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Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global event that has caused significant fear and anxiety across all populations. To date, there have been no studies on how major health crises have affected the stone-related quality-of-life (QOL) of urolithiasis patients. In this multi-institutional study, we investigated whether the fear of COVID-19 affects the QOL of urolithiasis patients during the COVID-19 pandemic using the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) and the Wisconsin Stone Quality of Life (WISQOL) questionnaires. Materials and Methods Patient-reported data collection occurred between April-October 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic where many procedures (radiological or surgical) and visits were either delayed or cancelled. The scores generated from patient-reported responses to questionnaires were correlated and then further sub-analyzed dependent on categorical responses related to procedural delays or care and were analyzed via the Student's T-test. A single factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to analyze varying QOL scores across the FCV-19S quartiles. Results 400 respondents participated in this study. Overall mean total standardized FCV-19S and WISQOL scores (both transformed to min-max 0-100) were 34.3 and 70.3 respectively. A significant inverse correlation (r=-0.265, p

It has been a pronounced concern for social service organisations (SSOs) on how to foster a sense of co-ownership amongst their employees. A total of 937 valid questionnaires were collected amongst social worker participants aged twenty-one to twenty-nine years working in three different places of China, namely, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. By confirming the hypotheses, the findings revealed that decent work and social support were positively associated with the collective psychological ownership (CPO) held by young adult social workers, and decent work enhanced CPO shared by them through an indirect mechanism of enhancing their social support at work. This is the first-ever study providing empirical evidence to support the association of decent work and social support with CPO amongst young adult employees in organisational context. The findings of this study can help inform the development of human resources management strategies for cultivating CPO, justify and expand the promotion of decent work in conjunction with the framework of psychology of working theory and interpersonal perspective, and inspire relevant research and practice with regard to the personal development of young adult social workers and the sustainable development of SSOs.

Inspired by Amartya Sen's conceptualization of capability, this article examined how the introduction of an experience-driven (ED) framework into the capability approach helps inform the delivery of a career support service project targeted at youth aged 15-21, who are not in education, employment or training (NEET youth) with difficulties to develop their career capabilities. Based on a thematic analysis of ten individual interview transcripts collected from five career practitioners and five ex-users, the study discussed four interlocking domains of experiences and experience-driven career interventions for enhancing youth's capabilities to aspire and realize aspirations with a transition from the zone of proximal development to the zone of aspired development, namely, recognition, exposures, self-growth and transferability. We recommended further research studies on evaluating the effectiveness of using the ED framework for applying the capability approach to strengthening the career capabilities of service users characterized by diversity and vulnerability in different service settings.

A phase-modulated scanning near-field luminescence (PM-SNOL) technique is presented, with which we show that charges stored in persistently luminescent crystals are carriers in nature and diffuse into indium-tin oxide in contact with such phosphors.

Using a multilevel approach and a nationally representative sample of 5,478 social workers from 813 social service organisations in China, this study investigated the association between collective psychological ownership (CPO), an emerging construct of psychosocial resources characterised by sharedness, and social workers’ turnover intention by controlling for psychological demands (i.e. emotional exhaustion and role ambiguity) and psychological resources (i.e. self-perceived autonomy, self-perceived and composite person–organisation value congruence, and self-perceived and composite social support). The results showed that CPO conceptualised as both individual- and organisational-level psychosocial resources were negatively associated with social workers’ turnover intention. The findings of the study will draw implications for keeping social workers and other helping professionals in their organisations by practicing co-workers’ shared agency and joint actions defined in terms of collective decision-making and hardship endurance.

Despite extensive research on career decision-making self-efficacy (CDMSE) in relation to youth’s career development and outcomes, the relative influence of different parental variables on youth’s CDMSE remains relatively unclear. Thus, this meta-analysis sought to compare correlational findings concerning the influence of three types of parental variables—parental cognitions, parenting behaviors, and parent–child relationships—on youth’s CDMSE. This meta-analysis also aimed to examine differences in how maternal influences only, paternal influences only, and the influence of both parents are associated with youth’s CDMSE. A systematic search for relevant literature was conducted in six scientific databases (i.e., ERIC, PsycINFO, Social Sciences Citation Index, Social Services Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, and Social Work Abstracts) and other sources (i.e., Google Scholar and reference searching), which yielded 27 quantitative studies from 3529 records on parental factors of youth’s CDMSE published between 1983 and 2020. The results showed that all three types of parental variables demonstrated a low to medium association with youth’s CDMSE, although parental cognitions had the largest effect size (r = 0.312; 95% CI [0.217, 0.407]), followed by parenting behaviors (r = 0.303; 95% CI [0.248, 0.359]) and parent–child relationships (r = 0.255; 95% CI [0.226, 0.284]). The effect size for the influences of both parents (r = 0.312; 95% CI [0.264, 0.359]) was found to be larger than that of maternal (r = 0.256; 95% CI [0.216, 0.296]) or paternal influences (r = 0.230; 95% CI [0.186, 0.275]) alone. Those results pose important implications and indicate promising directions for research and practice to improve parenting about young people’s career development.

