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Online platforms can support health and educational professionals in their daily work; however, it is challenging to keep online platforms sustainable. This paper aims to indicate the most important factors of platform sustainability from the perspective of professionals involved in online platforms. Further, it aims to understand how these factors operate. A mixed methods study was carried out among professionals from Europe, Australia, the USA and Canada. In the first phase, the importance of 54 factors from the literature was assessed with a questionnaire among 17 professionals. The relative importance of the factors and the consensus regarding this importance were calculated using median scores and interquartile deviations. In total, 19 factors were selected representing general characteristics, characteristics related to the platform, communication, visitor and context. In the second phase, insight was gained regarding the experiences with those factors through 12 individual Skype interviews. The most frequently mentioned important factors of platform sustainability were (i) having sufficient time, resources and expertise, (ii) user friendliness and (iii) creating a sense of belonging. Platforms should use a planned approach to address a combination of factors directly from platform development. Gaining long-term resources is challenging and should be considered from the start of a project by building partnerships. To promote user friendliness, platforms should be simple, have a clear set-up and provide high-quality tools. Finally, establishing a sense of belonging could be supported by branding and face-to-face networking activities. For all aspects, involving visitors and stakeholders is essential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Quality of life is included in the economic evaluation of health services by measuring the preference for health states, i.e. health state utilities. However, most intervention studies include a disease-specific, not a utility, instrument. Consequently, there has been increasing use of statistical mapping algorithms which permit utilities to be estimated from a disease-specific instrument. The present paper provides such algorithms between the MacNew Heart Disease Quality of Life Questionnaire (MacNew) instrument and six multi-attribute utility (MAU) instruments, the Euroqol (EQ-5D), the Short Form 6D (SF-6D), the Health Utilities Index (HUI) 3, the Quality of Wellbeing (QWB), the 15D (15 Dimension) and the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL-8D). Methods: Heart disease patients and members of the healthy public were recruited from six countries. Non-parametric rank tests were used to compare subgroup utilities and MacNew scores. Mapping algorithms were estimated using three separate statistical techniques. Results: Mapping algorithms achieved a high degree of precision. Based on the mean absolute error and the intra class correlation the preferred mapping is MacNew into SF-6D or 15D. Using the R squared statistic the preferred mapping is MacNew into AQoL-8D. Implications for research: The algorithms reported in this paper enable MacNew data to be mapped into utilities predicted from any of six instruments. This permits studies which have included the MacNew to be used in cost utility analyses which, in turn, allows the comparison of services with interventions across the health system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on overall report of the journal in 2012 by its editors. The journal received new manuscripts from 35 countries in 2012 with greatest proportion from the U.S. followed by Canada. Two papers of the journal received Best Biometrics Paper award. Its editorial board includes 92 associate editors.

Several scholars have begun to assess the benefits of role play simulations in the university classroom. This study provides a model to assess the effectiveness of active learning exercises on student engagement and learning. The paper describes role play simulations related to climate change negotiations run in four courses at two universities in the United States and Canada, identifies the learning outcomes, and aligns them with four knowledge domains (factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive), developed from Anderson and Krathwohl's (2001) work, a revision of Bloom's (1959) taxonomy. We offer a useful assessment model, and discuss several assignments designed to assess the educational effectiveness of the simulations, and conclude by identifying additional areas for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. To date, there has been no attempt to describe or compare physical therapy as practiced globally, nor any evidence that an international data set exists to support this effort. It is known that research evidence can be used in strategic and tactical ways, especially within the highly politicized context of the policy arena. The International Private Practitioners Association recognized the potential value a global evidence base could have in influencing policy and supporting professional development in a number of countries, yet it lacked a mechanism to achieve these aims. Objectives. The purposes of this study were: (1) to identify and test an international data set, definitions, and means of data collection and (2) to establish views in relation to the value of international collaborations. Design. A mixed, prospective design was used in the study. Method. Phase 1 (2006-2007) involved the development of a data set, definitions, and Web-based and paper-based data collection options involving 98 physical therapists from 68 physical therapy practices in 7 countries. Phase 2 (2008-2009) involved testing of the data set in 34 practices involving 3,195 patient episodes and included physical therapist feedback of experience, local relevance of the data set, and value of international collaborations. Results. Testing confirmed the relevance and reliability of the data set and definitions and a preference for Web-based data collection (74.0%). Physical therapist feedback supported these findings. Most respondents (60.0%-100.0%) reported the value of further international collaborations for their profession nationally or internationally. Limitations. Although a true international collaboration, the limited sample size should be recognized. Conclusions. It is possible to develop an agreed-upon international data set and means of data collection. Testing appears to support its acceptability and relevance for use in practice. Participants highly valued the opportunity to undertake international collaborations that may benefit their profession nationally and internationally. Further testing and use of the data set are advocated before final validation is sought. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses mixed Markov latent class models and data from multiwave national panel surveys to investigate the stability of individual-level party identification in three Anglo-American democracies—the United States, Britain, and Canada. Analyses reveal that partisan attachments exhibit substantial dynamism at the latent variable level in the American, British, and Canadian electorates. Large-scale partisan dynamics are not a recent development; rather, they are present in all of the national panel surveys conducted since the 1950s. In all three countries, a generalized “mover–stayer” model outperforms rival models including a partisan stability model and a “black–white” nonattitudes model that specifies random partisan dynamics. The superiority of generalized mover–stayer models of individual-level party identification comports well with American and British studies that document nonstationary, long memory in macropartisanship. The theoretical perspective provided by party identification updating models is consistent with the mix of durable and flexible partisans found in the United States and elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite an ongoing trade dispute over genetically modified organisms (GMOs) between the European Union (EU) and the United States and Canada, in recent years there have been some signs that North American regulators are beginning to accept a more precautionary approach to the regulation of GMOs such as that adopted in the EU. One such sign was the Government of Canada's proactive response to a 2001 report written by a Royal Society of Canada (RSC) Expert Panel. This paper examines efforts to enhance Canada's regulatory regime for GMOs based on the RSC Panel's recommendations in order to ascertain whether the regulatory approach has really changed in that country since 2001. The author concludes that, while some efforts have indeed been made, the Government of Canada continues to fall far short of meeting the RSC Panel's expectations in key areas, including food safety, environmental assessment, peer review, transparency, and monitoring and surveillance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the efficacy of the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) which were developed for its usage both in Canada and the United States. It has several nutrients reference standards, including the Estimated Average Requirement, Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), and Adequate Intake. It has specific uses in dietary assessment for various individuals or groups. The RDA is claimed to be acceptable because it posses the acceptable basis in science so it should be included in the dietary intake of individuals. However, Doctor George Beaton, in his recent paper in "Nutrition Reviews," summarized by drawing some conclusions and said that the RDA is not based in science so it should be abolished. The article concludes that the RDA holds an important place in nutrition education and dietary counseling.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which the editor discusses two reports published within the issue such as a paper by Roman Romero-Ortuno and colleagues on a data offering insight into plasma 250HD levels in Irish community-dwelling older people and a paper from V. G. M. Chel and colleagues on the impact of ultraviolet B (UVB) exposure on vitamin D status in eight psycho-geriatric nursing home residents.

The article discusses changes in women’s employment as clerks in the U.S. and Canada. The authors discuss the perception of clerical positions as work for women and comment on changes in those perceptions. The expansion of office work created greater demand for workers, leading to increased work opportunities in service industries for women following World War II and the feminization of clerical fields such as stenography and typing. The authors use census data and oral histories to reveal how women's employment related to demographic qualities such as marital status, education, race and age. The retention of women employees by banks following World War II and the use of office technology by women are noted.