Compassionate Management in the Workplace

This major paper examines compassion and its importance in the workplace. Scholars have noted that in the past managers did not promote compassionate workplaces because it was viewed as “weak” and “soft”. It was believed that compassion had no place when it came to business competitiveness and further career advancement. However, recent literature indicates the importance of compassion and ways in which it can help a business reach sustainable growth and success. Much of the research shares benefits of a compassionate workplace at both the organizational and personal level, indicating that a compassionate workplace is advantageous. This major paper also addresses the importance of compassionate leaders in an organization and highlights some of the tools that can be used to introduce a more compassionate work environment. To contrast this research, factors that complicate compassion in the workplace are also identified. This is included to ensure that leaders understand what behaviours should not be exhibited in the workplace if the goal is to create a compassionate environment. The paper concludes with recommendations for future research directions, some of which include: measuring levels of compassion in the workplace and how it affects employees, managers and the bottom line of a business, as well as further data collection for the development of compassion training programs

Design and development of Taeneb City Guide - from paper maps and guidebooks to electronic guides

This paper reports the design, development and feedback from the initial trial of the Taeneb City Guide project developing tourist information software on Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) handheld computers. Based on the users' requirements for electronic tourists guides already published in the literature, the paper focuses on the three main technology features of the systems, which would give the advantage over the existing paper publication: query-able dynamic map interface, dynamic information content and community review systems and users' forum. The paper also reports the results of an initial trial of a City Guide for Glasgow conducted as part of the EMAC 03 conference

The Autism Toolbox : An Autism Resource for Scottish Schools

The Autism Toolbox will draw upon a range of practice experience, literature and research to offer guidance for authorities and schools providing for children and young people with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

Development of an online palliative care medicines training series for health and social care staff

Aim or goal of work: Frontline support staff working in General Practice (GP) (i.e. receptionists), Community Pharmacies (CP) and Care Homes are likely to face issues concerning palliative care medicines amongst their patient group. Previous service evaluations by the authors found a need for sustainable and accessible palliative care training for these staff. A national online training resource on palliative medicines for health and social care staff was subsequently developed and is currently being evaluated. Design, methods & approach taken: Various education and training materials for these staff groups were consolidated and re-developed into one interactive course, comprised of Core sessions for all staff (e.g. Introduction to Palliative Care) and discipline specific sessions i.e. Pharmacy (e.g. Dispensing Opioids) and Care Home (e.g. Palliative Medicines & Risk of Falls) staff. User feedback was obtained via a questionnaire measuring satisfaction, usefulness and impact. Results: All 50 participants (11 staff from GP Practices, Community Pharmacies (n=9) and Care Homes (n=30)) agreed that the training was useful and with the correct degree of difficulty. Participants liked the delivery format and felt the training was “informative” and “easy to access”. Staff also reported that managers were supportive of them undertaking the training. The training provided a good introduction and, for some, a refresher to palliative care. Some participants provided real-life examples of how the training had been beneficial to (and applied by) them in the workplace. Conclusions and lessons learned: This new training resource provides education in an engaging, accessible format to frontline health and social care multi-disciplinary teams. It will be available nationally from November 2016 to support the provision of palliative care by frontline staff at the point of need

Development of the NES online palliative care medicines training series for health and social care support staff

Previous Macmillan Cancer Support and Health Board funded palliative care pharmacy service evaluations in NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde (urban) and NHS Highland (rural) (1-4) observed a steady integration of the community pharmacy team into local palliative care services. Frontline staff in General Practice, Community Pharmacies and Care Homes in these areas were found to lack knowledge about palliative care medicines amongst their patient group. Both evaluations resulted in the development and testing of training materials in a variety of face-to-face and online formats and for different support staff

Higher Mediterranean diet score is associated with longer time between relapses in Australian females with multiple sclerosis

A higher Mediterranean diet score has been associated with lower likelihood of multiple sclerosis. However, evidence regarding its association with disease activity and progression is limited. Using data from the AusLong Study, we tested longitudinal associations (over 10 years follow-up) between the alternate Mediterranean diet score (aMED) and aMED-Red (including moderate consumption of unprocessed red meat) and time between relapses and disability measured by Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) (n=132; 27 males, 105 females). We used covariate-adjusted survival analysis for time between relapses, and time series mixed-effects negative binomial regression for EDSS. After adjusting for covariates, both higher aMED (aHR=0.94, 95%CI: 0.90, 0.99, p=0.009) and higher aMED-Red (aHR=0.93, 95%CI: 0.89, 0.97, p=0.001) were associated with significantly longer time between relapses in females. Whether specific dietary components of a Mediterranean diet are important in relation to relapses merits further study.Comment: Original article, Brief communication, 13 pages, 2 tables (one main table and one supplementary table

