Early identification and targeted intervention during the preschool years can help to prevent later reading difficulties among school-age children. The GRTR! was developed by the Applied Research Partners and the National Center for Learning Disabilities. It is a quick, reliable measure developed for paraprofessionals to assess deficits in pre-literacy skills among preschoolers. Most of the research on this measure has been limited to preschoolers primarily from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds and authored by the developers of the GRTR! The current study examined the Get Ready to Read! (GRTR!) screening tool as an assessment of emergent literacy skills of 206 preschoolers attending either a private preschool (M range = 38.04 - 71.04) or a public preschool (M range = 41.04 - 72) and relating their performance to standardized measures of language skills (vocabulary and print knowledge) and phonological awareness. The effects of SES, age, school, and gender on the performance of GRTR! were assessed. Students attending the private preschool outperformed those from the public preschool and those from the standardization GRTR! sample, although the public preschool group scored within the average range. Age was a significant predictor of GRTR! scores for participants ages three through five years. The GRTR! correlated positively and significantly with more comprehensive measures of language abilities. Results demonstrate that the GRTR! is a valid and reliable tool for screening children's emergent literacy skills in preschool centers. Results underscore the notion that SES does not necessarily dictate a child's competence in a specific area. Further research linking the GRTR! to strategic and cost-effective interventions, which include parental involvement and teacher support is needed. Studies including a wider range of SES, racial/ethnic, and linguistic groups would also improve upon the measure's validity.

Bakgrund: Sepsis är ett livshotande hälsotillstånd som kännetecknas av organdysfunktion med olika allvarlighetsgrader. En förutsättning för överlevnad är tidig upptäckt. Sjuksköterskan har en betydande ansvarsroll och bör tillämpa relevanta screeningverktyg i sin bedömning. Vanliga screeningverktyg som används för att upptäcka sepsis är NEWS, MEWS, qSOFA och SIRS.   Syfte: Syftet med litteraturstudien var att kartlägga screeningverktyg med förmågan att tidigt upptäcka sepsis och förutse sjukhusdödlighet av sepsis hos vuxna. Metod: En litteraturstudie baserad på nio kvantitativa vetenskapliga studier. Sökprocessen av artiklarna genomfördes i databaserna Pubmed och Cinahl. Valda studier har genomgått kvalitetsgranskning utifrån Olsson och Sörensens bedömningsmall för kvantitativa studier. Resultat: Litteraturstudiens resultat delades upp i två tabeller; screeningverktygens förmåga att upptäcka sepsis och screeningverktygens förmåga att förutse sjukhusdödlighet vid sepsis. NEWS ansågs vara screeningverktyget med sammantaget högst sensitivitet och specificitet samtidigt. SIRS visade generellt på hög sensitivitet, medan qSOFA gav höga värden för specificitet. Konklusion: Inget av det studerade screeningverktygen visade på optimal förmåga. Resultatet föreslår ytterligare forskning för att skapa ett optimalt screeningverktyg som enkelt kan tillämpas för olika vårdkontexter, åldersgrupper och allvarlighetsgrader av sepsis. / Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening health condition that is characterized by organ dysfunction with different severities. Early detection of sepsis is important for survival. Nurse holds a key position and should use relevant screening tools to identify sepsis. Common screening tools are NEWS, MEWS, qSOFA and SIRS. Aim: The aim of the literature study was to map screening tools with the ability to detect sepsis early and predict hospital mortality from sepsis in adults. Methods: A literature study based on nine quantitative scientific studies. The search process of the articles was carried out in the databases Pubmed and Cinahl. The studies were reviewed for quality based on Olsson and Sörensen’s review template for quantitative studies.  Results: The results of this literature study were divided into two templates; the screening tools’ ability to identify sepsis and the screening tools’ ability to predict in-hospital mortality. NEWS had the highest sensitivity and specificity at the same time. SIRS generally showed high sensitivity, while qSOFA performed high specificity.   Conclusion: None of the studied screening tools showed optimal ability. The results suggest further research to create an optimal screening tool that easily can be adapted in different care environments, age groups and stages of sepsis.

Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal substance in the United States and is most widely used among young people aged 12 to 21 years. Accurate screening and monitored issuance of medical cannabis recommendations have been shown to decrease abuse rates of the substance, create fewer deaths from opiates, reduce crime rates, reduce marijuana use in youths, decrease car crash deaths, and lessen prevalence of suicide in young men. The purpose of this project was to explore whether multiple screening methods for depression and anxiety in patients who seek medical cannabis referrals for anxiety and depression would improve screening and cannabis referral accuracy. A comprehensive review of the literature was conducted, and 2 screening tools were identified. The tools identified were the Zung self-rating anxiety scale and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5 scale. The medical director at the project site reviewed the tools and approved them. These tools were then included in an education program for 12 staff members and providers with a pretest given to the participants prior to the staff education program. A posttest was then administered to the same group after the staff education program was completed and the new screening measures implemented. Results showed that referrals for cannabis were at 85% before the 2-step screening process was implemented; referrals for cannabis decreased to 60% with implementation of the dual screening method, suggesting increased accuracy in screening for depression and anxiety for cannabis referrals. This project might promote positive social change by increasing accuracy for cannabis referrals and reducing the risk of cannabis abuse.

Bakgrund: Äldre är en växande befolkningsgrupp globalt och sjuksköterskors möte med äldre sker mer eller mindre överallt inom hälso- och sjukvården. Denna patientgrupp lider i många fall av multisjuklighet med fokus på fysiska symtom, därav kan det vara svårt för vårdpersonal att tolka symtom på depressivitet. Syfte: Att beskriva sjuksköterskors uppfattningar och erfarenheter av att identifiera depressiva symptom hos äldre personer. Metod: Allmän litteraturstudie med kvalitativ ansats baserat på åtta vetenskapliga artiklar vilka har analyserats med tematisk analys. Resultat: Två teman utvecklades med fyra underteman. ”En känsla av att vilja men inte kunna” – med underteman ”att sakna rätt förutsättningar” och ”att ha svårigheter att upptäcka symtom”; samt ”en vilja att förstå personen bakom patienten” – med underteman ”att skapa en trygg vårdrelation” och ”att skapa sig en helhetsbild”. Slutsats: Komplexiteten det innebär i vårdmötet för att identifiera depressiva symtom ställer krav på ett öppet förhållningssätt hos både den äldre och sjuksköterskan. Med kontinuitet, tid och lyhört lyssnande kan en trygg vårdrelation byggas, vilket är en förutsättning för att identifiera depressiva symtom. Att ta vara på tiden i alla omvårdnadssammanhang är en väg framåt. / Background: Older people are a growing population globally, which nurses encounter in almost all parts of the healthcare system. This patient group often suffers from multimorbidity with predominantly physical symptoms, which can make it more difficult for healthcare professionals to interpret symptoms of depression. Aim: To describe nurses’ perceptions and experiences of identifying depressive symptoms in older people. Method: A literature review with a qualitative approach based on eight scientific articles, which have been analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Two themes were developed with four subthemes. “A feeling of wanting to help but not being able to” – with subthemes “to lack the right conditions” and “to have difficulty detecting symptoms”; and “a desire to understand the person behind the patient” – with subthemes “to create a safe caring relationship” and “to create an overall picture”. Conclusion: The complexity involved in identifying depressive symptoms requires an open approach from both patient and nurse. With continuity, time and attentive listening, a safe caring relationship can be established, which is a prerequisite for identifying depressive symptoms. Making use of the time at hand in all nursing contexts is a way forward.

