physical activity and diet. Methods identified for development of lifestyle CVD risk factors were; review of literature either systematic or traditional, involvement of expert and /or target population using focus group discussion/interview, clinical experience of authors and deductive reasoning of authors. For validation, methods used were; the involvement of expert panel, the use of target population and factor analysis. Combination of methods produces questionnaires with good content validity and other psychometric properties which we consider good.

Assessing local patients' knowledge and awareness of radiation dose and risks associated with medical imaging: a questionnaire study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sin, Ho-kwan; Wong, Chun-Sing; Huang, Bingsheng; Yiu, Ka-ling; Wong, Wai-lam; Chu, Yin Ching Tiffany

2013-01-01

To assess the awareness of radiation dose and associated risks caused by radiological procedures among local patients. All subjects were recruited by randomly sampling the patients receiving radiological examinations. These subjects were stratified on age, sex and education. The questionnaire was in Chinese and consisted of 28 questions mostly in multiple choice/true-or-false format, divided into three sections examining demographic data, radiation knowledge/awareness and expectations. A total of 173 questionnaires were returned (83 females and 84 females; mean age of 53). Of these, 32.6% had attended college, 32.6% had completed matriculation and 24.4% secondary school. Most subjects underwent CT (75), MRI (70) and PET-CT (18). Education significantly affected the radiation knowledge (P=0.013). 60.7% and 32.7% were not aware of the radiation-free nature of MRI and USG, respectively. Respectively, 45.4% and 43.5% were of the misconception that Barium enema and Barium swallow studies do not involve radiation. Moreover, 77.6% and 87.9% were aware of the radiation-laden nature of CT and plain X-rays, respectively. Furthermore, 34% and 50%, respectively, think that they are not exposed to radiation at home and on a plane. Regarding the fatal cancer risk from CT, 17.8% chose the correct answer and 62% underestimated the risk. 32.2% correctly estimated the equivalent dose of CT in terms of number of conventional X-rays and 43.2% underestimated the dose. Most (98.2%) were told of the indication, and 42.7% were told the associated radiation dose. Patient radiation awareness is unsatisfactory. There is need to increase patient radiation awareness, and to provide them with the necessary information.

Development of the CarMen-Q Questionnaire for mental workload assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubio-Valdehita, Susana; López-Núñez, María I; López-Higes, Ramón; Díaz-Ramiro, Eva M

2017-11-01

Mental workload has emerged as one of the most important occupational risk factors present in most psychological and physical diseases caused by work. In view of the lack of specific tools to assess mental workload, the objective of this research was to assess the construct validity and reliability of a new questionnaire for mental workload assessment (CarMen-Q). The sample was composed of 884 workers from several professional sectors, between 18 and 65 years old, 53.4% men and 46.6% women. To evaluate the validity based on relationships with other measures, the NASA-TLX scale was also administered. Confirmatory factor analysis showed an internal structure made up of four dimensions: cognitive, temporal and emotional demands and performance requirement. The results show satisfactory evidence of validity based on relationships with NASA-TLX and good reliability. The questionnaire has good psychometric properties and can be an easy, brief, useful tool for mental workload diagnosis and prevention.

Pilot Study of a Computer-Based Parental Questionnaire and Visual Profile of Obesity Risk in Healthy Preschoolers.

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, Marilyn A; Terhorst, Lauren; Zhang, Peng; Nakonechny, Amanda J; Nowalk, Mary Patricia

2015-01-01

This group field-tested a computer-based, parental questionnaire entitled the Childhood Obesity Risk Questionnaire 2-5 (CORQ 2-5) designed to assess obesity risk in healthy preschoolers. COR 2-5 generates a profile of seven obesity risk factors. Field studies provided good internal reliability data and evidence of discriminant validity for the CORQ 2-5. Pediatric nurse clinicians found the CORQ 2-5 profile to be clinically relevant. The CORQ 2-5 is a promising measure of obesity risk in preschoolers who attend community-based health centers for their wellchild visits and who are not yet obese. CORQ 2-5 is intended to guide provider-parental obesity risk discussions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assessing obstetric patient experience: a SERVQUAL questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Garrard, Francesca; Narayan, Harini

2013-01-01

Across health services, there is a drive to respond to patient feedback and to incorporate their views into service improvement. The SERVQUAL method has been used in several clinical settings to quantify whether services meet patient expectations. However, work has been limited in the obstetric population. This paper seeks to address these issues. This study used an adapted SERVQUAL questionnaire to assess a reconfigured antenatal clinic service. The most important care aspects, as rated by patients, were used to construct the SERVQUAL questions. The questionnaire was administered to eligible women in two parts. The first was completed before their first hospital antenatal appointment and the second either at home (a postal-chasing exercise) or while waiting for their next appointment. Only fully completed questionnaires (both parts) were analysed. Service strengths included staff politeness, patient respect and privacy. Areas for improvement included hand cleanliness, women's involvement in decision making and communicating risk. However, the low variability in patient responses makes concrete conclusions difficult and methodological issues complicate evaluating hand cleanliness. The new antenatal clinic service received low negative weighted and un-weighted overall scores. The SERVQUAL measure was developed from patient feedback and used to further improve services. The SERVQUAL-based measure allowed an internal evaluation of patient experience and highlighted areas for improvement. However, without validation, the questionnaire cannot be used as an outcome measure and variation between published SERVQUAL questionnaires makes comparisons difficult. This highlights an important balance in patient evaluation measures--between locally responsive and externally comparable. The SERVQUAL approach allows healthcare teams to evaluate patient experience, while accounting for variation in their expectations and priorities. The study highlights several areas that are

Adaptation, translation and reliability of the Australian 'Juniors Enjoying Cricket Safely' injury risk perception questionnaire for Sri Lanka.

Science.gov (United States)

Gamage, Prasanna J; Fortington, Lauren V; Finch, Caroline F

2018-01-01

Cricket is a very popular sport in Sri Lanka. In this setting there has been limited research; specifically, there is little knowledge of cricket injuries. To support future research possibilities, the aim of this study was to cross-culturally adapt, translate and test the reliability of an Australian-developed questionnaire for the Sri Lankan context. The Australian 'Juniors Enjoying Cricket Safely' (JECS-Aus) injury risk perception questionnaire was cross-culturally adapted to suit the Sri Lankan context and subsequently translated into the two main languages (Sinhala and Tamil) based on standard forward-back translation. The translated questionnaires were examined for content validity by two language schoolteachers. The questionnaires were completed twice, 2 weeks apart, by two groups of school cricketers (males) aged 11-15 years (Sinhala (n=24), Tamil (n=30)) to assess reliability. Test-retest scores were evaluated for agreement. Where responses were statistics were calculated. Questions with moderate-to-poor test-retest reliability (κAus questionnaire for use in a different population, providing an outcome measure for assessing injury risk perceptions in Sri Lankan junior cricketers.

Health risk behaviours among adolescent girls: A questionnaire ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Health risk behaviours among adolescent girls: A questionnaire versus the timeline follow-back procedure. ... E Africa, K van Deventer ... These risk behaviours include violence, cigarette smoking, alcohol and drug use and abuse, irresponsible sexual behaviours, unhealthy eating habits and non-physical activity. The main ...

Cross-cultural validity of a dietary questionnaire for studies of dental caries risk in Japanese.

Science.gov (United States)

Shinga-Ishihara, Chikako; Nakai, Yukie; Milgrom, Peter; Murakami, Kaori; Matsumoto-Nakano, Michiyo

2014-01-02

Diet is a major modifiable contributing factor in the etiology of dental caries. The purpose of this paper is to examine the reliability and cross-cultural validity of the Japanese version of the Food Frequency Questionnaire to assess dietary intake in relation to dental caries risk in Japanese. The 38-item Food Frequency Questionnaire, in which Japanese food items were added to increase content validity, was translated into Japanese, and administered to two samples. The first sample comprised 355 pregnant women with mean age of 29.2 ± 4.2 years for the internal consistency and criterion validity analyses. Factor analysis (principal components with Varimax rotation) was used to determine dimensionality. The dietary cariogenicity score was calculated from the Food Frequency Questionnaire and used for the analyses. Salivary mutans streptococci level was used as a semi-quantitative assessment of dental caries risk and measured by Dentocult SM. Dentocult SM scores were compared with the dietary cariogenicity score computed from the Food Frequency Questionnaire to examine criterion validity, and assessed by Spearman's correlation coefficient (rs) and Kruskal-Wallis test. Test-retest reliability of the Food Frequency Questionnaire was assessed with a second sample of 25 adults with mean age of 34.0 ± 3.0 years by using the intraclass correlation coefficient analysis. The Japanese language version of the Food Frequency Questionnaire showed high test-retest reliability (ICC = 0.70) and good criterion validity assessed by relationship with salivary mutans streptococci levels (rs = 0.22; p < 0.001). Factor analysis revealed four subscales that construct the questionnaire (solid sugars, solid and starchy sugars, liquid and semisolid sugars, sticky and slowly dissolving sugars). Internal consistency were low to acceptable (Cronbach's alpha = 0.67 for the total scale, 0.46-0.61 for each subscale). Mean dietary cariogenicity scores were 50.8 ± 19.5 in the first sample, 47.4 �

A questionnaire to measure melanoma risk, knowledge and protective behaviour: Assessing content validity in a convenience sample of Scots and Australians

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lee Amanda J

2011-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The aim of this study was to assess the content validity of a questionnaire to measure melanoma risk, knowledge and protective behaviour in a convenience sample of Scots and Australians. Australia has the highest melanoma incidence worldwide but has developed a culture of skin cancer avoidance with a long history of skin cancer primary prevention campaigns of proven effectiveness. Scotland has lower incidence, but has shown a greater rate of increase between 1985 and 2007. There is an urgent need in Scotland, therefore, to identify those groups at greatest risk and provide them with effective preventative advice. Method A self-administered postal survey was completed by four groups formed from convenience samples in two geographical locations (Northeast Scotland and Western Australia. In univariate analysis scores on personal risk, level of concern, protective behaviour, and knowledge were compared by nationality, previous skin cancer diagnosis and personally knowing someone with melanoma. Multivariate linear regression analysis modelled the influence of potential predictor variables upon each of the scores. Results 540 people completed the questionnaire, 273 Scots (50.6%. 133 (24.6% Scots and 83 (15.4% Australians previously had melanoma or non-melanoma skin cancer, whilst 120 (22.2% Scots and 190 (35.2% Australians personally knew someone with melanoma. Australians had higher knowledge (p , level of concern (p and protective behaviour (p scores than the Scottish. Australian nationality was the strongest independent predictor of a higher knowledge score (p , followed by a previous skin cancer diagnosis (p = 0.003, personal knowledge of someone with melanoma (p = 0.011, female gender (p = 0.005 and higher education status (p (R2 = 0.163. Conclusion The questionnaire detected higher levels of knowledge and skin cancer protective behaviours in Australians than in Scottish people. This was expected and supports the content

Validity and reliability of a questionnaire on knowledge of cardiovascular risk factors for use in Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marco Aurelio Lumertz Saffi

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Using a sample of patients with coronary artery disease, this methodological study aimed to conduct a cross-cultural adaptation and validation of a questionnaire on knowledge of cardiovascular risk factors (Q-FARCS, lifestyle changes, and treatment adherence for use in Brazil. The questionnaire has three scales: general knowledge of risk factors (RFs; specific knowledge of these RFs; and lifestyle changes achieved. Cross-cultural adaptation included translation, synthesis, back-translation, expert committee review, and pretesting. Face and content validity, reliability, and construct validity were measured. Cronbach’s alpha for the total sample (n = 240 was 0.75. Assessment of psychometric properties revealed adequate face and content validity, and the construct revealed seven components. It was concluded that the Brazilian version of Q-FARCS had adequate reliability and validity for the assessment of knowledge of cardiovascular RFs.

Risk factor for phlebitis: a questionnaire study of nurses' perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Milutinović, Dragana; Simin, Dragana; Zec, Davor

2015-01-01

to assess nurses' perceptions of risk factors for the development of phlebitis, with a special focus on the perception of phlebitic potentials of some infusion medications and solutions. a cross-sectional questionnaire study, which included a sample of 102 nurses. Nurses recognized some factors that may reduce the incidence of phlebitis; however, more than half of the nurses were unaware that the material and diameter of the cannula can affect the incidence rate of phlebitis. Furthermore,underlying disease and high pH of medications or solutions were identified as potential risk factors, whereas low pH and low osmolality were not. Nurses identified Vancomycin and Benzylpenicillin antibiotics with the strongest phlebitic potential. Among other medications and intravenous fluids, Aminophylline, Amiodaronehydrochloride and Potassium chloride 7.4% were identified as potentially causing phlebitis. predisposing factors for phlebitis relating to patients and administered therapy were identified by nurses, while some cannula related risk factors, in particular its physicochemical properties and the time for cannula replacement, were not fully perceived.

Assessing personality risks using the Surps for alcohol and other ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Assessing personality risks using the Surps for alcohol and other drug problems in Cape Town, South Africa. ... African Journal of Drug and Alcohol Studies ... In this crosssectional study, the Substance Use Risk Profile Scale (SURPS) was applied to measure these traits and assess the questionnaire's reliability from a ...

SPECIFIC METHOD OF RISK ASSESSMENT IN TOURISM ENTERPRISES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreea ARMEAN

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The objective of this paper is to present an innovative method of risk assessment for tourism businesses. The contribution to literature is the novelty of this method of following paths: is an ante-factum assessment not post-factum; risk assessment is based on perception rather than results; is based on specific risks tourism enterprises not on the overall risks. Is an asset-research methodology and consists in generating its own method of risk assessment based on the ideas summarized from the literature studied. The aim established is tourism enterprises from Romania. The data necessary for the application of this method will result from applying to top level management of tourism enterprises, a questionnaire about risk perception. The results from this study will help identify and measure the risks specific to tourism enterprises. The applicability of the results is to improve risk management in these enterprises.

Sexual Risk Assessment for People with Intellectual Disabilities

Science.gov (United States)

Embregts, P.; van den Bogaard, K.; Hendriks, L.; Heestermans, M.; Schuitemaker, M.; van Wouwe, H.

2010-01-01

Given that sexually offensive behavior on the part of people with intellectual disabilities has been identified as a significant problem, we developed a risk assessment questionnaire, that takes not only various static and dynamic factors into account but also environmental risk variables. Psychologists and staff members completed this Risk…

Development, reliability, and validity testing of Toddler NutriSTEP: a nutrition risk screening questionnaire for children 18-35 months of age.

Science.gov (United States)

Randall Simpson, Janis; Gumbley, Jillian; Whyte, Kylie; Lac, Jane; Morra, Crystal; Rysdale, Lee; Turfryer, Mary; McGibbon, Kim; Beyers, Joanne; Keller, Heather

2015-09-01

Nutrition is vital for optimal growth and development of young children. Nutrition risk screening can facilitate early intervention when followed by nutritional assessment and treatment. NutriSTEP (Nutrition Screening Tool for Every Preschooler) is a valid and reliable nutrition risk screening questionnaire for preschoolers (aged 3-5 years). A need was identified for a similar questionnaire for toddlers (aged 18-35 months). The purpose was to develop a reliable and valid Toddler NutriSTEP. Toddler NutriSTEP was developed in 4 phases. Content and face validity were determined with a literature review, parent focus groups (n = 6; 48 participants), and experts (n = 13) (phase A). A draft questionnaire was refined with key intercept interviews of 107 parents/caregivers (phase B). Test-retest reliability (phase C), based on intra-class correlations (ICC), Kappa (κ) statistics, and Wilcoxon tests was assessed with 133 parents/caregivers. Criterion validity (phase D) was assessed using Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves by comparing scores on the Toddler NutriSTEP to a comprehensive nutritional assessment of 200 toddlers with a registered dietitian (RD). The Toddler NutriSTEP was reliable between 2 administrations (ICC = 0.951, F = 20.53, p Toddler NutriSTEP were correlated (r = 0.67, p Toddler NutriSTEP questionnaire is both reliable and valid for screening for nutritional risk in toddlers.

Development and Evaluation of an Online Fall-Risk Questionnaire for Nonfrail Community-Dwelling Elderly Persons: A Pilot Study

Science.gov (United States)

Obrist, Seraina; Rogan, Slavko; Hilfiker, Roger

2016-01-01

Introduction. Falls are frequent in older adults and may have serious consequences but awareness of fall-risk is often low. A questionnaire might raise awareness of fall-risk; therefore we set out to construct and test such a questionnaire. Methods. Fall-risk factors and their odds ratios were extracted from meta-analyses and a questionnaire was devised to cover these risk factors. A formula to estimate the probability of future falls was set up using the extracted odds ratios. The understandability of the questionnaire and discrimination and calibration of the prediction formula were tested in a cohort study with a six-month follow-up. Community-dwelling persons over 60 years were recruited by an e-mail snowball-sampling method. Results and Discussion. We included 134 persons. Response rates for the monthly fall-related follow-up varied between the months and ranged from low 38% to high 90%. The proportion of present risk factors was low. Twenty-five participants reported falls. Discrimination was moderate (AUC: 0.67, 95% CI 0.54 to 0.81). The understandability, with the exception of five questions, was good. The wording of the questions needs to be improved and measures to increase the monthly response rates are needed before test-retest reliability and final predictive value can be assessed. PMID:27247571

Risk factor for phlebitis: a questionnaire study of nurses' perception

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dragana Milutinović

2015-08-01

Full Text Available AbstractObjectives: to assess nurses' perceptions of risk factors for the development of phlebitis, with a special focus on the perception of phlebitic potentials of some infusion medications and solutions.Method: a cross-sectional questionnaire study, which included a sample of 102 nurses.Results: Nurses recognized some factors that may reduce the incidence of phlebitis; however, more than half of the nurses were unaware that the material and diameter of the cannula can affect the incidence rate of phlebitis. Furthermore,underlying disease and high pH of medications or solutions were identified as potential risk factors, whereas low pH and low osmolality were not. Nurses identified Vancomycin and Benzylpenicillin antibiotics with the strongest phlebitic potential. Among other medications and intravenous fluids, Aminophylline, Amiodaronehydrochloride and Potassium chloride 7.4% were identified as potentially causing phlebitis.Conclusion: predisposing factors for phlebitis relating to patients and administered therapy were identified by nurses, while some cannula related risk factors, in particular its physicochemical properties and the time for cannula replacement, were not fully perceived.

Ensuring the quality of occupational safety risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Pinto, Abel; Ribeiro, Rita A; Nunes, Isabel L

2013-03-01

In work environments, the main aim of occupational safety risk assessment (OSRA) is to improve the safety level of an installation or site by either preventing accidents and injuries or minimizing their consequences. To this end, it is of paramount importance to identify all sources of hazards and assess their potential to cause problems in the respective context. If the OSRA process is inadequate and/or not applied effectively, it results in an ineffective safety prevention program and inefficient use of resources. An appropriate OSRA is an essential component of the occupational safety risk management process in industries. In this article, we performed a survey to elicit the relative importance for identified OSRA tasks to enable an in-depth evaluation of the quality of risk assessments related to occupational safety aspects on industrial sites. The survey involved defining a questionnaire with the most important elements (tasks) for OSRA quality assessment, which was then presented to safety experts in the mining, electrical power production, transportation, and petrochemical industries. With this work, we expect to contribute to the main question of OSRA in industries: "What constitutes a good occupational safety risk assessment?" The results obtained from the questionnaire showed that experts agree with the proposed OSRA process decomposition in steps and tasks (taxonomy) and also with the importance of assigning weights to obtain knowledge about OSRA task relevance. The knowledge gained will enable us, in the near future, to build a framework to evaluate OSRA quality for industrial sites. © 2012 Society for Risk Analysis.

The role of questionnaires in the assessment of asthma control.

Science.gov (United States)

Przybyszowski, Marek; Bochenek, Grażyna

2015-01-01

The achievement and the maintenance of asthma control is currently considered the main goal of asthma treatment. Recent guidelines recommend regular assessment of asthma control and indicate questionnaires as important tools that can facilitate its evaluation. Questionnaires relate to GINA or NAEPP guidelines. Questionnaires constitute complex numerical or categorical scales and consist of several to over a dozen questions relating to the patient's symptoms of asthma, limitations in daily activities and usage of rescue medications within a period of time. Each questionnaire is characterized by the features that affect its reliability and usefulness. In the following paper we discuss most of the questionnaires which assess asthma control. We focus on the items they include and present the results of studies that prove the effectiveness of individual questionnaires in assessment of asthma control. Attention was drawn to the patient groups to which the questionnaires are addressed. We list the features of the questionnaire which should be considered before choosing a test, so that it satisfies both the doctor's and the patient's needs. The role of questionnaires as the easy-to-use tools is growing steadily. Unfortunately, not all are available in Polish language. Conducting appropriate validation studies may allow to use many of them in Polish conditions.

Development and Evaluation of an Online Fall-Risk Questionnaire for Nonfrail Community-Dwelling Elderly Persons: A Pilot Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seraina Obrist

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. Falls are frequent in older adults and may have serious consequences but awareness of fall-risk is often low. A questionnaire might raise awareness of fall-risk; therefore we set out to construct and test such a questionnaire. Methods. Fall-risk factors and their odds ratios were extracted from meta-analyses and a questionnaire was devised to cover these risk factors. A formula to estimate the probability of future falls was set up using the extracted odds ratios. The understandability of the questionnaire and discrimination and calibration of the prediction formula were tested in a cohort study with a six-month follow-up. Community-dwelling persons over 60 years were recruited by an e-mail snowball-sampling method. Results and Discussion. We included 134 persons. Response rates for the monthly fall-related follow-up varied between the months and ranged from low 38% to high 90%. The proportion of present risk factors was low. Twenty-five participants reported falls. Discrimination was moderate (AUC: 0.67, 95% CI 0.54 to 0.81. The understandability, with the exception of five questions, was good. The wording of the questions needs to be improved and measures to increase the monthly response rates are needed before test-retest reliability and final predictive value can be assessed.

Evaluating the risk of nonresponse bias in educational large-scale assessments with school nonresponse questionnaires: a theoretical study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sabine Meinck

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Survey participation rates can have a direct impact on the validity of the data collected since nonresponse always holds the risk of bias. Therefore, the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA has set very high standards for minimum survey participation rates. Nonresponse in IEA studies varies between studies and cycles. School participation is at a higher risk relative to within-school participation; school students are more likely to cooperate than adults (i.e., university students or school teachers. Across all studies conducted by the IEA during the last decade, between 7 and 33% of participating countries failed to meet the minimum participation rates at the school level. Quantifying the bias introduced by nonresponse is practically impossible with the currently implemented design. During the last decade social researchers have introduced and developed the concept of nonresponse questionnaires. These are shortened instruments applied to nonrespondents, and aim to capture information that correlates with both: survey’s main outcome variable(s, and respondent’s propensity of participation. We suggest in this paper a method to develop such questionnaires for nonresponding schools in IEA studies. By these means, we investigated school characteristics that are associated with students’ average achievement scores using correlational and multivariate regression analysis in three recent IEA studies. We developed regression models that explain with only 11 school questionnaire variables or less up to 77% of the variance of the school mean achievement score. On average across all countries, the R 2 of these models was 0.24 (PIRLS, 0.34 (TIMSS, grade 4 and 0.36 (TIMSS grade 8, using 6–11 variables. We suggest that data from such questionnaires can help to evaluate bias risks in an effective way. Further, we argue that for countries with low participation rates a change in the approach of computing

The Stanford Health Assessment Questionnaire: Dimensions and Practical Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fries James F

2003-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract The ability to effectively measure health-related quality-of-life longitudinally is central to describing the impacts of disease, treatment, or other insults, including normal aging, upon the patient. Over the last two decades, assessment of patient health status has undergone a dramatic paradigm shift, evolving from a predominant reliance on biochemical and physical measurements, such as erythrocyte sedimentation rate, lipid profiles, or radiographs, to an emphasis upon health outcomes based on the patient's personal appreciation of their illness. The Health Assessment Questionnaire (HAQ, published in 1980, was among the first instruments based on generic, patient-centered dimensions. The HAQ was designed to represent a model of patient-oriented outcome assessment and has played a major role in many diverse areas such as prediction of successful aging, inversion of the therapeutic pyramid in rheumatoid arthritis (RA, quantification of NSAID gastropathy, development of risk factor models for osteoarthrosis, and examination of mortality risks in RA. Evidenced by its use over the past two decades in diverse settings, the HAQ has established itself as a valuable, effective, and sensitive tool for measurement of health status. It is available in more than 60 languages and is supported by a bibliography of more than 500 references. It has increased the credibility and use of validated self-report measurement techniques as a quantifiable set of hard data endpoints and has contributed to a new appreciation of outcome assessment. In this article, information regarding the HAQ's development, content, dissemination and reference sources for its uses, translations, and validations are provided.

An assessment of high risk sexual behaviour and HIV transmission ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

An assessment of high risk sexual behaviour and HIV transmission among migrant oil workers in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria. ... questionnaires to evaluate key high – risk sexual behavioral parameters such as multiplicity of sexual partners, bisexuality (closet homosexuality), high grade sexual behaviour and lesbianism.

Handicap questionnaires: what do they assess?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cardol, M.; Brandsma, J. W.; de Groot, I. J.; van den Bos, G. A.; de Haan, R. J.; de Jong, B. A.

1999-01-01

There is an increasing need to get insight into the social and societal impact of chronic conditions on a person's life, i.e. person-perceived handicap. The purpose of this study is to report how current handicap questionnaires assess handicap. A literature search using both Medline and the database

Systematic review: questionnaires for assessment of gastroesophageal reflux disease

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bolier, E. A.; Kessing, B. F.; Smout, A. J.; Bredenoord, A. J.

2015-01-01

Numerous questionnaires with a wide variety of characteristics have been developed for the assessment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). Four well-defined dimensions are noticeable in these GERD questionnaires, which are symptoms, response to treatment, diagnosis, and burden on the quality

Behavioral Assessment: Questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, C. Chrisman

1980-01-01

This is a general discussion of the validity, reliability, function, and format of questionnaires designed to measure problem behavior, noncompliance, anxiety, social interaction, hyperactivity, drug use, and sexual behavior. Commonly used questionnaires are cited. (CP)

Evaluation of Traffic Accident Risk in In-City Bus Drivers: The Use of Berlin Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Ekren, Pervin Korkmaz; Uysal, Funda Elmas; Başoğlu, Özen K.

2018-01-01

OBJECTIVES Traffic accidents associated with high mortality rate may produce serious problems especially in highways. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been associated with a high risk for traffic accidents due to excessive daytime sleepiness even in in-city drivers. In the present study, it was aimed to evaluate the rate of OSA symptoms and to identify risk factors associated with traffic accidents in in-city bus drivers. MATERIAL AND METHODS A self-administered questionnaire including demographic and anthropometric features, sleep and work schedules, Berlin questionnaire, Epworth sleepiness score (ESS), and history of traffic accidents was used. RESULTS The questionnaire was conducted for 1400 male bus drivers (mean age, 38.0±6.4 y, body mass index, 27.8±3.9 kg/m2). A total of 1058 (75.6%) drivers had one or more accidents while driving bus. According to the Berlin questionnaire, 176 (12.6%) drivers were found to have high OSA risk and the accident rate was 83.0% in high-risk group, whereas 74.5% of low-risk drivers had accidents (p=0.043). The drivers with a history of traffic accident were older (p=0.030), had higher ESS (p=0.019), and were more in the high-risk OSA group according to the Berlin questionnaire (p=0.015). In multivariate linear regression analysis, traffic accident was associated with only Berlin questionnaire (p=0.015). CONCLUSION The present results support that city bus drivers with high OSA risk according to Berlin questionnaire have increased accident rates. Therefore, we suggest using Berlin questionnaire for screening sleep apnea not only in highway drivers but also in in-city bus drivers. PMID:29755810

Challenges in Risk Assessment: Quantitative Risk Assessment

OpenAIRE

Jacxsens, Liesbeth; Uyttendaele, Mieke; De Meulenaer, Bruno

2016-01-01

The process of risk analysis consists out of three components, risk assessment, risk management and risk communication. These components are internationally well spread by Codex Alimentarius Commission as being the basis for setting science based standards, criteria on food safety hazards, e.g. setting maximum limits of mycotoxins in foodstuffs. However, the technical component risk assessment is hard to elaborate and to understand. Key in a risk assessment is the translation of biological or...

Sexual behavioral abstine HIV/AIDS questionnaire: Validation study of an Iranian questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Najarkolaei, Fatemeh Rahmati; Niknami, Shamsaddin; Shokravi, Farkhondeh Amin; Tavafian, Sedigheh Sadat; Fesharaki, Mohammad Gholami; Jafari, Mohammad Reza

2014-01-01

This study was designed to assess the validity and reliability of the designed sexual, behavioral abstinence, and avoidance of high-risk situation questionnaire (SBAHAQ), with an aim to construct an appropriate development tool in the Iranian population. A descriptive-analytic study was conducted among female undergraduate students of Tehran University, who were selected through cluster random sampling. After reviewing the questionnaires and investigating face and content validity, internal consistency of the questionnaire was assessed by Cronbach's alpha. Explanatory and confirmatory factor analysis was conducted using SPSS and AMOS 16 Software, respectively. The sample consisted of 348 female university students with a mean age of 20.69 ± 1.63 years. The content validity ratio (CVR) coefficient was 0.85 and the reliability of each section of the questionnaire was as follows: Perceived benefit (PB; 0.87), behavioral intention (BI; 0.77), and self-efficacy (SE; 0.85) (Cronbach's alpha totally was 0.83). Explanatory factor analysis showed three factors, including SE, PB, and BI, with the total variance of 61% and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) index of 88%. These factors were also confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis [adjusted goodness of fitness index (AGFI) = 0.939, root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = 0.039]. This study showed the designed questionnaire provided adequate construct validity and reliability, and could be adequately used to measure sexual abstinence and avoidance of high-risk situations among female students.

Questionnaire-based assessment of executive functioning: Case studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Kronenberger, William G; Castellanos, Irina; Pisoni, David B

2018-01-01

Delays in the development of executive functioning skills are frequently observed in pediatric neuropsychology populations and can have a broad and significant impact on quality of life. As a result, assessment of executive functioning is often relevant for the development of formulations and recommendations in pediatric neuropsychology clinical work. Questionnaire-based measures of executive functioning behaviors in everyday life have unique advantages and complement traditional neuropsychological measures of executive functioning. Two case studies of children with spina bifida are presented to illustrate the clinical use of a new questionnaire measure of executive and learning-related functioning, the Learning, Executive, and Attention Functioning Scale (LEAF). The LEAF emphasizes clinical utility in assessment by incorporating four characteristics: brevity in administration, breadth of additional relevant content, efficiency of scoring and interpretation, and ease of availability for use. LEAF results were consistent with another executive functioning checklist in documenting everyday behavior problems related to working memory, planning, and organization while offering additional breadth of assessment of domains such as attention, processing speed, and novel problem-solving. These case study results demonstrate the clinical utility of questionnaire-based measurement of executive functioning in pediatric neuropsychology and provide a new measure for accomplishing this goal.

Identifying workers at risk of sickness absence by questionnaire

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roelen, Corne A. M.; van der Pol, Tjepke R.; Koopmans, Petra C.; Groothoff, Johan W.

2006-01-01

Background Sickness absence is an important economic problem, because of high costs and lost productivity. Determining factors associated with increased risk of sickness absence may lead to the development of preventive measures. Aims To determine whether self-report questionnaires can identify

Design and validation of a questionnaire for measuring perceived risk of skin cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Morales-Sánchez, M A; Peralta-Pedrero, M L; Domínguez-Gómez, M A

2014-04-01

A perceived risk of cancer encourages preventive behavior while the lack of such a perception is a barrier to risk reduction. There are no instruments in Spanish to measure this perceived risk and thus quantify response to interventions for preventing this disease at a population level. The aim of this study was to design and validate a self-administered questionnaire for measuring the perceived risk of skin cancer. A self-administered questionnaire with a visual Likert-type scale was designed based on the results of the analysis of the content of a survey performed in 100 patients in the Dr. Ladislao de la Pascua Skin Clinic, Distrito Federal México, Mexico. Subsequently, the questionnaire was administered to a sample of 359 adult patients who attended the clinic for the first time. As no gold standard exists for measuring the perceived risk of skin cancer, the construct was validated through factor analysis. The final questionnaire had 18 items. The internal consistency measured with Cronbach α was 0.824 overall. In the factor analysis, 4 factors (denoted as affective, behavioral, severity, and susceptibility) and an indicator of risk accounted for 65.133% of the variance. The psychometric properties of the scale were appropriate for measuring the perception of risk in adult patients (aged 18 years or more) who attended the dermatology clinic. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier España, S.L. and AEDV. All rights reserved.

Development of Questionnaire for Self-Assessment of Regulatory Capture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Muhmood, Ul Hassan; Lee, Young Eal [Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority, Islamabad (Pakistan); Choi, Kwang Sik [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-15

Nuclear industry with its evolution in 60s came with a number of pros and cons. In order to avoid any accident or incident, highest safety standards and quality control mechanism were established. The relation of regulator with its licensee is critical in the sense of public safety and welfare. The situation when the regulator starts to work for the interests of the industry instead of the public interest and fails to cling with his mission is known as 'regulatory capture' which may cause a number of serious negative effects like radiological or radiation risk. According to George Stigler, as a rule regulation is acquired by the industry and is designed and operated primarily for its benefit. The phenomenon of regulatory capture may hamper the safety culture and can also be considered as regulatory failure. It is therefore necessary to clearly understand this type of government failure to avoid the happening of serious accidents like TMI and Fukushima in the future. This paper aims to explore whether the regulatory body works independently and effectively to achieve its assigned tasks and objectives. Hence we proposed a questionnaire for the self-assessment of regulatory capture within the regulatory body. It also includes the results of an experimental assessment which was carried out to check the relevance and reliability of the questions to this subject. This assessment survey was conducted with the officers and staff members of Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA). We checked the significance of the proposed questionnaire and found some of the questions like Q. 27, 30 and 33 (written in italic) are not directly related to the phenomenon of regulatory capture. However, the existence of the situation which has been asked in these questions may lead towards the hampering of regulatory culture.

Development of Questionnaire for Self-Assessment of Regulatory Capture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muhmood, Ul Hassan; Lee, Young Eal; Choi, Kwang Sik

2014-01-01

Nuclear industry with its evolution in 60s came with a number of pros and cons. In order to avoid any accident or incident, highest safety standards and quality control mechanism were established. The relation of regulator with its licensee is critical in the sense of public safety and welfare. The situation when the regulator starts to work for the interests of the industry instead of the public interest and fails to cling with his mission is known as 'regulatory capture' which may cause a number of serious negative effects like radiological or radiation risk. According to George Stigler, as a rule regulation is acquired by the industry and is designed and operated primarily for its benefit. The phenomenon of regulatory capture may hamper the safety culture and can also be considered as regulatory failure. It is therefore necessary to clearly understand this type of government failure to avoid the happening of serious accidents like TMI and Fukushima in the future. This paper aims to explore whether the regulatory body works independently and effectively to achieve its assigned tasks and objectives. Hence we proposed a questionnaire for the self-assessment of regulatory capture within the regulatory body. It also includes the results of an experimental assessment which was carried out to check the relevance and reliability of the questions to this subject. This assessment survey was conducted with the officers and staff members of Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA). We checked the significance of the proposed questionnaire and found some of the questions like Q. 27, 30 and 33 (written in italic) are not directly related to the phenomenon of regulatory capture. However, the existence of the situation which has been asked in these questions may lead towards the hampering of regulatory culture

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMDs) risk assessment at core assembly production of electronic components manufacturing company

Science.gov (United States)

Yahya, N. M.; Zahid, M. N. O.

2018-03-01

This study conducted to assess the work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMDs) among the workers at core assembly production in an electronic components manufacturing company located in Pekan, Pahang, Malaysia. The study is to identify the WMDs risk factor and risk level. A set of questionnaires survey based on modified Nordic Musculoskeletal Disorder Questionnaires have been distributed to respective workers to acquire the WMDs risk factor identification. Then, postural analysis was conducted in order to measure the respective WMDs risk level. The analysis were based on two ergonomics assessment tools; Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) and Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA). The study found that 30 respondents out of 36 respondents suffered from WMDs especially at shoulder, wrists and lower back. The WMDs risk have been identified from unloading process, pressing process and winding process. In term of the WMDs risk level, REBA and RULA assessment tools have indicated high risk level to unloading and pressing process. Thus, this study had established the WMDs risk factor and risk level of core assembly production in an electronic components manufacturing company at Malaysia environment.

Self-Reported Knee Symptoms Assessed by KOOS Questionnaire in Downhill Runners (Skyrunners.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giulio Sergio Roi

Full Text Available The knee is the weight-bearing joint most commonly associated with sports injuries, and therefore is most at risk of developing degenerative changes, including osteoarthritis. Skyrunners can be considered to be at risk of developing symptoms of post-traumatic osteoarthritis due to downhill running.The aim of this study was to analyze the health of the knee joints of a large group of these athletes via a specific self-report questionnaire.This study was carried out by asking the participants of seven official Skyraces (22.4±3.1 km length; 1596±393 m elevation to fill out a questionnaire. Information regarding age, sex, downhill elevation (m during training and competitions over the last month, and history of previous knee injury was also collected before the participants filled out the Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS, which is a reliable and validated instrument designed to assess patients' opinions about their knees and associated problems that can result in post-traumatic osteoarthritis. Athletes were divided into six age groups (from 17 to 70 years and 12 groups based on the downhill gradient they had covered over the last month (from 1,000 to 40,000 m.Six hundred twenty-one questionnaires were collected from 45% of the participants in the seven races. Multivariate analysis revealed that self-reported KOOS scores were unrelated to age, sex and monthly downhill gradient. Only 74 (12% of the participants reported previous knee injuries. Significant differences in the five subscales of the KOOS were found between skyrunners with and without previous knee injuries (P<0.01.In the studied population, regular training for downhill running and participation in Skyraces could not be considered risk factors for subjective knee symptoms. Skyrunners with self-reported histories of knee injuries scored worse on all five subscales of the KOOS.

Psychological impact of family history risk assessment in primary care: a mixed methods study.

Science.gov (United States)

Birt, Linda; Emery, Jon D; Prevost, A Toby; Sutton, Stephen; Walter, Fiona M

2014-08-01

Routine family history risk assessment for chronic diseases could enable primary care practitioners to efficiently identify at-risk patients and promote preventive management strategies. To investigate patients' understanding and responses to family history risk assessment in primary care. A mixed methods study set in 10 Eastern England general practices. Participants in a family history questionnaire validation study were triaged into population or increased risk for four chronic diseases (type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, colorectal cancer). Questionnaires completed immediately prior to the family history consultation (baseline) and 4 weeks later (follow-up) assessed the psychological impact, including State-Trait Anxiety Inventory scores. Semi-structured interviews explored the meaning participants gave to their personal familial disease risk. Four hundred and fifty-three participants completed both baseline and follow-up questionnaires and 30 were interviewed. At follow-up, there was no increase in anxiety among either group, or differences between the groups [difference in mean change 0.02, 95% confidence interval -2.04, 2.08, P = 0.98]. There were no significant changes over time in self-rated health in either group. At follow-up, participants at increased risk (n = 153) were more likely to have recent changes to behaviour and they had stronger intentions to make changes to diet (P = 0.001), physical activity (P = 0.006) and to seek further information in the future than those at population risk (n = 300; P assessment for familial risk of chronic diseases may be undertaken in primary care without causing anxiety or reducing self-rated health. Patient responses to family history risk assessment may inform promotion of preventive management strategies. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

The medical instructional questionnaire used to assess the quality of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The medical instructional questionnaire used to assess the quality of South ... led to the development of a questionnaire to measure students' perceptions of their ... use of the instrument is the provision of more specific feedback to preceptors ...

Psychosis risk screening: Validation of the youth psychosis at-risk questionnaire - brief in a community-derived sample of adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Fonseca-Pedrero, Eduardo; Ortuño-Sierra, Javier; Chocarro, Edurne; Inchausti, Felix; Debbané, Martin; Bobes, Julio

2017-12-01

There have been several attempts to identify individuals potentially at high risk for psychotic-spectrum disorders using brief screening measures. However, relatively few studies have tested the psychometric properties of the psychosis screening measures in representative samples of adolescents. The main purpose of the present study was to analyse the prevalence, factorial structure, measurement invariance across gender, and reliability of the Youth Psychosis At-Risk Questionnaire - Brief (YPARQ-B) in a community-derived sample of adolescents. Additionally, the relationship between YPARQ-B, depressive symptoms, psychopathology, stress manifestations, and prosocial skills was analysed. One thousand and twenty students from high schools participated in a cross-sectional survey. The YPARQ-B, the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, and the Student Stress Inventory - Stress Manifestations were used. A total of 85.1% of the total sample self-reported at least one subclinical psychotic experience. We observed a total of 10.9% of adolescents with a cutoff score of ≥11 or 6.8% with a cutoff score of ≥13. The analysis of internal structure of the YPARQ-B yielded an essentially unidimensional structure. The YPARQ-B scores showed measurement invariance across gender. The internal consistency of the YPARQ-B total score was 0.94. Furthermore, self-reported subclinical psychotic experiences were associated with depressive symptoms, emotional and behavioural problems, poor prosocial skills, and stress manifestations. These results would appear to indicate that YPARQ-B is a brief and easy tool to assess self-reported subclinical psychotic experiences in adolescents from the general population. The assessment of these experiences in community settings, and its associations with psychopathology, may help us to enhance the possibility of an early identification of adolescents potentially at risk for psychosis and mental health

Development and Validation of the Personality Assessment Questionnaire: Test Manual.

Science.gov (United States)

Rohner, Ronald P.; And Others

Data are presented evaluating the validity and reliability of the Personality Assessment Questionnaire (PAQ), a self-report questionnaire designed to elicit respondents' perceptions of themselves with respect to seven personality and behavioral dispositions: hostility and aggression, dependence, self-esteem, self-adequacy, emotional…

Predicting dyslexia at age 11 from a risk index questionnaire at age 5.

Science.gov (United States)

Helland, Turid; Plante, Elena; Hugdahl, Kenneth

2011-08-01

This study focused on predicting dyslexia in children ahead of formal literacy training. Because dyslexia is a constitutional impairment, risk factors should be seen in preschool. It was hypothesized that data gathered at age 5 using questions targeting the dyslexia endophenotype should be reliable and valid predictors of dyslexia at age 11. A questionnaire was given to caretakers of 120 5-year-old children, and a risk index score was calculated based on questions regarding health, laterality, motor skills, language, special needs education and heredity. An at-risk group (n = 25) and matched controls (n = 24) were followed until age 11, when a similar questionnaire and literacy tests were administered to the children who participated in the follow-up study (22 at risk and 20 control). Half of the at-risk children and two of the control children at age 5 were identified as having dyslexia at age 11 (8 girls and 5 boys). It is concluded that it is possible to identify children at the age of 5 who will have dyslexia at the age of 11 through a questionnaire approach. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[DIFFERENT APPROACHES FOR CHEMICAL RISK ASSESSMENT IN LABORATORIES].

Science.gov (United States)

Caporossi, Lidia; Papaleo, Bruno; Capanna, Silvia; Calicchia, Sara; Marcellini, Laura; De Rosa, Mariangela; Castellano, Paola

2015-01-01

The aim of this study was to compare the different approaches used for chemical risk assessment, in relation to the perception of riskfor operators, in some research laboratories of a hospital in Rome. All information regarding the chemicals used for the application of three algorithmic models for chemical risk assessment ("Movarisch", "Inforisk", "Archimede") were collected. An environmental and biological monitoring and a study on the combined exposure to multiple chemicals using the World Health Organization proposed steps were carried out. A questionnaire was prepared for the identification of risk perception. An estimation of chemical risk with algorithms was compared with data from monitoring: findings showed that estimated risk was higher than those identified with airborne or urine concentrations, always under their limit values. The study of multiple exposure showed a possible cumulative risk, in some cases, but the conditions of use (volume and time) often bring to a reduced one. The perception of risk attributed to the monitored hazardous substances showed a correct perception in all laboratories and for all workers, with regard to the substances manipulated.

Quality of questionnaires for the assessment of otitis media with effusion in children.

