The emergence of data-intensive science as the fourth science paradigm has posed a data deluge challenge for enacting scientific work-flows. The scientific community is facing an imminent flood of data from the next generation of experiments and simulations, besides dealing with the heterogeneity and complexity of data, applications and execution environments. New scientific work-flows involve execution on distributed and heterogeneous computing resources across organisational and geographical boundaries, processing gigabytes of live data streams and petabytes of archived and simulation data, in various formats and from multiple sources. Managing the enactment of such work-flows not only requires larger storage space and faster machines, but the capability to support scalability and diversity of the users, applications, data, computing resources and the enactment technologies. We argue that the enactment process can be made efficient using optimisation techniques in an appropriate architecture. This architecture should support the creation of diversified applications and their enactment on diversified execution environments, with a standard interface, i.e. a work-flow language. The work-flow language should be both human readable and suitable for communication between the enactment environments. The data-streaming model central to this architecture provides a scalable approach to large-scale data exploitation. Data-flow between computational elements in the scientific work-flow is implemented as streams. To cope with the exploratory nature of scientific work-flows, the architecture should support fast work-flow prototyping, and the re-use of work-flows and work-flow components. Above all, the enactment process should be easily repeated and automated. In this thesis, we present a candidate data-intensive architecture that includes an intermediate work-flow language, named DISPEL. We create a new fine-grained measurement framework to capture performance-related data during enactments, and design a performance database to organise them systematically. We propose a new enactment strategy to demonstrate that optimisation of data-streaming work-flows can be automated by exploiting performance data gathered during previous enactments.

The psychometric properties of this Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS:NICU) were assessed, before using the scale to describe stress experienced by parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The extent to which parental stress from the parent-infant relationship in the unit was linked to parenting they received as a child, and adjustment to their couple relationship, was also examined. The sample consisted of 182 mothers and 183 fathers, who were in a cohabitating relationship, of infants from the NICU at Christchurch Women's Hospital. The self-report questionnaires included the PSS:NICU, Parental Bonding Instrument, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, and were administered to parents within 2-3 weeks of their infant's birth. This study extends the finding of satisfactory psychometric properties of the PSS:NICU (Franck, Cox, Allen & Winter, 2005; Miles, Funk & Carlson, 1993; Reid & Bramwell, 2003) to this New Zealand sample. Mothers experienced significantly higher stress from the unit compared to fathers (p < .01). A previous finding, for mothers, of the parent-infant relationship being the most stressful aspect of the unit (Franck et al., 2005; Reid & Bramwell, 2003; Shields-Poe & Pinelli, 1997) extends to the New Zealand sample. The most stressful aspect of the unit for fathers was sights and sounds. Lack of evidence was found for associations between parental stress from the parent-infant relationship in the unit and parenting received as a child, or adjustment to their couple relationship. A weak but significant negative correlation was, however, found between stress from the mother-infant relationship and maternal care received in childhood. It is unnecessary to provide all parents with intervention further to what is already being practiced in the unit, as overall low levels of stress were reported. Some parents, however, did find the unit more stressful, and they may benefit from increased intervention.

The interest in effective human resource management has increased dramatically as mean age of the workforce has been growing in the developed western countries. A part of this workforce is constituted for by knowledge intensive workers, in which the motivation dif-fers from other groups of workers. Moreover, existing literature on lifespan development research on motivation fails to differentiate sufficiently between types of worker groups; in a like manner literature on motivation of knowledge intensive workers has neglected to in-clude age differences. This results in a shortage of research of how motivation of knowledge intensive workers differs in regards to their age. The purpose of this thesis is to describe how the intrinsic motivational factors autonomy, variety in tasks, learning new things, receiving positive feedback, and the feeling of accom-plishment and value creation influence knowledge intensive workers differently in regards to their age. The thesis’ research method was qualitative and the primary empirical data was collected through a case study in which interviews with IT consultants of two different age groups were conducted. The findings revealed that differences between the age groups are present. The most ap-parent differences lie in preference for autonomy, learning new things and receiving posi-tive feedback. Variety in tasks and the feeling of accomplishment and creating value also displayed age related discrepancies between the groups.

No description available.

The Winnipeg Children’s Hospital encounters delays within the surgical patient flow and cancellations due to a lack of available resources in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Applying the concepts of lean thinking and the practices of simulation and statistical analysis, these problems were better understood and solutions were developed. Improvement projects were performed centralized on lean concepts and utilizing the tools of value-stream mapping and 7 forms of waste. Building and running a simulation model provided a capacity versus demand measure for the overall performance of the PICU. Simulation allowed for the study of hypothetical situations such as varying department resources and fluctuating patient levels. Statistical calculations were used to create a prediction tool to determine the probability of a PICU bed being available. This would enable a reduction in last-minute cancellations of surgical cases requiring a PICU bed.

No description available.

No description available.

Title page, table of contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University of Adelaide Library. / This study aimed to identify tools, systems and processes that inform nurse skill-assessment and nurse-to-patient allocation decisions in Adult Level III Australian Intensive Care Units (ICU), and to develop a Nurse Skill Matching Decision-Support Framework that could be incorporated within an ICU risk management system. / http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1274724 / Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Population Health and Clinical Practice, 2007

The psychometric properties of this Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (PSS:NICU) were assessed, before using the scale to describe stress experienced by parents in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The extent to which parental stress from the parent-infant relationship in the unit was linked to parenting they received as a child, and adjustment to their couple relationship, was also examined. The sample consisted of 182 mothers and 183 fathers, who were in a cohabitating relationship, of infants from the NICU at Christchurch Women's Hospital. The self-report questionnaires included the PSS:NICU, Parental Bonding Instrument, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, and were administered to parents within 2-3 weeks of their infant's birth. This study extends the finding of satisfactory psychometric properties of the PSS:NICU (Franck, Cox, Allen & Winter, 2005; Miles, Funk & Carlson, 1993; Reid & Bramwell, 2003) to this New Zealand sample. Mothers experienced significantly higher stress from the unit compared to fathers (p < .01). A previous finding, for mothers, of the parent-infant relationship being the most stressful aspect of the unit (Franck et al., 2005; Reid & Bramwell, 2003; Shields-Poe & Pinelli, 1997) extends to the New Zealand sample. The most stressful aspect of the unit for fathers was sights and sounds. Lack of evidence was found for associations between parental stress from the parent-infant relationship in the unit and parenting received as a child, or adjustment to their couple relationship. A weak but significant negative correlation was, however, found between stress from the mother-infant relationship and maternal care received in childhood. It is unnecessary to provide all parents with intervention further to what is already being practiced in the unit, as overall low levels of stress were reported. Some parents, however, did find the unit more stressful, and they may benefit from increased intervention.

Thesis (M.S.N.)--University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2007. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Mar. 3, 2008). Directed by Susan Letvak; submitted to the School of Nursing. Includes bibliographical references (p. 53-58).