Les adolescents qui décrochent de l’école secondaire arrivent difficilement à s’intégrer dans une économie axée sur le savoir et éprouvent plusieurs problèmes d’ajustement à l’adolescence et à l’âge adulte. Pour prévenir le décrochage scolaire, une étape cruciale consiste à dépister efficacement les élèves les plus à risque. Deux formes de dépistage axées sur des données peuvent être utilisées en milieu scolaire: une forme utilisant des informations auto-rapportées par les élèves à partir de questionnaires, et une autre fondée sur des informations administratives consignées au dossier des élèves. Toutefois, à notre connaissance, l’efficacité de ces différentes modalités n’a jamais été comparée directement. De plus, il est possible que l’efficacité relative de ces outils de dépistage soit différente selon le sexe de l’élève. Cette étude vise à comparer différents outils de dépistage pour prédire le décrochage scolaire, en tenant compte de l’effet modérateur du sexe. Les outils utilisés seront a) un questionnaire auto-rapporté validé (Archambault et Janosz, 2009) et b) un outil conçu à l’aide de données administratives, créé par une commission scolaire du Québec. La comparaison de ces outils est effectuée en termes de qualités psychométriques et d’aspect pratique pour le milieu scolaire. Pour ce faire, un échantillon de 1557 élèves (50% de garçons), âgé entre 14 et 18 ans est utilisé. Les résultats indiquent que l’indice administratif possède une capacité discriminante adéquate, mais inférieure à celle de l’indice auto-rapportée, jugée excellente. L’effet modérateur du sexe n’a pas été confirmé. Les avantages et inconvénients respectifs de ces deux modes de dépistage sont discutés. / Adolescents who drop out of high school often struggle in a knowledge-based, technologically complex society and experience many adjustment problems in adolescence and adulthood. To prevent dropout, a crucial first step consists of correctly identifying students who are most at risk. Schools can rely on two types of screening tools to identify potential dropouts: based on self–reported questionnaire or based on administrative data. However, the predictive value of risk indices based on self-reported data has never been directly compared to that of indices calculated from administrative data. Moreover, the relative efficacy of different screening tools could be different according to the student gender. The purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy, for boys and girls, of two risk indices for high school dropout: a) a validated index based on a self-reported questionnaire (Archambault & Janosz, 2009) and b) an index based on administrative data and designed by a Quebec school board. The comparison of these two screening methods is made in term of psychometric properties and practicality for school practitioners. To do so, a sample of 1557 students (50% boys), between 14 and 18 years old is used. The results show that the administrative index has an adequate discriminant capacity, but that is lower than that of the self-reported index judged excellent. These results were not moderated by gender. The comparative advantages and disadvantages of both screening methods are discussed.

Atualmente aumenta o reconhecimento da atenção primária em gerenciar os problemas de saúde mental e o uso de instrumentos de rastreio possibilita mensurar características psicológicas, psíquicas e comportamentais que nem sempre são consideradas. Dessa forma, o uso de instrumentos de rastreio pode auxiliar na detecção precoce de indivíduos que necessitam de tratamento, acompanhamento ou intervenção e são raros os instrumentos que englobam o rastreio de múltiplos transtornos mentais. Assim, o presente estudo teve como objetivo geral construir e validar um instrumento breve de rastreio de múltiplos transtornos mentais, o qual será chamado de Mini Rastreio para Transtornos Mentais (MINI-RTM), que reúne questões relevantes de diversos instrumentos de rastreio específicos para transtornos mentais, já existentes e validados, mas que permita a detecção dos transtornos mais comuns em atenção primária, incluindo abuso de substâncias e transtornos psicóticos. O MINI-RTM abarcou questões relativas à ansiedade, depressão, abuso e/ou dependência de álcool e substâncias e transtornos psicóticos. É um instrumento composto por nove itens com escore podendo variar de zero a 23. 545 sujeitos foram entrevistados em seus domicílios, por estudantes de medicina, treinados no MINI-RTM e item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA. Os sujeitos que concordaram em participar da segunda fase do estudo, total de 230, receberam uma segunda visita de profissionais de saúde mental, com treinamento no MINI-RTM, no item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA e na entrevista MINI, para possível confirmação do diagnóstico. O MINIRTM foi sujeito à análise da fidedignidade teste-reste, por meio do Coeficiente de Correlação Intraclasse (ICC), apresentando valor de 0,78, considerado satisfatório, indicando ser um instrumento bastante confiável e com índices mais expressivos que o item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA. A análise da validade discriminativa, mostrou que o MINI-RTM apresentouse com valores de área sob a curva ROC, sensibilidade, especificidade, valor preditivo