Cancer and communication: similarities and differences of men with cancer from six different ethnic groups.

Objective To report the communication aspects of a pilot study, which explored the cancer meanings and experiences of six men with cancer and their significant others from different ethnic groups. Design Case study design using the principles of phenomenology. In-depth semi-structured individual interviews with men with cancer and their wives were conducted. Setting London, UK. Interviews took place in participants’ own homes. Respondents Six men with cancer and their wives from different ethnic groups. Intervention The pilot study explored the participants’ experiences and meanings of cancer. However, this paper only deals with the communication aspects of the findings. Results Ten themes emerged from the comparative analysis of the study’s data, with communication as a cross-cutting theme. Further analysis of this theme revealed similarities and differences of the participants’ experiences of communicating with health professionals; families or friends; and God/Allah. In addition, similarities and differences of communicating meanings of cancer in different cultures were revealed. Conclusion The findings revealed similarities in the way that men from these six cultures communicate with health professionals and their families following a diagnosis of cancer, and differences in how they communicated with God/Allah, which depended on their religious beliefs and practices

Developing culturally competent researchers

Background Whilst we live in multi-cultural societies most health researchers tend to take the cultural perspective of the majority ethnic group at the expense of the perspective of minority ethnic groups. Aim This paper discusses the need for the development of culturally competent health researchers in all areas of research and proposes a model for the achievement of this. Design A snapshot review of research textbooks used in nursing curricula was conducted to identify whether culturally competent research was being promoted. Results The review found that whilst a few textbooks touched on ethnicity, race and culture, none of them addressed the issue of culturally competence. Subsequently the authors adapted their existing model of culturally competent health care practice, and in this paper they propose it as a model for the development of culturally competent researchers. Discussion The model put forward by the authors consists of four concepts: cultural awareness, cultural knowledge, cultural sensitivity and cultural competence. A culturally competent researcher is one who is able to apply the related skills and knowledge in project design, data collection, analysis, report writing and dissemination. Furthermore, the authors identify two layers of cultural competence, those of culture-generic (knowledge and skills that are applicable across ethnic groups) and culture-specific competence (knowledge and skills that relate to a particular ethnic group). The relationship between these two layers is a dynamic and spiralling process as illustrated by the model. Conclusion Current health policy in many developed countries focuses on inequalities of health and managing diversity, including ethnicity. Thus the authors conclude that the development of culturally competent researchers will lead to both valid research and culturally competent practice by health care professionals

Promoting cultural competence in health care through a research based intervention in the UK.

There is an urgent need to develop cultural competence among nurses and other care workers if they are to meet the needs of the diverse populations they serve, yet there is limited clarity about what this means, or how it can be measured. To date few attempts have been made to measure the effectiveness of education and training programmes which are designed to promote cultural competence. A research project commissioned by mental health service providers was undertaken to deal with the increasing need for cultural competence in a number of mental health care settings. It involved the delivery of a training intervention with an assessment of cultural competence before and after the intervention. The training intervention was negotiated with the participating teams and was based on the Papadopoulos, Tilki & Taylor model (1998). The project included the design and development of a tool for assessing cultural competence (CCATool). The paper discusses the challenges faced by the trainers during this intervention and proposes a set of principles for the development of effective cultural competence programmes

Disorder-induced critical exponents near a ferromagnetic quantum critical point in Mn1−xCrxSi

We report the observation of critical behavior in Mn1−xCrxSi (0≤x≤1) close to a T = 0 K quantum critical point, consistent with the Belitz-Kirkpatrick-Vojta (BKV) theory of disordered metallic ferromagnets. The critical exponents are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions of the BKV theory in the preasymptotic limit. A non-Fermi liquid-like behavior is seen down to 200 mK in the transport and thermodynamic properties around the critical concentration xC = 0.2. Quantum criticality and self-consistency of the exponents is further confirmed using a scaling analysis of the magnetization and heat capacity data. A recovery to Fermi liquid-like behavior is displayed on moving away from the critical composition, as well as with the application of a magnetic field

On the estimation of temporal mileage rates

Peer reviewedPostprin

Novel magnetic phases in a Gd2Ti2O7 pyrochlore for a field applied along the [100] axis

We report on longitudinal and transverse magnetisation measurements performed on single crystal samples of Gd2Ti2O7 for a magnetic field applied along the [100] direction. The measurements reveal the presence of previously unreported phases in fields below 10 kOe in an addition to the higher-field-induced phases that are also seen for H//[111], [110], and [112]. The proposed H-T phase diagram for the [100] direction looks distinctly different from all the other directions studied previously.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure

Torque magnetometry study of the spin reorientation transition and temperature-dependent magnetocrystalline anisotropy in NdCo5

We present the results of torque magnetometry and magnetic susceptibility measurements to study in detail the spin reorientation transition (SRT) and magnetic anisotropy in the permanent magnet NdCo5. We further show simulations of the measurements using first-principles calculations based on density-functional theory and the disordered local moment picture of magnetism at finite temperatures. The good agreement between theory and experimental data leads to a detailed description of the physics underpinning the SRT. In particular we are able to resolve the magnetization of, and to reveal a canting between, the Nd and Co sublattices. The torque measurements carried out in the ac and ab planes near the easy direction allow us to estimate the anisotropy constants, K 1, K 2 and K 4 and their temperature dependences. Torque curves, τ(γ) recorded by varying the direction of a constant magnetic field in the crystallographic ac plane show a reversal in the polarity as the temperature is changed across the SRT (240 < T < 285 K). Within this domain, τ(γ) exhibits unusual features different to those observed above and below the transition. The single crystals of NdCo5 were grown using the optical floating zone technique

Tunability of the spin reorientation transitions with pressure in NdCo5

We present pressure-dependent magnetization measurements carried out in the domain of the spin reorientation transitions (SRTs) of a NdCo5 single crystal. The application of a hydrostatic pressure leads to a shift in the SRTs to higher temperatures. This shift is found to be very sensitive to pressure, with the SRT temperatures increasing at a rate of ≈17 K/GPa. To explain the experimental results, we have also performed first-principles calculations of the SRT temperatures for different applied strains, which corroborate the experimental findings. The calculations attribute the pressure dependence of the SRTs to a faster weakening of the Co contribution to the magnetocrystalline anisotropy with pressure compared to the Nd contribution