We sought to examine cardiovascular toxicities associated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors in pediatrics. We examined 1624 pediatric adverse events with imatinib, dasatinib, sorafenib, pazopanib, crizotinib, and ruxolitinib reported to the Food and Drug Administration between January 1, 2015, and August 14, 2020. There were 102 cardiovascular event reports. Hypertension was the most commonly reported cardiovascular event and was most frequently associated with sorafenib and pazopanib. The presence of infection increased the reporting odds of cardiovascular events overall and specifically cardiac arrest, heart failure, and hypertension. These data provide early insight into cardiovascular toxicities with tyrosine kinase inhibitor use in pediatrics.

This paper examines the relationship between CO2 emissions in three economic sectors of G20 member countries using the environmental IPAT model and STIRPAT model and validates the EKC hypothesis by comparing the results for developing and developed countries. The results confirm that there is a significant long-run equilibrium relationship between the three sectors (primary, secondary, and tertiary) and CO2 emissions across the panel. Furthermore, the long-run elasticities suggest that the primary sector (agriculture) positively and negatively affects the CO2 emissions of developing and developed economies, respectively. This finding proves that the development of agriculture is in line with the EKC hypothesis that a more developed economy will instead improve environmental degradation. Based on the findings, for each sector, we provide policymakers with suggestions to potentially curb CO2 emissions without significantly compromising economic growth.

The present study employed various qualitative techniques to investigate the nature and influence of policies and regulations concerning solar and wind pricing on the Australian electricity spot and options markets. The analysis was based on data gathered through interviews conducted with energy managers, chief executive officers and other significant personnel from the Australian electricity industry. The interviewees’ responses regarding the solar and wind policies of relevance to the Australian electricity markets were examined, and the thick and in-depth content data derived from the interviews were used to examine how their views and personal politics influenced pricing within the electricity markets. The results suggest that renewable energy policies lower the electricity prices, reduce the risks for investors and also result in larger deployment mechanisms.Keywords: Electricity pricing, Renewable energy, Energy policies.JEL Classifications: Q13, Q4, Q42DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.10991

Sepsis outcomes remain high regarding mortality and morbidity, despite efforts to reduce them. We retrospectively evaluated a protocol in the first 6 months of implementation to measure outcomes. Retrospective data collection and analysis was performed of 200 consecutive patients seen in the ED during the first 4 months of 2020 after implementation of the sepsis protocol (group 1) and compared to another 200 consecutive patients during the same time frame in 2019 before the sepsis protocol (group 2). The collected parameters included age, gender, race, length of stay comorbid conditions, mortality, and therapy received. Statistical significance was determined at a p-value ≤.05. Mean age and gender of the groups were similar, 64 vs 66 years for group 1 and 2, respectively. Each group was 45% male. Mean length of stay were 8.9 and 8.6 days in group 1 and 2, respectively. Group 1 had a mortality rate of 13% vs 18% in group 2 (p = .21). Comorbid conditions including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, renal failure, and COPD were analyzed regarding mortality that influenced outcomes using Cox regression analysis. COPD and diabetic patient mortality were significantly lower in the protocol group. Surgical patients had a survival rate of 92.4%. Therefore, the current protocol for sepsis management did improve mortality. Further studies with a larger number of patients are in progress.

Background and Purpose: Abdominal pain during pregnancy is quite common; however, surgical pathology such as acute appendicitis as a cause of such pain is not. Diagnostic tests used in addition to history and physical examination (PE) are ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We elected to find the role of these tests in pregnant patients who presented to our emergency department with acute abdominal pain. Materials And Methods: Retrospective analysis of 136 pregnant women with acute abdominal pain presented to the emergency department (ED). We reviewed PE, US, MRI, gestational age, comorbid conditions, and length of stay. Statistical analysis was done using student’s t-test and chi-square test. Institutional review board approval was obtained. Results: Mean age was 26 (±4.6) and the mean gestational age was 24 (±9.9) weeks. Of those patients, there were 81 patients who had an US and MRI performed. The US was positive in 16 patients, while the MRI was positive in 25 patients. Three patients went for appendectomy. The US sensitivity was 0% and specificity 79%. Positive predictive value for US was 0% and negative predictive value was 95%, which was less than 100%. The MRI likelihood ratios were calculated for each test’s clinical application and demonstrated that the US test result was indeterminate for ruling in and for ruling out appendicitis while the MRI allowed for high ability to rule out the disease. Conclusion: In pregnant women with acute abdominal pain and a positive PE highly suggestive of surgical pathology, US had limited value and patients should proceed to MRI.

