Children\u27s attitudes to a hospital familiarisation programme

Many young children are admitted to the emergency departments of our childrens hospitals without the opportunity to receive any preparation in terms of what to expect and what to do or not to do (Health Department of W A, 2000). Surrounded by strange people, environment, smells, sounds and medical equipment, and confronted with possibly painful and invasive procedures, many young children become stressed and anxious. Negative psychological effects may have immediate and/or long lasting psychological consequences (Zuckerberg, 1994; 0 Byrne, Peterson & Saldana, 1997). It is important to protect young childrens rights and to minimise upset and trauma whenever possible. To meet the needs of children who may experience unplanned hospitalisation, preventative measures have been taken by the Association for the Welfare of Children in Hospital (AWCH). One of these preventative measures is a Hospital Familiarisation Programme (HFP) designed to prepare healthy young children for possible hospitalisation. This study investigated the effect of the HFP on 5 years olds understanding of common items of medical equipment and procedures, using a Medical Equipment and Procedures Test (MEPT). In addition, their feelings towards possible hospitalisation and medical intervention were obtained by the use of a Hospital Intervention Footings Index (HIFI). A Solomon Four Group design (Salkind, 1997) was employed with a total sample of 84 five-year-olds drawn from 4 pre-primary centres in a large metropolitan \u27 primary school. The treatment consisted of a Hospital Familiarisation Session conducted by a presenter from the Association for the Welfare of Children iii Hospital, W.A. An analysis of variance revealed th8t there was a significant increase in the childrens understanding of medical equipment and procedures, as well as an increase in positive feelings towards medical intervention as a result of the Hospital Familiarisation Programme. On the basis of these results and from a review of the research literature and an analysis of developmental theories, some modifications to the presentation of the HFP were suggested to maximise its effectiveness. Further recommendations were also made for current practice and future research investigation

Coprological study on intestinal helminths in Swiss dogs: temporal aspects of anthelminthic treatment

Coproscopic examination of 505 dogs originating from the western or central part of Switzerland revealed the presence (prevalence data) of the following helminthes: Toxocara canis (7.1%), hookworms (6.9%), Trichuris vulpis (5.5%), Toxascaris leonina (1.3%), Taeniidae (1.3%), Capillaria spp. (0.8%), and Diphyllobothrium latum (0.4%). Potential risk factors for infection were identified by a questionnaire: dogs from rural areas significantly more often had hookworms and taeniid eggs in their feces when compared to urban family dogs. Access to small rodents, offal, and carrion was identified as risk factor for hookworm and Taeniidae, while feeding of fresh and uncooked meat did not result in higher prevalences for these helminths. A group of 111 dogs was treated every 3months with a combined medication of pyrantel embonate, praziquantel, and febantel, and fecal samples were collected for coproscopy in monthly intervals. Despite treatment, the yearly incidence of T. canis was 32%, while hookworms, T. vulpis, Capillaria spp., and Taeniidae reached incidences ranging from 11 to 22%. Fifty-seven percent of the 111 dogs had helminth eggs in their feces at least once during the 1-year study period. This finding implicates that an infection risk with potential zoonotic pathogens cannot be ruled out for the dog owner despite regular deworming four times a yea

Herd specific risk factors for Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae infections in suckling pigs at the age of weaning

BACKGROUND Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is the etiologic agent of enzootic pneumonia mainly occurring in fattening pigs. It is assumed that horizontal transmission of the pathogen during nursery and growing phase starts with few suckling pigs vertically infected by the sow. The aim of the present study was the exploration of the herd prevalence of M. hyopneumoniae infections in suckling pigs followed by an investigation of various herd specific factors for their potential of influencing the occurrence of this pathogen at the age of weaning. RESULTS In this cross-sectional study, 125 breeding herds were examined by taking nasal swabs from 20 suckling pigs in each herd. In total, 3.9% (98/2500) of all nasal swabs were tested positive for M. hyopneumoniae by real-time PCR. Piglets tested positive originated from 46 different herds resulting in an overall herd prevalence of 36.8% (46/125) for M. hyopneumoniae infection in pigs at the age of weaning. While the herds were epidemiologically characterized, the risk for demonstration of M. hyopneumoniae was significantly increased, when the number of purchased gilts per year was more than 120 (OR: 5.8), and when the number of farrowing pens per compartment was higher than 16 (OR: 3.3). In herds with a planned and segregated production, where groups of sows entered previously emptied farrowing units, the risk for demonstration of M. hyopneumoniae in piglets was higher in herds with two or four weeks between batches than in herds with one or three weeks between batches (OR: 2.7). CONCLUSIONS In this cross-sectional study, several risk factors could be identified enhancing the probability of breeding herds to raise suckling pigs already infected with M. hyopneumoniae at the time of weaning. Interestingly, some factors (farrowing rhythm, gilt acclimatisation issues) were overlapping with those also influencing the seroprevalences among sows or the transmission of the pathogen between older age groups. Taking the multifactorial character of enzootic pneumonia into account, the results of this study substantiate that a comprehensive herd specific prevention programme is a prerequisite to reduce transmission of and disease caused by M. hyopneumoniae

