‘Maiden, whom we never see’ : cultural representations of the ‘lady telephonist’ in Britain, c.1880-1930, and institutional responses

This article examines attitudes to the female telephone operator in the British press and a range of literary and cultural sources. Perceptions of female telephonists were rooted in both reactions to the increasingly visible employment of women in white-collar work and uncertain responses to the telephone as a new communication medium. Such perceptions of the female telephonist became stereotyped and static, though there were later some challenges to, and attempts to nuance, these. The General Post Office took over the service and implemented a number of changes, but ultimately the organisation and telephonists themselves had to co-exist with these stereotypes

Recorded vignettes: a novel method for investigating documentation in the Electronic Healthcare Record (EHR)

Background: 360 million consultations documented annually in England1 Accurate descriptors required for secondary data functions: Computerised decision support; Financial reimbursement; Audit; Disease prevalence monitoring and research Coding is not explicitly taught within the GP curriculum How do you research how clinicians document? Previous studies: use real patients2/actors3 interacting with clinician studied; Lack standardisation; Expensive. Why Allergy? Growing clinical problem; 2014 NICE guidelines4: Poor clinical documentation is a major issue in allergy; EHR can’t distinguish between intolerance and allergy; Incorrect labelling of patients; Adverse impact on patient care? Little known about coding practices in non-incentivised condition such as allergy. Method: A novel method developed to standardize research of EHR use. Filmed 6 short vignettes (21-50 secs) Monologue of common allergic presentations as if in consultation with a doctor. Digital photographs were included to replicate rashes. Electronic distribution of study files Documented vignettes in their own EHR Returned screen-prints to the researcher for analysis - Codes, free text and EHR functions Questionnaire - Exploring decision-making and validation of method Initially piloted on 1 GP and 2 trainees leading to refinements. Results 7 GPs and 15 GP trainees were recruited All successfully completed Data was returned from 4 different EHRs SystmOne (6), EmisLV (2), EmisWeb (6) and Vision (8) Screen prints effectively captured data with minor technical difficulties reported by 2 participants The study took 1 - 2 hours to complete: longer than expected from the pilot study

Discovering Knitting at the Regent Street Polytechnic, 1898‐1948

The archive concerning the development and activities of the Regent Street Polytechnic held at the University of Westminster, London is an especially rich source of information concerning knitting, its changing status as craft, leisure activity, charitable work, and morale booster. Charting knitting's role in both world wars, the Boer War, and as a vital mainstay of the Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fishermen, the text provides a unique insight into the spaces occupied by knitting within an educational institution and how it provided a voice and increased instrumentality for women within that establishment at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries

Filmed monologue vignettes: a novel method for investigating how clinicians document consultations in electronic health records

Introduction and Objectives The accuracy of conclusions based on Electronic Healthcare Record (EHR) research is highly dependent on the correct selection of descriptors (codes) by users. We aimed to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of filmed vignette monologues as a resource-light method of assessing and comparing how different EHR users record the same clinical scenario. Methods Six short monologues of actors portraying patients presenting allergic conditions to their General Practitioners were filmed head-on then electronically distributed for the study; no researcher was present during data collection. The method was assessed by participant uptake, reported ease of completion by participants, compliance with instructions, the receipt of interpretable data by researchers, and participant perceptions of vignette quality, realism and information content. Results 22 participants completed the study, reporting only minor difficulties. 132 screen prints were returned electronically, enabling analysis of codes, free text and EHR features. Participants assigned a quality rating of 7.7/10 (range 2-10) to the vignettes and rated the extent to which vignettes reflected real-life (86-100%). Between 1 and 2 hours were required to complete the task. Full compliance with instructions varied between participants but was largely successful. Conclusions Filmed monologues are a reproducible, standardized method which require few resources, yet allow clear assessment of clinicians’ and EHRs systems’ impact on documentation. The novel nature of this method necessitates clear instructions so participants can fully complete the study without face to face researcher oversight

