A sample of 194 Italian health care-givers working in HIV/AIDS units was assessed to investigate whether there was a correlation between individual variables (socio-demographic and occupational characteristics, personality traits, anxiety, depression, attitudes and emotional reactions) and burnout and job satisfaction. For this proposal were used the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), a socio-demographic and occupational characteristics schedule. Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire, Ipat Anxiety Scale, Ipat Depression Scale and AIDS Impact Questionnaire. A principal component analysis on frequency subscales scores of MBI extracted two independent dimensions labelled 'burnout' and 'personal accomplishment'. The results suggested important correlations among 'burnout', 'personal accomplishment', anxiety and depression. Age of care-givers was negatively correlated with 'burnout' and practical nurses were less personally accomplished. Anxiety, depression, emotional reactions, attitudes, ego strength, and the aptitude for interpersonal relationships and to team work were significant factors in outlining a profile of highly 'burned out' and 'personally accomplished' HIV/AIDS health care-givers. These results suggest the development of precise strategies of prevention, intervention and treatment of burnout considering not only the importance of occupational and institutional characteristics but also of individuals ones.
Many wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) in touristic areas struggle to achieve the effluent requirements due to seasonal variations in population. In alpine areas, the climate also determines a low wastewater temperature, which implies long sludge retention time (SRT) needed for the growth of nitrifying biomass in conventional activated sludge (CAS). Moreover, combined sewers generate high flow and dilution. The present study shows how the treatment efficiency of an existing CAS plant with tertiary treatment can be upgraded by adding a compact line in parallel, consisting of a Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR)-coagulation-flocculation-disc filtration. This allows the treatment of influent variations in the MBBR and a constant flow supply to the activated sludge. The performance of the new 2-step process was comparable to that of the improved existing one. Regardless significant variations in flow (10,000–25,000 m3/d) and total suspended solids (TSS) (50–300 mg/L after primary treatment) the effluent quality fulfilled the discharge requirements. Based on yearly average effluent data, TSS were 11 mg/L, chemical oxygen demand (COD) 27 mg/L and total phosphorus (TP) 0.8 mg/L. After the upgrade, ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N) dropped from 4.9 mg/L to 1.3 mg/L and the chemical consumption for phosphorus removal was reduced.
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