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"Humans"

Today, the role of humans is changing rapidly in both industrial production activities and services. Mediocre, easy-to-learn activities can be performed more efficiently by machines; mediocre knowledge is being devalued while the importance of high-level skills is increasing. As a result, in all sectors of the economy, and especially in engineering, new approaches to expert training are needed; people must learn to hand over certain decision-making roles and to control the processes supported by AI rather than compete with it. STEM education has a responsibility to achieve these goals and must develop appropriate tools for engineering education. This paper presents a complex didactic methodology for competency-based education in engineering bachelor programs. An important element is the mathematical competency map, which shows the importance and place of mathematical and algorithmic (coding) knowledge in engineering topics. Another element is the systematic testing of mathematical knowledge in non-mathematical contexts in engineering courses. We provide an overview of our achievements in applying the developed toolset and improving the efficiency of mathematics teaching in engineering bachelor programs. © 2024 The Author(s)

Objective: This study aimed to explore the preprofessional identity of undergraduate nutrition and dietetic students to guide curriculum development to better support the expectations of students and promote career readiness in a changing profession. Design: Qualitative focus group discussions in March, 2021. Setting: An Australian university. Participants: First-year students enrolled in the Bachelor of Nutrition (n = 50) or Bachelor of Dietetics (n = 58) at the University of the Sunshine Coast. Main Outcome Measures: Student sociodemographics, motivations for and influences on career choice and preprofessional identity, expectations of professional competency and practice, degree, and career expectations. Analysis: Descriptive statistics were conducted, and focus group discussions were analyzed using the Framework Approach. Results: Motivations and skills were consistent across both cohorts, centering on an interest in nutrition and respectful, professional conduct and communication. Expectations were similar across both degrees, with a focus on placement, real-world learning experiences, and staff support. Career expectations for both cohorts included business ownership. Conclusions and Implications: This research provided an understanding of students’ preprofessional identity, which was similar for both nutrition and dietetics students. Motivations identified in this research can be used to inform activities across nutrition and dietetic programs that support career readiness. © 2024 The Authors

Introduction: Pressure injuries (PIs) are a significant issue in healthcare system: nursing students are recommended to be prepared to assess the risk, prevent and manage them. However, despite the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic significantly affected nursing students’ learning opportunities no data regarding their impact of PIs knowledge, attitudes and learning occasions have been documented to date. Aims: To describe the post-pandemic knowledge and attitudes regarding PI prevention and management and to compare clinical learning opportunities in the field of PIs before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A descriptive multi-method study involving students at the time of their graduation in the before (n = 114) and after the pandemic (n = 113). The Italian versions of the Pressure Ulcer Knowledge Assessment Tool (PUKAT-IT) and Attitude Toward Pressure Ulcer Prevention (APuP-IT) scales were used. Data regarding pre- and post-pandemic learning opportunities were retrospectively collected from the Student Portfolio of Skills. Results: The average PUKAT-IT score was 57.92 % (cut-off 60 %), which indicates insufficient knowledge; the average APuP-IT score was 78.19 % (cut-off 75 %), which shows positive attitudes towards PI. Comparing the pre- and the post-pandemic groups, learning opportunities in PI risk assessment and prevention significantly decreased (overall 38.90 vs 32.27 and 35.26 vs 25.97, respectively) while those regarding the PI management remained stable. Conclusion: In the post-pandemic times, nursing students' knowledge about PIs remains insufficient while their attitudes are adequate; the pandemic significantly reduced students’ exposure to prevention and assessment learning opportunities during their internship, which suggests a need to update educational strategies to ensure appropriate knowledge and learning experiences in this field. © 2024 The Authors

Aim: This study was conducted to explore the combination of different conditional variables that led to high career aspiration of intern nursing students. Background: A severe shortage of nurses exists nationwide, and nurses’ low career aspiration contribute to high turnover rates and hinder the high-quality development of the nursing field. Nursing students undergoing clinical practice will become the backbone of future nursing staff. Enhancing their career aspiration is crucial for developing nursing career education and stabilizing the nursing team. Design: This was a cross-sectional study. Using the cluster sampling method, 521 intern nursing students from Henan and Anhui in China were selected as participants from December 2023 to January 2024. Methods: This study employed the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to explore the configuration for paths of leading to high career aspiration among intern nursing students. General information questionnaires, career aspiration scale, clinical practice maladjustment scale, self-reflection and insight scale were used as measures in this study. Results: The results showed that students’ origin, professional attitude, GPA, self-reflection and insight, relationship with preceptors and clinical practice maladjustment have a combined effect on career aspiration. This study found that eight configuration combined into four models could explain 75.9 % of high-level career aspiration (solution consistency = 0.786; solution coverage = 0.759). Conclusion: The level of career aspiration among intern nursing students is the result of the combination of different conditional variables. Using a configurational perspective to intervene in nursing students with various characteristics is expected to enhance the career aspiration of intern nursing students. © 2024

