No abstract available / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Business Management / unrestricted

No description available.

This thesis describes a performance measurement tool that allows a user to measure network performance using a handheld device. The measurement tool consists of a client program that runs on a Microsoft Pocket PC device and a server program that runs on a regular Microsoft Windows computer. Both programs are Windows applications implemented in C/C++ using the Microsoft Embedded Visual Tool and Microsoft Visual Studio. The use of a Pocket PC device provides mobility to users, which can save time and energy when performing experiments. The thesis describes the design of the performance measurement application, implementation issues, and tests conducted using the tool. / Master of Science

Global health is an emerging concern in a rapidly changing world in which health issues transcend international borders. This study developed and validated a new self-report questionnaire to assess self-perceived global health competencies among international medical students and how they are influenced by international clinical experiences. A tool consisted of two scales and four subscales with moderate internal consistency. Comparisons between participants who completed retrospective pretest (after the intervention retrospectively) and those who completed traditional pretest (before the intervention) revealed that those participants who completed the questionnaires retrospectively provided lower pretest scores, suggesting that response-shift bias had occurred. Significant increases in scores after international clinical experience were reported for the majority of global health competency measures in IFMSA group. Linear regression identified participant’s age, gross national income (GNI) of country of medical studies, GNI of the country visited, duration of international clinical experience and years of medical school completed, as significant predictors of global health scores. This study contributes valuable information about the newly developed global health competencies measurement tool.

Global health is an emerging concern in a rapidly changing world in which health issues transcend international borders. This study developed and validated a new self-report questionnaire to assess self-perceived global health competencies among international medical students and how they are influenced by international clinical experiences. A tool consisted of two scales and four subscales with moderate internal consistency. Comparisons between participants who completed retrospective pretest (after the intervention retrospectively) and those who completed traditional pretest (before the intervention) revealed that those participants who completed the questionnaires retrospectively provided lower pretest scores, suggesting that response-shift bias had occurred. Significant increases in scores after international clinical experience were reported for the majority of global health competency measures in IFMSA group. Linear regression identified participant’s age, gross national income (GNI) of country of medical studies, GNI of the country visited, duration of international clinical experience and years of medical school completed, as significant predictors of global health scores. This study contributes valuable information about the newly developed global health competencies measurement tool.

Global health is an emerging concern in a rapidly changing world in which health issues transcend international borders. This study developed and validated a new self-report questionnaire to assess self-perceived global health competencies among international medical students and how they are influenced by international clinical experiences. A tool consisted of two scales and four subscales with moderate internal consistency. Comparisons between participants who completed retrospective pretest (after the intervention retrospectively) and those who completed traditional pretest (before the intervention) revealed that those participants who completed the questionnaires retrospectively provided lower pretest scores, suggesting that response-shift bias had occurred. Significant increases in scores after international clinical experience were reported for the majority of global health competency measures in IFMSA group. Linear regression identified participant’s age, gross national income (GNI) of country of medical studies, GNI of the country visited, duration of international clinical experience and years of medical school completed, as significant predictors of global health scores. This study contributes valuable information about the newly developed global health competencies measurement tool.

No description available.

