Towards an inclusive co-design toolkit: perceptions and experiences of co-design stakeholders

Participatory design holds great potential for the creation of inclusive technology but existing toolkits and resources to support co-design are not always accessible to designers and co-designers with disabilities. In this paper we present two studies to assist in facilitating the creation of a sustainable, accessible, inclusive co-design toolkit for individuals with intellectual disabilities i) exploration of the perceptions and experiences of lecturers (n =5) and students (n= 5) involved in co-design activities via individual interviews and ii) a protocol and initial findings from focus groups with men and women with intellectual disabilities to inform on best co-design practices (n=15). Positive reflections were reported on the co-design experience by all participants. Communication was highlighted as a theme that requires further attention and specific support during co-design processes with third level designers and co-designers with intellectual disabilities

AccessDesign: An inclusive co-design toolkit for the creation of accessible digital tools.

Existing toolkits and resources to support co-design are not always accessible to designers and co-designers with disabilities. In this paper we present a study based on an innovative co-design programme, in collaboration with St John of God Community Services, where 3rd year computer science students work with service users with intellectual disabilities to create digital applications together. We conducted a series of co-design focus group sessions involving the service users who were previously involved in the co-design collaboration with SJOG Services and TU Dublin. The data collected during these design sessions has been integrated to form an accessible design toolkit through a series of iterative workshops. This toolkit is intended to generate a sustainable resource to be reused in the programme at TU Dublin but also in the wider community of inclusive design

D2.5 Report on the Legal, Societal Impact and Ethical Monitoring of the ITFLOWS

This Deliverable includes insights in the ad hoc and ongoing monitoring process of the project both from an internal and external perspective with the aim of ensuring the implementation of the ITFLOWS Regulatory model at all stages of the project research activities and particularly with regard to the EUMigraTool. For better oversight it distinguishes between data protection perspective (FIZ), the ethical perspective (UAB), the societal perspective otherwise known as the human rights considerations (BUL) and the gender perspective (UAB). It also includes the external and independent monitoring carried out by the Independent Ethics Board, the Data Protection Advisor, and the Independent Gender Committee. This report is the first version of the Report on the legal, societal impact and ethical monitoring of ITFLOWS. As the monitoring process is ongoing, its outcomes will be shared within the project over the course of the project on a regular basis. The overall results and an evaluation of the process will be included in the second and final version of the report in M3

Estimating a sub-mesoscale diffusivity using a roughness measure applied to a tracer release experiment in the Southern Ocean

We test the use of a measure to diagnose a sub-mesoscale isopycnal diffusivity by determining the best match between observations of a tracer and simulations with varying small-scale diffusivities. Specifically, the robustness of a ‘roughness’ measure to discriminate between tracer fields experiencing different sub-mesoscale isopycnal diffusivities and advected by scaled altimetric velocity fields is investigated. We use the measure to compare numerical simulations of the tracer released at a depth of about 1.5 km in the Pacific sector of the Southern Ocean during the Diapycnal and Isopycnal Mixing Experiment in the Southern Ocean (DIMES) field campaign with observations of the tracer taken on DIMES cruises. We find that simulations with an isopycnal diffusivity of ~20 m2s−1 best match observations in the Pacific sector of the ACC, rising to ~20-50 m2s−1 through Drake Passage, representing sub-mesoscale processes and any mesoscale processes unresolved by the advecting altimetry fields. The roughness measure is demonstrated to be a statistically robust way to estimate a small-scale diffusivity when measurements are relatively sparse in space and time, although it does not work if there are too few measurements overall. The planning of tracer measurements during a cruise in order to maximise the robustness of the roughness measure is also considered. It is found that the robustness is increased if the spatial resolution of tracer measurements is increased with the time since tracer release

Heat distribution in the Southeast Pacific is only weakly sensitive to high-latitude heat flux and wind stress.

The Southern Ocean features regionally‐varying ventilation pathways that transport heat and carbon from the surface ocean to the interior thermocline on timescales of decades to centuries, but the factors that control the distribution of heat along these pathways are not well understood. In this study, we use a global ocean state estimate (ECCOv4) to (1) define the recently ventilated interior Pacific (RVP) using numerical passive tracer experiments over a 10‐year period and (2) use an adjoint approach to calculate the sensitivities of the RVP heat content (RVPh) to changes in net heat flux and wind stress. We find that RVPh is most sensitive to local heat flux and wind stress anomalies north of the sea surface height contours that delineate the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, with especially high sensitivities over the South Pacific Gyre. Surprisingly, RVPh is not especially sensitive to changes at higher latitudes. We perform a set of step response experiments over the South Pacific Gyre, the subduction region, and the high‐latitude SO. In consistency with the adjoint sensitivity fields, RVPh is most sensitive to wind stress curl over the subtropical gyre, which alter isopycnal heave, and it is only weakly sensitive to changes at higher latitudes. Our results suggest that despite the localized nature of mode water subduction hotspots, changes in basin‐scale pressure gradients are an important controlling factor on RVPh. Because basin‐scale wind stress is expected to change in the coming decades to centuries, our results may have implications for climate, via the atmosphere/ocean partitioning of heat

Eligibility rates and representativeness of the General Medical Services scheme population in Ireland 2017-2021: A methodological report [version 1; peer review: 2 approved]