Science.gov (United States)

Gan, R W C; Daniel, M; Ridley, M; Barry, J G

2018-04-01

Audiometric tests provide information about hearing in otitis media with effusion (OME). Questionnaires can supplement this information by supporting clinical history-taking as well as potentially providing a standardized and comprehensive assessment of the impact of the disease on a child. There are many possible candidate questionnaires. This study aimed to assess the quality and usability of parent / child questionnaires in OME assessment. Fifteen, published questionnaires, commonly used in audiological departments (Auditory Behaviour in Everyday Life (ABEL), Children's Auditory Performance Scale (CHAPS), Children's Home Inventory for Listening Difficulties (CHILD), Children's Outcome Worksheets (COW), Evaluation of Children's Listening and Processing Skills (ECLiPS), Early Listening Function (ELF), Fisher's Auditory Problem Checklist (FAPC), Hearing Loss 7 (HL-7), Listening Inventory for Education- Revised (LIFE-R Student), Listening Inventory for Education UK Individual Hearing Profile (LIFE-UK IHP), LittlEARS Auditory Questionnaire (LittlEARS), Listening Situations Questionnaire (LSQ), Otitis Media 6 (OM-6), Quality of Life in Children's Ear Problems (OMQ-14), Parents' Evaluation of Aural/Oral Performance of Children (PEACH) were assessed according to the following 8 criteria: conceptual clarity, respondent burden, reliability, validity, normative data, item bias, ceiling/ floor effects, and administrative burden. ECLiPS, LittlEARS and PEACH scored highest overall based on the assessment criteria established for this study. None of the questionnaires fully satisfied all 8 criteria. Although all questionnaires assessed issues considered to be of at least adequate relevance to OME, the majority had weaknesses with respect to the assessment of psychometric properties, such as item bias, floor/ceiling effects or measurement reliability and validity. Publications reporting on the evaluation of reliability, validity, normative data, item bias and ceiling

Identifying Factors Associated with Risk Assessment Competencies of Public Health Emergency Responders.

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Jiejing; Ren, Jiaojiao; Wu, Qunhong; Hao, Yanhua; Sun, Hong; Ning, Ning; Ding, Ding

2017-06-04

This study aimed to better understand the current situation of risk assessment and identify the factors associated with competence of emergency responders in public health risk assessment. The participants were selected by a multi-stage, stratified cluster sampling method in Heilongjiang Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The questionnaires that measured their perceptions on risk assessment competences were administered through the face-to-face survey. A final sample of 1889 staff was obtained. Of this sample, 78.6% of respondents rated their own risk assessment competences as "relatively low", contrasting with 21.4% rated as "relatively high". Most of the respondents (62.7%) did not participate in any risk assessment work. Only 13.7% and 42.7% of respondents reported participating in risk assessment training and were familiar with risk assessment tools. There existed statistical significance between risk assessment-related characteristics of respondents and their self-rated competences scores. Financial support from the government and administrative attention were regarded as the important factors contributing to risk assessment competences of CDC responders. Higher attention should be given to risk assessment training and enhancing the availability of surveillance data. Continuous efforts should be made to remove the financial and technical obstacles to improve the competences of risk assessment for public health emergency responders.

Information Security Risk Assessment in Hospitals.

Science.gov (United States)

Ayatollahi, Haleh; Shagerdi, Ghazal

2017-01-01

To date, many efforts have been made to classify information security threats, especially in the healthcare area. However, there are still many unknown risks which may threat the security of health information and their resources especially in the hospitals. The aim of this study was to assess the risks threatening information security in the hospitals located in one of the northwest cities of Iran. This study was completed in 2014. The participants were information technology managers who worked in the hospitals (n=27). The research instrument was a questionnaire composed of a number of open and closed questions. The content validity of the questionnaire was confirmed, and the reliability of the closed questions was measured by using the test-retest method (r =0.78). The results showed that among the information security risks, fire found to be a high probability/high impact risk factor. Human and physical/environmental threats were among the low probability risk factors. Regarding the information security safeguards used in the hospitals, the results showed that the use of the technical safeguards was the most frequent one (n =22, 91.7%) compared to the administrative (n =21, 87.5%) and the physical safeguards (n =16, 66.7%). The high probability risk factors require quick corrective actions to be taken. Therefore, the underlying causes of such threats should be identified and controlled before experiencing adverse effects. It is also important to note that information security in health care systems needs to be considered at a macro level with respect to the national interests and policies.

Questionnaire to assess patient satisfaction with pharmaceutical care in Spanish language.

Science.gov (United States)

Traverso, María Luz; Salamano, Mercedes; Botta, Carina; Colautti, Marisel; Palchik, Valeria; Pérez, Beatriz

2007-08-01

To develop and validate a questionnaire, in Spanish, for assessing patient satisfaction with pharmaceutical care received in community pharmacies. Selection and translation of questionnaire's items; definition of response scale and demographic questions. Evaluation of face and content validity, feasibility, factor structure, reliability and construct validity. Forty-one community pharmacies of the province of Santa Fe. Argentina. Questionnaire administered to patients receiving pharmaceutical care or traditional pharmacy services. Pilot test to assess feasibility. Factor analysis used principal components and varimax rotation. Reliability established using internal consistency with Cronbach's alpha. Construct validity determined with extreme group method. A self-administered questionnaire with 27 items, 5-point Likert response scale and demographic questions was designed considering multidimensional structure of patient satisfaction. Questionnaire evaluates cumulative experience of patients with comprehensive pharmaceutical care practice in community pharmacies. Two hundred and seventy-four complete questionnaires were obtained. Factor analysis resulted in three factors: Managing therapy, Interpersonal relationship and General satisfaction, with a cumulative variance of 62.51%. Cronbach's alpha for the whole questionnaire was 0.96, and 0.95, 0.88 and 0.76 for the three factors, respectively. Mann-Whitney test for construct validity did not showed significant differences between pharmacies that provide pharmaceutical care and those that do not, however, 23 items showed significant differences between the two groups of pharmacies. The questionnaire developed can be a reliable and valid instrument to assess patient satisfaction with pharmaceutical care in community pharmacies in Spanish. Further research is needed to deepen the validation process.

Original article Familial risk of dyslexia in Polish first grade pupils based on the ARHQ-PL Questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Grażyna Krasowicz-Kupis

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Background From the perspective of dyslexia, familial risk is the issue most researched worldwide. The familial risk has never been studied in Poland. Results of many studies conducted in Europe, the U.S. and Australia show that children who have a close family member with dyslexia are at greater risk of this disorder than children in the control groups. This conclusion is backed up by the results of research on the genetic aetiology of learning disorders. In the presented study on Polish 1st grade students, the Adult Reading History Questionnaire by Lefly and Pennington (2000 in the Polish adaptation (ARHQ-PL was used. The connections between the familial risk and the level of reading, spelling, phonological abilities and other cognitive functions were analysed. Participants and procedure The study covered 513 children, including their parents, from randomly selected primary schools in the Mazowieckie province. According to the ARHQ-PL assumptions, the children’s parents were divided into groups taking into account the familial risk level. Children were individually assessed for reading, spelling, phonological abilities, naming speed, phonological memory, vocabulary level and selective attention. Inter-group comparisons were performed based on the analysed variables for the groups of children whose parents had critical results in the ARHQ. The comparisons identified high risk (or lack of risk, as per sex, age, education level and SES (socio-economical status. Results The results show that there is a significant connection between risk group membership and the level of reading and of the majority of assessed phonological abilities. More significant relationships were determined for the familial risk of dyslexia observed for mothers. Conclusions The study confirms the diagnostic accuracy of the familial dyslexia risk ratio determined using the ARHQ-PL questionnaire for reading and for the majority of the phonological abilities closely

Mental Health Professionals' Suicide Risk Assessment and Management Practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Roush, Jared F; Brown, Sarah L; Jahn, Danielle R; Mitchell, Sean M; Taylor, Nathanael J; Quinnett, Paul; Ries, Richard

2018-01-01

Approximately 20% of suicide decedents have had contact with a mental health professional within 1 month prior to their death, and the majority of mental health professionals have treated suicidal individuals. Despite limited evidence-based training, mental health professionals make important clinical decisions related to suicide risk assessment and management. The current study aimed to determine the frequency of suicide risk assessment and management practices and the association between fear of suicide-related outcomes or comfort working with suicidal individuals and adequacy of suicide risk management decisions among mental health professionals. Mental health professionals completed self-report assessments of fear, comfort, and suicide risk assessment and management practices. Approximately one third of mental health professionals did not ask every patient about current or previous suicidal thoughts or behaviors. Further, comfort, but not fear, was positively associated with greater odds of conducting evidence-based suicide risk assessments at first appointments and adequacy of suicide risk management practices with patients reporting suicide ideation and a recent suicide attempt. The study utilized a cross-sectional design and self-report questionnaires. Although the majority of mental health professionals report using evidenced-based practices, there appears to be variability in utilization of evidence-based practices.

A content validated questionnaire for assessment of self reported venous blood sampling practices.

Science.gov (United States)

Bölenius, Karin; Brulin, Christine; Grankvist, Kjell; Lindkvist, Marie; Söderberg, Johan

2012-01-19

Venous blood sampling is a common procedure in health care. It is strictly regulated by national and international guidelines. Deviations from guidelines due to human mistakes can cause patient harm. Validated questionnaires for health care personnel can be used to assess preventable "near misses"--i.e. potential errors and nonconformities during venous blood sampling practices that could transform into adverse events. However, no validated questionnaire that assesses nonconformities in venous blood sampling has previously been presented. The aim was to test a recently developed questionnaire in self reported venous blood sampling practices for validity and reliability. We developed a questionnaire to assess deviations from best practices during venous blood sampling. The questionnaire contained questions about patient identification, test request management, test tube labeling, test tube handling, information search procedures and frequencies of error reporting. For content validity, the questionnaire was confirmed by experts on questionnaires and venous blood sampling. For reliability, test-retest statistics were used on the questionnaire answered twice. The final venous blood sampling questionnaire included 19 questions out of which 9 had in total 34 underlying items. It was found to have content validity. The test-retest analysis demonstrated that the items were generally stable. In total, 82% of the items fulfilled the reliability acceptance criteria. The questionnaire could be used for assessment of "near miss" practices that could jeopardize patient safety and gives several benefits instead of assessing rare adverse events only. The higher frequencies of "near miss" practices allows for quantitative analysis of the effect of corrective interventions and to benchmark preanalytical quality not only at the laboratory/hospital level but also at the health care unit/hospital ward.

Modeling risk assessment for nuclear processing plants with LAVA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, S.T.; Tisinger, R.M.

1988-01-01

Using the Los Alamos Vulnerability and Risk Assessment (LAVA) methodology, the authors developed a model for assessing risks associated with nuclear processing plants. LAVA is a three-part systematic approach to risk assessment. The first part is the mathematical methodology; the second is the general personal computer-based software engine; and the third is the application itself. The methodology provides a framework for creating applications for the software engine to operate upon; all application-specific information is data. Using LAVA, the authors build knowledge-based expert systems to assess risks in applications systems comprising a subject system and a safeguards system. The subject system model is sets of threats, assets, and undesirable outcomes. The safeguards system model is sets of safeguards functions for protecting the assets from the threats by preventing or ameliorating the undesirable outcomes, sets of safeguards subfunctions whose performance determine whether the function is adequate and complete, and sets of issues, appearing as interactive questionnaires, whose measures (in both monetary and linguistic terms) define both the weaknesses in the safeguards system and the potential costs of an undesirable outcome occurring

Development and assessment of a shortened Quality of Life in Childhood Epilepsy Questionnaire (QOLCE-55).

Science.gov (United States)

Goodwin, Shane W; Lambrinos, Anastasia I; Ferro, Mark A; Sabaz, Mark; Speechley, Kathy N

2015-06-01

To develop and validate a shortened version of the Quality of Life in Childhood Epilepsy Questionnaire (QOLCE). A secondary aim was to compare baseline risk factors predicting health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in children newly diagnosed with epilepsy, as identified using the original and shortened version. Data came from the Health-Related Quality of Life in Children with Epilepsy Study (HERQULES, N = 373), a multicenter prospective cohort study. Principal component analysis reduced the number of items from the original QOLCE, and factor analysis was used to assess the factor structure of the shortened version. Convergent and divergent validity was assessed by correlating the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ) with the shortened QOLCE. Multiple regression identified risk factors at diagnosis for HRQoL at 24 months. A four-factor, higher-order, 55-item solution was obtained. A total of 21 items were removed. The final model represents functioning in four dimensions of HRQoL: Cognitive, Emotional, Social, and Physical. The shortened QOLCE demonstrated acceptable fit: Bentler's Comparative Fit Index = 0.944; Tucker-Lewis Index = 0.942; root mean square approximation = 0.058 (90% CI: 0.056-0.061); weighted root mean square residuals (WRMR) = 1.582, and excellent internal consistency (α = 0.96, subscales α > 0.80). Factor loadings were good (first-order: λ = 0.66-0.93; higher-order λ = 0.66-0.85; p QOLCE scores correlated strongly with similar subscales of the Child Health Questionnaire (ρ = 0.38-0.70) while correlating weakly with dissimilar subscales (ρ = 0.30-0.31). While controlling for HRQoL at diagnosis, predictors for better HRQoL at 24 months were the following: no cognitive problems reported (p = 0.001), better family functioning (p = 0.014), fewer family demands (p = 0.008), with an interaction between baseline HRQoL and cognitive problems (p = 0.011). Results offer initial evidence regarding reliability and validity of the proposed 55-item shortened

Psychosocial risk assessment: French validation of the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dupret, E; Bocerean, C; Teherani, M

2012-01-01

of the scales, exploratory factor analysis, concurrent validity analysis) gave satisfactory results and demonstrated the validity of the French COPSOQ. CONCLUSIONS: A new questionnaire is now available in French. A large body of data is currently being gathered in view of comparing occupations and types...

A content validated questionnaire for assessment of self reported venous blood sampling practices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bölenius Karin

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Venous blood sampling is a common procedure in health care. It is strictly regulated by national and international guidelines. Deviations from guidelines due to human mistakes can cause patient harm. Validated questionnaires for health care personnel can be used to assess preventable "near misses"--i.e. potential errors and nonconformities during venous blood sampling practices that could transform into adverse events. However, no validated questionnaire that assesses nonconformities in venous blood sampling has previously been presented. The aim was to test a recently developed questionnaire in self reported venous blood sampling practices for validity and reliability. Findings We developed a questionnaire to assess deviations from best practices during venous blood sampling. The questionnaire contained questions about patient identification, test request management, test tube labeling, test tube handling, information search procedures and frequencies of error reporting. For content validity, the questionnaire was confirmed by experts on questionnaires and venous blood sampling. For reliability, test-retest statistics were used on the questionnaire answered twice. The final venous blood sampling questionnaire included 19 questions out of which 9 had in total 34 underlying items. It was found to have content validity. The test-retest analysis demonstrated that the items were generally stable. In total, 82% of the items fulfilled the reliability acceptance criteria. Conclusions The questionnaire could be used for assessment of "near miss" practices that could jeopardize patient safety and gives several benefits instead of assessing rare adverse events only. The higher frequencies of "near miss" practices allows for quantitative analysis of the effect of corrective interventions and to benchmark preanalytical quality not only at the laboratory/hospital level but also at the health care unit/hospital ward.

Evaluation of a Novel Single-administration Food Frequency Questionnaire for Assessing Seasonally Varied Dietary Patterns among Women in Rural Nepal.

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Rebecca K; Talegawkar, Sameera A; Christian, Parul; Leclerq, Steven C; Khatry, Subarna K; Wu, Lee S F; Stewart, Christine P; West, Keith P

2015-01-01

Novel dietary assessment methods are needed to study chronic disease risk in agrarian cultures where food availability is highly seasonal. In 16,320 rural Nepalese women, we tested a novel food frequency questionnaire, administered once, to assess past 7-day intake and usual frequency of intake throughout the year for year-round foods and when in season for seasonal foods. Spearman rank correlations between usual and past 7-day intakes were 0.12-0.85 and weighted kappa statistics, representing chance-corrected agreement, were 0.10-0.80, with better agreement for frequently consumed foods. The questionnaire performed well, but may require refinement for settings of extremely low dietary diversity.

Dental Students' Perceptions of Risk Factors for Musculoskeletal Disorders: Adapting the Job Factors Questionnaire for Dentistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Presoto, Cristina D; Wajngarten, Danielle; Domingos, Patrícia A S; Campos, Juliana A D B; Garcia, Patrícia P N S

2018-01-01

The aims of this study were to adapt the Job Factors Questionnaire to the field of dentistry, evaluate its psychometric properties, evaluate dental students' perceptions of work/study risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders, and determine the influence of gender and academic level on those perceptions. All 580 students enrolled in two Brazilian dental schools in 2015 were invited to participate in the study. A three-factor structure (Repetitiveness, Work Posture, and External Factors) was tested through confirmatory factor analysis. Convergent validity was estimated using the average variance extracted (AVE), discriminant validity was based on the correlational analysis of the factors, and reliability was assessed. A causal model was created using structural equation modeling to evaluate the influence of gender and academic level on students' perceptions. A total of 480 students completed the questionnaire for an 83% response rate. The responding students' average age was 21.6 years (SD=2.98), and 74.8% were women. Higher scores were observed on the Work Posture factor items. The refined model presented proper fit to the studied sample. Convergent validity was compromised only for External Factors (AVE=0.47), and discriminant validity was compromised for Work Posture and External Factors (r 2 =0.69). Reliability was adequate. Academic level did not have a significant impact on the factors, but the women students exhibited greater perception. Overall, the adaptation resulted in a useful instrument for assessing perceptions of risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders. Gender was found to significantly influence all three factors, with women showing greater perception of the risk factors.

Conversion of Questionnaire Data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Powell, Danny H.; Elwood, Robert H. Jr.

2011-01-01

During the survey, respondents are asked to provide qualitative answers (well, adequate, needs improvement) on how well material control and accountability (MC and A) functions are being performed. These responses can be used to develop failure probabilities for basic events performed during routine operation of the MC and A systems. The failure frequencies for individual events may be used to estimate total system effectiveness using a fault tree in a probabilistic risk analysis (PRA). Numeric risk values are required for the PRA fault tree calculations that are performed to evaluate system effectiveness. So, the performance ratings in the questionnaire must be converted to relative risk values for all of the basic MC and A tasks performed in the facility. If a specific material protection, control, and accountability (MPC and A) task is being performed at the 'perfect' level, the task is considered to have a near zero risk of failure. If the task is performed at a less than perfect level, the deficiency in performance represents some risk of failure for the event. As the degree of deficiency in performance increases, the risk of failure increases. If a task that should be performed is not being performed, that task is in a state of failure. The failure probabilities of all basic events contribute to the total system risk. Conversion of questionnaire MPC and A system performance data to numeric values is a separate function from the process of completing the questionnaire. When specific questions in the questionnaire are answered, the focus is on correctly assessing and reporting, in an adjectival manner, the actual performance of the related MC and A function. Prior to conversion, consideration should not be given to the numeric value that will be assigned during the conversion process. In the conversion process, adjectival responses to questions on system performance are quantified based on a log normal scale typically used in human error analysis (see A

Validation of the FASH (Functional Assessment Scale for Acute Hamstring Injuries) questionnaire for German-speaking football players.

Science.gov (United States)

Lohrer, Heinz; Nauck, Tanja; Korakakis, Vasileios; Malliaropoulos, Nikos

2016-10-24

The FASH (Functional Assessment Scale for Acute Hamstring Injuries) questionnaire has been recently developed as a disease-specific self-administered questionnaire for use in Greek, English, and German languages. Its psychometric qualities (validity and reliability) were tested only in Greek-speaking patients mainly representing track and field athletes. As hamstring injuries represent the most common football injury, we tested the validity and reliability of the FASH-G (G = German version) questionnaire in German-speaking footballers suffering from acute hamstring injuries. The FASH-G questionnaire was tested for reliability and validity, in 16 footballers with hamstring injuries (patients' group), 77 asymptomatic footballers (healthy group), and 19 field hockey players (at-risk group). Known-group validity was tested by comparing the total FASH-G scores of the injured and non-injured groups. Reliability of the FASH-G questionnaire was analysed in 18 asymptomatic footballers using the intra-class coefficient. Known-group validity was demonstrated by significant differences between injured and non-injured participants (p hamstring injuries in German footballers.

METHOD OF ASSESSMENT OF QUALITY OF DIABETES CARE WITH QUESTIONNAIRE FOR DOCTORS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. I. Tkachenko

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The assessment of results of new guidelines’ implementation in type 2 diabetes and quality of care is actual in Ukraine. The aim of our research is to develop a simple methodology for assessing the quality of diabetes care during new diabetes guideline implementation in Ukraine. Materials and Methods. We conducted a systematic review of S6 Ukrainian and 148 foreign literature in assessment of diabetes care, quality indicators, based on which our method was formed, its approbation was held. Statistical analysis was performed using Excel 2007, SPSS, Statistica 6.0. Results. We have developed a questionnaire by adapting existing English-language questionnaire GUIDANCE to Ukrainian health care system and added questions about knowledge and results of implementation new Ukrainian guidelines in diabetes care. The validation of questionnaire included expertise on content validity, reliability (Cronbach’s alpha level = 0.87, the sensitivity (0.7 and specificity (0.82. The method consists of use developed questionnaire for doctors in conjunction with the data of statistical reports and valid versions of questionnaires for diabetes patients ADDQoL DTSQ. The example of application of this method for assessment the quality of diabetes care is described and was informative. The proposed method allows to analyze all aspects of the quality of diabetes care.

[Prevalence of symptoms and risk of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome assessed by the Berlin Questionnaire among professionals of a health facility].

Science.gov (United States)

Cadelis, G; Fayad Y Monteagudo, O E

2016-12-01

Few data exist on the prevalence of symptoms and risk of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) among professionals of a health facility, or they often work in shift schedule and night. Under these conditions, an undetected OSAS may affect alertness and attention in professional acts. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of OSAS among professionals of a health facility. It is a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among 773 participants working at the university hospital of Pointe-à-Pitre and volunteers to answer the Berlin questionnaire. We also collected among respondents, abdominal and neck circumference and medical history. Women accounted for 67% (n=520) of the sample and men 32.7% (n=253). The mean age was 42±11.1 years. We noted a high prevalence of OSAS symptoms (snoring at 69% to 26% daytime sleepiness) and SAS risk factors (hypertension reported to 18%, BMI>30kg/m 2 to 13%). The prevalence of subjects at high OSAS risk was 23.5% (20.6-26.6%) in the overall study population; it was 22.4% in nursing staff, and 21.4% (17-26%) among in the shift schedule workers. The factors significantly associated with a high risk of OSAS in this population were: age>51 years (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 8.1, P41cm (aOR: 2.9, Phealth workers who have risk factors for sleep apnea syndrome identified in this study, OSAS screening by the Berlin Questionnaire. This could be implemented for example as part of occupational medicine. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Development of risk assessment tool for foundry workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohan, G Madhan; Prasad, P S S; Mokkapati, Anil Kumar; Venkataraman, G

2008-01-01

Occupational ill-health and work-related disorders are predominant in manufacturing industries due to the inevitable presence of manual work even after several waves of industrial automation and technological advancements. Ergonomic risk factors and musculoskeletal disorders like low-back symptoms have been noted amongst foundry workers. The purpose of this study was to formulate and develop a Physical Effort Index to assess risk factor. The questionnaire tool applicable to foundry environment has been designed and validated. The data recorded through survey across the foundries has been subjected to regression analysis to correlate between proposed physical effort index and the standard Borg's Ratings of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale. The physical efforts of sixty seven workers in various foundry shop floors were assessed subjectively. The 'Job factors' and 'Work environment' were the two major parameters considered in assessing the worker discomfort level at workplace. A relation between Borg's RPE scale and the above two parameters were arrived at, through regression analysis. The study demonstrates the prevalence of risk factors amongst foundry workers and the effectiveness of the proposed index in estimating the risk factor levels. RELEVANCE TO THE INDUSTRY: The proposed tool will assist foundry supervisors and managers to assess the risk factors and helps in better understanding of the workplace to avoid work-related disorders, ensuring better output.

VALIDITATION OF A LIGHT QUESTIONNAIRE WITH REAL-LIFE PHOTOPIC ILLUMINANCE MEASUREMENTS: THE HARVARD LIGHT EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT QUESTIONNAIRE

Science.gov (United States)

Bajaj, Archna; Rosner, Bernard; Lockley, Steven; Schernhammer, Eva S.

2011-01-01

Background Light exposure at night is now considered a probable carcinogen. To study the effects of light on chronic diseases like cancer, methods to measure light exposure in large observational studies are needed. We aimed to investigate the validity of self-reported current light exposure. Methods We developed a self-administered semiquantitative light questionnaire, the Harvard Light Exposure Assessment (H-LEA) questionnaire, and compared photopic scores derived from this questionnaire with actual photopic and circadian measures obtained from a real-life 7-day light meter application among 132 women (85 rotating night shift workers and 47 day workers) participating in the Nurses' Health Study II. Results After adjustment for age, BMI, collection day, and night work status, the overall partial Spearman correlation between self-report of light exposure and actual photopic light measurements was 0.72 (P<0.001; Kendall τ =0.57) and 0.73 (P<0.0001; Kendall τ =0.58) when correlating circadian light measurements. There were only minimal differences in accuracy of self-report of light exposure and photopic or circadian light measurement between day (r=0.77 and 0.78, respectively) and rotating night shift workers (r=0.68 and 0.69, respectively). Conclusions The results of this study provide evidence of the criterion validity of self-reported light exposure using the H-LEA questionnaire. Impact: This questionnaire is a practical method of assessing light exposure in large scale epidemiologic studies. PMID:21737411

Is the Veterans Specific Activity Questionnaire Valid to Assess Older Adults Aerobic Fitness?

Science.gov (United States)

de Carvalho Bastone, Alessandra; de Souza Moreira, Bruno; Teixeira, Claudine Patrícia; Dias, João Marcos Domingues; Dias, Rosângela Corrêa

2016-01-01

Aerobic fitness in older adults is related to health status, incident disability, nursing home admission, and all-cause mortality. The most accurate quantification of aerobic fitness, expressed as peak oxygen consumption in mL·kg·min, is the cardiorespiratory exercise test; however, it is not feasible in all settings and might offer risk to patients. The Veterans Specific Activity Questionnaire (VSAQ) is a 13-item self-administered symptom questionnaire that estimates aerobic fitness expressed in metabolic equivalents (METs) and has been validated to cardiovascular patients. The purpose of this study was to assess the validity and reliability of the VSAQ in older adults without specific health conditions. A methodological study with a cross-sectional design was conducted with 28 older adults (66-86 years). The VSAQ was administered on 3 occasions by 2 evaluators. Aerobic capacity in METs as measured by the VSAQ was compared with the METs found in an incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) performed with a portable metabolic measurement system and with accelerometer data. The validity of the VSAQ was found to be moderate-to-good when compared with the METs and distance measured by the ISWT and with the moderate activity per day and steps per day obtained by accelerometry. The Bland-Altman graph analysis showed no values outside the limits of agreement, suggesting good precision between the METs estimated by questionnaire and the METs measured by the ISWT. Also, the intrarater and interrater reliabilities of the instrument were good. The results showed that the VSAQ is a valuable tool to assess the aerobic fitness of older adults.

Format to communicate risk and uncertainty about the disposal of radioactive waste to different stakeholders; questionnaire and analysis of the results of the questionnaire. Deliverable D8

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bolado, R.

2009-10-01

This report summarises the activities performed at JRC-IE to develop a format to communicate key ideas about uncertainty and risk associated to a SNF/HLW repository. After a period of literature research in different areas related to the safety assessment of nuclear waste repositories, the following subjects were selected as the key ideas to communicate to different stakeholders This report summarises the activities performed at JRC-IE to develop a format to communicate key ideas about uncertainty and risk associated to a SNF/HLW repository. After a period of literature research in different areas related to the safety assessment of nuclear waste repositories, the following subjects were selected as the key ideas to communicate to different stakeholders - The concept of risk; - What is a repository and how does it work; - Involved uncertainties. Origin, classification and treatment; - Key numeric and graphic results of a safety assessment; - Comparison with other risks. The format chosen is a verbal presentation supported by a PowerPoint file containing graphic material. This is a very flexible format that allows a lot of interaction with the audience. The format has been tested in two in-house debate sessions. The analysis of answers given by participants to a questionnaire and the notes taken during the debate held after the presentation will be used to update the format. Participants in the debate sessions were quite positive about the sections that tackled the concept of risk, the way a repository works and the comparison of safety limits used in European national regulations with the worldwide average radiation level, but they showed some more criticism about the way to communicate some key results from a safety assessment. They found especially difficult to understand some graphic results obtained via sensitivity analysis, and provided suggestions to improve some graphic representations of uncertainty. They also advised to reduce as much as possible the use

Implementation of an adolescent risk behaviour assessment in an academic paediatric dental setting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edna Perez

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Background Adolescents commonly engage in negative risk behaviours which could have serious implications on their oral and systemic health. Health care providers must be able to identify signs and comfortably question adolescents regarding these risk behaviours Aims Allow dental providers to administer a risk behavior questionnaire addressed towards adolescents to begin the transition from the pediatric to adult model and assist them in taking personal responsibility for their health. When negative behaviors are recognized, the goal is to help the adolescent by providing them with educational information, such as brochures or other resources related to the identified risks, and offering referrals to relevant providers. Methods A medical questionnaire to assess adolescent’s risk behaviors has been implemented at the University of Florida Pediatric Dental Clinic and is administered to patients 13+ as part of each examination appointment. A policy of confidentiality is discussed with the parent and informed consent obtained prior to conducting this questionnaire individually with the patient. Results During a period of over a year, the questionnaire has been administered by the pediatric dental faculty for a trial period; administration by the pediatric dental residents began this term and is currently ongoing. Conclusion Completion of the risk behavior questionnaire has provided an opportunity for teenagers to become more comfortable speaking individually with a dental provider. Identification of these risks allowed the pediatric dentist to help the patient seek appropriate care as they enter adulthood, and provide a more thorough approach towards the adolescent’s oral and general health.

[Screening for psychiatric risk factors in a facial trauma patients. Validating a questionnaire].

Science.gov (United States)

Foletti, J M; Bruneau, S; Farisse, J; Thiery, G; Chossegros, C; Guyot, L

2014-12-01

We recorded similarities between patients managed in the psychiatry department and in the maxillo-facial surgical unit. Our hypothesis was that some psychiatric conditions act as risk factors for facial trauma. We had for aim to test our hypothesis and to validate a simple and efficient questionnaire to identify these psychiatric disorders. Fifty-eight consenting patients with facial trauma, recruited prospectively in the 3 maxillo-facial surgery departments of the Marseille area during 3 months (December 2012-March 2013) completed a self-questionnaire based on the French version of 3 validated screening tests (Self Reported Psychopathy test, Rapid Alcohol Problem Screening test quantity-frequency, and Personal Health Questionnaire). This preliminary study confirmed that psychiatric conditions detected by our questionnaire, namely alcohol abuse and dependence, substance abuse, and depression, were risk factors for facial trauma. Maxillo-facial surgeons are often unaware of psychiatric disorders that may be the cause of facial trauma. The self-screening test we propose allows documenting the psychiatric history of patients and implementing earlier psychiatric care. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

A Review on Methods for Assessing Risk Factors of the Upper Limb Disorders among Cashiers in Grocery Retail Industries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmad Zuhaidi Muhammad Fareez

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper provides an overview of the various methods that have been developed for the assessment of risk factors for upper limb disorders among cashiers in grocery retail industries. This paper is essential as upper limb disorders have been known as one of the prime cause of work-related disability in various countries. The methods used for the assessment were the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH questionnaire, the Assessment of Repetitive Tasks (ART, the Job Strain Index (JSI and the Occupational Repetitive Actions (OCRA Checklist. DASH questionnaire is a structured interview in determining the prevalence of the upper limb disorders, while ART, the JSI and OCRA Checklist act as a direct observation in examining the involvement of risk factors. Basically, these tools dealt with the measurements of symptoms, posture observation, and workplace risk assessment, as they are the most relevant tools for assessing the risk factors faced by the workers in grocery industries. The use of these tools assessed the risk factors and consequently reduces the risk of injuries among the workers.

Assessment of psychometric properties of a modified PHEEM questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Gooneratne, I K; Munasinghe, S R; Siriwardena, C; Olupeliyawa, A M; Karunathilake, I

2008-12-01

An effective tool in analysing the learning environment, customised to the Sri Lankan setting, is vital for the assessment and delivery of quality healthcare training of preregistration house officers. Such a tool should be reliable and valid. We assessed psychometric properties such as internal reliability and construct validity of a modified version of the Postgraduate Hospital Educational Environment Measure (PHEEM). A modified PHEEM questionnaire customised to the Sri Lankan context was developed in accordance to the Sri Lanka Medical Council guidelines. The questionnaire was distributed to all interns at the National Hospital of Sri Lanka, Colombo North Teaching Hospital and Wathupitiwala Base Hospital during a calendar year (n = 100, response rate = 86%). Internal reliability and construct validity of the inventory were assessed by using Cronbach's alpha and exploratory factor analysis respectively as statistical methods. PHEEM consists of 3 subscales: perceptions of autonomy, social support and teaching, which are factors perceived to be influencing the educational environment. This administration demonstrated high internal reliability as reflected by a Cronbach's alpha value of 0.84. Exploratory factor analysis identified 12 factors with eigenvalue >1. However, the first factor had an eigenvalue of 6.7 (accounting for 19.7% of variance), while the rest had eigenvalues internal reliability in assessing the educational environment of intern doctors in Sri Lanka. It is possible that the clinical educational environment is collectively represented as a single dimension. This may be due to the complex interplay between individual items in the questionnaire. Therefore the psychometric properties do not justify the interpretation of the educational environment through specified subscales.

Validating a Questionnaire Assessing Knowledge and Awareness of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Rwanda Journal Series F: Medicine and Health Sciences Vol. 2 No. 2, 2015. Validating a Questionnaire Assessing Knowledge and Awareness of Emergen- cy Trolleys: Revisions Required to Account for Variances in a Low Resource. Setting. Charles Twagirayezu1, Stephanie Taylor1, Julie Pfeffer1. 1University Teaching ...

Reliability and Validity of the PAQ-C Questionnaire to Assess Physical Activity in Children

Science.gov (United States)

Benítez-Porres, Javier; López-Fernández, Iván; Raya, Juan Francisco; Álvarez Carnero, Sabrina; Alvero-Cruz, José Ramón; Álvarez Carnero, Elvis

2016-01-01

Background: Physical activity (PA) assessment by questionnaire is a cornerstone in the field of sport epidemiology studies. The Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) has been used widely to assess PA in healthy school populations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the PAQ-C questionnaire in…

Model Development for Risk Assessment of Driving on Freeway under Rainy Weather Conditions.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaonan Cai

Full Text Available Rainy weather conditions could result in significantly negative impacts on driving on freeways. However, due to lack of enough historical data and monitoring facilities, many regions are not able to establish reliable risk assessment models to identify such impacts. Given the situation, this paper provides an alternative solution where the procedure of risk assessment is developed based on drivers' subjective questionnaire and its performance is validated by using actual crash data. First, an ordered logit model was developed, based on questionnaire data collected from Freeway G15 in China, to estimate the relationship between drivers' perceived risk and factors, including vehicle type, rain intensity, traffic volume, and location. Then, weighted driving risk for different conditions was obtained by the model, and further divided into four levels of early warning (specified by colors using a rank order cluster analysis. After that, a risk matrix was established to determine which warning color should be disseminated to drivers, given a specific condition. Finally, to validate the proposed procedure, actual crash data from Freeway G15 were compared with the safety prediction based on the risk matrix. The results show that the risk matrix obtained in the study is able to predict driving risk consistent with actual safety implications, under rainy weather conditions.

Aquatic environmental risk assessment of manganese processing industries.

Science.gov (United States)

Marks, Becky; Peters, Adam; McGough, Doreen

2017-01-01

An environmental risk assessment (ERA) has been conducted for sites producing and processing manganese and its inorganic compounds, focussing on potential risks to freshwater. A site specific questionnaire was used to collect information. Sites fall into three broad categories: mining sites, refining sites, and sites producing chemicals and pigments. Waste disposal is principally carried out by the treatment of liquid wastes to separate solids for disposal off-site with a consented wastewater discharge, or disposal on-site using evaporation or settlement ponds in order to maintain the waste materials in a suitable manner following site closure. The main source of emissions from refining and alloying sites is from the treatment of emissions to air using wet scrubber air filters. There is also the potential for fugitive environmental emissions of manganese from stockpiles of raw material held on-site. Data provided from the questionnaires were both site-specific and also commercially sensitive. Therefore, this paper has undertaken the manganese exposure assessment, using a probabilistic approach to reflect the distribution of emissions of manganese and also to maintain the confidentiality of site specific data. An inverse correlation was observed between the total annual tonnage of manganese processed at the site and the emission factor, such that sites processing larger quantities resulted in lower emissions of manganese per tonne processed. The hazard assessment determined a Predicted No Effect Concentration (PNEC) for freshwater using a species sensitivity distribution approach, resulting in a freshwater PNEC of 0.075mgL -1 for soluble manganese. Based on the exposure data and the freshwater PNEC derived for this study, the distributions of risk characterisation ratios using the probabilistic approach indicates that two thirds of manganese processing sites would not be expected to pose a potential risk to the local aquatic environment due to wastewater emissions

Risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinchin, G.H.

1983-01-01

After defining risk and introducing the concept of individual and societal risk, the author considers each of these, restricting considerations to risk of death. Some probabilities of death arising from various causes are quoted, and attention drawn to the care necessary in making comparisons between sets of data and to the distinction between voluntary and involuntary categories and between early and delayed deaths. The presentation of information on societal risk is discussed and examples given. The history of quantified risk assessment is outlined, particularly related to the nuclear industry, the process of assessing risk discussed: identification of hazard causes, the development of accident chains and the use of event trees, the evaluation of probability through the collection of data and their use with fault trees, and the assessment of consequences of hazards in terms of fatalities. Reference is made to the human element and common-made failures, and to studies supporting the development of reliability assessment techniques. Acceptance criteria are discussed for individual and societal risk in the nuclear field, and it is shown that proposed criteria lead to risks conservative by comparison with risks from day-to-day accidents and other potentially hazardous industries. (U.K.)

Establishing a family risk assessment clinic for breast cancer.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Mulsow, Jurgen

2012-02-01

Breast cancer is the most common cancer affecting European women and the leading cause of cancer-related death. A total of 15-20% of women who develop breast cancer have a family history and 5-10% a true genetic predisposition. The identification and screening of women at increased risk may allow early detection of breast cancer and improve prognosis. We established a family risk assessment clinic in May 2005 to assess and counsel women with a family history of breast cancer, to initiate surveillance, and to offer risk-reducing strategies for selected high-risk patients. Patients at medium or high risk of developing breast cancer according to NICE guidelines were accepted. Family history was determined by structured questionnaire and interview. Lifetime risk of developing breast cancer was calculated using Claus and Tyrer-Cuzick scoring. Risk of carrying a breast cancer-related gene mutation was calculated using the Manchester system. One thousand two hundred and forty-three patients have been referred. Ninety-two percent were at medium or high risk of developing breast cancer. Formal assessment of risk has been performed in 368 patients, 73% have a high lifetime risk of developing breast cancer, and 72% a Manchester score >or=16. BRCA1\\/2 mutations have been identified in 14 patients and breast cancer diagnosed in two. Our initial experience of family risk assessment has shown there to be a significant demand for this service. Identification of patients at increased risk of developing breast cancer allows us to provide individuals with accurate risk profiles, and enables patients to make informed choices regarding their follow-up and management.

Development and validation of a new questionnaire assessing quality of life in adults with hypopituitarism: Adult Hypopituitarism Questionnaire (AHQ).

Science.gov (United States)

Ishii, Hitoshi; Shimatsu, Akira; Okimura, Yasuhiko; Tanaka, Toshiaki; Hizuka, Naomi; Kaji, Hidesuke; Hanew, Kunihiko; Oki, Yutaka; Yamashiro, Sayuri; Takano, Koji; Chihara, Kazuo

2012-01-01

To develop and validate the Adult Hypopituitarism Questionnaire (AHQ) as a disease-specific, self-administered questionnaire for evaluation of quality of life (QOL) in adult patients with hypopituitarism. We developed and validated this new questionnaire, using a standardized procedure which included item development, pilot-testing and psychometric validation. Of the patients who participated in psychometric validation, those whose clinical conditions were judged to be stable were asked to answer the survey questionnaire twice, in order to assess test-retest reliability. Content validity of the initial questionnaire was evaluated via two pilot tests. After these tests, we made minor revisions and finalized the initial version of the questionnaire. The questionnaire was constructed with two domains, one psycho-social and the other physical. For psychometric assessment, analyses were performed on the responses of 192 adult patients with various types of hypopituitarism. The intraclass correlations of the respective domains were 0.91 and 0.95, and the Cronbach's alpha coefficients were 0.96 and 0.95, indicating adequate test-retest reliability and internal consistency for each domain. For known-group validity, patients with hypopituitarism due to hypothalamic disorder showed significantly lower scores in 11 out of 13 sub-domains compared to those who had hypopituitarism due to pituitary disorder. Regarding construct validity, the domain structure was found to be almost the same as that initially hypothesized. Exploratory factor analysis (n = 228) demonstrated that each domain consisted of six and seven sub-domains. The AHQ showed good reliability and validity for evaluating QOL in adult patients with hypopituitarism.

Risk Assessment Overview

Science.gov (United States)

Prassinos, Peter G.; Lyver, John W., IV; Bui, Chinh T.

2011-01-01

Risk assessment is used in many industries to identify and manage risks. Initially developed for use on aeronautical and nuclear systems, risk assessment has been applied to transportation, chemical, computer, financial, and security systems among others. It is used to gain an understanding of the weaknesses or vulnerabilities in a system so modification can be made to increase operability, efficiency, and safety and to reduce failure and down-time. Risk assessment results are primary inputs to risk-informed decision making; where risk information including uncertainty is used along with other pertinent information to assist management in the decision-making process. Therefore, to be useful, a risk assessment must be directed at specific objectives. As the world embraces the globalization of trade and manufacturing, understanding the associated risk become important to decision making. Applying risk assessment techniques to a global system of development, manufacturing, and transportation can provide insight into how the system can fail, the likelihood of system failure and the consequences of system failure. The risk assessment can identify those elements that contribute most to risk and identify measures to prevent and mitigate failures, disruptions, and damaging outcomes. In addition, risk associated with public and environment impact can be identified. The risk insights gained can be applied to making decisions concerning suitable development and manufacturing locations, supply chains, and transportation strategies. While risk assessment has been mostly applied to mechanical and electrical systems, the concepts and techniques can be applied across other systems and activities. This paper provides a basic overview of the development of a risk assessment.

Development of caries risk assessment tool for Iranian preschoolers: A primary validation study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shiva Mortazavi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background: The aim of the present study was to develop a dental caries risk assessment tool for Iranian preschoolers. Methods: In a validation and cross-sectional study, a random sample of 150 preschool children was involved. This study was conducted in three phases: questionnaire design (expert panel and peer evaluation, questionnaire testing (pilot evaluation and field testing, and validation study. The initial assessments include interview, dental examination, and laboratory investigations. Validity and reliability indices, content validity index (CVI, content validity ratio (CVR, impact score, and test-retest and Cronbach's alpha were measured. Decayed, missing, filled teeth (dmft scores were calculated according to the WHO guidelines. Results: The Iranian version of caries risk assessment (CRA questionnaire contained 17 items. Cronbach's alpha coefficient (0.86 indicated a suitable internal consistency. The mean scores for the CVI and the CVR were 0.87 and 0.78, respectively. The prevalence rate of dental caries in the study group was 69.3%, and the mean dmft was 4.57 (range 0–19. Conclusions: The Persian version of CRA questionnaire was adapted to the Iranian population. The findings demonstrated overall acceptable validity and also reliability in the application of test-retest. The results of the present study provide initial evidence that the designed CRA form could be a useful tool for CRA in the Iranian preschoolers.

