Dealing with mobility: Understanding access anytime, anywhere

The rapid and accelerating move towards the adoption and use of mobile technologies has increasingly provided people and organisations with the ability to work away from the office and on the move. The new ways of working afforded by these technologies are often characterised in terms of access to information and people ‘anytime, anywhere’. This paper presents a study of mobile workers that highlights different facets of access to remote people and information, and different facets of anytime, anywhere. Four key factors in mobile work are identified from the study: the role of planning, working in ‘dead time’, accessing remote technological and informational resources, and monitoring the activities of remote colleagues. By reflecting on these issues, we can better understand the role of technology and artefact use in mobile work and identify the opportunities for the development of appropriate technological solutions to support mobile workers

Lockdown-associated hunger may be affecting breastfeeding: Findings from a large sms survey in South Africa

The impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had, and will continue to have, on food security and child health is especially concerning. A rapid, Short Message Service (SMS) Maternal and Child Health survey was conducted in South Africa in June 2020 (n = 3140), with a follow-up in July 2020 (n = 2287). This was a national cross-sectional survey conducted among pregnant women and mothers registered with the MomConnect mhealth platform. Logistic regression was conducted to explore the associations between breastfeeding, maternal depressive symptoms, and hunger in the household. High breastfeeding initiation rates and the early introduction of other foods or mixed milk feeding were found. The prevalence of depressive symptoms in this survey sample was 26.95%, but there was no association between breastfeeding behaviour and depressive symptom scores (OR = 0.89; 95% CI: 0.63, 1.27)

Granja para los migrantes y de temporada Head Start en acción

La Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) es una división de Head Start que atiende las necesidades de los niños y sus familias de los agricultores migrantes y de temporada con base en las necesidades del trabajo de agricultura.1 Las familias que cualifican se ganan por lo menos el 50% de sus ingresos de empleos en labores de pesca, agricultura o relacionados con la agricultura. La MSHS opera in 40 estados y le proporciona servicios a más de 37,000 niños anualmente, incluso servicios de educación temprana; pruebas de detección y remisiones médicas, dentales y mentales; servicios nutricionales; actividades de participación de los padres; y remisiones a proveedores de servicios sociales.2 Los programas son operados por organizaciones de beneficencia regional que supervisan múltiples sitios, coordinan servicios y a menudo abordan el suministro de alimentos. Con una conexión integrada a la agricultura y la operación de temporada, integrar las granjas a la educación preescolar (ECE, por sus siglas en inglés), la compra de alimentos y las prácticas educativas son un ajuste natural para mejorar la programación con calidad.

Alimentos Locales para Pequeños Comensales: Una Guía de Migrant & Seasonal Head Start para la Compra de Alimentos Locales

La intención de esta guía es ayudar a los programas MSHS a aumentar la cantidad de alimentos locales que compran y utilizan para los programas de atención y educación de la primera infancia (ECE, por sus siglas en inglés) que proporcionan servicios a los niños de trabajadores agrícolas migrantes y de temporada. Los proveedores del programa pueden seguir las instrucciones paso a paso y utilizar las herramientas -las cuales se complementan- para ayudar a los programas MSHS a comprar y utilizar más alimentos locales en sus programas alimentarios. Adicionalmente, los programas estatales de atención infantil a migrantes típicamente financiados por el gobierno federal y el estado en el cual el programa está localizado, pueden beneficiarse de esta guía. Ofreciendo servicios similares a los programas MSHS, pero con distintos requerimientos de elegibilidad, los programas estatales están abiertos durante diversos períodos de tiempo a lo largo del año, basados en la temporada agrícola. Los hogares de atención infantil brindan servicios a niños de distintas edades en un ambiente hogareño, algunos de los cuales podrían ser trabajadores migrantes durante la temporada agrícola. Estos programas reciben pagos directos por servicios de atención infantil o pagos financiados por el estado por guarderías para familias de bajos ingresos

Methods for sampling X-disease Colladonus spp. (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) leafhopper vectors in orchards

