När pandemin var ett faktum i mars 2020 var det osäkert i vilken utsträckning det skulle påverka Sverige. Men som resten av världen drabbades Sverige hårt av pandemin. Både Folkhälsomyndigheten och mäklarbranschen var tidigt ute med information om åtgärder en kunde genomföra för att begränsa smittan. Syftet med uppsatsen var att svara på hur mäklare i Stockholm har påverkats av pandemin, och vilka åtgärder som implementerats i de olika delarna av förmedlingsprocessen för att minska smittspridningen. Ämnet är mycket relevant i den nuvarande situationen och syftar till att ge en översikt över de råd och rekommendationer som kom från myndighet och branschen, samt hur väl fastighetsmäklarna följde dem i praktiken. Dessutom ville jag undersöka vad mäklarna tycker om framtiden när det gäller dessa åtgärder som har genomförts och hur yrket kan påverkas på lång sikt. Med utgångspunkt i de olika delarna av förmedlingsprocessen och den regelbundna kontaktenmellan mäklare och kunder, har mäklare varit tvungna att vidta åtgärder i alla delar av förmedlingsprocessen för att minska smitta av covid-19. Från den första kontakten till visning,kontraktsskrivning och tillträde har mäklare vidtagit åtgärder som att erbjuda handdesinfektion,undvika fysisk kontakt, hålla avstånd, använda munskydd och erbjuda alternativ till visning. Användning av privata visningar har ökat, liksom ökning i digitala visningar som VR- visning och online visning. Även om hela världen vill att allt ska återvända till det som det var före pandemin, är tron och hoppet att vissa åtgärder har kommit för att stanna, och det med fördel. Den digitala utvecklingen samt underlättande arbete för mäklare när spekulanter bokar in sig till visning, tror mäklare vill fortsätta. Med fördel också åtgärder om hygien. Även om mäklarna tar sitt ansvar vill de också att betona att alla har ett ansvar för att smittan inte sprids. / When the pandemic was a fact in March 2020, it was uncertain to what extent it would affect Sweden. But like the rest of the world, Sweden was hit hard by the pandemic. Both the Swedish Public Health Agency and the brokerage industry gave information early on with measures that could be implemented to limit the infection. The purpose of the thesis was to answer how brokers in Stockholm have been affected by the pandemic, and what measures have been implemented in the various parts of the brokerage process to reduce the spread of infection. The topic is very relevant in the current situation andI wanted to provide an overview of what information came from the government and the industry, as well as how well the real estate agents followed them in practice. In addition, I wanted to investigate what brokers think about the future in terms of these measures that have been implemented and how the profession can be affected in the long term. Based on the different parts of the brokerage process and the steady contact between brokers and clients, brokers have had to take measures in all parts of the brokerage process to reduce covid-19 infection. From the first contact to viewing, contract writing and getting the keys,brokers have taken measures such as offering hand disinfection, avoiding physical contact, keeping their distance, using mouth guards and offering alternatives for viewing. The use of private views has increased, as has the increase in digital views such as VR viewing and onlineviewing. Although the whole world wants everything to return to what it was before the pandemic, the belief and hope that certain measures have come to a halt, and that with advantage. The digital development as well as more automatic work for brokers when speculators book in for viewing online, brokers want to continue. Advantageously also measures on hygiene, the brokers want to continue. Even if the brokers take their responsibility, they also want to emphasize that everyone has a responsibility to ensure that the infection does not spread.