Construction and characteristics of questionnaire for the assessment of defense mechanisms: MOD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Džamonja-Ignjatović Tamara

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Defense mechanisms are psychological constructs of key importance for the assessment of personality and planning therapeutic process. Their assessment is mainly based on interview, observation and projective techniques. Questionnaires, as the self-assessment techniques, apparently are not suitable method for unconscious processes such as defense mechanisms. The paper presents the results of construction of the questionnaire for the assessment of defense mechanisms, abbreviated called MOD (Mechanisms of Defense, which represents an attempt to clarify conceptualization and operationalization of these constructs through a variety of behavioral and emotional manifestations, personal attitudes and beliefs, patterns of interpersonal relationships and feedback from environment. Research objectives included testing of metric characteristics and the factor structure of the questionnaire, as well as its validity for differentiating subjects from clinical and non-clinical populations. The questionnaire has 110 items assessed at the 5-point Likert scale for evaluation of 20 defense mechanisms. The sample consisted of 194 subjects of both sexes, of which 136 students of psychology and social work and 58 nonpsychotic patients from clinical populations. The results showed that the reliability of the scale varies from high to unsatisfactory (Cronbach alpha .82- .35, although for most subscales is around .65-.70. The most of defense mechanisms has one factor structure, whereas from about a third of the subscales two principal components were isolated. Analysis of the structure of mature defense mechanisms clearly derived out four factors corresponding to the presumed mechanisms of defense, while for the groups of neurotic and immature mechanisms were not obtained pure solutions. The questionnaire successfully differentiate clinical from non-clinical sample, based on higher scores on mature and lower scores on immature mechanisms, while the groups did not differ

Ergonomic risk assessment by REBA method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Hassanzadeh

2007-09-01

Full Text Available Background and aims   Awkward posture has been recognized as one of the important risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSD. The current study aimed at determining ergonomic risk level, WMSDs ratio and exploring working postures contribution to WMSD. During the study, working postures were phased and then they were scored using the REBAtool from observing the work.   Methods   To perform the study, workers of a home appliances manufacturing factory were  assessed. In order to collecting required data, each part of the body was scored and work frequency,  load/force, coupling were considered to achieve a REBA score. Nordic Questionnaire was used  to determining WMSD ratio and its relationship whit REBA score. 231 working phases were  assessed and 13761 questions using Nordic Questionnaire were answered. Percentage of the workers in press, spot welding, grinding, cutting, assembling, and painting was 15.8, 21.6, 25.9, 34.5, 89.9%, respectively. Workers were 18-54 years old and their work recording average was 52  month.   Results   REBAscore was 4-13 in under study tasks. REBA score = 9 had the most frequency  (20% and REBA score =13 had the least frequency (1.4%. Risk level in press, cutting, and  painting was high (25.5, 100, 68.2% cases. This shows that cutting has the highest risk level. On the other hand 38.5% of the workers in past 12 month had problem in different parts of their body. Totally 11.7% of the workers had problem in neck, 19.4$ in leg, 10.7% in foot, 82.5% in lower back,  87.6% in upper back and 7.8% in shoulders.10.7% of the workers had previous illness that 8.7%  of them were non occupational and 1.9% were caused their previous jobs. The REBAscore mean  and ergonomic risk level is not equal in tasks (p-value0. Action level was necessary  soon in others.   Conclusion   Risk level should be reduced specially in cutting. The heavy workload and  working height poor design, awkward

The heritability of Cluster B personality disorders assessed both by personal interview and questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Torgersen, Svenn; Myers, John; Reichborn-Kjennerud, Ted; Røysamb, Espen; Kubarych, Thomas S; Kendler, Kenneth S

2012-12-01

Whereas the heritability of common personality traits has been firmly established, the results of the few published studies on personality disorders (PDs) are highly divergent, with some studies finding high heredity and others very low. A problem with assessing personality disorders by means of interview is errors connected with interviewer bias. A way to overcome the problem is to use self-report questionnaires in addition to interviews. This study used both interview and questionnaire for assessing DSM-IV Cluster B personality disorders: antisocial personality disorder (APD), borderline (BPD), narcissistic (NPD), and histrionic (HPD). We assessed close to 2,800 twins from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health Twin Panel using a self-report questionnaire and, a few years later, the Structured Interview for DSM-IV Personality (SIDP-IV). Items from the self-report questionnaire that best predicted the PDs captured by the interview were then selected. Measurement models combining questionnaire and interview information were applied and were fitted using Mx. Whereas the heritability of Cluster B PDs assessed by interview was around .30, and around .40-.50 when assessed by self-report questionnaire, the heritability of the convergent latent factor, including information from both interview and self-report questionnaire was .69 for APD, .67 for BPD, .71 for NPD, and .63 for HPD. As is usually found for personality, the effect of shared-in families (familial) environment was zero. In conclusion, when both interview and self-report questionnaire are taken into account, the heritability of Cluster B PD appears to be in the upper range of previous findings for mental disorders.

Introduction to risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raina, V.M.

2002-01-01

This paper gives an introduction to risk assessment. It discusses the basic concepts of risk assessment, nuclear risk assessment process and products, the role of risk assessment products in nuclear safety assurance, the relationship between risk assessment and other safety analysis and risk assessment and safe operating envelope

Cross-cultural adaptation, content validation, and reliability of the Nigerian Composite Lifestyle CVD Risk Factors Questionnaire for adolescents among Yoruba rural adolescents in Nigeria.

Science.gov (United States)

Odunaiya, Nse A; Louw, Quinette A; Grimmer, Karen

2017-06-01

Assessment of lifestyle risk factors must be culturally- and contextually relevant and available in local languages. This paper reports on a study which aimed to cross culturally adapt a composite lifestyle cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors questionnaire into an African language (Yoruba) and testing some of its psychometric properties such as content validity and test retest reliability in comparison to the original English version. This study utilized a cross sectional design. Translation of the English version of the questionnaire into Yoruba was undertaken using the guideline by Beaton et al. The translated instrument was presented to 21 rural adolescents to assess comprehensibility and clarity using a sample of convenience. A test retest reliability was conducted among 150 rural adolescents using a purposive sampling. Data was analyzed using intraclass correlation (ICC ) model 3, Cohen kappa statistics and prevalence rates. ICC ranged between 0.4-0.8. The Yoruba version was completed 15-20 minutes and was reported to be culturally appropriate and acceptable for rural Nigerian adolescents. The Yoruba translation of the Nigerian composite lifestyle risk factors questionnaire performs at least as well as the original English version in terms of content validity and reliability. It took a shorter time to complete therefore may be more relevant to rural adolescents.

Radiation risks knowledge in resident and fellow in paediatrics: a questionnaire survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Salerno, Sergio; Marchese, Paola; Magistrelli, Andrea; Tomà, Paolo; Matranga, Domenica; Midiri, Massimo; Ugazio, Alberto G; Corsello, Giovanni

2015-03-22

Analyse through a multi-choice anonymous questionnaire the knowledge's level in paediatric residents and fellows in two different main Italian hospital, looking mainly to the information to patients and relatives related to risks of ionizing radiation used in common radiological investigations in children. 65 multi choice questionnaires were distributed to paediatric residents and fellows of two different hospitals, an University Hospital (A.O.U.P. "P. Giaccone"- University of Palermo) and a national reference centre for paediatrics (Ospedale Pediatrico Bambino Gesù - Rome). The questionnaire included twelve multiple-choice questions with the aim of analyzing the knowledge about ionizing radiation related risks in infants and children who undergo common diagnostic radiology investigations. The data obtained were processed using software Stata/MP version 11.2. In order to measure the level of expertise of each interviewee a binary indicator was built. The value 1 was assigned if the percentage of correct answers exceeds the median of the distribution and 0 for values not exceeding the median. The association between the level of competence and demographic characteristics (gender, age) and training experience was measured by means of α(2) test. 51/65 questionnaires were completed, returned and analysed (87.7%). Only 18 surveyed (35%), (95% IC = [22%-48%]) can be defined as competent in radiation risk knowledge for common radiological investigations, considering the percentage of correct answers at least of 50% (sufficient knowledge was given with a minimum score of 8 correct answers out of 12). The study demonstrates an urgent need to implement the radiation protection knowledge in the training programme of paediatricians, that improve if just a short targeted training is performed.

Questionnaire-based assessment of executive functioning: Psychometrics.

Science.gov (United States)

Castellanos, Irina; Kronenberger, William G; Pisoni, David B

2018-01-01

The psychometric properties of the Learning, Executive, and Attention Functioning (LEAF) scale were investigated in an outpatient clinical pediatric sample. As a part of clinical testing, the LEAF scale, which broadly measures neuropsychological abilities related to executive functioning and learning, was administered to parents of 118 children and adolescents referred for psychological testing at a pediatric psychology clinic; 85 teachers also completed LEAF scales to assess reliability across different raters and settings. Scores on neuropsychological tests of executive functioning and academic achievement were abstracted from charts. Psychometric analyses of the LEAF scale demonstrated satisfactory internal consistency, parent-teacher inter-rater reliability in the small to large effect size range, and test-retest reliability in the large effect size range, similar to values for other executive functioning checklists. Correlations between corresponding subscales on the LEAF and other behavior checklists were large, while most correlations with neuropsychological tests of executive functioning and achievement were significant but in the small to medium range. Results support the utility of the LEAF as a reliable and valid questionnaire-based assessment of delays and disturbances in executive functioning and learning. Applications and advantages of the LEAF and other questionnaire measures of executive functioning in clinical neuropsychology settings are discussed.

Cumulative Risk Assessment (CRA): transforming the way we assess health risks.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Pamela R D; Dotson, G Scott; Maier, Andrew

2012-10-16

Human health risk assessments continue to evolve and now focus on the need for cumulative risk assessment (CRA). CRA involves assessing the combined risk from coexposure to multiple chemical and nonchemical stressors for varying health effects. CRAs are broader in scope than traditional chemical risk assessments because they allow for a more comprehensive evaluation of the interaction between different stressors and their combined impact on human health. Future directions of CRA include greater emphasis on local-level community-based assessments; integrating environmental, occupational, community, and individual risk factors; and identifying and implementing common frameworks and risk metrics for incorporating multiple stressors.

Risk assessment of fall-related occupational accidents in the workplace

Science.gov (United States)

Tsukada, Tsukimi; Sakakibara, Hisataka

2016-01-01

Objectives: This study aimed to examine effective assessment methods of falls in the workplace. Methods: There were 436 employees (305 males and 131 females) of electrical appliance manufacturers included in this study. In 2014, a baseline survey was conducted using the fall scores questionnaire and the self-check risk assessment of falls and other accidents in the workplace (physical function measurement and questionnaire). In 2015, the occurrence of falls in the past year was investigated. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to examine factors relevant to falls. Results: In total, 62 subjects (14.2%) fell during the year, including those who fell during off-hours. The occurrence of falls during that one year was only associated with having experienced falls during the past year in the baseline survey (odds ratio [OR] 5.0; 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.5-9.7). Falls during that year were also related to the inability to walk 1 km continuously (OR 0.1; 95% CI 0.1-0.6), tripping sometimes (OR 4.0; 95% CI 1.6-9.9), step height differences at home (OR 3.0; 95% CI 1.3-6.8), and working in the production section (OR 0.2; 95% CI 0.1-0.5). Measurements of physical functions, such as muscle strength, balance, and agility, were not different between subjects who fell and those who did not. Conclusions: Our results showed that the questionnaire assessing falls during the past year could be useful to assess the risk of falls in the workplace. Annual checks for falls may contribute to fall prevention programs in the workplace. PMID:27725487

Questionnaire for Assessing Preschoolers’ Organizational Abilities in Their Natural Environments: Development and Establishment of Validity and Reliability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gila Tubul-Lavy

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Despite the consensus in the literature regarding the importance of organizational abilities in performing daily tasks, currently there is no assessment that focuses exclusively on such abilities among young children. The study aims to develop a Questionnaire for Assessing Preschoolers’ Organizational Abilities (QAPOA, Parents’ and Teachers’ versions, and to examine their reliability and validity. QAPOA was distributed to preschool teachers and parents of 215 typically developing 4–5.6-year-old children. The teachers’ and parents’ versions demonstrated good internal consistency. Factor analysis performed to examine the tool’s content validity yielded two factors: motor-based and language-based OA. Furthermore, both versions of the questionnaire demonstrated significant differences between OA among boys and girls. Concurrent validity was demonstrated between the QAPOA total scores and the equivalent subscale of the BRIEF-P. Given these findings, different cut-off scores were established for identifying boys and girls with either motor-based and/or language-based OA. The results indicate that both the teachers’ and parents’ versions of the QAPOA are reliable and valid measures of children’s organizational abilities. The questionnaires can assess and identify risk for organizational disabilities as early as preschool age. Thus, it can contribute to the planning of appropriate intervention programs and the prevention of difficulties in the future.

78 FR 29375 - Protected Critical Infrastructure Information (PCII) Office Self-Assessment Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-20

... Information (PCII) Office Self- Assessment Questionnaire AGENCY: National Protection and Programs Directorate... comments concerning New Information Collection Request, PCII Officer Questionnaire. DHS previously... without alteration at http://www.regulations.gov , including any personal information provided. OMB is...

Predicting risk of violence through a self-appraisal questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Manuel Andreu-Rodríguez

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The Self-Appraisal Questionnaire (SAQ is a self-report that predicts the risk of violence and recidivism and provides relevant information about treatment needs for incarcerated populations. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the concurrent and predictive validity of this self-report in Spanish offenders. The SAQ was administered to 276 offenders recruited from several prisons in Madrid (Spain. SAQ total scores presented high levels of internal consistency (alpha = .92. Correlations of the instrument with violence risk instruments were statistically significant and showed a moderate magnitude, indicating a reasonable degree of concurrent validity. The ROC analysis carried out on the SAQ total score revealed an AUC of .80, showing acceptable accuracy discriminating between violent and nonviolent recidivist groups. It is concluded that the SAQ total score is a reliable and valid measure to estimate violence and recidivism risk in Spanish offenders.

The Heritability of Cluster B Personality Disorders Assessed both by Personal Interview and Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Torgersen, Svenn; Myers, John; Reichborn-Kjennerud, Ted; Røysamb, Espen; Kubarych, Thomas S.; Kendler, Kenneth S.

2013-01-01

Whereas the heritability of common personality traits has been firmly established, the results of the few published studies on personality disorders (PDs) are highly divergent, with some studies finding high heredity and others very low. A problem with assessing personality disorders by means of interview is errors connected with interviewer bias. A way to overcome the problem is to use self-report questionnaires in addition to interviews. This study used both interview and questionnaire for assessing DSM-IV Cluster B personality disorders: antisocial personality disorder (APD), borderline (BPD), narcissistic (NPD), and histrionic (HPD). We assessed close to 2,800 twins from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health Twin Panel using a self-report questionnaire and, a few years later, the Structured Interview for DSM-IV Personality (SIDP-IV). Items from the self-report questionnaire that best predicted the PDs captured by the interview were then selected. Measurement models combining questionnaire and interview information were applied and were fitted using Mx. Whereas the heritability of Cluster B PDs assessed by interview was around .30, and around .40–.50 when assessed by self-report questionnaire, the heritability of the convergent latent factor, including information from both interview and self-report questionnaire was .69 for APD, .67 for BPD, .71 for NPD, and .63 for HPD. As is usually found for personality, the effect of shared-in families (familial) environment was zero. In conclusion, when both interview and self-report questionnaire are taken into account, the heritability of Cluster B PD appears to be in the upper range of previous findings for mental disorders. PMID:23281671

Designing an Internationally Accessible Web-Based Questionnaire to Discover Risk Factors for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Case-Control Study

Science.gov (United States)

Parkin Kullmann, Jane Alana; Hayes, Susan; Wang, Min-Xia

2015-01-01

Background Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease with a typical survival of three to five years. Epidemiological studies using paper-based questionnaires in individual countries or continents have failed to find widely accepted risk factors for the disease. The advantages of online versus paper-based questionnaires have been extensively reviewed, but few online epidemiological studies into human neurodegenerative diseases have so far been undertaken. Objective To design a Web-based questionnaire to identify environmental risk factors for ALS and enable international comparisons of these risk factors. Methods A Web-based epidemiological questionnaire for ALS has been developed based on experience gained from administering a previous continent-wide paper-based questionnaire for this disease. New and modified questions have been added from our previous paper-based questionnaire, from literature searches, and from validated ALS questionnaires supplied by other investigators. New criteria to allow the separation of familial and sporadic ALS cases have been included. The questionnaire addresses many risk factors that have already been proposed for ALS, as well as a number that have not yet been rigorously examined. To encourage participation, responses are collected anonymously and no personally identifiable information is requested. The survey is being translated into a number of languages which will allow many people around the world to read and answer it in their own language. Results After the questionnaire had been online for 4 months, it had 379 respondents compared to only 46 respondents for the same initial period using a paper-based questionnaire. The average age of the first 379 web questionnaire respondents was 54 years compared to the average age of 60 years for the first 379 paper questionnaire respondents. The questionnaire is soon to be promoted in a number of countries through ALS associations and disease

Issues and challenges in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors: Assessing the needs of cardiologists

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dupuis Martin

2008-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background This needs assessment, initiated by the Academy for Healthcare Education Inc. in cooperation with AXDEV Group Inc., explored the knowledge, attitudes, behavior, and skills of community-based and academic-affiliated U.S. cardiologists in the area of CV risk assessment, treatment, and management from July 2006 to December 2006. Methods The needs assessment used a multistage, mixed-method approach to collect, analyze, and verify data from two independent sources. The exploratory phase collected data from a representative sampling of U.S. cardiologists by means of qualitative panel meetings, one-on-one interviews, and quantitative questionnaires. In the validation phase, 150 cardiologists from across the United States completed a quantitative online questionnaire. Data were analyzed with standardized statistical methods. Results The needs assessment found that cardiologists have areas of weakness pertaining to their interpersonal skills, which may influence patient-physician communication and patient adherence. Cardiologists appeared to have little familiarity with or lend little credence to the concept of relative CV risk. In daily clinical practice, they faced challenges with regard to optimal patient outcome in areas of patient referral from primary-care providers, CV risk assessment and treatment, and patient monitoring. Community-based and academic-affiliated cardiologists appeared to be only moderately interested in educational interventions that pertain to CV risk-reduction strategies. Conclusion Educational interventions that target cardiologists' interpersonal skills to enhance their efficacy may benefit community-based and academic-affiliated specialists. Other desirable educational initiatives should address gaps in the patient referral process, improve patient knowledge and understanding of their disease, and provide supportive educational tools and materials to enhance patient-physician communication.

Measurement Properties of Questionnaires Assessing Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in Pediatrics: A Systematic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Toupin April, Karine; Moher, David; Stinson, Jennifer; Byrne, Ani; White, Meghan; Boon, Heather; Duffy, Ciarán M.; Rader, Tamara; Vohra, Sunita; Tugwell, Peter

2012-01-01

Objective Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is commonly used by children, but estimates of that use vary widely partly due to the range of questionnaires used to assess CAM use. However, no studies have attempted to appraise measurement properties of these questionnaires. The aim of this systematic review was to critically appraise and summarize measurement properties of questionnaires of CAM use in pediatrics. Study design A search strategy was implemented in major electronic databases in March 2011 and conference websites, scientific journals and experts were consulted. Studies were included if they mentioned a questionnaire assessing the prevalence of CAM use in pediatrics. Members of the team independently rated the methodological quality of the studies (using the COSMIN checklist) and measurement properties of the questionnaires (using the Terwee and Cohen criteria). Results A total of 96 CAM questionnaires were found in 104 publications. The COSMIN checklist showed that no studies reported adequate methodological quality. The Terwee criteria showed that all included CAM questionnaires had indeterminate measurement properties. According to the Cohen score, none were considered to be a well-established assessment, two approached the level of a well-established assessment, seven were promising assessments and the remainder (n = 87) did not reach the score’s minimum standards. Conclusion None of the identified CAM questionnaires have been thoroughly validated. This systematic review highlights the need for proper validation of CAM questionnaires in pediatrics, which may in turn lead to improved research and knowledge translation about CAM in clinical practice. PMID:22768098

77 FR 68795 - Protected Critical Infrastructure Information (PCII) Office Self-Assessment Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-16

... Information (PCII) Office Self- Assessment Questionnaire AGENCY: National Protection and Programs Directorate... received will be posted without alteration at http://www.regulations.gov , including any personal...). This questionnaire is designed to gather information from PCII Officers that will be used by the NPPD...

Operational risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

McKim, Vicky L

2017-06-01

In the world of risk management, which encompasses the business continuity disciplines, many types of risk require evaluation. Financial risk is most often the primary focus, followed by product and market risks. Another critical area, which typically lacks a thorough review or may be overlooked, is operational risk. This category encompasses many risk exposure types including those around building structures and systems, environmental issues, nature, neighbours, clients, regulatory compliance, network, data security and so on. At times, insurance carriers will assess internal hazards, but seldom do these assessments include more than a cursory look at other types of operational risk. In heavily regulated environments, risk assessments are required but may not always include thorough assessments of operational exposures. Vulnerabilities may linger or go unnoticed, only to become the catalyst for a business disruption at a later time, some of which are so severe that business recovery becomes nearly impossible. Businesses may suffer loss of clients as the result of a prolonged disruption of services. Comprehensive operational risk assessments can assist in identifying such vulnerabilities, exposures and threats so that the risk can be minimised or removed. This paper lays out how an assessment of this type can be successfully conducted.

Identification of patients at risk of non-adherence to oral antirheumatic drugs in rheumatoid arthritis using the Compliance Questionnaire in Rheumatology: an ARCO sub-study.

Science.gov (United States)

Marras, Carlos; Monteagudo, Indalecio; Salvador, Georgina; de Toro, Francisco J; Escudero, Alejandro; Alegre-Sancho, Juan J; Raya, Enrique; Ortiz, Ana; Carmona, Loreto; Mestre, Yvonne; Cea-Calvo, Luis; Calvo-Alén, Jaime

2017-07-01

The ARCO study (Study on Adherence of Rheumatoid Arthritis patients to SubCutaneous and Oral Drugs), a multicenter, non-interventional retrospective study, was primarily designed to assess the percentage of patients [aged ≥18 years with an established rheumatoid arthritis (RA) diagnosis] with non-adherence to prescribed subcutaneous biologicals. This paper reports data for the secondary objective from a subset of patients, namely to evaluate non-adherence to prescribed oral antirheumatic drugs in RA patients in Spain using the validated Compliance Questionnaire Rheumatology (CQR). Patients also completed the Morisky-Green Medication Adherence Questionnaire, Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire, and a questionnaire (developed and validated in Spain) on patient satisfaction with RA treatment and preferences. A total of 271 patients (76.7% females; mean age 55.6 years) were being treated with oral drugs for RA, of which 234 completed the CQR questionnaire. Non-adherence was reported in 49/234 (20.9%) patients. The proportion of non-adherence in younger patients (aged ≤48 years; 37.5%) was double that recorded in patients aged >48 years (p = 0.006). Patients with a perception of lower efficacy also had a higher risk of non-adherence (p = 0.012). Multivariable analysis showed that younger age and male gender were independently associated with risk of non-adherence. There was only slight agreement between the CQR and Morisky-Green assessment tools (kappa coefficient = 0.186), possibly reflecting the fact that both questionnaires measure slightly different aspects of medication adherence. In conclusion, one out of five RA patients was identified as at risk for non-adherence with the CQR, and this was more frequent in younger patients and in males.

Use of the Asthma Control Questionnaire to predict future risk of asthma exacerbation.

Science.gov (United States)

Meltzer, Eli O; Busse, William W; Wenzel, Sally E; Belozeroff, Vasily; Weng, Haoling H; Feng, JingYuan; Chon, Yun; Chiou, Chiun-Fang; Globe, Denise; Lin, Shao-Lee

2011-01-01

Direct correlation of assessments of a validated composite measure such as the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) and risk of exacerbation has not been previously demonstrated in a randomized controlled trial. To evaluate the ability of the ACQ score over time to predict risk of a future asthma exacerbation. This analysis included data from a 12-week placebo-controlled trial (N = 292) of AMG 317, an IL-4 receptor α antagonist, in patients with moderate to severe atopic asthma. At baseline, patients had an ACQ score ≥1.5. Exacerbations were defined as requirement for systemic corticosteroids. A Cox proportional hazards model was used, with ACQ score as the time-dependent covariate. The analysis was repeated for individual components of the ACQ. Each 1-point increase in ACQ was associated with a 50% increased risk of exacerbation (hazard ratio, 1.50; 95% CI, 1.03-2.20) for the following 2-week period. Evaluation of individual ACQ components also demonstrated a similar trend, though each to a lesser degree than the full composite ACQ. Although based on a retrospective analysis, with small number of exacerbations, these findings support the utility of the composite ACQ score measurement to predict risk of future exacerbation in clinical trials and clinical practice. The composite ACQ score measurement was found to be a better predictor of future risk than individual ACQ components. Copyright © 2010 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Comparison of three shortened questionnaires for assessment of quality of life in advanced cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Leonard; Chiu, Nicholas; Chow, Edward; Cella, David; Beaumont, Jennifer L; Lam, Henry; Popovic, Marko; Bedard, Gillian; Poon, Michael; Wong, Erin; Zeng, Liang; Bottomley, Andrew

2014-08-01

Quality of life (QoL) assessment questionnaires can be burdensome to advanced cancer patients, thus necessitating the need for shorter assessment instruments than traditionally available. We compare three shortened QoL questionnaires in regards to their characteristics, validity, and reliability. A literature search was conducted to identify studies that employed or discussed three abridged QoL questionnaires: the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core 15-Palliative Care (EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL), the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General-7 (FACT-G7), and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Palliative Care-14 (FACIT-PAL-14). Articles that discussed questionnaire length, intended use, scoring procedure, and validation were included. The 7-item FACT-G7 is the shortest instrument, whereas the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACIT-PAL-14 contain 14 and 15 items, respectively. All three questionnaires have similar recall period, item organization, and subscale components. Designed as core questionnaires, all three maintain content and concurrent validity of their unabridged original questionnaires. Both the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACT-G7 demonstrate good internal consistency and reliability, with Cronbach's α ≥0.7 deemed acceptable. The developmental study for the FACIT-PAL-14 was published in 2013 and subsequent validation studies are not yet available. The EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACT-G7 were found to be reliable and appropriate for assessing health-related QoL issues-the former for palliative cancer patients and the latter for advanced cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Conceptually, the FACIT-PAL-14 holds promise to cover social and emotional support issues that are not completely addressed by the other two questionnaires; however, further validation is needed.

Usefulness of self-report questionnaires for psychological assessment of patients with tinnitus and hyperacusis and patients' views of the questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Aazh, Hashir; Moore, Brian C J

2017-07-01

The objective was to determine the relevance and applicability of psychological questionnaires to patients seeking help for tinnitus and/or hyperacusis. This was a questionnaire-based survey. The following questionnaires were administered: Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7), Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI), Mini-Social Phobia Inventory (Mini-SPIN), Obsessive Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R), Panic Disorder Severity Scale-Self Report (PDSS-SR), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Penn State Worry Questionnaire-Abbreviated version (PSWQ-A). In addition, a patient feedback questionnaire was completed asking about the extent to which each questionnaire was relevant to them and how strongly they would recommend its use in the assessment of patients with tinnitus and hyperacusis. A total of 150/402 consecutive patients seen in a one-year period completed the questionnaires. 65% of patients had abnormal scores for one or more of the questionnaires. All questionnaires except the PDSS-SR were rated as relevant and recommended for use. The GAD-7, SHAI, Mini-SPIN, OCI-R, PSWQ-A and PHQ-9 are recommended for evaluation of psychological problems for patients seeking help for tinnitus and/or hyperacusis. Abnormal results on these questionnaires may indicate the need for referral for possible treatment of psychological problems.

Assessment of structured physical examination skills training using a retro-pre-questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Piryani, Rano Mal; Shankar, P Ravi; Piryani, Suneel; Thapa, Trilok Pati; Karki, Balmansingh; Khakurel, Mahesh Prasad; Bhandary, Shital

2013-01-01

The effectiveness of physical examination skills (PES) training is very rarely assessed using the "post-then-pre" approach. In this study, a retro-pre-questionnaire was used to study the effect of structured physical examination skills training (SPEST) imparted to second-year undergraduate medical students. KIST Medical College (KISTMC) affiliated to Tribhuvan University Nepal admitted its first batch of MBBS students in November 2008. The university curriculum recommends the involvement of Medicine and Surgery Departments in PES training, but the methods for teaching and assessment are not well defined. KISTMC has made training more structured and involved the Medicine, Surgery, Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Orthopaedics, ENT, Ophthalmology, Paediatrics, and Family Medicine Departments. SPEST includes the teaching/learning of basic PES for 210 minutes once a week for 28 weeks. Self-assessment is done by using a retro-pre-questionnaire at the end of the last session of training, and these data are analysed using SPSS. Out of 100 students, 98 participated in the objective structured clinical examination (OSCE); 82 completed the retro-pre-questionnaire. Forty-six skills representing various systems were selected for inclusion in the retro-pre-questionnaire from among the many skills taught in different departments. The average perceived skills score (maximum score, 46×4=184) before training was 15.9 and increased to 116.5 after training. The increase was statistically significant upon the application of a paired t-test. The students perceived that their level of skills improved after the training. The retro-pre- instrument seems to be useful for assessing the learners' self-reported changes in PES after training if a large number of skills need to be assessed. However, it should be noted that although a retro-pre-questionnaire may reveal valuable information, it is not a substitute for an objective measure or gold standard.

Assessment of Physical Activity by Applying IPAQ Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Biernat, Elzbieta; Stupnicki, Romuald; Lebiedzinski, Bartlomiej; Janczewska, Lidia

2008-01-01

Study aim: To assess the suitability of the short 7-day IPAQ (self-completed) adapted to Polish population. Material and methods: Two surveys were conducted in 2005 on 296 random subjects (aged 20-60 years) from Warsaw and the Mazowiecki region. From these, 54 men and 79 women were requested to fill questionnaires, and 70 men and 93 women, were…

[The Family Questionnaire (FB-K) - A Short Version of the General Family Questionnaire and its Reliability and Validity].

Science.gov (United States)

Sidor, Anna; Cierpka, Manfred

2016-01-01

A standardized assessment of a family system plays a crucial role in family therapy research and diagnostic, as well as in a family therapy itself. A 14-item short version of the General Family Questionnaire (FB-K) was designed to get a tool for assessing family functionality that is low time-consuming. The short version was developed by factor analysis from the long version FA-A. The quality criteria of the family questionnaire were verified in a control sample of 208 high-risk families four months after the birth of their child. The new family questionnaire demonstrates a very good reliability and a satisfactory 8-months-stability. The concurrent validity with the FACES scale "cohesion" is assured. Regarding the construct validity a positive correlation to the feeling of coherence was found. The family questionnaire shows a negative correlation to the maternal postnatal depressive symptoms, the degree of maternal stress burden, the dysfunctionality of the mother-child-relationship and impaired bonding. The values taken from a norm sample with infants are higher by trend and in the sample with children under 18 do not deviate from the values of the risk sample. FB-K covers two aspects of family functioning, the bond between family members and their willingness to communicate. The internal consistency of FB-K is excellent, the criterion and the construct validity are good.

Construction and validation of a questionnaire on the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in schoolchildren

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fátima H. Cecchetto

2014-07-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: To develop and analyze the reliability and validity of a questionnaire on the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CARDIOKID to be used in schoolchildren. METHODS: The study included 145 children aged 7 to 11 years. The measured factors were the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Cronbach's alpha and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC were used to verify reliability, and exploratory factor analysis was used to assess the validity of the questionnaire. RESULTS: The sample consisted of 60% females and 40% males. In factorial analysis, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO test result was measures of sampling adequacy (MSA = 0.81 and Bartlett's test of sphericity was X2 = (66 = 458.64 (p < 0.001. In the factorial analysis with varimax rotation, two dimensions were defined. The "healthy habits" dimension was composed of five factors (ICC = 0.87 and α = 0.93 and the "cardiovascular risk factors" dimension was composed of seven factors (ICC = 0.83 and α = 0.91. In the individual factor analysis, Cronbach's alphas were between 0.93 and 0.91. Total variance was 46.87%. There were no significant differences between test and retest applications. CONCLUSION: The questionnaire presented satisfactory validity and reliability (internal consistency and reproducibility, allowing for its use in children.

Construction and validation of a questionnaire on the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in schoolchildren.

Science.gov (United States)

Cecchetto, Fátima H; Pellanda, Lucia C

2014-01-01

To develop and analyze the reliability and validity of a questionnaire on the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CARDIOKID) to be used in schoolchildren. The study included 145 children aged 7 to 11 years. The measured factors were the knowledge of healthy habits and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Cronbach's alpha and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) were used to verify reliability, and exploratory factor analysis was used to assess the validity of the questionnaire. The sample consisted of 60% females and 40% males. In factorial analysis, the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test result was measures of sampling adequacy (MSA)=0.81 and Bartlett's test of sphericity was X(2)=(66)=458.64 (p<0.001). In the factorial analysis with varimax rotation, two dimensions were defined. The "healthy habits" dimension was composed of five factors (ICC=0.87 and α=0.93) and the "cardiovascular risk factors" dimension was composed of seven factors (ICC=0.83 and α=0.91). In the individual factor analysis, Cronbach's alphas were between 0.93 and 0.91. Total variance was 46.87%. There were no significant differences between test and retest applications. The questionnaire presented satisfactory validity and reliability (internal consistency and reproducibility), allowing for its use in children. Copyright © 2014 Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

Work-related complaints of arm, neck and shoulder among computer office workers in an Asian country: prevalence and validation of a risk-factor questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jayawardana Naveen

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Complaints of arm, neck and/or shoulders (CANS affects millions of computer office workers. However its prevalence and associated risk factors in developing countries are yet to be investigated, due to non availability of validated assessment tools for these countries. We evaluated the 1-year prevalence of CANS among computer office workers in Sri Lanka and tested the psychometric properties of a translated risk factor questionnaire. Methods Computer office workers at a telecommunication company in Sri Lankan received the Sinhalese version of the validated Maastricht Upper Extremity Questionnaire (MUEQ. The 94 items in the questionnaire covers demographic characteristics, CANS and evaluates potential risk factors for CANS in six domains. Forward and backward translation of the MUEQ was done by two independent bi-lingual translators. One-year prevalence of CANS and psychometric properties of the Sinhalese questionnaire were investigated. Results Response rate was 97.7% (n = 440. Males were 42.7%. Mean age was 38.2 ± 9.5 years. One-year prevalence of CANS was 63.6% (mild-53.7% and severe-10%. The highest incidences were for neck (36.1% and shoulder (34.3% complaints. Two factors for each domain in the scale were identified by exploratory factor analysis (i.e. work-area, computer-position, incorrect body posture, bad-habits, skills and abilities, decision-making, time-management, work-overload, work-breaks, variation in work, work-environment and social-support. Calculation of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.43-0.82 and cross-validation provided evidence of reliability and lack of redundancy of items. Conclusion One year prevalence of CANS in the study population corresponds strongly with prevalence in developed countries. Translated version of the MUEQ has satisfactory psychometric properties for it to be used to assess work-related risk factors for development of CANS among Sri Lankan computer office workers.

Validity and Reliability of the Questionnaire for Assessing Women’s Reproductive History in Azar Cohort Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohammad Zakaria Pezeshki

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This study was done to evaluate the validity and reliability of women’s reproductive history questionnaire which will be used in Azar Cohort study; a cohort that is conducted by Tabriz University of Medical Science in Shabestar county for identifying risk factors of no communicable diseases. Content and face validity were evaluated by ten experts in the field and quantified as content validity index (CVI and content validity ratio (CVR. To assess the reliability, using test-retest approach, kappa statistic was calculated for categorical variables and intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC was used for the quantitative items. The calculated CVI and CVR were 0.91and 0.94, respectively. Reliability for all items was high. The ICC was 0.99 and kappa statistic was equal to 1. The final version of questionnaire was redesigned in 26 items with 7 subscales.

Hepatitis Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

... please visit this page: About CDC.gov . Hepatitis Risk Assessment Recommend on Facebook Tweet Share Compartir Viral Hepatitis. Are you at risk? Take this 5 minute Hepatitis Risk Assessment developed ...

Combining the audit questionnaire and biochemical markers to assess alcohol use and risk of alcohol withdrawal in medical inpatients.

Science.gov (United States)

Dolman, Jonathan M; Hawkes, Neil D

2005-01-01

Alcohol consumption is often under-reported in patients admitted to general hospitals with acute illness. For alcohol-dependent individuals hospital admission results in an enforced period of abstinence with potential alcohol withdrawal symptoms, and possible life threatening complications. Early detection of alcohol use is therefore beneficial to patients and health services. The purpose of this study was to investigate the performance of the alcohol use disorders identification test (AUDIT) questionnaire in the acute medical setting, and the effect of combining routine biological markers-glutamyltransferase, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and mean corpuscular volume (MCV) on its performance in the early identification of in-patients with alcohol use disorders and at risk of developing symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Prospective study in consecutive patients admitted to an acute medical admissions ward. All patients were screened using the AUDIT questionnaire and routine blood tests. Patients were then monitored for symptoms of withdrawal using clinical institute withdrawal assessment for alcohol (CIWA-Ar). Of the 874 patients screened using the AUDIT, 98 (11%) screened positive of whom 17 (2% of the 874) experienced clinically significant alcohol withdrawal symptoms, when using serial CIWA-Ar. The AUDIT and serial CIWA-Ar detected all patients who went on to manifest acute withdrawal symptoms. There was no loss of sensitivity at an AUDIT cut-off of 13 or more compared with the lower cut-off of 8 or more. A positive predictive value of 17.3% for an AUDIT score of 8 or more in the detection of withdrawal, increased to 47.1% when found in combination with at least two abnormal biological markers whilst maintaining a sensitivity of 94.1% and specificity of 97.9%. These findings confirm that AUDIT is a useful alcohol screen in general medical settings and that its ability to correctly predict which patients will experience alcohol withdrawal is

Physiotherapy Questionnaires App to Deliver Main Musculoskeletal Assessment Questionnaires: Development and Validation Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Teixeira Neto, Nestor Cavalcante; Lima, Yuri Lopes; Almeida, Gabriel Peixoto Leão; Bezerra, Márcio Almeida; Lima, Pedro Olavo De Paula; de Oliveira, Rodrigo Ribeiro

2018-02-23

Patient-reported outcomes (PROs) translate subjective outcomes into objective data that can be quantified and analyzed. Nevertheless, the use of PROs in their traditional paper format is not practical for clinical practice due to limitations associated with the analysis and management of the data. To address the need for a viable way to group and utilize the main functioning assessment tools in the field of musculoskeletal disorders, the Physiotherapy Questionnaires app was developed. This study aims to explain the development of the app, to validate it using two questionnaires, and to analyze whether participants prefer to use the app or the paper version of the questionnaires. In the first stage, the app for an Android operational system was developed. In the second stage, the aim was to select questionnaires that were most often used in musculoskeletal clinical practice and research. The Foot and Ankle Outcome Score (FAOS) and American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) questionnaire were selected to validate the app. In total, 50 participants completed the paper and app versions of the AOFAS and 50 completed the FAOS. The study's outcomes were the correlation of the data between the paper and app versions as well as the preference of the participants between the two versions. The app was approved by experts after the adaptations of the layout for mobile phones and a total of 18 questionnaires were included in the app. Moreover, the app allows the generation of PDF and Excel files with the patients' data. In regards to validity, the mean of the total scores of the FAOS were 91.54% (SD 8.86%) for the paper version and 91.74% (SD 9.20%) for the app. There was no statistically significant differences in the means of the total scores or the subscales (P=.11-.94). The mean total scores for the AOFAS were 93.94 (SD 8.47) for the paper version and 93.96 (SD 8.48) for the app. No statistically significant differences were found for the total scores for the AOFAS

GM Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Sparrow, Penny A. C.

GM risk assessments play an important role in the decision-making process surrounding the regulation, notification and permission to handle Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Ultimately the role of a GM risk assessment will be to ensure the safe handling and containment of the GMO; and to assess any potential impacts on the environment and human health. A risk assessment should answer all ‘what if’ scenarios, based on scientific evidence.

Assessing the feasibility of the Healthy Life in Suriname Study: using advanced hemodynamics to evaluate cardiovascular risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jet Q. Aartman

2017-06-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objectives To determine the feasibility of assessing population cardiovascular risk with advanced hemodynamics in the Healthy Life in Suriname (HELISUR study. Methods This was a preliminary study conducted in May – June 2012 using the Technical-Economic-Legal-Operational-Scheduling (TELOS method to assess the feasibility of the HELISUR—a large-scale, cross-sectional population study of cardiovascular risk factors and disease in Suriname. Suriname, a middle-income country in South America with a population of mostly African and Asian ethnicity, has a high risk of cardiovascular disease. A total of 135 volunteers 18 – 70 years of age participated. A health questionnaire was tested in a primary health care center, and non-invasive cardiovascular evaluations were performed in an academic health center. The cardiovascular evaluation included sitting, supine, and standing blood pressure, and intermediate endpoints, such as cardiac output, peripheral vascular resistance, pulse wave velocity, and augmentation index. Results The TELOS testing found that communicating by cellular phone was most effective for appointment adherence, and that completion of the questionnaire often required assistance from a trained interviewer; modifications to improve the clarity of the questions are recommended. Regarding the extended cardiovascular assessments of peripheral and central hemodynamics, the findings showed these to be technically and operationally feasible and well tolerated by participants, in terms of burden and duration. Conclusions Findings of this feasibility assessment indicate that large-scale, detailed evaluations of cardiovascular risk, including a questionnaire and advanced central and peripheral hemodynamics, are feasible in a high-risk population in a middle-income setting.

[Fall risk assessment in regular exercising elderly women].

Science.gov (United States)

Kikuchi, Reiko; Kozaki, Koichi; Kawashima, Yumiko; Iwata, Akiko; Hasegawa, Hiroshi; Igata, Akihiro; Toba, Kenji

2008-09-01

Fall prevention is important for elderly people to maintain their functional independence. We made a longitudinal fall-risk assessment using our "Fall-predicting score" of women who are 60 years or older and who exercised regularly. We sent "fall-predicting questionnaires" to 632 elderly women aged 60 years or older (mean 65.0+/-4.3), members of "Miishima gymnastics program", and asked about their fall history of falling in the past year in 2004 and 2005. We performed a logistic regression analysis to determine the future risk factor of falling in 2005. The number of people who fell was 134 (21.2%) in 2004 and 121 (19.1%) in 2005. The number of people who fell decreased in the seventh decade, but increased in the eighth decade, and members for 6-10 years showed most decreased fall rates. Logistic regression analysis revealed that age, falls in 2004, "tripping", "cannot squeeze a towel", and "walk steep slope around the house" were significant independent risk factors of "falls in 2005". Logistic regression analysis of non-fallers in 2004 showed that age and "tripping" were the significant independent risk factors of "falls in 2005", and the analysis of people who fell in 2004 showed that age, "tripping", "cannot squeeze a towel", "walk steep slope around the house", and "taking more than 5 medicines" were significant independent risk factors for falls in 2005. In regular exercising elderly women, exercise appears to prevent falls in people in the seventh decade and in the members of 6-10 years. Age, past history of falls, and fall-predicting questionnaire were important risk predictors of future falls.

Indicators of choking risk in adults with learning disabilities: a questionnaire survey and interview study.

Science.gov (United States)

Thacker, Alice; Abdelnoor, Adam; Anderson, Claire; White, Sarah; Hollins, Sheila

2008-01-01

Feeding and swallowing impairments are key predictors of increased morbidity and mortality in adults with learning disabilities. This postal survey and interview study sought to identify risk factors in adults with learning disabilities who have histories of choking. A total of 2000 questionnaires were sent to carers of all adults with learning disabilities registered as service users by three local health authorities. (A 'service user' may be using any specialist learning disability health or social care facility with day, residential or therapeutic services). Of the 674 service users for whom surveys were returned, 47 were living in hospital, 396 were living in residential or group homes and 208 were living with relatives, or in their own homes. Eighteen subjects who had reported serious or repeated episodes of choking were interviewed in depth in their residences or workplaces. Responses were subjected to frequency analyses. Personal characteristics were analysed. Choking patterns were differentiated by food texture. A total of 34% of questionnaires on 674 service users were returned; 42% of respondents reported one or more choking episodes. There was a significantly greater occurrence of choking among people with more severe learning disability, with Down syndrome, people who had an incomplete dentition or were taking a greater number of psychotropic drugs. Antisocial eating habits learnt in institutional settings presented an additional choking hazard for some individuals. Choking is a serious hazard for many adults with learning disabilities. This study establishes many of the characteristics associated with swallowing problems in this population. Clinicians and carers should benefit from awareness of these predictors, leading to better management of eating behaviours and habits. A choking and swallowing risk assessment should be included in routine health assessments of adults with learning disability, paying especial attention to the condition of a person

Offshore risk assessment

CERN Document Server

Vinnem, Jan-Erik

2014-01-01

  Offshore Risk Assessment was the first book to deal with quantified risk assessment (QRA) as applied specifically to offshore installations and operations. Risk assessment techniques have been used for more than three decades in the offshore oil and gas industry, and their use is set to expand increasingly as the industry moves into new areas and faces new challenges in older regions.   This updated and expanded third edition has been informed by a major R&D program on offshore risk assessment in Norway and summarizes research from 2006 to the present day. Rooted with a thorough discussion of risk metrics and risk analysis methodology,  subsequent chapters are devoted to analytical approaches to escalation, escape, evacuation and rescue analysis of safety and emergency systems.   Separate chapters analyze the main hazards of offshore structures: fire, explosion, collision, and falling objects as well as structural and marine hazards. Risk mitigation and control are discussed, as well as an illustrat...

Psychometric qualities of questionnaires for the assessment of otitis media impact.

Science.gov (United States)

Timmerman, A A; Meesters, C M G; Speyer, R; Anteunis, L J C

2007-12-01

The assessment of impact and evaluation of treatment effects in chronic otitis media (OM) calls for a much broader approach than just examining the presence of middle ear effusion or hearing loss. It is increasingly recognised that this condition may result in a comprised quality of life. Several studies have used proxy completed questionnaires to objectify the illness experience associated with chronic OM. To review questionnaires which have been developed to describe the effects of chronic OM on the daily functioning of children. Psychometric properties have been evaluated, in addition to discriminative and evaluative qualities. A systematic review of publications pertaining to developed questionnaires related with chronic OM. Systematic literature searches of PubMed (1966-January 2007) and EMBASE (1989-January 2007) were conducted, supplemented by using free text words to identify publications after January 2005. The included 15 questionnaires were developed for children with recurrent or persistent OM, describing functional health status (FHS), while two questionnaires also evaluate the effect of tympanostomy tubes insertion. The questionnaires generally cover six impact areas (physical symptoms, child development, educational performance, emotional/practical burden and general health status) with physical symptoms being the most prominant. The OM8-30, OMO-22 and OM-6 adequately reflect the multidimensional aspects of FHS in chronic OM. The OMO-22 and OM8-30 show the best psychometric properties for the discrimination of impact severity between children, while the OM-6 was found to have the best qualities for the evaluation of clinical change. Clinical applicability is crucial for the assessment of FHS in chronic OM, but requires a trade-off with necessary psychometric properties.