positivo e valor preditivo negativo satisfatórios. Os pontos de corte, quando comparado com a entrevista padrão-ouro MINI foram: >3 (instrumento mais sensível) e >4 (instrumento mais específico). Quando cotejado com o item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA, para ponto de melhor acurácia, o MINI-RTM apresentou-se com menor variação entre sensibilidade e especificidade, sendo considerado mais equilibrado na detecção de casos e não casos. Quanto à análise da validade concorrente, na comparação com item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA, o MINI-RTM apresentou valor moderado de correlação, o que era de se esperar devido ao item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA avaliar bem estar geral e não um conjunto de transtornos. Dessa forma, o MINI-RTM apresentou-se como um instrumento de rastreio potencialmente relevante para triagem de múltiplos transtornos mentais em cuidados primários de saúde, sendo satisfatoriamente fidedigno, válido e mais abrangente que outros instrumentos de rastreio. O MINI-RTM conseguiu reunir questão importantes para um instrumento de rastreio que é a alta capacidade de discriminação entre casos e não casos e a fácil aplicabilidade. Esse instrumento está disponível para profissionais de cuidados primários de saúde, preenchendo uma importante lacuna na literatura, principalmente nacional, que é a disposição de um instrumento que rastreie múltiplos transtornos mentais, não se limitando somente a avaliação de bem estar geral ou avaliação de transtornos mentais específicos / Current studies raise awareness of primary care on management of mental disorder issues and the use of screening tools allows the measurement of physical, psychological and behavioral features not always considered. Therefore, the use of screening tools may aid early detection of individuals who require treatment, assistance or intervention. In addition, screening tools that allow that allow the identification of multiple mental disorders are uncommon. Therefore, the current study aimed to build and validate a brief tool that tracks multiple mental disorders to be named Mini Screening for Mental Disorders (in Portuguese, MINI-RTM) that gathers relevant issues from various mental disorder screening tools already validated, with the addition of allowing the identification of commonplace disorders such as substance abuse and psychotic disorder. MINI-SMD comprehends questions related to anxiety, alcohol or substance abuse and/or addiction, as well as psychotic disorders. The instrument comprises nine items in which scores vary from zero to 23. 545 participants were interviewed at their homes by medicine students with training at MINI-RTM and Feelings from COOP/WONKA. The subjects who agreed to participate in the second phase of the study, total 230, received a second visit from mental health professionals with training in MINI-SMD, the item Feelings of COOP/WONCA and the MINI interview for possible confirmation of diagnosis. The MINI-SMD was subject to test-retest reliability analysis, through intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), with value 0.78, considered satisfactory, indicating to be a very reliable instrument with more expressive indexes than Feelings from COOP / WONCA. The analysis of discriminant validity showed that MINI-RTM presented satisfactory values under the ROC curve, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. Cut scores when compared with the gold standard MINI interview were: > 3 (more sensitive instrument) and> 4 (more specific instrument). When collated with Feelings for better accuracy scores, MINI-RTM presented less variation between sensitivity and specificity, being considered more balanced in detecting cases and non-cases. With respect to the analysis of concurrent validity, compared to Feelings, MINI-RTM presented moderate correlation value, which has been expected since Feelings assesses well-being and not a set of disorders. Thus, MINI-RTM was presented as a potentially important screening tool for tracking multiple mental disorders in primary health care, being satisfactorily reliable, valid and more comprehensive than other screening tools. MINI-RTM managed to gather important features for a screening instrument such as high capacity of discrimination between cases and noncases and easy applicability. This tool is available for primary health care professionals, filling an important gap in the literature - mainly Brazilian - which is the provision of a tool that tracks multiple mental disorders, not only limited to the assessment of well-being or the general assessment of specific mental disorders

