Comparing online and face-to-face student counselling: what therapeutic goals are identified and what are the implications for educational providers?

Online counselling is increasingly being used as an alternative to face-to-face student counselling. Using an exploratory mixed methods design, this project investigates the practice by examining the types of therapeutic goals that 11 to 25 year olds identify online in routine practice. These goals are then compared to goals identified in equivalent school and community-based counselling services. 1,137 online goals (expressed by 504 young people) and 221 face-to-face goals (expressed by 220 young people) were analysed for key themes using grounded theory techniques. This analysis identified three core categories (1) Intrapersonal Goals, (2) Interpersonal Goals, and (3) Intrapersonal Goals directly related to others. Further statistical analysis of these themes indicated that online and face-to-face services appear to be being used in different ways by students. These differences are discussed alongside the implications for professionals working in educational settings

Hybrid method for selection of the optimal process of leachate treatment in waste treatment and valorization plants or landfills

“The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10098-014-0834-4”Leachate from waste landfill or treatment plants is a very complex and highly contaminated liquid effluent. In its composition, it is found dissolved organic matter, inorganic salts, heavy metals, and other xenobiotic organic compounds, so it can be toxic, carcinogenic, and capable of inducing a potential risk to biota and humans. European law does not allow such leachate to leave the premises without being depolluted. There are many procedures that enable debugging, always combining different techniques. Choosing the best method to use in each case is a complex decision, as it depends on many tangible and intangible factors that must be weighed to achieve a balance between technical, cost, and environmental sustainability. It is presenting a hybrid method for choosing the optimal combination of techniques to apply in each case, by combining a multicriteria hierarchical analysis based on expert data obtained by the Delphi method with an analysis by the method of VIKOR to reach a consensus solution.Martín Utrillas, MG.; Reyes Medina, M.; Curiel Esparza, J.; Cantó Perelló, J. (2015). Hybrid method for selection of the optimal process of leachate treatment in waste treatment and valorization plants or landfills. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy. 17(4):873-885. doi:10.1007/s10098-014-0834-4S873885174Abbas AA, Guo J, Ping LZ, Ya PY, Al-Rekabi WS (2009) Review on landfill leachate treatments. AJAS 6(4):672–684Abood AR, Bao J, Abudi Z, Zheng D, Gao C (2013) Pretreatment of nonbiodegradable landfill leachate by air stripping coupled with agitation as ammonia stripping and coagulation–flocculation processes. Clean Technol Environ Policy 15(6):1069–1076Ahn WY, Kang MS, Yim SK, Choi KH (2002) Advanced landfill leachate treatment using an integrated membrane process. Desalination 149(1–3):109–114Al-Subhi Al-Harbi KM (2001) Application of the AHP in project management. Int J Proj Manag 19:19–27Bernasconi M, Choirat C, Seri R (2014) Empirical properties of group preference aggregation methods employed in AHP: theory and evidence. Eur J Oper Res 232(3):584–592Boopathy R, Karthikeyan S, Mandal AB, Sekaran G (2013) Characterization and recovery of sodium chloride from salt-laden solid waste generated from leather industry. Clean Technol Environ Policy 15(1):117–124Brechet T, Tulkens H (2009) Beyond BAT: selecting optimal combinations of available techniques, with an example from the limestone industry. J Environ Manag 90:1790–1801Canto-Perello J, Curiel-Esparza J, Calvo V (2013) Criticality and threat analysis on utility tunnels for planning security policies of utilities in urban underground space. Expert Syst Appl 40(11):4707–4714Chen Y, Liu C, Nie J, Wu S, Wang D (2014) Removal of COD and decolorizing from landfill leachate by Fenton’s reagent advanced oxidation. Clean Technol Environ Policy 16(1):189–193Chiochetta CG, Goetten LC, Almeida SM, Quaranta G, Cotelle S, Radetski CM (2014) Leachates from solid wastes: chemical and eco(geno)toxicological differences between leachates obtained from fresh and stabilized industrial organic sludge. Environ Sci Pollut R 21:1090–1098Chiumenti A, da Borso F, Chiumenti R, Teri F, Segantin P (2013) Treatment of digestate from a co-digestion biogas plant by means of vacuum evaporation: tests for process optimization and environmental sustainability. Waste Manag 33(6):1339–1344Council Directive 1999/31/EC (1999) April 26th 1999, on the landfill of waste. European Union Council, Official Journal L 182, 16/07/1999 P. 0001–0019Curiel-Esparza J, Canto-Perello J (2012) Understanding the major drivers for implementation of municipal sustainable policies in underground space. Int J Sust Dev World 19(6):506–514Curiel-Esparza J, Canto-Perello J (2013) Selecting utilities placement techniques in urban underground engineering. Arch Civ Mech Eng 13(2):276–285Curiel-Esparza J, Canto-Perello J, Calvo MA (2004) Establishing sustainable strategies