Search results

1 – 10 of 115
Article
Publication date: 13 April 2015

Sharon Warren, Patricia Black and Elizabeth Mills

The purpose of this paper is to describe the introduction of an online induction programme including an interactive webinar on a distance learning course and to present student…

523

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe the introduction of an online induction programme including an interactive webinar on a distance learning course and to present student feedback on the programme. It focuses on lessons learnt and implications for others implementing similar induction programmes.

Design/methodology/approach

A self-completion questionnaire was sent to all students enroled on the programme, including those who did not attend the webinar or participate in the online induction programme. This was followed up with a semi-structured interview. The analysis focused on the student experience of the induction programme.

Findings

Overall, students reported to be satisfied with the online programme. The webinar encouraged engagement with some elements of the online workshop and was felt to complement the other learning opportunities available online. The webinar was particularly valued for providing a “face” to the course, facilitating interactivity among tutors and students and helping the students to feel part of the University. Students also reported that the webinar had the advantage of allowing a social interaction between them.

Practical implications

A number of key changes related to multiple offerings of the webinar and the timing of activities in the online workshop were highlighted to encourage participation. Greater clarity on what is required in the induction and how long it would take would also encourage participation.

Originality/value

This case study is one of the few to evaluate the inclusion of webinar technology within an online induction programme and, therefore, has value in this context.

Details

Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-7003

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 10 June 2014

Joan I.J. Wagner, Sharon Warren, Greta Cummings, Donna L. Smith and Joanne K. Olson

The purpose of this paper is to test a model linking physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) practitioners’ perceptions of resonant leadership, structural empowerment…

1102

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to test a model linking physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) practitioners’ perceptions of resonant leadership, structural empowerment and psychological empowerment to their experiences of spirit at work (SAW), job satisfaction and organizational commitment within the Canadian workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors tested the model using LISREL 8.80 and survey data from 101 OTs and 169 PTs, randomly selected by the Alberta professional licensing associations. Content analysis of responses to the open-ended comments section provided additional depth and insight.

Findings

Analysis of results culminated in minor modifications to the original theoretical model, creating separate PT and OT models. Both models revealed a good fit with the observed data. Several SAW concepts accounted for moderate to large amounts of variance in both PT and OT models, indicating that SAW is a comprehensive workplace outcome.

Research limitations/implications

Theory was derived from business and nursing research literature due to limited rehabilitation research literature. Discussion of OT results must consider the small sample size. This study is initial exploratory research.

Practical implications

Each discipline-specific model provides professionals, health care leaders and policy makers with a rich body of information upon which to base beneficial workplace decisions. SAW will guide leaders in the holistic development and enrichment of the work environment.

Originality/value

This research contributes to the substantive knowledge of the OT and PT disciplines, particularly in the areas of leadership, workplace structural organization and indicators of healthy work environments such as SAW, empowerment, job satisfaction and organizational commitment.

Details

Journal of Health Organization and Management, vol. 28 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7266

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 6 December 2021

Aimee La France, Rosemary Batt and Eileen Appelbaum

The long-term financial stability of hospital systems represents a “grand challenge” in health care. New ownership forms, such as private equity (PE), promise to achieve better…

Abstract

The long-term financial stability of hospital systems represents a “grand challenge” in health care. New ownership forms, such as private equity (PE), promise to achieve better financial performance than nonprofit or for-profit systems. In this study, we compare two systems with many similarities, but radically different ownership structures, missions, governance, and merger and acquisition (M&A) strategies. Both were nonprofit, religious systems serving low-income communities – Montefiore Health System and Caritas Christi Health Care.

Montefiore's M&A strategy was to invest in local hospitals and create an integrated regional system, increasing revenues by adding primary doctors and community hospitals as feeders into the system and achieving efficiencies through effective resource allocation across specialized units. Slow and steady timing of acquisitions allowed for organizational learning and balancing of debt and equity. By 2019, it owned 11 hospitals with 40,000 employees and had strong positive financials and low reliance on debt.

