What is being conveyed to health professionals and consumers through web and print sources of nutrition information?

Nutrition misinformation can be harmful. Within dietetics there is an acknowledgement that nutrition information should be consistent, science-based and made relevant to different segments of the population. This paper reports on a study, conducted in Scotland, which involved focus groups and interviews with consumers and health professionals to explore messages relating to a healthy diet and to starchy foods and foods high in fat or sugar in particular. The research also involved a discourse analysis of articles aimed at health professionals and consumers. Evidence based, clearly written web and print articles were not the norm. Many articles contained value-laden messages and inconsistent or unclear advice. Nutrition information was rarely contextualized for consumers to help them incorporate the advice into their daily lives. Consumers and health professionals reported feeling 'bombarded' by messages about diet, which was sometimes confusing. There is considerable scope for improving nutrition messaging in Scotland.Peer reviewe

The Iowa Homemaker vol.29, no.5

Give a Cookbook for Christmas, Margaret Leveson, page 3 Here’s What’s Open for you in TV, Barbara Short, page 4 What’s New, Virginia Foth, page 6 Holiday Treats, Marian Ismert, page 7 We’re Square Dancing Tonight, Elizabeth Fox, page 8 Alums in the News, Marjorie Miller, page 10 Here’s an Idea, Janet Sutherland, page 12 For the Men on Vicky’s Gift List, Frances Bosnak, page 1

Breastfeeding Education Support Tool for Baby (BEST4Baby): Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Impact of an mHealth Supported Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Intervention in rural India

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of an mHealth-supported breastfeeding peer counselor intervention implemented in rural India and the preliminary impact of the intervention on maternal breastfeeding behaviors, including exclusive breastfeeding (EBF). Methods: In this quasi-experimental pilot study, participants received either the intervention plus usual care (n = 110) or usual care alone (n = 112). The intervention group received nine in-home visits during and after pregnancy from peer counselors who provided education about and support for EBF and other optimal infant feeding practices and were aided with an mHealth tool. The control group received routine prenatal and postnatal health education. Progress notes and surveys were used to assess feasibility. Logistic regression models were used for between-group comparisons of optimal infant feeding outcomes, including EBF for 6 months. Results: The intervention was delivered as intended, maintained over the study period, and had high acceptability ratings. There were statistically significant differences in all outcomes between groups. The intervention group had a significantly higher likelihood of EBF at 6 months compared to the control group (adjusted odds ratio 3.57, 95% confidence interval 1.80–7.07). Conclusion: Integration of mHealth with community-based peer counselors to educate women about EBF is feasible and acceptable in rural India and impacts maternal breastfeeding behaviors

'I don't think I ever had food poisoning' : A practice-based approach to understanding foodborne disease that originates in the home

© 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).Food stored, prepared, cooked and eaten at home contributes to foodborne disease which, globally, presents a significant public health burden. The aim of the study reported here was to investigate, analyse and interpret domestic kitchen practices in order to provide fresh insight about how the domestic setting might influence food safety. Using current theories of practice meant the research, which drew on qualitative and ethnographic methods, could investigate people and material things in the domestic kitchen setting whilst taking account of people's actions, values, experiences and beliefs. Data from 20 UK households revealed the extent to which kitchens are used for a range of nonfood related activities and the ways that foodwork extends beyond the boundaries of the kitchen. The youngest children, the oldest adults and the family pets all had agency in the kitchen, which has implications for preventing foodborne disease. What was observed, filmed and photographed was not a single practice but a series of entangled encounters and actions embedded and repeated, often inconsistently, by the individuals involved. Households derived logics and principles about foodwork that represented rules of thumb about 'how things are done' that included using the senses and experiential knowledge when judging whether food is safe to eat. Overall, food safety was subsumed within the practice of 'being' a household and living everyday life in the kitchen. Current theories of practice are an effective way of understanding foodborne disease and offer a novel approach to exploring food safety in the home.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

A study of general practitioners' perspectives on electronic medical records systems in NHS Scotland