When using evidence from non-randomized studies (NRS) to answer questions about the effects of environmental exposures on health, it is important to assess risk of bias (RoB) of individual studies as part of determining the certainty in the body of evidence. The recently released RoB in Non-randomized Studies of Interventions (ROBINS-I) instrument has undergone careful development and piloting on NRS of health interventions. A key feature of ROBINS-I is evaluating the RoB of studies against an ideal target trial, therefore establishing a structured comparison of RoB against a reference standard. While several instruments exist to evaluate the RoB of NRS of exposure, none of them use such a structured comparison of RoB. Using the fundamental design of ROBINS-I, we explored development of a version of the instrument to evaluate RoB in studies of environmental exposure. We identified important modifications necessitating a distinct instrument: The RoB instrument for NRS of exposures. This work highlights the importance of standardized methods for environmental health decision making, proposes a modified instrument to evaluate the RoB of NRS of exposures, provides guidance for the implementation of the instrument and integration into structured evidence-synthesis frameworks (such as GRADE [Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation]), and presents evidence on the reliability and validity of the instrument. The RoB instrument for NRS of exposures delivers a standardized instrument that systematic review authors and guideline developers can use to evaluate RoB in NRS of exposures. The nature of these methodological changes allow better integration of RoB assessment in the environmental health field with GRADE. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / When making a decision about interventions to reduce or remove an environmental exposure, evidence is needed to weigh the desirable and undesirable consequences of the decision. No research study is perfect. Most of the studies documenting environmental exposures cannot control for the fact that people who might be highly exposed may have different characteristics compared to those who have low levels of exposure other than just the exposure itself. For example, people exposed to more environmental air pollution living in inner cities may also be more likely to smoke or have occupational exposures that could predispose them to lung cancer than those exposed to lower levels of air pollution. Understanding limitations in studies that address those questions informs our certainty that the data represents the truth. The greater the confidence we have in the data, the more likely we are to be certain that removing or reducing exposure will lead to a desirable outcome. A tool can be used to walk people through the evaluation of limitations within each study. However, it is important that the tool evaluates the correct limitations within the study. It is also important that people using the tool can apply it reliably. Without a reliable or valid tool to evaluate the limitations of the studies, it can be difficult to inform decisions on whether or not to implement specific policies. In our study, we tested the ability of a new and well-developed tool (ROBINS for interventions) to identify the limitations in studies linking environmental exposures to health outcomes. Based on the findings from our evaluation, we modified our protocol to see if we could improve our ability to evaluate these studies of environmental exposures. We asked people with an understanding of scientific methods to independently evaluate 35 studies with our modified tool (ROBINS for exposures). We compared those responses to see whether all the reviewers came up with similar decisions and if their decision was similar or different than the conclusion they made using more commonly used tools. Based on our results, we determined that our modified tool does provide a consistent evaluation of study limitations and accurately measures the limitations present in studies of exposure. This tool can be used to inform decisions about removing or reducing one’s exposure to environmental hazards.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the selected school districts in the Commonwealth of Virginia were following the Virginia school mandates and fulfilling the requirements identified by NASPE and AHA, as critical elements required in a quality physical education program and the NASPE national recommendations. The population for this study was 116 physical education teachers in the Virginia counties of Carroll, Floyd, Giles, Pulaski, Roanoke, Wythe, and the City of Radford. The evaluation criteria used for the study was influenced by the 2006 Shape of the Nation Report. The instrument used was a web-based survey that consisted of 21 questions in the areas of demographics, time requirements, class size, standards and curriculum, student assessment and program accountability, and school accountability. The following conclusions were drawn: (1) The school districts followed the Virginia school mandates and overall are implementing the national recommendations; (2) The school districts varied in following the Virginia school mandates and implementing the national recommendations; (3) Even though the schools varied at different grade levels in the same school district, the degree of disparity was slight; (4) The originally introduced Senate Bill 1130 needs to be signed into law as opposed to the less stringent Senate Bill 1130 that was passed; (5) The Virginia school mandates need to include time requirements for daily physical education for all students K-12; (6) The school districts need to focus on promoting quality physical education programs at all grades and in all areas that were evaluated in the study. The following recommendations were suggested: (1) Further studies on schools that offer quality physical education programs and the affects these "quality" physical education programs have on reducing the percentage of overweight or obese children; (2) Studies of other school districts in the Commonwealth of Virginia and how they compare in following state mandates, and implementing the national recommendations; (3) School districts performing their own audits of their present physical education programs to determine the quality of their programs. / Ph. D.

Yes / Background: Kidney function reduces with age, increasing the risk of harm from increased blood levels of many medicines. Although estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) is reported for prescribing decisions in those aged ≥65 years, creatinine clearance (Cockcroft–Gault) gives a more accurate estimate of kidney function. Aim: To explore the extent of prescribing outside recommendations for people aged ≥65 years with reduced kidney function in primary care and to assess the impact of using eGFR instead of creatinine clearance to calculate kidney function. Design and setting: A cross-sectional survey of anonymised prescribing data in people aged ≥65 years from all 80 general practices (70 900 patients) in a north of England former primary care trust. Method: The prevalence of prescribing outside recommendations was analysed for eight exemplar drugs. Data were collected for age, sex, actual weight, serum creatinine, and eGFR. Kidney function as creatinine clearance (Cockcroft–Gault) was calculated using actual body weight and estimated ideal body weight. Results: Kidney function was too low for recommended prescribing in 4–40% of people aged ≥65 years, and in 24–80% of people aged ≥85 years despite more than 90% of patients having recent recorded kidney function results. Using eGFR overestimated kidney function for 3–28% of those aged ≥65 years, and for 13–58% of those aged ≥85 years. Increased age predicted higher odds of having a kidney function estimate too low for recommended prescribing of the study drugs. Conclusion: Prescribing recommendations when kidney function is reduced are not applied for many people aged ≥65 years in primary care. Using eGFR considerably overestimates kidney function for prescribing and, therefore, creatinine clearance (Cockcroft–Gault) should be assessed when prescribing for these people. Interventions are needed to aid prescribers when kidney function is reduced.