in urban underground engineering. Sci Eng Ethics 10(3):523–530Dong Y, Zhang G, Hong WC, Xu Y (2010) Consensus models for AHP group decision making under row geometric mean prioritization method. Decis Support Syst 49:281–289Duckstein L, Opricovic S (1980) Multiobjective Optimization in River Basin Development. Water Resour Res 16(1):14–20Ersahin ME, Ozgun H, van Lier JB (2013) Effect of support material properties on dynamic membrane filtration performance. Separ Sci Technol 48(15):2263–2269Gracht HA (2012) Consensus measurement in Delphi studies, review and implications for future quality assurance. Forecast Soc Chang 79(8):1525–1536Grisey E, Laffray X, Contoz O, Cavalli E, Mudry J, Aleya L (2012) The bioaccumulation performance of reeds and cattails in a constructed treatment wetland for removal of heavy metals in landfill leachate treatment (Etueffont, France). Water Air Soil Pollut 223:1723–1741Guoliang Z, Lei Q, Qin M, Zheng F, Dexin W (2013) Aerobic SMBR/reverse osmosis system enhanced by Fenton oxidation for advanced treatment of old municipal landfill leachate. Bioresour Technol 142:261–268Gupta SK, Singh G (2007) Assessment of the Efficiency and Economic Viability of Various Methods of Treatment of Sanitary Landfill Leachate. Environ Monit Assess 135:107–117Heyer KU, Stegmann R (2005) Landfill systems, sanitary landfilling of solid wastes, and long-term problems with leachate. In: Jördening HJ, Winter J (eds) Environmental Biotechnology. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, p 375Hsu CC, Sandord BA (2007) The Delphi technique: making sense of consensus. PARE 12(10):1–7Kjeldsen P, Barlaz MA, Rooker AP, Baun A, Ledin A, Christensen TH (2002) Present and long-term composition of MSW landfill leachate: a review. Crit Rev Environ Sci Technol 32(4):297–336Lee WS (2013) Merger and acquisition evaluation and decision making model. Serv Ind J 33(15–16):1473–1494Lee GKL, Chan EHW (2008) The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) approach for assessment of urban renewal proposals. Soc Indic Res 89(1):155–168Li G, Wang W, Du Q (2010) Applicability of nanofiltration for the advanced treatment of landfill leachate. J Appl Polym Sci 116(4):2343–2347Mela K, Tiainen T, Heinisuo M (2012) Comparative study of multiple criteria decision making methods for building design. Adv Eng Inform 26:716–726Ozdemir MS, Saaty TL (2006) The unknown in decision making, what to do about it. Eur J Oper Res 174(1):349–359Renou S, Givaudan JG, Poulain S, Dirassouyan F, Moulin P (2008) Landfill leachate treatment: review and opportunity. J Hazard Mater 150(3):468–493Ritzkowski M, Stegmann R (2012) Landfill aeration worldwide: concepts, indications and findings. Waste Manag 32(7):1411–1419Romero C, Ramos P, Costa C, Marquez MC (2013) Raw and digested municipal waste compost leachate as potential fertilizer: comparison with a commercial fertilizer. J Clean Prod 59:73–78Roubelat F (2011) The Delphi method as a ritual: inquiring the Delphi Oracle. Forecast Soc Chang 78(9):1491–1499Saaty TL (1980) The analytic hierarchy process. Mc Graw-Hill, New YorkSaaty TL (2001) Decision making with dependence and feedback: the analytic network process, 2nd edn. RWS Publications, PittsburghSaaty TL (2008) Decision making with the analytic hierarchy process. Int J Serv Sci 1(1):83–98Saaty TL (2012) Decision making for leaders. The analytic hierarchy process for decisions in a complex world, 3rd edn. RWS Publications, PittsburghSan Cristobal J (2012) Contractor selection using multicriteria decision-making methods. J Constr Eng M 138(6):751–758Sayadi MK, Heydari M, Shahanaghi K (2009) Extension of VIKOR method for decision making problem with interval numbers. Appl Math Model 33:2257–2262Statnikova RB, Bordetskya A, Statnikov A (2005) Multi-criteria analysis of real-life engineering optimization problems: statement and solution. Nonlinear Anal 63:685–696Syamsuddin J (2010) The use of AHP in security policy decision making: an open office calc application. JSW 5(10):1162–1169Thapa RB, Murayama Y (2010) Drivers of urban growth in the Kathmandu valley, Nepal: examining the efficacy of the analytic hierarchy process. App Geogr 30(1):70–83van Praagh M, Heerenklage J, Smidt E, Modin H, Stegmann R, Persson KM (2009) Potential emissions from two mechanically–biologically pretreated (MBT) wastes. Waste Manag 29(2):859–868Vedaraman N, Shamshath BS, Srinivasan SV (2013) Response surface methodology for decolourisation of leather dye using ozonation in a packed bed reactor. Clean Technol Environ Policy 15(4):607–616Wang Q, Matsufuji Y, Dong L, Huang Q, Hirano F, Tanaka A (2006) Research on leachate recirculation from different types of landfills. Waste Manag 26:815–824Xing W, Lu W, Zhao Y (2013) Environmental impact assessment of leachate recirculation in landfill of municipal solid waste by comparing with evaporation and discharge (EASEWASTE). Waste Manag 33(2):382–389Yang W, Zhang KN, Chen YG, Zhou XZ, Jin FX (2013) Prediction on contaminant migration in aquifer of fractured granite substrata of landfill. J Cent South Univ 20(11):3193–3201Zavadskas EK, Turskis Z, Tamosaitiene J (2011) Selection of construction enterprises management strategy based on SWOT and multi-criteria analysis. ACME 11(4):1063–108

