WellSafe Initiative– Chevron’s Well Control Assurance Program

Presentatio

Improving magistrates’ awareness of vulnerable women in the criminal justice system: a pilot

Most criminal offences in the UK are committed by men which means that women make up a small proportion of offenders dealt with in the criminal justice system. In total, women who offend comprise around 5% of the custodial population and 15% of offenders in the community. The issues women in the criminal justice system face are significantly different to those of the male population with women more often having distinct vulnerabilities. For instance, women in prison are more likely to have a mental health problem and to have experienced abuse as a child or an adult. Therefore, addressing the sentencing of this population requires a specific approach. This article describes a pilot study that aimed to improve magistrates’ awareness of vulnerable women in the criminal justice system. The Vulnerable Person Focus group delivered a series of ‘Focus on Women’ awareness sessions to over 100 court staff at four courts in Northamptonshire. Following the training, the participants reported improved confidence when sentencing women offenders; that the training had influenced them to seek information about the women’s health and social care circumstances before sentencing; and that the training had made them more likely to consider alternatives to custodial sentences

Executive functioning (fully) and processing speed (mostly) mediate intelligence deficits in children born very preterm

Children born very preterm (<32 weeks gestational age) are known to be at increased risk of neurocognitive impairments, in domains including executive functioning, processing speed, and fluid and crystallised intelligence. Given the close association between these constructs, the current study investigated a specific model, namely whether executive functioning and/or processing speed mediates the relationship between preterm birth and intelligence. Participants were 204 children born very preterm and 98 full-term children, who completed a battery of tasks measuring executive functioning, processing speed, and fluid and crystallised intelligence. Independent-samples t-tests found significantly poorer performance by children born preterm on all measures, and a confirmatory factor analysis found preterm birth to be significantly related to each of the cognitive domains. A latent-variable mediation model found that executive functioning fully mediated the associations between preterm birth and both fluid and crystallised intelligence. Processing speed fully mediated the preterm birth-fluid intelligence association, but only partially mediated the preterm birth-crystallised intelligence association. Future research should consider a longitudinal study design to test whether these deficits and mediating effects remain throughout childhood and adolescence

Comparison of individual and pooled diagnostic examination strategies during the national mapping of soil-transmitted helminths and Schistosoma mansoni in Ethiopia

Background : Laboratory-based studies have highlighted that pooling stool and urine samples can reduce costs and diagnostic burden without a negative impact on the ability to estimate the intensity of soil-transmitted helminth (STH, Ascaris lumbricoides, Trichuris trichiura and hookworms) and schistosome infections (Schistosoma mansoni and S. haematobium). In this study, we compare individual and pooled stool examination strategies in a programmatic setting. Methods : Stool samples were collected from 2,650 children in 53 primary schools in Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia, during the national mapping of STHs and schistosome infections. Eggs of STHs and S. mansoni were quantified in both individual and pooled samples (pools were made from 10 individual samples) using a single Kato-Katz smear. Principal findings : A pooled diagnostic examination strategy provided comparable estimates of infection intensity with higher fecal egg count (expressed in eggs per gram of stool (EPG)) than those based on individual strategy (Ascaris: 45.1 EPG vs. 93.9, p= 0.03; Trichuris: 1.8 EPG vs. 2.1 EPG, p = 0.95; hookworms: 17.5 EPG vs. 28.5 EPG, p = 0.1a S. mansoni: 1.6 EPG vs. 3.4 EPG, p = 0.02), but had lower sensitivity (Ascaris: 90.0% vs. 55.0%; Trichuris: 91.7% vs. 16.7%; hookworms: 92.6% vs. 61.8%; S. mansoni: 100% vs. 51.7%, p< 0.001). A pooled approach resulted in a similar to 70% reduction in time required for sample testing, but reduced total operational costs by only similar to 11%. Conclusions/Significance : A pooled approach holds promise for the rapid assessment of intensity of helminth infections in a programmatic setting, but it is not major cost-saving strategy. Further investigation is required to determine when and how pooling can be utilized. Such work should also include validation of statistical methods to estimate prevalence based on pooling samples. Finally, the comparison of operational costs across different scenarios of national program management will help determine whether pooling is indeed worthwhile considering