Responsiveness of migraine-ACT and MIDAS questionnaires for assessing migraine therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

García, María Luisa; Baos, Vicente; Láinez, Miguel; Pascual, Julio; López-Gil, Arturo

2008-10-01

Migraine is frequently undertreated. The 4-item Migraine Assessment of Current Therapy (Migraine-ACT) questionnaire is a simple and reliable tool to identify patients requiring a change in current acute migraine treatment. To investigate the responsiveness of the Migraine-ACT tool, and compare it with that of the Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS) questionnaire, for patients with migraine at 1100 primary care sites in Spain. Patients eligible for this open-label, 2-visit prospective study reported migraine for >1 year and >or=1 migraine attack per month and were new to the clinic or on follow-up care for MIDAS questionnaires were administered, and patient satisfaction with treatment was recorded, at baseline and at 3 months. A total of 3272 patients, 78% female, were enrolled, and 2877 (88%) returned for the 3-month visit. Investigators changed baseline migraine treatment for 72% of returning patients; 85% and 80% of these patients had improved Migraine-ACT and MIDAS scores at 3 months, respectively. Patients who reported being completely or very satisfied with migraine treatment numbered 492 (15%) at baseline and 1406 (49%) at 3 months. Migraine-ACT and MIDAS score agreement for improvement at 3 months was poor (kappa = 0.339). Both the mean MIDAS score and the distribution of Migraine-ACT scores improved over the course of 3 months; however, Migraine-ACT scores were significantly (P MIDAS scores. The area under the curve in the receiver-operating characteristic analysis was significantly (P MIDAS (0.70) questionnaire. These results suggest that the Migraine-ACT questionnaire can be used more reliably than the MIDAS questionnaire for detecting improvements in treatment of new and follow-up patients with migraine.

Developing a fatigue questionnaire for Chinese civil aviation pilots.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Jing; Luo, Min; Hu, Wendong; Ma, Jin; Wen, Zhihong

2018-03-23

To assess the fatigue risk is an important challenge in improving flight safety in aviation industry. The aim of this study was to develop a comprehensive fatigue risk management indicators system and a fatigue questionnaire for Chinese civil aviation pilots. Participants included 74 (all males) civil aviation pilots. They finished the questionnaire in 20 minutes before a flight mission. The estimation of internal consistency with Cronbach's α and Student's t test as well as Pearson's correlation analysis were the main statistical methods. The results revealed that the fatigue questionnaire had acceptable internal consistency reliability and construct validity; there were significant differences on fatigue scores between international and domestic flight pilots. And some international flight pilots, who had taken medications as a sleep aid, had worse sleep quality than those had not. The long-endurance flight across time zones caused significant differences in circadian rhythm. The fatigue questionnaire can be used to measure Chinese civil aviation pilots' fatigue, which provided a reference for fatigue risk management system to civil aviation pilots.

Validation of self assessment patient knowledge questionnaire for heart failure patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Lainscak, Mitja; Keber, Irena

2005-12-01

Several studies showed insufficient knowledge and poor compliance to non-pharmacological management in heart failure patients. Only a limited number of validated tools are available to assess their knowledge. The aim of the study was to test our 10-item Patient knowledge questionnaire. The Patient knowledge questionnaire was administered to 42 heart failure patients from Heart failure clinic and to 40 heart failure patients receiving usual care. Construct validity (Pearson correlation coefficient), internal consistency (Cronbach alpha), reproducibility (Wilcoxon signed rank test), and reliability (chi-square test and Student's t-test for independent samples) were assessed. Overall score of the Patient knowledge questionnaire had the strongest correlation to the question about regular weighing (r=0.69) and the weakest to the question about presence of heart disease (r=0.33). There was a strong correlation between question about fluid retention and questions assessing regular weighing, (r=0.86), weight of one litre of water (r=0.86), and salt restriction (r=0.57). The Cronbach alpha was 0.74 and could be improved by exclusion of questions about clear explanation (Chronbach alpha 0.75), importance of fruit, soup, and vegetables (Chronbach alpha 0.75), and self adjustment of diuretic (Chronbach alpha 0.81). During reproducibility testing 91% to 98% of questions were answered equally. Patients from Heart failure clinic scored significantly better than patients receiving usual care (7.9 (1.3) vs. 5.7 (2.2), p<0.001). Patient knowledge questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool to measure knowledge of heart failure patients.

Assessment of environmental correlates of physical activity: development of a European questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oja Pekka

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Research on the influence of the physical environment on physical activity is rapidly expanding and different measures of environmental perceptions have been developed, mostly in the US and Australia. The purpose of this paper is to (i provide a literature review of measures of environmental perceptions recently used in European studies and (ii develop a questionnaire for population monitoring purposes in the European countries. Methods This study was done within the framework of the EU-funded project 'Instruments for Assessing Levels of Physical Activity and Fitness (ALPHA', which aims to propose standardised instruments for physical activity and fitness monitoring across Europe. Quantitative studies published from 1990 up to November 2007 were systematically searched in Pubmed, Web of Science, TRIS and Geobase. In addition a survey was conducted among members of the European network for the promotion of Health-Enhancing Physical Activity (HEPA Europe and European members of the International Physical Activity and Environment Network (IPEN to identify published or ongoing studies. Studies were included if they were conducted among European general adult population (18+y and used a questionnaire to assess perceptions of the physical environment. A consensus meeting with an international expert group was organised to discuss the development of a European environmental questionnaire. Results The literature search resulted in 23 European studies, 15 published and 8 unpublished. In these studies, 13 different environmental questionnaires were used. Most of these studies used adapted versions of questionnaires that were developed outside Europe and that focused only on the walkability construct: The Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS, the abbreviated version of the NEWS (ANEWS and the Neighborhood Quality of Life Study (NQLS questionnaire have been most commonly used. Based on the results of the literature review and

Reliability and Validity of the Greek Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS) Questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Oikonomidi, Theodora; Vikelis, Michail; Artemiadis, Artemios; Chrousos, George P; Darviri, Christina

2018-03-01

The Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS) Questionnaire is a reliable and valid instrument for migraine-related disability. Such a tool is needed to quantify migraine-related disability in the Greek population. This validation study aims to assess the test-retest reliability, internal consistency, item discriminant and convergent validity of the Greek translation of the MIDAS. Adults diagnosed with migraine completed the MIDAS Questionnaire on two occasions 3 weeks apart to assess reliability, and completed the RAND-36 to assess validity. Participants (n = 152) had a median MIDAS score of 24 and mostly severe disability (58% were grade IV). The test-retest reliability analysis (N = 59) revealed excellent reliability for the total score. Internal consistency was α = 0.71 for initial and α = 0.82 for retest completion. For item discriminant validity, the correlations between each question and the total score were significant, with high correlations for questions 2-5 (range 0.67 ≤ r ≤ 0.79; p MIDAS score tended to have better wellbeing. Psychometric properties are comparable with those of other published validation studies of the MIDAS and the original. Findings on question 1 show that missing work/school days may be closely related with increased affect issues. The Greek version of the MIDAS Questionnaire has good reliability and validity. This study allowed for cross-cultural comparability of research findings.

Concept of risk: risk assessment and nuclear safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thompson, P.B.

1980-01-01

The dissertation is a critical examination of risk assessment and its role in public policy. Nuclear power safety safety issues are selected as the primary source of illustrations and examples. The dissertation examines how risk assessment studies develop a concept of risk which becomes decisive for policy choices. Risk-assessment techniques are interpreted as instruments which secure an evaluation of risk which, in turn, figures prominently in technical reports on nuclear power. The philosophical critique is mounted on two levels. First, an epistemological critique surveys distinctions between the technical concept of risk and more familiar senses of risk. The critique shows that utilization of risk assessment re-structures the concept of risk. The technical concept is contrasted to the function of risk within a decision-maker's conceptual agenda and hierarchy of values. Second, an ethical critique exposes the value commitments of risk assessment recommendations. Although some of these values might be defended for policy decisions, the technical character of risk assessment obfuscates normative issues. Risk assessment is shown to be a form of factual enquiry which, nonetheless, represents a commitment to a specific selection of ethical and social values. Risk assessment should not be interpreted as a primary guide to decision unless the specific values incorporated into its concept of risk are stated explicitly and justified philosophically. Such a statement would allow value questions which have been sublimated by the factual tone of the analytic techniques to be debated on clear, social and ethical grounds

Validation of the Danish version of the Patient Assessment of Care for Chronic Conditions questionnaire (PACIC)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sokolowski, Ineta; Maindal, Helle Terkildsen; Vedsted, Peter

Objective: To evaluate the level of chronic care patients must be involved. The Danish version of the 20-item Patient Assessment of Care for Chronic Conditions PACIC questionnaire consisting of 5 scales and an overall summary score measuring patient reported assessment of structured chronic care ...... the same questionnaire is constructed and applied to different countries with diverse cultural backgrounds and health care systems. It is decisive, that translated questionnaires are validated in country they are used.......Objective: To evaluate the level of chronic care patients must be involved. The Danish version of the 20-item Patient Assessment of Care for Chronic Conditions PACIC questionnaire consisting of 5 scales and an overall summary score measuring patient reported assessment of structured chronic care...... interitem correlation), item-rest correlations. Model fit from confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results: We present the psychometric properties of the questionnaire and the first results evaluating chronic care in Danish people with diabetes. Conclusions: The complexity of validation is greater when...

Dutch Risk Assessment tools

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Venema, A.

2015-01-01

The ‘Risico- Inventarisatie- en Evaluatie-instrumenten’ is the name for the Dutch risk assessment (RA) tools. A RA tool can be used to perform a risk assessment including an evaluation of the identified risks. These tools were among the first online risk assessment tools developed in Europe. The

Development and validation testing of a short nutrition questionnaire to identify dietary risk factors in preschoolers aged 12–36 months

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Niamh Rice

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Although imbalances in dietary intakes can have short and longer term influences on the health of preschool children, few tools exist to quickly and easily identify nutritional risk in otherwise healthy young children. Objectives: To develop and test the validity of a parent-administered questionnaire (NutricheQ as a means of evaluating dietary risk in young children (12–36 months. Design: Following a comprehensive development process and internal reliability assessment, the NutricheQ questionnaire was validated in a cohort of 371 Irish preschool children as part of the National Preschool Nutrition Survey. Dietary risk was rated on a scale ranging from 0 to 22 from 11 questions, with a higher score indicating higher risk. Results: Children with higher NutricheQ scores had significantly (p<0.05 lower mean daily intakes of key nutrients such as iron, zinc, vitamin D, riboflavin, niacin, folate, phosphorous, potassium, carotene, retinol, and dietary fibre. They also had lower (p<0.05 intakes of vegetables, fish and fish dishes, meat and infant/toddler milks and higher intakes of processed foods and non-milk beverages, confectionery, sugars and savoury snack foods indicative of poorer dietary quality. Areas under the curve values of 84.7 and 75.6% were achieved for ‘medium’ and ‘high’ dietary risk when compared with expert risk ratings indicating good consistency between the two methods. Conclusion: NutricheQ is a valid method of quickly assessing dietary quality in preschoolers and in identifying those at increased nutritional risk.In ContextAnalysis of data from national food and nutrition surveys typically identifies shortfalls in dietary intakes or quality of young children. This can relate to intakes of micronutrients such as iron or vitamin D as well as to the balance of macronutrients they consume (e.g. fat or sugar. Alongside this lie concerns regarding overweight and obesity and physical inactivity. This combination of

Assessing the questionnaires on perceived oral healthcare need: A systematic review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zahra Yaghoubi

2017-08-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND AND AIM: Perception of the need for oral healthcare plays a key role in creating motivation and demand for utilization of oral healthcare services. Furthermore, while the lack of resources, people with perceived needs to oral healthcare, due to the higher profit potential of services, will be on higher priority for services. The aim of this study was to undertake a systematic review of the existing literature about questionnaires used for assessing the perceived oral healthcare needs. METHODS: The search was conducted in PubMed, ISI and Scopus databases in March 2016. Questionnaire-based and the papers which aimed to determine the perceived need for any type of oral healthcare and dental treatment were included to this study. After determining the appropriate papers, related data were extracted and reviewed. RESULTS: Out of 7069 records found, 190 questionnaire-based papers were included in the review. Ninety-four papers were related to the overall evaluation of oral healthcare need, which did not ask the need for types of oral healthcare service. Sixty-six papers studied the need for a specified dental service, and thirty papers recorded the types of oral healthcare service via asking the open or multiple choices questions. There were not comprehensive and standard questionnaires covering all the common types of oral healthcare services. CONCLUSION: Despite the importance of considering the perception of needs for oral healthcare, there is a lack of the comprehensive and standard questionnaires. Studies aimed to assess perceived oral healthcare needs should use questionnaires which include appropriate items on common types of oral healthcare services based on the characteristics of the target group. Concordance with perceived and normative need is an issue that should be addressed in future researches.

State of risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Conrad, J.

1978-03-01

In view of the growing importance assumed in recent years by scientific work on the calculation, quantification, evaluation and acceptance as well as behavior in the face of risks in general and more specifically, the risks of large industrial plants, the report attempts to provide a survey of the current situation, results and evaluation of this new branch of research, risk assessment. The emphasis of the report is on the basic discussion and criticism of the theoretical and methodological approaches used in the field of risk assessment (section 3). It is concerned above all with - methodical problems of determining and quantifying risks (3.1) - questions of the possibility of risk evaluation and comp arison (3.1, 3.2) - the premises of normative and empirical studies on decision making under risk (3.2, 3.3) - investigations into society's acceptance of risks involved in the introduction of new technologies (3.4) - attempts to combine various aspects of the field of risk assessment in a unified concept (3.5, 3.6, 3.7). Because risk assessment is embedded in the framework of decision theory and technology assessment, it can be implicitly evaluated at a more general level within this framework, as far as its possibilities and weaknesses of method and application are concerned (section 4). Sections 2 and 5 deal with the social context of origin and utilization of risk assessment. Finally, an attempt is made at a summary indicating the possible future development of risk assessment. (orig./HP) [de

Risk assessment for safety laboratories in Politeknik Negeri Medan

Science.gov (United States)

Viyata Sundawa, Bakti; Hutajulu, Elferida; Sirait, Regina; Banurea, Waldemar; Indrayadi; Mulyadi, Sangap

2017-09-01

International Labour Organization (ILO) estimated 2.34 million people die each year because accidents and diseases in workplace. It also impact to economic losses in some countries. It need to do safety and healthy in working environment especially in laboratory. Identification of potential hazards and risks must be done in Telecommunication Laboratory Politeknik Negeri Medan. Therefore, this study was assessed 5 of potential hazards and risks in our laboratory by Likert Scale. This object was divided into 2 assessment namely likelihood of hazards and severity of consequences. Collecting data is taken from questionnaire who involved 100 students at random academic level. The result showed The highest score is chemical hazards 73.2% in likelihood of hazards and electrical hazards 85% in severity of consequences. This condition is classified as “high” state. Big attention must be given to “high” state because it can help us to determine mitigate action.

Risk assessment and risk management of mycotoxins.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Risk assessment is the process of quantifying the magnitude and exposure, or probability, of a harmful effect to individuals or populations from certain agents or activities. Here, we summarize the four steps of risk assessment: hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assessment, and risk characterization. Risk assessments using these principles have been conducted on the major mycotoxins (aflatoxins, fumonisins, ochratoxin A, deoxynivalenol, and zearalenone) by various regulatory agencies for the purpose of setting food safety guidelines. We critically evaluate the impact of these risk assessment parameters on the estimated global burden of the associated diseases as well as the impact of regulatory measures on food supply and international trade. Apart from the well-established risk posed by aflatoxins, many uncertainties still exist about risk assessments for the other major mycotoxins, often reflecting a lack of epidemiological data. Differences exist in the risk management strategies and in the ways different governments impose regulations and technologies to reduce levels of mycotoxins in the food-chain. Regulatory measures have very little impact on remote rural and subsistence farming communities in developing countries, in contrast to developed countries, where regulations are strictly enforced to reduce and/or remove mycotoxin contamination. However, in the absence of the relevant technologies or the necessary infrastructure, we highlight simple intervention practices to reduce mycotoxin contamination in the field and/or prevent mycotoxin formation during storage.

Biosafety Risk Assessment Methodology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caskey, Susan Adele [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States). International Biological Threat Reduction Program; Gaudioso, Jennifer M. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States). International Biological Threat Reduction Program; Salerno, Reynolds Mathewson [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States). International Biological Threat Reduction Program; Wagner, Stefan M. [Public Health Agency of Canada, Winnipeg, MB (Canada). Canadian Science Centre for Human and Animal Health (CSCHAH); Shigematsu, Mika [National Inst. of Infectious Diseases (NIID), Tokyo (Japan); Risi, George [Infectious Disease Specialists, P.C, Missoula, MT (United States); Kozlovac, Joe [US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA)., Beltsville, MD (United States); Halkjaer-Knudsen, Vibeke [Statens Serum Inst., Copenhagen (Denmark); Prat, Esmeralda [Bayer CropScience, Monheim am Rhein (Germany)

2010-10-01

Laboratories that work with biological agents need to manage their safety risks to persons working the laboratories and the human and animal community in the surrounding areas. Biosafety guidance defines a wide variety of biosafety risk mitigation measures, which include measures which fall under the following categories: engineering controls, procedural and administrative controls, and the use of personal protective equipment; the determination of which mitigation measures should be used to address the specific laboratory risks are dependent upon a risk assessment. Ideally, a risk assessment should be conducted in a manner which is standardized and systematic which allows it to be repeatable and comparable. A risk assessment should clearly define the risk being assessed and avoid over complication.

Development and validation of a questionnaire to assess disabling foot pain.

Science.gov (United States)

Garrow, A P; Papageorgiou, A C; Silman, A J; Thomas, E; Jayson, M I; Macfarlane, G J

2000-03-01

This study outlines the design and validation of a new self-administered instrument for assessing foot pain and disability. The 19-item questionnaire was tested on 45 rheumatology patients, 33 patients who had attended their general practitioner with a foot-related problem and 1000 responders to a population survey of foot disorders. Levels of reported disability were found to be greatest for rheumatology patients and least for community subjects. In addition, the instrument was able to detect differences in disability levels reported by community subjects who did and did not consult with a health care professional and those who did and did not have a history of past and current foot pain. A good level of agreement was found when items on the questionnaire were compared with similar items on the ambulation sub-scale of the Functional Limitation Profile questionnaire. A Cronbach's alpha value of 0.99 and item-total correlation values between 0.25 and 0.62 confirmed the internal consistency of the instrument. Finally the results of a principal components analysis identified three constructs that reflected disabilities that are associated with foot pain: functional limitation, pain intensity and personal appearance. The design of the foot disability questionnaire makes it a suitable instrument for assessing the impact of painful foot conditions in both community and clinical populations.

Comparability of a short food frequency questionnaire to assess diet quality: the DISCOVER study.

Science.gov (United States)

Dehghan, Mahshid; Ge, Yipeng; El Sheikh, Wala; Bawor, Monica; Rangarajan, Sumathy; Dennis, Brittany; Vair, Judith; Sholer, Heather; Hutchinson, Nichole; Iordan, Elizabeth; Mackie, Pam; Samaan, Zainab

2017-09-01

This study aims to assess comparability of a short food frequency questionnaire (SFFQ) used in the Determinants of Suicide: Conventional and Emergent Risk Study (DISCOVER Study) with a validated comprehensive FFQ (CFFQ). A total of 127 individuals completed SFFQ and CFFQ. Healthy eating was measured using Healthy Eating Score (HES). Estimated food intake and healthy eating assessed by SFFQ was compared with the CFFQ. For most food groups and HES, the highest Spearman's rank correlation coefficients between the two FFQs were r > .60. For macro-nutrients, the correlations exceeded 0.4. Cross-classification of quantile analysis showed that participants were classified between 46% and 81% into the exact same quantiles, while 10% or less were misclassified into opposite quantiles. The Bland-Altman plots showed an acceptable level of agreement between the two dietary measurement methods. The SFFQ can be used for Canadian with psychiatric disorders to rank them based on their dietary intake.

The development of the MeDALL Core Questionnaires for a harmonized follow-up assessment of eleven European birth cohorts on asthma and allergies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hohmann, Cynthia; Pinart, Mariona; Tischer, Christina

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND: Numerous birth cohorts have been initiated in the world over the past 30 years using heterogeneous methods to assess the incidence, course and risk factors of asthma and allergies. The aim of the present work is to provide the stepwise proceedings of the development and current version...... of the harmonized MeDALL-Core Questionnaire (MeDALL-CQ) used prospectively in 11 European birth cohorts. METHODS: The harmonization of questions was accomplished in 4 steps: (i) collection of variables from 14 birth cohorts, (ii) consensus on questionnaire items, (iii) translation and back...

Use of a patient completed iPad questionnaire to improve pre-operative assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Howell, M; Hood, A J; Jayne, D G

2017-02-01

Developments in healthcare technology could improve patient care and reduce healthcare costs. There is a need to facilitate communication and increase efficiency in surgical pre-assessment clinics. This study aimed to develop an iPad application to deliver an electronic patient questionnaire, and to evaluate its use in the pre-assessment environment. Software was developed, MyOp, for a standard iPad that mirrored the paper-based pre-assessment system, with features designed for ease of patient use and remote data transfer. A case-control study was conducted, comparing use of MyOp with paper-based practice, to evaluate feasibility and patient preference. Patients were offered the use of MyOp or paper-based system. Outcomes measured included time to complete iPad questionnaire, consultation duration, and a patient preference questionnaire. MyOp cost £3500 to develop. 104 individuals participated in the study, 53 MyOp and 51 controls. MyOp reduced the median consultation duration by 5.00 min. A reduction was seen in all subgroups except those aged over 70 or urology patients. Patients preferred to complete the form independently, using a touchpad or computer but expressed concerns about data security. Use of an electronic patient questionnaire reduces consultation time delivering greater efficiency of pre-assessment nurse time. Preconceived ideas about the use of technology in older age groups are likely inaccurate and less of a barrier than previously thought. Electronic pre-assessments could be used routinely to reduce demands on healthcare facilities, improve patient care, and triage patients prior to clinic attendance.

Critical appraisal of questionnaires to assess functional impairment in individuals with mild cognitive impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaur, Navaldeep; Belchior, Patricia; Gelinas, Isabelle; Bier, Nathalie

2016-09-01

Mild deficits in instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) have consistently been reported in the individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). A variety of functional assessment tools, including self-and informant report questionnaires and performance-based measures, have been employed in MCI. Previously, a limited focus has been directed at appraising the quality of questionnaires. The goal of this study was to identify the questionnaires that have been validated in the MCI population. Additionally, the quality of validation studies and psychometric attributes of these questionnaires were appraised. Relevant articles were systematically searched in PsychINFO, Ovid MEDLINE, and CINAHL against specific eligibility criteria. To evaluate the methodology of the psychometric studies, the COSMIN checklist was employed. Also, the psychometric properties of the assessment tools were evaluated based upon Terwee's criteria. A total of five psychometric studies and questionnaires were critically evaluated. Varying psychometric properties were available for the chosen tools. None of the studies received the best possible rating for their methodological quality. It was found that questionnaires with high discriminative ability to distinguish MCI from other diagnostic groups were: Disability Assessment in Dementia-6 (DAD-6), Functional Activity Questionnaire (FAQ), and Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study/Activities of Daily Living scale adapted for MCI patients (ADCS-MCI-ADL-24). Psychometric studies with strong methodological rigor are required in the future. Considering the fact that IADL decline has been associated with dementia, early detection of functional difficulties in MCI needs to be encouraged as it will allow suitable and timely interventions to prolong functional independence of affected individuals.

Quantitative food frequency questionnaire and assessment of dietary intake.

Science.gov (United States)

Singhal, S; Goyle, A; Gupta, R

1998-01-01

India is a land of varied foods and food habits. This makes the task of collecting dietary and nutrient intake data difficult. Methods need to be devised to improve the accuracy in reporting intakes by various population subgroups. There is an urgent need to develop a questionnaire that is simple enough to be administered on a large sample and whose validity and reproducibility has been quantified. Regional differences in food habits and availability will have to be taken into account in the questionnaire design. Packaging of food items with definite portion sizes is not a common practice in Indian markets and labels on food products are neither very informative nor descriptive. Epidemiologists addressing the effects of diet have generally used questionnaires that inquire about the frequency of specified foods consumed and sometimes also attempt to quantify usual portion sizes. A number of investigators have conveyed, apparently independently, that the food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) as a method of dietary assessment is best suited for most epidemiological applications. A food frequency list can form the basis for nutrition education and allows the dietician and the patient to relate individual eating patterns to specific foods. Other advantages of the FFQ are that it is independent of the ability or inclination of an individual to maintain a diary and also provides immediate feedback to patients, physicians and counsellors.

2007 TOXICOLOGY AND RISK ASSESSMENT ...

Science.gov (United States)

EPA has announced The 2007 Toxicology and Risk Assessment Conference Cincinnati Marriott North, West Chester (Cincinnati), OHApril 23- 26, 2007 - Click to register!The Annual Toxicology and Risk Assessment Conference is a unique meeting where several Government Agencies come together to discuss toxicology and risk assessment issues that are not only of concern to the government, but also to a broader audience including academia and industry. The theme of this year's conference is Emerging Issues and Challenges in Risk Assessment and the preliminary agenda includes: Plenary Sessions and prominent speakers (tentative) include: Issues of Emerging Chemical ContaminantsUncertainty and Variability in Risk Assessment Use of Mechanistic data in IARC evaluationsParallel Sessions:Uncertainty and Variability in Dose-Response Assessment Recent Advances in Toxicity and Risk Assessment of RDX The Use of Epidemiologic Data for Risk Assessment Applications Cumulative Health Risk Assessment:

Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

How the EPA conducts risk assessment to protect human health and the environment. Several assessments are included with the guidelines, models, databases, state-based RSL Tables, local contacts and framework documents used to perform these assessments.

Risk Assessment of Wastewater Collection Performance Using the Fuzzy Decision-making Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maedeh Asgarian

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Wastewater collection network simulation in normal conditions dose not provide performance assessment in unusual circumstances. In this paper, a model has been developed for risk assessment of wastewater collection systems to manage their performance under natural or man-made critical conditions. In this model, certain criteria were defined, fuzzy MADM techniques were exploited, and a questionnaire was employed to measure such risk parameters as the probability of threats, the severity of their impacts, and the vulnerability of the network components. Based on the calculated magnitude of the risks, the threats and hazards were classified into groups ranging from low-risk to high-risk threats. The approaches adopted to combat the risks were also classified into the following three categories: "to deal with the risk", "risk shifting", and "risk taking". This process was implemented for the wastewater collection system in Shahrak-Gharb District in Tehran as a case study. ‘Introduction of chemical pollutants into the sewers’ and ‘drastic changes in wastewater quality’ were identified as the most threatening crises for the district and the ‘risk reduction strategy’ was proposed for combating the critical conditions in this district.

Exploration Health Risks: Probabilistic Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Rhatigan, Jennifer; Charles, John; Hayes, Judith; Wren, Kiley

2006-01-01

Maintenance of human health on long-duration exploration missions is a primary challenge to mission designers. Indeed, human health risks are currently the largest risk contributors to the risks of evacuation or loss of the crew on long-duration International Space Station missions. We describe a quantitative assessment of the relative probabilities of occurrence of the individual risks to human safety and efficiency during space flight to augment qualitative assessments used in this field to date. Quantitative probabilistic risk assessments will allow program managers to focus resources on those human health risks most likely to occur with undesirable consequences. Truly quantitative assessments are common, even expected, in the engineering and actuarial spheres, but that capability is just emerging in some arenas of life sciences research, such as identifying and minimize the hazards to astronauts during future space exploration missions. Our expectation is that these results can be used to inform NASA mission design trade studies in the near future with the objective of preventing the higher among the human health risks. We identify and discuss statistical techniques to provide this risk quantification based on relevant sets of astronaut biomedical data from short and long duration space flights as well as relevant analog populations. We outline critical assumptions made in the calculations and discuss the rationale for these. Our efforts to date have focussed on quantifying the probabilities of medical risks that are qualitatively perceived as relatively high risks of radiation sickness, cardiac dysrhythmias, medically significant renal stone formation due to increased calcium mobilization, decompression sickness as a result of EVA (extravehicular activity), and bone fracture due to loss of bone mineral density. We present these quantitative probabilities in order-of-magnitude comparison format so that relative risk can be gauged. We address the effects of

The diagnostic accuracy of screening questionnaires for the identification of adults with epilepsy: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Keezer, Mark R; Bouma, Hanni K; Wolfson, Christina

2014-11-01

To describe the diagnostic accuracy of screening questionnaires to identify epilepsy in adults, we performed a systematic review of diagnostic studies that assessed the sensitivity and specificity of such screening questionnaires as compared to a physician's clinical assessment. We searched Ovid MEDLINE (1946 to present) and Ovid EMBASE (1947 to present) for studies that estimated the sensitivity and specificity of nonphysician administered screening questionnaires for adults with epilepsy. Both telephone and in-person administered questionnaires were included, whether applied to population or hospital/clinic-based cohorts. The risk of bias was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Studies-2 (QUADAS-2) tool. Our initial search strategy resulted in 917 records. We found nine studies eligible for inclusion. The estimated sensitivity and specificity of the questionnaires used to identify persons with a lifetime history of epilepsy ranged from 81.5% to 100% and 65.6% to 99.2%, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of these questionnaires in identifying persons with active epilepsy ranged from 48.6% to 100% and 73.9% to 99.9%, respectively. Overall we found a high risk of bias in patient selection and study flow in the majority of studies. We identified nine validation studies of epilepsy screening questionnaires, summarized their study characteristics, presented their results, and performed a rigorous quality assessment. This review serves as a basis for future studies by providing a systematic review of existing work. Future research addressing previous limitations will ultimately allow us to more accurately estimate the burden and risk of epilepsy in the general population. Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2014 International League Against Epilepsy.

Relative validity of a food frequency questionnaire to assess nutrient intake in pregnant women.

Science.gov (United States)

McGowan, C A; Curran, S; McAuliffe, F M

2014-04-01

To date, there are no food frequency questionnaires that have been validated to assess nutrient intakes in pregnant women in Ireland. The present study aimed to assess the relative validity of a self-administered food frequency questionnaire during pregnancy. The food frequency questionnaire was administered once during pregnancy between 12 and 34 weeks. Participants also completed a 3-day food diary during each trimester of pregnancy (reference method) and intakes from both the food frequency questionnaire and the mean of the 3-day food diaries were compared in a sample of 130 participants from the control arm of an intervention study. Energy-adjusted Pearson's correlation coefficients ranged from 0.24 (riboflavin) to 0.59 (magnesium) and were all statistically significant (P food frequency questionnaire tended to report higher energy and nutrient intakes compared to the food diaries. On average, 74% of participants were classified into the same ± 1 quartile and 7% into opposing quartiles by the two methods. Overall, our food frequency questionnaire showed good relative validity. We conclude that a single administration of a food frequency questionnaire is a valid tool for ranking women in accordance with their nutrient intakes during pregnancy. © 2013 The Authors Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics © 2013 The British Dietetic Association Ltd.

Dimensional Assessment of Anxiety in Puerto Rican Patients: Evaluating Applicability of Psychological Questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

González-Barrios, Polaris; Morales-Rodríguez, Carlos M; Merced-Morales, Kritzianel; Lampón, Anabelle; González, Rafael; Martínez, Karen

2016-09-01

A dimensional assessment model as a supplement to the diagnosis process could overcome the current pitfalls in classifying psychopathology in ethnic minorities. The aim of the study described herein was to examine a sample of Puerto Rican patients diagnosed with anxiety disorder in order to evaluate the psychometric properties of the specific scales that assess the following 3 domains: clinical symptoms, personality/trait, and affective style. 80 subjects were recruited and interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV to identify the presence of anxiety disorders. Following this, various questionnaires assessing each proposed domain were administered to the participants. Reliability and validity of these questionnaires were examined using Cronbach's alpha and exploratory factor analysis. The effect of the individual items of the questionnaires on the overall reliability and validity was assessed using factor scores component matrix. Analyses revealed moderate to high reliability and validity scores within all 3 domains. The sample obtained moderate to high scores on the scales comprising clinical and personality/trait domains. The use of self-report scales in accordance with the proposed dimensional framework may be an effective way to supplement categorical diagnoses within the Hispanic population represented by this sample.

Risk Management for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Elderly Patients: Questionnaire for Patients Undergoing Gastrointestinal Endoscopy

OpenAIRE

Umegaki, Eiji; Abe, Shinya; Tokioka, Satoshi; Takeuchi, Nozomi; Takeuchi, Toshihisa; Yoda, Yukiko; Murano, Mitsuyuki; Higuchi, Kazuhide

2009-01-01

More elderly patients now undergo gastrointestinal endoscopy following recent advances in endoscopic techniques. In this study, we conducted a high-risk survey of endoscopies in Japan, using a questionnaire administered prior to upper gastrointestinal tract endoscopy (UGITE), and identified anticholinergic agents and glucagon preparations as high-risk premedication. We also evaluated the cardiovascular effects of anticholinergic agents and glucagon through measurements of plasma levels of hum...

Internet Administration of Paper-and-Pencil Questionnaires Used in Couple Research: Assessing Psychometric Equivalence

Science.gov (United States)

Brock, Rebecca L.; Barry, Robin A.; Lawrence, Erika; Dey, Jodi; Rolffs, Jaci

2012-01-01

This study examined the psychometric equivalence of paper-and-pencil and Internet formats of key questionnaires used in couple research. Self-report questionnaires assessing interpersonal constructs (relationship satisfaction, communication/conflict management, partner support, emotional intimacy) and intrapersonal constructs (individual traits,…

Screening for alcohol use disorders and at-risk drinking in the general population: psychometric performance of three questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Rumpf, Hans-Jürgen; Hapke, Ulfert; Meyer, Christian; John, Ulrich

2002-01-01

Most screening questionnaires are developed in clinical settings and there are few data on their performance in the general population. This study provides data on the area under the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve, sensitivity, specificity, and internal consistency of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), the consumption questions of the AUDIT (AUDIT-C) and the Lübeck Alcohol Dependence and Abuse Screening Test (LAST) among current drinkers (n = 3551) of a general population sample in northern Germany. Alcohol dependence and misuse according to DSM-IV and at-risk drinking served as gold standards to assess sensitivity and specificity and were assessed with the Munich-Composite Diagnostic Interview (M-CIDI). AUDIT and LAST showed insufficient sensitivity for at-risk drinking and alcohol misuse using standard cut-off scores, but satisfactory detection rates for alcohol dependence. The AUDIT-C showed low specificity in all criterion groups with standard cut-off. Adjusted cut-points are recommended. Among a subsample of individuals with previous general hospital admission in the last year, all questionnaires showed higher internal consistency suggesting lower reliability in non-clinical samples. In logistic regression analyses, having had a hospital admission increased the sensitivity in detecting any criterion group of the LAST, and the number of recent general practice visits increased the sensitivity of the AUDIT in detecting alcohol misuse. Women showed lower scores and larger areas under the ROC curves. It is concluded that setting specific instruments (e.g. primary care or general population) or adjusted cut-offs should be used.

Hanford Site's Integrated Risk Assessment Program: No-intervention risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mahaffey, J.A.; Dukelow, J.S. Jr.; Stenner, R.D.

1994-08-01

The long-term goal of the Integrated Risk Assessment program (IRAP) is to estimate risks to workers, the public, organizations, and groups with reserved rights to Site access, the ecosystem, and natural resources to aid in managing environmental restoration and waste management at the Hanford Site. For each of these, information is needed about current risks, risks during cleanup, and endstate risks. The objective is three-fold: to determine if and when to remediate, and to what extent; to identify information unavailable but needed to make better cleanup decisions; to establish technology performance criteria for achieving desired cleanup levels; to understand costs and benefits of activities from a Site-wide perspective. The no-intervention risk, assessment is the initial evaluation of public health risks conducted under IRAP. The objective is to identify types of activities that the US Department of Energy (DOE) must accomplish for closure of the Hanford Site, defined as no further DOE intervention. There are two primary conclusions from the no-intervention risk assessment. First, some maintenance and operations activities at Hanford must be continued to protect the public from grave risks. However, when large Hanford expenditures are compared to cleanup progress, funds expended for maintenance and operations must be put in proper perspective. Second, stakeholder's emphasis on public risks at Hanford, as indicated by remediation priorities, are not in line with those estimated. The focus currently is on compliance with regulations, and on dealing with issues which are visible to stakeholders

Factor Structure and Validation of the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Questionnaire (DAPQ

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dino Krupić

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The last decade was extremely dynamic in the field of personality disorder. The extensive research has resulted with significant changes in conceptualization and assessment of personality psychopathology. DSM 5 has introduced a hybrid diagnostic model of personality disorders, which leads toward implementing dimensional instead of categorical approach to personality disorders. There are many questionnaires aimed to measure dimensions of personality psychopathology. However, they contain a large number of items, which may present a methodological problem in conducting research on large samples. Hence, the aim of this study is to present development of a short questionnaire aimed to measure main dimensions of personality psychopathology. The questionnaire, named Dimensional Assessment of Personality Traits Questionnaire (DAPTQ, contains 62 items distributed into 5 main scales; Negative Emotionality, Detachment, Compulsivity, Psychoticism and Antagonism, and two additional scales Grandiosity and Attention Seeking. Study was conducted on the sample of 456 high school students from Osijek and Koprivnica. The DAPTQ, YPI, LEXI - 70 and Ryff Scales of Psychological Well-Being were administered. Results indicate good psychometric properties, namely content, construct and convergent validity and reliability, of all scales of the DAPTQ. This paper discusses some measurement issues concerning personality psychopathology in adolescents' population and the ways in which they could be overcome.

Chemical Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

This course is aimed at providing an overview of the fundamental guiding principles and general methods used in chemical risk assessment. Chemical risk assessment is a complex and ever-evolving process. These principles and methods have been organized by the National Research Cou...

French-Canadian translation and validation of four questionnaires assessing hearing impairment and handicap.

Science.gov (United States)

Vincent, Claude; Gagné, Jean-Pierre; Leroux, Tony; Clothier, Audrey; Larivière, Marianne; Dumont, Frédéric S; Gendron, Martine

2017-04-01

Questionnaires evaluating hearing impairment are available in English but there is a need for French standardised questionnaires for researchers as well as for audiologists and other clinicians. The objective of this study is to describe the translation and validation of four questionnaires that assess different aspects of hearing impairment and handicap among elders with hearing loss, by comparing the main score and psychometric evaluation of original and French-Canadian (FC) versions of the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Scale II (WHO-DAS II), the Screening Test for Hearing Problems (STHP), the Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit (APHAB) and the Measure of Audiologic Rehabilitation Self-Efficacy for Hearing Aids (MARS-HA). Vallerand method: translation and back-translation by two translators, revision by a committee of experts and pre-tested with five bilingual older participants. Participants (n = 29) were 65 years of age or older including 21 with hearing aids. The psychometric properties (internal consistency, temporal stability after four weeks) indicate good reliability for most of the translated questionnaires and their subscales, especially the WHO-DAS II. The translations in FC of two hearing loss and two hearing aid questionnaires were validated. It is recommended to pursue the demonstration for temporal stability for the STHP.

An integrated risk assessment approach: Risk assessment in the programmatic environmental impact statement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morris, J.M.

1994-01-01

The following paper is an informal summary of salient points made in the presentation entitled open-quotes An Integrated Risk Assessment Approach: Risk Assessment in the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS).close quotes. This presentation was given at the U.S. DOE Integrated Planning Workshop in Denver, Colorado on June 2, 1994. Integrated decision analysis is very important in environmental restoration and waste management in the evaluation of such things as land use planning, waste load forecasting, cost analyses, and technology development activities. Integrated risk assessment is an approach that addresses multiple components of risk, including: risks from surplus facilities as well as typical environmental restoration sites, risks to the public, risks to workers, ecological risk, risks before, during and after remediation activities, and others

Food frequency questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Pérez Rodrigo, Carmen; Aranceta, Javier; Salvador, Gemma; Varela-Moreiras, Gregorio

2015-02-26

Food Frequency Questionnaires are dietary assessment tools widely used in epidemiological studies investigating the relationship between dietary intake and disease or risk factors since the early '90s. The three main components of these questionnaires are the list of foods, frequency of consumption and the portion size consumed. The food list should reflect the food habits of the study population at the time the data is collected. The frequency of consumption may be asked by open ended questions or by presenting frequency categories. Qualitative Food Frequency Questionnaires do not ask about the consumed portions; semi-quantitative include standard portions and quantitative questionnaires ask respondents to estimate the portion size consumed either in household measures or grams. The latter implies a greater participant burden. Some versions include only close-ended questions in a standardized format, while others add an open section with questions about some specific food habits and practices and admit additions to the food list for foods and beverages consumed which are not included. The method can be self-administered, on paper or web-based, or interview administered either face-to-face or by telephone. Due to the standard format, especially closed-ended versions, and method of administration, FFQs are highly cost-effective thus encouraging its widespread use in large scale epidemiological cohort studies and also in other study designs. Coding and processing data collected is also less costly and requires less nutrition expertise compared to other dietary intake assessment methods. However, the main limitations are systematic errors and biases in estimates. Important efforts are being developed to improve the quality of the information. It has been recommended the use of FFQs with other methods thus enabling the adjustments required. Copyright AULA MEDICA EDICIONES 2015. Published by AULA MEDICA. All rights reserved.

The relation of risk assessment and health impact assessment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ádám, Balázs; Gulis, Gabriel

2013-01-01

than assessing a present situation. As part of this process, however, methods applied in risk assessment are used. Risk assessment typically characterises relation of a well-defined risk factor to a well-defined health outcome. Within HIA usually several individual risk assessments are needed...... of the causal chain from the proposal through related health determinants and risk factors to health outcomes. The stepwise analysis, systematic prioritization and consideration of horizontal interactions between the causal pathways make it feasible to use widely recognized risk assessment methods in the HIA......The level and distribution of health risks in a society is substantially influenced by measures of various policies, programmes or projects. Risk assessment can evaluate the nature, likelihood and severity of an adverse effect. Health impact assessment (HIA) provides similar function when used...

Assessment of cardiovascular risk.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Cooney, Marie Therese

2010-10-01

Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common cause of death worldwide. Usually atherosclerosis is caused by the combined effects of multiple risk factors. For this reason, most guidelines on the prevention of CVD stress the assessment of total CVD risk. The most intensive risk factor modification can then be directed towards the individuals who will derive the greatest benefit. To assist the clinician in calculating the effects of these multiple interacting risk factors, a number of risk estimation systems have been developed. This review address several issues regarding total CVD risk assessment: Why should total CVD risk be assessed? What risk estimation systems are available? How well do these systems estimate risk? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the current systems? What are the current limitations of risk estimation systems and how can they be resolved? What new developments have occurred in CVD risk estimation?

Examination of the Work Organization Assessment Questionnaire in public sector workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Wynne-Jones, Gwenllian; Varnava, Alice; Buck, Rhiannon; Karanika-Murray, Maria; Griffiths, Amanda; Phillips, Ceri; Cox, Tom; Kahn, Sayeed; Main, Chris J

2009-05-01

To investigate the utility of the Work and Organization Assessment Questionnaire (WOAQ) for public sector data. A cross-sectional survey was performed in public sector organizations measuring demographics, work characteristics, work perceptions (WOAQ), sickness absence, and work performance. Confirmatory factor analysis of the WOAQ showed that factor structure derived for the manufacturing sector, for which the questionnaire was developed, could be replicated moderately well with public sector data. The study then considered whether a better more specific fit for public sector data was possible. Principal components analysis of the public sector data identified a two-factor structure linked to four of the five scales of the WOAQ assessing Management and Work Design, and Work Culture. These two factors may offer a context-sensitive scoring method for the WOAQ in public sector populations. These two factors were found to have good internal consistency, and correlated with the full WOAQ scales and the measures of performance and absence. The WOAQ is a useful and potentially transferable tool. The modified scoring may be used to assess work and organizational factors in the public sector.

