Search results

Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria, is one of the fastest growing capital cities in sub-Saharan Africa. Recently, the city is experiencing an alarming rate of burglary and violent crimes, while the city planning management frameworks lacks adequate and effective crime mapping, monitoring and management techniques necessary for achieving liveable and safe environment for habitation despite its grandiose spatial planning and aesthetically appealing architectural design as a modern city. Based on police crime records (2007–2018) and geospatial analysis, this paper aims to provide adequate understanding on the interplay of land use configuration and burglary crime formation in residential neighbourhoods of Abuja, Nigeria.

The methods used for the purpose of data collection includes; field survey, Block Environmental Inventory, while inferential statistics and Geographic Information System tools was used for data analysis. The analysis established that Lagos, Nsukka and Enugu Streets are hotspots; while Chief Palace street, Ladoke Akintola and Oka-Akoko streets were found to be cold spots.

This study, however, established the applicability of crime pattern, opportunity theory and routine activity theory in understanding the rising burglary crime events in the study areas and the link between physical characteristics of street block typology and burglary crime pattern. The results of the analysis has in a way affirmed the positions of the theories, while disagreed with them in cases where the results indicated contrary outcome.

This paper concluded with inference drawn from the results that supported mixed-use development but with built-in crime prevention through environmental design strategies as effective burglary crime prevention mechanisms that contribute to crime rate reduction.

Most UK ambulance services undertake remote assessments of 999 calls with nurses and paramedics to manage demand and reduce inappropriate hospital admissions. However, little is known about the differences in the types of cases managed by the two professions comparatively, their clinical outcomes, and the quality and safety they offer.

The retrospective descriptive study analysed data collected at Welsh Ambulance Services University NHS Trust (WAST) from prioritisation, triage, and audit tools between the 17th May 2022 to 8th November 2022. A total of 21,076 cases and 728 audits were included for review.

There was little difference in the type and frequency of the presenting complaints assessed, and clinical outcomes reached in percentage terms. Whilst paramedics had more highly compliant call audits and fewer non-compliant call audits, there was, again, little difference in percentage terms between the two, indicating positive levels of safety across the two professional groups.

There continues to be a substantial difference between UK paramedics to those in the Middle East, the United States, and some African nations, which may limit the applicability of findings. This study also looked at a six-month window from only one UK service using one type of prioritisation and triage tool. Future research could explore longer periods from multiple services using various tools. It is important to note that this study did not link outcome data with primary, secondary or tertiary care settings. Thus, it is impossible to determine if the level of care aligned closely with the final diagnosis.

The practical implications of this work include better workforce planning for agencies who have perhaps only employed one type of clinician or a reaffirmation to those who have employed both. The authors suggest that the training and education of both sets of clinicians could remain general in nature, with no overt requirement for specificity based on professional registration alone. Commissioners and stakeholders in the wider health economy should consider ensuring equitable access to alternative pathways for patients assessed by both nurses and paramedics.

It has been posited that UK nurses and paramedics are, by virtue of their consistency in education, skill set, licensure, and general experience, both able to achieve safe and effective remote outcomes in 999 settings. This study provides evidence to support that hypothesis. These results say more about the two professions' ability to work together rather than just the professions themselves. The multidisciplinary team approach is well-established in acute care settings, and is broadly considered to improve communication, coordination decision making, adherence to up-to-date treatment recommendations, and be positive for shared learning and development for younger colleagues.

Most UK services use a mix of nurses and paramedics; however, little is known about the differences in the types of cases managed by the two professions comparatively, their clinical outcomes, and the quality and safety they each offer. The most recent studies of this nature were published in 2003 and 2004 and looked only at low-acuity 999 calls when remote assessment was not even an established role for UK paramedics. This study updates the literature, identifies areas for future research, and applies to the international setting for the most part.

The aim of this research paper is to present a new model of innovation management under the approach of anticipatory collective intelligence strategies to improve the innovation capacity of products and business processes. The paper presents a case study of Café Galavis, one of the oldest family-owned companies in the Colombian coffee sector.

