Browsing by Issue Date
-
Hersh, Marion A.; Tucker, William D. (Elsevier, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: There are a number of pressures on researchers in academia and industry to behave unethically or compromise their ethical standards, for instance in order to obtain funding or publish frequently. In this paper a case study of Deaf telephony is used to discuss the pressures to unethical behaviour in terms of withholding information or misleading participants that can result from mono-disciplinary orthodoxies. The Deaf telephony system attempts to automate multiple aspects of relayed communication between Deaf and hearing users. The study is analysed in terms of consequentialist and deontological ethics, as well as multi-loop action learning. Discussion of a number of examples of bad practice is used to indicate both the compatibility of ethical behaviour and good scientific method and that ethical behaviour is a pre-requisite for obtaining meaningful results. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/466 Files in this item: 1
HershTuckerUnethicalBehaviour2005.pdf (86.66Kb) -
Adesemowo, A. Kayode; Tucker, William D. (SAICSIT in association with ACM, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Text communication can be perceived as lacking in chat spontaneity, or plastic, due to medium limitations during interaction. A form of text messaging, Instant Messaging (IM), is now on the uptake, even on mobile handhelds. This paper presents results of using affective gesture to rubberise IM chat in order to improve synchronous communication spontaneity. The experimental design makes use of a text-only IM tool, running on handhelds, built with the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and the SIP Instant Messaging and Presence Leveraging Extensions (SIMPLE). The tool was developed with a novel user-defined hotkey – a one-click context menu that fast-tracks the creation and transmission of text-gestures and emoticons. A hybrid quantitative and qualitative approach was taken in order to enable data triangulation. Data collected from user trials affirms that the affective gesture hotkey facility improves chat responsiveness, thus enhancing chat spontaneity. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/464 Files in this item: 1
AdesemowoTuckerInstantMessaging2005.pdf (364.4Kb) -
Mathews, Verona (Health Systems Trust, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This chapter emphasises the need for a routine information system for Human Resources Management (HRM). It provides an assessment of the current information system for HRM using a case study approach. It also outlines a suggested approach for the development of a Routine Information System with an Essential Data Set for HRM. Finally, it provides an overview of proposed indicators to produce information for the management and monitoring of Human Resources for the health sector. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/459 Files in this item: 1
MathewsInformation2005.pdf (105.3Kb) -
Pretorius, Joelien (Faculty of Military Science, Stellenbosch University, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: American plans for Missile Defence (MD) and the weaponisation of space should be analysed in the larger framework of the contemporary Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA).1 Soviet military analysts have written about this revolution from as early as the 1970s, but it was the application of information age technology (IT) in the 1991 Gulf War that captured the imagination of military planners and policy makers, especially in the US. The US is actively pursuing an RMA, conceptualised as integrating new IT into weapons systems and integrated command, control, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (C4ISR) and, in turn, doctrinal, operational and organisational change in the military to take advantage of information dominance on the battlefield. This relates to MD and the weaponisation of space in two ways. Firstly, very few countries have the financial and technological capability to modernise their defence forces along the lines of a US-defined RMA, which means that they may resort to so-called asymmetric means to exploit the vulnerabilities or weaknesses of a strong, conventional power. Ballistic missiles (in association with chemical, biological or nuclear payloads) are one of the asymmetrical threats most commonly cited in speeches and military documents of the US and used as justification of MD. Secondly, the RMA increases the US military’s reliance on space-based military assets for C4ISR. Placing weapons in space to protect these assets is seen as a logical step to ensure a key aspect of US dominance on the battlefield. This paper explores the extent to which the strategic framework of the RMA has a bearing on US MD and space weaponisation arguments. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/455 Files in this item: 1
PretoriusDefenceMilitary2005.pdf (261.3Kb) -