AI personalisation has emerged as a powerful tool to boost consumer satisfaction in digital experiences. Satisfaction is a multifaceted concept, encompassing the fulfilment of needs and wants and resulting in a positive emotional and cognitive state. This study describes how AI personalisation can strengthen overall satisfaction by aligning AI recommendations along with both observable needs and deeper emotional and social desires. To investigate this, a qualitative research approach was employed, utilising semi-structured interviews to gather empirical data. This method ensured comprehensive coverage of the topic while allowing for individual variation. Participants were selected through purposive sampling, focusing on those with prior experience of AI. Interviews continued until theoretical saturation was reached. Data analysis was inspired by grounded theory, using a systematic coding process. The findings reveal that consumer satisfaction with AI recommendations is influenced by added value, contextual relevance, and timing. Additionally, factors such as speed, efficiency, quality responses, accessibility, adaptive empathy, communication style and humour play crucial roles. These components demonstrate how AI personalisation can strengthen consumer satisfaction by tailoring recommendations and interactions to individual tastes and preferences.

Yes / Health and social care services are under strain providing care in the community particularly at hospital discharge. Patient and carer experiences can inform and shape services. Objective To develop service user-led recommendations enabling smooth transition for people living with memory loss from acute hospital to community. Design Lead and co-researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 pairs of carers and patients with memory loss at discharge, 6 and 12 weeks post-discharge and one semi-structured interview with health and social care professionals and Admiral Nurses. Framework analysis was guided by co-researchers. Two focus groups of study participants, facilitated by co-researchers, met to shape and finalize recommendations. Setting and participants Recruitment took place in acute hospitals in two National Health Service (NHS) Trusts in England. Patients were aged 65 and over, with memory loss, an in-patient for at least 1 week returning to the community, who had a carer consenting to be in the study. Results Poor delivery of services caused considerable stress to some study families living with memory loss. Three key recommendations included a need for a written, mutually agreed discharge plan, a named coordinator of services, and improved domiciliary care services. Discussion and conclusions Vulnerable patients with memory loss find coming out of hospital after an extended period a stressful experience. The SHARED study contributes to understanding the hospital discharge process through the eyes of the patient and carer living with memory loss and has the potential to contribute to more efficient use of resources and to improving health outcomes in communities. / National Institute for Health Research. Grant Number: PB-PG-1112-29064

過去國內文獻大致指出投資人難以依靠券商的投資建議獲利，此與大部份國外文獻的發現相異。本文參考Barber et al. (2001)，建構一個適用於台灣股票市場的研究方法，再以四因子模型做實證。本文以2007年3月至2015年12月，共48987筆卷商個股報告為研究樣本，來探討券商報告的投資建議能否獲利。本文研究結果發現，台灣的券商報告擁有額外的資訊價值，此與Barber et al. (2001)及其他國外文獻大致相同。 本研究依券商的推薦強度建構四個投資組合。發現推薦程度高的投資組合平均月報酬為正，且高於大盤；而推薦程度低的投資組合平均月報酬顯著低於大盤，且擁有顯著的負超額報酬。本文進一步建構買進賣出策略，即買進推薦股票高的投資組合並賣出推薦程度低的投資組合，發現此策略報酬顯著高於零及大盤，且存在顯著的正超額報酬。另外在台股多頭期間，本研究的實證結果更加顯著，推薦程度高的投資組合平均月報酬增加至顯著高於大盤，且超額報酬顯著為正；推薦程度低的投資組合之大盤調整報酬及負超額報酬的顯著程度提高；而買進賣出策略獲得超額報酬的顯著程度也大幅提高。 / Past Taiwanese literatures generally indicated that it is difficult to obtain profit from Taiwanese stock recommendations of brokerage, which is different from most of foreign literatures. Referring to Barber et al. (2001), we improve and build a research methodology applied to Taiwanese stock market, conducting empirical analysis with four-factor model. From March 2007 to December 2015, we use total 48987 brokers’ stock recommendations as sample to investigate whether inventors could earn profit from the broker recommendations. Our empirical results show that Taiwanese broker reports hold additional information, which is consistent with Barber et al. (2001) and most of foreign literatures. According to the strength of recommendation, we construct four portfolios and find that the return of the most favorable portfolio is higher than market, while the return of the least favorable portfolio is significantly smaller than market and holds significantly negative access return. We further construct a long-short strategy, which buys the most favorable portfolios and shorts the least favorable portfolios. The return of this strategy is significantly higher than market, and excess return is significantly positive. During Taiwanese bull market, the significance of our empirical result improves. The significance level of market-adjusted return and access return for both the most favorable and least favorable portfolio is higher. In addition, the significance level of excess return for long-short strategy also greatly improves.

