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The use of technology in education has been widely investigated, with a particular focus on remote communication during the COVID-19 pandemic. These settings have prompted a deeper study of the role that families can play in remote learning to support student educational achievement. This study has explored the student-family factors that could influence student educational achievement, building a theoretical framework of those factors and proposing associated online tools. Accordingly, this study used a cross-sectional survey design to explore the opinions and beliefs of parents about those factors and the suggested online tools based on the theoretical framework. The study sample consisted of 1,259 parents who responded to a survey of 10 items related to student-family factors and the suggested associated online tools. The findings indicated that many factors could improve student educational achievement, especially for students from underprivileged families. This study recommends providing online discussion tools to serve as a communication channel between schools and the families of students, supporting synchronous or asynchronous learning platforms, ensuring accessibility for all families who are involved with the school, and facilitating the school's timely engagement with families through the designated online discussion tools.

BackgroundThis study assessed the self-care practices among hypertensive patients at the primary health centers in Unaizah city, Saudi Arabia.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted in 2023, at all primary healthcare centers in Unaizah city. A total of 372 hypertensive patients, aged 18 and older, who had been on follow-up care for at least 6 months were randomly selected using a cluster sampling method. Data regarding socio-demographics, health history, and hypertensive self-care practices (H-SCALE) were collected using a validated questionnaire.ResultsThe mean age of the participants was 41.4 ± 9.6 years. Of them, 34.1% were males and 65.9% were females. Only 14.0% were smokers, 55.9% had hypertension for less than 1 year, and 53.8% did not monitor their blood pressure. None of them was addicted to any substance or using alcohol. The most commonly associated chronic disease among the participants was hyperlipidemia (61.3%), followed by diabetes mellitus. The participants were most likely reported engaging in weight management-related self-care activities, followed by healthy diet activities, and medication adherence. The H-SCALE scores increased as the frequency of engagement in self-care activities increased. There were significant differences in H-SCALE scores based on age, gender, education level, and employment status.ConclusionEngaging in self-care activities is associated with better self-care behavior. Age, gender, education level, and employment status are significant predictors of hypertension self-care behaviors. Healthcare providers should educate hypertensive patients on blood pressure monitoring and integrated management of hypertension and other chronic diseases.

Despite the development of several industrial Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) megaprojects worldwide, minimal literature on LNG megaprojects is available in the non-proprietary public domain and academia, with the consequent lack of availability of practical tools, guidelines, and benchmarks for the use of professionals engaged in developing and managing LNG megaprojects. Cognizant of this fact, the authors have attempted a study of standard project management systems to explore practical ways to meet the unique needs of LNG megaprojects management and systematically assimilate lessons learned to replicate successes and avoid failures. Considering the complexity of the LNG value chain, a management system approach has been adopted. Combining academic and industrial knowledge, this study identifies nine significant areas that, when improved, should enhance the management of LNG megaprojects throughout their lifecycle — from initiation to handover for operation. With hundreds of billions of dollars invested in current LNG projects, even minor improvements can be worth billions. This study also addresses the challenges of megaprojects development, gaps that need to be overcome, and the importance of quality and lessons learned. Finally, although the focus of this study is the management of LNG megaprojects, it is expected that many improvements identified here would find relevance in managing large and complex projects, even in other industrial sectors.