Atualmente aumenta o reconhecimento da atenção primária em gerenciar os problemas de saúde mental e o uso de instrumentos de rastreio possibilita mensurar características psicológicas, psíquicas e comportamentais que nem sempre são consideradas. Dessa forma, o uso de instrumentos de rastreio pode auxiliar na detecção precoce de indivíduos que necessitam de tratamento, acompanhamento ou intervenção e são raros os instrumentos que englobam o rastreio de múltiplos transtornos mentais. Assim, o presente estudo teve como objetivo geral construir e validar um instrumento breve de rastreio de múltiplos transtornos mentais, o qual será chamado de Mini Rastreio para Transtornos Mentais (MINI-RTM), que reúne questões relevantes de diversos instrumentos de rastreio específicos para transtornos mentais, já existentes e validados, mas que permita a detecção dos transtornos mais comuns em atenção primária, incluindo abuso de substâncias e transtornos psicóticos. O MINI-RTM abarcou questões relativas à ansiedade, depressão, abuso e/ou dependência de álcool e substâncias e transtornos psicóticos. É um instrumento composto por nove itens com escore podendo variar de zero a 23. 545 sujeitos foram entrevistados em seus domicílios, por estudantes de medicina, treinados no MINI-RTM e item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA. Os sujeitos que concordaram em participar da segunda fase do estudo, total de 230, receberam uma segunda visita de profissionais de saúde mental, com treinamento no MINI-RTM, no item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA e na entrevista MINI, para possível confirmação do diagnóstico. O MINIRTM foi sujeito à análise da fidedignidade teste-reste, por meio do Coeficiente de Correlação Intraclasse (ICC), apresentando valor de 0,78, considerado satisfatório, indicando ser um instrumento bastante confiável e com índices mais expressivos que o item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA. A análise da validade discriminativa, mostrou que o MINI-RTM apresentouse com valores de área sob a curva ROC, sensibilidade, especificidade, valor preditivo positivo e valor preditivo negativo satisfatórios. Os pontos de corte, quando comparado com a entrevista padrão-ouro MINI foram: >3 (instrumento mais sensível) e >4 (instrumento mais específico). Quando cotejado com o item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA, para ponto de melhor acurácia, o MINI-RTM apresentou-se com menor variação entre sensibilidade e especificidade, sendo considerado mais equilibrado na detecção de casos e não casos. Quanto à análise da validade concorrente, na comparação com item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA, o MINI-RTM apresentou valor moderado de correlação, o que era de se esperar devido ao item Sentimentos do COOP/WONCA avaliar bem estar geral e não um conjunto de transtornos. Dessa forma, o MINI-RTM apresentou-se como um instrumento de rastreio potencialmente relevante para triagem de múltiplos transtornos mentais em cuidados primários de saúde, sendo satisfatoriamente fidedigno, válido e mais abrangente que outros instrumentos de rastreio. O MINI-RTM conseguiu reunir questão importantes para um instrumento de rastreio que é a alta capacidade de discriminação entre casos e não casos e a fácil aplicabilidade. Esse instrumento está disponível para profissionais de cuidados primários de saúde, preenchendo uma importante lacuna na literatura, principalmente nacional, que é a disposição de um instrumento que rastreie múltiplos transtornos mentais, não se limitando somente a avaliação de bem estar geral ou avaliação de transtornos mentais específicos / Current studies raise awareness of primary care on management of mental disorder issues and the use of screening tools allows the measurement of physical, psychological and behavioral features not always considered. Therefore, the use of screening tools may aid early detection of individuals who require treatment, assistance or intervention. In addition, screening tools that allow that allow the identification of multiple mental disorders are uncommon. Therefore, the current study aimed to build and validate a brief tool that tracks multiple mental disorders to be named Mini Screening for Mental Disorders (in Portuguese, MINI-RTM) that gathers relevant issues from various mental disorder screening tools already validated, with the addition of allowing the identification of commonplace disorders such as substance abuse and psychotic disorder. MINI-SMD comprehends questions related to anxiety, alcohol or substance abuse and/or addiction, as well as psychotic disorders. The instrument comprises nine items in which scores vary from zero to 23. 545 participants were interviewed at their homes by medicine students with training at MINI-RTM and Feelings from COOP/WONKA. The subjects who agreed to participate in the second phase of the study, total 230, received a second visit from mental health professionals with training in MINI-SMD, the item Feelings of COOP/WONCA and the MINI interview for possible confirmation of diagnosis. The MINI-SMD was subject to test-retest reliability analysis, through intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), with value 0.78, considered satisfactory, indicating to be a very reliable instrument with more expressive indexes than Feelings from COOP / WONCA. The analysis of discriminant validity showed that MINI-RTM presented satisfactory values under the ROC curve, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value. Cut scores when compared with the gold standard MINI interview were: > 3 (more sensitive instrument) and> 4 (more specific instrument). When collated with Feelings for better accuracy scores, MINI-RTM presented less variation between sensitivity and specificity, being considered more balanced in detecting cases and non-cases. With respect to the analysis of concurrent validity, compared to Feelings, MINI-RTM presented moderate correlation value, which has been expected since Feelings assesses well-being and not a set of disorders. Thus, MINI-RTM was presented as a potentially important screening tool for tracking multiple mental disorders in primary health care, being satisfactorily reliable, valid and more comprehensive than other screening tools. MINI-RTM managed to gather important features for a screening instrument such as high capacity of discrimination between cases and noncases and easy applicability. This tool is available for primary health care professionals, filling an important gap in the literature - mainly Brazilian - which is the provision of a tool that tracks multiple mental disorders, not only limited to the assessment of well-being or the general assessment of specific mental disorders

