Recovery Colleges and Dementia Courses – A Scoping Survey

Purpose: This project aimed to understand how dementia is represented within current UK Recovery College courses and how people with dementia are involved with such courses. Design: A scoping survey was developed with seven multiple choice questions. Information was collected to find out: How many Colleges are currently offering dementia courses; have previously offered courses or plan to start offering courses; how they have developed their courses; who delivers them; who can attend; and how long they have courses been running. Individual Recovery Colleges could leave contact details if they were interested in collaborating on future research projects. UK Recovery Colleges were identified using a published list (Anfossi, 2017) supplemented with internet searching. 86 email messages were sent to Recovery Colleges inviting Leads/Managers to complete the survey through an electronic link. Findings: Of the 28 (32.6%) Recovery Colleges who completed the survey, eleven reported to be currently offering dementia courses, with eight planned to start doing so. Six Recovery Colleges stated they were not currently offering dementia courses, have not done so previously and have no current plans to. Research Implications: The survey results indicate variability in provision of UK Recovery College courses for people with dementia, and raise further questions about the way the courses are used, their acceptability and usefulness. Originality: This service evaluation highlights the variability in what is offered, which is an important step in understanding the current service provision

NiF2/NaF:CaF2/Ca Solid-State High-Temperature Battery Cells

Experiments and theoretical study have demonstrated the promise of all-solid-state, high-temperature electrochemical battery cells based on NiF2 as the active cathode material, CaF2 doped with NaF as the electrolyte material, and Ca as the active anode material. These and other all-solid-state cells have been investigated in a continuing effort to develop batteries for instruments that must operate in environments much hotter than can be withstood by ordinary commercially available batteries. Batteries of this type are needed for exploration of Venus (where the mean surface temperature is about 450 C), and could be used on Earth for such applications as measuring physical and chemical conditions in geothermal wells and oil wells. All-solid-state high-temperature power cells are sought as alternatives to other high-temperature power cells based, variously, on molten anodes and cathodes or molten eutectic salt electrolytes. Among the all-solid-state predecessors of the present NiF2/NaF:CaF2/Ca cells are those described in "Solid-State High-Temperature Power Cells" (NPO-44396), NASA Tech Briefs, Vol. 32, No. 5 (May 2008), page 40. In those cells, the active cathode material is FeS2, the electrolyte material is a crystalline solid solution of equimolar amounts of Li3PO4 and LiSiO4, and the active anode material is Li contained within an alloy that remains solid in the intended high operational temperature range

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Utilizing Public Risk Perception to Improve Siting Strategies for Medical Waste Incinerators

A telephone survey was conducted in a community facing a proposed medical waste incinerator (Hall County, Georgia) to identify concerns that shape the overall opinion toward the facility. The results indicate Hall County respondents: 1) acknowledge the need for a facility in Georgia, but oppose one for Hall County; 2) perceive that the newspaper is the main source of information about the plant, is primarily unbiased and has more influence on their opinion; 3) have not been previously involved in public meetings but believe they can influence private industry; 4) are concerned about potential health, aesthetic, economic, and environmental effects, including proper transportation of untreated medical waste and adequate operation and inspections of the plant; 5) believe environmental groups are more credible than other officials involved in the siting process; 6) recognize components and generators of medical waste; 7) oppose compensation; 8) believe the state should first reduce waste; and 9) are aware of possible consequences of not building a treatment facility. Involving the public early in the siting process through increased education/communication, using the media to increase the public's knowledge about medical waste treatment technologies and risks, enforcing environmental regulations, and funding ideas on reduction/reuse of medical waste will help to foster credibility of the siting process and those involved and will help facilitate the siting process.Master of Science in Public Healt

Does play pay? The production and conversion of physical capital by sports coaches and outdoor leaders in the UK

Anecdotal evidence suggests that a relationship exists between one’s involvement in sport and one’s opportunities to negotiate access to some sport leadership roles, yet this relationship remains under-explored in the literature. The current study attempts to resolve this omission by examining the experiences of women sports coaches and outdoor leaders. More specifically, the study draws on the ideas of Pierre Bourdieu and his concepts of physical, economic, social and symbolic capital, to examine how individuals’ sporting involvement has helped them negotiate access to sports leadership positions. In-depth interviews were carried out with 20 women coaches and 15 outdoor leaders. During the interviews, the women were asked to describe their early experiences of sport and to account for their initial, and continued, involvement in sport or the outdoors. Analysis of the data revealed that the women’s physical capital facilitated their access to a range of sports leadership roles. Further examination of the data indicated that the development and conversion of physical capital was dynamically intertwined with the development of other forms of capital and structured within patriarchal and capitalist social relations