A descriptive mixed-methods research design was used. Ten experts and the general manager of the organization were interviewed using a semi-structured format. Additionally, a creativity and innovation workshop were conducted with the participation of 140 young people between the ages of 21 and 28. The traditional product of the company was evaluated using the SCAMPER technique. On the other hand, a strategic approach was taken to address the complex problem. This involved conducting a bibliometric analysis using Vosviewer software, prioritizing key variables and actors’ game through MICMAC and MACTOR software, seeking expert judgment, conducting morphological analysis, generating scenarios under the Peter Schwartz axes and designing a strategic plan.

The paper presents a new approach to developing innovation processes by connecting foresight and the SCAMPER technique as a strategy for anticipatory collective intelligence. Furthermore, it was found that the use of these methods enhances the innovation capacity of both products and business processes. Organizations can implement this model to create plans with disruptive and sustainable horizons.

The paper presents methods to enhance the adoption and performance of innovation in companies through collective anticipatory intelligence and the use of digital tools.

This paper proposes a novel approach to combining two future methods to promote innovation. This study makes a theoretical and practical contribution to the field of foresight.

The Metaverse is rapidly reshaping the understanding of tourism, yet the public perception of this new domain remains largely uncharted empirically. This paper aims to build on the technology acceptance model (TAM) and diffusion of innovations theory (DIT) to fill this gap, offering crucial insights that could inform scholars and practitioners in both the tourism and technology sectors.

Using a big-data approach, the authors applied machine learning to scrape comments made by social media users on recent popular posts or videos related to tourism in the Metaverse from three prominent social media platforms. The cleaning process narrowed down 15,461 comments to 2,650, which were then analysed using thematic, emotion and sentiment analysis techniques.

The thematic analysis revealed that virtual tourism evokes a complex range of public beliefs. While many express awe and excitement toward its immersive capabilities, others remain sceptical about authenticity compared to physical travel. Additional themes show people draw comparisons to real-world tourism, discuss technology’s role and note educational value and novelty. However, some comments raise concerns about potential societal harms, exploitation and mental health impacts. Sentiment analysis found over half of the comments positive, though some were negative. Emotion analysis showed contentment, happiness and excitement as most frequent, though sadness, worry and loneliness also featured. Overall, perceptions of Metaverse tourism encompass enthusiasm yet substantial ambivalence.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the first to comprehensively analyse public discussions on Metaverse tourism. It takes TAM and Rogers’s DIT a step further and provides fresh insights into how these theories can be employed in the emerging field of Metaverse tourism. The themes revealed new conceptual insights into multidimensional factors shaping public beliefs about Metaverse tourism and thus informing scholarly research on virtual interaction and technology acceptance regarding Metaverse tourism. In addition, the results can help tourism providers, platforms and marketers address salient public beliefs and sentiments/attitudes in developing marketing offerings, experiences and communications. Over time, this analysis methodology can be used to track the evolving public perceptions of Metaverse tourism.

The objectives of this study are to (a) identify spatial and temporal crime concentrations, (b) supplement the traditional place-based analysis that defines hot spots based on counted incidents with an analysis of crime severity and (c) add to the research of hot spots with an analysis of offender data.

This study explores crime concentration in mass transit settings, focusing on Edmonton’s Light Rail Transit (LRT) stations in 2017–2022. Pareto curves are used to observe the degree of concentration of crime in certain locations using multiple estimates; trajectory analysis is then used to observe crime patterns in the data on both places and offenders.

A total of 16.3% of stations accounted for 50% of recorded incidents. Train stations with high or low crime counts and severity remained as such consistently over time. Additionally, 3.6% of offenders accounted for 50% of incident count, while 5% accounted for 50% of harm. We did not observe differences in the patterns and distributions of crime concentrations when comparing crime counts and harm.

Hot spots and harm spots are synonymous in low-crime-harm environments: high-harm incidents are outliers, and their weight in the average crime severity score is limited. More sensitive severity measures are needed for high-frequenty, low-harm enviornments.

The findings underscore the benefits of integrating offender data in place-based applied research.

The findings provide additional evidence on the utility of place-based criminology and potentially cost-effective interventions.