Nutraceutical agents with anti-inflammatory properties prevent dietary saturated-fat induced disturbances in blood-brain barrier function in wild-type mice

Background: Emerging evidence suggests that disturbances in the blood–brain barrier (BBB) may be pivotal to the pathogenesis and pathology of vascular-based neurodegenerative disorders. Studies suggest that heightened systemic and central inflammations are associated with BBB dysfunction. This study investigated the effect of the anti-inflammatory nutraceuticals garlic extract-aged (GEA), alpha lipoic acid (ALA), niacin, and nicotinamide (NA) in a murine dietary-induced model of BBB dysfunction. Methods: C57BL/6 mice were fed a diet enriched in saturated fatty acids (SFA, 40% fat of total energy) for nine months to induce systemic inflammation and BBB disturbances. Nutraceutical treatment groups included the provision of either GEA, ALA, niacin or NA in the positive control SFA-group and in low-fat fed controls. Brain parenchymal extravasation of plasma derived immunoglobulin G (IgG) and large macromolecules (apolipoprotein (apo) B lipoproteins) measured by quantitative immunofluorescent microscopy, were used as markers of disturbed BBB integrity. Parenchymal glial fibrillar acidic protein (GFAP) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) were considered in the context of surrogate markers of neurovascular inflammation and oxidative stress. Total anti-oxidant status and glutathione reductase activity were determined in plasma.Results: Brain parenchymal abundance of IgG and apoB lipoproteins was markedly exaggerated in mice maintained on the SFA diet concomitant with significantly increased GFAP and COX-2, and reduced systemic antioxidative status. The nutraceutical GEA, ALA, niacin, and NA completely prevented the SFA-induced disturbances of BBB and normalized the measures of neurovascular inflammation and oxidative stress. Conclusions: The anti-inflammatory nutraceutical agents GEA, ALA, niacin, or NA are potent inhibitors of dietary fat-induced disturbances of BBB induced by systemic inflammations

Endocrinologic, neurologic, and visual morbidity after treatment for craniopharyngioma

Craniopharyngiomas are locally aggressive tumors which typically are focused in the sellar and suprasellar region near a number of critical neural and vascular structures mediating endocrinologic, behavioral, and visual functions. The present study aims to summarize and compare the published literature regarding morbidity resulting from treatment of craniopharyngioma. We performed a comprehensive search of the published English language literature to identify studies publishing outcome data of patients undergoing surgery for craniopharyngioma. Comparisons of the rates of endocrine, vascular, neurological, and visual complications were performed using Pearson’s chi-squared test, and covariates of interest were fitted into a multivariate logistic regression model. In our data set, 540 patients underwent surgical resection of their tumor. 138 patients received biopsy alone followed by some form of radiotherapy. Mean overall follow-up for all patients in these studies was 54 ± 1.8 months. The overall rate of new endocrinopathy for all patients undergoing surgical resection of their mass was 37% (95% CI = 33–41). Patients receiving GTR had over 2.5 times the rate of developing at least one endocrinopathy compared to patients receiving STR alone or STR + XRT (52 vs. 19 vs. 20%, χ2P < 0.00001). On multivariate analysis, GTR conferred a significant increase in the risk of endocrinopathy compared to STR + XRT (OR = 3.45, 95% CI = 2.05–5.81, P < 0.00001), after controlling for study size and the presence of significant hypothalamic involvement. There was a statistical trend towards worse visual outcomes in patients receiving XRT after STR compared to GTR or STR alone (GTR = 3.5% vs. STR 2.1% vs. STR + XRT 6.4%, P = 0.11). Given the difficulty in obtaining class 1 data regarding the treatment of this tumor, this study can serve as an estimate of expected outcomes for these patients, and guide decision making until these data are available

House of Commons Science and Technology Committee Report : Impact of social media and screen-use on young people’s health

Executive Summary This submission primarily reflects upon the use of mental health support services that are available online for children and young people. It specifically reflects upon recent research that highlights some of the positive potential for such resources. In summary: Children and Young People will use the Internet and social media resources as a means to access health orientated support. Therefore professionals have to be ready to work in these environments. Numerous online resources have been developed to support children and young people. These have evolved with professional co-ordination and include online counselling services and moderated forums (e.g. Kooth.com). Online counselling services for children and young people (i) prove attractive to a wide variety of young people (including those who would not ordinarily access face-to-face support), (ii) potentially attract more vulnerable individuals to access support due to the anonymous nature of some services, and (iii) demonstrate that successful therapeutic relationships can be developed. Online forums provide helpful environments for children and young people to support one another. Young service user can use these resources to provide information an emotional support. Moderation of such services can prove helpful in developing safer environments