The work with sustainability has mostly focused on the environmental and economic aspects, while the social dimension has been neglected. There is no definitive definition of what social sustainability work entails and there is a lack of financial measurement tools to assess social investments. The purpose of the essay is to report on the measurement challenge when investing in social sustainability. To achieve this, real estate actors have been interviewed, the people have shared the organization's social sustainability work and its view on measurement challenges. In total, seven operators have been interviewed who have a very varied property portfolio and ownership structure. A recurring measurement tool that the majority of the interviewed real estate operators use is survey measuring tool. These measurement tools can only measure the customer's individual experience and cannot directly demonstrate financial profitability of the investment. The essay has found a variation in terms of existing measurement tools but has also managed to identify challenges in these, such as the lack of comparability, subjective assessments, and misleading values. Financial profitability can arise in many ways from an investment in social sustainability. A common way is through cost savings or an increased willingness to pay in the form of increased market value and attractiveness. The essay has shown that a well-thought-out management can in many ways create large cost savings but also function as preventive measures that contribute to social sustainability, which in turn can generate indirect financial profitability. / Hållbarhet har under de senaste decennierna fått en allt större inverkan på fastighetsbranschen. Arbetet med hållbarhet har till största del fokuserat på de miljömässiga och ekonomiska aspekterna medan den sociala dimensionen har försummats. Det finns ingen entydig definition av vad det sociala hållbarhetsarbetet innebär och det råder brist på ekonomiska mätverktyg för att bedöma sociala investeringar. Uppsatsens syfte är att redogöra för mätningsutmaning vid investering i social hållbarhet.För att uppnå detta har fastighetsaktörer intervjuats, personerna har delat med sig av organisationens sociala hållbarhetsarbete och dess syn på mätningsutmaningar. Sammanlagt har sju stycken aktörer intervjuats som har en väldigt varierande fastighetsportfölj och ägarstruktur. Ett återkommande mätverktyg som majoriteten av de intervjuade fastighetaktörerna nyttjar är enkätbaserat mätverktyg. Dessa mätverktyg kan endast mäta kundens individuella upplevelse och kan inte direkt påvisa ekonomisk lönsamhet i investeringen. Uppsatsen har funnit en variation vad gäller befintliga mätverktyg men har även lyckats identifiera utmaningar i dessa, såsom bristen på jämförelsebarhet, subjektiva bedömningar och missvisande värden. Ekonomisk lönsamhet kan uppkomma på många sätt ur en investering i social hållbarhet. Ett vanligt sätt är genom kostnadsbesparingar eller en ökad betalningsvilja i form av ökat marknadsvärde och attraktivitet. Uppsatsen har påvisat att en genomtänkt förvaltning kan i många led skapa stora kostnadsbesparingar men även fungera som förebyggande insatser som bidrar till den sociala hållbarheten, som i sin tur kan generera indirekt ekonomisk lönsamhet.

A dor pode causar prejuízos ao neonato a curto, médio e longo prazo. Nesse contexto, é preciso que os profissionais das unidades de terapia intensiva neonatal implementem ações para minimizar a dor e o sofrimento do neonato, dentre elas, o reconhecimento da dor por sua avaliação. Os objetivos do estudo foram conhecer a experiência da enfermeira na utilização de instrumentos de avaliação da dor do neonato e identificar as facilidades e dificuldades encontradas pela enfermeira no uso desses instrumentos. É uma pesquisa qualitativa, seus dados foram coletados por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas, no total nove enfermeiras participantes. A orientação metodológica apoiou-se no Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo na organização dos dados, cujo agrupamento das Ideias Centrais similares originou os Discursos do Sujeito Coletivo que foram reunidos em dois temas: Dificuldades encontradas pela enfermeira na avaliação da dor em neonatos e Facilidades encontradas pela enfermeira na avaliação da dor em neonatos, que emergiram apoiados nas respostas da enfermeira que experienciou o uso do instrumento na avaliação de dor em neonatos. A impossibilidade do uso do instrumento é fato predominante na prática da enfermeira quando os neonatos estão sedados ou apresentam disfunções neurológicas. O acúmulo de atividades dispensadas à enfermeira somado ao déficit de recursos humanos, também, são razões verificadas como dificultadoras no uso do instrumento de avaliação. Nos relatos da enfermeira, observou-se que a falta de domínio nas situações em que o médico não prescreve o analgésico, apenas medidas não farmacológicas são insuficientes para o alívio da dor do neonato. O fato foi marcado por um sentimento de falta de autonomia da enfermeira bastante evidente. Notou-se, também, uma serie de dificuldades no uso do instrumento e na avaliação da dor do neonato, embora o instrumento facilite no sentido de alertar a equipe de saúde para a dor e possa gerar mudança no cuidado com o emprego de medidas não farmacológicas que busquem o conforto, diminuição da dor e do estresse do neonato / Pain is known to cause damage to neonates at short, middle and long term. In this context, it is mandatory that the health care professional that work at Neonatal Intensive Care Units implement suitable actions to minimize the neonates suffering. Among these actions, recognizing pain by means of its measurement is crucial. Therefore, the present study aimed to know the nurses experience while using tools to measure the neonates pain and to identity the nurses facilities and difficulties in using tools to measure the neonates pain. This is a qualitative research project whose data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews with nine nurses. The Discourse of the Collective Subject was used as the methodological framework to collect data. Grouping similar Main Ideas produced the themes of the Discourse of the Collective Subject. Thus, results are presented in two themes: Nurses difficulties to measure pain in neonates and nurses facilities to measure pain in neonates composed by the discourse of the collective subject which emerged from the answers provided by the nurses who used the tool to measure pain in neonates. The nurses reports show that the tool facilitates the care of neonates in pain. However, the impossibility to use the tool in certain situations, such as when the neonate is sedated or when he/she has neurological disorders seems to be regular occurrence in the nurses practice. Frequently, the nurses expectations to relieve the neonates pain are frustrated, because nurse applies the measurement tool, she detects the neonates pain but she depends on the doctors prescription for analgesic pharmacological drug. Its a result the nurse feels she doesnt have autonomy this producing frustration. Although the tool easier to alert the health care team for pain and can produce changes in care with the use of non pharmacological measures that seek comfort, reducing pain and stress of the newborn