A significant amount of Viscous Oil (e.g., heavy oil, extra heavy oil, and bitumen) is trapped in Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoirs also known as NFCRs. The word VO endowment in NFCRs is estimated at ~ 2 Trillion barrels mostly reported in Canada, the USA, Russia, and the Middle East. To date, contributions to the world daily oil production from this immense energy resource remains negligible mainly due to the lack of appropriate production technologies. Implementation of a VO production technology such as steam injection is expensive (high capital investment), time-consuming, and people-intensive. Hence, before selecting a production technology for detailed economic analysis, use of cursory or broad screening tools or guides is a convenient means of gaining a quick overview of the technical feasibility of the various possible production technologies applied to a particular reservoir. Technical screening tools are only available for the purpose of evaluation of the reservoir performance parameters in oil sands for various thermal VO exploitation technologies such as Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD), Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS), Horizontal well Cyclic steam Stimulation (HCS), and so on. Nevertheless, such tools are not applicable for VO NFCRs assessment without considerable modifications due to the different nature of these two reservoir types (e.g., presence and effects of fracture network on reservoir behavior, wettability, lithology, fabric, pore structure, and so on) and also different mechanisms of energy and mass transport. Considering the lack of robust and rapid technical reservoir screening tools for the purpose of quick assessment and performance prediction for VO NFCRs under thermal stimulation (e.g., steamflooding), developing such fast and precise tools seems inevitable and desirable. In this dissertation, an attempt was made to develop new screening tools for the purpose of reservoir performance prediction in VO NFCRs using all the field and laboratory available data on a particular thermal technology (vertical well steamflooding). Considering the complex and heterogeneous nature of the NFCRs, there is great uncertainty associated with the geological nature of the NFCRs such as fracture and porosity distribution in the reservoir which will affect any modeling tasks aiming at modeling of processes involved in thermal VO production from these types of technically difficult and economically unattractive reservoirs. Therefore, several modeling and analyses technqiues were used in order to understand the main parameters controlling the steamflooding process in NFCRs and also cope with the uncertainties associated with the nature of geologic, reservoir and fluid properties data. Thermal geomechanics effects are well-known in VO production from oil sands using thermal technologies such as SAGD and cyclic steam processes. Hence, possible impacts of thermal processes on VO NFCRs performance was studied despite the lack of adequate field data. This dissertation makes the following contributions to the literature and the oil industry: Two new statistical correlations were developed, introduced, and examined which can be utilized for the purpose of estimation of Cumulative Steam to Oil Ratio (CSOR) and Recovery Factor (RF) as measures of process performance and technical viability during vertical well steamflooding in VO Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoirs (NFCRs). The proposed correlations include vital parameters such as in situ fluid and reservoir properties. The data used are taken from experimental studies and also field trials of vertical well steamflooding pilots in viscous oil NFCRs reported in the literature. The error percentage for the proposed correlations is < 10% for the worst case and contains fewer empirical constants compared with existing correlations for oil sands. The interactions between the parameters were also considered. The initial oil saturation and oil viscosity are the most important predictive factors. The proposed correlations successfully predicted steam/oil ratios and recovery factors in two heavy oil NFCRs. These correlations are reported for the first time in the literature for this type of VO reservoirs. A 3-D mathematical model was developed, presented, and examined in this research work, investigating various parameters and mechanisms affecting VO recovery from NFCRs using vertical well steamflooding. The governing equations are written for the matrix and fractured