<b>Background</b> Primary care doctors in NHSScotland have been using electronic medical records within their practices routinely for many years. The Scottish Health Executive eHealth strategy (2008-2011) has recently brought radical changes to the primary care computing landscape in Scotland: an information system (GPASS) which was provided free-of-charge by NHSScotland to a majority of GP practices has now been replaced by systems provided by two approved commercial providers. The transition to new electronic medical records had to be completed nationally across all health-boards by March 2012. <p></p><b> Methods</b> We carried out 25 in-depth semi-structured interviews with primary care doctors to elucidate GPs' perspectives on their practice information systems and collect more general information on management processes in the patient surgical pathway in NHSScotland. We undertook a thematic analysis of interviewees' responses, using Normalisation Process Theory as the underpinning conceptual framework. <p></p> <b>Results</b> The majority of GPs' interviewed considered that electronic medical records are an integral and essential element of their work during the consultation, playing a key role in facilitating integrated and continuity of care for patients and making clinical information more accessible. However, GPs expressed a number of reservations about various system functionalities - for example: in relation to usability, system navigation and information visualisation. <b>Conclusion </b>Our study highlights that while electronic information systems are perceived as having important benefits, there remains substantial scope to improve GPs' interaction and overall satisfaction with these systems. Iterative user-centred improvements combined with additional training in the use of technology would promote an increased understanding, familiarity and command of the range of functionalities of electronic medical records among primary care doctors

The effect of frailty on survival in patients with COVID-19 (COPE) : a multicentre, European, observational cohort study

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Routine Use of Immunosuppressants is Associated with Mortality in Hospitalised Patients with Covid-19

Acknowledgement We acknowledge the dedication, commitment, and sacrifice of the staff from participating centres across UK and Italy, two among the most severely affected countries in Europe. We gratefully acknowledge the contribution of our collaborators, National Institute of Health Research (NIHR), Health Research Authority (HRA) in the UK and Ethics Committee of Policlinico Hospital Modena, which provided rapid approval of COPE study and respective Institutions’ Research and Development Offices and Caldicott Guardians for their assistance and guidance. We also thank COPE Study Sponsor, Cardiff University, Wales, UK.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Design, Development, and Testing of BEST4Baby, an mHealth Technology to Support Exclusive Breastfeeding in India: Pilot Study.

Background: Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) at 6 months of age in most low- and middle-income countries, including India, is surprisingly low. There is a relative lack of mobile health apps that specifically focus on leveraging the use of peer counselors (PCs) to support mothers as a means of increasing EBF practices in low- and middle-income countries. Objective: This study aimed to design, develop, and test the usability of Breastfeeding Education Support Tool for Baby (BEST4Baby), a mobile health app specifically designed to support PCs in providing in-home breastfeeding counseling support to mothers in rural India on optimal breastfeeding practices. Methods: A user-centered design process with an agile development methodology was used. The approach involved stakeholders and mothers who were trained to serve as PCs to guide BEST4Baby\u27s design and development, including the app\u27s content and features. PCs were engaged through focus groups with interactive wireframes. During the 24-month pilot study period, we conducted a feasibility test of the BEST4Baby app with 22 PCs who supported home visits with mothers residing in rural India. The intervention protocol required PCs to provide education and follow mothers using the BEST4Baby app, with 9 scheduled home visits from the late prenatal stage to 6 months post partum. BEST4Baby\u27s usability from the PCs\u27 perspective was assessed using the translated System Usability Scale (SUS). Results: The findings of this study align with best practices in user-centered design (ie, understanding user experience, including context with iterative design with stakeholders) to address EBF barriers. This led to the cultural tailoring and contextual alignment of an evidence-based World Health Organization breastfeeding program with an iterative design and agile development of the BEST4Baby app. A total of 22 PCs tested and rated the BEST4Baby app as highly usable, with a mean SUS score of 85.3 (SD 9.1), placing it over the 95th percentile for SUS scores. The approach translated into a highly usable BEST4Baby app for use by PCs in breastfeeding counseling, which also statistically increased EBF practices. Conclusions: The findings suggest that BEST4Baby was highly usable and accepted by mothers serving as PCs to support other mothers in their EBF practices and led to positive outcomes in the intervention group\u27s EBF rates. The pilot study demonstrated that using the specially designed BEST4Baby app was an important support tool for mothers to serve as PCs during the 9 home visits. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03533725; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03533725

Financial control, blame avoidance and Radio Caroline: Talkin’ ‘bout my generation

This research examines the use of financial mechanisms that simultaneously impose controls and facilitate blame avoidance by public office-holders. A qualitative historical examination is used to examine legislation designed to prevent Radio Caroline, a pirate radio station, from broadcasting into Britain in the 1960s. Radio Caroline made a mockery of the British Government’s power to manage radio through a monopolist, the British Broadcasting Corporation. In addition, Radio Caroline played the type of rock music the British Government sought to suppress as representing the undesirable side of youth culture. This research examines the suppression of Radio Caroline through the Marine & Broadcasting (Offences) Act (UK) 1967 and the legislative scapegoating of Radio Caroline by targeting its revenue-earning potential. Inter-generational conflict underpinned the legislative scapegoating of Radio Caroline. This research demonstrates how financial controls can mask scapegoating and blame avoidance strategies by governments