By contrast, in 2010, PE firm Cerberus Capital bought out Caritas (renamed Steward Health Care System) and took control of the Board of Directors, who set the system's strategic direction. Cerberus used Steward as a platform for a massive debt-driven acquisition strategy. In 2016, it sold off most of its hospitals’ property for $1.25 billion, leaving hospitals saddled with long-term inflated leases; paid itself almost $500 million in dividends; and used the rest for leveraged buyouts of 27 hospitals in 9 states in 3 years. The rapid, scattershot M&A strategy was designed to create a large corporation that could be sold off in five years for financial gain – not for health care integration. Its debt load exploded, and by 2019, its financials were deeply in the red. Its Massachusetts hospitals were the worst financial performers of any system in the state. Cerberus exited Steward in 2020 in a deal that left its physicians, the new owners, holding the debt.

Details

The Contributions of Health Care Management to Grand Health Care Challenges
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80117-801-3

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 September 2019

Kendra Lowery

The purpose of this paper is to examine high school educators’ (three teachers, a career counselor and a social worker) perceptions of training to develop a coach mindset and the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine high school educators’ (three teachers, a career counselor and a social worker) perceptions of training to develop a coach mindset and the perceived impact of the training on their professional and personal well-being.

Design/methodology/approach

Individual semi-structured interviews and 16 h of observational data of professional development were collected.

Findings

Five themes emerged from the data. Participants: challenged themselves to work on coach skills; affirmed the importance of relationships; identified areas of increased skill development; envisioned coach training throughout the school; and applied a coach mindset in other domains. These themes are related to two constructs of psychological capital – efficacy and hope – which contributed to participants’ professional and personal well-being.

Research limitations/implications

The low number and selection of participants make transferability of the findings difficult.

Practical implications

Findings indicate that a coach mindset may increase educators’ well-being as they learn to build positive student, collegial and personal relationships. Recommendations for further research include exploring relationships between the development of a coach mindset, increased positive student outcomes and educator well-being.

Social implications

The development of a coach mindset may lead to increased educator well-being and positivity.

Originality/value

As few empirical studies exist regarding the effectiveness of coach training for teachers, the findings of this study fill a gap in the literature regarding these topics.

Details

International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, vol. 8 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6854

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 15 September 2023

Sharon Feeney and John Hogan

This paper presents an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by supply chain management undergraduates in response to the question: “What is sustainability?” Having to…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper presents an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by supply chain management undergraduates in response to the question: “What is sustainability?” Having to explain sustainability pictorially forced students to distill what the essence of sustainability meant to them and provided insights into how they perceived sustainability and their roles in achieving sustainability in the context of supply chain management.

Design/methodology/approach

Students were asked to draw and answer the question “What is sustainability?” These drawings were discussed/interpreted in class. All drawings were initially examined quantitatively, before a sample of four were selected for presentation here.

Findings

Freehand drawing can be used as part of a critical pedagogy to create a visual representation to bypass cognitive verbal processing routes. This allows students to produce clear, more critical and inclusive images of their understanding of a topic regardless of their vocabulary.

Practical implications

The authors offer this as a model for educators seeking alternative methods for engaging with sustainability and for creating a learning environment where students can develop their capacity for critical self-reflection.

Originality/value

This study shows how a collaborative learning experience facilitates learners demonstrating their level of understanding of sustainability.

Peer review

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-11-2022-0718

Details

International Journal of Social Economics, vol. 51 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0306-8293

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 May 2020

Sharon Feeney and John Hogan

This paper aims to present an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by a sample of final year degree level learners in response to the question: “What is civic engagement”…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to present an interpretation of freehand drawings produced by a sample of final year degree level learners in response to the question: “What is civic engagement”? The aim in using this approach, with final year degree learners from different countries, but pursuing the same degree, was to compare and contrast their understanding of civic engagement.

Design/methodology/approach

Learners completed their drawings and then discussed their drawings in small groups. All of their drawings were initially examined quantitatively before a sample of six drawings were selected for in-depth qualitative examination.

Findings

Using learner-generated drawings enables learners convey visually what can be challenging to verbalise. After the exercise, some learners discovered that they had a good basic appreciation of civic engagement.

Research limitations/implications

Describing civic engagement pictorially forced participants to think about what the essence of civic engagement was for them.

Originality/value

This study shows how a collaborative learning experience, rather than a competitive comparison of performance, facilitates learners readily demonstrating their level of understanding and appreciation for civic engagement.