Montana Tech Concrete Solutions Final Report

In partial fulfillment of Senior Design, we formed a group to compete in the Associated Schools of Construction bidding competition in Sparks, Nevada. Our team chose to compete in the Concrete Solution competition, sponsored by Sundt, in the Open Division of the competition. In preparation for the competition, we researched various topics related to concrete construction, gathered resource materials, and practiced our presentation skills. Our goal was to gain a better understanding of the construction industry and become proficient in estimating, bidding, scheduling, sequencing, safety precautions, and risk management, with respect to the concrete construction field. We also planned to assemble a binder that will aid future teams competing in the Concrete Solutions competition. The binder provides an aid for future teams that might be interested in the Concrete Solutions competition. Once the competition was finished, we prepared a poster for the Techxpo, developed a binder with all our gathered information for future teams, and prepared a final written report of our senior design project. We also presented to classes at Montana Tech in hopes of generating interest in the competition and construction industry by underclassmen students, and continuing the successful participation in the bidding competition. This report contains a background of the competition, what we did to prepare for it, and what our competition problem and solution was. This report also contains post competition reflections, as well as advice for future Concrete Solutions competitors

Decisional support for young people who self-harm: protocol for a feasibility trial

Introduction: Self-harm is common in adolescents and it is the strongest predictor of suicide. Young people who self-harm are often unsure of how and where to get help. Decision aids (DA) have been shown to help with decisional conflict where there is uncertainty around different options. We have developed an online DA to support young people in help-seeking for self-harm. A feasibility trial will examine the acceptability of the online intervention, and the ability to recruit and follow-up participants within a school setting. Methods and Analysis: In this parallel arm, single blind feasibility trial, 60 participants aged 12-18 years who have self-harmed in the past 12 months, will be randomised to either: 1) a group receiving the online DA or 2) a control group receiving general information about feelings and emotions. Both groups will complete measures assessing decision-making and help-seeking behaviour. The school counsellor will be notified of any participants who have been randomised to ensure safeguarding for the young person. Participants in both groups will be followed up at 4-weeks and the measures will be repeated. Qualitative interviews will be conducted with a subset of participants to explore their views and experiences of the DA and of participation in the study. Ethics and Dissemination: Ethical approval was granted by King’s College London (KCL) College Research Ethics Committee. Results of this study will help to clarify if we can recruit and administer an online decisional support intervention within a school setting for young people who self-harm. The study will inform the design and implementation of a larger randomised controlled trial to test the effectiveness of the DA. Dissemination of the study findings will target publication in peer-reviewed journals of general and special interest. The funder will be sent a report outlining the major findings of the study

A decision tool for updating Cochrane reviews

This report describes the development and validation of an updating tool to help assess the need and likely benefits of updating a Cochrane review. The report is presented in five sections. Section 1 describes the background and rationale for the updating tool, including information about when and how to update. Section 2 describes the development of the updating tool and the resulting decision tree and checklist. Section 3 presents the results of the in-house and ongoing formal pilot of the tool, while Sections 4 and 5 provide information about the dissemination of the tool and our key conclusions. This project was funded by the Cochrane Opportunities Fund in 2007

Web-based decision-aid to assist help-seeking choices for young people who self-harm: outcomes from a randomised controlled feasibility trial

Background: Adolescents who self-harm are often unsure how or where to get help. We developed a web-based personalised decision aid (DA), designed to support young people in decision-making about seeking help for their self-harm. Objective: Our aim was to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the DA intervention and the randomised controlled trial (RCT) in a school setting. Methods: We conducted a 2-group, single blind, randomised controlled feasibility trial in a school setting. Participants aged 12-18 years who reported self-harm in the past 12 months were randomised to either a web-based DA or to general information about mood and feelings. Feasibility of recruitment, randomisation and follow-up rates were assessed, as was acceptability of the intervention and study procedures. Descriptive data were collected on outcome measures examining decision-making and help-seeking behaviour. Qualitative interviews were conducted with young people, parents/carers and staff, and subjected to thematic analysis to explore their views of the DA and study processes. Results: Parental consent was a significant barrier to young people participating in the trial, with only 208 (18%) of the 1,164 parent/guardians contacted for consent responding to study invitations. Where parental consent was obtained, we were able to recruit 82% (n=170) of young people into the study. Of those young people screened, 14% (n=23) had self-harmed in the past year. Ten participants were randomised to receiving the DA and 13 were randomised to the control group. Four-week follow-up assessments were completed with all participants. The DA had good acceptability but qualitative interviews suggested that a DA that addressed broader mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and self-harm may be more beneficial. Conclusions: A broad-based mental health DA addressing a wide range of psychosocial problems may be useful for young people. The requirement for parental consent is a key barrier to intervention research on self-harm in the school setting. Adaptations to the research design and/or the intervention are needed before generalisable research about DAs can be successfully conducted in a school setting

HIGH YIELD IRRIGATED CORN: IMPLEMENTING RESEARCH AND ADAPTING FOR PROFITABLE PRODUCTION

ABSTRACT Irrigated corn producers on the High Plains are frequently confronted with issues that affect the profitability of their operations. The rapid adoption of new methods and technologies that preserve profitability is important for the economic sustainability of High Plains farmers. Traditional research is one method of identifying best management practices that may improve grower productivity and profitability. However, dissemination and implementation of research across broad geographies can be challenging. The scientific method often precludes investigation across a diverse set of variables common within and across farms. Private industry can augment implementation of scientific methods identified as profitable best management practices by employing resources necessary for wide scale spatial and temporal demonstrations. Furthermore, these investigations can be instrumental in prompt identification of processes and practices that improve producer efficiencies and/or profitability. The work and investigations summarized in this paper will demonstrate the use of spatial and temporal observations to identify best management practices for multiple nitrogen (N) applications through corn development. Also, the extension of university research on P and K starter fertilizer and its adoption and implementation by growers will be discussed

Durrington Walls to West Amesbury by way of Stonehenge: a major transformation of the Holocene landscape

A new sequence of Holocene landscape change has been discovered through an investigation of sediment sequences, palaeosols, pollen and molluscan data discovered during the Stonehenge Riverside Project. The early post-glacial vegetational succession in the Avon valley at Durrington Walls was apparently slow and partial, with intermittent woodland modification and the opening-up of this landscape in the later Mesolithic and earlier Neolithic, though a strong element of pine lingered into the third millennium BC. There appears to have been a major hiatus around 2900 cal BC, coincident with the beginnings of demonstrable human activities at Durrington Walls, but slightly after activity started at Stonehenge. This was reflected in episodic increases in channel sedimentation and tree and shrub clearance, leading to a more open downland, with greater indications of anthropogenic activity, and an increasingly wet floodplain with sedges and alder along the river’s edge. Nonetheless, a localized woodland cover remained in the vicinity of DurringtonWalls throughout the third and second millennia BC, perhaps on the higher parts of the downs, while stable grassland, with rendzina soils, predominated on the downland slopes, and alder–hazel carr woodland and sedges continued to fringe the wet floodplain. This evidence is strongly indicative of a stable and managed landscape in Neolithic and Bronze Age times. It is not until c 800–500 cal BC that this landscape was completely cleared, except for the marshy-sedge fringe of the floodplain, and that colluvial sedimentation began in earnest associated with increased arable agriculture, a situation that continued through Roman and historic times