Electronic records management at the coal face: Testing a behaviour search model for EDRMS

The main objective of this proposed research is to test the reliability and validity of the information search model presented by Joseph, Debowski & Goldschmidt (2013a) which relates to searching in EDRMS. In order to do this, the search behaviour of employees using the EDRMS eDOCS Hummingbird in a New Zealand local authority will be compared with the model. Another research objective is to gain information about current search behaviour in relationship to the design of the new EDRMS system Objective which will soon be installed in the test organisation. As the literature review shows, introducing an EDRMS to a workplace is difficult, requiring a major change to the way that employees have managed their information, (Maguire, 2005). The last objective is to gain insights from the search behaviour in regards to training for the new system

Outcome of Surgery on Neurocognitive Functioning in Patients with Otic Capsule Defects

There are two forms of otic capsule defect: Perilymph Fistula (PLF), a tear that typically occurs in the round window; and Superior Semicircular Canal Dehiscence (SCD), a thinning or absence of bone between the otic capsule and the brain. Symptoms of either may comprise mild to severe disturbances in the vestibular and auditory systems. These may be accompanied by various cognitive inefficiencies. Neurotologists, Grimm, Hemenway, LeBray, and Black (1989) measured cognitive efficiency pre- surgery in 38 adults who had acquired PLF. Assessment revealed difficulty in: verbal and visual memory; attention/concentration; and mental flexibility. Despite their research, the reality of PLF remains controversial (Hornibrook, 2012; Hughes, Sismanis & House, 1990) as at present, there is no objective means of providing a firm diagnosis. In contrast, objective diagnostic tests can corroborate an SCD, yet no research has been conducted concerning cognitive functioning. This study mirrors Grimm et al.’s attempt to substantiate cognitive difficulties in patients with otic capsule defects. Participants were recruited through the Ear and Skull Base Center, at Legacy Research Institute, in Portland, Oregon. The sample consisted of eighteen participants, including five adolescents. The treatment plan included these pre and post-surgical neuropsychological assessments: intelligence, attention/concentration, processing speed, working memory, and mental flexibility. Assessments were administered six to one week(s) prior to surgery; two to three months following surgery; and nine to twelve months later. Scores were analyzed using analysis of variance for repeated measures. Similar to the findings of Grimm et al, pretest scores suggested possible impairment in cognitive functioning. Overall post-operative results indicated significant improvement in both cognitive and emotional functioning for PLF patients. Cognitive and emotional gains showed large effect sizes for the PLF participants, but more modest gains for the SCD participants. Although otic capsule defects affect a small segment of the population, its continued examination may have broader applications. SCD patients have similar patterns of cognitive function, however they have earlier brain reorganization and less dramatic changes post-operatively. Conversely, as PLF typically develops later, results demonstrated dramatic post-operative changes. This information may be helpful in diagnosing, monitoring, and developing comprehensive rehabilitation plans

Special issue introduction: geographical perspectives on food and nutrition insecurity in the global South: Food and nutrition security in the global South

Editorial material; 2019-11-20T10:33:52.552+01:00</p

Analysing diet composition and food insecurity by socio-economic status in secondary African cities

This chapter takes as its starting point theorizing around nutrition and food system transitions thought to be increasingly occurring in urban Africa, and how this may be linked to a growing non-communicable disease burden. We focus specifically on the secondary city context by analysing household survey data gathered from six cities across Ghana, Kenya and Uganda during 2013–2015. We asked how diet composition and diversity, food sources and food security varied by socio-economic status, using expenditure and demographic data to create a proxy for household well-being. In this way, we investigate one of the claimed keystones affecting urban food systems and dietary health in sub-Saharan Africa—that of obesogenic urban food environments. Our findings indicate that the socio-economic status of a household was the most important factor influencing household dietary diversity and food security status, i.e. better-off households were more likely to feel food secure and eat from a greater variety of food groups. In addition, the number of income sources was additionally associated with higher dietary diversity. We also found that a household’s involvement in agriculture had only a small positive effect on food security in one city and was associated with a reduction in dietary diversity scores. Our findings emphasize the importance of supporting aggregated national and international statistics on agricultural production and trade with detailed local analyses that focus on actual household food access and consumption. We also see reasons to be cautious about making causal claims regarding consumption change and obesogenic urban environments as the major contributor to a rising obesity and non-communicable disease burden in Africa

Synaptic Loss, ER Stress and Neuro-inflammation Emerge Late in the Lateral Temporal Cortex and Associate with Progressive Tau Pathology in Alzheimer’s Disease

Acknowledgements We would like to deeply thank all donors and their families for the tissue provided for this study. Human tissue samples were supplied by the Brains for Dementia Research programme, jointly funded by Alzheimer’s Research UK, the Alzheimer’s Society and the Medical Research Council, and sourced from the MRC London Neurodegenerative Diseases Brain Bank, the Manchester Brain Bank, the South West Dementia Brain Bank (SWDBB), the Newcastle Brain Tissue Resource and the Oxford Brain Bank. The Newcastle Brain Tissue Resource and Oxford Brain Bank are also supported by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Units. The South West Dementia Brain Bank (SWDBB) receives additional support from BRACE (Bristol Research into Alzheimer’s and Care of the Elderly). Use of human tissue for this work was approved by Brains for Dementia Research from London – City and East NRES committee 08/H0704/128+5. The work presented here was funded by Alzheimer’s Research UK (Grant refs: ARUK-PPG2014A-21, ARUK-NSG2015-1, ARUK-NCG2017A-3 awarded to DK and BP). HB was supported by an Alzheimer’s Society Doctoral Training Centre grant (grant ref: 228) to BP. MK’s participation in the project was funded by ARUK Scotland Network pump priming award to DK and BP. Antibodies CP13 and PHF1 were generously provided by Prof. Peter Davies. TOC1 antibodies were a gift from Nicholas Kanaan at Michigan State University (originally created by Lester Binder at Northwestern University). Funding The work presented here was funded by Alzheimer’s Research UK (Grant refs: ARUK-PPG2014A-21, ARUK-NSG2015-1, ARUK-NCG2017A-3 awarded to DK and BP). HB was supported by an Alzheimer’s Society Doctoral Training Centre grant (grant ref:228) to BP. MK’s participation in the project was funded by ARUK Scotland Network pump priming award to DK and BP.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Fostering resilience in young people with intellectual disabilities using a ‘settings’ approach

The need to foster resilience amongst young people with intellectual disabilities is increasingly recognised within policy. Critically, understanding of the actual means by which this aspiration might be most sensitively and effectively met is considered weak. This paper reports on an exploratory case-study of a social enterprise community café – The Usual Place - that through the promotion of employability, seeks to promote resilience amongst its young ‘trainees’ with intellectual disabilities. Two research questions were set: “how is ‘resilience’ conceptualized within the organisation” and “what features within the organisation are significant in fostering resilience”? We identify a range of significant features associated with being able to successfully foster resilience – the need for a foundational ‘whole organisation’(settings) approach based on high levels of participation and choice; the negotiation of a constructive dynamic tension between ‘support’ and ‘exposure’; and the embedding of these actions in embodied actions and day-to-day organisational activities