Qualitative study of social and healthcare educators’ perceptions of their competence in education

Competent educators are needed to ensure that social and healthcare professionals are effective and highly competent. However, there is too little evidence‐based knowledge of current and required enhancements of educators' competences in this field. The aim of this study was to describe social and healthcare educators’ perceptions of their competence in education. The study had a qualitative design, based on interviews with educators and rooted in critical realism. Forty‐eight participants were recruited from seven universities of applied sciences and two vocational colleges in Finland, with the assistance of contact persons nominated by the institutions. The inclusion criterion for participation was employment by an educational institution as a part‐time or full‐time, social and/or healthcare educator. Data were collected in the period February–April 2018. The participants were interviewed in 16 focus groups with two to five participants per group. The acquired data were subjected to inductive content analysis, which yielded 506 open codes, 48 sub‐categories, nine categories and one main category. The educators’ competence was defined as a multidimensional construct, including categories of educators’ competences in practicing as an educator, subject, ethics, pedagogy, management and organisation, innovation and development, collaboration, handling cultural and linguistic diversity, and continuous professional development. Educators recognised the need for developing competence in innovation to meet rapid changes in a competitive and increasingly global sociopolitical environment. Enhancement of adaptability to rapid changes was recognised as a necessity. The findings have social value in identifying requirements to improve social and healthcare educators' competence by helping educational leadership to improve educational standards, construct a continuous education framework and create national and/or international curricula for teacher education degree programs to enhance the quality of education. We also suggest that educational leadership needs to establish, maintain and strengthen collaborative strategies to provide effective, adaptable support systems, involving educators and students, in their working practices.     

Occupational well-being of school staff members: a structural equation model

This study aimed to develop a theoretical basis for the promotion of school staff's occupational well-being. The 'Content Model for the Promotion of School Community Staff's Occupational Well-being' describes the four aspects of the promotion of occupational well-being ('working conditions', 'worker and work', 'working community' and 'professional competence') as well as the functionality and structure of the model. The content model was examined empirically by means of a structural equation model. The project was developed with school staff and occupational health nurses and implemented in 2001-2004. The target group consisted of the staff of 12 comprehensive schools in Eastern Finland in 2002 (n = 211) and 2004 (n = 266). The data were collected using a 'well-being at your work index' questionnaire at both times. A structural equation model for the school staff's occupational well-being, i.e. the 'Occupational Well-being of School Staff Model' (baseline OWSS Model: Study I in the year 2002), was produced. The model was tested with the 2004 data. Based on this, the model was further developed into the final OWSS Model (Study II). The theoretical Content Model for the Promotion of School Community Staff's Occupational Well-being can be used as a framework for planning, implementing and evaluating school staff's occupational well-being.     

School staff members' and occupational health nurses' evaluation of the promotion of occupational well-being – with good planning to better practice

This paper describes occupational health nurses' and school staff members' experiences of work ability maintenance carried out at schools and the development of ideas to promote the collaboration between occupational health care and school community and to enhance work ability maintenance. The data were collected in a baseline situation of an action research project to further plan and develop activities. The data were analysed by inductive content analysis. According to the results, school community staff members' work ability maintenance focused on the employee, the school community, school work and the working conditions as well as professional competence. The practical actions involved some individual and school-specific variation, focusing on actions to maintain individual and physical work ability. It seems that the collaboration between the school community and occupational health service for work ability maintenance took place at the individual level, but an obvious need for more structural collaboration emerged by several suggestions made by the participants (e.g. better information exchange between the school and occupational health care, improved collaboration between the school staff and the co-operative partners). The progress in collaboration may lead towards spontaneous collaboration, in which case both actors have the same target and work in a planned, continuous and natural way to ensure work ability maintenance in the school community.     

Semen selenium content and sperm mitochondrial volume in human and some animal species

Selenium (Se) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) were determinedfrom the seminal plasma samples and spermatozoa of human andfour different animal species. The human sperm Se concentrationwas 1.8±0.8 µg/g dry weight, which was about halfof that in the bull. Abnormal sperm morphology and motilitycorrelated with low sperm Se content. The volume of sperm mitochondrialsheath in human, bull and stallion was measured using transmissionelectron microscopy. In these species the sperm Se content washighly correlated with the volume of mitochondria. Among thefive species studied, the seminal plasma level of Se was lowestin human male and stallion, while the highest levels were encounteredin the bull. No correlation was obtained between human semenquality and seminal plasma Se concentration. The seminal plasmaGSH-Px activity was low in man and ram, absent in boar and stallionbut very high in the bull. The amount of structural sperm Seas well as seminal plasma Se and GSH-Px activity appears tobe highly variable in different species     

