Exploring the attitudes to and uptake of biosecurity practices for invasive non-native species: views amongst stakeholder organisations working in UK natural environments

Invasions by invasive non-native species (INNS) can have profound consequences for natural environments, impacting on biodiversity and the biophysical landscape in ways that can endanger other species, human wellbeing and infrastructure. The financial costs of dealing with established INNS populations can be extremely high. Biosecurity measures (simple procedures designed to reduce the risk of human activities spreading INNS to new areas) are being promoted in order to minimize these negative impacts and associated costs. This paper reports on research undertaken with stakeholder organisations that operate within UK natural environments. It aims to evaluate stakeholder perceptions of their role in INNS biosecurity practice in the UK, and the implications of this for INNS strategy more broadly. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with organisation representatives to explore current practices and communications about INNS and perceptions of barriers and opportunities to implement better biosecurity. Whilst participants generally agreed on the need for biosecurity, there were variations among participants in levels of knowledge about INNS (related to background) and the capacity of organisations to engage in biosecurity practices (related to organisational size). Critical barriers to biosecurity were identified as costs, lack of clear guidance, difficulties changing attitudes and implementing collective responsibility, and reactionary versus precautionary approaches. As a result, partnership working on INNS is difficult and action tends to focus on individual species perceived as the most threatening to a particular organisations’ interests. In this way, action on INNS biosecurity faces the kinds of barriers that are common to many environmental problems where individuals/organisations prioritise self-interest despite the potential to obtain greater benefits if collective action could be achieved

A study into the effects of gas flow inlet design of the Renishaw AM250 laser powder bed fusion machine using computational modelling

Previous work has highlighted the importance of the gas flow system in laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) processes. Inhomogeneous gas flow experienced at the surface of the powder bed can cause variations in mechanical properties over a build platform, where insufficient removal of by-products which cause laser attenuation and redisposition of byproducts are believed to contribute to these variations. The current study analyses the gas flow experienced over a build platform in a Renishaw AM250 metal powder bed fusion machine via Hot Wire Anemometer (HWA) testing. Velocity profiles of the flow directly above the powder-bed and through the centre plane normal to the inlets have been categorized. These HWA results illustrate the inhomogeneity of the gas flow experienced over the build platform and from literature imply that there will be insufficient removal of by-products and hence variable build quality in specific areas of the build platform. A Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model was created in ANSYS Fluent and validated against HWA results coupled with a Discrete Phase Model (DPM) representing the expulsion of spatter. Velocity contours of simulated against experimental are compared, where the results appear in good agreement. The multiphase CFD model was then used to explore the effects of changing inlet design parameters using a Design of Experiments (DOE) study based on an Optimal Space Filling (OSF) method. This was to understand the effect of design parameters on flow uniformity, local gas velocity over the processing area and spatter particulate accumulation within the build chamber. The initial design study found that flow uniformity could potentially be increased by 21.05% and spatter accumulation on the processing area could be reduced by 26.64%. In addition, this has given insight into important design considerations for future generation of L-PBF machines

Male Infertility and Future Cardiometabolic Health: Does the Association Vary by Sociodemographic Factors?

Objective: To determine whether the association between male infertility and incident cardiometabolic disease is modified by socioeconomics, race, or geographic region. / Materials and Method: Retrospective review of data from insurance claims from Optum's de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database. Subjects were men, 18-50 years old, with an associated diagnosis of infertility in the United States between 2003 and 2016. Analytical sample were men captured by the Optum's de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database with an associated diagnosis of infertility. Men were classified as either infertile, or not, based on diagnosis or procedural codes. Cardiometabolic health outcomes were then assessed using current procedural terminology codes for diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and heart disease. Confounding factors were controlled for such as race, education, socioecomonic status, and region. The main outcomes were development of diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and heart disease. / Results: A total of 76,343 males were diagnosed with male factor infertility, 60,072 males who underwent fertility testing, and 183,742 males that underwent vasectomy (control population). For all men, infertile men had a higher risk of incident hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and heart disease when compared to those undergoing vasectomy. Identical associations were found across all education, income, racial, and geographic strata. / Conclusion: Our study suggests that men with infertility have a higher risk of cardiometabolic disease in the years following a fertility evaluation regardless of race, region, or socioeconomic status

