An Examination of the Factors That Facilitate and Hinder the Care Planning Process for Very Young Children in Scotland

The study reported here by Linda Davidson and Karen McKenzie examined the care planning process for very young children in Scotland using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Data were gathered from existing case files on 18 looked after children aged 0–2 years. A qualitative approach was used to explore the views of six randomly selected social workers about current practice in relation to care planning. The social workers identified a number of factors which both facilitated and hindered the care planning process and in a number of cases the same factor was identified as doing both. The most commonly identified factor was waiting for an expert assessment. This could cause serious delays but once completed, was often the catalyst for change. The participants identified a further number of factors which they felt could improve the process, including additional training. Their responses are discussed in the context of recent legislative changes in Scotland

An Examination of the Factors That Facilitate and Hinder the Care Planning Process for Very Young Children in Scotland

The study reported here by Linda Davidson and Karen McKenzie examined the care planning process for very young children in Scotland using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Data were gathered from existing case files on 18 looked after children aged 0–2 years. A qualitative approach was used to explore the views of six randomly selected social workers about current practice in relation to care planning. The social workers identified a number of factors which both facilitated and hindered the care planning process and in a number of cases the same factor was identified as doing both. The most commonly identified factor was waiting for an expert assessment. This could cause serious delays but once completed, was often the catalyst for change. The participants identified a further number of factors which they felt could improve the process, including additional training. Their responses are discussed in the context of recent legislative changes in Scotland

Integrating Yoga into a Medication Assisted Treatment Program to Improve Retention

Background: In 2017, Health and Human Services declared the opioid epidemic a public health emergency (US Department of Health & Human Services, 2017). As a response, access to medication assisted treatment (MAT) programs was encouraged. In 2016, a community health center in Western North Carolina started a MAT program integrating buprenorphine treatment with behavioral health (BH) services. Data from May 2018 through May 2019 demonstrated retention in the MAT program ranged from 65-75% at a given time with behavioral health attendance under 50%. Aims: The aim of this quality improvement project was to examine if integrating yoga, an evidence-based somatic therapy, into the MAT program would improve attendance and retention in the MAT program. A secondary aim was to assess whether craving scales and quality of life metrics were comparable between yoga and traditional BH attendees. Finally, ongoing feedback from participants and therapists was examined to improve the MAT yoga program. Method: One-hour yoga sessions were offered over 12 consecutive weeks. The curriculum consisted of poses, breath work, psychotherapy and psychoeducation of moral precepts (yamas and niyamas). Opioid craving scales, quality of life measures and open-ended questions were taken at baseline, 6 weeks and 12 weeks. Results: Participants were young adults, Caucasian males and females, from a low socioeconomic background. Behavioral health attendance during the MAT Yoga project increased from less than 50% attendance to a mean of 70.24% (n=7). Overall program retention was 100% (n=7). Cravings, desire and likelihood of use decreased. There was minimal change in quality of life metrics with activities of daily living most improved. Participants related a reduction in anxiety, depression and stress. All participants signed up for the next series of sessions. Conclusions: The findings demonstrated offering yoga as an alternative to traditional BH talk therapy is feasible in community health. The findings and participant feedback from this quality improvement project can be used to expand and improve the program moving forward. Participant feedback indicated that offering later sessions, having longer sessions and more sessions is desirable. Larger studies and longitudinal studies are needed to gather more data

Offenders and E-Learning - a literature review on behalf of Becta

This literature review has been prepared by the Hallam Centre of Community Justice at Sheffield Hallam University, on behalf of Becta. The literature review provides a summary of existing research and knowledge relating to e-learning in the offending learning sector with a view to developing a range of e-maturity indicators across the sector. The review also highlights linkages with current Government policy in relation to offender learning and skills

Tris+/Na+ permeability ratios of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors are reduced by mutations near the intracellular end of the M2 region

Tris+/Na+ permeability ratios were measured from shifts in the biionic reversal potentials of the macroscopic ACh-induced currents for 3 wild- type (WT), 1 hybrid, 2 subunit-deficient, and 25 mutant nicotinic receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes. At two positions near the putative intracellular end of M2, 2' (alpha Thr244, beta Gly255, gamma Thr253, delta Ser258) and -1', point mutations reduced the relative Tris+ permeability of the mouse receptor as much as threefold. Comparable mutations at several other positions had no effects on relative Tris+ permeability. Mutations in delta had a greater effect on relative Tris+ permeability than did comparable mutations in gamma; omission of the mouse delta subunit (delta 0 receptor) or replacement of mouse delta with Xenopus delta dramatically reduced relative Tris+ permeability. The WT mouse muscle receptor (alpha beta gamma delta) had a higher relative permeability to Tris+ than the wild-type Torpedo receptor. Analysis of the data show that (a) changes in the Tris+/Na+ permeability ratio produced by mutations correlate better with the hydrophobicity of the amino acid residues in M2 than with their volume; and (b) the mole-fraction dependence of the reversal potential in mixed Na+/Tris+ solutions is approximately consistent with the Goldman- Hodgkin-Katz voltage equation. The results suggest that the main ion selectivity filter for large monovalent cations in the ACh receptor channel is the region delimited by positions -1' and 2' near the intracellular end of the M2 helix

Evaluation of Sheffield City Council's Community Justice Panels Project

This report is the output of an evaluation commissioned by Sheffield City Council and undertaken by the Hallam Centre for Community Justice at Sheffield Hallam University. The evaluation was undertaken during October and November 2009 with the objectives of assessing the effectiveness of the Community Justice Panels project so far and providing recommendations for future development. The evaluation used an action research methodology and included documentary analysis, semi-structured interviews with strategic partners and stakeholders, wrongdoers and harmed persons, facilitator focus group and observation of the Panels

Increasing the voluntary and community sector’s involvement in Integrated Offender Management(IOM)

As part of an undertaking to increase voluntary and community sector (VCS) involvement in service delivery, the Home Office set up an initiative to provide small grants to VCS organisations to work with IOM partnerships. The Home Office commissioned an evaluation of the initiative which aimed to: explore the strengths and weaknesses of the funding model; identify perceived barriers and facilitators to voluntary and community sector involvement in IOM; explore how the Home Office might best work with the VCS to encourage and support their capacity to work in partnership with statutory agencies; and identify any implications for the delivery of future similar projects

Process evaluation of Derbyshire Intensive Alternatives to Custody Pilot

The aim of this study was to critically assess the implementation and development of the Intensive Alternatives to Custody (IAC) pilot in Derbyshire. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) Penal Policy paper (May 2007) outlined the government’s intention to develop higher intensity community orders as an alternative to short-term custody. The IAC Order was subsequently developed and piloted, first in Derbyshire and then in six other areas.* The pilots were centrally funded until March 2011

Tropical arboreal ants: why so abundant?

Book ChapterANTS ARE AMONG the most numerous and readily observed arthropods of tropical forests. Indeed, based on their standing biomass and many effects on other species, ants (Formicidae) are arguably the dominant arthropod family in the canopies of lowland rain forest trees (Tobin 1995). Others have tried to account for the remarkable abundances of arboreal ants in canopy arthropod samples (see especially the works of Majer 1990 and Tobin 1991, 1994), and we attempt to extend these explanations here using stable isotopes to diagnose the trophic specializations of the most abundant ant taxa. We begin with a review of ant diversity and abundance in the tropical arboreal zone