Laboratory evaluation of Drawtex Hydroconductive Dressing with LevaFiber technology

Good wound bed preparation is an essential aspect of wound care and effective wound healing. Removal of dead and necrotic tissue either through autolytic or interventional debridement, followed by good exudate management, inhibition of matrix metalloproteases and bacterial bioburden control should allow the chronic wound to process to closure. It is known, still, that wound healing in these circumstances is not a simple process and that maintaining a healthy wound bed is central to the process. Many practitioners rely on the TIME (Tissue, Infection/Inflammation, Moisture balance and wound Edge) framework to help them with wound bed preparation and there are a variety of dressings available to help with debridement, exudate management, reduction of bacterial bioburden and inhibit metalloproteases. The sequence of application of the various dressings will depend upon their function. This study describes the function of a dressing, Drawtex, a hydroconductive dressing, which can be used to assist with wound bed preparation through its absorption, sequestration and retention properties. The absorption over time, ability to sequester and retain bacteria were assessed in the laboratory using a variety of methods. Drawtex was shown to absorb eight times its own weight in fluid over time and it showed a 90% reduction in bacterial numbers over a 24hr period in sequestration experiments. Utilisation of direct observation by scanning electron microscopy demonstrated bacterial retention in the fibres

Where does design thinking leave design? Snapshots of a conversation with the design community

peer-reviewedDesign Thinking has gained recognition as an acclaimed process for generating innovative, human centred solutions at a social and business level. It has also gained notoriety amongst many designers, who claim that its success as an exported element of the design process has resulted in its commodification, and led to it becoming a diluted series of processes that lack criticality. This article describes the findings from a conversation session held at DRS2018 which posed the question: Have we reached peak design thinking? Participants were asked to identify with a range of positions on the topic and were then given three questions to provide a constructive debate. The findings point to a lack of a clear distinction between design and Design Thinking, a lack of consensus as to whether a designer is required in the process and also a lack of agreement as to its benefits. In order to prevent a continued backlash against Design Thinking, the findings point to the need for a framework that can outline the clear distinction between design and Design Thinking, whether the designers skills are required and the context and scale of a project that would require design or Design Thinking or both

Migrant Children in a Transforming Europe Survey Data, 2020-2021

The Migrant Children in a Transforming Europe Survey Data (MiCREATE) project sought to understand the experiences of migrant children from a child-centred perspective. Therefore, a mixture of online and paper surveys that assessed various aspects of wellbeing and school life were carried out with both migrant and none migrant children aged 9-17 years, including groups of new arrivals, long-term migrants and local children. The topics covered in the surveys included life satisfaction, leisure activities, satisfaction with school, friendship, relationships with peers and teachers and experiences of bullying. The surveys also collected demographic information including age, ethnicity, religion, gender, language, citizenship, area of residence, socioeconomic status and language. children were also questioned regarding their migratory status. This allowed for analysis to be carried out based on different characteristics.The overall objective of the project is to stimulate the inclusion of diverse groups of migrant children by adopting a childcentred approach to their integration at the educational and policy level. Stemming from the need to revisit the integration policies on the one hand and consistent with the specific focus of the call on the other hand, the research project aims at comprehensive examination of contemporary integration processes of migrant children in order to empower them. The project starts from the fact that European countries and their education systems encounter manifold challenges due to growing ethnic, cultural, linguistic diversity and thereby aims at: 1) Identifying existing measures for the integration of migrant children at the regional and local level through secondary data analysis; 2) Analysis of the social impacts of these integration programmes through case studies in ten countries applying qualitative and quantitative child-centred research; 3) Development of integration measures and identification of social investment particularly in educational policies and school systems that aim to empower children. The project is problem-driven and exploratory at the same time. Its exploratory part mainly concerns a child-centred approach to understanding integration challenges, migrants’ needs and their well-being. However, the findings of the open-ended exploratory research will be used in an explicitly problem driven way – with an aim to stimulate migrant inclusion, to Last empower migrant children and build their skills already within the (participatory) research. This will be done through the activities of the Integration Lab and Policy Lab, where children’s voices, fieldwork and desk research findings will be translated into practices and measures for educational professionals and practitioners as well as into a child-centred migrant integration policy framework to stimulate social inclusion and successful management of cultural diversity.</p

Domestic Homicide: Interviews with Families, Survivors and Professionals and Analysis of Domestic Homicide Reviews, 2019-2022

