María José Serván Núñez

Lesson study and the development of teacher’s competences

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show, from a theoretical point of view, the promising relationship between the processes generated by Lesson Studies (LS) and the development of practical thinking in in-service teacher training, derived from two pieces of research. Design/methodology/approach – The authors propose broadening the focus of LS in order to not only improve the “lesson” or “teaching” – in short, practice – but also to reconstruct and improve the practical knowledge of teachers. The core issue of the paper is the discussion about the relationship between the practical knowledge, the knowledge that every teacher uses in his or her daily practice, theories-in-use, mostly unconscious, and the conscious and explicit knowledge, practical thinking, explicit theory, they use to describe and justify their practice. Findings – Knowing our practical knowledge intuitive Gestalt, and building a new conscious and informed way of thinking is not enough, we need to build through systematic new practi...

The Girona Territori Cardioprotegit Project: Performance Evaluation of Public Defibrillators

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES In recent years, public access defibrillation programs have exponentially increased the availability of automatic external defibrillators (AED) in public spaces but there are no data on their performance in our setting. We conducted a descriptive analysis of the performance of AED since the launch of a public defibrillation program in our region. METHODS A retrospective analysis was conducted of electrocardiographic tracings and the performance of AED in a public defibrillation program from June 2011 to June 2015 in the province of Girona, Spain. RESULTS There were 231 AED activations. Full information was available on 188 activations, of which 82% corresponded to mobile devices and 18% to permanent devices. Asystole was the most prevalent rhythm (42%), while ventricular fibrillation accounted for 23%. The specificity of the device in identifying a shockable rhythm was 100%, but there were 8 false negatives (sensitivity 83%). There were 47 shockable rhythms, with a spontaneous circulation recovery rate of 49% (23 cases). There were no accidents related to the use of the device. CONCLUSIONS Nearly half of the recorded rhythms were asystole. The AED analyzed showed excellent safety and specificity, with moderate sensitivity. Half the patients with a shockable rhythm were successfully treated by the AED.

Learning to teach with lesson study

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to incorporate Lesson Study (LS) from initial teacher training as a privileged area in which to accompany and tutor future teachers in the complex but necessary scenario of reflective practice in cooperative processes. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents an innovative educational experience in the university context, incorporating Lesson Study as a strategy for research and improvement of teaching practice, and, in consequence, for students’ learning, in two key subjects in the syllabus: Practicum III and Degree Essay. Findings – A process, positively reviewed by all agents involved, which has shown the need for the reconstruction of the practical knowledge of participating students. Originality/value – This is the first experience in the Spanish university context where LS is introduced as one of the key areas of initial teacher training. The paper presents a work model which may inspire the introduction of Lesson Study as an initial training model dur...

Cooperative research. A critical strategy in university teacher training. A case study of Lesson and Learning Studies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the possibilities offered by Lesson and Learning Studies (LLS) for training and for improving and generating knowledge by reconstructing the practical knowledge of teachers in university training through joint design, observation and reflection. In short, the research aims to show how merging LLS contributes to developing fundamental teaching skills in new, uncertain contexts and to recreating processes of research and analysis of complex situations from critical and creative perspectives by involving university teachers and student teachers in disciplined, informed reflection on their own practice through shared, narrative productions in a dual spiral which promotes the contrasting of experiences and perspectives in an ongoing manner. Design/methodology/approach – A case study of own practice in a university master’s degree, the aim of which is to develop a training improvement process by following the stages of LLS. Findings – The case study shows the ne...

Mechanical Chest Compressions and Traumatic Complications in Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest. Is There a Price to Pay?

Early, high-quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) improves survival and neurological prognosis in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Mechanical compression systems have been developed with the aim of achieving uninterrupted CPR, without rescuer fatigue, or for use in places where manual resuscitation is impractical. The most widely-used at the moment are the piston system (LUCAS, Jolife; Sweden) and the distributing band system (AutoPulse, Zoll; USA). The benefit of these systems is debated, and there are few data on their safety. Our objective was to analyze the introduction of these mechanical systems to the medical emergency services network in our province, describing their use and associated complications. We prospectively included all patients admitted to a cardiological intensive care unit with the diagnosis of recovered out-ofhospital cardiac arrest from January 2016, which was when mechanical compression devices were introduced. We analyzed resuscitation times, neurological status at discharge according to the Glasgow-Pittsburgh Cerebral Performance Category (CPC) and the complications in patients who received mechanical compressions compared with those who received manual compressions. Complications were defined as any new traumatic thoracic or abdominal lesion that could be explained as a consequence of