Human-free offshore lifting solutions

With single elements weighing up to hundreds of tonnes and lifted to heights of 100 meters, offshore wind turbines can pose risks to personnel, assets, and the environment during installation and maintenance interventions. To increase safety during offshore lifts, this study focuses on solutions for human-free lifting operations. Ideas in the categories of logistics, connections, as well as guidance and control, were discussed and ranked by means of a multi-criteria decision analysis. Based upon 38 survey responses weighting 21 predefined decision criteria, the most promising concepts were selected. Logistically, pre-assembled systems would reduce the number of lifts and thus reduce the risk. A MATLAB-based code has been developed to optimise installation time, lifted weight, and number of lifts. Automated bolting and seafastening solutions have high potential to increase safety during the transport of the wind turbine elements and, additionally, speed up the process. Finally, the wind turbine should be lifted on top of the support structure without having personnel being under the load. A multi-directional mechanical guiding element has been designed and tested successfully in combination with visual guidance by cameras in a small-scale experiment

Peer volunteering; an innovative approach to striving towards achieving normal childbirth in asylum seeking and refugee women.

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Implications of Synchronous IVR Radio on Syrian Refugee Health and Community Dynamics

With 1,033,513 Syrian refugees adding a strain on the Lebanese healthcare system, innovation is key to improving access to healthcare. Our previous work identified the potential for technology to improve access to antenatal care services and increase refugee agency. Using (1) paper mock ups and a mobile based prototype, (2) process mapping, (3) focus groups and interviews and (4) key informant meetings, we explored the concept of refugee led community radio shows to deliver peer-led healthcare. We observed the influence of community radio shows on Syrian refugee health education, community dynamics and community agency in relationships between healthcare providers and refugees. Refugees were positively impacted through situating the technology within the community. We highlight issues around trust, agency, understanding, sel-forganization and privacy that resulted from running the shows through mock ups and a mobile based prototype. Our findings inform future work in community run radio shows

An analytical solution for the settlement of stone columns beneath rigid footings

This paper presents a new approximate solution to study the settlement of rigid footings resting on a soft soil improved with groups of stone columns. The solution development is fully analytical, but finite element analyses are used to verify the validity of some assumptions, such as a simplified geometric model, load distribution with depth and boundary conditions. Groups of stone columns are converted to equivalent single columns with the same cross-sectional area. So, the problem becomes axially symmetric. Soft soil is assumed as linear elastic but plastic strains are considered in the column using the Mohr-Coulomb yield criterion and a non-associated flow rule, with a constant dilatancy angle. Soil profile is divided into independent horizontal slices and equilibrium of stresses and compatibility of deformations are imposed in the vertical and horizontal directions. The solution is presented in a closed form and may be easily implemented in a spreadsheet. Comparisons of the proposed solution with numerical analyses show a good agreement for the whole range of common values, which confirms the validity of the solution and its hypotheses. The solution also compares well with a small scale laboratory test available in literature

Asylum seekers and refugees: A cross European perspective

yesIn this chapter we explore issues of psychosocial resilience and risk related to asylum seeking and refugee women during the perinatal period, drawing on experiences from three diverse European countries; the United Kingdom (UK), Malta and the Netherlands. First we define the terms asylum seekers and refugees to allow us to focus on the issues that pertain specifically to women experiencing this form of migration. We also note the prevalence of migration in contemporary society. We explore recent research on asylum seeking and refugee women in the perinatal period to identify; the barriers women face in accessing care in their reception countries and their experiences of perinatal care. Through this work, the challenges faced by healthcare professionals to provide culturally appropriate and high quality care to these women who face a range of psychosocial challenges are also highlighted. We suggest possible ways to address some of these challenges including how health professionals can actively build on the resilience of asylum seeking and refugee women to improve their perinatal experiences. We conclude by focusing on the implications of these findings; drawing on examples of good practice from the UK, Netherland and Malta to provide recommendations for practice and service development

Findings from the Italian Babies Born Better Survey.

BACKGROUND: The most recent WHO recommendations "Intrapartum care for a positive childbirth experience" highlight the need to identify women-centered interventions and outcomes for intrapartum care, and to include service users' experiences and qualitative research into the assessment of maternity care. Babies Born Better (B3) is a trans-European survey designed to capture service user views and experiences of maternity care provision. Italian service users contributed to the survey. METHODS: The B3 Survey is an anonymous, mixed-method online survey, translated into 22 languages. We separated out the Italian responses and analyzed them using computer-assisted qualitative software (MAXQDA) and SPSS and STATA for quantitative data analysis. Simple descriptives were used for the numeric data, and content analysis for the qualitative responses. Geomapping was based on the coded qualitative data and postcodes (using Tableau Public). RESULTS: There were 1000 respondents from every region of Italy, using a range of places of birth (hospital, birth center, home) and experiencing care with both midwives and obstetricians. Most identified positive experiences of care, as well as some practices they would like to change. Both positive and critical comments included provision of care based on the type of providers, clinical procedures, the birth environment, and breastfeeding support. There were clear differences in the geomapped data across Italian regions. CONCLUSIONS: Mothers highly value respectful, skilled and loving care that gives them a strong sense of personal achievement and confidence, and birth environments that support this. There was distinct variation in the percentage of positive comments made across Italian regions