This three-year ESCR-funded project aimed to address important gaps in knowledge of domestic homicide. Domestic homicide is both a global and a domestic problem that disproportionately affects women. Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs) were introduced as a statutory requirement in England and Wales in 2011 to review the circumstances in which the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have, resulted from violence, abuse or neglect perpetrated by an intimate ex/partner, relative, or member of the same household (Home Office, 2016). The project aimed to learn from the experiences of families who had lost a relative to domestic homicide; victims/survivors of domestic abuse; professionals, and domestic homicide reviews (DHRs) to document, analyse, map, and influence policy and practice to prevent future domestic homicides. To this end the research team conducted a systematic review of domestic homicide reviews internationally to build knowledge about their focus, organisation and lessons identified in order to inform future developments of DHRs; analysed all publicly available DHRs to identify possible risk and contextual factors preceding the homicides and the recommendations made in DHRs to prevent future domestic homicides, and, explored the journeys of victim/survivors, families and agencies in relation to high risk domestic violence and domestic homicide to ensure policy and practice is cognisant of and learns from their experiences and to investigate good practice, lost opportunities for interventions and to identify areas for strengthening responses for the prevention of domestic homicides. The total archived dataset comprises quantitative and qualitative data: 1) an SPSS database containing data from the 302 DHRs. 2) The interview transcripts with family members (n=7) who had been bereaved by domestic homicide and survivors of domestic violence (n=10) and nineteen semi-structured, audio recorded interviews (9 in Wales, 10 in Lancashire) conducted with professionals who have worked with victims or been involved in DHRs, e.g. healthcare professionals, social workers, voluntary agency staff, police officers from the two identified CSP networks (Lancashire and Wales). These are also available in the form of three digital films here: https://domestichomicide-halt.co.uk/resource-center/Learning from Domestic Homicide Reviews using Experience Based Co-Design, also known as Homicide Abuse Learning Together (HALT) was a three-year study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ES/S005471/2) and carried out by researchers at Manchester Metropolitan University, the University of Central Lancashire and Liverpool John Moores University. The key aim was to enhance policy and practice by improving methods for implementing the recommendations of domestic homicide reviews. Domestic homicide is both a global and a domestic problem. Domestic Homicide Reviews (DHRs) were introduced as a statutory requirement in England and Wales in 2011 to review the circumstances in which the death of a person aged 16 or over has, or appears to have, resulted from violence, abuse or neglect perpetrated by an intimate ex/partner, relative, or member of the same household (Home Office, 2016). The HALT project aimed to address important gaps in knowledge of domestic homicide and to learn from the experiences of families who had lost a relative to domestic homicide; victims/survivors of domestic abuse; professionals, and domestic homicide reviews (DHRs) to document, analyse, map, and influence policy and practice to prevent future domestic homicides. From our findings, we developed key themes that generated outputs including policy briefings, a series of films, a book of poetry based on the transcripts of survivor and family interviews. These are available at the resources page of the HALT project website here: https://domestichomicide-halt.co.uk/resource-center/</p

Containing culture, a series of three symposia. Symposium three: lacking in discipline

This series of three symposia explored ideas around the construction of the urban image, the representation of private space in the public realm, and the blurring of real and imagined boundaries in contemporary art. In different ways each of the events questioned the varied ways in which we might locate potential meaning within shifting notions of value. Symposium Three, Friday 29th June 2007: Lacking in Discipline. Convenor, David Brittain. One of the tropes of contemporary art is the artist or artwork that is said to break or blur boundaries between disciplines, or to depart from tradition. How realistic is it to set up an opposition between disciplinary and interdisciplinary practice when these positions seem to be complementary? This symposium invited a group of practitioners to address such questions through discussing their individual practices. Speakers: Suzanne Lacy (keynote address) is an internationally known artist whose work includes installations, video, and large-scale performances on social themes and urban issues. Paul Elliman is a London-based designer whose work and writing explores the mutual interests of technology and language. Dr. David Sweet, a painter, is a principal lecturer in fine art at MMU and was a contributor to the recent conference, A Future for Modernism? David Sweet is interested in the theory and practice of modern painting. Kathleen Mullaniff and Jane Langley from The Pattern Lab have been curating exhibitions related to textiles since 2000, enabling artists to explore and interpret both historical and contemporary textile collections and archives

The National Irish studies conference 2006

Folded A4 leaflet for the conference held on 11 March 2006 as part of the Manchester Irish Festival

National Irish studies conference 2010

Folded one-third A4 leaflet for the conference, held on 13 March 2010 at Manchester Town Hall