Cost-effectiveness of initial stress cardiovascular MR, stress SPECT or stress echocardiography as a gate-keeper test, compared with upfront invasive coronary angiography in the investigation and management of patients with stable chest pain: Mid-term outcomes from the CECaT randomised controlled trial

Objectives: To compare outcomes and cost-effectiveness of various initial imaging strategies in the management of stable chest pain in a long-term prospective randomised trial. Setting: Regional cardiothoracic referral centre in the east of England. Participants: 898 patients (69% man) entered the study with 869 alive at 2 years of follow-up. Patients were included if they presented for assessment of stable chest pain with a positive exercise test and no prior history of ischaemic heart disease. Exclusion criteria were recent infarction, unstable symptoms or any contraindication to stress MRI. Primary outcome measures: The primary outcomes of this follow-up study were survival up to a minimum of 2 years post-treatment, quality-adjusted survival and cost-utility of each strategy. Results: 898 patients were randomised. Compared with angiography, mortality was marginally higher in the groups randomised to cardiac MR (HR 2.6, 95% CI 1.1 to 6.2), but similar in the single photon emission CT-methoxyisobutylisonitrile (SPECT-MIBI; HR 1.0, 95% CI 0.4 to 2.9) and ECHO groups (HR 1.6, 95% CI 0.6 to 4.0). Although SPECT-MIBI was marginally superior to other non-invasive tests there were no other significant differences between the groups in mortality, quality-adjusted survival or costs. Conclusions: Non-invasive cardiac imaging can be used safely as the initial diagnostic test to diagnose coronary artery disease without adverse effects on patient outcomes or increased costs, relative to angiography. These results should be interpreted in the context of recent advances in imaging technology. Trial registration: ISRCTN 47108462, UKCRN 3696

Feber hos barn - sjuksköterskors erfarenheter av sin rådgivning på barnavårdscentralen

Många föräldrar och en del sjukvårdspersonal har en obefogad rädsla för feber hos små barn och vad den kan leda till, trots att det är vanligt att små barn har feber. Cirka 1/3 av de svenska förskolebarnen besöker en läkare/sjuksköterska varje år på grund av feber och telefonrådgivning om feber är vanligt förekommande. Syftet med studien var att beskriva de erfarenheter som sjuksköterskan på BVC hade av sin rådgivning om feber. 12 intervjuer, där syftet ställdes som en öppen fråga, genomfördes. Data analyserades med latent innehållsanalys. I resultatanalysen framkom kategorierna: att stötta egenvårdsförmågan, att individanpassa råden till människor från andra kulturer och att skapa trygghet. Det framkom att sjuksköterskan strävade efter att ge föräldrarna den information och trygghet som de behövde för att kunna utföra egenvård, vilket kunde vara en utmaning bland annat på grund av kulturella skillnader, rädsla och kunskapsbrist

The practices and beliefs of dental professionals regarding the management of patients taking anticoagulant and antiplatelet drugs

AIM: This study aimed to inform the implementation of the updated Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness Programme (SDCEP) guidance, ‘Management of Dental Patients taking Anticoagulant or Antiplatelet Drugs’, and to determine training needs by investigating dental professionals’ current practice and beliefs regarding management of patients taking these medications. METHODS: Dental professionals were recruited via the NHS Education for Scotland Portal. The online questionnaire collected demographic information, data on current practice and information about beliefs regarding behaviours related to the management of patients on anticoagulant or antiplatelet medication. Quantitative data were analysed using SPSS and subjected to frequency calculations, t-tests, one-way ANOVA and linear regression. Qualitative data were collected via free text boxes and analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: One hundred and fifty-seven participants responded to the questionnaire. The majority of respondents stated they were aware of the guidance and always based their practice on it. The majority of respondents always assessed the patient’s individual bleeding risk prior to dental procedures. Most respondents felt that they did not know how to appropriately manage patients taking low doses of low molecular weight heparins (LMWH), and only 38% of respondents always followed SDCEP guidance about direct oral anticoagulants (DOAC) medication and procedures with a low associated risk of bleeding. DISCUSSION: This study demonstrates a need for further educational support surrounding LMWHs and management of patients on DOAC medication. Time and remuneration represent barriers to guidance implementation in primary care. CONCLUSION: There is good awareness and adherence to the guidance in primary care settings, however training needs were identified to support implementation