The use of ureteral access sheaths (UAS) is common practice during routine flexible ureteroscopy procedures. However, debates and concerns continue amongst endourologists on routine UAS placement. UAS placement allows for multiple passages of the ureteroscope, decreases intrarenal pressure, and may improve stone-free rates. However, concerns for the UAS's effectiveness in these claimed benefits and complications related to UAS placement has been documented and investigated by many. In this review, we will discuss the controversies surrounding the placement of UAS during ureteroscopy.

Introduction: Acquisition costs and prohibitively expensive technical support for endoscope maintenance, repair, and reprocessing have deterred adoption of flexible cystoscopes by many urologists i...

We find compelling evidence that integrating environment, social and governance (ESG) analyses into ongoing investment practices in Australia does not harm risk‐adjusted returns. High‐ESG‐rated portfolios consistently provide superior outperformance, diversification efficiencies, and lower overall risk compared to low‐ESG‐rated portfolios. In contrast to low‐rated portfolios, we find no evidence that high‐ESG‐rated portfolios underperform the market. All results remain robust to alternative time periods, market cycles, seasonality effects, ratings method and the inclusion of trading costs and management fees. Overall, our findings suggest that a simple ESG integration strategy may provide a natural hedge against the risks that arise from the evolving fiduciary responsibilities of professional investment managers relating to ESG risks.

Following the liberalisation of the global electricity markets, spot and options markets have been established in many countries. Electricity pricing issues, coupled with increased concern regarding global warming and the greenhouse effect, represent the driving factors behind electricity price movements. Australia, Germany, the United States (US) and other countries worldwide have increasingly shifted their focus away from fossil fuels and towards energy generated from renewable sources, including solar and wind power. This paper examines the behaviour of the Australian, German and US electricity markets in terms of the impact of solar and wind pricing on the electricity spot and options markets for the period January 2006 to March 2018. Using a vector autoregression analysis, we examine both the direction of influence and the influence absorption through Granger causality testing, the impulse response function and forecast error variance decompositions. Our findings indicate that the electricity markets in Australia, Germany and the US are interdependent and related with regards to solar and wind price changes, meaning that the investigated electricity markets are influenced by movements in other electricity markets. The findings of this study are important for investors, energy analysts, government organisations and policymakers. Keywords: Electricity pricing, Renewable energy, VAR model.JEL Classifications: C32, Q41, Q42DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.8939

This paper examines the impact of solar and wind prices on the Australian electricity spot and options markets for the period January 2006 to March 2018. Using a vector autoregression analysis, we examine both the direction of influence and influence absorption through Granger causality testing, the impulse response function, and forecast error variance decompositions. We identify a unidirectional Granger causal relationship between the solar and wind electricity prices and the spot prices in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, and South Australia. The forecast results suggest that the solar and wind electricity prices reduce the spot and options electricity market prices. These results are important for energy policymakers and government organizations that support renewables, as their use not only decreases the wholesale spot prices, but also encourages initiatives to explore and switch to alternative energy sources, which tend to be more cost effective and environmentally friendly. Keywords: Electricity pricing, Renewable energy, VAR model.JEL Classifications: C32, Q41, Q42DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.8567

Understanding the parental influences on the career development of non-engaged youth (NEY) has been an underdeveloped research area. Furthermore, psychometrically valid and reliable tools for assessing how parents of NEY support their children in dealing with career issues remain largely unavailable in academia. This research aimed to validate a quantitative measure for such assessments. Specifically, the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Parent Career Behavior Checklist (C-PCBC) in a sample of NEY and their parents were examined. Through a community-based project providing career counseling and development services for NEY in different districts of Hong Kong, 142 parent–child dyads completed parallel versions of C-PCBC and other related questionnaires. A multi-group confirmatory factor analyses examining NEY and their parents was conducted. The results demonstrated an acceptable model fit and confirmed a 22-item twofold factor structure, namely parental psychosocial support and parental career-related actions. Moreover, the construct validity of the C-PCBC was supported by significant correlations with parenting and youth development measures. Substantial perceptual differences between NEY and their parents on the degree of parental psychosocial support and parental career-related actions were also found. The present research indicates that the C-PCBC possesses acceptable psychometric properties. However, the results indicate that NEY and their parents have different perceptions of parental involvement, suggesting a lack of parent–child communication and mismatches in expectations. The findings here have implications for how parental support and parent–child relationships should be addressed when providing career counseling and development programs for NEY.

