Divinities and ancestors in encounter with Christianity: in the experience and religious history of the early Irish and the Akan people of Ghana

An initial interest in understanding the surviving traditions relating to the pan-celtic divinity Lugh in his Irish guise, and some personal aquaintance with West Africa suggested this comparative study. I soon found that the institution of the Akan traditional chieftaincy, still functioning as integral to the socio-religious identity of the modern Akan people of Ghana, provided illuminating insights into the paradigmatic role of Lugh in relation to early Irish sacral kingship. Although early mediaeval Ireland and 19th and 20th century Gold Coast, now Ghana, are divided both in historical time and geographical space, other similarities in the "Universe of meaning" proper to each culture emerged during the study of their own specific 'encounters with Christianity'. Chap.l first introduces Lugh through the Irish tale Cath Maige Tuired, and then the Akan, both in their historical and geographical context and, tentatively, through varied clues, within their world of meaning and selfunderstanding. Chap.2 has two parts: Early Encounters with Christianity among the Irish and the Akan and Encounter as Confrontation Chap.3 is a comparative study of the Sacral ruler in 4 parts: covering (a) the relationship of kinship to kingship; (b) the sacral ruler in theory and in action; (c) the myth/ritual conveying, enacting, and authenticating the union with the 'transcendent power' informing sacral rule, (centering on Baile in Scciil the other main Lugh source)' and (d) The Festival of Lughnasa and Akan Odwira, each celebrating both Harvest and the centripetal function of kingship. Chap.4 explores and compares the presence and importance of the Female Principle for both, and Chap. 5 collates the main conclusions of the study. Although Early Irish society was essentially aristocratic and the Akan a gerontocracy, the parallels are remarkable. The material in Chap.2 reveals the tension experienced by both peoples between a recognition of being on "familiar ground" as the judaic/christian scriptures were opened up, and the inevitable confrontation between the demands of the "new faith" and ancient ritual patterns and allegiances, the latter becoming acute in relation to the traditional sacral rulers.. The manifold similarities discovered during research for Chap.3 are mutually illuminating, suggesting conclusions which go beyond the remit of this particular comparative study. Chap.4 shows the essential presence of the 'female principle' in the religio-social experience and history (especially in relation to the sacral kingship and its authority) of the matrilineal Akan, and the early Irish, the one mainly imaged as mother and the other mainly as bride/wife. In the consciousness of both, she is the Spirit of the Earth, and a source of wisdom and guardian of truth. There are some signs that the marginalisation of female power, both cosmic and terrestrial, may have preceded, as well as accompanying, the encounter with Christianity in both cultures

Increasing the quality of seismic interpretation

Acknowledgments E. Macrae was funded by an NERC Open CASE Ph.D. award (NE/F013728/1) with Midland Valley Exploration Ltd. as the industry partner. We thank 763 geoscientists for their participation, and in particular, the REs who gave their time freely to the project. M. Scott (University of Glasgow, UK) is thanked for assisting with the statistical analysis. Four reviewers are thanked for their constructive comments that improved the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The impact of record source on multimorbidity measurement and mortality associations: A comparison study

Objectives Measurement of multimorbidity is important; the impact of choice of record source on multimorbidity measurement is uncertain. We compared estimated prevalence of multimorbidity and associations with mortality using different record sources. Method Cross-sectional study of SAIL Databank data including 2,340,027 individuals of all ages living in Wales on 01 January 2019. Comparison of multimorbidity and LTC prevalence using diagnosis codes from primary care (PC), hospital inpatient (HI), and linked PC-HI records, and associations with 12-month mortality were calculated. Results Multimorbidity was more prevalent (32.2% versus 16.4%), included a younger population (62.5 years versus 66.8 years) with more women (54.2% versus 52.6%), and was more strongly associated with mortality (adjusted odds ratio 7.93 [95%CI 7.62-8.25] versus 4.70 [95%CI 4.55-4.85] in people with ≥ 4 LTCs) using linked PC-HI than HI records. Prevalence of LTCs using PC versus HI records was significantly higher in 37/47 and significantly lower in 10/47. Averaging all LTCs, the ratio of PC/linked PC-HI records was higher than HI/linked PC-HI records (84.7% [interquartile range, IQR 76.7 to 90.4] versus 49.0 [IQR 31.9 to 83.6]). Measures of concordance between PC and HI records varied widely across LTCs and the Kappa statistic, a comparison of percentage agreement and chance alone, was slight in five, fair in 13, moderate in 17, and substantial in 12 LTCs, and lowest in mental and behavioural disorders. Conclusion Using linked PC-HI records provides higher estimated prevalence of multimorbidity with higher proportions of certain populations and higher association with mortality. Use of single record sources will underestimate the prevalence of many important conditions, especially mental and behavioural disorders

Variation in referrals from primary care to scheduled paediatric services in North and East Scotland:A cross-sectional study

Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to colleagues in the health information departments of NHS Grampian, Highland and Tayside. Availability of data and materials The datasets generated during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Interventions to reduce acute paediatric hospital admissions:a systematic review

Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.Peer reviewedPostprin

Evaluating pharmacist input into the pharmaceutical care of patients in dispensing medical practices in remote and rural areas of Scotland.

Background. - The Highlands and the Western Isles are the two most remote and rural areas of Scotland, with many medical practices in areas where pharmacies would not be viable. Recent regulations state that that dispensing medical practices in these areas must receive pharmacist support for patients who would benefit. Objective. - This study aimed to evaluate pilot services, which centred on the provision of patient centred pharmaceutical care. Methods. A realist type evaluation was conducted by an independent research team comprising collecting quantitative data around what occurred during the consultation followed by interviews with purposive samples of staff (n = 14) and patients (n = 18). Results. - A total of 873 medicines related issues were identified in 473 patients reviewed, with the main issue being 'inappropriate dose, frequency, duration'. Just under half (39.7%) of issues were managed by the pharmacist without any medical input. Interviews indicated a high level of appreciation, although there was an increase in workload for some staff. While the need for telephone based pharmacist consultations for some patients was understood, there was a preference for face to face. All were supportive of continuing and extending the service. Conclusion. - The clinical pharmacist service was both needed and valued highly by staff and patients. In Scotland, this aligns with the Government vision and action plan, 'Prescription for Excellence', that by 2023 all patient facing pharmacists will be independent prescribers with those in remote and rural areas entitled to 'equity of access to such expertise'