“They are not the ones facing a life changing choice”: Public Attitudes to Anti-Reproductive Choice (“Pro-Life”) Protests

The presence of Pro-Life protests outside reproductive choices providers has become a source of tension in recent years in the UK (Hayes & Lowe 2015), although elsewhere in the world it has been a matter of public debate for far longer (Albert 2005; Finer & Fine 2013). Given this, it is surprising that there has been little research on the issue either in the UK or elsewhere beyond discussions of jurisprudence, political philosophy and healthcare decision making (see also Benyon-Jones 2017). This research was based on the idea that a better understanding of the impact of seeing ‘Pro-Life’ protests by wider members of the public would help inform both discussions about buffer zones and ongoing discussions about safety and impact of the increasing Americanization of British Pro-Life protests

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

"They are not the ones facing a life changing choice”:public attitudes to anti-reproductive choice (“pro-life”) protests

The presence of Pro-Life protests outside reproductive choices providers has become a source of tension in recent years in the UK (Hayes & Lowe 2015), although elsewhere in the world it has been a matter of public debate for far longer (Albert 2005; Finer & Fine 2013). Given this, it is surprising that there has been little research on the issue either in the UK or elsewhere beyond discussions of jurisprudence, political philosophy and healthcare decision making (see also Benyon-Jones 2017). This research was based on the idea that a better understanding of the impact of seeing ‘Pro-Life’ protests by wider members of the public would help inform both discussions about buffer zones and ongoing discussions about safety and impact of the increasing Americanization of British Pro-Life protests