X-disease is a widespread plant disease critically impacting cherries and other stone fruit (genus Prunus) in the United States’ Pacific Northwest region. First identified in Washington State in 1946, X-disease’s prevalence has dramatically increased in Washington over the last decade. X-disease is caused by the phytoplasma Candidatus Phytoplasma pruni, which infects the phloem of cherry trees and causes fruit to be small, bitter, and unmarketable. Leafhoppers (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) are the only known vector of X-disease phytoplasma. It is important to monitor for the presence of X-disease vector leafhoppers in cherry and stone fruit orchards to determine appropriate management strategies. Three common leafhopper sampling methods include sticky traps, sweep nets, and vacuum tools like a modified leaf vacuum or Dietrick Vacuum Sampler (DVAC). This publication describes each sampling method, along with previous research, techniques, advantages, and disadvantages, to improve decision-making

Do calorie labels change energy purchased in a simulated online food delivery platform? A multi-arm randomised controlled trial

Background: As rates of obesity and overweight continue to increase in the UK, calorie labels have been introduced on menus as a policy option to provide information to consumers on the energy content of foods and to enable informed choices. This study tested whether the addition of calorie labels to items in a simulated food delivery platform may reduce the energy content of items selected. Methods: UK adults (n = 8,780) who used food delivery platforms were asked to use the simulated platform as they would in real life to order a meal for themselves. Participants were randomly allocated to a control condition (no calorie labels) or to one of seven intervention groups: (1) large size calorie labels adjacent to the price (LP), (2) large size label adjacent to the product name (LN), (3) small label adjacent to price (SP), (4) small label adjacent to product name (SN), (5) LP with a calorie label switch-off filter (LP + Off), (6) LP with a switch-on filter (LP + On), or, (7) LP with a summary label of the total basket energy content (LP + Sum). Regression analysis assessed the impact of calorie labels on energy content of foods selected compared to the control condition. Results: The mean energy selected in the control condition was 1408 kcal (95%CI: 93, 2719). There was a statistically significant reduction in mean energy selected in five of the seven intervention trial arms (LN labels (-60 kcal, 95%CI: -111, -6), SN (-73, 95%CI: -125, -19), LP + Off (-110, 95%CI: -161, -57), LP + On (-109, 95%CI: -159, -57), LP + Sum (-85 kcal, 95%CI: -137, -30). There was no evidence the other two conditions (LP (-33, 95%CI: -88, 24) and SP (-52, 95%CI: -105, 2)) differed from control. There was no evidence of an effect of any intervention when the analysis was restricted to participants who were overweight or obese. Conclusion: Adding calorie labels to food items in a simulated online food delivery platform reduced the energy content of foods selected in five out of seven labelling scenarios. This study provides useful information to inform the implementation of these labels in a food delivery platform context

Does enhanced HIV prevention, diagnosis, and linkage to care reduce hospitalisation in high HIV-burden communities in Zambia and South Africa? Findings from the HPTN 071 (PopART) randomised trial

The objective of this study is to explore if a community-based HIV combination prevention intervention reduced inpatient hospitalisations in Zambia and South Africa by diagnosing HIV and TB in earlier stages of disease progression, thereby preventing severe disease and new infections. As part of the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 071 trial, hospitalisation data from a cohort of 16 968 consenting randomly sampled adults aged 18–44 years were collected between 28 November 2013 and 16 November 2018 across 21 communities in Zambia and South Africa across three study arms. Arm A included annual visits by Community HIV-care Providers (CHiPs) and universal linkage to care for ART initiation for all PLWH (irrespective of CD4 count); arm B included annual CHiPs visits and ART per local guidelines; control arm C received the standard of care provided at government clinics, including HIV testing and ART offered according to local guidelines. For this study, we used a cluster-level two-stage analysis and adjusted for covariates that were unbalanced across intervention arms. Covariates included in the models were the cluster’s baseline HIV prevalence and hospitalisation rate and data on the respondent’s gender, age, educational attainment, and socio-economic status. Out of the pooled sample of 13 964 responses from the three post-baseline surveys, 439 (3.14%) reported hospitalisation in the past 12 months – 234 (1.68%) when excluding hospital admissions for births or injury. Comparing hospitalisations in the intervention and control arm clusters, the estimated adjusted risk ratio was 1.03 [0.64–1.66] for the full sample and 0.82 [0.39–1.74] for PLWH. We find no compelling evidence of impact of the HPTN071 (PopART) community-wide combination HIV prevention intervention on in-patient hospitalisation among a general population sample

Differences in health-related quality of life between HIV-positive and HIV-negative people in Zambia and South Africa: a cross-sectional baseline survey of the HPTN 071 (PopART) trial