Designing for digital playing out

We report on a design-led study in the UK that aimed to understand barriers to children (aged 5 to 14 years) 'playing out' in their neighbourhood and explore the potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) for supporting children's free play that extends outdoors. The study forms a design ethnography, combining observational fieldwork with design prototyping and co-creative activities across four linked workshops, where we used BBC micro:bit devices to co-create new IoT designs with the participating children. Our collective account contributes new insights about the physical and interactive features of micro:bits that shaped play, gameplay, and social interaction in the workshops, illuminating an emerging design space for supporting 'digital playing out' that is grounded in empirical instances. We highlight opportunities for designing for digital playing out in ways that promote social negotiation, supports varying participation, allows for integrating cultural influences, and accounts for the weaving together of placemaking and play

Challenges to and facilitators of occupational epidemiology research in the UK

This study investigated the challenges and facilitators of occupational epidemiology (OE) research in the UK, and evaluated the impact of these challenges. Semi-structured in-depth interviews with leading UK-based OE researchers, and a survey of UK-based OE researchers were conducted. Seven leading researchers were interviewed, and there were 54 survey respondents. Key reported challenges for OE were diminishing resources during recent decades, influenced by social, economic and political drivers, and changing fashions in research policy. Consequently, the community is getting smaller and less influential. These challenges may have negatively affected OE research, causing it to fail to keep pace with recent methodological development and impacting its output of high-quality research. Better communication with, and support from other researchers and relevant policy and funding stakeholders was identified as the main facilitators to OE research. Many diseases were initially discovered in workplaces, as these make exceptionally good study populations to accurately assess exposures. Due to the decline of manufacturing industry, there is a perception that occupational diseases are now a thing of the past. Nevertheless, new occupational exposures remain under-evaluated and the UK has become reliant on overseas epidemiology. This has been exacerbated by the decline in the academic occupational medicine base. Maintaining UK-based OE research is hence necessary for the future development of occupational health services and policies for the UK workforce

Exploring mothers’ experiences of perinatal care in Cyprus: Babies Born Better survey

Introduction A positive perinatal experience facilitates a smooth transition to motherhood and enhances the development of a strong bond between mother and newborn, contributing to maternal and societal wellbeing. Given the medicalization of childbirth in Cyprus, the examination of mothers’ experiences of perinatal care becomes imperative. Aim To investigate mothers’ experiences of care during the perinatal period and to identify factors related to the provision of maternal care that contribute to the interpretation of these experiences. Methods The study draws on data from the European survey “Babies Born Better”, an online survey utilizing a mixed-methods approach to explore women’s experiences of maternity care across Europe. The study population were women who had given birth in Cyprus over a 5-year period (2013–2018). Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS v22, while qualitative data were analyzed through inductive content analysis. Findings A total of 360 mothers participated in the study. In rating their overall experience, 24.2% stated that they had a “bad experience”, 11.1% a “good experience”,13.9% a “very good experience”, and 13,3% a “very bad experience”. The top three sub-factors of the overall experience which received positive evaluation were “Relationship with health care professionals” (33.6%), “Birth environment and care” (11.4%), and “Breastfeeding guidance” (10.8%). The qualitative analysis yielded five themes: “Relationship with health care professionals”, “Breastfeeding establishment”, “Childbirth rights”, “Birth environment and services” and “Choice of mode of birth”. Conclusion Mothers in Cyprus wish to have respectful maternity care. They need maternity health care professionals to respect their dignity and ask for evidence-based information with shared decision making. Mothers in Cyprus expect to have their childbirth rights safeguarded, to have better support from HCP, and to receive humanized care. The perinatal care provided in Cyprus needs significant improvements based on mothers’ needs and expectations

Building social capital through breastfeeding peer support: Insights from an evaluation of a voluntary breastfeeding peer support service in North-West England

Background: Peer support is reported to be a key method to help build social capital in communities. To date there are no studies that describe how this can be achieved through a breastfeeding peer support service. In this paper we present findings from an evaluation of a voluntary model of breastfeeding peer support in North-West England to describe how the service was operationalized and embedded into the community. This study was undertaken from May, 2012 to May, 2013. Methods: Interviews (group or individual) were held with 87 participants: 24 breastfeeding women, 13 peer supporters and 50 health and community professionals. The data contained within 23 monthly monitoring reports (January, 2011 to February 2013) compiled by the voluntary peer support service were also extracted and analysed. Results: Thematic analysis was undertaken using social capital concepts as a theoretical lens. Key findings were identified to resonate with ’bonding’, ‘bridging’ and ‘linking’ forms of social capital. These insights illuminate how the peer support service facilitates ‘bonds’ with its members, and within and between women who access the service; how the service ‘bridges’ with individuals from different interests and backgrounds, and how ‘links’ were forged with those in authority to gain access and reach to women and to promote a breastfeeding culture. Some of the tensions highlighted within the social capital literature were also identified. Conclusions: Horizontal and vertical relationships forged between the peer support service and community members enabled peer support to be embedded into care pathways, helped to promote positive attitudes to breastfeeding and to disseminate knowledge and maximise reach for breastfeeding support across the community. Further effort to engage with those of different ethnic backgrounds and to resolve tensions between peer supporters and health professionals is warranted