Background: In Ireland, the means tested General Medical Services (GMS) scheme provides access to a range of healthcare services at no or low cost to approximately one third of the population. Individuals eligible for the GMS scheme are often a focus of research, as a population that account for a large proportion of healthcare services use. The aim of this study is to describe the eligibility rates and representativeness of the GMS scheme population over time, with respect to age group, sex, and geographical area in Ireland. Methods: Population data was obtained from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), using 2016 Census figures and projected population figures for 2017-2021. GMS eligibility figures for 2016-2021 were obtained from the HSE Primary Care Reimbursement Service (PCRS). GMS eligibility rates and relative rates of eligibility were calculated for 2016-2021 by age group and sex. Additionally, 2016 eligibility rates were calculated by geographical area. Results: The crude eligibility rate decreased from 36.4% in 2016 to 31.2% in 2020, with a slight increase to 31.6% in 2021. In the 75+ years age group, 78.2% of the total population were eligible for the GMS scheme in 2021. The age group with the lowest rate of eligible individuals was the 25-34 age group, with 19.5% eligible in 2021. The eligibility rate was higher among females compared to males throughout the study period. The highest eligibility rate was seen in Donegal, with a crude rate of 52.8%. Dublin had the lowest rate, with a crude rate of 29.3%. Conclusions: GMS eligibility varies greatly depending on age, sex, and geographical area, and decreased between 2016 and 2021. This study uses the most up-to-date data available to provide age group, sex and area-based figures for GMS eligibility which may inform planning and conduct of research focusing on GMS-eligible individuals

Association between diabetes overtreatment in older multimorbid patients and clinical outcomes: an ancillary European multicentre study.

BACKGROUND Diabetes overtreatment is a frequent and severe issue in multimorbid older patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). OBJECTIVE This study aimed at assessing the association between diabetes overtreatment and 1-year functional decline, hospitalisation and mortality in older inpatients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. METHODS Ancillary study of the European multicentre OPERAM project on multimorbid patients aged ≥70 years with T2D and glucose-lowering treatment (GLT). Diabetes overtreatment was defined according to the 2019 Endocrine Society guideline using HbA1c target range individualised according to the patient's overall health status and the use of GLT with a high risk of hypoglycaemia. Multivariable regressions were used to assess the association between diabetes overtreatment and the three outcomes. RESULTS Among the 490 patients with T2D on GLT (median age: 78 years; 38% female), 168 (34.3%) had diabetes overtreatment. In patients with diabetes overtreatment as compared with those not overtreated, there was no difference in functional decline (29.3% vs 38.0%, P = 0.088) nor hospitalisation rates (107.3 vs 125.8/100 p-y, P = 0.115) but there was a higher mortality rate (32.8 vs 21.4/100 p-y, P = 0.033). In multivariable analyses, diabetes overtreatment was not associated with functional decline nor hospitalisation (hazard ratio, HR [95%CI]: 0.80 [0.63; 1.02]) but was associated with a higher mortality rate (HR [95%CI]: 1.64 [1.06; 2.52]). CONCLUSIONS Diabetes overtreatment was associated with a higher mortality rate but not with hospitalisation or functional decline. Interventional studies should be undertaken to test the effect of de-intensifying GLT on clinical outcomes in overtreated patients

UNA EXPERIENCIA DE ARTICULACIÓN ENTRE LA UNIVERSIDAD NACIONAL DEL SUR Y LAS ESCUELAS DE NIVEL MEDIO DE BAHÍA BLANCA Y SU ZONA DE INFLUENCIA.

En los últimos años es una preocupación común la problemática de la deserción en los primeros años de la universidad. La Universidad Nacional del Sur no permanece ajena a la misma. Esta preocupación llevó a la implementación de distintas acciones entre las cuales se encuadra la realización, desde el año 2003, del proyecto de Articulación Universidad- polimodal. En el presente trabajo se describirán los objetivos, actividades planteadas y las acciones desarrolladas hasta el momento actual en el marco del Proyecto de “Articulación entre la Universidad Nacional del Sur y las escuelas de nivel medio de Bahía Blanca y su zona de influencia”, el cual se enmarca en el “Programa Apoyo a la Articulación Universidad – Escuela Media II” del Ministerio de Educación, Técnica y Tecnología – Secretaría de Políticas Universitarias

Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents’ Eating Behaviors and Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Importance There is widespread interest in the effect of food marketing on children; however, the comprehensive global evidence reviews are now dated. Objective To quantify the association of food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing with behavioral and health outcomes in children and adolescents to inform updated World Health Organization guidelines. Data Sources Twenty-two databases were searched (including MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, Embase, and The Cochrane Library) with a publication date limit from January 2009 through March 2020. Study Selection Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses reporting guidelines were followed. Inclusion criteria were primary studies assessing the association of food marketing with specified outcomes in children and adolescents (aged 0-19 years). Exclusion criteria were qualitative studies or those on advertising of infant formula. Of 31 063 articles identified, 96 articles were eligible for inclusion in the systematic review, and 80 articles in the meta-analysis (19 372 participants). Data Extraction and Synthesis Two reviewers independently extracted data. Random-effects models were used for meta-analyses; meta-regressions, sensitivity analyses, and P curve analyses were also performed. Where appropriate, pooling was conducted using combining P values and vote counting by direction of effect. Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation was used to judge certainty of evidence. Main Outcomes and Measures Critical outcomes were intake, choice, preference, and purchasing. Important outcomes were purchase requests, dental caries, body weight, and diet-related noncommunicable diseases. Results Participants totaled 19 372 from 80 included articles. Food marketing was associated with significant increases in intake (standardized mean difference [SMD], 0.25; 95% CI, 0.15-0.35; P Output Status: Forthcoming/Available Onlin