Details

Journal of International Education in Business, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-469X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 September 2007

Sharon Brockway

The role of the HR business partner has been heralded as the salvation of HR and the route to making a strategic contribution. Sharon Brockway, director for Roffey Park’s new HR…

1287

Abstract

The role of the HR business partner has been heralded as the salvation of HR and the route to making a strategic contribution. Sharon Brockway, director for Roffey Park’s new HR Business Partnering program, explores why business partnering too often fails to live up to expectations and examines how HR at Lloyds TSB was successfully repositioned from playing a transactionary role to a more strategic one.

Details

Strategic HR Review, vol. 6 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1475-4398

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 April 2007

Tanuja Singh, Geoffrey Gordon and Sharon Purchase

This study empirically examines the role of the Internet in global business‐to‐business (B2B) marketing strategies of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) based in the United States…

1138

Abstract

This study empirically examines the role of the Internet in global business‐to‐business (B2B) marketing strategies of Multinational Corporations (MNCs) based in the United States and Australia. The results demonstrate that uses of the Internet in a global B2B setting often parallel its domestic uses but that variables that facilitate or inhibit its implementation for global operations are somewhat different in global markets. The findings suggest that MNCs in the two countries are using the Internet in their global B2B operations predominantly for business enhancement purposes as compared to revenue enhancement. Results also show that for global B2B operations, the Internet is viewed by MNCs as a tool to enhance competitive intelligence, streamline operations, and enhance the marketing processes. It is also deemed essential for a firm’s long‐term competitive stance by large as well as small and medium‐sized MNCs.

Details

American Journal of Business, vol. 22 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1935-5181

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 28 February 2017

Sharon Boyd

This chapter will review teaching approaches used to develop students’ professional skills in preparation for their future role as veterinary practitioners. These approaches…

Abstract

This chapter will review teaching approaches used to develop students’ professional skills in preparation for their future role as veterinary practitioners. These approaches support student development beyond the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS. (2014). Day one competences. Retrieved from http://www.rcvs.org.uk/document-library/day-one-competences/) Day One Competences expected of graduates, and emphasize the key importance of life-long skills and resilience in a rapidly changing world.

As veterinary leaders, they will be expected to demonstrate skills in multidisciplinary group facilitation and community engagement. From a global perspective, students are encouraged to reflect on their learning in light of the impact on their local communities and the wider impact on the global ecosystem. This chapter provides an overview of how professional skills are developed over the course of the undergraduate program. Such approaches guide students as they learn to confront and engage with cognitive dissonance (CD) inherent to the role of the veterinary surgeon in practice. Areas where CD is clearly evident in practice will be considered, followed by a review of the teaching approaches to prepare students.

The teaching methods described will include the benefits and challenges of work-based placements, opportunities for self-development and reflection within a tightly packed curriculum, and the importance of facilitating student-led activities to build skills in leadership.

Details

Engaging Dissonance: Developing Mindful Global Citizenship in Higher Education
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78714-154-4

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 May 2024

Kirsten Russell, Fiona Barnett, Sharon Varela, Simon Rosenbaum and Robert Stanton

The mental and physical health of those residing in Australian rural and remote communities is poorer compared to major cities. Physical health comorbidities contribute to almost…

Abstract

Purpose

The mental and physical health of those residing in Australian rural and remote communities is poorer compared to major cities. Physical health comorbidities contribute to almost 80% of premature mortality for people living with mental illness. Leisure time physical activity (LTPA) is a well-established intervention to improve physical and mental health. To address the physical and mental health of rural and remote communities through LTPA, the community’s level of readiness should be first determined. This study aims to use the community readiness model (CRM) to explore community readiness in a remote Australian community to address mental health through LTPA.

Design/methodology/approach

Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted using the CRM on LTPA to address mental health. Quantitative outcomes scored the community’s stage of readiness for LTPA programmes to address mental health using the CRM categories of one (no awareness) to nine (high level of community ownership). Qualitative outcomes were thematically analysed, guided by Braun and Clark.

Findings

The community scored six (initiation) for community efforts and knowledge of LTPA programmes and seven (stabilisation) for leadership. The community’s attitude towards LTPA and resources for programmes scored four (pre-planning), and knowledge of LTPA scored three (vague awareness).

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first Australian study to use CRM to examine community readiness to use LTPA to improve mental health in a remote community. The CRM was shown to be a useful tool to identify factors for intervention design that might optimise community empowerment in using LTPA to improve mental health at the community level.

Details

The Journal of Mental Health Training, Education and Practice, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1755-6228

Keywords

1 – 10 of 115