‘It’s been a long haul, a big haul, but we’ve made it’: hepatitis C virus treatment in post-transplant patients with virus recurrence: An interpretative phenomenological analysis

The lived experience of both interferon-based and new interferon-free treatments in patients with hepatitis C virus remains understudied. To explore their journey through hepatitis C virus treatment, we interviewed seven post-transplant patients with recurrent hepatitis C virus. Three themes were identified using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Participants reported an ongoing sense of ontological uncertainty characterized by lack of control over their condition and treatment. Furthermore, an apposition of scepticism and hope accompanying each stage of hepatitis C virus treatment was described. A staged approach to psychological intervention tailored to the needs of the patient and their associated ‘stage’ of hepatitis C virus treatment was recommended

Badania pilotażowe o wiedzy i stosowaniu mnemonik z przedmiotów ścisłych przez polsklich uczniów

Mnemonic devices are specific ways, which during coding new information apply known elements for improving subsequent access to that information in the memory. Consequently, not much is known about techniques for optimizing recall performance with mnemonic devices or the suitability of using mnemonic devices in educational applications. Moreover, in literature there are a lot of examples in chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics mnemonics approaches, however in the related literature, there is a lack of current and reliable studies for this subject. In this original work we describe mnemonic methods from this point of view in the learning and teachings of science subjects. A large trumps of this article is the demonstration of the old well-known method of the learning/teaching in the new scene. This is the first article in literature that present actual data about this topic according to learning and studying the science subjects by mnemonic studies.Strategie mnemoniczne to specyficzne sposoby, które podczas kodowania nowej informacji wykorzystują znane już elementy do polepszenia późniejszego dostępu do tej informacji w pamięci. Strategie te mogą często wspomagać uczenie się oraz późniejsze przywoływanie informacji. Jednak niewiele wiadomo na temat technik optymalizowania przywoływania myśli za pomocą metod mnemotechnicznych lub stosowalności metod mnemotechnicznych w praktyce edukacyjnej. Ponadto, w literaturze jest wiele przykładów metod i podejść mnemotechnicznych w chemii, biologii, fizyce czy matematyce, jednakże w literaturze fachowej brak jest aktualnych i miarodajnych badań na ten temat. Artykuł ten stanowi autorskie podejście do zagadnienia metod mnemotechnicznych z punktu widzenia uczenia i nauczania przedmiotów przyrodniczo-ścisłych. Dużym atutem artykułu jest demonstracja starych i dobrze znanych metod uczenia/nauczania w nowym wymiarze. Zgodnie z naszą wiedzą jest to pierwszy artykuł w literaturze opisujący aktualne dane na temat związany z uczeniem i studiowaniem przedmiotów ścisłych przy użyciu metod mnemotechnicznych

“I always felt I was a bit of a guinea pig”: Illness perceptions, experience of treatment and coping in liver transplant patients with Hepatitis C Virus recurrence.

The current study aimed to gain an in-depth understanding of the lived experience of liver transplant patients with Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) recurrence. The semi-structured interviews with seven male participants were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and then analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Three master themes were identified: 1) the experience of encountering HCV; 2) managing the diagnosis of HCV; and 3) the experience of treatment. The first theme highlighted the psychosocial consequences of being diagnosed with HCV including fears of contaminating others, a fear of disclosing the condition to others and stigma. The second theme revealed participants’ resilient coping strategies such as optimism, acceptance, and adaptation that helped them to better manage the diagnosis. Participants also reported their need for support from both their loved ones and professional care providers. Finally, the third master theme focused on the experience of receiving treatment, including both the pre-and post-transplant period. Participants reflected on their participation in a number of medical trials that made them feel like “a guinea pig”. Participants were found to be aware of the risk of post-transplant virus recurrence and expressed uncertainty for their futures following re-diagnosis. A new cure evoked hope for the future, fuelled a strong determination to fight the virus, and generated a lively discussion on the need for information provision. The clinical implications of this study lie, in particular, in the potential for the improvement in quality of life for patients with a current diagnosis of HCV and in those with virus recurrence that are awaiting the new treatment