de Swardt, Cobus; Puoane, Thandi; Chopra, Mickey; du Toit, Andries (Sage Publications, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper describes key findings of a household livelihood survey conducted in impoverished African settlements in Cape Town, one of Africa’s wealthiest cities. Poverty in these areas is strongly shaped by the history of the Eastern Cape’s adverse spatial incorporation into the South African economy. Migrants from the rural areas are highly dependent on and integrated into the increasingly monetized economy – but are simultaneously marginalized and adversely incorporated within it. Survey findings show the costs and implications of this failure of the formal economy to provide adequate livelihoods. While many eke out a living in a vital yet marginal informal economy, these strategies are thoroughly linked to and dependent on the income that can be secured through participation in the formal job market. Those who are unable to find a foothold in the urban economy are highly vulnerable and are at risk of being confined to long-term poverty traps. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/296 Files in this item: 1
PuoaneUrbanPoverty2005.pdf (798.9Kb) -
Puoane, Thandi; Fourie, JM; Shapiro, M; Rosling, L; Tshaka, N C; Oelefse, A (South African Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To explore perceptions about factors associated with body weight and body image among black female community health workers (CHWs) living and working in Khayelitsha, Cape Town. DESIGN: A descriptive, cross-sectional study. Setting. Khayelitsha, a black township in Cape Town, South Africa. SUBJECTS: Forty-four black, female, Xhosa-speaking CHWs working in Khayelitsha. Outcome measures. Anthropometric measures (height, weight, and waist circumference) were taken. Body mass index (BMI) was computed as a measure to estimate total body fat. Waist circumference was used as a measure of abdominal obesity. Focus groups were employed to explore beliefs and attitudes about body size. Information from the focus group discussions was used to develop a semi-structured questionnaire for individual interviews, which were conducted to validate the data from the focus groups, and to assess knowledge on causes and risk factors associated with obesity. A body satisfaction question was also included in the questionnaire. Body image was measured using body shape drawings (pictograms). RESULTS: Of the 44 women measured, 2 had normal weight (BMI 18.5 - 24.9 kg/m2), 2 were overweight (BMI 25 - 30 kg/m2), 25 were obese (BMI 30 - 40 kg/m2) and 15 were extremely obese (BMI ≥ ( 40 kg/m2). A moderately overweight shape (BMI 27 kg/m2) was preferred; this was associated with dignity, respect, confidence, beauty, and wealth. Perceived causes of obesity were eating the wrong food, skipping breakfast and worries about debts, husbands/partners and teenage children. Negative aspects of obesity included body aches and tiredness. CONCLUSION: This study emphasises the prevalence of obesity among urban black women in South Africa, particularly among CHWs. Socio-cultural, behavioural and environmental factors seem to influence the development of obesity in this population. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/256 Files in this item: 1
PuoaneBig2005.pdf (302.9Kb) -
Brierley, Andrew S.; Boyer, David C.; Axelson, Bjorn Erik; Lynam, Christopher P.; Sparks, Conrad A.J.; Boyer, Helen; Gibbons, Mark J. (Inter-Research, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Acoustic target strengths (TSs) of the 2 most common large medusae, Chrysaora hysoscella and Aequorea aequorea, in the northern Benguela (off Namibia) have previously been estimated (at 18, 38 and 120 kHz) from acoustic data collected in conjunction with trawl samples, using the ‘comparison method’. These TS values may have been biased because the method took no account of acoustic backscatter from mesozooplankton. Here we report our efforts to improve upon these estimates, and to determine TS additionally at 200 kHz, by conducting additional sampling for mesozooplankton and fish larvae, and accounting for their likely contribution to the total backscatter. Published sound scattering models were used to predict the acoustic backscatter due to the observed numerical densities of mesozooplankton and fish larvae (solving the forward problem). Mean volume backscattering due to jellyfish alone was then inferred by subtracting the model-predicted values from the observed water-column total associated with jellyfish net samples. Zooplankton-corrected echo intensity/jellyfish density data pairs were in close agreement with linear relationships determined previously from uncorrected data. Small sample sizes precluded recalculation of TS, but nonparametric pair-wise tests failed to detect any significant differences between echo intensities for jellyfish densities observed in the present study and echo intensities predicted for those densities by density–intensity relationships arising from the previous study. Previous linear density–intensity relationships had y-axis intercepts greater than zero. On the assumption that the positive intercepts were due to backscatter from unsampled mesozooplankton, new TS relationships were calculated from downward-adjusted density–intensity relationships. New values agreed closely with TS estimates determined elsewhere using single-target echo detection techniques. Given that estimates of jellyfish TS appear robust, it should now be feasible to identify jellyfish acoustically at sea and to assess their abundance, even in the presence of mixed mesozooplankton assemblages. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/247 Files in this item: 1