Virtual consultations: delivering outpatient clinics in paediatric surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in many changes to clinical practice, including the introduction of remote clinics. Those familiar with remote clinics have reported benefits to their use, such as patient satisfaction and cost benefits; however, ongoing challenges exist, including delivering optimal patient-centred care. As a tertiary paediatric surgery unit in the UK, completing remote clinics was a new experience for most of our surgical team. We completed a service evaluation early into the COVID-19 pandemic aiming to define and address issues when delivering remote clinics in paediatric surgery. Remote clinics were observed (telephone and video), with follow-up calls to families following the consultations. Results Eight paediatric surgeons were observed during their remote clinics (telephone n = 6, video n = 2). Surgeons new to remote clinics felt their consultations took longer and were reluctant to discharge patients. The calls did not always occur at the appointed time, causing some upset by parents. Prescription provision and outpatient investigations led to some uncertainty within the surgical team. Families (n = 11) were called following their child’s appointment to determine how our remote clinics could be optimised. The parents all liked remote clinics, either as an intermediate until a face-to-face consultation or for continued care if appropriate. Our findings, combined by discussions with relevant managers and departments, led to the introduction of recommendations for the surgical team. An information sheet was introduced for the families attending remote clinics, which encouraged them to take notes before and during their consultations. Conclusions There must be strong support from management and appropriate departments for successful integration of remote clinics. Surgical trainees and their training should be considered when implementing remote clinics. Our learning from the pandemic may support those considering integrating remote clinics in the future

The three-prong method: a novel assessment of residual stress in laser powder bed fusion

Residual stress is a major problem for most metal-based laser powder bed fusion (L-PBF) components. Residual stress can be reduced by appropriate build planning and post-process heat treatments; however, it is not always avoidable and can lead to build failures due to distortion and cracking. Accurate measurement of residual stress levels can be difficult due to high equipment set-up costs and long processing times. This paper introduces a simple but novel method of measuring residual stresses via a three-pronged cantilever component, the three-prong method (TPM). The method allows for a quick and easy characterisation of residual stress for a wide range of machine parameters, build strategies and materials. Many different cantilever designs have been used to indicate residual stress within additive manufacturing techniques. All of which share the same shortcoming that they indicate stress in one direction. If the principal component of stress is not aligned with the beam geometry, it will underestimate peak stress values. A novel three-prong design is proposed which covers two dimensions by utilising three adjoined cantilever beams, a configuration which echoes that of hole-drilling where three measurements are used to calculate the stress field around a drilled hole. Each arm of the component resembles a curved bridge-like structure; one end of each bridge is cut away from the base plate leaving the centre intact. Deformation of the beams is then measured using a co-ordinate measurement machine. Stress profiles are then estimated using finite element analysis by meshing the deflected structure and forcing it back to its original shape. In this paper, the new TPM is used to compare the residual stress levels of components built in Ti–6Al–4V with different hatch patterns, powers and exposure times

Log D_7.4 and plasma protein binding of synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists and a comparison of experimental and predicted lipophilicity

The emergence of new synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists (SCRAs) onto the illicit drugs market continues to cause harm, and the overall availability of physicochemical and pharmacokinetic data for new psychoactive substances is lacking. The lipophilicity of 23 SCRAs and the plasma protein binding (PPB) of 11 SCRAs was determined. Lipophilicity was determined using a validated chromatographic hydrophobicity index (CHI) log D method; tested SCRAs showed moderate to high lipophilicity, with experimental log D7.4 ranging from 2.48 (AB-FUBINACA) to 4.95 (4F-ABUTINACA). These results were also compared to in silico predictions generated using seven commercially available software packages and online tools (Canvas; ChemDraw; Gastroplus; MoKa; PreADMET; SwissADME; and XlogP). Licenced, dedicated software packages provided more accurate lipophilicity predictions than those which were free or had prediction as a secondary function; however, the latter still provided competitive estimates in most cases. PPB of tested SCRAs, as determined by equilibrium dialysis, was in the upper range of the lipophilicity scale, ranging from 90.8% (ADB-BUTINACA) to 99.9% (BZO-HEXOXIZID). The high PPB of these drugs may contribute to reduced rate of clearance and extended durations of pharmacological effects compared to lesser-bound SCRAs. The presented data improve understanding of the behaviour of these drugs in the body. Ultimately, similar data and predictions may be used in the prediction of the structure and properties of drugs yet to emerge on the illicit market