Warsztaty przyrodnicze i ich rola w rozbudzaniu zainteresowań przyrodniczych dzieci i uczniów

Development of science interests is one of many elements of the daily teachers' work at school. Finding out interesting forms of working with school students and their proper application at school allows for increasing science interests and to achieve many didactic aims. One of many of such proposals is an informal teaching which can be carried out while students participate in the various workshops, out of school meetings or science fairs.Rozwijanie zainteresowań przyrodniczych ucznia jest jednym z podstawowych elementów codziennej pracy nauczyciela. Poszukiwanie interesujących rozwiązań dydaktycznych i ich umiejętne oraz właściwe zastosowanie w procesie nauczania-uczenia się pozwala pobudzać i rozwijać te zainteresowania, jak również osiągnąć wiele celów dydaktycznych tego procesu. Jedną z takich propozycji jest nieformalne nauczanie w trakcie różnorodnych spotkań warsztatowych, zajęć pozalekcyjnych czy też aktywnego uczestnictwa w festiwalach nauki

Experiences of diagnosis, stigma, culpability, and disclosure in male patients with hepatitis C virus: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

The current study aimed to explore the lived experience of patients with hepatitis C virus infection. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven male participants living with hepatitis C virus and were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Two master themes were identified: (1) diagnosis and the search for meaning and (2) impact of stigma on disclosure. Participants reported fears of contaminating others, feelings of stigma and concerns of disclosing the condition to others. Response to diagnosis, stigma and disclosure among the participants appeared to be interrelated and directly related to locus of blame for virus contraction. More specifically, hepatitis C virus transmission via medical routes led to an externalisation of culpability and an openness to disclosure. Transmission of hepatitis C virus as a direct result of intravenous drug use led to internalised blame and a fear of disclosure. The inter- and intra-personal consequences of hepatitis C virus explored in the current study have potential implications for tailoring future psychological therapy and psychoeducation to the specific needs of the hepatitis C virus population

Impacts of a primary school-based intergenerational engagement intervention on the cognitive, health and social outcomes of community-residing older adults and on participating schools