Effectiveness of a web-based health risk assessment with individually-tailored feedback on lifestyle behaviour: study protocol

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laan Eva K

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Physical inactivity, unhealthy dietary habits, smoking and high alcohol consumption are recognized risk factors for cardiovascular disease and cancer. Web-based health risk assessments with tailored feedback seem promising in promoting a healthy lifestyle. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a web-based health risk assessment with individually-tailored feedback on lifestyle behaviour, conducted in a worksite setting. Methods/Design The web-based health risk assessment starts with a questionnaire covering socio-demographic variables, family and personal medical history, lifestyle behaviour and psychological variables. Prognostic models are used to estimate individual cardiovascular risks. In case of high risk further biometric and laboratory evaluation is advised. All participants receive individually-tailored feedback on their responses to the health risk assessment questionnaire. The study uses a quasi-experimental design with a waiting list control group. Data are collected at baseline (T0 and after six months (T1. Within each company, clusters of employees are allocated to either the intervention or the control group. Primary outcome is lifestyle behaviour, expressed as the sum of five indicators namely physical activity, nutrition, smoking behaviour, alcohol consumption, and symptoms of burnout. Multilevel regression analysis will be used to answer the main research question and to correct for clustering effects. Baseline differences between the intervention and control group in the distribution of characteristics with a potential effect on lifestyle change will be taken into account in further analyses using propensity scores. Discussion This study will increase insight into the effectiveness of health risk assessments with tailored feedback and into conditions that may modify the effectiveness. This information can be used to design effective interventions for lifestyle behaviour change among employees. Trial

Prevalence of complaints of arm, neck and shoulder among computer office workers and psychometric evaluation of a risk factor questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kennes Janneke

2007-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Complaints of Arm Neck and Shoulder (CANS represent a wide range of complaints, which can differ in severity from mild, periodic symptoms to severe, chronic and debilitating conditions. They are thought to be associated with both physical and psychosocial risk factors. The measurement and identification of the various risk factors for these complaints is an important step towards recognizing (a high risk subgroups that are relevant in profiling CANS; and (b also for developing targeted and effective intervention plans for treatment. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of CANS in a Dutch population of computer workers and to develop a questionnaire aimed at measuring workplace physical and psychosocial risk factors for the presence of these complaints. Methods To examine potential workplace risk factors for the presence of CANS, the Maastricht Upper Extremity Questionnaire (MUEQ, a structured questionnaire, was developed and tested among 264 computer office workers of a branch office of the national social security institution in the Netherlands. The MUEQ holds 95 items covering demographic characteristics, in addition to seven main domains assessing potential risk factors with regard to (1 work station, (2 posture during work, (3 quality of break time, (4 job demands, (5 job control, and (6 social support. The MUEQ further contained some additional questions about the quality of the work environment and the presence of complaints in the neck, shoulder, upper and lower arm, elbow, hand and wrist. The prevalence rates of CANS in the past year were computed. Further, we investigated the psychometric properties of the MUEQ (i.e. factor structure and reliability. Results The one-year prevalence rate of CANS indicated that 54% of the respondents reported at least one complaint in the arm, neck and/or shoulder. The highest prevalence rates were found for neck and shoulder symptoms (33% and 31

Food consumption of adolescents. A simplified questionnaire for evaluating cardiovascular risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chiara Vera Lucia

2001-01-01

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To develop a simplified questionnaire for self-evaluation by adolescents of foods associated with the risk of coronary diseases. METHODS: Frequency questionnaires about 80 foods were answered by representative samples of 256 adolescents aged 12 to 19 from Rio de Janeiro as part of the Nutrition and Health Research project. The dependent variable was the serum cholesterol predicting equation as influenced by diet, and the independent variables were the foods. The variables were normalized and, using Pearson's correlation coefficient, those with r>0.10 were selected for the regression model. The model was analyzed for sex, age, random sample, and total calories. Those food products that explained 85% of the cholesterol variation equation were present in the caloric model, and contained trans fatty acids were selected for the questionnaire. RESULTS: Sixty-five food products had a statistically significant correlation (P<0.001 with the dependent variable. The simplified questionnaire included 9 food products present in all tested models: steak or broiled meat, hamburger, full-fat cheese, French fries or potato chips, whole milk, pies or cakes, cookies, sausages, butter or margarine. The limit of the added food points for self-evaluation was 100, and over 120 points was considered excessive. CONCLUSION: The scores given to the food products and the criteria for the evaluation of the consumption limits enabled the adolescents to get to know and to balance their intake.

Reducing the risk of iodine-based and MRI contrast media administration: Recommendation for a questionnaire at the time of booking

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Morcos, S.K.; Bellin, M.F.; Almen, T.

2008-01-01

This paper presents a practical questionnaire to be used when a contrast medium examination is requested. The questionnaire is based on the guidelines from the European Society of Urogenital Radiology. Its aim is to identify patients at increased risk of clinically relevant renal and non-renal ad......-renal adverse reactions to iodine-based and MRI contrast agents. The questionnaire should be completed by the referring physician when the examination is requested. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved Udgivelsesdato: 2008/5......This paper presents a practical questionnaire to be used when a contrast medium examination is requested. The questionnaire is based on the guidelines from the European Society of Urogenital Radiology. Its aim is to identify patients at increased risk of clinically relevant renal and non...

Correlation of Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire to impedance-pH measurements in children

OpenAIRE

Prachuapthunyachart, Sittichoke; Jarasvaraparn, Chaowapong; Gremse, David A

2017-01-01

Background: Esophageal multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH monitoring has become one of the preferred tests to correlate observed reflux-like behaviors with esophageal reflux events. The Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire is a validated tool used to distinguish infants with gastroesophageal reflux disease from healthy children. The aim of this study was to determine whether the Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire composite symptom ...

Developing a Questionnaire to Assess the Probability Content Knowledge of Prospective Primary School Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Gómez-Torres, Emilse; Batanero, Carmen; Díaz, Carmen; Contreras, José Miguel

2016-01-01

In this paper we describe the development of a questionnaire designed to assess the probability content knowledge of prospective primary school teachers. Three components of mathematical knowledge for teaching and three different meanings of probability (classical, frequentist and subjective) are considered. The questionnaire content is based on…

Information needs for risk assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DeRosa, C.T.; Choudhury, H.; Schoeny, R.S.

1990-12-31

Risk assessment can be thought of as a conceptual approach to bridge the gap between the available data and the ultimate goal of characterizing the risk or hazard associated with a particular environmental problem. To lend consistency to and to promote quality in the process, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published Guidelines for Risk Assessment of Carcinogenicity, Developmental Toxicity, Germ Cell Mutagenicity and Exposure Assessment, and Risk Assessment of Chemical Mixtures. The guidelines provide a framework for organizing the information, evaluating data, and for carrying out the risk assessment in a scientifically plausible manner. In the absence of sufficient scientific information or when abundant data are available, the guidelines provide alternative methodologies that can be employed in the risk assessment. 4 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.

Probabilistic risk assessment as an aid to risk management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garrick, B.J.

1982-01-01

Probabilistic risk assessments are providing important insights into nuclear power plant safety. Their value is two-fold: first as a means of quantifying nuclear plant risk including contributors to risk, and second as an aid to risk management. A risk assessment provides an analytical plant model that can be the basis for performing meaningful decision analyses for controlling safety. It is the aspect of quantitative risk management that makes probabilistic risk assessment an important technical discipline of the future

Assessing Saudi medical students learning approach using the revised two-factor study process questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaik, Shaffi Ahamed; Almarzuqi, Ahmed; Almogheer, Rakan; Alharbi, Omar; Jalal, Abdulaziz; Alorainy, Majed

2017-08-17

To assess learning approaches of 1st, 2nd, and 3rd-year medical students by using revised two-factor study process questionnaire, and to assess reliability and validity of the questionnaire. This cross-sectional study was conducted at the College of Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2014. The revised two-factor study process questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F) was completed by 610 medical students of both genders, from foundation (first year), central nervous system (second year), medicine and surgery (third year) courses. The study process was evaluated by computing mean scores of two research study approaches (deep & surface) using student's t-test and one-way analysis of variance. The internal consistency and construct validity of the questionnaire were assessed using Cronbach's α and factor analysis. The mean score of deep approach was significantly higher than the surface approach among participants(t (770) =7.83, p= 0.000) for the four courses. The mean scores of deep approach were significantly higher among participants with higher grade point average (F (2,768) =13.31, p=0.001) along with more number of study hours by participants (F (2,768) =20.08, p=0.001). The Cronbach's α-values of items at 0.70 indicate the good internal consistency of questionnaire used. Factor analysis confirms two factors (deep and surface approaches) of R-SPQ-2F. The deep approach to learning was the primary approach among 1st, 2nd and 3rd-year King Saud University medical students. This study confirms reliability and validity of the revised two-factor study process questionnaire. Medical educators could use the results of such studies to make required changes in the curriculum.

The assessment of orthorexia nervosa among 1899 Polish adolescents using the ORTO-15 questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Hyrnik, Joanna; Janas-Kozik, Małgorzata; Stochel, Martyna; Jelonek, Ireneusz; Siwiec, Andrzej; Rybakowski, Janusz K

2016-09-01

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is considered an eating disorder (ED), with an excessive fixation on the consumption of healthy food and an obsession with its biological purity. Since the adolescent period poses a risk for EDs, the aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of ON in a population of Polish urban adolescents and some possible contributory factors. 1899 high school students, 992 girls and 907 boys aged 15-21 years were studied. Demographic and clinical data were collected using a validated questionnaire including information on preferred living choices, in the context of pro- and antihealth activities. The Polish version of the ORTO-15 questionnaire was used. The mean value of the ORTO-15 was 39.2 ± 3.6 points, with no sex difference. The main factors connected with orthorexia, according to the 'Orthorexia 33.35 and 40' definitions were excess weight, sporting activities, out-of-school activities, smoking status, working parents and a high family income. This study, of a large number of adolescents, showed a prevalence of ON similar to that recorded in adult populations. Since factors predisposing to ON in adolescence differ from those for other eating disorders, it is not clear whether ON should be treated as a new form of ED.

Methodology of environmental risk assessment management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saša T. Bakrač

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Successful protection of environment is mostly based on high-quality assessment of potential and present risks. Environmental risk management is a complex process which includes: identification, assessment and control of risk, namely taking measures in order to minimize the risk to an acceptable level. Environmental risk management methodology: In addition to these phases in the management of environmental risk, appropriate measures that affect the reduction of risk occurrence should be implemented: - normative and legal regulations (laws and regulations, - appropriate organizational structures in society, and - establishing quality monitoring of environment. The emphasis is placed on the application of assessment methodologies (three-model concept, as the most important aspect of successful management of environmental risk. Risk assessment methodology - European concept: The first concept of ecological risk assessment methodology is based on the so-called European model-concept. In order to better understand this ecological risk assessment methodology, two concepts - hazard and risk - are introduced. The European concept of environmental risk assessment has the following phases in its implementation: identification of hazard (danger, identification of consequences (if there is hazard, estimate of the scale of consequences, estimate of consequence probability and risk assessment (also called risk characterization. The European concept is often used to assess risk in the environment as a model for addressing the distribution of stressors along the source - path - receptor line. Risk assessment methodology - Canadian concept: The second concept of the methodology of environmental risk assessment is based on the so-called Canadian model-concept. The assessment of ecological risk includes risk arising from natural events (floods, extreme weather conditions, etc., technological processes and products, agents (chemical, biological, radiological, etc

Ergonomics Risk Assessment among support staff in Universiti Malaysia Pahang

Science.gov (United States)

Jusoh, Faisal; Nafis Osman Zahid, Muhammed

2018-03-01

Awareness of ergonomic risk assessment among workers are getting intense in many industries nowadays. It is essential since most of the workers spend 7 to 8 hours of their time in the workplaces. Previous study shown that spending too much time with static posture in sitting at workplace leads to the problem of Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs). The implications are not only harmful to human body but also effect the productivity. Currently, there are no scientific study conducted to assess the conditions of workers in Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP). Therefore, the problem of MSDs could not be justified clearly and the top management did not acknowledge this issue. This study aims to present current scenario of ergonomic risk level at UMP by using structured model. It focuses on operational staff from faculties and Human Resources Department (HRD). Initially, three types of assessments are executed based on general working condition, Cornell Muscokeletal Discomfort Questionnaire (CMDQ) and Rapid Office Strain Assessment (ROSA). Based on the findings, 90% of the respondents felt discomfort at workplace but prefer to rectify the issues by themselves. Almost 50% of them evaluated themselves in level 4-5 of discomfort level. The CMDQ result shown the discomfort area at faculties and HRD. The workplace at faculties and HRD had been assessed through ROSA and the overall result shown the risk level is medium level respectively. Therefore, further investigation is requires and improvement of workplace need to be proposed to establish good working condition.

Strategic Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Derleth, Jason; Lobia, Marcus

2009-01-01

This slide presentation provides an overview of the attempt to develop and demonstrate a methodology for the comparative assessment of risks across the entire portfolio of NASA projects and assets. It includes information about strategic risk identification, normalizing strategic risks, calculation of relative risk score, and implementation options.

Overview of risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rimington, J.D.

1992-01-01

The paper begins by defining some terms, and then refer to a number of technical and other difficulties. Finally it attempts to set out why risk assessment is important and what its purposes are. 2) First, risk and risk assessment - what are they?. 3) Risk is a subject of universal significance. Life is very uncertain, and we can achieve no object or benefit in it except by approaching nearer to particular hazards which lie between us and our objects. That approach represents acceptance of risk. 4) Risk assessment is a way of systematising our approach to hazard with a view to determining what is more and what is less risky. It helps us in the end to diminish our exposure while obtaining whatever benefits we have in mind, or to optimise the risks and the benefits

Overview of risk assessment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rimington, J D [Health and Safety Executive (United Kingdom)

1992-07-01

The paper begins by defining some terms, and then refer to a number of technical and other difficulties. Finally it attempts to set out why risk assessment is important and what its purposes are. 2) First, risk and risk assessment - what are they?. 3) Risk is a subject of universal significance. Life is very uncertain, and we can achieve no object or benefit in it except by approaching nearer to particular hazards which lie between us and our objects. That approach represents acceptance of risk. 4) Risk assessment is a way of systematising our approach to hazard with a view to determining what is more and what is less risky. It helps us in the end to diminish our exposure while obtaining whatever benefits we have in mind, or to optimise the risks and the benefits.

[Urban ecological risk assessment: a review].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Mei-E; Chen, Wei-Ping; Peng, Chi

2014-03-01

With the development of urbanization and the degradation of urban living environment, urban ecological risks caused by urbanization have attracted more and more attentions. Based on urban ecology principles and ecological risk assessment frameworks, contents of urban ecological risk assessment were reviewed in terms of driven forces, risk resources, risk receptors, endpoints and integrated approaches for risk assessment. It was suggested that types and degrees of urban economical and social activities were the driven forces for urban ecological risks. Ecological functional components at different levels in urban ecosystems as well as the urban system as a whole were the risk receptors. Assessment endpoints involved in changes of urban ecological structures, processes, functional components and the integrity of characteristic and function. Social-ecological models should be the major approaches for urban ecological risk assessment. Trends for urban ecological risk assessment study should focus on setting a definite protection target and criteria corresponding to assessment endpoints, establishing a multiple-parameter assessment system and integrative assessment approaches.

[Forensic assessment of violence risk].

Science.gov (United States)

Pujol Robinat, Amadeo; Mohíno Justes, Susana; Gómez-Durán, Esperanza L

2014-03-01

Over the last 20 years there have been steps forward in the field of scientific research on prediction and handling different violent behaviors. In this work we go over the classic concept of "criminal dangerousness" and the more current of "violence risk assessment". We analyze the evolution of such assessment from the practice of non-structured clinical expert opinion to current actuarial methods and structured clinical expert opinion. Next we approach the problem of assessing physical violence risk analyzing the HCR-20 (Assessing Risk for Violence) and we also review the classic and complex subject of the relation between mental disease and violence. One of the most problematic types of violence, difficult to assess and predict, is sexual violence. We study the different actuarial and sexual violence risk prediction instruments and in the end we advise an integral approach to the problem. We also go through partner violence risk assessment, describing the most frequently used scales, especially SARA (Spouse Assault Risk Assessment) and EPV-R. Finally we give practical advice on risk assessment, emphasizing the importance of having maximum information about the case, carrying out a clinical examination, psychopathologic exploration and the application of one of the described risk assessment scales. We'll have to express an opinion about the dangerousness/risk of future violence from the subject and some recommendations on the conduct to follow and the most advisable treatment. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life Questionnaire: Translation, Cultural Adaptation, Reliability, and Validity of the Persian Version.

Science.gov (United States)

Nikjooy, Afsaneh; Jafari, Hassan; Saba, Maryam A; Ebrahimi, Naghmeh; Mirzaei, Rezvan

2018-05-01

The Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life (PAC-QOL) questionnaire is the most validated and the most specific tool for measuring the quality of life of patients with constipation. Over 120 million people live in countries whose official language is Persian. There is no reported Persian version of the PAC-QOL questionnaire yet. The aim of this study was to translate and culturally adapt the PAC-QOL questionnaire and to assess its reliability and validity among Persian patients with chronic constipation. Following the translation and cultural adaptation of the PAC-QOL questionnaire to Persian, 100 patients (mean±SD age=40.51±13.67) with constipation were recruited for validity measurement and 20 patients were re-examined for reliability. Content validity was assessed based on the opinions of an expert committee and the floor/ceiling effect. Construct validity was evaluated according to the hypothesis test. The SF-36 questionnaire was used for concurrent criterion validity, intra-class correlation coefficient for reliability, and Cronbach's alpha for internal consistency. The content validity of the PAC-QOL questionnaire was proven, and there was no floor/ceiling effect. Construct validity also was confirmed based on the hypothesis test. The overall Cronbach's alpha of the PAC-QOL questionnaire was 0.92 (range=0.72-0.92), and the overall intra-class correlation coefficient of the questionnaire was 0.88 (range=0.69-0.87). The correlation between the SF-36 and PAC-QOL questionnaires was moderate. The Persian version of the PAC-QOL questionnaire demonstrated good validity and reliability properties in chronic constipation. Accordingly, Persian researchers and clinicians can benefit from this questionnaire in further research and assessment of treatment outcomes.

Translation and adaptation of a questionnaire to assess the group processes of rehabilitation team conferences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Roelofsen, E.E.; Lankhorst, G.J.; Bouter, L.M.

2001-01-01

Objective: To investigate the internal consistency, the domain structure and the influence of social desirability with regard to a questionnaire translated and adapted to assess the quality of rehabilitation team conferences in the Netherlands. Study design: A questionnaire to determine group

Risk Assessment and Integration Team (RAIT) Portfolio Risk Analysis Strategy

Science.gov (United States)

Edwards, Michelle

2010-01-01

Impact at management level: Qualitative assessment of risk criticality in conjunction with risk consequence, likelihood, and severity enable development of an "investment policy" towards managing a portfolio of risks. Impact at research level: Quantitative risk assessments enable researchers to develop risk mitigation strategies with meaningful risk reduction results. Quantitative assessment approach provides useful risk mitigation information.

Defining the Process of a Cardiovascular Risk Assessment Program: Lessons Learnt From Cardiac Assessment of Elite Soccer Players in the United Kingdom.

Science.gov (United States)

Speers, Christopher; Seth, Ajai Narain; Patel, Kiran Chhaganbhai; Rakhit, Dhrubo Jyoti; Gillett, Mark James

2017-12-14

Retrospectively analyze the cardiac assessment process for elite soccer players, and provide team physicians with a systematic guide to managing longitudinal cardiac risk. Descriptive Epidemiology Study. Cardiac assessments incorporating clinical examination, 12-lead ECG, echocardiography, and health questionnaire. Soccer players at 5 professional clubs in England, the United Kingdom. Data was retrospectively collected, inspected, and analyzed to determine their clinical management and subsequent follow-up. Over 2 years, 265 soccer players, aged 13 to 37 years with 66% of white European ethnicity, were included in the cohort. Eleven percent had "not-normal" assessments, of these assessments, 83% were considered gray screens, falling into three broad categories: structural cardiac features (including valvular abnormalities), functional cardiac features, and electrocardiogram changes. After cardiology consultation, all assessments were grouped into low, enhanced and high-risk categories for ongoing longitudinal risk management. Overall clear-cut pathology was identified in 2%. Cardiovascular assessment is a vital tool in identifying athletes at risk of sudden cardiac death to mitigate their risk through surveillance, intervention, or participation restriction. The decision whether a player is fit to play or not requires a robust risk assessment followed by input from a multidisciplinary team that includes both the team physician and cardiologist. This educational article proposes a clinical management pathway to aid clinicians with this process. Sudden cardiac death is the important medical cause of death during exercise. The team physician should assume responsibility for the management of the longitudinal risk of their players' cardiac assessments in conjunction with sports cardiologist.

[Risk Assessment and Risk Management of Chemicals in China].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Tie-yu; Zhou, Yun-qiao; Li, Qi-feng; Lü, Yong-long

2016-02-15

Risk assessment and risk management have been increasingly approved as an effective approach for appropriate disposal and scientific management of chemicals. This study systematically analyzed the risk assessment methods of chemicals from three aspects including health risk, ecological risk and regional risk. Based on the current situation of classification and management towards chemicals in China, a specific framework of risk management on chemicals was proposed by selecting target chemicals, predominant industries and related stakeholders as the objects. The results of the present study will provide scientific support for improving risk assessment and reasonable management of chemicals in China.

Risk assessment and level of physical activity of students in Poland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jolanta Grażyna Zuzda

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Aim . The aim of the study was to determine the risks of activity by using Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q and describe the PA profile using the short-version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ-SF among selected groups of sport science students. Material and methods The study covered 99 students - 61 females aged 21.08 ± 1.43 and 38 males aged 21.24 ± 1.22 y. In order to asses and stratify the risk of PA the Polish short version of the IPAQ-SF was used. Results. The total level of physical activity of the male students was 3460.039±2502.207 MET- min/week and was higher than in the case of female students (3388,107±2204,290 MET- min/week. The dominant type physical activity of female and male students was intensive effort. Among 22 men and 39 women, risk factors for cardiac events, pulmonary and musculoskeletal injuries were reported. The relationship between PAR-Q results and the on the IPAQ-SF results was no statistically significant. Conclusions This study demonstrates that students achieve the level of physical activity recommended by experts for the prevention of chronic diseases. This research allows sports science students to understand their own health issues through self-assessments of personal risk factors for cardiac events, pulmonary and musculoskeletal injury.

A simplified questionnaire for self-assessment of hirsutism in population-based studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Gabrielli, Ligia; Aquino, Estela M L

2015-04-01

The measurement of excess body hair is not straightforward. As the modified Ferriman-Gallwey (mFG) score is unsuitable for self-assessment and requires specialist training, a short, self-administered questionnaire to identify hirsutism was constructed and validated for large-scale application, particularly targeting population-based studies. A validation study was conducted to assess a new hirsutism questionnaire. A total of 90 women aged 35-72 years who were enrolled in the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) were evaluated. A self-administered instrument containing four questions was designed to evaluate five body areas: upper lip, chin, chest, lower abdomen, and thighs with respect to the current distribution of body hair and that before 35 years of age. A score of 0-4 was attributed to each region based on drawings provided in the instrument. Test-retest reliability was evaluated by reformulating the initial questions. An independent medical examination was conducted to apply the gold standard, the mFG score. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.93 (95% CI: 0.87-0.99). A cut-off score of 5 showed the best balance between sensitivity (85%) and specificity (90%), with 88.9% accuracy. Spearman's correlation between current and past body hair score was calculated at 0.82 (P=0.000), and showed a test-retest reliability of 0.49, with a trend toward similar answers regarding changes in the quantity of body hair over time, irrespective of how the questions were asked (P=0.000). The accuracy and internal consistency of this self-administered questionnaire for the identification of hirsutism were good. Therefore, this questionnaire represents a useful tool for self-assessment of hirsutism in population-based studies. © 2015 European Society of Endocrinology.

A questionnaire to assess social stigma.

Science.gov (United States)

Tavormina, Maurilio Giuseppe Maria; Tavormina, Romina; Nemoianni, Eugenio; Tavormina, Giuseppe

2015-09-01

Psychiatric patients often suffer for two reasons: due to the illness and due to the social stigma of mental illness, that increases the uneasiness and psychic pain of the person suffering from serious psychiatric disorder. This unwell person is often the object of stigma because he is "different" from others, and he also can be margenalised by society. In this study we intend to assess whether these margenalising attitudes might be also present among mental health professionals who have presented psychic problems in a previous period of their life, against sick persons suffering of the same illness even if he is a mental health professional. Two questionnaires have been developed, one for professionals and another for the patients, with the aim of identifying these marginalising attitudes. We intend that this study shall be a multicenter, observational and international study, promoted by the Mental Health Dept. of Naples (ASL Naples 3 South, Italy).

Questionnaires used to assess barriers of clinical guideline use among physicians are not comprehensive, reliable, or valid: a scoping review.

Science.gov (United States)

Willson, Melina L; Vernooij, Robin W M; Gagliardi, Anna R

2017-06-01

This study described the number and characteristics of questionnaires used to assess barriers of guideline use among physicians. A scoping review was conducted. MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched from 2005 to June 2016. English-language studies that administered a questionnaire to assess barriers of guideline use among practicing physicians were eligible. Summary statistics were used to report study and questionnaire characteristics. Questionnaire content was assessed with a checklist of 57 known barriers. Each of the 178 included studies administered a unique questionnaire. The number of questionnaires increased yearly from 2005 to 2015. Few were pilot-tested (50, 28.1%) or tested for psychometric properties (3, 1.7%). Two were based on theory. None probed for the full range of known barriers. Ten included a free-text option. The majority assessed professional barriers (177, 99.4%) but few of the 14 factors within this domain. Questionnaire characteristics did not change over time. Organizations administered questionnaires that were not reliable or valid and did not comprehensively assess barriers and may have selected interventions unlikely to promote guideline use. Research is needed to construct a questionnaire that is practical, adaptable, and robust and leads to the selection of interventions that support guideline use. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A questionnaire for assessing breastfeeding intentions and practices in Nigeria: validity, reliability and translation.

Science.gov (United States)

Emmanuel, Andy; Clow, Sheila E

2017-06-07

Validating a questionnaire/instrument (whether developed or adapted) before proceeding to the field for data collection is important. This article presents the modification of an Irish questionnaire for a Nigerian setting. The validation process and reliability testing of this questionnaire (which was used in assessing previous breastfeeding practices and breastfeeding intentions of pregnant women in English and Hausa languages) were also presented. Five experts in the field of breastfeeding and infant feeding voluntarily and independently evaluated the instrument. The experts evaluated the various items of the questionnaire based on relevance, clarity, simplicity and ambiguity on a Likert scale of 4. The analysis was performed to determine the content validity index (CVI).Two language experts performed the translation and back-translation. Ten pregnant women completed questionnaires which were evaluated for internal consistency. Two other pregnant women completed the questionnaire twice at an interval of two weeks to test the reliability. SPSS version 21 was used to calculate the coefficient of reliability. The content validity index was high (0.94 for relevance, clarity and ambiguity and 0.96 for simplicity). The analysis suggested that four of the seventy one items should be removed. Cronbach's Alpha was 0.81, while the reliability coefficient was 0.76. The emerged validated questionnaire was translated from English to Hausa, then, back-translated into English and compared for accuracy. The final instrument is reliable and valid for data collection on breastfeeding in Nigeria among English and Hausa speakers. Therefore, the instrument is recommended for use in assessing breastfeeding intention and practices in Nigeria.

Comparison of the Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Assessment Questionnaire and the Short-Form International Physical Activity Questionnaire: An Analysis of Health Survey for England Data

Science.gov (United States)

Scholes, Shaun; Bridges, Sally; Ng Fat, Linda; Mindell, Jennifer S.

2016-01-01

Background The Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Assessment Questionnaire (PASBAQ), used within the Health Survey for England (HSE) at 5-yearly intervals, is not included annually due to funding and interview-length constraints. Policy-makers and data-users are keen to consider shorter instruments such as the Short-form International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) for the annual survey. Both questionnaires were administered in HSE 2012, enabling comparative assessment in a random sample of 1252 adults. Methods Relative agreement using prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted Kappa (PABAK) statistics was estimated for: sufficient aerobic activity (moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [MVPA] ≥150minutes/week); inactivity (MVPAactivity and inactivity were higher and lower, respectively; estimates of excessive sitting were higher. Demographic patterns in prevalence were similar. Agreement using PABAK statistics was fair-to-moderate for sufficient aerobic activity (0.32–0.49), moderate-to-substantial for inactivity (0.42–0.74), and moderate-to-substantial for excessive sitting (0.49–0.75). As with the PASBAQ, IPAQ-assessed MVPA and sitting each showed graded associations with mental well-being (women: P for trend = 0.003 and 0.004, respectively) and obesity (women: P for trend = 0.007 and 0.014, respectively). Conclusions Capturing habitual physical activity and sedentary behaviour through brief questionnaires is complex. Differences in prevalence estimates can reflect differences in questionnaire structure and content rather than differences in reported behaviour. Treating all IPAQ-assessed walking as moderate-intensity contributed to the differences in prevalence estimates. PASBAQ data will be used for population surveillance every 4 to 5 years. The current version of the Short-form IPAQ was included in HSE 2013–14 to enable more frequent assessment of physical activity and sedentary behaviour; a modified version with different item-ordering and

Development and validation of a patient-reported questionnaire assessing systemic therapy induced diarrhea in oncology patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Lui, Michelle; Gallo-Hershberg, Daniela; DeAngelis, Carlo

2017-12-22

Systemic therapy-induced diarrhea (STID) is a common side effect experienced by more than half of cancer patients. Despite STID-associated complications and poorer quality of life (QoL), no validated assessment tools exist to accurately assess STID occurrence and severity to guide clinical management. Therefore, we developed and validated a patient-reported questionnaire (STIDAT). The STIDAT was developed using the FDA iterative process for patient-reported outcomes. A literature search uncovered potential items and questions for questionnaire construction used by oncology clinicians to develop questions for the preliminary instrument. The instrument was evaluated on its face validity and content validity by patient interviews. Repetitive, similar and different themes uncovered from patient interviews were implemented to revise the instrument to the version used for validation. Patients starting high-risk STID treatments were monitored using the STIDAT, bowel diaries and EORTC QLQ-C30. The STIDAT was evaluated for construct validity using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) using minimal residual method with Promax rotation, reliability and consistency. A weighted scoring system was developed and a receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve evaluated the tool's ability to detect STID occurrence. Median scores and variability were analysed to determine how well it differentiates between diarrhea severities. A post-hoc analysis determined how diarrhea severity impacted QoL of cancer patients. Patients defined diarrhea based on presence of watery stool. The STIDAT assessed patient's perception of having diarrhea, daily number of bowel movements, daily number of diarrhea episodes, antidiarrheal medication use, the presence of urgency, abdominal pain, abdominal spasms or fecal incontinence, patient's perception of diarrhea severity, and QoL. These dimensions were sorted into four clusters using EFA - patient's perception of diarrhea, frequency of diarrhea, fecal

Patient caries risk assessment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Twetman, Svante; Fontana, Margherita

2009-01-01

Risk assessment is an essential component in the decision-making process for the correct prevention and management of dental caries. Multiple risk factors and indicators have been proposed as targets in the assessment of risk of future disease, varying sometimes based on the age group at which...... they are targeted. Multiple reviews and systematic reviews are available in the literature on this topic. This chapter focusses primarily on results of reviews based on longitudinal studies required to establish the accuracy of caries risk assessment. These findings demonstrate that there is a strong body...... of evidence to support that caries experience is still, unfortunately, the single best predictor for future caries development. In young children, prediction models which include a variety of risk factors seem to increase the accuracy of the prediction, while the usefulness of additional risk factors...

Building better environmental risk assessments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raymond eLayton

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Risk assessment is a reasoned, structured approach to address uncertainty based on scientific and technical evidence. It forms the foundation for regulatory decision making, which is bound by legislative and policy requirements, as well as the need for making timely decisions using available resources. In order to be most useful, environmental risk assessments (ERA for genetically modified (GM crops should provide consistent, reliable, and transparent results across all types of GM crops, traits, and environments. The assessments must also separate essential information from scientific or agronomic data of marginal relevance or value for evaluating risk and complete the assessment in a timely fashion. Challenges in conducting ERAs differ across regulatory systems – examples are presented from Canada, Malaysia, and Argentina. One challenge faced across the globe is the conduct of risk assessments with limited resources. This challenge can be overcome by clarifying risk concepts, placing greater emphasis on data critical to assess environmental risk (for example, phenotypic and plant performance data rather than molecular data, and adapting advances in risk analysis from other relevant disciplines.

Building Better Environmental Risk Assessments

Science.gov (United States)

Layton, Raymond; Smith, Joe; Macdonald, Phil; Letchumanan, Ramatha; Keese, Paul; Lema, Martin

2015-01-01

Risk assessment is a reasoned, structured approach to address uncertainty based on scientific and technical evidence. It forms the foundation for regulatory decision-making, which is bound by legislative and policy requirements, as well as the need for making timely decisions using available resources. In order to be most useful, environmental risk assessments (ERAs) for genetically modified (GM) crops should provide consistent, reliable, and transparent results across all types of GM crops, traits, and environments. The assessments must also separate essential information from scientific or agronomic data of marginal relevance or value for evaluating risk and complete the assessment in a timely fashion. Challenges in conducting ERAs differ across regulatory systems – examples are presented from Canada, Malaysia, and Argentina. One challenge faced across the globe is the conduct of risk assessments with limited resources. This challenge can be overcome by clarifying risk concepts, placing greater emphasis on data critical to assess environmental risk (for example, phenotypic and plant performance data rather than molecular data), and adapting advances in risk analysis from other relevant disciplines. PMID:26301217

Building Better Environmental Risk Assessments.

Science.gov (United States)

Layton, Raymond; Smith, Joe; Macdonald, Phil; Letchumanan, Ramatha; Keese, Paul; Lema, Martin

2015-01-01

Risk assessment is a reasoned, structured approach to address uncertainty based on scientific and technical evidence. It forms the foundation for regulatory decision-making, which is bound by legislative and policy requirements, as well as the need for making timely decisions using available resources. In order to be most useful, environmental risk assessments (ERAs) for genetically modified (GM) crops should provide consistent, reliable, and transparent results across all types of GM crops, traits, and environments. The assessments must also separate essential information from scientific or agronomic data of marginal relevance or value for evaluating risk and complete the assessment in a timely fashion. Challenges in conducting ERAs differ across regulatory systems - examples are presented from Canada, Malaysia, and Argentina. One challenge faced across the globe is the conduct of risk assessments with limited resources. This challenge can be overcome by clarifying risk concepts, placing greater emphasis on data critical to assess environmental risk (for example, phenotypic and plant performance data rather than molecular data), and adapting advances in risk analysis from other relevant disciplines.

Risk Assessment Stability: A Revalidation Study of the Arizona Risk/Needs Assessment Instrument

Science.gov (United States)

Schwalbe, Craig S.

2009-01-01

The actuarial method is the gold standard for risk assessment in child welfare, juvenile justice, and criminal justice. It produces risk classifications that are highly predictive and that may be robust to sampling error. This article reports a revalidation study of the Arizona Risk/Needs Assessment instrument, an actuarial instrument for juvenile…

Opioid-induced bowel dysfunction in healthy volunteers assessed with questionnaires and MRI

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nilsson, Matias; Poulsen, Jakob Lykke; Brock, Christina

2016-01-01

Twenty-five healthy men were assigned randomly to oxycodone or placebo for 5 days in a cross-over design. The analgesic effect was assessed with muscle pressure algometry and adverse effects were measured using questionnaires including the bowel function index, gastrointestinal symptom rating scale....../ascending colon by 41% (P =0.005) and in the transverse colon by 20% (P= 0.005). No associations were detected between questionnaire scores and colorectal volumes. Conclusion Experimental OIBD in healthy volunteers was induced during oxycodone treatment. This model has potential for future interventional studies...

Validity and reproducibility of a physical activity questionnaire for older adults: questionnaire versus accelerometer for assessing physical activity in older adults

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Siebeling, Lara; Wiebers, Sarah; Beem, Leo; Puhan, Milo A.; ter Riet, Gerben

2012-01-01

BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) is important in older adults for the maintenance of functional ability. Assessing PA may be difficult. Few PA questionnaires have been compared to activity monitors. We examined reproducibility and validity of the self-administered Longitudinal Ageing Study

RISK MANAGEMENT: AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO RISK MANAGEMENT AND ASSESSMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Szabo Alina

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Purpose: The objective of this paper is to offer an overview over risk management cycle by focusing on prioritization and treatment, in order to ensure an integrated approach to risk management and assessment, and establish the ‘top 8-12’ risks report within the organization. The interface with Internal Audit is ensured by the implementation of the scoring method to prioritize risks collected from previous generated risk report. Methodology/approach: Using evidence from other research in the area and the professional expertise, this article outlines an integrated approach to risk assessment and risk management reporting processes, by separating the risk in two main categories: strategic and operational risks. The focus is on risk prioritization and scoring; the final output will comprise a mix of strategic and operational (‘top 8-12’ risks, which should be used to establish the annual Internal Audit plan. Originality/value: By using an integrated approach to risk assessment and risk management will eliminate the need for a separate Internal Audit risk assessment over prevailing risks. It will reduce the level of risk assessment overlap by different functions (Tax, Treasury, Information System over the same risk categories as a single methodology, is used and will align timings of risk assessment exercises. The risk prioritization by usage of risk and control scoring criteria highlights the combination between financial and non-financial impact criteria allowing risks that do not naturally lend themselves to a financial amount to be also assessed consistently. It is emphasized the usage of score method to prioritize the risks included in the annual audit plan in order to increase accuracy and timelines.

Psychometrics of a new questionnaire to assess glaucoma adherence: the Glaucoma Treatment Compliance Assessment Tool (an American Ophthalmological Society thesis).

Science.gov (United States)

Mansberger, Steven L; Sheppler, Christina R; McClure, Tina M; Vanalstine, Cory L; Swanson, Ingrid L; Stoumbos, Zoey; Lambert, William E

2013-09-01

To report the psychometrics of the Glaucoma Treatment Compliance Assessment Tool (GTCAT), a new questionnaire designed to assess adherence with glaucoma therapy. We developed the questionnaire according to the constructs of the Health Belief Model. We evaluated the questionnaire using data from a cross-sectional study with focus groups (n = 20) and a prospective observational case series (n=58). Principal components analysis provided assessment of construct validity. We repeated the questionnaire after 3 months for test-retest reliability. We evaluated predictive validity using an electronic dosing monitor as an objective measure of adherence. Focus group participants provided 931 statements related to adherence, of which 88.7% (826/931) could be categorized into the constructs of the Health Belief Model. Perceived barriers accounted for 31% (288/931) of statements, cues-to-action 14% (131/931), susceptibility 12% (116/931), benefits 12% (115/931), severity 10% (91/931), and self-efficacy 9% (85/931). The principal components analysis explained 77% of the variance with five components representing Health Belief Model constructs. Reliability analyses showed acceptable Cronbach's alphas (>.70) for four of the seven components (severity, susceptibility, barriers [eye drop administration], and barriers [discomfort]). Predictive validity was high, with several Health Belief Model questions significantly associated (P <.05) with adherence and a correlation coefficient (R (2)) of .40. Test-retest reliability was 90%. The GTCAT shows excellent repeatability, content, construct, and predictive validity for glaucoma adherence. A multisite trial is needed to determine whether the results can be generalized and whether the questionnaire accurately measures the effect of interventions to increase adherence.

A study of measurement properties of the Life-Space Assessment questionnaire in older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Isabel Fialho Fontenele; Tiuganji, Carina Tiemi; Simões, Maria do Socorro Morais Pereira; Lunardi, Adriana Claudia

2018-06-01

To test the measurement properties (reliability, interpretability, and validity) of the Life-Space Assessment questionnaire for older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Clinimetric study. Pneumology service, ambulatory care, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Consecutive sample of older adults ( n = 62; 38 (61%) men, 24 (39%) women) with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Not applicable. Life-Space Assessment questionnaire assesses five space levels visited by the older adult in four weeks prior to the assessment. We tested the following measurement properties of this questionnaire: reliability (reproducibility assessed by a type-2,1 intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 2,1 ); internal consistency assessed by the Cronbach's alpha; measurement error by determining the standard error of measurement (SEM)), interpretability (minimum detectable change with 90% confidence (MDC 90 ); ceiling and floor effects by calculating the proportion of participants who achieved the minimum and maximum scores), and validity by Pearson's correlation test between the Life-Space Assessment questionnaire scores and number of daily steps assessed by accelerometry. Reproducibility (ICC 2,1 ) was 0.90 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.84-0.94), and internal consistency (Cronbach's α) was 0.80 (range = 0.76-0.80 for each item deleted). SEM was 3.65 points (3%), the MDC 90 was 0.20 points, and we observed no ceiling (2%) or floor (6%) effects. We observed an association between the score of the Life-Space Assessment questionnaire and daily steps ( r = 0.43; P = 0.01). Life-Space Assessment questionnaire shows adequate measurement properties for the assessment of life-space mobility in older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Design and validation of a questionnaire to assess organizational culture in French hospital wards.

Science.gov (United States)

Saillour-Glénisson, F; Domecq, S; Kret, M; Sibe, M; Dumond, J P; Michel, P

2016-09-17

Although many organizational culture questionnaires have been developed, there is a lack of any validated multidimensional questionnaire assessing organizational culture at hospital ward level and adapted to health care context. Facing the lack of an appropriate tool, a multidisciplinary team designed and validated a dimensional organizational culture questionnaire for healthcare settings to be administered at ward level. A database of organizational culture items and themes was created after extensive literature review. Items were regrouped into dimensions and subdimensions (classification validated by experts). Pre-test and face validation was conducted with 15 health care professionals. In a stratified cluster random sample of hospitals, the psychometric validation was conducted in three phases on a sample of 859 healthcare professionals from 36 multidisciplinary medicine services: 1) the exploratory phase included a description of responses' saturation levels, factor and correlations analyses and an internal consistency analysis (Cronbach's alpha coefficient); 2) confirmatory phase used the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM); 3) reproducibility was studied by a test-retest. The overall response rate was 80 %; the completion average was 97 %. The metrological results were: a global Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.93, higher than 0.70 for 12 sub-dimensions; all Dillon-Goldstein's rho coefficients higher than 0.70; an excellent quality of external model with a Goodness of Fitness (GoF) criterion of 0.99. Seventy percent of the items had a reproducibility ranging from moderate (Intra-Class Coefficient between 50 and 70 % for 25 items) to good (ICC higher than 70 % for 33 items). COMEt (Contexte Organisationnel et Managérial en Etablissement de Santé) questionnaire is a validated multidimensional organizational culture questionnaire made of 6 dimensions, 21 sub-dimensions and 83 items. It is the first dimensional organizational culture questionnaire

Assessing metacognitive activities: the in-depth comparison of a task-specific questionnaire with think-aloud protocols

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schellings, G.L.M.; van Hout-Wolters, B.H.A.M.; Veenman, M.V.J.; Meijer, J.

2013-01-01

Teaching and assessing metacognitive activities are important educational objectives, and teachers are calling for efficient instruments. The advantages of questionnaires in measuring metacognitive activities are obvious, but serious validity issues appear. For example, correlations of questionnaire

Risk assessment: 'A consumer's perspective'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Waterhouse, Rachel

1992-01-01

The paper assesses the concept of risk, risk assessment and tolerability of risk from consumer point of view. Review of existing UK and EC directives on certain products and appliances is also covered

Risk assessment: 'A consumer's perspective'

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Waterhouse, Rachel [Consumer' s Association, Health and Safety Commission (United Kingdom)

1992-07-01

The paper assesses the concept of risk, risk assessment and tolerability of risk from consumer point of view. Review of existing UK and EC directives on certain products and appliances is also covered.

Advantages of video questionnaire in estimating asthma prevalence and risk factors for school children: findings from an asthma survey in American Indian youth.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeh, Fawn; Rhoades, Everett R; Tarpay, Martha; Eichner, June E

2010-09-01

The aims of the present study were to estimate the prevalence and risk factors of asthma among a sample of American Indian youth and to evaluate survey instruments used in determining asthma prevalence and risk factors. Three hundred and fifty-two adolescents aged 9 to 21 years enrolled in an Indian boarding school completed an asthma screening. The survey instruments were a written questionnaire and a video-illustrated questionnaire prepared from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC), school health records, and a health questionnaire. Participants also underwent spirometry testing. The prevalence of self-reported asthma varied from 12.7% to 13.4% depending upon the instrument used and the questions asked. A history of hay fever, respiratory infections, and family history of asthma were found to be risk factors for asthma by all instruments. Female gender and living on a reservation were significantly associated with asthma by some, but not all, instruments. Airway obstruction was highly associated with one asthma symptom (wheeze) shown in the video questionnaire. Associations for most risk factors with asthma were strongest for the video questionnaire. The prevalence of self-reported asthma among these American Indian youth was similar to rates reported for other ethnic groups. The video-based questionnaire may be the most sensitive tool for identifying individuals at risk for asthma.