BrierleyAcoustic2005.pdf (103.7Kb) -
Puoane, Thandi; Hughes, Gail; Bradley, Hazel A. (Kamla-Raj Enterprises, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Obesity and associated non-communicable diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and ischaemic heart disease were previously thought to be diseases of affluent countries, but they are becoming increasingly prevalent in developing nations. Accessibility to cheap unhealthy food, global trade and market development influence nutrition transition towards diets with high fat and sugar contents. A decrease in physical activity due to urbanisation and other environmental factors such as crime and violence are thought to lead to an increased risk of obesity. Positive beliefs about body weight among black African women, together with the idea of association of thinness with HIV/AIDS virus infection are believed to fuel the obesity epidemic amongst this population This paper describes some of the contributory factors which black South African women are faced with in making choices about healthy living. A multisectoral approach will be needed to fight the epidemic of obesity and associated diseases. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/243 Files in this item: 1
PuoaneObesity2005.pdf (29.48Kb) -
Conradie, Ernst (Wiley-Blackwell, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This essay builds on the conference on “Mission in the 21th century: New models and strategies in a world of diversity” held in Livingstone, Zambia from 25 March to 1 April 2004. It offers some background to the tension between mission as “evangelism” and as “development” which was addressed at this conference. It then describes some of the insights emerging from this conference, with specific reference to the description of mission as “crying and struggling with others to live today with dignity.” It provides some perspectives on this description on the basis of an exegesis of the second half of the Lord's prayer. The conclusion to the essay suggests that further reflection is required on the relationship between soteriology and missiology. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/385 Files in this item: 1
ConradieLordsPrayer2005.pdf (171.6Kb) -
Conradie, Ernst (University of Kwazulu-Natal School of Theology, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This essay defends the significance of the Christian doctrine of sin with reference to the many contemporary manifestations of evil, including the problems of environmental devastation, environmental injustuce and rampant consmerism. It offers a survey of various attempts towards an ecological reformulation of the doctrine of sin. It argues that theological circumspection is required in order not to confuse and conflate the problems of natural suffering and human finitude with the human roots of evil. It argues that theological attention on the relationship between nature and grace should not inhibit a primary theological focus on the tension between sin and grace. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/408 Files in this item: 1
ConradieEcologicalReformulation2005.pdf (1.701Mb) -
Lalu, Premesh; Isaacman, Allen; Nygren, Tom (Indiana University Press, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper describes the history of an initiative to digitize a postcolonial archive on the struggle for freedom in Southern Africa. The authors outline the intellectual architecture of the project and the complex epistemological, political, and technical challenges that they confronted in their endeavor to construct a digital archive that might help reorient scholarly debates on the struggle for liberation. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/299 Files in this item: 1
Lalu_Digitization2005.pdf (566.8Kb) -
Khan, Sadika; Geerts, Greta (South African Dental Association (SADA), 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Removable partial dentures (RPD) are an effective and affordable treatment option for partial edentulism. If the main reason for seeking treatment is the need for improved aesthetics, treatment should be geared towards achieving this goal. This article is the result of a literature study on aesthetic clasp design for the conventional RPD. In this context, the position of the clasp on the tooth, clasp types, clasp material and alternative methods of retention are reviewed. Although published in reputable journals, the authors report that many articles published on this subject are of a descriptive nature and lack scientific evidence. Therefore, clinicians are encouraged to be critical in their interpretation of literature and the application of published information in their clinical practices. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/223 Files in this item: 1
KhanRemovable2005.pdf (617.5Kb) -