medium, separately. Uncertainties associated with the shape factor for the communication between the matrix and fracture is eliminated through setting a continuity boundary condition at the interface. Using this boundary condition, the solution method employed differs from the most of the modeling simulations reported in the literature. A Newton-Raphson approach was also used for solving mass and energy balance equations. RF and CSOR were obtained as a function of steam injection rate and temperature and characteristics of the fractured media such as matrix size and permeability. The numerical solution clearly shows that fractures play an important role in better conduction of heat into the matrix part. It was also concluded that the matrix block size and total permeability are the most important parameters affecting the dependent variables involved in steamflooding. A hybrid Artificial Neural Network model optimized by co-implementation of a Particle Swarm Optimization method (ANN-PSO) was developed, presented, and tested in this research work for the purpose of estimation of the CSOR and RF during vertical well steamflooding in VO NFCRs. The developed PSO-ANN model, conventional ANN models, and statistical correlations were examined using field data. Comparison of the predictions and field data implies superiority of the proposed PSO-ANN model with an absolute average error percentage < 6.5% , a determination coefficient (R2) > 0.98, and Mean Squared Error (MSE) < 0.06, a substantial improvement in comparison with conventional ANN model and empirical correlations for prediction of RF and CSOR. This indicates excellent potential for application of hybrid PSO-ANN models to screen VO NFCRs for steamflooding. This is the first time that the ANN technique has been applied for the purpose of performance prediction of steamflooding in VO NFCRs and also reported in the literature. The predictive PSO-ANN model and statistical correlations have strong potentials to be merged with heavy oil recovery modeling softwares available for thermal methods. This combination is expected to speed up their performance, reduce their uncertainty, and enhance their prediction and modeling capabilities. An integrated geological-geophysical-geomechanical approach was designed, presented, and applied in the case of a NFCR for the purpose of fracture and in situ stresses characterization in NFCRs. The proposed methodology can be applied for fracture and in situ stresses characterization which is beneficial to various aspects of asset development such as well placement, drilling, production, thermal reservoir modeling incorporating geomechanics effects, technology assessment and so on. A conceptual study was also conducted on geomechanics effects in VO NFCRs during steamflooding which is not yet well understood and still requires further field, laboratory, and theoretical studies. This can be considered as a small step forward in this area identifying positive potential of such knowledge to the design of large scale thermal operations in VO NFCRs.

A significant amount of Viscous Oil (e.g., heavy oil, extra heavy oil, and bitumen) is trapped in Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoirs also known as NFCRs. The word VO endowment in NFCRs is estimated at ~ 2 Trillion barrels mostly reported in Canada, the USA, Russia, and the Middle East. To date, contributions to the world daily oil production from this immense energy resource remains negligible mainly due to the lack of appropriate production technologies. Implementation of a VO production technology such as steam injection is expensive (high capital investment), time-consuming, and people-intensive. Hence, before selecting a production technology for detailed economic analysis, use of cursory or broad screening tools or guides is a convenient means of gaining a quick overview of the technical feasibility of the various possible production technologies applied to a particular reservoir. Technical screening tools are only available for the purpose of evaluation of the reservoir performance parameters in oil sands for various thermal VO exploitation technologies such as Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD), Cyclic Steam Stimulation (CSS), Horizontal well Cyclic steam Stimulation (HCS), and so on. Nevertheless, such tools are not applicable for VO NFCRs assessment without considerable modifications due to the different nature of these two reservoir types (e.g., presence and effects of fracture network on reservoir behavior, wettability, lithology, fabric, pore structure, and so on) and also different mechanisms of energy and mass transport. Considering the lack of robust and rapid technical reservoir screening tools for the purpose of quick assessment and performance prediction for VO NFCRs under thermal stimulation (e.g., steamflooding), developing such fast and precise tools seems inevitable and desirable. In this dissertation, an attempt was made to develop new screening tools for the purpose of reservoir performance prediction in VO NFCRs using all the field and laboratory available data on a particular thermal technology (vertical well steamflooding). Considering the complex and heterogeneous nature of the NFCRs, there is great uncertainty associated with the geological nature of the NFCRs such as