Are we teaching our students what they need to know about ageing? Results from the National Survey of Undergraduate Teaching in Ageing and Geriatric Medicine

Introduction - Learning about ageing and the appropriate management of older patients is important for all doctors. This survey set out to evaluate what medical undergraduates in the UK are taught about ageing and geriatric medicine and how this teaching is delivered. Methods – An electronic questionnaire was developed and sent to the 28/31 UK medical schools which agreed to participate. Results – Full responses were received from 17 schools. 8/21 learning objectives were recorded as taught, and none were examined, across every school surveyed. Elder abuse and terminology and classification of health were taught in only 8/17 and 2/17 schools respectively. Pressure ulcers were taught about in 14/17 schools but taught formally in only 7 of these and examined in only 9. With regard to bio- and socio- gerontology, only 9/17 schools reported teaching in social ageing, 7/17 in cellular ageing and 9/17 in the physiology of ageing. Discussion – Even allowing for the suboptimal response rate, this study presents significant cause for concern with UK undergraduate education related to ageing. The failure to teach comprehensively on elder abuse and pressure sores, in particular, may be significantly to the detriment of older patients

Ultra-wide planar Bragg grating detuning and 2D channel waveguide integration through direct grating writing

We present a technique for defining 20 channel waveguide structures with internal Bragg gratings in photosensitive germanosilica-on-silicon using two interfering focussed UV beams. Grating detuning across the S, C, and L bands is demonstrated

Bragg gratings in two-layer core planar silica-on-silicon waveguides and application to integrated lasers

A neodymium-doped glass waveguide laser based on a new structure employing two core layers is reported. This double-layer structure allows a photosensitive layer to be integrated with an efficient gain layer. Singlemode operation was obtained with a lasing threshold of 93 mW and an efficiency of 0.6%

Small-spot interference pattern for single-step 2D integration and wide wavelength detuning of planar Bragg gratings

A single-step technique for defining 2D channel waveguide structures with internal Bragg gratings in photosensitive germanosilica-on-silicon using two interfering focused UV beams is presented. Through software control, grating detuning across the S-, C-, and L-wavelength bands is also demonstrated

Ultra-wide detuning through direct grating writing of planar Bragg structures

We demonstrate a process of planar Bragg grating writing capable of defining Bragg gratings throughout the S, C and L bands using a computer controlled detuning technique

All-UV-written integrated planar Bragg gratings and channel waveguides with no phase mask

Direct UV writing provides an attractive route towards low-cost integrated optical components in photosensitive silica-on-silicon wafers. Combining closely packed channel waveguides with a Bragg grating tailored spectral response would allow the creation of compact systems for wavelength division multiplexing on a single optical chip. To this end, we present our new technique for simultaneous definition of channel waveguides with integral Bragg gratings based on the interference of two focussed UV-writing beams. This single-step approach promotes optimal use of sample photosensitivity for both the waveguide geometry and Bragg grating structure and allows implementation of many aspects of advanced grating design, such as chirp and apodisation, with no need for a phase mask

All-UV-written integrated planar Bragg gratings and channel waveguides through single-step direct grating writing

We present a single-step technique for defining 2-dimensional integrated channel waveguide structures with internal Bragg gratings in photosensitive germanosilica-on-silicon substrates using two interfering focussed UV beams. Detailed device analysis of the relationship between the photosensitive properties of the glass, UV writing conditions, and subsequent refractive index change and channel waveguide strength is presented based on grating characterisation. Through software control, 300nm wide grating detuning across the E, S, C, L, and U wavelength bands is demonstrated

Direct UV writing of Bragg grating channel waveguides in a single step process

We present a development of Direct UV writing that allows simultaneous definition of channel waveguides with or without Bragg gratings in a single process in photosensitivity locked planar silica-on-silicon samples

Photosensitivity locking technique applied to UV written planar Bragg gratings

A technique is presented for thermally processing deuterium loaded silica-on-silicon samples to provide air enhanced photosensitivity lifetime of at least one year at room temperature. Subsequent simultaneous writing of channel waveguides and Bragg gratings resulted in grating reflections of ~80% with a FWHM of 0.1 nm