The full text will be available at the end of the embargo period: 31st December 2026.

The study was a descriptive quantitative survey which endeavoured to identify challenges experienced by IMCI trained registered nurses in implementing the guidelines and procedures of the strategy when tending children under 5 years in Gaborone health district. The study also solicited for recommendations on how to address the identified challenges. The research population comprised of all the IMCI-1 trained registered nurses and systematic sampling was employed to randomly select study participants. Data were collected using a questionnaire and was analysed using Excel Advanced software package. Study findings identified challenges related to political support, cost of IMCI training, training coverage, health systems and features of the IMCI strategy. Recommendations for improving use of the strategy included garnering for more political support, adopting short duration training courses, scaling up both pre-service and in-service training as well as addressing the challenges related to health systems and the unique features of the strategy / Health Studies / M.A. (Public Health)

Background: Diabetes type 2 is a chronic disease with rising prevalence worldwide. The implementation of lifestyle changes is an important part of diabetes treatment. Nurses in primary care have a central role to support and guide diabetics for starting and retaining lifestyle changes to prevent later diabetes complications. Aim: The purpose of this study was to describe the primer care nurse’s experiences regarding the type 2 diabetes patients’ compliance to their advice regarding lifestyle changes. The aim was also to describe the primary care nurse’s experiences and reflections of contributing and hindering factors of compliance. Method: A descriptive design with a qualitative approach is used in this study. Eight diabetes nurses from seven health centers were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews conducted and data analyzed by qualitative content analysis method. Results: The emerged theme from the result was that compliance varies and is affected by different influential factors. Factors such as patients’ motivation and understanding of illness, other simultaneous physical and mental disorders, language difficulties and cultural differences have either contributing or hindering effects on compliance. Primary care nurses reported that they used different strategies, such as justifying the small changes at the beginning, establishing of mutual communication and confirmative relationship and give personalized lifestyle advice to improve patient compliance. According to interviews the items that could be improved are arrangements for group therapy sessions, active involvement of the family members in diabetes care, and assigning more resources to approach the desired goals. Conclusion: Compliance to lifestyle advice is a variable affected positively or negatively by various factors such as the individual characteristic, motivation, self-awareness, language difficulties and cultural differences. Diabetes nurses use strategies which improve compliance of diabetics to their lifestyle advice. Group Training, the involvement of the family and access to more resources are areas that need to be developed. / Bakgrund Diabetes typ 2 är en kronisk sjukdom med stigande prevalens i hela världen. Genomförandet av livsstilsförändringar utgör en viktig del av diabetes behandling. Distriktssköterskor i primärvården har en central roll att stödja och vägleda diabetiker genom rådgivning för att kunna etablera livsstilsförändringar samt att upprätthålla för att förhindra diabetes sena komplikationer. Syftet var att beskriva distriktssköterskans erfarenheter och reflektioner av typ 2 diabetespatienters följsamhet till distriktssköterskansråd avseende livsstilsförändringar. Syftet var även att beskriva distriktssköterskans erfarenheter och reflektioner av följsamhetens bidragande och hindrande aspekter. Metod En beskrivande design med kvalitativ ansats användes. Åtta distriktssköterskor från sju hälsocentraler intervjuades. Semistrukturerade intervjuer utfördes som sedan analyserades med kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultatet visade att följsamheten varierar och påverkas av olika inflytelserika faktorer. Faktorer såsom patientens motivation och sjukdomsinsikt, andra samtidiga kroppsliga och psykiska sjukdomar, språksvårigheter och kulturella skillnader har antingen bidragande eller hindrande effekter på följsamheten. Distriktssköterskor uppgav att de använde olika strategier som till exempel att motivera till små förändringar i början, etablering av ömsesidig kommunikation och bekräftande relation och att ge individanpassade livsstilsråd, för att förbättra patientens följsamhet. Att genomföra grupputbildningar, involvering av diabetikers familj och tillgång till mer resurser ansågs som områdena som kunde förbättras för att öka följsamheten hos diabetiker. Slutsats: Följsamheten till livsstilsråd var varierande vilket påverkades positivt eller negativt av olika faktorer såsom individens egenskaper, motivation, sjukdomsinsikt, språksvårigheter och kulturella skillnader. Diabetessköterskor använde strategier som gynnade diabetikers följsamhet till livsstilsråd. Grupputbildningar, involvering av familjen och tillgång till mer resurser är områdena som behöver utvecklas.