Using risk assessment in periodontics.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodman, Alan J

2014-08-01

Risk assessment has become a regular feature in both dental practice and society as a whole, and principles used to assess risk in society are similar to those used in a clinical setting. Although the concept of risk assessment as a prognostic indicator for periodontal disease incidence and activity is well established in the management of periodontitis, the use of risk assessment to manage the practical treatment of periodontitis and its sequelae appears to have less foundation. A simple system of initial risk assessment - building on the use of the Basic Periodontal Examination (BPE), clinical, medical and social factors - is described, linked to protocols for delivering care suited to general dental practice and stressing the role of long-term supportive care. The risks of not treating the patient are considered, together with the possible causes of failure, and the problems of successful treatment are illustrated by the practical management of post-treatment recession.

Combining item response theory with multiple imputation to equate health assessment questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Gu, Chenyang; Gutman, Roee

2017-09-01

The assessment of patients' functional status across the continuum of care requires a common patient assessment tool. However, assessment tools that are used in various health care settings differ and cannot be easily contrasted. For example, the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) is used to evaluate the functional status of patients who stay in inpatient rehabilitation facilities, the Minimum Data Set (MDS) is collected for all patients who stay in skilled nursing facilities, and the Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) is collected if they choose home health care provided by home health agencies. All three instruments or questionnaires include functional status items, but the specific items, rating scales, and instructions for scoring different activities vary between the different settings. We consider equating different health assessment questionnaires as a missing data problem, and propose a variant of predictive mean matching method that relies on Item Response Theory (IRT) models to impute unmeasured item responses. Using real data sets, we simulated missing measurements and compared our proposed approach to existing methods for missing data imputation. We show that, for all of the estimands considered, and in most of the experimental conditions that were examined, the proposed approach provides valid inferences, and generally has better coverages, relatively smaller biases, and shorter interval estimates. The proposed method is further illustrated using a real data set. © 2016, The International Biometric Society.

A total risk assessment methodology for security assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auilar, Richard; Pless, Daniel J.; Kaplan, Paul Garry; Silva, Consuelo Juanita; Rhea, Ronald Edward; Wyss, Gregory Dane; Conrad, Stephen Hamilton

2009-01-01

Sandia National Laboratories performed a two-year Laboratory Directed Research and Development project to develop a new collaborative risk assessment method to enable decision makers to fully consider the interrelationships between threat, vulnerability, and consequence. A five-step Total Risk Assessment Methodology was developed to enable interdisciplinary collaborative risk assessment by experts from these disciplines. The objective of this process is promote effective risk management by enabling analysts to identify scenarios that are simultaneously achievable by an adversary, desirable to the adversary, and of concern to the system owner or to society. The basic steps are risk identification, collaborative scenario refinement and evaluation, scenario cohort identification and risk ranking, threat chain mitigation analysis, and residual risk assessment. The method is highly iterative, especially with regard to scenario refinement and evaluation. The Total Risk Assessment Methodology includes objective consideration of relative attack likelihood instead of subjective expert judgment. The 'probability of attack' is not computed, but the relative likelihood for each scenario is assessed through identifying and analyzing scenario cohort groups, which are groups of scenarios with comparable qualities to the scenario being analyzed at both this and other targets. Scenarios for the target under consideration and other targets are placed into cohort groups under an established ranking process that reflects the following three factors: known targeting, achievable consequences, and the resources required for an adversary to have a high likelihood of success. The development of these target cohort groups implements, mathematically, the idea that adversaries are actively choosing among possible attack scenarios and avoiding scenarios that would be significantly suboptimal to their objectives. An adversary who can choose among only a few comparable targets and scenarios (a

Use of the Liverpool Elbow Score as a postal questionnaire for the assessment of outcome after total elbow arthroplasty.

Science.gov (United States)

Ashmore, Alexander M; Gozzard, Charles; Blewitt, Neil

2007-01-01

The Liverpool Elbow Score (LES) is a newly developed, validated elbow-specific score. It consists of a patient-answered questionnaire (PAQ) and a clinical assessment. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the PAQ portion of the LES could be used independently as a postal questionnaire for the assessment of outcome after total elbow arthroplasty and to correlate the LES and the Mayo Elbow Performance Score (MEPS). A series of 51 total elbow replacements were reviewed by postal questionnaire. Patients then attended the clinic for assessment by use of both the LES and the MEPS. There was an excellent response rate to the postal questionnaire (98%), and 44 elbows were available for clinical review. Good correlation was shown between the LES and the MEPS (Spearman correlation coefficient, 0.84; P PAQ portion of the LES and the MEPS (Spearman correlation coefficient, 0.76; P PAQ component and the MEPS, suggesting that outcome assessment is possible by postal questionnaire.

Supporting Risk Assessment: Accounting for Indirect Risk to Ecosystem Components.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cathryn Clarke Murray

Full Text Available The multi-scalar complexity of social-ecological systems makes it challenging to quantify impacts from human activities on ecosystems, inspiring risk-based approaches to assessments of potential effects of human activities on valued ecosystem components. Risk assessments do not commonly include the risk from indirect effects as mediated via habitat and prey. In this case study from British Columbia, Canada, we illustrate how such "indirect risks" can be incorporated into risk assessments for seventeen ecosystem components. We ask whether (i the addition of indirect risk changes the at-risk ranking of the seventeen ecosystem components and if (ii risk scores correlate with trophic prey and habitat linkages in the food web. Even with conservative assumptions about the transfer of impacts or risks from prey species and habitats, the addition of indirect risks in the cumulative risk score changes the ranking of priorities for management. In particular, resident orca, Steller sea lion, and Pacific herring all increase in relative risk, more closely aligning these species with their "at-risk status" designations. Risk assessments are not a replacement for impact assessments, but-by considering the potential for indirect risks as we demonstrate here-they offer a crucial complementary perspective for the management of ecosystems and the organisms within.

24 CFR 35.315 - Risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 24 Housing and Urban Development 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Risk assessment. 35.315 Section 35... Provided by a Federal Agency Other Than HUD § 35.315 Risk assessment. Each owner shall complete a risk assessment in accordance with 40 CFR 745.227(d). Each risk assessment shall be completed in accordance with...

Global Cardiovascular Risk Assessment by Family Physicians in Suez Canal University-Family Medicine Centers-Egypt.

Science.gov (United States)

Nour-Eldein, Hebatallah; Abdelsalam, Shimaa A; Nasr, Gamila M; Abdelwahed, Hassan A

2013-01-01

The close sustained contact of family physician with their patients and local community makes preventive care an integral part of their routine work. Most cardiovascular diseases (CVD) can be prevented by addressing their risk factors. There are several guidelines that recommend different CV risk assessment tools to support CV prevention strategies. This study aimed to assess awareness and attitude of global CV risk assessment and use of their tools by family physicians; aiming to improve CV prevention service. The current study is a cross-sectional descriptive analytic. Sixty-five family physicians were asked to respond to, validated anonymous questionnaire to collect data about characteristics of family physicians, their awareness, attitude, current use, barriers, and recommendations of global CV risk assessment. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 18 was used for data entry and analysis. Awareness of guidelines of global CV risk assessment was relatively higher regarding the American guidelines (30.8%) than that recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) for Egypt (20.2%). 50.8% of participants had favorable attitude. There was statistical significant relationship between attitude scores and physician characteristics; age (P = 0.003), qualification (P = 0.001) and number of patients seen per week (P = 0.009). Routine use of global CV risk assessment tools was reported only (23%) by family physicians. Relative higher attitude scores than use of global CV risk assessment tools in practice. The most frequent barriers were related to lack of resources and shortage in training/skills and the raised suggestions were towards training.

Measurement properties of questionnaires assessing participation in children and adolescents with a disability: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Rainey, Linda; van Nispen, Ruth; van der Zee, Carlijn; van Rens, Ger

2014-12-01

To critically appraise the measurement properties of questionnaires measuring participation in children and adolescents (0-18 years) with a disability. Bibliographic databases were searched for studies evaluating the measurement properties of self-report or parent-report questionnaires measuring participation in children and adolescents (0-18 years) with a disability. The methodological quality of the included studies and the results of the measurement properties were evaluated using a checklist developed on consensus-based standards. The search strategy identified 3,977 unique publications, of which 22 were selected; these articles evaluated the development and measurement properties of eight different questionnaires. The Child and Adolescent Scale of Participation was evaluated most extensively, generally showing moderate positive results on content validity, internal consistency, reliability and construct validity. The remaining questionnaires also demonstrated positive results. However, at least 50 % of the measurement properties per questionnaire were not (or only poorly) assessed. Studies of high methodological quality, using modern statistical methods, are needed to accurately assess the measurement properties of currently available questionnaires. Moreover, consensus is required on the definition of the construct 'participation' to determine content validity and to enable meaningful interpretation of outcomes.

Questionnaires for assessment of female sexual dysfunction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Giraldi, Annamaria; Rellini, Alessandra; Pfaus, James G

2011-01-01

There are many methods to evaluate female sexual function and dysfunction (FSD) in clinical and research settings, including questionnaires, structured interviews, and detailed case histories. Of these, questionnaires have become an easy first choice to screen individuals into different categories...

Exploring the uncertainties in cancer risk assessment using the integrated probabilistic risk assessment (IPRA) approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Slob, Wout; Bakker, Martine I; Biesebeek, Jan Dirk Te; Bokkers, Bas G H

2014-08-01

Current methods for cancer risk assessment result in single values, without any quantitative information on the uncertainties in these values. Therefore, single risk values could easily be overinterpreted. In this study, we discuss a full probabilistic cancer risk assessment approach in which all the generally recognized uncertainties in both exposure and hazard assessment are quantitatively characterized and probabilistically evaluated, resulting in a confidence interval for the final risk estimate. The methodology is applied to three example chemicals (aflatoxin, N-nitrosodimethylamine, and methyleugenol). These examples illustrate that the uncertainty in a cancer risk estimate may be huge, making single value estimates of cancer risk meaningless. Further, a risk based on linear extrapolation tends to be lower than the upper 95% confidence limit of a probabilistic risk estimate, and in that sense it is not conservative. Our conceptual analysis showed that there are two possible basic approaches for cancer risk assessment, depending on the interpretation of the dose-incidence data measured in animals. However, it remains unclear which of the two interpretations is the more adequate one, adding an additional uncertainty to the already huge confidence intervals for cancer risk estimates. © 2014 Society for Risk Analysis.

Supporting Risk Assessment: Accounting for Indirect Risk to Ecosystem Components

Science.gov (United States)

Mach, Megan E.; Martone, Rebecca G.; Singh, Gerald G.; O, Miriam; Chan, Kai M. A.

2016-01-01

The multi-scalar complexity of social-ecological systems makes it challenging to quantify impacts from human activities on ecosystems, inspiring risk-based approaches to assessments of potential effects of human activities on valued ecosystem components. Risk assessments do not commonly include the risk from indirect effects as mediated via habitat and prey. In this case study from British Columbia, Canada, we illustrate how such “indirect risks” can be incorporated into risk assessments for seventeen ecosystem components. We ask whether (i) the addition of indirect risk changes the at-risk ranking of the seventeen ecosystem components and if (ii) risk scores correlate with trophic prey and habitat linkages in the food web. Even with conservative assumptions about the transfer of impacts or risks from prey species and habitats, the addition of indirect risks in the cumulative risk score changes the ranking of priorities for management. In particular, resident orca, Steller sea lion, and Pacific herring all increase in relative risk, more closely aligning these species with their “at-risk status” designations. Risk assessments are not a replacement for impact assessments, but—by considering the potential for indirect risks as we demonstrate here—they offer a crucial complementary perspective for the management of ecosystems and the organisms within. PMID:27632287

Avalanche risk assessment in Russia

Science.gov (United States)

Komarov, Anton; Seliverstov, Yury; Sokratov, Sergey; Glazovskaya, Tatiana; Turchaniniva, Alla

2017-04-01

The avalanche prone area covers about 3 million square kilometers or 18% of total area of Russia and pose a significant problem in most mountain regions of the country. The constant growth of economic activity, especially in the North Caucasus region and therefore the increased avalanche hazard lead to the demand of the large-scale avalanche risk assessment methods development. Such methods are needed for the determination of appropriate avalanche protection measures as well as for economic assessments during all stages of spatial planning of the territory. The requirement of natural hazard risk assessments is determined by the Federal Law of Russian Federation. However, Russian Guidelines (SP 11-103-97; SP 47.13330.2012) are not clearly presented concerning avalanche risk assessment calculations. A great size of Russia territory, vast diversity of natural conditions and large variations in type and level of economic development of different regions cause significant variations in avalanche risk values. At the first stage of research the small scale avalanche risk assessment was performed in order to identify the most common patterns of risk situations and to calculate full social risk and individual risk. The full social avalanche risk for the territory of country was estimated at 91 victims. The area of territory with individual risk values lesser then 1×10(-6) covers more than 92 % of mountain areas of the country. Within these territories the safety of population can be achieved mainly by organizational activities. Approximately 7% of mountain areas have 1×10(-6) - 1×10(-4) individual risk values and require specific mitigation measures to protect people and infrastructure. Territories with individual risk values 1×10(-4) and above covers about 0,1 % of the territory and include the most severe and hazardous mountain areas. The whole specter of mitigation measures is required in order to minimize risk. The future development of such areas is not recommended

Risk assessment in international operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stricklin, Daniela L.

2008-01-01

During international peace-keeping missions, a diverse number of non-battle hazards may be encountered, which range from heavily polluted areas, endemic disease, toxic industrial materials, local violence, traffic, and even psychological factors. Hence, elevated risk levels from a variety of sources are encountered during deployments. With the emphasis within the Swedish military moving from national defense towards prioritization of international missions in atypical environments, the risk of health consequences, including long term health effects, has received greater consideration. The Swedish military is interested in designing an optimal approach for assessment of health threats during deployments. The Medical Intelligence group at FOI CBRN Security and Defence in Umea has, on request from and in collaboration with the Swedish Armed Forces, reviewed a variety of international health threat and risk assessment models for military operations. Application of risk assessment methods used in different phases of military operations will be reviewed. An overview of different international approaches used in operational risk management (ORM) will be presented as well as a discussion of the specific needs and constraints for health risk assessment in military operations. This work highlights the specific challenges of risk assessment that are unique to the deployment setting such as the assessment of exposures to a variety of diverse hazards concurrently

Reliability and validity of a brief sleep questionnaire for children in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Okada, Masakazu; Kitamura, Shingo; Iwadare, Yoshitaka; Tachimori, Hisateru; Kamei, Yuichi; Higuchi, Shigekazu; Mishima, Kazuo

2017-09-15

There is a dearth of sleep questionnaires with few items and confirmed reliability and validity that can be used for the early detection of sleep problems in children. The aim of this study was to develop a questionnaire with few items and assess its reliability and validity in both children at high risk of sleep disorders and a community population. Data for analysis were derived from two populations targeted by the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ): 178 children attending elementary school and 432 children who visited a pediatric psychiatric hospital (aged 6-12 years). The new questionnaire was constructed as a subset of the CSHQ. The newly developed short version of the sleep questionnaire for children (19 items) had an acceptable internal consistency (0.65). Using the cutoff value of the CSHQ, the total score of the new questionnaire was confirmed to have discriminant validity (27.2 ± 3.9 vs. 22.0 ± 2.1, p questionnaire was significantly correlated with total score (r = 0.81, p questionnaire demonstrated an adequate reliability and validity in both high-risk children and a community population, as well as similar screening ability to the CSHQ. It could thus be a convenient instrument to detect sleep problems in children.

Implications of probabilistic risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cullingford, M.C.; Shah, S.M.; Gittus, J.H.

1987-01-01

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is an analytical process that quantifies the likelihoods, consequences and associated uncertainties of the potential outcomes of postulated events. Starting with planned or normal operation, probabilistic risk assessment covers a wide range of potential accidents and considers the whole plant and the interactions of systems and human actions. Probabilistic risk assessment can be applied in safety decisions in design, licensing and operation of industrial facilities, particularly nuclear power plants. The proceedings include a review of PRA procedures, methods and technical issues in treating uncertainties, operating and licensing issues and future trends. Risk assessment for specific reactor types or components and specific risks (eg aircraft crashing onto a reactor) are used to illustrate the points raised. All 52 articles are indexed separately. (U.K.)

Uncertainties in risk assessment at USDOE facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hamilton, L.D.; Holtzman, S.; Meinhold, A.F.; Morris, S.C.; Rowe, M.D.

1994-01-01

The United States Department of Energy (USDOE) has embarked on an ambitious program to remediate environmental contamination at its facilities. Decisions concerning cleanup goals, choices among cleanup technologies, and funding prioritization should be largely risk-based. Risk assessments will be used more extensively by the USDOE in the future. USDOE needs to develop and refine risk assessment methods and fund research to reduce major sources of uncertainty in risk assessments at USDOE facilities. The terms{open_quote} risk assessment{close_quote} and{open_quote} risk management{close_quote} are frequently confused. The National Research Council (1983) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA, 1991a) described risk assessment as a scientific process that contributes to risk management. Risk assessment is the process of collecting, analyzing and integrating data and information to identify hazards, assess exposures and dose responses, and characterize risks. Risk characterization must include a clear presentation of {open_quotes}... the most significant data and uncertainties...{close_quotes} in an assessment. Significant data and uncertainties are {open_quotes}...those that define and explain the main risk conclusions{close_quotes}. Risk management integrates risk assessment information with other considerations, such as risk perceptions, socioeconomic and political factors, and statutes, to make and justify decisions. Risk assessments, as scientific processes, should be made independently of the other aspects of risk management (USEPA, 1991a), but current methods for assessing health risks are based on conservative regulatory principles, causing unnecessary public concern and misallocation of funds for remediation.

Uncertainties in risk assessment at USDOE facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamilton, L.D.; Holtzman, S.; Meinhold, A.F.; Morris, S.C.; Rowe, M.D.

1994-01-01

The United States Department of Energy (USDOE) has embarked on an ambitious program to remediate environmental contamination at its facilities. Decisions concerning cleanup goals, choices among cleanup technologies, and funding prioritization should be largely risk-based. Risk assessments will be used more extensively by the USDOE in the future. USDOE needs to develop and refine risk assessment methods and fund research to reduce major sources of uncertainty in risk assessments at USDOE facilities. The terms open-quote risk assessment close-quote and open-quote risk management close-quote are frequently confused. The National Research Council (1983) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA, 1991a) described risk assessment as a scientific process that contributes to risk management. Risk assessment is the process of collecting, analyzing and integrating data and information to identify hazards, assess exposures and dose responses, and characterize risks. Risk characterization must include a clear presentation of open-quotes... the most significant data and uncertainties...close quotes in an assessment. Significant data and uncertainties are open-quotes...those that define and explain the main risk conclusionsclose quotes. Risk management integrates risk assessment information with other considerations, such as risk perceptions, socioeconomic and political factors, and statutes, to make and justify decisions. Risk assessments, as scientific processes, should be made independently of the other aspects of risk management (USEPA, 1991a), but current methods for assessing health risks are based on conservative regulatory principles, causing unnecessary public concern and misallocation of funds for remediation

Advanced Test Reactor outage risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thatcher, T.A.; Atkinson, S.A.

1997-01-01

Beginning in 1997, risk assessment was performed for each Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) outage aiding the coordination of plant configuration and work activities (maintenance, construction projects, etc.) to minimize the risk of reactor fuel damage and to improve defense-in-depth. The risk assessment activities move beyond simply meeting Technical Safety Requirements to increase the awareness of risk sensitive configurations, to focus increased attention on the higher risk activities, and to seek cost-effective design or operational changes that reduce risk. A detailed probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) had been performed to assess the risk of fuel damage during shutdown operations including heavy load handling. This resulted in several design changes to improve safety; however, evaluation of individual outages had not been performed previously and many risk insights were not being utilized in outage planning. The shutdown PRA provided the necessary framework for assessing relative and absolute risk levels and assessing defense-in-depth. Guidelines were written identifying combinations of equipment outages to avoid. Screening criteria were developed for the selection of work activities to receive review. Tabulation of inherent and work-related initiating events and their relative risk level versus plant mode has aided identification of the risk level the scheduled work involves. Preoutage reviews are conducted and post-outage risk assessment is documented to summarize the positive and negative aspects of the outage with regard to risk. The risk for the outage is compared to the risk level that would result from optimal scheduling of the work to be performed and to baseline or average past performance

GAR Global Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Maskrey, Andrew; Safaie, Sahar

2015-04-01

Disaster risk management strategies, policies and actions need to be based on evidence of current disaster loss and risk patterns, past trends and future projections, and underlying risk factors. Faced with competing demands for resources, at any level it is only possible to priorities a range of disaster risk management strategies and investments with adequate understanding of realised losses, current and future risk levels and impacts on economic growth and social wellbeing as well as cost and impact of the strategy. The mapping and understanding of the global risk landscape has been greatly enhanced by the latest iteration of the GAR Global Risk Assessment and the objective of this submission is to present the GAR global risk assessment which contributed to Global Assessment Report (GAR) 2015. This initiative which has been led by UNISDR, was conducted by a consortium of technical institutions from around the world and has covered earthquake, cyclone, riverine flood, and tsunami probabilistic risk for all countries of the world. In addition, the risks associated with volcanic ash in the Asia-Pacific region, drought in various countries in sub-Saharan Africa and climate change in a number of countries have been calculated. The presentation will share thee results as well as the experience including the challenges faced in technical elements as well as the process and recommendations for the future of such endeavour.

Evaluation of end-user satisfaction among employees participating in a web-based health risk assessment with tailored feedback.

Science.gov (United States)

Vosbergen, Sandra; Laan, Eva K; Colkesen, Ersen B; Niessen, Maurice A J; Kraaijenhagen, Roderik A; Essink-Bot, Marie-Louise; Peek, Niels

2012-10-30

Web technology is increasingly being used to provide individuals with health risk assessments (HRAs) with tailored feedback. End-user satisfaction is an important determinant of the potential impact of HRAs, as this influences program attrition and adherence to behavioral advice. The aim of this study was to evaluate end-user satisfaction with a web-based HRA with tailored feedback applied in worksite settings, using mixed (quantitative and qualitative) methods. Employees of seven companies in the Netherlands participated in a commercial, web-based, HRA with tailored feedback. The HRA consisted of four components: 1) a health and lifestyle assessment questionnaire, 2) a biometric evaluation, 3) a laboratory evaluation, and 4) tailored feedback consisting of a personal health risk profile and lifestyle behavior advice communicated through a web portal. HRA respondents received an evaluation questionnaire after six weeks. Satisfaction with different parts of the HRA was measured on 5-point Likert scales. A free-text field provided the opportunity to make additional comments. In total, 2289 employees participated in the HRA program, of which 637 (27.8%) completed the evaluation questionnaire. Quantitative analysis showed that 85.6% of the respondents evaluated the overall HRA positively. The free-text field was filled in by 29.7 % of the respondents (189 out of 637), who made 315 separate remarks. Qualitative evaluation of these data showed that these respondents made critical remarks. Respondents felt restricted by the answer categories of the health and lifestyle assessment questionnaire, which resulted in the feeling that the corresponding feedback could be inadequate. Some respondents perceived the personal risk profile as unnecessarily alarming or suggested providing more explanations, reference values, and a justification of the behavioral advice given. Respondents also requested the opportunity to discuss the feedback with a health professional. Most people

Deterministic quantitative risk assessment development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dawson, Jane; Colquhoun, Iain [PII Pipeline Solutions Business of GE Oil and Gas, Cramlington Northumberland (United Kingdom)

2009-07-01

Current risk assessment practice in pipeline integrity management is to use a semi-quantitative index-based or model based methodology. This approach has been found to be very flexible and provide useful results for identifying high risk areas and for prioritizing physical integrity assessments. However, as pipeline operators progressively adopt an operating strategy of continual risk reduction with a view to minimizing total expenditures within safety, environmental, and reliability constraints, the need for quantitative assessments of risk levels is becoming evident. Whereas reliability based quantitative risk assessments can be and are routinely carried out on a site-specific basis, they require significant amounts of quantitative data for the results to be meaningful. This need for detailed and reliable data tends to make these methods unwieldy for system-wide risk k assessment applications. This paper describes methods for estimating risk quantitatively through the calibration of semi-quantitative estimates to failure rates for peer pipeline systems. The methods involve the analysis of the failure rate distribution, and techniques for mapping the rate to the distribution of likelihoods available from currently available semi-quantitative programs. By applying point value probabilities to the failure rates, deterministic quantitative risk assessment (QRA) provides greater rigor and objectivity than can usually be achieved through the implementation of semi-quantitative risk assessment results. The method permits a fully quantitative approach or a mixture of QRA and semi-QRA to suit the operator's data availability and quality, and analysis needs. For example, consequence analysis can be quantitative or can address qualitative ranges for consequence categories. Likewise, failure likelihoods can be output as classical probabilities or as expected failure frequencies as required. (author)

Evaluation of thermal risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loos, J.J.; Perry, E.S.

1993-01-01

Risk assessment was done in 1983 to estimate the ecological hazard of increasing the generating load and thermal output of an electric generating station. Subsequently, long-term monitoring in the vicinity of the station allowed verification of the predictions made in the risk assessment. This presentation will review the efficacy of early risk assessment methods in producing useful predictions from a resource management point of view. In 1984, the Chalk Point Generating facility of the Potomac Electric Power Company increased it's median generating load by 100%. Prior to this operational change, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia synthesized site specific data, model predictions, and results from literature to assess the risk of additional waste heat to the Patuxent River subestuary of Chesapeake Bay. Risk was expressed as the number of days per year that various species of fish and the blue crab would be expected to avoid the discharge vicinity. Accuracy of these predictions is assessed by comparing observed fish and crab distributions and their observed frequencies of avoidance to those predicted. It is concluded that the predictions of this early risk assessment were sufficiently accurate to produce a reliable resource management decision

On risk assessment of energy production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kunii, Katsuhiko

2005-07-01

Today we cannot ignore the risk of health and/or environment by energy production such as power generation since the risk has been made large enough. In this report an information survey has been done in order to know the outline and points of risk assessment. Based on the information of reports and literature about risk assessment, have been surveyed mainly the external cost assessment of power generation (in which quantification of health and/or environment risk has been done), in addition, risks of disasters, accidents, investments, finance etc. and impacts of those risks on social activities. The remarks obtained by the survey are as follows: 1) Some of external cost assessment of power generation show different results even if the assessment conditions of technology, site, etc. are mostly the same. It is necessary to remark on the information such as basic data, model, background, application limit of assessment considering the reliability. 2) Especially it is considered that the reliability of risk assessment is not enough at present because of the lack of basic data. (author)

Defense Programs Transportation Risk Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clauss, D.B.

1994-01-01

This paper provides an overview of the methodology used in a probabilistic transportation risk assessment conducted to assess the probabilities and consequences of inadvertent dispersal of radioactive materials arising from severe transportation accidents. The model was developed for the Defense Program Transportation Risk Assessment (DPTRA) study. The analysis incorporates several enhancements relative to previous risk assessments of hazardous materials transportation including newly-developed statistics on the frequencies and severities of tractor semitrailer accidents and detailed route characterization using the 1990 Census data

Risk Factor Assessment Branch (RFAB)

Science.gov (United States)

The Risk Factor Assessment Branch (RFAB) focuses on the development, evaluation, and dissemination of high-quality risk factor metrics, methods, tools, technologies, and resources for use across the cancer research continuum, and the assessment of cancer-related risk factors in the population.

Development of a questionnaire to assess maternal attitudes towards infant growth and milk feeding practices

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Schiff Annie

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background There is increasing recognition that public health strategies to prevent childhood obesity need to start early in life. Any behavioural interventions need to target maternal attitudes and infant feeding practices, This paper describes the development and preliminary validation of a questionnaire to assess maternal attitudes towards infant growth and milk feeding practices. Methods We designed a 57-item (19 questions, self-administered questionnaire to measure the following four domains- 1 type of milk feeding, decision making and sources of advice; 2 frequency and quantity of milk feeds; 3 attitudes to infant feeding and growth; and 4 theory-based beliefs about following infant feeding recommendations. Forty mothers completed the questionnaire on two occasions six days apart (to assess test-retest reliability and then participated in a semi-structured, open-ended telephone interview covering the same domains (to assess criterion validity. Percentage agreement, Cohen's Kappas (for categorical variables and Spearman's correlation coefficients (for continuous variables were used to quantify reliability and validity. Internal consistency between theory-based constructs (self-efficacy, outcome expectancy and intention was quantified by Chronbach's alpha. Results Of the 57 questionnaire items 51 (89% had percentage agreement above 70% indicating good test-retest reliability, and the remaining 6 items had moderate or substantial levels of agreement (kappa 0.41-0.68. Comparing questionnaire with interview coding (validity, percentage agreement was above 66% for 39/57 items (68%. Of the 16 items with percentage agreement below 66%, only five had kappa values below 0.20 (two items had insufficient interview responses. Internal consistency was 0.51, 0.79 and 0.90 for self-efficacy, outcome expectancy and intention respectively. Conclusions This questionnaire could be a useful tool in understanding the determinants of infant feeding and

Assessment of lower urinary tract symptoms in women by a self-administered questionnaire: test-retest reliability

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bernstein, Inge Thomsen; Sejr, T; Able, I

1996-01-01

A self-administered questionnaire assessing female lower urinary tract symptoms and their impact on quality of life is described and validated, on 56 females in six participating departments. The patients answered two identical questionnaires on separate occasions before treatment. Test-retest re...

Risk assessments ensure safer power

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1982-02-19

A growth industry is emerging devoted to the study and comparison of the economic, social and health risks posed by large industrial installations. Electricity generation is one area coming under particularly close scrutiny. Types of risk, ways of assessing risk and the difference between experts' analyses and the public perception of risk are given. An example of improved risk assessment helping to reduce deaths and injuries in coal mining is included.

Comparison of the Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Assessment Questionnaire and the Short-Form International Physical Activity Questionnaire: An Analysis of Health Survey for England Data.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shaun Scholes

Full Text Available The Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Assessment Questionnaire (PASBAQ, used within the Health Survey for England (HSE at 5-yearly intervals, is not included annually due to funding and interview-length constraints. Policy-makers and data-users are keen to consider shorter instruments such as the Short-form International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ for the annual survey. Both questionnaires were administered in HSE 2012, enabling comparative assessment in a random sample of 1252 adults.Relative agreement using prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted Kappa (PABAK statistics was estimated for: sufficient aerobic activity (moderate-to-vigorous physical activity [MVPA] ≥150 minutes/week; inactivity (MVPA<30 minutes/week; and excessive sitting (≥540 minutes/weekday. Cross-sectional associations with health outcomes were compared across tertiles of MVPA and tertiles of sitting time using logistic regression with tests for linear trend.Compared with PASBAQ data, IPAQ-assessed estimates of sufficient aerobic activity and inactivity were higher and lower, respectively; estimates of excessive sitting were higher. Demographic patterns in prevalence were similar. Agreement using PABAK statistics was fair-to-moderate for sufficient aerobic activity (0.32-0.49, moderate-to-substantial for inactivity (0.42-0.74, and moderate-to-substantial for excessive sitting (0.49-0.75. As with the PASBAQ, IPAQ-assessed MVPA and sitting each showed graded associations with mental well-being (women: P for trend = 0.003 and 0.004, respectively and obesity (women: P for trend = 0.007 and 0.014, respectively.Capturing habitual physical activity and sedentary behaviour through brief questionnaires is complex. Differences in prevalence estimates can reflect differences in questionnaire structure and content rather than differences in reported behaviour. Treating all IPAQ-assessed walking as moderate-intensity contributed to the differences in prevalence estimates

Developing a precise questionnaire to elucidate risk factors and injury pattern in RTA victims

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

RK Singh

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Road traffic injuries are a growing public health issue. Despite good numbers of traffic legislations/ law/bye-laws/ regulations/ policies at the national/ state level and various safety measures to prevent road accidents/ mishaps, awareness remains comparatively low in India. Till date no questionnaire has been suitably developed, standardized and positivised for determining association of causality with injury pattern and severity score. Objective: To design and develop a précised survey questionnaire determining association of causality with injury pattern along with severity score in RTA victims.  Methodology: Till date no such study has been ventured which has observed the inter relationship of these factors resulting in a specific injury. Designed questionnaire was based on literature review, and updated several times to ensure the precision and agreement with the help of institutional trauma expert team. As a pilot study, 30 RTA victims admitted in trauma centre of KG Medical University were enrolled and designed questionnaire was tested for easiness and doubts. The results were thoroughly analyzed for item difficulty, precision and internal consistency. Results: A significant agreement of question pertaining to speed (k=0.99, CI=0.95, visibility (k=0.87, alcohol (k=0.65 in the questionnaire. Questions related to environment, driver, vehicle and road factors show a significant consistency (p>0.05 as cause of accidents. Test of agreements done by Kappa showed in variables having value more than 0.60 except few variables. Discussion: The designed questionnaire is precise, reasonably reliable in perfect agreement. This questionnaire should emerge a useful tool in determining the association of risk factors with injury pattern and severity. 

Development of a questionnaire to assess medical competencies: Reliability and validity of the Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

Giesler, Marianne; Forster, Johannes; Biller, Silke; Fabry, Götz

2011-01-01

Introduction: While preparing a graduate survey for medical education in 2008 we realized that no instrument existed that would be suitable to evaluate whether the learning outcomes outlined in the Medical Licensure Act (ÄAppO) would be met. Therefore we developed the Freiburg Questionnaire to Assess Competencies in Medicine (Freiburger Fragebogen zur Erfassung von Kompetenzen in der Medizin, FKM)1 which has been revised and extended several times since then. Currently the FKM includes 45 items which are assigned to nine domains that correspond to the CanMEDS roles: medical expertise, communication, team-work, health and prevention, management, professionalism, learning, scholarship, and personal competencies. Methods: In order to test the reliability and validity of the questionnaire we have repeatedly surveyed medical students and residents since May 2008. In this article we report on the results of a cross-sectional study with 698 medical students from the preclinical and clinical years. In addition, we report the results of a survey of 514 residents who were up to two years into their residency. Results and conclusions: In summary, results show that the scales of the FKM are reliable (Cronbach’s α between .68 and .97). Significant differences in means between selected groups of students support the measure’s construct validity. Furthermore, there is evidence that the FKM might be used as a screening tool e.g. in graduate surveys to identify weaknesses in the medical education curriculum. PMID:21818241

Risk assessment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Liselotte; Rasmussen, Kirsten; Elsass, Peter

2010-01-01

International research suggests that using formalized risk assessment methods may improve the predictive validity of professionals' predictions of risk of future violence. This study presents data on forensic psychiatric patients discharged from a forensic unit in Denmark in year 2001-2002 (n=107...... and the individual dynamic items strengthen the use of this scheme in clinical practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) (journal abstract)...

Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) Risk Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

... HRS Find a Specialist Share Twitter Facebook SCA Risk Assessment Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) occurs abruptly and without ... people of all ages and health conditions. Start Risk Assessment The Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) Risk Assessment Tool ...

Integrated climate change risk assessment:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kaspersen, Per Skougaard; Halsnæs, Kirsten

2017-01-01

Risk assessments of flooding in urban areas during extreme precipitation for use in, for example, decision-making regarding climate adaptation, are surrounded by great uncertainties stemming from climate model projections, methods of downscaling and the assumptions of socioeconomic impact models...... to address the complex linkages between the different kinds of data required in assessing climate adaptation. It emphasizes that the availability of spatially explicit data can reduce the overall uncertainty of the risk assessment and assist in identifying key vulnerable assets. The usefulness...... of such a framework is demonstrated by means of a risk assessment of flooding from extreme precipitation for the city of Odense, Denmark. A sensitivity analysis shows how the presence of particularly important assets, such as cultural and historical heritage, may be addressed in assessing such risks. The output...

A new food frequency questionnaire to assess chocolate and cocoa consumption.

Science.gov (United States)

Vicente, Filipa; Saldaña-Ruíz, Sandra; Rabanal, Manel; Rodríguez-Lagunas, María J; Pereira, Paula; Pérez-Cano, Francisco J; Castell, Margarida

2016-01-01

Cocoa has been highlighted as a food with potential benefits to human health because of its polyphenol content. However, few studies show the contribution of cocoa and chocolate products in polyphenol intake. The aim of this work was to develop a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) for evaluating the intake of food products containing cocoa (C-FFQ). A sample of 50 university students was recruited to complete the 90-item questionnaire, a validated questionnaire (called here European Food Safety Authority [EFSA]-Q) as well as a 24-hour dietary recall (24 HDR). Spearman correlation test, Bland-Altman plots, and quintile classification analysis were conducted together with the Wilcoxon test and descriptive statistics. Significant correlations between the C-FFQ and the EFSA-Q for the most common cocoa/chocolate products were observed (P cocoa/chocolate products frequently consumed by the participants were detected by the C-FFQ and 24 HDR which were not included in the EFSA-Q. According to the C-FFQ, chocolate bars were the main source of cocoa in university students, but dairy products also provided an important amount of cocoa. The developed C-FFQ questionnaire can be considered as a valid option for assessing the consumption frequency of cocoa/chocolate-derived products, thereby allowing the evaluation of cocoa polyphenol intake in further studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Validity and reliability of the Bahasa Melayu version of the Migraine Disability Assessment questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Shaik, Munvar Miya; Hassan, Norul Badriah; Tan, Huay Lin; Bhaskar, Shalini; Gan, Siew Hua

2014-01-01

The study was designed to determine the validity and reliability of the Bahasa Melayu version (MIDAS-M) of the Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS) questionnaire. Patients having migraine for more than six months attending the Neurology Clinic, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia, were recruited. Standard forward and back translation procedures were used to translate and adapt the MIDAS questionnaire to produce the Bahasa Melayu version. The translated Malay version was tested for face and content validity. Validity and reliability testing were further conducted with 100 migraine patients (1st administration) followed by a retesting session 21 days later (2nd administration). A total of 100 patients between 15 and 60 years of age were recruited. The majority of the patients were single (66%) and students (46%). Cronbach's alpha values were 0.84 (1st administration) and 0.80 (2nd administration). The test-retest reliability for the total MIDAS score was 0.73, indicating that the MIDAS-M questionnaire is stable; for the five disability questions, the test-retest values ranged from 0.77 to 0.87. The MIDAS-M questionnaire is comparable with the original English version in terms of validity and reliability and may be used for the assessment of migraine in clinical settings.

Formal psychological assessment in evaluating depression: a new methodology to build exhaustive and irredundant adaptive questionnaires.

Science.gov (United States)

Serra, Francesca; Spoto, Andrea; Ghisi, Marta; Vidotto, Giulio

2015-01-01

Psychological Assessment can be defined as a complex procedure of information collection, analysis and processing. Formal Psychological Assessment (FPA) tries to improve this procedure by providing a formal framework to build assessment tools. In this paper, FPA is applied to depression. Seven questionnaires widely used for the self-evaluation of depression were selected. Diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder were derived from the DSM-5, literature and Seligman's and Beck's theories. A Boolean matrix was built, including 266 items from the questionnaires in the rows and 20 selected attributes, obtained through diagnostic criteria decomposition, in the columns. In the matrix, a 1 in a cell meant that the corresponding item investigated the specific attribute. It was thus possible to analyze the relationships between items and attributes and among items. While none of the considered questionnaires could alone cover all the criteria for the evaluation of depressive symptoms, we observed that a set of 30 items contained the same information that was obtained redundantly with 266 items. Another result highlighted by the matrix regards the relations among items. FPA allows in-depth analysis of currently used questionnaires based on the presence/absence of clinical elements. FPA allows for going beyond the mere score by differentiating the patients according to symptomatology. Furthermore, it allows for computerized-adaptive assessment.

Development of a theory-based questionnaire to assess structure and control in parent feeding (SCPF).

Science.gov (United States)

Savage, Jennifer S; Rollins, Brandi Y; Kugler, Kari C; Birch, Leann L; Marini, Michele E

2017-01-26

Parents shape children's eating environments and act as powerful socialization agents, impacting young children's behavioral controls of food intake. Most feeding measures assess parents' use of control to manage children's intake of energy dense foods. The Structure and Control in Parent Feeding (SCPF) questionnaire was developed to assess more positive aspects of feeding practices with their young children -setting limits, providing routines-that promote self-regulation, as well as controlling feeding practices. A mixed method approach was used to develop the SCPF. In 2013, cognitive interviews informed the modification, deletion and/or replacement of items. In 2014, the survey was distributed statewide to mothers of toddlers aged 12 to 36 months participating in the Women, Infants, and Children program. In 2016, exploratory factor analyses was conducted to test our theoretical parenting model and content validity and criterion validity were assessed (n = 334). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and second-order EFA revealed a 2-factor, 22-item Structure model and a 2-factor, 12-item Control model. Internal consistencies for all factors exceeded 0.70. As predicted, the Structure superfactor was positivity associated with responsiveness, whereas the Control superfactor was positively associated with demandingness on the Caregiver's Feeding Styles Questionnaire. The Structure subscales were also positively associated with mealtime behaviors and Control subscales were positively associated with control-oriented feeding measures from the Control in Parent Feeding Practices questionnaire. The SCPF questionnaire is a reliable tool that can be used to assess aspects of structure- and control-based feeding practices to better understand how parents feed their toddlers.

Development of a questionnaire to assess interprofessional collaboration between two different care levels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Nuño Solinís

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction. This paper reports the development and validation of a questionnaire to assess collaboration between clinical professionals from two different care levels (primary and specialised care, according to the clinicians' own perceptions. This questionnaire has been elaborated to be used as part of the monitoring and evaluation process of the integrated care pilots in the public Basque Health Service. Methods. The process was carried out in four phases: development of the first version of the questionnaire, validation of the content, pre-testing, and evaluation of its construct validity and homogeneity in a sample of doctors and nurses. This last phase involved confirmatory factor analysis, as well as the calculation of Cronbach's α and various correlation coefficients. Results. The process demonstrated that the theoretical content of the questionnaire was appropriate, and also that its items were clear, relevant and intelligible. The fit indices for the confirmatory factor analysis were: c2 of 45.51 (p = 0.089, RMSEA of 0.043, RMR of 0.046, GFI of 0.92 and CFI of 0.99. Discussion. The statistics indicate a good fit between the data and a conceptual two-factor structure, in which both personal relationships between professionals and characteristics of the organisational environment are understood to underlie interprofessional collaboration. Conclusion. The end-product is a new instrument with good validity to assess the degree of interprofessional collaboration between clinicians working at two different levels of care.

Development of a questionnaire to assess interprofessional collaboration between two different care levels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Nuño Solinís

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction. This paper reports the development and validation of a questionnaire to assess collaboration between clinical professionals from two different care levels (primary and specialised care, according to the clinicians' own perceptions. This questionnaire has been elaborated to be used as part of the monitoring and evaluation process of the integrated care pilots in the public Basque Health Service.Methods. The process was carried out in four phases: development of the first version of the questionnaire, validation of the content, pre-testing, and evaluation of its construct validity and homogeneity in a sample of doctors and nurses. This last phase involved confirmatory factor analysis, as well as the calculation of Cronbach's α and various correlation coefficients.Results. The process demonstrated that the theoretical content of the questionnaire was appropriate, and also that its items were clear, relevant and intelligible. The fit indices for the confirmatory factor analysis were: c2 of 45.51 (p = 0.089, RMSEA of 0.043, RMR of 0.046, GFI of 0.92 and CFI of 0.99.Discussion. The statistics indicate a good fit between the data and a conceptual two-factor structure, in which both personal relationships between professionals and characteristics of the organisational environment are understood to underlie interprofessional collaboration.Conclusion. The end-product is a new instrument with good validity to assess the degree of interprofessional collaboration between clinicians working at two different levels of care.

hiv risk sajsm-sc1-f

African Journals Online (AJOL)

impo

The questionnaire was designed to assess variables that influence athletes attitudes towards the risk of HIV transmission of through sport. The research questionnaire was influenced by a similar study conducted by Calabrese10 in 1993, which was confined only to college students and did not differentiate between risk ...

The Dimensional Assessment of Personality Psychopathology Basic Questionnaire: shortened versions item analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Aluja, Anton; Blanch, Àngel; Blanco, Eduardo; Martí-Guiu, Maite; Balada, Ferran

2015-01-13

This study has been designed to evaluate and replicate the psychometric properties of the Dimensional Assessment of Personality Psychopathology-Basic Questionnaire (DAPP-BQ) and the DAPP-BQ short form (DAPP-SF) in a large Spanish general population sample. Additionally, we have generated a reduced form called DAPP-90, using a strategy based on a structural equation modeling (SEM) methodology in two independent samples, a calibration and a validation sample. The DAPP-90 scales obtained a more satisfactory fit on SEM adjustment values (average: TLI > .97 and RMSEA assessment of patients in hospital consultation or in brief psychological assessments.

The Heritability of Cluster B Personality Disorders Assessed both by Personal Interview and Questionnaire

OpenAIRE

Torgersen, Svenn; Myers, John; Reichborn-Kjennerud, Ted; Røysamb, Espen; Kubarych, Thomas S.; Kendler, Kenneth S.