Intergenerational engagement (IE) interventions can benefit health and wellbeing in an ageing population and lead to a range of benefits in individuals and the larger community. Although potential positive impacts of IE for both older adults and younger generations have been demonstrated and promoted in past research, high quality and conclusive evidence regarding potential positive or negative impacts on older people is still limited. Therefore, this pilot study was conducted to 1) assess the potential impacts of intergenerational engagement on older adults’ cognitive, social and health outcomes over 6 months; 2) explore benefits and challenges associated with intergenerational engagement from the volunteers’, teachers’, and pupils’ perspective; and 3) evaluate perceptions of school climate over time from intervention vs control school staff’s perspective. Generation for Generation is a moderate-intensity, IE intervention designed to promote cognitive, health and social function in older adults while also benefiting schools. Older adult volunteer participants assisted primary school teachers in the classroom by helping pupils aged 4-8 with reading, writing and numeracy tasks. They were asked to commit eight hours per week for six months during 2018-2020. A mixed-method design including a concurrent nested approach was applied in this project. The study consisted of 1) a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT); 2) a qualitative component (a volunteer diary and focus groups); and 3) a pre- and post-intervention school climate survey. The pilot RCT was a mixed factorial design in which older adult volunteers (control or active condition) were assessed on three occasions (baseline, then at 3- and 6- month follow-ups). In total, 36 older adults aged 60-80 years were recruited from the Lothians area in Scotland on three occasions and allocated to three cohorts. Overall, older adult intervention participants, but not control participants, showed improvements in working memory, episodic memory, auditory verbal learning, daytime dysfunction (sleep quality domain), crossage attitudes, and generative achievement. Reliable difference in the pattern of outcomes over time tended to be observed at 3 months and maintained at 6 months. Thematic analyses of older adults’ diary and focus group data revealed a range of intra- and inter-personal benefits and challenges of IE including regaining a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging, building new social connections, physical demands, financial issues, and fear of overstepping. Focus group data from teachers’ and pupils’ focus groups demonstrated additional potential benefits of IE on pupils’ attainment and behaviour, and teaching efficiency. Finally, during the first school year of the intervention, five out of eight sub-domains of school climate (i.e., school satisfaction, parental involvement, creativity and the arts, learning climate, and school resources), as well as overall school climate, were maintained amongst staff in interventions schools, as compared to declines indicated by staff in comparison schools. The quantitative results of this pilot study offer promising, preliminary evidence suggesting that a 6-month, moderateintensity engagement between younger and older generations can be an effective health promotion initiative. In addition, explanatory qualitative findings defined the context of IE and explored experiences of participating in the programme from different perspectives, indicating potential for future implementation and further development of the intervention. However, given the pilot nature of this study, all findings should be treated with caution and re-assessed in the context of a full trial in future.Intergenerational engagement (IE) interventions can benefit health and wellbeing in an ageing population and lead to a range of benefits in individuals and the larger community. Although potential positive impacts of IE for both older adults and younger generations have been demonstrated and promoted in past research, high quality and conclusive evidence regarding potential positive or negative impacts on older people is still limited. Therefore, this pilot study was conducted to 1) assess the potential impacts of intergenerational engagement on older adults’ cognitive, social and health outcomes over 6 months; 2) explore benefits and challenges associated with intergenerational engagement from the volunteers’, teachers’, and pupils’ perspective; and 3) evaluate perceptions of school climate over time from intervention vs control school staff’s perspective. Generation for Generation is a moderate-intensity, IE intervention designed to promote cognitive, health and social function in older adults while also benefiting schools. Older adult volunteer participants assisted primary school teachers in the classroom by helping pupils aged 4-8 with reading, writing and numeracy tasks. They were asked to commit eight hours per week for six months during 2018-2020. A mixed-method design including a concurrent nested approach was applied in this project. The study consisted of 1) a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT); 2) a qualitative component (a volunteer diary and focus groups); and 3) a pre- and post-intervention school climate survey. The pilot RCT was a mixed factorial design in which older adult volunteers (control or active condition) were assessed on three occasions (baseline, then at 3- and 6- month follow-ups). In total, 36 older adults aged 60-80 years were recruited from the Lothians area in Scotland on three occasions and allocated to three cohorts. Overall, older adult intervention participants, but not control participants, showed improvements in working memory, episodic memory, auditory verbal learning, daytime dysfunction (sleep quality domain), crossage attitudes, and generative achievement. Reliable difference in the pattern of outcomes over time tended to be observed at 3 months and maintained at 6 months. Thematic analyses of older adults’ diary and focus group data revealed a range of intra- and inter-personal benefits and challenges of IE including regaining a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging, building new social connections, physical demands, financial issues, and fear of overstepping. Focus group data from teachers’ and pupils’ focus groups demonstrated additional potential benefits of IE on pupils’ attainment and behaviour, and teaching efficiency. Finally, during the first school year of the intervention, five out of eight sub-domains of school climate (i.e., school satisfaction, parental involvement, creativity and the arts, learning climate, and school resources), as well as overall school climate, were maintained amongst staff in interventions schools, as compared to declines indicated by staff in comparison schools. The quantitative results of this pilot study offer promising, preliminary evidence suggesting that a 6-month, moderateintensity engagement between younger and older generations can be an effective health promotion initiative. In addition, explanatory qualitative findings defined the context of IE and explored experiences of participating in the programme from different perspectives, indicating potential for future implementation and further development of the intervention. However, given the pilot nature of this study, all findings should be treated with caution and re-assessed in the context of a full trial in future