Enhancing reliability in portfolio assessment: discussions between assessors.

This paper reports the reliability in assessments of a series of portfolios assembled by a cohort of participants attending a course for prospective general practice trainers. Initial individual assessments are compared with open discussion between random pairs of assessors to produce paired composite scores, and analysed using kappa statistics. Overall reliability of a global pass/refer judgement improved from a kappa of 0.

Enhancing reliability in portfolio assessment: 'shaping' the portfolio.

This paper reports a follow-on project that assessed a series of portfolios assembled by a cohort of participants attending a course for prospective general practice trainers. In an attempt to enhance reliability, a framework for defining and addressing problems using a reflective practice model was offered to participants. The reliability of the judgements made by a panel of assessors about individual 'components', together with an overall global judgement about performance were studied.

Consciousness: mapping the theoretical landscape.

What makes us conscious? Many theories that attempt to answer this question have appeared recently in the context of widespread interest about consciousness in the cognitive neurosciences. Most of these proposals are formulated in terms of the information processing conducted by the brain. In this overview, we survey and contrast these models.

Patient perceptions of hospital care: building confidence, faith and trust.

Aim: The aim of this study was to understand how people evaluate and make sense of their experience of hospital care.

Method: Narrative interviews were conducted with 18 patients between 4-6 weeks after an episode of inpatient care or day surgery. Participants were deliberately sampled from a population who participated in a hospital-wide audit which took place during 1 week in June 1995.

A study of incidents of violence towards staff by patients in an NHS Trust hospital.

The aim of the study was to survey the degree and the extent of violence towards nursing staff by patients within a hospital environment. The information gathered will form a basis for future reference once the care packages are developed in the community. The study investigated the number of recorded incidents of aggression towards nursing staff by patients (n = 164) in an NHS Trust hospital for one year (October 1993-September 1994).

In vitro formation by reverse dialysis of collagen gels containing highly oriented arrays of fibrils.

Acid extracts of rat tail tendon were subjected to reverse dialysis against 0.5% PEG at 4 degrees C in an attempt to induce liquid crystallization. After 48 h, gel and fibril formation were initiated by continuing dialysis at 20 degrees C against the same PEG solution adjusted to pH 7.

Predictors of psychological distress in chronic pain patients.

The purpose of this study was to identify sources of psychological distress in patients attending pain clinics. Patients attending two pain clinics in the UK completed a self-report assessment questionnaire which included a 12-item, 5-point semantic differential measure of psychological well-being/distress, together with a range of single-item measures of pain and psychosocial factors measured using 5-point verbal report scales. Multiple regression analysis identified that 60% of the variance associated with psychological distress was explained by a combination of fears about the future, regrets about the past, age (younger people were more distressed), practical help (more help was associated with more distress), feeling unoccupied and personal relationship problems.

The effect of non-polar liquids and non-ionic detergents on the ultrastructure and assembly of rat tail tendon collagen fibrils in vitro.

Non-ionic detergents or emulsions of non-polar liquids when added to solutions of rat tail tendon collagen (RTTC) or to the dispersed fibrils produced similar conspicuous ultrastructural modifications in the form of a D-periodic lesion between bands c2 and d in the 'gap region' of the fibril close to the start of the overlap region. The size and extent of the lesion in some fibrils indicates that at least some of the collagen molecules rupture. In an attempt to detect peptide fragments produced in this way we ran SDS-PAGE gels of collagen fibrils treated with the non-ionic detergent Triton X-100.

Benefits realisation in maternity information systems.

This paper describes the compilation of a monograph on benefits realisation of maternity information systems from maternity services around England and Wales. It was compiled to compliment a monograph produced in June 1995 on Nursing Information Systems. The paper summarises the structure of the monograph and outlines the concept of benefits realisation.

An analysis and evaluation of Watson's theory of human care.

Despite a high priority placed on theory-testing in nursing, there continues to be minimal research undertaken which adequately tests nursing theories. A study was planned to contribute to theory-testing in nursing by testing an aspect of Watson's (1988) theory of human care. Watson essentially believes that nursing is an intersubjective human process and places a high value on the caring relationship between the nurse and the recipient of care.

The effect of deamination and/or blocking arginine residues on the molecular assembly of acid-extracted rat tail tendon collagen.

We describe the effect of deamination of lysine and blocking of arginine residues on the assembly of collagen into native fibrils and SLS aggregates. Treatment of collagen solutions with one or both of these procedures does not prevent the formation of fibrils or SLS aggregates but reduces their ability to form assemblies with accurate longitudinal registration. These observations provide direct confirmation that hydrophobic interactions are important in collagen assembly.

Portfolios: a developmental influence?

A situational analysis had demonstrated a need to help staff within an orthopaedic/trauma unit review past and plan future learning. One way of doing this is through the preparation of a portfolio. An action research project was undertaken to explore two research questions: Is the process of portfolio preparation in itself developmental? If so, what factors influence this developmental process? Development was seen as a process of change indicated through application of the characteristics of adult learners.

The effect of PH on fibrillogenesis of collagen in the egg capsule of the dogfish, Scyliorhinus canicula.

The collagen of the egg capsule of the dogfish, Scyliorhinus canicula is stored and secreted by the secretory cells of the D-zone of the nidamental gland (Rusaouën-Innocent, 1990b). The collagen appears to pass through several morphologically distinct textures during storage, secretion and fibril formation which may represent different lyotropic liquid crystalline phases (Knight et al., 1993).

Some observations on the collagen fibrils of the egg capsule of the dogfish, Scyliorhinus canicula.

The egg capsule of the dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula is a collagenous material with a laminated, plywood (orthogonal) construction. The collagen fibrils which constitute the bulk of the egg capsule wall have a unique, highly ordered structure (Knight and Hunt, 1974; 1976, 1986; Gathercole et al., 1993) which is thought to represent a smectic A liquid crystalline phase (Knight et al.

Interaction of collagen with hydrophobic protein granules in the egg capsule of the dogfish scyliorhinus canicula.

The egg capsule of the dogfish is a composite material containing collagenous fibrils and 2 mum spherical hydrophobic protein granules. The latter appear to owe much of their hydrophobicity to an exceptionally high tyrosine content (approximately 20% of total amino acid residues). The hydrophobic component appears to form as an emulsion in the secretory granules of the D and E zone gland cells of the nidamental gland.

Secretion and stabilization of the layers of the egg capsule of the dogfish Scyuorhinus canicula.

The egg capsule of the dogfish is a unique, collagcnous, layered structure secreted by the nidamental gland which has nine, remarkably discrete, transverse zones of tubular glands. The present paper traces the origin of the four layers of the capsule to particular zones within the gland. Evidence is presented for the existence of DOPA, DOPA oxidase.