Kruger, Salome H; Puoane, Thandi; Senekal, Marjanne; Van Der Merwe, Theresa M (Nutrition Society, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To review data on the prevalence, causes and health consequences of obesity in South Africa and propose interventions to prevent and treat obesity and related outcomes. METHODS: Data from existing literature were reviewed with an emphasis on changing eating and activity patterns, cultural factors, perceptions and beliefs, urbanisation and globalisation. Results of studies on the health consequences of obesity in South Africans are also reviewed. RESULTS: Shifts in dietary intakes and activity patterns to higher fat intakes and lower physical activity are contributing to a higher prevalence of obesity. Few overweight black women view themselves as overweight, and some associate thinness with HIV/AIDS. Glucose and lipid toxicity, associated with insulin resistance, play roles in the pathogenesis of the co-morbid diseases of obesity. Elevated free fatty acids in the black population predispose obese black patients to type 2 diabetes. CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS: Obesity prevention and treatment should be based on education, behaviour change, political support, intersectoral collaboration and community participation, local actions, wide inclusion of the population, adequately resourced programmes, infiltration of existing initiatives, evidence-based planning, and proper monitoring and evaluation. Interventions should have the following components: reasonable weight goals, healthful eating, physical activity and behavioural change. Genes and mutations affecting susceptibility to the development of co-morbidities of obesity and vulnerable periods of life for the development of obesity should be prioritised. Prevention should be managed in community services, identification of high-risk patients in primary healthcare services and treatment of co-morbid diseases in hospital services. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/285 Files in this item: 1
PuoaneObesityChallenges2005.pdf (160.4Kb) -
Scott, Vera; Chopra, Mickey; Conrad, Liz; Ntuli, Antoinette (Health and Medical Publishing Group, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: OBJECTIVES. To assess the extent of inequalities in availability and utilisation of HIV services across South Africa. DESIGN. Cross-sectional descriptive study. Setting. Three districts reflecting different socio-economic conditions, but with similar levels of HIV infection, were purposively sampled. Outcome measures. Availability and utilisation of HIV services and management and support structures for programmes were assessed through the collection of secondary data supplemented by site visits. RESULTS. There were marked inequalities in service delivery between the three sites. Compared with two poorer sites, clinics at the urban site had greater availability of HIV services, including voluntary counselling and testing (100% v. 52% and 24% respectively), better uptake of this service (59 v. 9 and 5.5 clients per 1 000 adults respectively) and greater distribution of condoms (15.6 v. 8.2 condoms per adult male per year). Extra counsellors had also been employed at the urban site in contrast to the other 2 sites. The urban site also had far more intensive management support and monitoring, with 1 manager per 12 health facilities compared with 1 manager per more than 90 health facilities at the other 2 sites. CONCLUSION. The process of scaling up of HIV services seems to be accentuating inequalities. The urban site in this study was better able to utilise the extra resources. In contrast, the poorer sites have thus far been unable to scale up the response to HIV even with the availability of extra resources. Unless policy makers pay more attention to equity, efficacious interventions may prove to be of limited effectiveness. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/172 Files in this item: 1
ScottHowEquitable2005.pdf (307.4Kb) -
Ah Tow, Lemese; Cowan, Donald A. (Springer Verlag, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Continental Antarctic is perceived as a largely pristine environment, although certain localized regions (e.g., parts of the Ross Dependency Dry Valleys) are relatively heavy impacted by human activities. The procedures imposed on Antarctic field parties for the handling and disposal of both solid and liquid wastes are designed to minimise eutrofication and contamination (particularly by human enteric bacteria). However, little consideration has been given to the significance, if any, of less obvious forms of microbial contamination resulting from periodic human activities in Antarctica. The predominant commensal microorganism on human skin, Staphylococcus epidermidis, could be detected by PCR, in Dry Valley mineral soils collected from heavily impacted areas, but could not be detected in Dry Valley mineral soils collected from low impact and pristine areas. Cell viability of this non-enteric human commensal is rapidly lost in Dry Valley mineral soil. However, S. epidermidis can persist for long periods in Dry Valley mineral soil as non-viable cells and/or naked DNA. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/146 Files in this item: 1
AhTowDissemination2005.pdf (393.6Kb) -
McMillan, Wendy (American Association of Dental Schools, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This article is located in the field of academic development in oral health science education. Specifically, it examines the academic difficulties experienced by oral hygiene students in their transition from high school to university. A qualitative approach was employed to elicit student and lecturer perceptions. Drawing on empirical evidence from a case study of a cohort of first-year oral hygiene students at a dental faculty in South Africa, the article contributes to an understanding of how first-year university students might be better prepared for the challenges of reading and writing in higher education. The voices of lecturers and students are used to highlight the nature of the difficulties that students experience in the transition from high school to university. The suggestions that students made regarding how the transition might be eased are also examined. The final section draws on these suggestions and presents a working model for an academic development module for first-year oral health students. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/57 Files in this item: 1