2012-01-01

Whereas the heritability of common personality traits has been firmly established, the results of the few published studies on personality disorders (PDs) are highly divergent, with some studies finding high heredity and others very low. A problem with assessing personality disorders by means of interview is errors connected with interviewer bias. A way to overcome the problem is to use self-report questionnaires in addition to interviews. This study used both interview and questionnaire for ...

Correlation of Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire to impedance-pH measurements in children.

Science.gov (United States)

Prachuapthunyachart, Sittichoke; Jarasvaraparn, Chaowapong; Gremse, David A

2017-01-01

Esophageal multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH monitoring has become one of the preferred tests to correlate observed reflux-like behaviors with esophageal reflux events. The Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire is a validated tool used to distinguish infants with gastroesophageal reflux disease from healthy children. The aim of this study was to determine whether the Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire composite symptom scores and individual symptom scores correlate with outcomes in esophageal multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH monitoring. A total of 26 patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease-associated symptoms, aged 0-2 years, for whom both esophageal multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH monitoring and Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire survey results were available were included in the study. Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire score data were collected from a 7-day recall of parent's responses about the frequency and severity of gastroesophageal reflux disease symptoms, which determined the individual symptom scores. The composite symptom scores is the sum of all individual symptom scores. Multichannel intraluminal impedance-pH study results were compared to Gastroesophageal reflux disease Assessment Symptom Questionnaire data using Pearson correlation. Among 26 patients, a total number of 2817 (1700 acid and 1117 non-acid) reflux episodes and 845 clinical reflux behaviors were recorded. There were significant correlations between the reflux index and the individual symptom scores for coughing/gagging/choking (r 2 = 0.2842, p = 0.005), the impedance score and individual symptom scores for coughing/gagging/choking (r 2 = 0.2482, p = 0.009), the reflux symptom index for acid reflux-related coughing/gagging/choking and the individual symptom scores for coughing/gagging/choking (r 2 = 0.1900, p = 0.026), the impedance score and

Assessing Your Weight and Health Risk

Science.gov (United States)

... Health Professional Resources Assessing Your Weight and Health Risk Assessment of weight and health risk involves using ... risk for developing obesity-associated diseases or conditions. Risk Factors for Health Topics Associated With Obesity Along ...

Dietary assessment in the elderly: Validation of a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klipstein-Grobusch, K.; Breeijen, J.H. den; Goldbohm, R.A.; Geleijnse, J.M.; Hofman, A.; Grobbee, D.E.; Witteman, J.C.M.

1998-01-01

Objective: The study was conducted to assess the relative validity of a 170-item semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire (SFFQ) adapted for use in the elderly. Design and subjects: The study was carried out in a sample of 80 men and women aged 55-75 y participating in a community based

Risk assessment theory, methods, and applications

CERN Document Server

Rausand, Marvin

2011-01-01

With its balanced coverage of theory and applications along with standards and regulations, Risk Assessment: Theory, Methods, and Applications serves as a comprehensive introduction to the topic. The book serves as a practical guide to current risk analysis and risk assessment, emphasizing the possibility of sudden, major accidents across various areas of practice from machinery and manufacturing processes to nuclear power plants and transportation systems. The author applies a uniform framework to the discussion of each method, setting forth clear objectives and descriptions, while also shedding light on applications, essential resources, and advantages and disadvantages. Following an introduction that provides an overview of risk assessment, the book is organized into two sections that outline key theory, methods, and applications. * Introduction to Risk Assessment defines key concepts and details the steps of a thorough risk assessment along with the necessary quantitative risk measures. Chapters outline...

Systematic Review Protocol to Assess the Effectiveness of Usability Questionnaires in mHealth App Studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Leming; Bao, Jie; Parmanto, Bambang

2017-08-01

Usability questionnaires have a wide use in mobile health (mHealth) app usability studies. However, no systematic review has been conducted for assessing the effectiveness of these questionnaires. This paper describes a protocol for conducting a systematic review of published questionnaire-based mHealth app usability studies. In this systematic review, we will select recently published (2008-2017) articles from peer-reviewed journals and conferences that describe mHealth app usability studies and implement at least one usability questionnaire. The search strategy will include terms such as "mobile app" and "usability." Multiple databases such as PubMed, CINAHL, IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, and INSPEC will be searched. There will be 2 independent reviewers in charge of screening titles and abstracts as well as determining those articles that should be included for a full-text review. The third reviewer will act as a mediator between the other 2 reviewers. Moreover, a data extraction form will be created and used during the full article data analysis. Notably, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines will be followed in reporting this protocol. A preliminary search produced 1271 articles, 40 of which are duplicate records. The inclusion-exclusion criteria are being strictly followed in performing the ongoing study selection. Usability questionnaires are an important tool in mHealth app usability studies. This review will summarize the usability questionnaires used in published research articles while assessing the efficacy of these questionnaires in determining the usability of mHealth apps. ©Leming Zhou, Jie Bao, Bambang Parmanto. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 01.08.2017.

The issue of risk dilution in risk assessments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilmot, R.; Robinson, P.

2004-01-01

This paper explores an issue that was first highlighted more than 20 years ago during an inquiry concerning the Sizeweli B nuclear power station in the UK. In the probabilistic safety assessment for this plant, the proponent had apparently reduced its estimates of risk by admitting to increased uncertainty about the timing of certain events. This situation is counter-intuitive, since an increase in uncertainty about the factors contributing to safety would be expected to lead to less confidence and hence to greater risk. This paradoxical situation was termed 'risk dilution' and it has been a topic of interest to reviewers of safety cases since. The recent international peer review of the Yucca Mountain performance assessments concluded that there was a potential for risk dilution in the assumptions and calculations presented. The next section describes how assumptions about the timing of events and other aspects of an assessment may lead to risk dilution, and this is followed by two examples based on recent performance assessments. The final section discusses how potential problems can be identified in safety cases, and the types of response that a regulator might adopt as a result. (authors)

Cardiovascular risk management in rheumatoid arthritis patients still suboptimal: the Implementation of Cardiovascular Risk Management in Rheumatoid Arthritis project

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van den Oever, Inge A. M.; Heslinga, Maaike; Griep, Ed N.; Griep-Wentink, Hanneke R. M.; Schotsman, Rob; Cambach, Walter; Dijkmans, Ben A. C.; Smulders, Yvo M.; Lems, Willem F.; Boers, Maarten; Voskuyl, Alexandre E.; Peters, Mike J. L.; van Schaardenburg, Dirkjan; Nurmohamed, Micheal T.

2017-01-01

To assess the 10-year cardiovascular (CV) risk score and to identify treatment and undertreatment of CV risk factors in patients with established RA. Demographics, CV risk factors and prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) were assessed by questionnaire. To calculate the 10-year CV risk score

Risk Assessment in the Maritime Industry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Mousavi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Risk assessment is a well-developed field which many operators are currently applying to improve their operations and reduce their risk exposure. This paper is intended to provide an overview of the risk assessment for mariners in the Maritime transportation. The risks addressed are primarily those affecting the safety of a vessel, facility or operation. The concept of risk is defined, and the methods available to assess the risks associated with an operation are described. Regulatory requirements that have prompted the development of modern risk assessment practices are described, and future regulatory trends are discussed. There are many different analysis techniques and models that have been developed to aid in conducting risk assessments. A key to any successful risk analysis is choosing the right method (or combination of methods for the situation at hand. This is achieved through critical analysis of the available data concerning marine crises. This paper provides a brief introduction to some of the analysis methods available and suggests risk analysis approaches to support different types of decision making within the maritime transportation to cope with crises. Finally, as awareness of risk assessment increases, the benefits which can be realized through its application will continue to increase. Organizations in both the public and the private sector are becoming more and more familiar with the benefits associated with risk-based approaches to managing safety and consequently reducing crisis in maritime transportation.

Stress at work: development of the Stress Perception Questionnaire of Rome (SPQR), an ad hoc questionnaire for multidimensional assessment of work related stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Cinti, M E; Cannavò, M; Fioravanti, M

2017-01-01

Stress is an emotional condition, mostly experienced as negative, initially identified and defined by Selye in the mid-thirties of the last Century. Since the first definition, stress concerns the adaptation pro- cess mostly related to environmental changes. An application of stress focuses on the evaluation of its interference on work conditions, and the scientific evidence on work related stress is very ample and rich. We are proposing a new ad hoc questionnaire for the multidimensional assessment of work related stress, called Stress Perception Question- naire of Rome (SPQR) composed of 50 items. The development of this questionnaire is based on a multi-step process: a) Identification of all the relevant topics to work related stress and areas in the scientific evidence and their transformation on specific contents of 60 tentative items; b) Exploratory factor analysis aimed to identify the best items (50) which could guarantee the maximum convergence on single scales (8), and the minimum redundancy between scales; c) Validation of the 8 scales' structure by a confirmatory factor analysis (fully achieved); d) Factor analysis for a second level factor resulting in a single factor identified as the questionnaire total score (Stress Score); d) Reliability analysis of the questionnaire total score and the single scale scores (at optimum level); e) Validation by external criteria of work related stress identified in the presence of personal violence episodes experienced by a group of health workers with different professional profiles and from two different hospitals in Rome. Our results show that the SPQR is a useful and sensitive tool for assessing the presence of emotional stress related problems identifiable in a work environment. The advantage of this questionnaire is that it allows for a multidimensional description of the different components of this problematic area besides its ability to quantify the overall stress level of those who have been administered

Reducing the risk of iodine-based and MRI contrast media administration: Recommendation for a questionnaire at the time of booking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morcos, Sameh K.; Bellin, Marie-France; Thomsen, Henrik S.; Almen, Torsten; Aspelin, Peter; Heinz-Peer, Gertraud; Jakobsen, Jarl A.; Liss, Per; Oyen, Raymond; Stacul, Fulvio; Molen, Aart J. van der; Webb, Judith A.W.

2008-01-01

This paper presents a practical questionnaire to be used when a contrast medium examination is requested. The questionnaire is based on the guidelines from the European Society of Urogenital Radiology. Its aim is to identify patients at increased risk of clinically relevant renal and non-renal adverse reactions to iodine-based and MRI contrast agents. The questionnaire should be completed by the referring physician when the examination is requested

Reducing the risk of iodine-based and MRI contrast media administration: Recommendation for a questionnaire at the time of booking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morcos, Sameh K. [Department of Diagn. Imaging, Northern General Hospital, Herries Road, Sheffield S5 7AU (United Kingdom)], E-mail: sameh.morcos@sth.nhs.uk; Bellin, Marie-France [Service de Radiologie, Hopital Paul Brousse, 14 Av. Paul Vaillant Couturier, F-94800 Villejuif (France)], E-mail: marie-france.bellin@pbr.ap-hop-paris.fr; Thomsen, Henrik S. [Department of Diagnostic Radiology 54E2, Copenhagen University Hospital Herlev, Herlev Ringvej 75, DK-2730 Herlev (Denmark)], E-mail: hentho01@heh.regionh.dk; Almen, Torsten [Lybska Vaegen 10, S-239 40 Falsterbo (Sweden)], E-mail: torsten.almen@ta-contrast.se; Aspelin, Peter [Diagnostic Radiology, Huddinge University Hospital, S-141 86 Huddinge (Sweden)], E-mail: peter.aspelin@ki.se; Heinz-Peer, Gertraud [Department of Radiology, University Hospital Vienna, AKH, Wahringer Gurtel 18-20, A-1090 Vienna (Austria)], E-mail: gertraud.heinz@meduniwien.ac.at; Jakobsen, Jarl A. [Department of Radiology, Rikshospitalet, N-0027 Oslo (Norway)], E-mail: jarl.jakobsen@rikshospitalet.no; Liss, Per [Department of Radiology, Akademiska sjukhuset, SE-751 85 Uppsala (Sweden)], E-mail: per.liss@akademiska.se; Oyen, Raymond [Department of Radiology, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 46, B-3000 Leuven (Belgium)], E-mail: raymond.oyen@uzleuven.be; Stacul, Fulvio [Institute of Radiology, Ospedale di Cattinara, I-34149 Trieste (Italy)], E-mail: fulvio.stacul@aots.sanita.fvg.it; Molen, Aart J. van der [Department of Radiology, C2-S, Leiden University Medical center, P.O. Box 9600, NL-2300 RC Leiden (Netherlands)], E-mail: aart.vdmolen@planet.nl; Webb, Judith A.W. [3 Sellars Hall Close, Finchley, London N3 1JL (United Kingdom)], E-mail: jawwebb@btopenworld.com

2008-05-15

This paper presents a practical questionnaire to be used when a contrast medium examination is requested. The questionnaire is based on the guidelines from the European Society of Urogenital Radiology. Its aim is to identify patients at increased risk of clinically relevant renal and non-renal adverse reactions to iodine-based and MRI contrast agents. The questionnaire should be completed by the referring physician when the examination is requested.

The MARINA Risk Assessment Strategy: A Flexible Strategy for Efficient Information Collection and Risk Assessment of Nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Bos, Peter M J; Gottardo, Stefania; Scott-Fordsmand, Janeck J; van Tongeren, Martie; Semenzin, Elena; Fernandes, Teresa F; Hristozov, Danail; Hund-Rinke, Kerstin; Hunt, Neil; Irfan, Muhammad-Adeel; Landsiedel, Robert; Peijnenburg, Willie J G M; Sánchez Jiménez, Araceli; van Kesteren, Petra C E; Oomen, Agnes G

2015-11-27

An engineered nanomaterial (ENM) may actually consist of a population of primary particles, aggregates and agglomerates of various sizes. Furthermore, their physico-chemical characteristics may change during the various life-cycle stages. It will probably not be feasible to test all varieties of all ENMs for possible health and environmental risks. There is therefore a need to further develop the approaches for risk assessment of ENMs. Within the EU FP7 project Managing Risks of Nanoparticles (MARINA) a two-phase risk assessment strategy has been developed. In Phase 1 (Problem framing) a base set of information is considered, relevant exposure scenarios (RESs) are identified and the scope for Phase 2 (Risk assessment) is established. The relevance of an RES is indicated by information on exposure, fate/kinetics and/or hazard; these three domains are included as separate pillars that contain specific tools. Phase 2 consists of an iterative process of risk characterization, identification of data needs and integrated collection and evaluation of data on the three domains, until sufficient information is obtained to conclude on possible risks in a RES. Only data are generated that are considered to be needed for the purpose of risk assessment. A fourth pillar, risk characterization, is defined and it contains risk assessment tools. This strategy describes a flexible and efficient approach for data collection and risk assessment which is essential to ensure safety of ENMs. Further developments are needed to provide guidance and make the MARINA Risk Assessment Strategy operational. Case studies will be needed to refine the strategy.

The MARINA Risk Assessment Strategy: A Flexible Strategy for Efficient Information Collection and Risk Assessment of Nanomaterials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter M. J. Bos

2015-11-01

Full Text Available An engineered nanomaterial (ENM may actually consist of a population of primary particles, aggregates and agglomerates of various sizes. Furthermore, their physico-chemical characteristics may change during the various life-cycle stages. It will probably not be feasible to test all varieties of all ENMs for possible health and environmental risks. There is therefore a need to further develop the approaches for risk assessment of ENMs. Within the EU FP7 project Managing Risks of Nanoparticles (MARINA a two-phase risk assessment strategy has been developed. In Phase 1 (Problem framing a base set of information is considered, relevant exposure scenarios (RESs are identified and the scope for Phase 2 (Risk assessment is established. The relevance of an RES is indicated by information on exposure, fate/kinetics and/or hazard; these three domains are included as separate pillars that contain specific tools. Phase 2 consists of an iterative process of risk characterization, identification of data needs and integrated collection and evaluation of data on the three domains, until sufficient information is obtained to conclude on possible risks in a RES. Only data are generated that are considered to be needed for the purpose of risk assessment. A fourth pillar, risk characterization, is defined and it contains risk assessment tools. This strategy describes a flexible and efficient approach for data collection and risk assessment which is essential to ensure safety of ENMs. Further developments are needed to provide guidance and make the MARINA Risk Assessment Strategy operational. Case studies will be needed to refine the strategy.

Business risks, functions, methods of assessment and ways to reduce risk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.V. Mihalchuk

2015-06-01

Full Text Available For successful existence in a market economy entrepreneur have to take bold actions, and this increases the risk. The article describes the concept of entrepreneurship and business risk, positive and negative aspects of functions of risk in business. Therefore, it is necessary to assess the risk properly and be able to manage it to achieve the most effective results in the market. In market conditions the problem of assessing and accounting market becomes independent theoretical and practical significance as an important component of the theory and practice of management. Risk - a key element of business activities. Development of risk situations can lead to both the occurrence of adverse effects (losses, lost profits, and positive results for a company in the form of increased profit. This article describes: the concept of entrepreneurship, risk and business risks, characteristic of positive and negative aspects of risk functions in business, methods of assessment and risk reduction, shows formulae and examples you can use to assess risk in an enterprise. Analyzing already established methods of risk assessment a number of rules were proposed in order to reduce business risk.

Risk Assessment

OpenAIRE

Hrdová, Edita

2012-01-01

This diploma thesis is focused on companies risk evaluation before endorsement of Loan deriving from business relationships. The aim of this thesis is not only to describe individual steps of risk assessment, but also perfom analysis of particular companies based on available data, i.e. Balance sheet, Profit and Loss statement and external rating and after that propose solution for each company. My analysis will be based on theoretical knowledge, further on experience related to my job role a...

Are ENT surgeons in the UK at risk of stress, psychological morbidities and burnout? A national questionnaire survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Vijendren, Ananth; Yung, Matthew; Shiralkar, Uttam

2018-02-01

Work-related stress, psychological disorders and burnout are common occupational disorders affecting UK doctors. To date, there are no studies looking at these psychosocial morbidities amongst ENT surgeons worldwide. The General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12) and abbreviated Maslach Burnout Inventory (aMBI) were incorporated into a questionnaire on occupational diseases amongst ENT surgeons and distributed to the entire membership of ENT-UK. The survey study also acquired demographic data on grade of respondent, years of experience in ENT and subspecialty interest. We received 108 (8.1% response rate) appropriately filled GHQ-12 and 121 (9.0% response rate) aMBI questionnaires. 61 respondents (56.5%) on the GHQ-12 were at high risk of developing stress and psychological morbidity and 35 (28.9%) had high enough aMBI scores to suggested burnout. When comparing scores of both GHQ-12 and aMBI with grade of respondent, years of experience in ENT and subspecialty, statistical difference was only found on the risk of stress and psychiatric disorders amongst paediatric ENT surgeons (7 high risk vs 0 low risk, p = 0.02), however the number of these respondents was small (7 in total). Both questionnaires had been validated for use within our population. We found high incidence rates of stress and psychological morbidity (56.5%) and a burnout prevalence rate of 28.9% amongst our responding cohort of UK Oto-rhino-laryngologists. No meaningful differences were found between stress, psychological morbidity and burnout with grade of ENT surgeon, years of experience in ENT and subspecialty within ENT. Copyright © 2016 Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (Scottish charity number SC005317) and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Parenting Questionnaire: An Inventory for Assessing Outcomes of Adlerian Parent Groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Tiffany, Jeanne; Tollefson, Nona

This study field tests and evaluates the Parenting Questionnaire, an instrument designed to assess parental attitudes and behavior, based on the child-raising theories of Dreikurs and Dinkmeyer and the Adlerian model for parent study groups. Dreikurs and Adler stress the purposive nature of children's behavior or misbehavior, and teach parents to…

Caries risk assessment tool and prevention protocol for public health nurses in mother and child health centers, Israel.

Science.gov (United States)

Natapov, Lena; Dekel-Markovich, Dan; Granit-Palmon, Hadas; Aflalo, Efrat; Zusman, Shlomo Paul

2018-01-01

Dental caries is the most prevalent chronic disease in children. Caries risk assessment tools enable the dentists, physicians, and nondental health care providers to assess the individual's risk. Intervention by nurses in primary care settings can contribute to the establishment of oral health habits and prevention of dental disease. In Israel, Mother and Child Health Centers provide free preventive services for pregnant women and children by public health nurses. A caries prevention program in health centers started in 2015. Nurses underwent special training regarding caries prevention. A customized Caries Risk Assessment tool and Prevention Protocol for nurses, based on the AAPD tool, was introduced. A two-step evaluation was conducted which included a questionnaire and in-depth phone interviews. Twenty-eight (out of 46) health centers returned a completed questionnaire. Most nurses believed that oral health preventive services should be incorporated into their daily work. In the in-depth phone interviews, nurses stated that the integration of the program into their busy daily schedule was realistic and appropriate. The lack of specific dental module for computer program was mentioned as an implementation difficulty. The wide use of our tool by nurses supports its simplicity and feasibility which enables quick calculation and informed decision making. The nurses readily embraced the tool and it became an integral part of their toolkit. We provide public health nurses with a caries risk assessment tool and prevention protocol thus integrating oral health into general health of infants and toddlers. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

HTGR accident and risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silady, F.A.; Everline, C.J.; Houghton, W.J.

1982-01-01

This paper is a synopsis of the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs) performed by General Atomic Company. Principal topics presented include: HTGR safety assessments, peer interfaces, safety research, process gas explosions, quantitative safety goals, licensing applications of PRA, enhanced safety, investment risk assessments, and PRA design integration

Anthropic Risk Assessment on Biodiversity

Science.gov (United States)

Piragnolo, M.; Pirotti, F.; Vettore, A.; Salogni, G.

2013-01-01

This paper presents a methodology for risk assessment of anthropic activities on habitats and species. The method has been developed for Veneto Region, in order to simplify and improve the quality of EIA procedure (VINCA). Habitats and species, animals and plants, are protected by European Directive 92/43/EEC and 2009/147/EC but they are subject at hazard due to pollution produced by human activities. Biodiversity risks may conduct to deterioration and disturbance in ecological niches, with consequence of loss of biodiversity. Ecological risk assessment applied on Natura 2000 network, is needed to best practice of management and monitoring of environment and natural resources. Threats, pressure and activities, stress and indicators may be managed by geodatabase and analysed using GIS technology. The method used is the classic risk assessment in ecological context, and it defines the natural hazard as influence, element of risk as interference and vulnerability. Also it defines a new parameter called pressure. It uses risk matrix for the risk analysis on spatial and temporal scale. The methodology is qualitative and applies the precautionary principle in environmental assessment. The final product is a matrix which excludes the risk and could find application in the development of a territorial information system.

Risk assessment and the environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fisk, D.J.

1992-01-01

This paper reviews the use of risk assessment techniques in the field of environment protection. I will argue that in some important instances the development of environment policy has been a source of fruitful development of a risk based methodologies. In other cases the importation of risk assessment techniques has proved much more problematic. As the scope of environmental regulation increases so does the possibility of inconsistent and arbitrary solutions to problems. The need for a more systematic approach to the development of environmental regulation has never been stronger, so it is important to understand the reasons for the mixed success of risk assessment. This applies equally to those nations with long traditions of the regulation of private sector industry and those just beginning on this course. The way ahead may be to extend our ideas of how to express risk and uncertainty. Some of the recent cause celebres of environment policy show this challenge very clearly. As an example, this paper will look at the problem of assessing the risk of man-made climate change

Risk assessment and the environment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fisk, D J [Department of the Environment (United Kingdom)

1992-07-01

This paper reviews the use of risk assessment techniques in the field of environment protection. I will argue that in some important instances the development of environment policy has been a source of fruitful development of a risk based methodologies. In other cases the importation of risk assessment techniques has proved much more problematic. As the scope of environmental regulation increases so does the possibility of inconsistent and arbitrary solutions to problems. The need for a more systematic approach to the development of environmental regulation has never been stronger, so it is important to understand the reasons for the mixed success of risk assessment. This applies equally to those nations with long traditions of the regulation of private sector industry and those just beginning on this course. The way ahead may be to extend our ideas of how to express risk and uncertainty. Some of the recent cause celebres of environment policy show this challenge very clearly. As an example, this paper will look at the problem of assessing the risk of man-made climate change.

Mercury risk assessment combining internal and external exposure methods for a population living near a municipal solid waste incinerator.

Science.gov (United States)

Deng, Chunyan; Xie, Han; Ye, Xuejie; Zhang, Haoran; Liu, Maodian; Tong, Yindong; Ou, Langbo; Yuan, Wen; Zhang, Wei; Wang, Xuejun

2016-12-01

Risk assessments for human health have been conducted for municipal solid waste incinerators (MSWIs) in many western countries, whereas only a few risk assessments have been performed for MSWIs in developing countries such as China where the use of waste incineration is increasing rapidly. To assess the mercury exposure risks of a population living near the largest MSWI in South China, we combined internal exposure and external exposure assessment with an individual-specific questionnaire. The mercury concentrations in air, soil, and locally collected food around the MSWI were assessed. The total mercury (T-Hg) and methylmercury (MeHg) of 447 blood samples from a control group, residential exposure group, and MSWI workers were measured. The internal and external exposures of the subject population were analyzed. Significant difference in MeHg concentrations was observed between the control group and the exposed group, between the control group and the MSWI workers, and between the exposed group and the MSWI workers (median levels: 0.70 μg/L, 0.81 μg/L, and 1.02 μg/L for the control group, exposed group, and MSWI workers, respectively). The MeHg/T-Hg ratio was 0.51 ± 0.19, 0.59 ± 0.17 and 0.58 ± 0.25, respectively. Multiple linear regression analysis indicated that MeHg concentrations were positively correlated with the gaseous mercury in the air. Combining internal and external exposure assessment showed that the direct contribution of MSWI emissions was minor compared with the dietary contribution. The external and internal exposures were well matched with each other. This study also suggested that an integrated method combining internal and external exposure assessment with an individual-specific questionnaire is feasible to assess the risks for a population living near a MSWI. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nuclear insurance risk assessment using risk-based methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wendland, W.G.

1992-01-01

This paper presents American Nuclear Insurers' (ANI's) and Mutual Atomic Energy Liability Underwriters' (MAELU's) process and experience for conducting nuclear insurance risk assessments using a risk-based methodology. The process is primarily qualitative and uses traditional insurance risk assessment methods and an approach developed under the auspices of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in which ANI/MAELU is an active sponsor. This process assists ANI's technical resources in identifying where to look for insurance risk in an industry in which insurance exposure tends to be dynamic and nonactuarial. The process is an evolving one that also seeks to minimize the impact on insureds while maintaining a mutually agreeable risk tolerance

My Skin – a self-questionnaire for assessment of the emotional-cognitive representation of skin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marlena M. Kossakowska

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Background The aims of this paper are: 1 to present the My Skin questionnaire, 2 to report the preliminary results of a study on the emotional-cognitive skin representation, and 3 to encourage dermatologists and other specialists to use the My Skin questionnaire in their research. The inspiration for a new tool measuring the emotional and cognitive representation of skin was the psychological conception of the ‘skin ego’. Participants and procedure My Skin, a self-questionnaire (MSQ, was used to measure the emotional and cognitive representation of an individual’s skin. It consists of two main scales: satisfaction with the skin condition (AB and awareness of the biopsychosocial functions of the skin (C. The Body Esteem Scale, Body Self Questionnaire and Self-Esteem Scale were used to validate the MSQ. The participants were: healthy individuals (n = 343 and dermatology patients (psoriasis, vitiligo, juvenile acne, n = 84. Results The psychometric parameters are presented in this article. The internal consistency reliabilities for subscales are in the range of .75 and .95. This article also presents preliminary basic statistics for the skin representation of dermatology patients and healthy people. Conclusions My Skin questionnaire is a valid tool for assessing cognitive and emotional representation of skin and may be used in psychodermatology and esthetic dermatology to assess satisfaction with and awareness of skin.

The patient assessment questionnaire: a new instrument for evaluating the interpersonal skills of vocational dental practitioners.

Science.gov (United States)

Hurst, Y K; Prescott-Clements, L E; Rennie, J S

2004-10-23

This paper describes a pilot study aimed at evaluating a new instrument, the patient assessment questionnaire (PAQ), which uses patient ratings for the assessment of communication skills and professionalism in vocational practitioners (VDPs). The PAQ was developed as part of an assessment system designed to address all round competence. Acohort of 99 VDPs took part in the study. Questionnaires were distributed to consecutive patients in the general dental service at two time points in the training year. Data from the pilot study was analysed to determine whether the PAQ fulfilled the criteria for robust assessment. Results provide evidence of high levels of reliability, validity and feasibility of the PAQ instrument. All indications to date suggest that the PAQ will prove to be a valuable assessment tool. It is currently being evaluated as part of the system used to assess the all round competence of dental graduates undertaking vocational training in Scotland.

Complaints of the arm, neck and shoulder among computer office workers in Sudan: a prevalence study with validation of an Arabic risk factors questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hassan Amar A

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Complaints of the arm, neck and/or shoulders (CANS in general and computer-related disorders in particular affect millions of computer office workers in Western developed countries. However, with the widespread use of computer systems in developing countries, the associated musculoskeletal complaints are yet to be investigated. Aim To study the prevalence of work-related CANS, among computer office workers in Sudan, and to test the psychometric properties of a translated Dutch questionnaire in Arabic language. Methods In 2005 282 computer office workers at a mobile telecommunication company and three banks in Khartoum, Sudan, received an Arabic language version of the validated Maastricht upper extremity questionnaire (MUEQ. The questionnaire holds 109 items covering demographic characteristics, in addition to six main domains (i.e. work station, body posture, break time, job control, job demands and social support assessing potential physical and psychosocial risk factors. Forward/backward translation of the MUQE was done independently by two different translators. Prevalence over the past year were computed for CANS. Further, the psychometric properties of the Arabic questionnaire were investigated (i.e. factor structure and reliability and cross-validation was carried out. Results The response rate of the questionnaire was 88% (n = 250. The one-year prevalence of CANS showed that 53% of the respondents could be classified as mild cases. The highest incidences were found for neck and shoulder symptoms (64% and 41% respectively. The analysis of the psychometric properties of the scale resulted in the identification of 2 factors for each of the 6 domains (i.e. office equipment, computer position, head and body posture, awkward body posture, autonomy, quality of break time, skill discretion, decision authority, time pressure, task complexity, social support, and work flow. The calculation of internal consistency and cross

Medical risk assessment in dentistry: use of the American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status Classification.

Science.gov (United States)

Clough, S; Shehabi, Z; Morgan, C

2016-02-12

Medical risk assessment is essential to safe patient management and the delivery of appropriate dental care. The American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status (ASA PS) Classification is widely used within medicine and dentistry, but has received significant criticism. This is the first UK survey to assess the consistency of medical risk assessment in dentistry. (i) To determine the use and consistency of the ASA PS among dentists and anaesthetists. (ii) To consider the appropriateness of the ASA PS in relation to dental treatment planning and delivery of care. A cross-sectional online questionnaire was distributed to anaesthetists and dental practitioners in general practice, community and hospital dental services. Questions focused on professional backgrounds, use of the ASA PS, alternative approaches to risk assessment in everyday practice and scoring of eight hypothetical patients using ASA PS. There were 101 responses, 82 were complete. Anaesthetists recorded ASA PS score more frequently than dental practitioners and found it more useful. Inconsistencies were evident in the assignment of ASA PS scores both between and within professional groups. Many dental practitioners did not use or find ASA PS helpful, with significant inconsistencies in its use. An awareness of alternative assessment scales may be useful across settings. Accepting its limitations, it would be helpful for all dentists to be educated in ASA PS and its use in medical risk assessment, particularly in relation to conscious sedation.

Proposal for a questionnaire to assess risk perception concerning a radioactive waste repository; Proposta de um questionario destinado a avaliar a percepcao de risco relativa a um repositorio de rejeitos radioativos

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tanimoto, Katia Suemi

2011-07-01

One of the key features for public acceptance of nuclear energy is the belief that radioactive waste can be managed safely, in order to protect human beings from its possible harmful effects in present and future generations. In this sense, it is essential to understand how people perceive the risk associated with radioactive waste and which the main factors driving their attitudes toward its disposal are. One of the ways to achieve this understanding is through opinion polls. In this study, a questionnaire focused on the nuclear energy acceptability issue and its association with radioactive waste management was proposed, covering the following aspects: attitudes towards radioactive waste and nuclear power, credibility on institutions and sectors responsible by the nuclear safety, identification of perceived benefits, risk perception of specific technologies and activities, perception of real risk, emotional reaction comprehension and precautionary principle. Results obtained from a pilot questionnaire application are presented and discussed in this paper. (author)

Risk assessment for halogenated solvents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Travis, C.C.

1988-01-01

A recent development in the cancer risk area is the advent of biologically based pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic models. These models allow for the incorporation of biological and mechanistic data into the risk assessment process. These advances will not only improve the risk assessment process for halogenated solvents but will stimulate and guide basic research in the biological area

Assessment of sedentary behaviors and transport-related activities by questionnaire: a validation study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keitly Mensah

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Comprehensive assessment of sedentary behavior (SB and physical activity (PA, including transport-related activities (TRA, is required to design innovative PA promotion strategies. There are few validated instruments that simultaneously assess the different components of human movement according to their context of practice (e.g. work, transport, leisure. We examined test-retest reliability and validity of the Sedentary, Transportation and Activity Questionnaire (STAQ, a newly developed questionnaire dedicated to assessing context-specific SB, TRA and PA. Methods Ninety six subjects (51 women kept a contextualized activity-logbook and wore a hip accelerometer (Actigraph GT3X + TM for a 7-day or 14-day period, at the end of which they completed the STAQ. Activity-energy expenditure was measured in a subgroup of 45 subjects using the double labeled water (DLW method. Test-retest reliability was assessed using intra-class-coefficients (ICC in a subgroup of 32 subjects who filled the questionnaire twice one month apart. Accelerometry was annotated using the logbook to obtain total and context-specific objective estimates of SB. Spearman correlations, Bland-Altman plots and ICC were used to analyze validity with logbook, accelerometry and DLW data validity criteria. Results Test-retest reliability was fair for total sitting time (ICC = 0.52, good to excellent for work sitting time (ICC = 0.71, transport-related walking (ICC = 0.61 and car use (ICC = 0.67, and leisure screen-related SB (ICC = 0.64-0.79, but poor for total sitting time during leisure and transport-related contexts. For validity, compared to accelerometry, significant correlations were found for STAQ estimates of total (r = 0.54 and context-specific sitting times with stronger correlations for work sitting time (r = 0.88, and screen times (TV/DVD viewing: r = 0.46; other screens: r = 0.42 than for transport (r = 0.35 or

Assessment of sedentary behaviors and transport-related activities by questionnaire: a validation study.

Science.gov (United States)

Mensah, Keitly; Maire, Aurélia; Oppert, Jean-Michel; Dugas, Julien; Charreire, Hélène; Weber, Christiane; Simon, Chantal; Nazare, Julie-Anne

2016-08-09

Comprehensive assessment of sedentary behavior (SB) and physical activity (PA), including transport-related activities (TRA), is required to design innovative PA promotion strategies. There are few validated instruments that simultaneously assess the different components of human movement according to their context of practice (e.g. work, transport, leisure). We examined test-retest reliability and validity of the Sedentary, Transportation and Activity Questionnaire (STAQ), a newly developed questionnaire dedicated to assessing context-specific SB, TRA and PA. Ninety six subjects (51 women) kept a contextualized activity-logbook and wore a hip accelerometer (Actigraph GT3X + (TM)) for a 7-day or 14-day period, at the end of which they completed the STAQ. Activity-energy expenditure was measured in a subgroup of 45 subjects using the double labeled water (DLW) method. Test-retest reliability was assessed using intra-class-coefficients (ICC) in a subgroup of 32 subjects who filled the questionnaire twice one month apart. Accelerometry was annotated using the logbook to obtain total and context-specific objective estimates of SB. Spearman correlations, Bland-Altman plots and ICC were used to analyze validity with logbook, accelerometry and DLW data validity criteria. Test-retest reliability was fair for total sitting time (ICC = 0.52), good to excellent for work sitting time (ICC = 0.71), transport-related walking (ICC = 0.61) and car use (ICC = 0.67), and leisure screen-related SB (ICC = 0.64-0.79), but poor for total sitting time during leisure and transport-related contexts. For validity, compared to accelerometry, significant correlations were found for STAQ estimates of total (r = 0.54) and context-specific sitting times with stronger correlations for work sitting time (r = 0.88), and screen times (TV/DVD viewing: r = 0.46; other screens: r = 0.42) than for transport (r = 0.35) or leisure-related sitting-times (r�

RESIDUAL RISK ASSESSMENT: ETHYLENE OXIDE ...

Science.gov (United States)

This document describes the residual risk assessment for the Ethylene Oxide Commercial Sterilization source category. For stationary sources, section 112 (f) of the Clean Air Act requires EPA to assess risks to human health and the environment following implementation of technology-based control standards. If these technology-based control standards do not provide an ample margin of safety, then EPA is required to promulgate addtional standards. This document describes the methodology and results of the residual risk assessment performed for the Ethylene Oxide Commercial Sterilization source category. The results of this analyiss will assist EPA in determining whether a residual risk rule for this source category is appropriate.

[The bullying and victimization questionnaire for children (BVF-K): construction and analysis of an instrument for the assessment of bullying in kindergarten and primary school].

Science.gov (United States)

von Marée, Nandoli; Petermann, Franz

2009-01-01

Bullying constitutes a meaningful risk factor concerning the development of emotional problems and behavioral abnormalities and occurs to a considerable degree in kindergarten and primary school already. In order to identify bullying behavior as well as the children involved early enough, reliable and valid assessment methods are needed. The Bulling and Victimization Questionnaire for Children (BVF-K) is an instrument based on self-reports for pre- and primary school children. The questionnaire assesses to what extent 4-10 year old children are affected by direct or indirect bullying. The construction sample consisted of 458 children. Item analysis showed good distribution of item difficulties as well as satisfactory discriminative power of items. Via principal component analysis, two scales (victim and bully) as well as four subscales were extracted (direct and indirect/relational victimization and direct and indirect/relational aggression respectively), showing satisfactory to good internal consistency.

Web-based questionnaires to assess perinatal outcome proved to be valid.

Science.gov (United States)

van Gelder, Marleen M H J; Vorstenbosch, Saskia; Derks, Lineke; Te Winkel, Bernke; van Puijenbroek, Eugène P; Roeleveld, Nel

2017-10-01

The objective of this study was to validate a Web-based questionnaire completed by the mother to assess perinatal outcome used in a prospective cohort study. For 882 women with an estimated date of delivery between February 2012 and February 2015 who participated in the PRegnancy and Infant DEvelopment (PRIDE) Study, we compared data on pregnancy outcome, including mode of delivery, plurality, gestational age, birth weight and length, head circumference, birth defects, and infant sex, from Web-based questionnaires administered to the mothers 2 months after delivery with data from obstetric records. For continuous variables, we calculated intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs), whereas sensitivity and specificity were determined for categorical variables. We observed only very small differences between the two methods of data collection for gestational age (ICC, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.90-0.92), birth weight (ICC, 0.96; 95% CI, 0.95-0.96), birth length (ICC, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.87-0.92), and head circumference (ICC, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.80-0.93). Agreement between the Web-based questionnaire and obstetric records was high as well, with sensitivity ranging between 0.86 (termination of pregnancy) and 1.00 (four outcomes) and specificity between 0.96 (term birth) and 1.00 (nine outcomes). Our study provides evidence that Web-based questionnaires could be considered as a valid complementary or alternative method of data collection. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Risk assessment: An employer's perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williams, K.C.

1992-01-01

There is no question that a careful assessment of risk is essential for safe industrial operations. For that reason, a thoughtful analysis of the effectiveness of available risk assessment technologies is prerequisite for responsible corporate decision making. An 'employer's' perspective on risk assessment cannot be constrained by any artificial restrictions which that term may imply. In reality, all those who are involved in the execution of an industrial enterprise: managers, regulators, the affected public, and especially those employees exposed to hazards, are necessarily partners in assessment of risk. The perspective of this paper is that of the oil and gas industry, in which the author's organization, Exxon Company, International, participates. The paper addresses what Exxon requires to assess and manage risk in its worldwide operations. The author is aware, however, through contacts with industry colleagues, that some of Exxon's initiatives are representative of similar actions being taken by others. 1992 is the European Year of Safety, Health and Hygiene, coinciding with the United Kingdom's Presidency of the European Council. It is also the year in which new 'goal-setting' regulations covering safety in the U.K. offshore oil industry were put forward by the Health and Safety Commission. These regulations, based largely on Lord Cullen's recommendations following the Piper Alpha tragedy, set the pace for safety in the British North Sea and will significantly impact the safety of offshore oil installations worldwide. The requirement for risk assessment, using a systematic process of analysing and evaluating risk, is a key component of this safety regime

Risk assessment: An employer's perspective

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Williams, K C [Exxon International (United States)

1992-07-01

There is no question that a careful assessment of risk is essential for safe industrial operations. For that reason, a thoughtful analysis of the effectiveness of available risk assessment technologies is prerequisite for responsible corporate decision making. An 'employer's' perspective on risk assessment cannot be constrained by any artificial restrictions which that term may imply. In reality, all those who are involved in the execution of an industrial enterprise: managers, regulators, the affected public, and especially those employees exposed to hazards, are necessarily partners in assessment of risk. The perspective of this paper is that of the oil and gas industry, in which the author's organization, Exxon Company, International, participates. The paper addresses what Exxon requires to assess and manage risk in its worldwide operations. The author is aware, however, through contacts with industry colleagues, that some of Exxon's initiatives are representative of similar actions being taken by others. 1992 is the European Year of Safety, Health and Hygiene, coinciding with the United Kingdom's Presidency of the European Council. It is also the year in which new 'goal-setting' regulations covering safety in the U.K. offshore oil industry were put forward by the Health and Safety Commission. These regulations, based largely on Lord Cullen's recommendations following the Piper Alpha tragedy, set the pace for safety in the British North Sea and will significantly impact the safety of offshore oil installations worldwide. The requirement for risk assessment, using a systematic process of analysing and evaluating risk, is a key component of this safety regime.

Validity and Reliability of the Bahasa Melayu Version of the Migraine Disability Assessment Questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Munvar Miya Shaik

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Background. The study was designed to determine the validity and reliability of the Bahasa Melayu version (MIDAS-M of the Migraine Disability Assessment (MIDAS questionnaire. Methods. Patients having migraine for more than six months attending the Neurology Clinic, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia, were recruited. Standard forward and back translation procedures were used to translate and adapt the MIDAS questionnaire to produce the Bahasa Melayu version. The translated Malay version was tested for face and content validity. Validity and reliability testing were further conducted with 100 migraine patients (1st administration followed by a retesting session 21 days later (2nd administration. Results. A total of 100 patients between 15 and 60 years of age were recruited. The majority of the patients were single (66% and students (46%. Cronbach’s alpha values were 0.84 (1st administration and 0.80 (2nd administration. The test-retest reliability for the total MIDAS score was 0.73, indicating that the MIDAS-M questionnaire is stable; for the five disability questions, the test-retest values ranged from 0.77 to 0.87. Conclusion. The MIDAS-M questionnaire is comparable with the original English version in terms of validity and reliability and may be used for the assessment of migraine in clinical settings.

RELEVANCE OF PROCESS RISK ASSESSMENT IN AIRLINES

OpenAIRE

Oksana G. Feoktistova; Igor K. Turkin; Sergey V. Barinov

2017-01-01

The notion of “the concept on assumed risk” that took over from the outdated concept of absolute security is analyzed, the increasing significance of operating risk assessment at the present stage is noted. Some basic risk assessment techniques are considered. Matrix technique of risk assessment is considered more thoroughly, and it may be used in risk assessment of airlines in the context of labour protection management system.The ability to correctly assess risks and develop appropriate pre...

SELF-ASSESSMENT, QUESTIONNAIRES AND MEMORY TESTS IN A SIMULATED DRIVING TASK

OpenAIRE

Combe-Pangaud , Chantal; Jacquet-Andrieu , Armelle

2009-01-01

disponible sur : http://www.chalmers.se/safer/driverdistraction-en; International audience; This paper concerns the results of a memorizing test (visual recognition and hearing recall) during an experiment of simulated driving in a magneto-encephalographic environment. The memory tests (questionnaires) are adapted to the measurement of subjective self-assessment: "tiredness" and "facility" perceptions, corralled to simple (ST) and double task (ST/DT: hearing a radio broadcast). Each subject h...

Determining transition readiness in congenital heart disease: Assessing the utility of the Transition Readiness Questionnaire

Science.gov (United States)

The Transition Readiness Assessment Questionnaire (TRAQ) is a tool commonly used to assess transition readiness in adolescents with chronic diseases. It was previously validated in youth with special health care needs (YSHCN), but no patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) were included in the ...