This study explores the deep integration of digital technology and cultural heritage to promote the preservation and inheritance of cultural heritage. Focusing on Digital Cultural Heritage (DCH), this research investigates its key role in activating theoretical research and practical applications in cultural heritage.

This study conducted an extensive bibliometric analysis utilizing VOSviewer and Bibliometrix visualization software to meticulously examine DCH research. Insights were gleaned from a dataset comprising 2,997 DCH-related publications harvested from the Web of Science database.

The bibliometric analysis reveals several notable findings: driven by active contributions from Italy, China, Spain, and the USA, the number of DCH publications shows a linear upward trend. Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche in Italy emerges as a prominent institution, while the Journal of Cultural Heritage stands out as the most influential journal in the DCH field. Scholars such as Remondino, Guidi, Barazzetti, and Carrozzino have significantly impacted DCH research. Furthermore, an in-depth analysis of keyword co-occurrence networks elucidates six major research trajectories in the DCH field, covering various aspects from cultural heritage digitization to digital humanities.

The study emphasizes the value of global knowledge exchange, interdisciplinary collaboration, innovative technology applications, and digital content provision practices in advancing DCH research.

By delving into the multifaceted landscape of DCH research, this study brings forth original insights into the escalating trends, pivotal contributors, and burgeoning research directions.

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of using a virtual patient (VP) software program in increasing clinical reasoning skills confidence among medical students.

A quasi-experimental design was used to compare the outcomes of students’ confidence levels on clinical reasoning between problem-based learning (PBL) and VP program with 122 pre-clinical Year 2 medical students. History taking, physical examination, clinical investigations and diagnosis was investigated using four PBL cases in the oncology block. Pre- and post-differences in mean confidence scores between the arms were compared, as well as mean difference by type of case and skill category.

A total of 122/156 (78.2%) students participated; n = 55 were from 7 VP groups and n = 67 were from 13 control arm groups. For the primary outcome, the VP arm showed a statistically significant increase in confidence measures among 11/16 (4 cases × 4 skills) categories, compared to 4/16 for the control arm. The proportion of the students who indicated an improved confidence was statistically significant for the cervical cancer case for physical examination (60.0% improved in VP vs 12.5% in control), investigation (60.0% VP vs 18.8% control) and diagnosis (60.0% in VP vs 25.0% in control). Finally, analysis by case showed an increment in overall mean scores from the start to end of the case within the VP arm while the pattern was erratic in the control arm cases.

The study results showed that incorporating the VP into PBL was more effective in increasing students’ clinical reasoning confidence levels compared to the usual PBL. As the study utilized existing PBL cases, it demonstrates how medical schools can incorporate digital VP tools into pre-clinical years before students' transition to learning from actual patients in the clinical years.

This paper aims to explore the impact of COVID-19 on office space in Johannesburg. This study further explores the role of changing work practices in the office sector in South Africa because of the pandemic and its impact on future office space use planning and management.

To understand the footprints that the COVID-19 pandemic has left on the office space market in Johannesburg, this study uses semi-structured interviews, which were administered to corporate office users, and a thematic analysis was adopted to understand the views, perspectives and expectations of office users.

The study showed that space users perceive COVID-19-induced remote working as having benefits, opportunities and challenges. A notable shift in office space utilization has emerged, with employees increasingly opting for roles that permit remote work. This newfound flexibility, accommodating both on-site and remote work, often makes working from home more appealing than traditional office environments that may no longer align with users’ preferences for office spaces.

The study is limited to Johannesburg, South Africa, and may not apply to other African markets. Ten in-depth interviews were conducted, and analysis and results were deduced; this may be considered a limitation of this study.

The pandemic’s impact has brought about irreversible changes, compelling policymakers and business leaders to strategize and prepare. This proactive stance aims to prevent avoidable challenges for employees and companies during future pandemics. A thoughtful approach to the post-pandemic world can usher positive changes in the office and property sector. This includes the coexistence of both remote work and on-site working models.

This paper provides valuable insight into some of the outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa that are essential for future office space use planning and management. The insights from this study extend the literature and provide novel knowledge based on an office sector in the “global south.”