McMillan_studying(2005).pdf (154.2Kb) -
McMillan, Wendy; Laloo, R.; Gugushe, T.S.; Ligthelm, A.J.; Evans, W.G.; Moola, Mohamad H. (South African Dental Association, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper, written at the close of a decade of democracy in South Africa, sets out to analyse the demographic profile of dental graduates from 1985-2004 at the five Faculties/Schools of Dentistry in South Africa. A comparison of the profiles for the pre-democracy (1985-1994) and post-apartheid (1995-2004) periods has been made. The demographic profile of first year dental students from 2000-2005 is also presented. From 1985-1994, most dental graduates were male (79%), but this changed substantially from 1995-2004, with females comprising 46% of those graduating. In the pre-democracy period, more than three-quarters of all graduates were White (78%), decreasing to 46% in the post-apartheid period under review. Black graduates increased from 6% to 24% across the two study periods. Amongst the first year dental student intake from 2000- 2005, females comprised 57%. There was an almost equal distribution across the White, Black and Asian groups. Dental faculties/schools have made important strides in transforming the demographic profile of their students. The percentage of Black graduates, however, needs to be significantly increased if it is to reflect the national population. Faculties/schools must further ensure that able students from working class background are identified and considered for acceptance into the undergraduate dental programme, and should then be offered the necessary academic and mentoring support to enable success. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/56 Files in this item: 1
McMillan_distribution(2005).pdf (143.8Kb) -
McMillan, Wendy; Parker, M.E. (Routledge, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: This paper discusses quality evaluation of health sciences mentoring programmes. The discussion highlights the way in which perceptions of what constitutes quality shape evaluative purposes. Potential tensions between the evaluative purposes of various stakeholders are brought to the fore. To this end, the discussion explores the ways in which accountability shapes the evaluative purposes of funders and how the desire for programme knowledge and development frames the evaluative purposes of academics. Various approaches to programme evaluation are examined. The potential of reflective practice as a tool for examining quality for knowledge and development of programmes is considered. The paper concludes by presenting a framework for evaluating various aspects of quality in mentoring programmes. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/85 Files in this item: 1
McMillan_Quality2005.pdf (300.2Kb) -
Julie, Hester; Daniels, Priscilla; Adonis, Tracey-Ann (University of Johannesburg, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: Domestic violence is a pervasive problem in South Africa. The School of Nursing at the University of the Western Cape has responded to the challenge of training sensitive, knowledgeable and skilled health personnel by developing a Management of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) module. The purpose of this paper is to describe the professional and personal development of nursing students in this programme through their service-learning experience in the GBV module based on the analysis of the description of the students’ reflective journals, group project reports and a focus-group discussion as the primary data sources. Analysis showed that students gained critical thinking skills and developed an understanding of the supportive role health professionals can play through developing skills of caring, advocacy and a commitment to civic engagement, which promotes collaborative relationships. Some of the lessons learnt from this experience include realistic planning in terms of outcomes, time frames, and available resources as well ensuring support from colleagues for the effective implementation of the programme. URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/82 Files in this item: 1
Julie_Service2005.pdf (65.50Kb) -
Puoane, Thandi; Hughes, Gail (South African Medical Association, 2005)[more][less]
Abstract: HIV/AIDS continues to ravage sub-Saharan Africa, and in South Africa accounts for 30% of all mortality, making it the leading cause of death. The epidemic has had other negative effects, which have not been fully realised. Among these is the fact that, paradoxically, the awareness programmes implemented to prevent major spread of HIV/AIDS have complicated the prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10566/283 Files in this item: 1
HIV and NCDs m_samj_v95_n4_a6.pdf (219.2Kb)