Background The life expectancy of HIV-positive individuals receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) is approaching that of HIV-negative people. However, little is known about how these populations compare in terms of health-related quality of life (HRQoL). We aimed to compare HRQoL between HIV-positive and HIV-negative people in Zambia and South Africa. Methods As part of the HPTN 071 (PopART) study, data from adults aged 18–44 years were gathered between Nov 28, 2013, and March 31, 2015, in large cross-sectional surveys of random samples of the general population in 21 communities in Zambia and South Africa. HRQoL data were collected with a standardised generic measure of health across five domains. We used β-distributed multivariable models to analyse differences in HRQoL scores between HIV-negative and HIV-positive individuals who were unaware of their status; aware, but not in HIV care; in HIV care, but who had not initiated ART; on ART for less than 5 years; and on ART for 5 years or more. We included controls for sociodemographic variables, herpes simplex virus type-2 status, and recreational drug use. Findings We obtained data for 19 750 respondents in Zambia and 18 941 respondents in South Africa. Laboratory-confirmed HIV status was available for 19 330 respondents in Zambia and 18 004 respondents in South Africa; 4128 (21%) of these 19 330 respondents in Zambia and 4012 (22%) of 18 004 respondents in South Africa had laboratory-confirmed HIV. We obtained complete HRQoL information for 19 637 respondents in Zambia and 18 429 respondents in South Africa. HRQoL scores did not differ significantly between individuals who had initiated ART more than 5 years previously and HIV-negative individuals, neither in Zambia (change in mean score −0·002, 95% CI −0·01 to 0·001; p=0·219) nor in South Africa (0·000, −0·002 to 0·003; p=0·939). However, scores did differ between HIV-positive individuals who had initiated ART less than 5 years previously and HIV-negative individuals in Zambia (−0·006, 95% CI −0·008 to −0·003; p<0·0001). A large proportion of people with clinically confirmed HIV were unaware of being HIV-positive (1768 [43%] of 4128 people in Zambia and 2026 [50%] of 4012 people in South Africa) and reported good HRQoL, with no significant differences from that of HIV-negative people (change in mean HRQoL score −0·001, 95% CI −0·003 to 0·001, p=0·216; and 0·001, −0·001 to 0·001, p=0·997, respectively). In South Africa, HRQoL scores were lower in HIV-positive individuals who were aware of their status but not enrolled in HIV care (change in mean HRQoL −0·004, 95% CI −0·01 to −0·001; p=0·010) and those in HIV care but not on ART (−0·008, −0·01 to −0·004; p=0·001) than in HIV-negative people, but the magnitudes of difference were small. Interpretation ART is successful in helping to reduce inequalities in HRQoL between HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals in this general population sample. These findings highlight the importance of improving awareness of HIV status and expanding ART to prevent losses in HRQoL that occur with untreated HIV progression. The gains in HRQoL after individuals initiate ART could be substantial when scaled up to the population level

SN 2021zny: an early flux excess combined with late-time oxygen emission suggests a double white dwarf merger event

We present a photometric and spectroscopic analysis of the ultra-luminous and slowly evolving 03fg-like Type Ia SN 2021zny. Our observational campaign starts from $\sim5.3$ hours after explosion (making SN 2021zny one of the earliest observed members of its class), with dense multi-wavelength coverage from a variety of ground- and space-based telescopes, and is concluded with a nebular spectrum $\sim10$ months after peak brightness. SN 2021zny displayed several characteristics of its class, such as the peak brightness ($M_{B}=-19.95$ mag), the slow decline ($\Delta m_{15}(B) = 0.62$ mag), the blue early-time colours, the low ejecta velocities and the presence of significant unburned material above the photosphere. However, a flux excess for the first $\sim1.5$ days after explosion is observed in four photometric bands, making SN 2021zny the third 03fg-like event with this distinct behavior, while its $+313$ d spectrum shows prominent [O I] lines, a very unusual characteristic of thermonuclear SNe. The early flux excess can be explained as the outcome of the interaction of the ejecta with $\sim0.04\:\mathrm{M_{\odot}}$ of H/He-poor circumstellar material at a distance of $\sim10^{12}$ cm, while the low ionization state of the late-time spectrum reveals low abundances of stable iron-peak elements. All our observations are in accordance with a progenitor system of two carbon/oxygen white dwarfs that undergo a merger event, with the disrupted white dwarf ejecting carbon-rich circumstellar material prior to the primary white dwarf detonation.Comment: 19 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA