Virtual Advice Services

The chapter looks at the issues involved with implementing and running a chat enquiry service, from choosing an appropriate product to staff training and publicity. The experiences of a number of UK Higher Education Institutions currently offering chat enquiry services are discussed at various stages. Aspects of more advanced use, such as web ‘co-browsing’ and virtual advice by appointment are also included. The chapter closes by considering what the future holds for virtual advice services and the potential impact of the growth in mobile technologies

The development of elementary education in Crewe, 1840-1918

The thesis examines the rapid if occasionally uncertain progress of education during the difficult period of transition from voluntary to State control in a nineteenth century 'new town' which was created and, for he first century of its existence, largely dominated by a single industrial organization, the London and North Western (formerly Grand Junction) Railway Company. After a brief explanatory account of the foundation of Crewe in a rural parish where no nucleated settlement had previously existed, the early chapters describe the various contribution is made by Anglican, Roman Catholic and Nonconformist communities and by the Railway Company towards the provision of public elementary schools during the first thirty years of the town's growth. Some detail is also given of the work and progress of the schools. The central section of the thesis is concerned with the period between the two major Education Acts of 1870 and 1902, during which Crewe's population increased from less than 17,000 to more than 42,000, and deals in turn with the local response to the requirements of the 1870 Act and of subsequent educational legislation, the determined struggle on the part of the town's rate payers, denominational bodies and the Railway Company to maintain elementary education on a voluntary basis, the improvements effected by the Crewe School Attendance Committee, the influences of the State grant system on the curriculum and organization of the schools and, finally, with the training of pupil teachers. Following the Education Act of 1902, Crewe Borough Council became a 'Part III' local authority, and the remainder of the thesis constitutes an appraisal of the work and achievements, necessarily limited by steadily increasing financial restrictions, of the Crewe Education Committee during the first fifteen years of municipal control

Electrophoretic deposition of graphene enhanced aluminum and bismuth trioxide nanothermite thin films

The work described herein details the characterization of aluminum and bismuth trioxide nanothermite thin films formed by electrophoretic deposition. Additionally, graphene was added to nanothermites before deposition to enhance the thermal conductivity of deposited thin films, to create denser thin films via directed selfassembly, and to increase the energetic content of the composite. Electrophoretic deposition was selected as the deposition method for this work due to its strong synergy with MEMS processing methodologies, its scalability, and its tunable deposition parameters, which allows for a high degree of control over the resulting nanothermite thin film combustion behavior. The deposited nanothermite thin films were characterized with respect to mass, thickness, density, homogeneity, and combustion velocity. Precursor nanothermite suspensions that contained graphene yielded thin film structures with more mass, larger thicknesses, and faster combustion velocities. The augmentation of these parameters is believed to be attributed to the self-assembly of aluminum and bismuth oxide with graphene, which results in densified nanothermite structures that benefit from increased interfacial particle contact between fuel and oxidizer particles, as well as reduced mass diffusion lengths. Additionally, the high thermal conductivity of graphene allows heat generated by the nanothermite reaction to remain within the deposited thin film, which contributes to increasing the combustion velocity and total energetic output of the nanothermite reaction

Medicines Optimisation Assessment Tool (MOAT): a prognostic model to target hospital pharmacists' input to improve patient outcomes. Protocol for an observational study

INTRODUCTION: Medicines optimisation is a key role for hospital pharmacists, but with ever-increasing demands on services there is a need to increase efficiency while maintaining patient safety. The aim of this study is to develop a prognostic model, the Medicines Optimisation Assessment Tool (MOAT), which can be used to target patients most in need of pharmacists' input while in hospital. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The MOAT will be developed following recommendations of the Prognosis Research Strategy partnership. Using a cohort study we will prospectively include 1500 adult patients from the medical wards of two UK hospitals. Data on medication-related problems (MRPs) experienced by study patients will be collected by pharmacists at the study sites as part of their routine daily clinical assessment of patients. Data on potential risk factors such as polypharmacy, renal impairment and the use of 'high risk' medicines will be collected retrospectively from the information departments at the study sites, laboratory reporting systems and patient medical records. Multivariable logistic regression models will then be used to determine the relationship between potential risk factors and the study outcome of preventable MRPs that are at least moderate in severity. Bootstrapping will be used to adjust the MOAT for optimism, and predictive performance will be assessed using calibration and discrimination. A simplified scoring system will also be developed, which will be assessed for sensitivity and specificity. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study has been approved by the Proportionate Review Service Sub-Committee of the National Health Service Research Ethics Committee Wales REC 7 (16/WA/0016) and the Health Research Authority (project ID 197298). We plan to disseminate the results via presentations at relevant patient/public, professional, academic and scientific meetings and conferences, and will submit findings for publication in peer-reviewed journals. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02582463

Protein-Protein Conjugates: Tyrosine Delivers.

The residues cysteine and lysine are the undisputed champions of bioconjugation chemistry. Targeting other amino acids has been touted as a potential way to improve the synthesis of protein–peptide and protein–protein conjugates that are widely studied for their potential therapeutic ability and used as tools for understanding biological function. Now, a team of researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have targeted solvent-exposed tyrosine residues to develop a method of preparing such conjugates

Analysis of pharmacist‐identified medication‐related problems at two United Kingdom hospitals: a prospective observational study

OBJECTIVE: Hospital pharmacy is undergoing a period of rapid change, with pharmacists needing to focus where they add most value. Our aim was to identify where pharmacists have potential for greatest impact by analysing data on clinically relevant medication-related problems (MRPs). METHODS: We included consecutive admissions from adult medical wards at two UK hospitals between April and November 2016. MRPs were identified by pharmacists at the study sites as part of their routine daily patient assessments, validated and assessed for preventability and severity. Descriptive analyses were performed on clinically relevant (moderate or severe preventable) MRPs to establish the stage of inpatient stay where identified and their types/categories (overall and by stage of inpatient stay). KEY FINDINGS: Among 1503 eligible admissions, 2614 validated MRPs were identified, of which 1153 were moderate or severe, and preventable. Over 70% of these clinically relevant MRPs were identified during/before the first ward-based pharmacy review of patients. The most frequent MRP subcategory was 'indication not treated/missing therapy', accounting for 46% of clinically relevant MRPs. Dose selection issues were the next most common, accounting for 24%. The subcategory 'indication not treated/missing therapy' was identified more frequently at admission and discharge (53% and 45% of MRPs, respectively) compared with during the inpatient stay (14%), P < 0.001. CONCLUSIONS: This research suggests patients are at greatest need of pharmacist input in terms of identification/resolution of clinically relevant MRPs during early stages of inpatient stay; however, clinically relevant MRPs continue to occur throughout their stay, suggesting need for ongoing pharmacy review

Teaching Assistants becoming Primary School Teachers: Changing Professional Identities in communities of practice

This study explores the way that teacher identity is developed in teaching assistants (TAs) who train to teach, and the impact that being part of a community of practice has on this transition. The participants in this research were studying for a top-up degree which included recommendation for qualified teacher status (QTS) while they continued to work as TAs. A narrative inquiry approach was used to foreground the often-overlooked voice of the TA in educational research. Findings showed that schools deployed TAs in a wide variety of ways, and this seemed to depend on individual skills and expertise of TAs, and on individual TA-teacher partnerships. However, it was also found that despite recommendations from the seminal DISS report (Blatchford et al., 2009) and subsequent work by this team, schools do not always follow the recommendations made. The findings of this study also shows that membership of a community of practice (Wenger, 1998) supports TAs in their practice. Relationships within the community of practice are of particular significance in their transition to becoming a teacher. I argue here that TAs and teachers can be seen to have a distinct ‘teaching identity’ rather than having to adopt either a teacher or a TA identity. This study finds that the experience TAs gain as members of a school community of practice while working in the liminal space between teacher and TA can support TAs who choose to train as teachers

Do physical qualities influence the attainment of professional status within elite 16-19 year old rugby league players?

OBJECTIVES The current study retrospectively compared the physical qualities of elite academy rugby league players (aged 16-19 years) by career attainment level (i.e., academy or professional). DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional and longitudinal design. METHODS: Eighty-one academy rugby league players were assessed for physical qualities (height, body mass, skinfolds, speed, momentum, vertical jump, Yo-Yo Level 1 and 1-RM squat, bench press and prone row) at the Under 17-19 age categories between 2007 and 2012. Player's career attainment level was determined in 2014. Longitudinal changes in physical qualities between Under 17 and 19s were compared by career attainment level. RESULTS: Professional players demonstrated moderate significant advantages for height (d=0.98) and 1-RM squat (d=0.66) at the Under 17s, 1-RM bench press (d=0.76) at the Under 18s and 1-RM prone row (d=0.73) at the Under 19s age categories when compared to academy players. When assessed longitudinally (Under 17s-19s), professional players significantly outperformed academy players for 1-RM squat (η2=0.20). Professional players also demonstrated greater increases in body mass (8.2 vs. 2.9kg) and 10m momentum (47 vs. 17kgs-1) than academy players between the Under 17s and 19s. CONCLUSIONS: Advanced physical qualities, particularly height and absolute strength, within 16-19 year old players may contribute to attaining professional status in rugby league. Further, the development of body mass and momentum for players within an academy is an important consideration in the progress towards professional rugby league. Therefore, practitioners should aim to identify and develop the physical qualities, especially size and strength, within academy rugby league players

Determining the impact of trauma and daily organisational hassles on psychological distress and burnout in New Zealand police officers; and the moderating role of social support : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology, at Massey University, New Zealand

Throughout the course of their career police officers are exposed to traumatic events and work hassles. Work hassles which are minor irritating aspects of work, such as work overload, have been found to have a stronger association with pathogenic outcomes than traumatic events. Among police samples work hassles have been commonly studied in relation to psychological distress, and traumatic events have been commonly studied in relation to posttraumatic stress disorder and psychological distress. There have been fewer studies with burnout as an outcome, even though work hassles have been strongly associated with burnout in other occupations. Traumatic events are rarely studied in relation to burnout among police samples, even though they have been related to exhaustion, which is one of the core components of burnout. In relation to traumatic events and work hassles, social support has been found to have a moderating effect on both psychological distress and burnout. The moderating role of supervisor, colleague and family/friend social support was evaluated in this study, and an understanding of social support was further extended by exploratory research, which explored police officers preferences for sources of social support across different work events. The sample in this study consisted of 603 New Zealand police officers from three separate districts, who completed a web based survey. Evaluated in this study was the impact of traumatic event exposure on psychological distress and burnout, and the impact of work hassles on psychological distress and burnout, along with the moderating role of social support. It was found that traumatic event exposure and work hassles were associated to psychological distress. Traumatic event exposure was associated to exhaustion, and work hassles were associated to exhaustion, cynicism and lower levels of professional efficacy. The exploratory research found that police officers preferences for social support did change across events

Designing a Public Web-Based Information System to Illustrate and Disseminate the Development and Results of the DESIRE Project to Combat Desertification

Until around 1995 it was challenging to make the scientific results of research projects publicly available except through presentations at meetings or conferences, or as papers in academic journals. Then it began to be clear that the Internet could become the main medium to publish and share new information with a much wider audience. The DESIRE Project (desertification mitigation and remediation of land—a global approach for local solutions) has built on expertise gained in previous projects to develop an innovative online ‘Harmonized Information System’ (HIS). This documents the context, delivery and evaluation of all tasks in the DESIRE Project using non-scientific terminology, with much of it also available in the local languages of the study sites. The DESIRE-HIS makes use of new possibilities for communication, including video clips, interactive tools, and links to social media networks such as Twitter. Dissemination of research results using this approach has required careful planning and design. This paper sets out the steps that have culminated in a complete online Information System about local solutions to global land management problems in desertification-affected areas, including many practical guidelines for responsible land management. As many of those who are affected by desertification do not have Internet access, printable dissemination materials are also available on the DESIREHIS