Evaluation of the Airdrie and Hamilton Youth Court Pilots

Pilot Youth Courts were introduced at Hamilton Sheriff Court in June 2003 and at Airdrie Sheriff Court in June 2004. Although introduced as one of a number of measures aimed at responding more effectively to youth crime (including young people dealt with through the Children’s Hearings System), the Youth Courts were intended for young people who would otherwise have been dealt with in the adult Sheriff Summary Court. The objectives of the pilot Youth Courts were to: • reduce the frequency and seriousness of re-offending by 16 and 17 year old offenders, particularly persistent offenders (and some 15 year olds who are referred to the court); • promote the social inclusion, citizenship and personal responsibility of these young offenders while maximising their potential; • establish fast track procedures for those young persons appearing before the Youth Court; • enhance community safety, by reducing the harm caused to individual victims of crime and providing respite to those communities which are experiencing high levels of crime; and • test the viability and usefulness of a Youth Court using existing legislation and to demonstrate whether legislative and practical improvements might be appropriate. Evaluation of the Hamilton and Airdrie Sheriff Youth Court pilots suggested that they had been successful in meeting the objectives set for them by the Youth Court Feasibility Group. Both were tightly run courts that dealt with a heavy volume of business. The particular strengths of the Youth Court model over previous arrangements included the fast-tracking of young people to and through the court, the reduction in trials, the availability of a wider range of resources and services for young people and ongoing judicial review. The successful operation of the pilot Youth Courts was dependent upon effective teamwork among the relevant agencies and professionals concerned. Good information sharing, liaison and communication appeared to exist across agencies and the procedures that were in place to facilitate the sharing of information seemed to be working well. This was also facilitated by the presence of dedicated staff within agencies, resulting in clear channels of communication, and in the opportunity provided by the multi-agency Implementation Groups to identify and address operational issues on an ongoing basis. However, whether Youth Courts are required in Scotland or whether procedural improvement were possible in the absence of dedicated resources and personnel was more difficult to assess. Two issues in particular required further attention. First, consideration needed to be given to whether the Youth Courts should be more explicitly youth focused and what this might entail. Second, greater clarity was required regarding for whom the Youth Courts were intended. This suggested the need for further discussion of Youth Court targeting and its potential consequences among the various agencies concerned

A novel mobile app ("CareFit") to support informal caregivers to undertake regular physical activity from home during and beyond COVID-19 restrictions : co-design and prototype development study

Background: Informal caregivers, or carers (unpaid family members and friends), are instrumental to millions worldwide for the ongoing delivery of health and well-being needs. The risk of crisis points (eg, hospitalizations) for caregivers increases with the absence of physical activity. The COVID-19 pandemic is highly likely to have increased the risk of crisis points for caregivers by increasing the amount of time spent indoors due to shielding and lockdown restrictions. Thus, accessible evidence-based tools to facilitate physical activity for caregivers indoors are urgently needed. Objective: The aim of this study was to co-design and develop a novel mobile app to educate and support carers in the undertaking of regular physical activity at home during and beyond COVID-19 restrictions via integration of the transtheoretical model of behavior change and UK physical activity guidelines. Methods: We co-designed a mobile app, "CareFit," by directly involving caregivers, health care professionals, and social care professionals in the requirements, capturing, and evaluation phases of three Agile Scrum design and development sprints. Seven participants representing multistakeholder views took part in three co-design sessions, each of which was followed by a development sprint. Requirements for CareFit were grounded in a combination of behavioral change science and UK government guidelines for physical activity. Results: Participants identified different barriers and enablers to physical activity, such as a lack of time, recognition of existing activities, and concerns regarding safely undertaking physical activity. Requirements analysis highlighted the importance of simplicity in design and a need to anchor development around the everyday needs of caregivers (eg, easy-To-use video instructions). Our final prototype app integrated guidance for undertaking physical activity at home through educational, physical activity, and communication components. Conclusions: Integrating government guidelines with models of behavioral change into a mobile app to support the physical activity of carers is novel. We found that integrating core physical activity guidelines into a co-designed smartphone app with functionality such as a weekly planner and educational material for users is feasible. This work holds promise to fill the gap of effective physical activity solutions for caregivers both during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Further work is now needed to explore the feasibility, acceptability, and usability of the approach in real-world settings