A dor pode causar prejuízos ao neonato a curto, médio e longo prazo. Nesse contexto, é preciso que os profissionais das unidades de terapia intensiva neonatal implementem ações para minimizar a dor e o sofrimento do neonato, dentre elas, o reconhecimento da dor por sua avaliação. Os objetivos do estudo foram conhecer a experiência da enfermeira na utilização de instrumentos de avaliação da dor do neonato e identificar as facilidades e dificuldades encontradas pela enfermeira no uso desses instrumentos. É uma pesquisa qualitativa, seus dados foram coletados por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas, no total nove enfermeiras participantes. A orientação metodológica apoiou-se no Discurso do Sujeito Coletivo na organização dos dados, cujo agrupamento das Ideias Centrais similares originou os Discursos do Sujeito Coletivo que foram reunidos em dois temas: Dificuldades encontradas pela enfermeira na avaliação da dor em neonatos e Facilidades encontradas pela enfermeira na avaliação da dor em neonatos, que emergiram apoiados nas respostas da enfermeira que experienciou o uso do instrumento na avaliação de dor em neonatos. A impossibilidade do uso do instrumento é fato predominante na prática da enfermeira quando os neonatos estão sedados ou apresentam disfunções neurológicas. O acúmulo de atividades dispensadas à enfermeira somado ao déficit de recursos humanos, também, são razões verificadas como dificultadoras no uso do instrumento de avaliação. Nos relatos da enfermeira, observou-se que a falta de domínio nas situações em que o médico não prescreve o analgésico, apenas medidas não farmacológicas são insuficientes para o alívio da dor do neonato. O fato foi marcado por um sentimento de falta de autonomia da enfermeira bastante evidente. Notou-se, também, uma serie de dificuldades no uso do instrumento e na avaliação da dor do neonato, embora o instrumento facilite no sentido de alertar a equipe de saúde para a dor e possa gerar mudança no cuidado com o emprego de medidas não farmacológicas que busquem o conforto, diminuição da dor e do estresse do neonato / Pain is known to cause damage to neonates at short, middle and long term. In this context, it is mandatory that the health care professional that work at Neonatal Intensive Care Units implement suitable actions to minimize the neonates suffering. Among these actions, recognizing pain by means of its measurement is crucial. Therefore, the present study aimed to know the nurses experience while using tools to measure the neonates pain and to identity the nurses facilities and difficulties in using tools to measure the neonates pain. This is a qualitative research project whose data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews with nine nurses. The Discourse of the Collective Subject was used as the methodological framework to collect data. Grouping similar Main Ideas produced the themes of the Discourse of the Collective Subject. Thus, results are presented in two themes: Nurses difficulties to measure pain in neonates and nurses facilities to measure pain in neonates composed by the discourse of the collective subject which emerged from the answers provided by the nurses who used the tool to measure pain in neonates. The nurses reports show that the tool facilitates the care of neonates in pain. However, the impossibility to use the tool in certain situations, such as when the neonate is sedated or when he/she has neurological disorders seems to be regular occurrence in the nurses practice. Frequently, the nurses expectations to relieve the neonates pain are frustrated, because nurse applies the measurement tool, she detects the neonates pain but she depends on the doctors prescription for analgesic pharmacological drug. Its a result the nurse feels she doesnt have autonomy this producing frustration. Although the tool easier to alert the health care team for pain and can produce changes in care with the use of non pharmacological measures that seek comfort, reducing pain and stress of the newborn