fracture and porosity distribution in the reservoir which will affect any modeling tasks aiming at modeling of processes involved in thermal VO production from these types of technically difficult and economically unattractive reservoirs. Therefore, several modeling and analyses technqiues were used in order to understand the main parameters controlling the steamflooding process in NFCRs and also cope with the uncertainties associated with the nature of geologic, reservoir and fluid properties data. Thermal geomechanics effects are well-known in VO production from oil sands using thermal technologies such as SAGD and cyclic steam processes. Hence, possible impacts of thermal processes on VO NFCRs performance was studied despite the lack of adequate field data. This dissertation makes the following contributions to the literature and the oil industry: Two new statistical correlations were developed, introduced, and examined which can be utilized for the purpose of estimation of Cumulative Steam to Oil Ratio (CSOR) and Recovery Factor (RF) as measures of process performance and technical viability during vertical well steamflooding in VO Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoirs (NFCRs). The proposed correlations include vital parameters such as in situ fluid and reservoir properties. The data used are taken from experimental studies and also field trials of vertical well steamflooding pilots in viscous oil NFCRs reported in the literature. The error percentage for the proposed correlations is < 10% for the worst case and contains fewer empirical constants compared with existing correlations for oil sands. The interactions between the parameters were also considered. The initial oil saturation and oil viscosity are the most important predictive factors. The proposed correlations successfully predicted steam/oil ratios and recovery factors in two heavy oil NFCRs. These correlations are reported for the first time in the literature for this type of VO reservoirs. A 3-D mathematical model was developed, presented, and examined in this research work, investigating various parameters and mechanisms affecting VO recovery from NFCRs using vertical well steamflooding. The governing equations are written for the matrix and fractured medium, separately. Uncertainties associated with the shape factor for the communication between the matrix and fracture is eliminated through setting a continuity boundary condition at the interface. Using this boundary condition, the solution method employed differs from the most of the modeling simulations reported in the literature. A Newton-Raphson approach was also used for solving mass and energy balance equations. RF and CSOR were obtained as a function of steam injection rate and temperature and characteristics of the fractured media such as matrix size and permeability. The numerical solution clearly shows that fractures play an important role in better conduction of heat into the matrix part. It was also concluded that the matrix block size and total permeability are the most important parameters affecting the dependent variables involved in steamflooding. A hybrid Artificial Neural Network model optimized by co-implementation of a Particle Swarm Optimization method (ANN-PSO) was developed, presented, and tested in this research work for the purpose of estimation of the CSOR and RF during vertical well steamflooding in VO NFCRs. The developed PSO-ANN model, conventional ANN models, and statistical correlations were examined using field data. Comparison of the predictions and field data implies superiority of the proposed PSO-ANN model with an absolute average error percentage < 6.5% , a determination coefficient (R2) > 0.98, and Mean Squared Error (MSE) < 0.06, a substantial improvement in comparison with conventional ANN model and empirical correlations for prediction of RF and CSOR. This indicates excellent potential for application of hybrid PSO-ANN models to screen VO NFCRs for steamflooding. This is the first time that the ANN technique has been applied for the purpose of performance prediction of steamflooding in VO NFCRs and also reported in the literature. The predictive PSO-ANN model and statistical correlations have strong potentials to be merged with heavy oil recovery modeling softwares available for thermal methods. This combination is expected to speed up their performance, reduce their uncertainty, and enhance their prediction and modeling capabilities. An integrated geological-geophysical-geomechanical approach was designed, presented, and applied in the case of a NFCR for the purpose of fracture and in situ stresses characterization in NFCRs. The proposed methodology can be applied for fracture and in situ stresses characterization which is beneficial to various aspects of asset development such as well placement, drilling, production, thermal reservoir modeling incorporating geomechanics effects, technology assessment and so on. A conceptual study was also conducted on geomechanics effects in VO NFCRs during steamflooding which is not yet well understood and still requires further field, laboratory, and theoretical studies. This can be considered as a small step forward in this area identifying positive potential of such knowledge to the design of large scale thermal operations in VO NFCRs.