Teleagro: software architecture of georeferencing and detection of heat of cattle

The systems of livestock production contribute in a preponderant way to improve the quality of life of the communities, since it allows to support the production of the daily sustenance of the communities, to conserve the ecosystems, to promote the conservation of the wild life and to satisfy the values and traditions cultural Latin America, with its large wilderness areas, and a privileged climate favors the maintenance of livestock, to meet the demands of food and ensure regional and global food security. In Colombia, the agricultural sector contributes approximately 11.83% of the national GDP at current prices, according to the Bank of the Republic. Likewise, the livestock industry participates with 3.6%, in comparison with other sectors of the agricultural economy, the production of Colombian cattle doubles and triples to other sectors, such as poultry, coffee and floriculture. In addition, it contributes to the generation of employment in more than 25% of the total jobs generated in the agricultural sector and approximately 7% of the total employment of the Colombian economy (http://www.banrep.gov.co/is/pib). Within agricultural production, livestock occupy 38 million hectares, being 9 times larger than the area dedicated to agriculture. However, agriculture contributes 63% of the value of agricultural production, while livestock, mainly extensive, contributes 26% (FEDEGAN, Strategic Livestock Plan 2019). The large proportion of the área with agricultural vocation dedicated to precarious extensive livestock has explained the low agricultural productivity in Colombia, with very serious consequences for human and sustainable development. This document shows the results of the communications, software and hardware platforms to help the livestock sector to manage production

PRNP promoter polymorphisms are associated with BSE susceptibility in Swiss and German cattle

BACKGROUND: Non-synonymous polymorphisms within the prion protein gene (PRNP) influence the susceptibility and incubation time for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) in some species such as sheep and humans. In cattle, none of the known polymorphisms within the PRNP coding region has a major influence on susceptibility to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Recently, however, we demonstrated an association between susceptibility to BSE and a 23 bp insertion/deletion (indel) polymorphism and a 12 bp indel polymorphism within the putative PRNP promoter region using 43 German BSE cases and 48 German control cattle. The objective of this study was to extend this work by including a larger number of BSE cases and control cattle of German and Swiss origin. RESULTS: Allele, genotype and haplotype frequencies of the two indel polymorphisms were determined in 449 BSE cattle and 431 unaffected cattle from Switzerland and Germany including all 43 German BSE and 16 German control animals from the original study. When breeds with similar allele and genotype distributions were compared, the 23 bp indel polymorphism again showed a significant association with susceptibility to BSE. However, some additional breed-specific allele and genotype distributions were identified, mainly related to the Brown breeds. CONCLUSION: Our study corroborated earlier findings that polymorphisms in the PRNP promoter region have an influence on susceptibility to BSE. However, breed-specific differences exist that need to be accounted for when analyzing such data

Do you get us? A multi-experiment, meta-analytic test of the effect of felt understanding in intergroup relations

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the publisher via the DOI in this record Data and materials for all studies are available on the project OSF page: https://osf.io/3ye72/?view_only=13a1c3aef3044bc78d94b6ca9c8cf05a.Felt understanding is a key determinant of positive inter-personal relations, but its role and potential benefits in intergroup relations have been neglected. In the first multi-study, pre-registered test of its intergroup effects, we manipulated intergroup felt understanding (understood vs. misunderstood by an outgroup) in six studies (N = 1195) and meta-analyzed its effects. The results in most intergroup contexts supported the prediction that feeling understood (vs. misunderstood) would lead to more positive intergroup orientations (r = 0.25) and action intentions (r = 0.12). These effects were distinct from the effects of feeling liked by an outgroup, which was also manipulated in each study. An important caveat was that the felt understanding manipulation's effect reversed when the outgroup was stereotypically low in competence, but high in warmth (older adults). Overall, the findings indicate the value of incorporating felt understanding into models of intergroup relations and how those relations can be improved