Occupational therapists’ views of using a virtual reality interior design application within the pre-discharge home visit process

This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Background: A key role of Occupational Therapists (OTs) is to carry out pre-discharge home visits (PHV) and propose appropriate adaptations to the home environment, to enable patients to function independently after hospital-home discharge. However, research shows that more than 50% of specialist equipment installed as part of home adaptations is not used by patients. A key reason for this is that decisions about home adaptations are often made without adequate collaboration and consultation with the patient. Consequently, there is an urgent need to seek out new and innovative uses of technology to facilitate patient/practitioner collaboration, engagement and shared decision making in the PHV process. Virtual reality interior design applications (VRIDAs) primarily allow users to simulate the home environment and visualise changes prior to implementing them. Customised VRIDAs, which also model specialist occupational therapy equipment, could become a valuable tool to facilitate improved patient/practitioner collaboration if developed effectively and integrated into the PHV process. Objective: To explore the perceptions of occupational therapists with regards to using VRIDAs as an assistive tool within the PHV process. Methods: Task-oriented interactive usability sessions, utilising the think-aloud protocol and subsequent semi-structured interviews were carried out with seven Occupational Therapists who possessed significant experience across a range of clinical settings. Template analysis was carried out on the think-aloud and interview data. Analysis was both inductive and driven by theory, centring around the parameters that impact upon the acceptance, adoption and use of this technology in practice as indicated by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). Results: OTs’ perceptions were identified relating to three core themes: (1) perceived usefulness (PU), (2) perceived ease of use (PEoU), and (3) actual use (AU). Regarding PU, OTs believed VRIDAs had promising potential to increase understanding, enrich communications and patient involvement, and improved patient/practitioner shared understanding. However, it was unlikely that VRIDAs would be suitable for use with cognitively impaired patients. For PEoU, all OTs were able to use the software and complete the tasks successfully, however, participants noted numerous specialist equipment items that could be added to the furniture library. AU perceptions were positive regarding use of the application across a range of clinical settings including children/young adults, long-term conditions, neurology, older adults, and social services. However, some “fine tuning” may be necessary if the application is to be optimally used in practice. Conclusions: Participants perceived the use of VRIDAs in practice would enhance levels of patient/practitioner collaboration and provide a much needed mechanism via which patients are empowered to become more equal partners in decisions made about their care. Further research is needed to explore patient perceptions of VRIDAs, to make necessary customisations accordingly, and to explore deployment of the application in a collaborative patient/practitioner-based context

Exact vortex solutions in a CP^N Skyrme-Faddeev type model

We consider a four dimensional field theory with target space being CP^N which constitutes a generalization of the usual Skyrme-Faddeev model defined on CP^1. We show that it possesses an integrable sector presenting an infinite number of local conservation laws, which are associated to the hidden symmetries of the zero curvature representation of the theory in loop space. We construct an infinite class of exact solutions for that integrable submodel where the fields are meromorphic functions of the combinations (x^1+i x^2) and (x^3+x^0) of the Cartesian coordinates of four dimensional Minkowski space-time. Among those solutions we have static vortices and also vortices with waves traveling along them with the speed of light. The energy per unity of length of the vortices show an interesting and intricate interaction among the vortices and waves.Comment: 21 pages, plain latex, no figure

Is health coaching effective in changing the health status and behaviour of prisoners?-a systematic review protocol

Abstract Background This is a protocol for a systematic review of the impact of health coaching on changing the health behaviour of offenders. Prisoners are more likely to suffer from health-related issues when compared to the general population. Health coaching has been shown to influence health outcomes of patients with chronic conditions. This review, therefore, aims to assess the effectiveness of health coaching interventions on the health of adolescent and adult offenders in custodial institutions. Methods We plan to conduct a systematic review of the current literature on health coaching interventions delivered in the prison setting. We will include randomised controlled trials and observational studies that compare health coaching to the usual care or other alternative interventions. The ideal interventions will be delivered either by health professionals or peer coaches, and the outcomes extracted in the data collection will be disease-specific, clients’ life and self-management skills, behavioural and psychosocial outcomes. If appropriate, a meta-analysis of the data collected will be carried out on the last stage of the review. Discussion This systematic review will identify and gather evidence on the impact of health coaching interventions delivered in the prison setting and can function as a supporting material for health professionals, prison staff, the healthcare system, and public health departments when considering delivering health coaching. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42016053237