An abuse of risk assessment: how regulatory agencies improperly adopted LNT for cancer risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Calabrese, Edward J

2015-04-01

The Genetics Panel of the National Academy of Sciences' Committee on Biological Effects of Atomic Radiation (BEAR) recommended the adoption of the linear dose-response model in 1956, abandoning the threshold dose-response for genetic risk assessments. This recommendation was quickly generalized to include somatic cells for cancer risk assessment and later was instrumental in the adoption of linearity for carcinogen risk assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency. The Genetics Panel failed to provide any scientific assessment to support this recommendation and refused to do so when later challenged by other leading scientists. Thus, the linearity model used in cancer risk assessment was based on ideology rather than science and originated with the recommendation of the NAS BEAR Committee Genetics Panel. Historical documentation in support of these conclusions is provided in the transcripts of the Panel meetings and in previously unexamined correspondence among Panel members.

Are Electronic and Paper Questionnaires Equivalent to Assess Patients with Overactive Bladder?

Science.gov (United States)

Palmer, Cristina; Farhan, Bilal; Nguyen, Nobel; Zhang, Lishi; Do, Rebecca; Nguyen, Danh V; Ghoniem, Gamal

2018-03-30

Overactive bladder syndrome is defined as urinary urgency, usually accompanied by frequency and nocturia, with or without urgency urinary incontinence in the absence of urinary tract infection or another obvious pathological condition. Electronic questionnaires have been used in a few specialties with the hope of improving treatment outcomes and patient satisfaction. However, they have not been widely used in the urological field. When treating overactive bladder, the main outcome is to improve patient quality of life. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate whether electronic questionnaires would be equally accepted as or preferred to paper questionnaires. The secondary objective was to look at the preference in relation to patient age, education and iPad® tablet familiarity. We prospectively evaluated the iList® electronic questionnaire application using a friendly iPad tablet in patients with overactive bladder who presented to the urology clinic at our institution. Each of the 80 patients who were recruited randomly completed the validated OABSS (Overactive Bladder Symptom Score) and the PPBC (Patient Perception of Bladder Condition) questionnaires in paper and electronic format on the tablet. Variables potentially associated with the outcomes of interest included demographic data, questionnaire method preference, patient response rate and iPad familiarity. We used the 2-sided Z-test to determine whether the proportion of patients who considered the tablet to be the same, better or much better than paper was significantly greater than 50%. The 2-sided chi-square test was applied to assess whether the intervention effect significantly differed among the demographic subgroups. A total of 80 patients 21 to 87 years old were enrolled in the study from November 2015 to August 2016. Of the patients 53% were female and 49% were 65 years or younger. The incidence of those who considered the tablet to be the same or better than paper was 82.5% (95% CI 74

Fuzzy model for risk assessment of persistent organic pollutants in aquatic ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seguí, X.; Pujolasus, E.; Betrò, S.; Àgueda, A.; Casal, J.; Ocampo-Duque, W.; Rudolph, I.; Barra, R.; Páez, M.; Barón, E.; Eljarrat, E.; Barceló, D.; Darbra, R.M.

2013-01-01

We developed a model for evaluating the environmental risk of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) to aquatic organisms. The model is based on fuzzy theory and uses information provided by international experts through a questionnaire. It has been tested in two case studies for a particular type of POPs: brominated flame retardants (BFRs). The first case study is related to the EU-funded AQUATERRA project, with sampling campaigns carried out in two Ebro tributaries in Spain (the Cinca and Vero Rivers). The second one, named the BROMACUA project, assessed different aquatic ecosystems in Chile (San Vicente Bay) and Colombia (Santa Marta Marsh). In both projects, the BFRs under study were polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD). However, the model can be extrapolated to other POPs and to different aquatic ecosystems to provide useful results for decision-makers. -- The risk of POPs for aquatic organisms was assessed at several sites around the world, using a fuzzy-based model to provide useful results for decision-makers

A framework for combining social impact assessment and risk assessment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mahmoudi, Hossein; Renn, Ortwin; Vanclay, Frank; Hoffmann, Volker; Karami, Ezatollah

An increasing focus on integrative approaches is one of the current trends in impact assessment. There is potential to combine impact assessment with various other forms of assessment, such as risk assessment, to make impact assessment and the management of social risks more effective. We identify

A framework for combining social impact assessment and risk assessment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mahmoudi, Hossein; Renn, Ortwin; Vanclay, Frank; Hoffmann, Volker; Karami, Ezatollah

2013-01-01

An increasing focus on integrative approaches is one of the current trends in impact assessment. There is potential to combine impact assessment with various other forms of assessment, such as risk assessment, to make impact assessment and the management of social risks more effective. We identify

Risk indices in comparative risk assessment studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hubert, P.

1984-01-01

More than a decade ago the development of comparative risk assessment studies aroused overwhelming interest. There was no doubt that data on the health and safety aspects of energy systems would greatly benefit, or even end, the debate on nuclear energy. Although such attempts are still strongly supported, the rose-coloured expectations of the early days have faded. The high uncertainties, and the contradictory aspect, of the first results might explain this evolution. The loose connection between the range of computed risk indices and the questions on which the debate was focused is another reason for this decline in interest. Important research work is being carried out aiming at reducing the different kinds of uncertainties. Rather than the uncertainties, the paper considers the meaning of available risk indices and proposes more significant indices with respect to the goals of risk assessment. First, the indices which are of frequent use in comparative studies are listed. The stress is put on a French comparative study from which most examples are drawn. Secondly, the increase in magnitude of the indices and the decrease in the attributability of the risk to a given system is shown to be a consequence of the trend towards more comprehensive analyses. Thirdly, the ambiguity of such indices as the collective occupational risk is underlined, and a possible solution is suggested. Whenever risk assessments are related to pragmatic decision making problems it is possible to find satisfactory risk indices. The development of cost-effectiveness analyses and the proposals for quantitative safety goals clearly demonstrate this point. In the field of comparison of social impacts some proposals are made, but there remain some gaps still to be filled. (author)

The Development of Three Questionnaires to Assess Beliefs about Green Exercise.

Science.gov (United States)

Flowers, Elliott P; Freeman, Paul; Gladwell, Valerie F

2017-10-04

Green exercise is physical activity that takes place in the presence of natural environments. Despite the promising evidence of the benefits, little is known about how individuals' thoughts and feelings influence participation in green exercise and subsequent outcomes. The aim of the current research was to develop questionnaires using the Theory of Planned Behaviour as a framework that could both directly and indirectly assess attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behaviour control, along with intention toward green exercise. Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed that the indirect, direct, and intention measures all had good overall model fits when tested on a refinement (n = 253) and validation (n = 230) sample. The questionnaires will contribute towards helping to better understanding individuals' beliefs about green exercise, how these influence behaviour, and ultimately to enable the development of effective interventions promoting green exercise.

Aspects regarding explosion risk assessment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Părăian Mihaela

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Explosive risk occurs in all activities involving flammable substances in the form of gases, vapors, mists or dusts which, in mixture with air, can generate an explosive atmosphere. As explosions can cause human losses and huge material damage, the assessment of the explosion risk and the establishment of appropriate measures to reduce it to acceptable levels according to the standards and standards in force is of particular importance for the safety and health of people and goods.There is no yet a recognized method of assessing the explosion risk, but regardless of the applied method, the likelihood of an explosive atmosphere occurrence has to be determined, together with the occurrence of an efficient ignition source and the magnitude of foreseeable consequences. In assessment processes, consequences analysis has a secondary importance since it’s likely that explosions would always involve considerable damage, starting from important material damages and up to human damages that could lead to death.The purpose of the work is to highlight the important principles and elements to be taken into account for a specific risk assessment. An essential element in assessing the risk of explosion in workplaces where explosive atmospheres may occur is technical installations and personal protective equipment (PPE that must be designed, manufactured, installed and maintained so that they cannot generate a source of ignition. Explosion prevention and protection requirements are governed by specific norms and standards, and a main part of the explosion risk assessment is related to the assessment of the compliance of the equipment / installation with these requirements.

Assessment of cardiometabolic risk among shift workers in Hungary

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jermendy György

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Aim Shift workers may be at risk of different diseases. In order to assess cardiometabolic risk in shift workers, a cross-sectional study was performed among active workers. Methods A total of 481 workers (121 men, 360 women were investigated; most of them were employees in light industry (58.2% or in public services (23.9%. Past medical history was recorded and physical examination was performed. Questionnaires were used to characterize daily activity. Fasting venous blood sample was collected for measuring laboratory parameters. Data from shift workers (n = 234, age: 43.9 ± 8.1 years were compared to those of daytime workers (n = 247, age: 42.8 ± 8.5 years, men and women were analyzed separately. Results In men, systolic blood pressure was higher in shift workers compared to daytime workers (133 ± 8 vs 126 ± 17 mmHg; p vs 67.7 ± 13.2 kg; p vs 13.4%; p vs 21.7%; p vs 1.68 ± 0.36 mmol/l; p Conclusion Middle-aged active shift workers, especially women, have a less healthy lifestyle and are at higher cardiometabolic risk as compared to daytime workers. Our study highlights the importance of measures for identifying and preventing cardiometabolic risk factors in shift workers.

Development and initial validation of the Three-Levels-of-Needs Questionnaire for self-assessment of palliative needs in patients with cancer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Johnsen, Anna Thit; Petersen, Morten Aagaard; Pedersen, Lise

2011-01-01

To improve palliative care, it is important that questionnaires accurately assess the needs of the patients. No questionnaire existed that combined three different and important approaches to needs assessment. We developed such a questionnaire, called the Three-Levels-of-Needs Questionnaire (3LNQ......), based on literature searches. The 3LNQ measures 12 important needs with three different approaches when used as a supplement to the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30): problem intensity, problem burden, and felt need....

Assessment of reliability and validity of a new safety culture questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.A. Farshad

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Background and aims   As a Development of Industrial process, human, environment, equipment, material and validity of system has been exposed to hazardous conditions. Regards of 32.3 percent of occupations in industries, this study focused on risk assessment of foundry unit by energy trace and barrier analysis (ETBA method and presented approaches to control of accident.     Methods   the recent study is as a case study one to risk assessment in a foundry unit in Qazvin industrial city in1387. In this study risks were founded by ETBA method and evaluated by MILSTD- 882B. Data were collected by direct observations, interview with workers and supervisor and engineers, walking-talking through method, documents investigation of operational processors, preventive maintenances, equipment technical properties, accidental and medical documents. Finally ETBA worksheets completed.     Results   totally 154 risks has been found. 40 from total are been unacceptable risk, 68 unfavorable and also 46 acceptable but with remediation action. Casting workshop had risks more than other workshops (with 74 identified risks.Potential and heat energies were founded as most   hazardous energies, with respectively 51 and 38 risk cases.     Conclusion   This study recommended to be done actions for identification and control risk, such as: safety training, occupation training, preventive maintenance, contract safety, safety  communication and safety audit group.  

Reliability and validity assessment of gastrointestinal dystemperaments questionnaire: a novel scale in Persian traditional medicine

Science.gov (United States)

Hoseinzadeh, Hamidreza; Taghipour, Ali; Yousefi, Mahdi

2018-01-01

Background Development of a questionnaire based on the resources of Persian traditional medicine seems necessary. One of the problems faced by practitioners of traditional medicine is the different opinions regarding the diagnosis of general temperament or temperament of member. One of the reasons is the lack of validity tools, and it has led to difficulties in training the student of traditional medicine and the treatment of patients. The differences in the detection methods, have given rise to several treatment methods. Objective The present study aimed to develop a questionnaire and standard software for diagnosis of gastrointestinal dystemperaments. Methods The present research is a tool developing study which included 8 stages of developing the items, determining the statements based on items, assessing the face validity, assessing the content validity, assessing the reliability, rating the items, developing a software for calculation of the total score of the questionnaire named GDS v.1.1, and evaluating the concurrent validity using statistical tests including Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, Cohen’s kappa coefficient. Results Based on the results, 112 notes including 62 symptoms were extracted from resources, and 58 items were obtained from in-person interview sessions with a panel of experts. A statement was selected for each item and, after merging a number of statements, a total of 49 statements were finally obtained. By calculating the score of statement impact and determining the content validity, respectively, 6 and 10 other items were removed from the list of statements. Standardized Cronbach’s alpha for this questionnaire was obtained 0.795 and its concurrent validity was equal to 0.8. Conclusion A quantitative tool was developed for diagnosis and examination of gastrointestinal dystemperaments. The developed questionnaire is adequately reliable and valid for this purpose. In addition, the software can be used for clinical diagnosis. PMID

Construction scheduled delay risk assessment by using combined AHP-RII methodology for an international NPP project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hossen, Mufazal Muhammed; Kang, Sun Koo; Kim, Jong Hyun [KEPCO International Nuclear Graduate School (KINGS), Ulsan (Korea, Republic of)

2015-04-15

In this study, Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) construction schedule delay risk assessment methodology is developed and the construction delay risk is assessed for turnkey international NPP projects. Three levels of delay factors were selected through literature review and discussions with nuclear industry experts. A questionnaire survey was conducted on the basis of an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and Relative Importance Index (RII) methods and the schedule delay risk is assessed qualitatively and quantitatively by severity and frequency of occurrence of delay factors. This study assigns four main delay factors to the first level: main contractor, utility, regulatory authority, and financial and country factor. The second and the third levels are designed with 12 sub-factors and 32 sub-sub-factors, respectively. This study finds the top five most important sub-sub-factors, which are as follows: policy changes, political instability and public intervention; uncompromising regulatory criteria and licensing documents conflicting with existing regulations; robust design document review procedures; redesign due to errors in design and design changes; and worldwide shortage of qualified and experienced nuclear specific equipment manufacturers. The proposed combined AHP-RII methodology is capable of assessing delay risk effectively and efficiently. Decision makers can apply risk informed decision making to avoid unexpected construction delays of NPPs.

Construction scheduled delay risk assessment by using combined AHP-RII methodology for an international NPP project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hossen, Mufazal Muhammed; Kang, Sun Koo; Kim, Jong Hyun

2015-01-01

In this study, Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) construction schedule delay risk assessment methodology is developed and the construction delay risk is assessed for turnkey international NPP projects. Three levels of delay factors were selected through literature review and discussions with nuclear industry experts. A questionnaire survey was conducted on the basis of an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and Relative Importance Index (RII) methods and the schedule delay risk is assessed qualitatively and quantitatively by severity and frequency of occurrence of delay factors. This study assigns four main delay factors to the first level: main contractor, utility, regulatory authority, and financial and country factor. The second and the third levels are designed with 12 sub-factors and 32 sub-sub-factors, respectively. This study finds the top five most important sub-sub-factors, which are as follows: policy changes, political instability and public intervention; uncompromising regulatory criteria and licensing documents conflicting with existing regulations; robust design document review procedures; redesign due to errors in design and design changes; and worldwide shortage of qualified and experienced nuclear specific equipment manufacturers. The proposed combined AHP-RII methodology is capable of assessing delay risk effectively and efficiently. Decision makers can apply risk informed decision making to avoid unexpected construction delays of NPPs

[WOA: a questionnaire for the evaluation of work organization. Translation and validation of the Italian version].

Science.gov (United States)

Magnavita, N; Mammi, F; Roccia, K; Vincenti, F

2007-01-01

The Work Organisation Assessment questionnaire (WOAq) has been translated into Italian, back-translated, and modified. Data were collected from 160 health care workers and 50 white-collar bank employees. Employee wellbeing was assessed by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12), while work stress was assessed by the Karasek's Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). Reliability, as measured by Cronbach's alpha, was very good (0.95). Principal component analysis revealed that a significant percentage of the variance (41.8%) was explained by a single summative factor which included 25 of the 28 items. Varimax orthogonal rotation yielded the same five factors observed in the original questionnaire (reward and recognition, quality of relationship with management, quality of physical environment, quality of relationship with colleagues, workload). The WOAQ sum score was positively related to social support, as measured by the Karasek's JCQ (Spearman's rho = 0.523; p employee wellbeing, and it may be useful in risk assessment procedures.

Questionnaires for Measuring Refractive Surgery Outcomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kandel, Himal; Khadka, Jyoti; Lundström, Mats; Goggin, Michael; Pesudovs, Konrad

2017-06-01

To identify the questionnaires used to assess refractive surgery outcomes, assess the available questionnaires in regard to their psychometric properties, validity, and reliability, and evaluate the performance of the available questionnaires in measuring refractive surgery outcomes. An extensive literature search was done on PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane, and Web of Science databases to identify articles that described or used at least one questionnaire to assess refractive surgery outcomes. The information on content quality, validity, reliability, responsiveness, and psychometric properties was extracted and analyzed based on an extensive set of quality criteria. Eighty-one articles describing 27 questionnaires (12 refractive error-specific, including 4 refractive surgery-specific, 7 vision-but-non-refractive, and 8 generic) were included in the review. Most articles (56, 69.1%) described refractive error-specific questionnaires. The Quality of Life Impact of Refractive Correction (QIRC), the Quality of Vision (QoV), and the Near Activity Visual Questionnaire (NAVQ) were originally constructed using Rasch analysis; others were developed using the Classical Test Theory. The National Eye Institute Refractive Quality of Life questionnaire was the most frequently used questionnaire, but it does not provide a valid measurement. The QoV, QIRC, and NAVQ are the three best existing questionnaires to assess visual symptoms, quality of life, and activity limitations, respectively. This review identified three superior quality questionnaires for measuring different aspects of quality of life in refractive surgery. Clinicians and researchers should choose a questionnaire based on the concept being measured with superior psychometric properties. [J Refract Surg. 2017;33(6):416-424.]. Copyright 2017, SLACK Incorporated.

[FINDRISC Test: Relationship between cardiovascular risk parameters and scales in Spanish Mediterranean population].

Science.gov (United States)

López-González, Ángel Arturo; García-Agudo, Sheila; Tomás-Salvá, Matías; Vicente-Herrero, María Teófila; Queimadelos-Carmona, Milagros; Campos-González, Irene

2017-01-01

The Finnish Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC) questionnaire has been used to assess the risk of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. The objetive was to assess the relationship between different scales related to cardiovascular risk and FINDRISC questionnaire. Values of different anthropometric and clinical parameters (body mass index, waist circumference, waist to height ratio, blood pressure), analytical parameters (lipid profile, blood glucose) and scales related to cardiovascular risk (atherogenic index, metabolic syndrome, REGICOR, SCORE, heart age and vascular age) were determined on the basis of the value of the FINDRISC questionnaire. All analyzed parameters related to cardiovascular risk were getting worse at the same time that the value of the FINDRISC questionnaire increased. There is a close relationship between FINDRISC questionnaire values and those obtained in the different parameters by which cardiovascular risk was measured directly or indirectly.

Chlorine transportation risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lautkaski, Risto; Mankamo, Tuomas.

1977-02-01

An assessment has been made on the toxication risk of the population due to the bulk rail transportation of liquid chlorine in Finland. Fourteen typical rail accidents were selected and their probability was estimated using the accident file of the Finnish State Railways. The probability of a chlorine leak was assessed for each type of accident separately using four leak size categories. The assessed leakage probability was dominated by station accidents, especially by collisions of a chlorine tanker and a locomotive. Toxication hazard areas were estimated for the leak categories. A simple model was constructed to describe the centring of the densely populated areas along the railway line. A comparison was made between the obtained risk and some other risks including those due to nuclear reactor accidents. (author)

Evaluation of the Usability of Selected Questionnaires Assessing Physical Activity in the Prophylaxis of Cardiovascular Diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Czeczelewska, Ewa; Czeczelewski, Jan; Wasiluk, Agnieszka; Saczuk, Jerzy

2016-01-01

The main health problem of the Polish population is posed by cardiovascular diseases (CDVD), coronary artery disease (CAD) in particular. Respectively higher physical activity linked with energy expenditure of at least 1000 kcal/week may significantly reduce the risk of CAD development. The protective effect of exercise applies not only to persons from high-risk groups and with diagnosed chronic diseases that increase the risk of the incidence of atherosclerosis and its complications, but also to healthy individuals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usability of the Seven-Day Physical Activity Recall (SDPAR) and International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) in research on the correlation between physical activity and risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. A screening survey, conducted in 2012, included students (n = 340) of the Division of the Academy of Physical Education in Biała Podlaska, aged 18-29 years. Total cholesterol, triglycerides and glucose levels were analyzed, and arterial blood pressure and heart rate were measured. The physical activity of the students was estimated using IPAQ and SDPAR questionnaires. The effect of physical activity on the biochemical blood markers, arterial blood pressure and heart rate was analyzed in groups differing in weekly energy expenditure (WEE). Along with increasing WEE values, calculated with IPAQ and SDPAR questionnaires, tangible descending tendencies were observed in cholesterol concentration in both genders. Significant differences were demonstrated in mean values of the resting heart rate between terciles of women ranked according to the increasing WEE values calculated using IPAQ (p physical activity; however the SDPAR seems to be a more useful tool in CDVD prevention screening.

Validity of a short questionnaire to assess physical activity in 10 European countries

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Feskens, E.J.M.

2012-01-01

To accurately examine associations of physical activity (PA) with disease outcomes, a valid method of assessing free-living activity is required. We examined the validity of a brief PA questionnaire (PAQ) used in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). PA energy

Probabilistic risk assessment, Volume I

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1982-01-01

This book contains 158 papers presented at the International Topical Meeting on Probabilistic Risk Assessment held by the American Nuclear Society (ANS) and the European Nuclear Society (ENS) in Port Chester, New York in 1981. The meeting was second in a series of three. The main focus of the meeting was on the safety of light water reactors. The papers discuss safety goals and risk assessment. Quantitative safety goals, risk assessment in non-nuclear technologies, and operational experience and data base are also covered. Included is an address by Dr. Chauncey Starr

Risk assessment in maritime transportation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soares, C. Guedes; Teixeira, A.P.

2001-01-01

A review is presented of different approaches to quantify the risk in maritime transportation. The discussion of several accident statistics provides a global assessment of the risk levels and its differentiation in ship types and main types of ship losses. Early studies in the probability of ship loss by foundering and capsizing are reviewed. The approaches used to assess the risk of structural design are addressed. Finally a brief account is given of recent development of using formal safety assessments to support decision making on legislation applicable internationally to maritime transportation

Framework for ecological risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodier, D.; Norton, S.

1992-02-01

Increased interest in ecological issues such as global climate change, habitat loss, acid deposition, reduced biological diversity, and the ecological impacts of pesticides and toxic chemicals prompts this U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report, A Framework for Ecological Risk Assessment ('Framework Report'). The report describes basic elements, or a framework, for evaluating scientific information on the adverse effects of physical and chemical stressors on the environment. The framework offers starting principles and a simple structure as guidance for current ecological risk assessments and as a foundation for future EPA proposals for risk assessment guidelines

[Design and validation of a questionnaire to assess the level of general knowledge on eating disorders in students of Health Sciences].

Science.gov (United States)

Sánchez Socarrás, Violeida; Aguilar Martínez, Alicia; Vaqué Crusellas, Cristina; Milá Villarroel, Raimon; González Rivas, Fabián

2016-01-01

To design and validate a questionnaire to assess the level of knowledge regarding eating disorders in college students. Observational, prospective, and longitudinal study, with the design of the questionnaire based on a conceptual review and validation by a cognitive pre-test and pilot test-retest, with analysis of the psychometric properties in each application. University Foundation of Bages, Barcelona. Marco community care. A total of 140 students from Health Sciences; 53 women and 87 men with a mean age of 21.87 years; 28 participated in the pre-test and 112 in the test-retests, 110 students completed the study. Validity and stability study using Cronbach α and Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient statistics; relationship skills with sex and type of study, non-parametric statistical Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests; for demographic variables, absolute or percentage frequencies, as well as mean, central tendency and standard deviation as measures of dispersion were calculated. The statistical significance level was 95% confidence. The questionnaire was obtained that had 10 questions divided into four dimensions (classification, demographics characteristics of patients, risk factors and clinical manifestations of eating disorders). The scale showed good internal consistency in its final version (Cronbach α=0.724) and adequate stability (Pearson correlation 0.749). The designed tool can be accurately used to assess Health Sciences students' knowledge of eating disorders. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Denial of risk: The effects of positive impression management on risk assessments for psychopathic and nonpsychopathic offenders.

Science.gov (United States)

Gillard, Nathan D; Rogers, Richard

2015-01-01

Risk assessments for offenders often combine past records with current clinical findings from observations, interviews, and test data. Conclusions based on these risk assessments are highly consequential, sometimes resulting in increased criminal sentences or prolonged hospitalization. Therefore, many offenders are motivated to intentionally minimize risk factors and their negative consequences. Positive impression management (PIM) is especially likely to occur in offenders with high psychopathic traits because goal-directed deception is reflected in several of psychopathy's core traits of the disorder, such as manipulativeness, glibness, and superficial charm. However, this connection appears to be based on the conceptual understanding of psychopathy, and has rarely been examined empirically for either frequency of or success at deception. The current study examined the ability of a jail sample to intentionally minimize risk factors and related criminal attributes using a repeated measures, simulation design. In general, offenders were able to effectively use PIM to lower scores on the HCR-20 and the Self-Appraisal Questionnaire (SAQ), while the Psychological Inventory of Criminal Thinking Styles (PICTS), as a measure of cognitive styles, was more resistant to such minimization. Psychopathic traits, especially high Factor 1 scores (i.e., affective/interpersonal), were associated with greater PIM. Important differences in the willingness and ability to use deception were found based on the (a) mode of administration (i.e., interview vs. self-report) and (b) level of psychopathy as measured by the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R). The important implications of this research are discussed for risk assessment procedures regarding likely areas of deception and its detection. The current research also informs the growing literature on the connection between psychopathic traits and deception. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Risk assessment instruments in clinical practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Côté, Gilles; Crocker, Anne G; Nicholls, Tonia L; Seto, Michael C

2012-04-01

To determine whether the items in one of the most widely validated instruments of violence risk assessment, the Historical-Clinical-Risk Management-20 (HCR-20), are used in review board hearings to assess the risk of violence by people found Not Criminally Responsible on account of Mental Disorder (NCRMD). This study was conducted from October 2004 to August 2006 in Quebec's sole forensic psychiatric hospital and 2 large civil psychiatric hospitals designated for the care of people declared NCRMD in the Montreal metropolitan area. The risk assessments presented by clinicians at annual review board hearings and the boards' rationale for the release or detention of people found NCRMD were contrasted with the risk assessments conducted by the research team using the HCR-20. The final sample was comprised of 96 men. Very few of the risk factors identified by prior research (HCR-20 items) were mentioned in the hearing process, whether in clinical reports, discussions during the hearing, or in the disposition justification. The findings confirm that there remains a significant gap between research evidence and risk assessment practice.

Cultural Orientations Framework (COF) Assessment Questionnaire in Cross-Cultural Coaching: A Cross-Validation with Wave Focus Styles

OpenAIRE

Rojon, C; McDowall, A

2010-01-01

This paper outlines a cross-validation of the Cultural Orientations Framework assessment questionnaire\\ud (COF, Rosinski, 2007; a new tool designed for cross-cultural coaching) with the Saville Consulting\\ud Wave Focus Styles questionnaire (Saville Consulting, 2006; an existing validated measure of\\ud occupational personality), using data from UK and German participants (N = 222). The convergent and\\ud divergent validity of the questionnaire was adequate. Contrary to previous findings which u...

Physical Activity Characteristics across GOLD Quadrants Depend on the Questionnaire Used.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heleen Demeyer

Full Text Available The GOLD multidimensional classification of COPD severity combines the exacerbation risk with the symptom experience, for which 3 different questionnaires are permitted. This study investigated differences in physical activity (PA in the different GOLD quadrants and patient's distribution in relation to the questionnaire used.136 COPD patients (58±21% FEV1 predicted, 34F/102M completed COPD assessment test (CAT, clinical COPD questionnaire (CCQ and modified Medical Research Council (mMRC questionnaire. Exacerbation history, spirometry and 6MWD were collected. PA was objectively measured for 2 periods of 1 week, 6 months apart, in 5 European centres; to minimise seasonal and clinical variation the average of these two periods was used for analysis.GOLD quadrants C+D had reduced PA compared with A+B (3824 [2976] vs. 5508 [4671] steps.d-1, p<0.0001. The choice of questionnaire yielded different patient distributions (agreement mMRC-CAT κ = 0.57; CCQ-mMRC κ = 0.71; CCQ-CAT κ = 0.72 with different clinical characteristics. PA was notably lower in patients with an mMRC score ≥2 (3430 [2537] vs. 5443 [3776] steps.d-1, p <0.001 in both the low and high risk quadrants.Using different questionnaires changes the patient distribution and results in different clinical characteristics. Therefore, standardization of the questionnaire used for classification is critical to allow comparison of different studies using this as an entry criterion.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01388218.

Validation of the MEDFICTS dietary questionnaire: A clinical tool to assess adherence to American Heart Association dietary fat intake guidelines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bindeman Jody

2003-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Dietary assessment tools are often too long, difficult to quantify, expensive to process, and largely used for research purposes. A rapid and accurate assessment of dietary fat intake is critically important in clinical decision-making regarding dietary advice for coronary risk reduction. We assessed the validity of the MEDFICTS (MF questionnaire, a brief instrument developed to assess fat intake according to the American Heart Association (AHA dietary "steps". Methods We surveyed 164 active-duty US Army personnel without known coronary artery disease at their intake interview for a primary prevention cardiac intervention trial using the Block food frequency (FFQ and MF questionnaires. Both surveys were completed on the same intake visit and independently scored. Correlations between each tools' assessment of fat intake, the agreement in AHA step categorization of dietary quality with each tool, and the test characteristics of the MF using the FFQ as the gold standard were assessed. Results Subjects consumed a mean of 36.0 ± 13.0% of their total calories as fat, which included saturated fat consumption of 13.0 ± 0.4%. The majority of subjects (125/164; 76.2% had a high fat (worse than AHA Step 1 diet. There were significant correlations between the MF and the FFQ for the intake of total fat (r = 0.52, P 70 [high fat diet] was negligible (kappa statistic = 0.036. The MF was accurate at the extremes of fat intake, but could not reliably identify the 3 AHA dietary classifications. Alternative MF cutpoints of 50 (high fat diet were highly sensitive (96%, but had low specificity (46% for a high fat diet. ROC curve analysis identified that a MF score cutoff of 38 provided optimal sensitivity 75% and specificity 72%, and had modest agreement (kappa = 0.39, P Conclusions The MEDFICTS questionnaire is most suitable as a tool to identify high fat diets, rather than discriminate AHA Step 1 and Step 2 diets. Currently recommended

Reevaluating Interrater Reliability in Offender Risk Assessment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Knaap, L.M.; Leenarts, L.E.W.; Born, M.P.; Oosterveld, P.

2012-01-01

Offender risk and needs assessment, one of the pillars of the risk-need-responsivity model of offender rehabilitation, usually depends on raters assessing offender risk and needs. The few available studies of interrater reliability in offender risk assessment are, however, limited in the

Quantitative risk assessment system (QRAS)

Science.gov (United States)

Weinstock, Robert M (Inventor); Smidts, Carol S (Inventor); Mosleh, Ali (Inventor); Chang, Yung-Hsien (Inventor); Swaminathan, Sankaran (Inventor); Groen, Francisco J (Inventor); Tan, Zhibin (Inventor)

2001-01-01

A quantitative risk assessment system (QRAS) builds a risk model of a system for which risk of failure is being assessed, then analyzes the risk of the system corresponding to the risk model. The QRAS performs sensitivity analysis of the risk model by altering fundamental components and quantifications built into the risk model, then re-analyzes the risk of the system using the modifications. More particularly, the risk model is built by building a hierarchy, creating a mission timeline, quantifying failure modes, and building/editing event sequence diagrams. Multiplicities, dependencies, and redundancies of the system are included in the risk model. For analysis runs, a fixed baseline is first constructed and stored. This baseline contains the lowest level scenarios, preserved in event tree structure. The analysis runs, at any level of the hierarchy and below, access this baseline for risk quantitative computation as well as ranking of particular risks. A standalone Tool Box capability exists, allowing the user to store application programs within QRAS.

Ecosystem services as assessment endpoints for ecological risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Munns, Wayne R; Rea, Anne W; Suter, Glenn W; Martin, Lawrence; Blake-Hedges, Lynne; Crk, Tanja; Davis, Christine; Ferreira, Gina; Jordan, Steve; Mahoney, Michele; Barron, Mace G

2016-07-01

Ecosystem services are defined as the outputs of ecological processes that contribute to human welfare or have the potential to do so in the future. Those outputs include food and drinking water, clean air and water, and pollinated crops. The need to protect the services provided by natural systems has been recognized previously, but ecosystem services have not been formally incorporated into ecological risk assessment practice in a general way in the United States. Endpoints used conventionally in ecological risk assessment, derived directly from the state of the ecosystem (e.g., biophysical structure and processes), and endpoints based on ecosystem services serve different purposes. Conventional endpoints are ecologically important and susceptible entities and attributes that are protected under US laws and regulations. Ecosystem service endpoints are a conceptual and analytical step beyond conventional endpoints and are intended to complement conventional endpoints by linking and extending endpoints to goods and services with more obvious benefit to humans. Conventional endpoints can be related to ecosystem services even when the latter are not considered explicitly during problem formulation. To advance the use of ecosystem service endpoints in ecological risk assessment, the US Environmental Protection Agency's Risk Assessment Forum has added generic endpoints based on ecosystem services (ES-GEAE) to the original 2003 set of generic ecological assessment endpoints (GEAEs). Like conventional GEAEs, ES-GEAEs are defined by an entity and an attribute. Also like conventional GEAEs, ES-GEAEs are broadly described and will need to be made specific when applied to individual assessments. Adoption of ecosystem services as a type of assessment endpoint is intended to improve the value of risk assessment to environmental decision making, linking ecological risk to human well-being, and providing an improved means of communicating those risks. Integr Environ Assess Manag

PROPOSING A LANGUAGE EXPERIENCE AND SELF-ASSESSMENT OF PROFICIENCY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR BILINGUAL BRAZILIAN SIGN LANGUAGE/PORTUGUESE HEARING TEACHERS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ingrid FINGER

2014-12-01

Full Text Available This article presents a language experience and self-assessment of proficiency questionnaire for hearing teachers who use Brazilian Sign Language and Portuguese in their teaching practice. By focusing on hearing teachers who work in Deaf education contexts, this questionnaire is presented as a tool that may complement the assessment of linguistic skills of hearing teachers. This proposal takes into account important factors in bilingualism studies such as the importance of knowing the participant’s context with respect to family, professional and social background (KAUFMANN, 2010. This work uses as model the following questionnaires: LEAP-Q (MARIAN; BLUMENFELD; KAUSHANSKAYA, 2007, SLSCO – Sign Language Skills Classroom Observation (REEVES et al., 2000 and the Language Attitude Questionnaire (KAUFMANN, 2010, taking into consideration the different kinds of exposure to Brazilian Sign Language. The questionnaire is designed for bilingual bimodal hearing teachers who work in bilingual schools for the Deaf or who work in the specialized educational department who assistdeaf students.

Assessment of Questionnaire Measuring Quality of Life in Menopausal Women: A Systematic Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ensiyeh Jenabi

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Menopause is a natural part of the aging process in women and is defined as occurring 12 months after the last menstrual period marking the end of menstrual cycles. Menopause has a negative impact on the quality of life (QoL. Various generic and specific questionnaires have been used for assessing different dimensions of QoL in menopausal women. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify those general and specific instruments, and to determine the factors that affect QoL in menopausal women. We assessed eight specific and three general tools and found that some general and specific instruments, such as the 36-item short form (SF-36 and the Menopause Specific Quality of Life Questionnaire (MENQOL, were mostly used for assessment. The specific tools available were diverse. Employment status and a high educational level in menopausal women were considered to be protective factors in improving QoL. Identification of predicting factors of QoL, such as body mass index, race, age, duration of menopause, and social and occupational variables can help to improve the QoL of these women allowing planning of psychological consultations and practical interventions.

Reliability and validity of child/adolescent food frequency questionnaires that assess foods and/or food groups.

Science.gov (United States)

Kolodziejczyk, Julia K; Merchant, Gina; Norman, Gregory J

2012-07-01

Summarize the validity and reliability of child/adolescent food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) that assess food and/or food groups. We performed a systematic review of child/adolescent (6-18 years) FFQ studies published between January 2001 and December 2010 using MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, and Google Scholar. Main inclusion criteria were peer reviewed, written in English, and reported reliability or validity of questionnaires that assessed intake of food/food groups. Studies were excluded that focused on diseased people or used a combined dietary assessment method. Two authors independently selected the articles and extracted questionnaire characteristics such as number of items, portion size information, time span, category intake frequencies, and method of administration. Validity and reliability coefficients were extracted and reported for food categories and averaged across food categories for each study. Twenty-one studies were selected from 873, 18 included validity data, and 14 included test-retest reliability data. Publications were from the United States, Europe, Africa, Brazil, and the south Pacific. Validity correlations ranged from 0.01 to 0.80, and reliability correlations ranged from 0.05 to 0.88. The highest average validity correlations were obtained when the questionnaire did not assess portion size, measured a shorter time span (ie, previous day/week), was of medium length (ie, ≈ 20-60 items), and was not administered to the child's parents. There are design and administration features of child/adolescent FFQs that should be considered to obtain reliable and valid estimates of dietary intake in this population.

Using toxicokinetic-toxicodynamic modeling as an acute risk assessment refinement approach in vertebrate ecological risk assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Ducrot, Virginie; Ashauer, Roman; Bednarska, Agnieszka J; Hinarejos, Silvia; Thorbek, Pernille; Weyman, Gabriel

2016-01-01

Recent guidance identified toxicokinetic-toxicodynamic (TK-TD) modeling as a relevant approach for risk assessment refinement. Yet, its added value compared to other refinement options is not detailed, and how to conduct the modeling appropriately is not explained. This case study addresses these issues through 2 examples of individual-level risk assessment for 2 hypothetical plant protection products: 1) evaluating the risk for small granivorous birds and small omnivorous mammals of a single application, as a seed treatment in winter cereals, and 2) evaluating the risk for fish after a pulsed treatment in the edge-of-field zone. Using acute test data, we conducted the first tier risk assessment as defined in the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidance. When first tier risk assessment highlighted a concern, refinement options were discussed. Cases where the use of models should be preferred over other existing refinement approaches were highlighted. We then practically conducted the risk assessment refinement by using 2 different models as examples. In example 1, a TK model accounting for toxicokinetics and relevant feeding patterns in the skylark and in the wood mouse was used to predict internal doses of the hypothetical active ingredient in individuals, based on relevant feeding patterns in an in-crop situation, and identify the residue levels leading to mortality. In example 2, a TK-TD model accounting for toxicokinetics, toxicodynamics, and relevant exposure patterns in the fathead minnow was used to predict the time-course of fish survival for relevant FOCUS SW exposure scenarios and identify which scenarios might lead to mortality. Models were calibrated using available standard data and implemented to simulate the time-course of internal dose of active ingredient or survival for different exposure scenarios. Simulation results were discussed and used to derive the risk assessment refinement endpoints used for decision. Finally, we compared the

Development of the young spine questionnaire

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lauridsen, Henrik Hein; Hestbæk, Lise

2013-01-01

.7% (cervical pain today) and 97.9% (thoracic pain today). To improve the understanding of the spinal boundaries we added bony landmarks to the spinal drawings after pilot test I. This resulted in an improved sense of spinal boundary location in pilot test II. Correlations between the rFPS and the interview...... pain score ranged between 0.67 (cervical spine) and 0.79 (lumbar spine). Conclusions The Young Spine Questionnaire contains questions that assess spinal pain and its consequences. The items have been tested for content understanding and agreement between questionnaire scores and interview findings......Background Back pain in children is common and early onset of back pain has been shown to increase the risk of back pain significantly in adulthood. Consequently, preventive efforts must be targeted the young population but research relating to spinal problems in this age group is scarce. Focus has...

Hanford Site baseline risk assessment methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-03-01

This methodology has been developed to prepare human health and environmental evaluations of risk as part of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act remedial investigations (RIs) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act facility investigations (FIs) performed at the Hanford Site pursuant to the Hanford Federal Facility Agreement and Consent Order referred to as the Tri-Party Agreement. Development of the methodology has been undertaken so that Hanford Site risk assessments are consistent with current regulations and guidance, while providing direction on flexible, ambiguous, or undefined aspects of the guidance. The methodology identifies Site-specific risk assessment considerations and integrates them with approaches for evaluating human and environmental risk that can be factored into the risk assessment program supporting the Hanford Site cleanup mission. Consequently, the methodology will enhance the preparation and review of individual risk assessments at the Hanford Site

A telephone questionnaire in order to assess functional outcome after post-traumatic limb salvage surgery: Development and preliminary validation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wulterkens, Leonie; Aurégan, Jean-Charles; Letellier, Thomas; Mebtouche, Nasser; Levante, Stéphane; Cottin, Philippe; Bégué, Thierry

2015-12-01

Post-traumatic limb salvage surgery is challenging and evaluation of the results remains arduous. No questionnaire specifically assessing functional outcome after post-traumatic limb salvage surgery of the lower extremity exists. Due to regionalization of specialized care, the patients' travel time to the hospital increases. To overcome a higher patients' travel burden, patients' follow up by telephone is an option. We aimed to develop a telephone questionnaire in order to assess functional outcome after post-traumatic limb salvage surgery of the lower extremity. From a review of scores of functional assessment of the lower limb surgery, we have developed a telephone questionnaire. A prospective study was performed to validate this telephone questionnaire. Twenty patients were included. The participants were called to complete the telephone questionnaire twice with an interval of a week. The Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) was completed during the second telephone call. The internal consistency was analyzed by the Cronbach's alpha (α). With the outcome scores of both completions, the test-retest reliability was analyzed by the interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) 2,k with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI). The outcome scores of the second telephone questionnaire and the WOMAC questionnaire were used for the construct validity analysis by the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (r(s)) with a 95% CI. The internal consistency analysis revealed a α=0.62 which improved to α=0.92 after removing one question from the telephone questionnaire. The final version of the telephone questionnaire comprises 32 questions, divided in 3 subscales: function, daily life and psychology. The total score varies between 0 and 86 points. The test-retest reliability was ICC 2,k=0.93 (95% CI: 0.82-0.97) and the construct validity was r(s)=0.92 (95% CI: 0.81-0.97). We present a specific telephone questionnaire in order to assess functional

Assessment of risk for falls in elderly

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stanetić Kosana

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Elderly persons have higher risk for falls, compared to younger population. Although no single risk factor causes all falls, a great deal of risk factors to which an individual is exposed, i.e. osteoporosis, lack of physical activity, impaired vision, usage of drugs, living settings etc, can be treated. Objective: To investigate the risk for falls in elderly patients treated in Family medicine teaching center (ECPM, Primary Health Care Center Banja Luka. Method: This prospective study was conducted in June 2012. The study included 150 patients aged 65 years and older. Patients were chosen randomly. In study were included patients who have visited their family doctors on every of Mondays in June 2012. The Tinetti Gait and Balance Instrument was used to asses the risk for falls. Patients were examined to asses gait and balance according to Tinetti questionnaire, and supplementary questionnaire was created to record data about age, sex, chronic diseases and drugs that patients take. Results: The study included 91 (60.7% female and 59 (39.3% male patients. The average age of patients was 74.71 years. 77 (51.3% were aged 65 to 75 years and 73 (48.7% were more than 75 years old. Results of Tinetti Gait and Balance Instrument showed that the risk for falls was high in 55 (36.7%, moderate in 31 (20.7% and low in 64 (42.7% patients. Conclusion: Approximately, one third of investigated patients had high risk for falls, what indicates that family doctors should be more involved in fall prevention in elderly and in constant educating of older adults and their families.

[Validity and reproducibility of a food frequency questionnaire to assess lipid and phytochemical intake].

Science.gov (United States)

Perovic, Nilda R; Defago, Maria D; Aguinaldo, Anabel; Joekes, Silvia; Actis, Adriana B

2015-01-01

epidemiological studies have been related food intake with the incidence of non-transmissible chronic diseases. the purpose of the present study was to analyze the validity and reproducibility of a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) aimed at assessing lipid and phytochemical intake. FFQ was administered to 45 people of both sexes, aged between 20 and 72 years old and resident in Cordoba, Argentina. The FFQ included 257 questions referring to foods, their consumption frequency and portion size. Regarding consumption of fruit and vegetables, the season was also taken into account. The questionnaire was applied at two different periods (FFQ1 and FFQ2) with a break of six months in between. As a reference, the 24-hour dietary recall was used (24HDR) three times. The mid intake of FFQ1-FFQ2, the 24HDR-FFQ2 median intake, median difference, Mean Absolute Deviation from the median differences (MAD), Wilcoxon signed rank sum test and Spearman rank order correlation coefficients were calculated to analyze the accuracy of the FFQ data. the correlation coefficients for FFQ1-FFQ2 varied from 0.52 for 20:5 n3 eicosapentanoic (EPA) fatty acid to 0.89 for 4:0 butyric fatty acid (p<0.05). For 24HDR-FFQ2, the values ranged from 0.19 for lycopene to 0.93 for EPA fatty acid (p<0.05). the analysis carried out showed an acceptable validity and reproducibility of the FFQ, thus enabling it to be used in research relating the intake of lipids and phytochemicals and the risk of non-transmissible diseases.

RELEVANCE OF PROCESS RISK ASSESSMENT IN AIRLINES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)