Purpose This paper seeks to explore the influence of success factors, specifically motivation and course quality, on MOOC retention intention. Going beyond a mere examination of these motivational and quality factors, the study investigates students’ motivation, considering needs, interests, course system, content, and service quality. Methodologically, a questionnaire survey was conducted, collecting data from 311 students enrolled in online courses. To ascertain the impact of interest or need-based motivation on students’ retention rates, a Structural Equation Model (SEM) was employed. Subsequently, Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA) was utilized to identify the essential factors and components in each area. SEM results revealed a positive influence of motivational factors and quality issues on students’ behavior. Retention behavior was notably affected by academic and professional needs, along with personal interests. Furthermore, course content and service quality demonstrated a significant effect on students’ perseverance behavior. NCA results identified academic motivation and system quality as having a substantial impact on retention behavior, while personal motivation and technological motivation had a comparatively smaller effect. Practically, the findings suggest that course developers should consider students’ academic and personal requirements when designing online courses. Additionally, providing students with the ability to customize course and system content according to their needs is crucial. Timely problem-solving attitudes from service providers are essential for ensuring student retention. ©: © 2024 Huacui et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

This article presents a study on team talk in psychosocial rehabilitation with reference to collective decision making. It focuses on problem formulation processes that occur during weekly team meetings in a Swiss organization providing psychosocial rehabilitation to chronic mental health patients. The corpus of team meetings (34 hours of recorded talk) was analyzed along three narrative dimensions: participation framework, timeline organization and forms of evaluation. The analysis was supported by ethnographic information (field notes collected during participant observation over ten months), in order to access the local conception and organization of rehabilitation work, which is repeatedly referred to and reshaped through discourse. The discursive practices identified show that team members learn to formulate problems in a way that allows them to identify and plan interventions in line with their rehabilitation model and the actual opportunities they have. Further, the role-related forms of participation highlight how different professionals contribute to the problem formulation in specific ways. In sum, the interaction turns out to be strongly centralized around the role of a meeting coordinator, who is able to enhance the participation of the other team members and to build institutional narratives on the basis of individual contributions, carrying out discursive work that can be metaphorically described as the weaving and knotting threads that make up a tapestry. © © 2024 University of Toronto Press.

BACKGROUND: Given the evolving digital revolution, technology and digital tools are becoming inseparable from work and daily occupations. Occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) focus on supporting individuals in their desired and needed activities. Many of these daily activities (i.e., online banking, shopping, social media, smartphone use) require digital skills at a growing rate, and insufficient technological skills may subject individuals to limited engagement and social isolation. OBJECTIVE: To understand OTPs attitudes regarding technology utilization. METHODS: We surveyed 109 OTPs about their attitudes, work practices, and barriers to addressing their clients’ digital technological functioning. RESULTS: The findings of our study suggest that while OTPs acknowledge the importance and potential benefit of technology for their clients, there is a notable professional gap in the training and skills of OTPs to support their clients’ digital functioning effectively and to integrate technology into their practice. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need to improve and expand OTP’s digital skills and knowledge regarding addressing clients’ digital functioning and technology implementation in occupational therapy practice. © 2024 – IOS Press.

Background: The acquisition of clinical competence is considered the ultimate goal of nursing education programs. This study explored the relationship between learning styles and clinical competency in undergraduate nursing students. Methods: A descriptive-correlational study was conducted in 2023 with 276 nursing students from the second to sixth semesters at Abhar School of Nursing, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Data were collected using demographic questionnaires, Kolb’s learning styles, and Meretoja’s clinical competence assessments completed online by participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16, employing descriptive statistics and inferential tests (independent T-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation) at a significance level 0.05. Results: The predominant learning styles among nursing students were divergent (31.2%), and the least common was convergent (18.4%). The overall clinical competency score was 77.25 ± 12.65. Also, there was a significant relationship between learning styles and clinical competency, so the clinical competency of students with accommodative and converging learning styles was higher. (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The results of this study showed the association between learning styles and clinical competence in nursing students. It is recommended that educational programs identify talented students and provide workshops tailored to strengthen various learning styles associated with enhanced clinical competence. © The Author(s) 2024.