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) has become a popular behavioral therapy in the special education needs (SEN) community. ABA is used to manage SEN students’ behaviors by solving problems in socially important settings, and puts emphasis on having precise measurements on physical and observable events. In this work, we present how Internet of Things (IoT) technologies can be applied to enhance ABA therapy in normal SEN classroom settings. We measured (1) learning performance data, (2) learners’ physiological data, and (3) learning environment sensors’ data. Upon preliminary analysis, we have found that learners’ physiological data is highly diverse, while learner performance seems to be related to learners’ electrodermal activity. Our preliminary findings suggest the possibility of enhancing ABA for SEN with IoT technologies.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:Residual fragments (RFs) after percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) are more evident with the increasing use of high-resolution CT-scan. The fate of RFs after PCNL are poo...

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE:Flexible ureteroscopes are routinely used to treat kidney stones. Both single-use and reusable models are available. The high cost of purchase and repair of reusable uret...

This study aims to develop autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models to predict the solar, wind, spot and options pricing over the next two years, with historical data being used in a univariate manner to understand market behaviour in terms of trends. The assessment is made in the context of the Australian National Electricity Market (ANEM). The ARIMA models predict the future values of the monthly solar, wind, spot and options prices for various Australian states using time-series data from January 2006 to March 2018. The results show increases from 30.46–40.42% for the spot electricity prices and from 14.80–15.13% for the options electricity prices in the ANEM with a two-year horizon. The results further show that wind prices are expected to increase by an average of 5.43%. However, the results also show that the average solar electricity prices will decrease by 67.7%.Keywords: Electricity pricing, ARIMA model, Forecasting.JEL Classifications: C22, E37, Q47DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.7785

Planar graphene quantum dots synthesized using wet chemistry have been widely investigated for their optoelectronic properties, but less work exists on deposition of curved carbon dots (CDs) by physical techniques. In this work, a bottom-up growth method termed sputter-plasma assisted chemical vapour deposition (SPA-CVD) is used to grow curved CDs in vacuum, reminiscent of graphene fabricated on copper foil using chemical vapour deposition. In SPA-CVD, ∼10-nm thick Cu layers with an ultrathin carbon film on top are nucleated into copper nanoparticles (Cu-NP) by thermal annealing resulting in curved CDs on their surfaces. CD morphology and dimensions are determined by the hemispherical shape of the nucleated Cu-NPs. With this method, a uniform layer of CDs of tuneable size can be grown on a substrate such as aluminum over wafer-size-areas, without the use of solvents. CD diameter and concentration can be tuned over a wide range by manipulating the SPA-CVD sputtering and evaporation parameters. It is shown that SPA-CVD grown curved CDs embedded in a poly(methyl methacrylate) matrix show resistive memory effects. This work provides a new insight towards the development of high-quality, curved CDs with tuneable properties for device applications, for which planar and solution processed CDs may not be suitable.

The development and survival of spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs) are dependent on multiple trophic factors as well as membrane electrical activity. Semaphorins (Sema) constitute a family of membrane-associated and secreted proteins that have garnered significant attention as a potential SGN "navigator" during cochlea development. Previous studies using mutant mice demonstrated that Sema3A plays a role in the SGN pathfinding. The mechanisms, however, by which Sema3A shapes SGNs firing behavior are not known. In these studies, we found that Sema3A plays a novel role in regulating SGN resting membrane potential and excitability. Using dissociated SGN from pre-hearing (P3-P5) and post-hearing mice (P12-P15), we recorded membrane potentials using whole-cell patch clamp recording techniques in apical and basal SGN populations. Recombinant Sema3A was applied to examine the effects on intrinsic membrane properties and action potentials evoked by current injections. Apical and basal SGNs from newborn mice treated with recombinant Sema3A (100 ng/ml) displayed a higher resting membrane potential, higher threshold, decreased amplitude, and prolonged latency and duration of spikes. Although a similar phenomenon was observed in SGNs from post-hearing mice, the resting membrane potential was essentially indistinguishable before and after Sema3A exposure. Sema3A-mediated changes in membrane excitability were associated with a significant decrease in K+ and Ca2+ currents. Sema3A acts through linopirdine-sensitive K+ channels in apical, but not in the basal SGNs. Therefore, Sema3A induces differential effects in SGN membrane excitability that are dependent on age and location, and constitutes an additional early and novel effect of Sema3A SGNs in vitro.