Selenium in reproductive organs, seminal fluid and serum of men and bulls

The concentrations of selenium in the reproductive organs, seminalfluid and serum of human males and bulls were analysed usingan atomic absorption spectrometer with Zeeman background correction.The mean (±SD) concentration of selenium in human seminalfluid (33.4±14.1 µg/1, n= 70) was less than halfthe level detected in serum (78.2±9.9 µg/l, n=32).In bulls, the mean selenium concentration in seminal fluid (457.4±108.7µg/1,n=113) was about nine times higher than in human males, whilethe level in serum (49.1±5.1 µg/1, n=94) was significantly(P<0.001) lower than in human serum. The selenium concentration(500±244 µg/I) in the bovine seminal vesicle secretionswere comparable to those in the seminal fluid and this glandappears to be mainly responsible for the high selenium levelsin the seminal fluid. The mean selenium concentration in reproductivetissues of both species was highest in the testes. The distributionof selenium in the bovine epididymis was biphask. The testkularand epididymal selenium are associated mainly with macromoleculesof the spermatogenk cells and spermatozoa. It was concludedthat studies in farm and laboratory animals do not necessarilyform a reliable basis for conclusions with regard to human malereproduction, since selenium may have a different role and importancein the reproduction of various species.     

Social,health care and rehabilitation educators' competence in professional education—Empirical testing of a model

The social and health care educator's role in educating future professionals need to be stronger emphasised and deserves international recognition. The purpose of this study was to develop and test an empirical model of social and health care educators' competence in higher and professional education. The presented research employed a cross-sectional study design. Data were collected using HeSoEduCo-instrument from 28 educational institutions in Finland. The model was empirically tested with confirmatory factor analysis through Structural Equation Modelling that applied the Full Imputation Maximum Likelihood estimator. A total of 422 social and health care educators participated in the study. The empirical model of social and health care educators including eight competence areas: leadership and management, collaboration and societal, evidence-based practice, subject and curriculum, mentoring students in professional competence development, student-centred pedagogy, digital collaborative learning, and cultural and linguistic diversity. All of the connections between concepts of the empirical model were found to be statistically significant. There were strong connections between most of the identified competence concepts; however, two weak connections were found, namely, the link between competence in evidence-based practice and competence in subject and curriculum, along with the link between competence in digital collaborative learning and competence in student-centred pedagogy. The presented empirical model can help stakeholders identify which areas of social and health care educators' curricula should be further developed. The model is also relevant for improving continuous education, allowing educators to assess their competence levels and evaluating educators' performance at the organisational level.     

School staff members' and occupational health nurses' evaluation of the promotion of occupational well-being - with good planning to better practice

This paper describes occupational health nurses' and school staff members' experiences of work ability maintenance carried out at schools and the development of ideas to promote the collaboration between occupational health care and school community and to enhance work ability maintenance. The data were collected in a baseline situation of an action research project to further plan and develop activities. The data were analysed by inductive content analysis. According to the results, school community staff members' work ability maintenance focused on the employee, the school community, school work and the working conditions as well as professional competence. The practical actions involved some individual and school-specific variation, focusing on actions to maintain individual and physical work ability. It seems that the collaboration between the school community and occupational health service for work ability maintenance took place at the individual level, but an obvious need for more structural collaboration emerged by several suggestions made by the participants (e.g. better information exchange between the school and occupational health care, improved collaboration between the school staff and the co-operative partners). The progress in collaboration may lead towards spontaneous collaboration, in which case both actors have the same target and work in a planned, continuous and natural way to ensure work ability maintenance in the school community.     

Human Seminal Plasma Cadmium: Comparison with Fertility and Smoking Habits/Cadmium in menschlichem Seminalplasma: Vergleich zwischen Fertilität und Rauchgewohnheiten

Cadmium, selenium and zinc were determined in seminal plasma and serum of 64 men by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). The mean (+/- SD) cadmium concentrations in seminal plasma and serum were 0.22 +/- 0.22 micrograms and 0.28 +/- 0.10 micrograms, respectively, but they did not correlate with each other. Smokers (n = 31) had significantly (p less than 0.01) higher serum cadmium concentrations than non-smokers (n = 31). Also seminal plasma cadmium in smokers was elevated, but a significant difference to non-smokers was only found if more than 20 cigarettes were consumed daily. No differences were found in semen quality and fertility between smokers and non-smokers. The seminal plasma cadmium had no correlation to selenium or zinc which, however, displayed a positive correlation (r = 0.852, p less than 0.001) to each other. It is concluded that smoking increases the exposure to cadmium. Although no obvious reproductive suppression was observed, heavy smoking may possibly enhance toxic effects in men under other detrimental exposures.     

Ultrasound in the timing of artificial insemination with frozen donor semen

Ultrasonography was performed to time ovulation in 30 patients participating in program for artificial insemination with donor semen (AID). During this study (10 months) 61 scans were carried out where one or more follicles were visible. The mean number of treatment cycles per patient was 2.8. Insemination with frozen donor semen was performed if a clear and mature follicle was detectable. The mean follicular diameter in successful inseminations was 20.1 +/- 0.8 mm, ranging from 16 to 23 mm. Twelve patients became pregnant, 9 (75%) of them after three treatment cycles. The mean time to conception was 2.75 cycles and the most successful day of the menstrual cycle was day 13. Ovulation was induced in 8 (56.7%) patients who conceived. Ultrasound is a noninvasive, quick and reliable method in the detection and timing of ovulation in most AID patients.