Background: Although the nursing sector gains growing importance in an aging society, students representing the future workforce often show insufficient health. Acknowledging the health-enhancing effects of adequate physical activity, the educational system in Bavaria, Germany, has recently integrated the promotion of physical activity-related health competence (PAHCO) into the nursing curriculum. However, it cannot be assumed that PAHCO has sufficiently permeated the educational practices and routines of the nursing schools. Therefore, the goal of the present study is to examine and compare the effectiveness as well as implementation of different intervention approaches to address PAHCO in the Bavarian nursing school system. Methods: We randomly assign 16 nursing schools (cluster-based) to four study arms (bottom-up, top-down led by teachers, top down led by external physical activity experts, control group). Schools in intervention group 1 (IG-1) develop multicomponent inventions to target PAHCO via cooperative planning (preparation, planning, and implementation phase). Intervention groups 2 and 3 (IG-2, IG-3) receive both an expert-based intervention (developed through intervention mapping) via trained mediators to address PAHCO. External physical activity experts deliver the structured PAHCO intervention in IG-2, while teachers from the nursing schools themselves conduct the PAHCO intervention in IG-3. In line with a hybrid effectiveness implementation trial, we apply questionnaire-based pre-post measurements across all conditions (sample size calculation: nfinal = 636) to examine the effectiveness of the intervention approaches and, simultaneously, draw on questionnaires, interview, and protocol data to examine their implementation. We analyze quantitative effectiveness data via linear models (times-group interaction), and implementation data using descriptive distributions and content analyses. Conclusion: The study enables evidence-based decisions about the suitability of three intervention approaches to promote competencies for healthy, physically active lifestyles among nursing students. The findings inform dissemination activities to effectively reach all 185 schools of the Bavarian nursing system. Trial registration: Clinical trials NCT05817396. Registered on April 18, 2023. © The Author(s) 2024.

Background: Despite the known benefits of exclusive breastfeeding, global rates remain below recommended targets, with Ireland having one of the lowest rates in the world. This study explores the efficacy of Participatory Action Research (PAR) and Work-Based Learning Groups (WBLGs) to enhance breastfeeding practices within Irish healthcare settings from the perspective of WBLG participants and facilitators. Methods: Employing a PAR approach, interdisciplinary healthcare professionals across maternity, primary, and community care settings (n = 94) participated in monthly WBLGs facilitated by three research and practice experts. These sessions, conducted over nine months (November 2021 – July 2022), focused on critical reflective and experiential learning to identify and understand existing breastfeeding culture and practices. Data were collected through participant feedback, facilitator notes, and reflective exercises, with analysis centered on participant engagement and the effectiveness of WBLGs. This approach facilitated a comprehensive understanding of breastfeeding support challenges and opportunities, leading to the development of actionable themes and strategies for practice improvement. Results: Data analysis from WBLG participants led to the identification of five key themes: Empowerment, Ethos, Journey, Vision, and Personal Experience. These themes shaped the participants’ meta-narrative, emphasising a journey of knowledge-building and empowerment for breastfeeding women and supporting staff, underlining the importance of teamwork and multidisciplinary approaches. The project team’s evaluation highlighted four additional themes: Building Momentum, Balancing, Space Matters, and Being Present. These themes reflect the dynamics of the PAR process, highlighting the significance of creating a conducive environment for discussion, ensuring diverse engagement, and maintaining energy and focus to foster meaningful practice changes in breastfeeding support. Conclusion: This study highlights the potential of WBLGs and PAR to enhance the understanding and approach of healthcare professionals towards breastfeeding support. By fostering reflective and collaborative learning environments, the study has contributed to a deeper understanding of the challenges in breastfeeding support and identified key areas for improvement. The methodologies and themes identified hold promise to inform future practice and policy development in maternal and child health. © The Author(s) 2024.