Sediment accumulation rates in subarctic lakes: Insights into age-depth modeling from 22 dated lake records from the Northwest Territories, Canada

Age-depth modeling using Bayesian statistics requires well-informed prior information about the behavior of sediment accumulation. Here we present average sediment accumulation rates (represented as deposition times, DT, in yr/cm) for lakes in an Arctic setting, and we examine the variability across space (intra- and inter-lake) and time (late Holocene). The dataset includes over 100 radiocarbon dates, primarily on bulk sediment, from 22 sediment cores obtained from 18 lakes spanning the boreal to tundra ecotone gradients in subarctic Canada. There are four to twenty-five radiocarbon dates per core, depending on the length and character of the sediment records. Deposition times were calculated at 100-year intervals from age-depth models constructed using the 'classical' age-depth modeling software Clam. Lakes in boreal settings have the most rapid accumulation (mean DT 20±10 yr/cm), whereas lakes in tundra settings accumulate at moderate (mean DT 70±10 yr/cm) to very slow rates, (>100yr/cm). Many of the age-depth models demonstrate fluctuations in accumulation that coincide with lake evolution and post-glacial climate change. Ten of our sediment cores yielded sediments as old as c. 9000cal BP (BP=years before AD 1950). From between c. 9000cal BP and c. 6000cal BP, sediment accumulation was relatively rapid (DT of 20-60yr/cm). Accumulation slowed between c. 5500 and c. 4000cal BP as vegetation expanded northward in response to warming. A short period of rapid accumulation occurred near 1200cal BP at three lakes. Our research will help inform priors in Bayesian age modeling

Capacity shortfalls hinder the performance of marine protected areas globally

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly being used globally to conserve marine resources. However, whether many MPAs are being effectively and equitably managed, and how MPA management influences substantive outcomes remain unknown. We developed a global database of management and fish population data (433 and 218 MPAs, respectively) to assess: MPA management processes; the effects of MPAs on fish populations; and relationships between management processes and ecological effects. Here we report that many MPAs failed to meet thresholds for effective and equitable management processes, with widespread shortfalls in staff and financial resources. Although 71% of MPAs positively influenced fish populations, these conservation impacts were highly variable. Staff and budget capacity were the strongest predictors of conservation impact: MPAs with adequate staff capacity had ecological effects 2.9 times greater than MPAs with inadequate capacity. Thus, continued global expansion of MPAs without adequate investment in human and financial capacity is likely to lead to sub-optimal conservation outcomes

Genomic epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in a UK university identifies dynamics of transmission

AbstractUnderstanding SARS-CoV-2 transmission in higher education settings is important to limit spread between students, and into at-risk populations. In this study, we sequenced 482 SARS-CoV-2 isolates from the University of Cambridge from 5 October to 6 December 2020. We perform a detailed phylogenetic comparison with 972 isolates from the surrounding community, complemented with epidemiological and contact tracing data, to determine transmission dynamics. We observe limited viral introductions into the university; the majority of student cases were linked to a single genetic cluster, likely following social gatherings at a venue outside the university. We identify considerable onward transmission associated with student accommodation and courses; this was effectively contained using local infection control measures and following a national lockdown. Transmission clusters were largely segregated within the university or the community. Our study highlights key determinants of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and effective interventions in a higher education setting that will inform public health policy during pandemics.</jats:p

Embracing the language of human rights: international women’s organisations, feminism and campaigns against the marriage bar, c.1919-1960

This article considers four international women's organisations - the International Council of Women, the International Alliance of Women for Suffrage and Equal Citizenship, the International Federation of University Women and the Open Door International - and their campaigns for the right of married women to undertake paid work. It examines how each organisation adopted and engaged with the language of human rights in the late 1920s and 1930s. It is argued that after 1948, precisely because of its formal adoption by the UN, the language of human rights became less usable as a way to make the point that women still faced inequalities, and so other framings became more significant. In so doing, this piece contributes to historiographies on international women’s organisations, offers a detailed discussion of their activism against the marriage bar, and challenges the conventional chronology of the concept and language of human rights