In search of academic excellence: an evaluation of the work of CTYI

This thesis examines the work of the Irish Centre for Talented Youth (CTYI) over a two year period between the years 1994-1996. It evaluates the means by which CTYI identify academically talented 12-16 year olds and explores the rigorous and challenging coursework that it provides for the highly able student. The research is both quantitative and qualitative in focus, assessing how students, instructors and other key programme personnel view the CTYI experience. The Centre offers fast paced enrichment courses during the Summer and on Saturday mornings throughout the year. Participants on these courses are assessed in terms of both academic and social satisfaction. Comparative analysis between students who took part in a CTYI programme and those enrolled in secondary schools is conducted using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a self review personality measure representing behavioural preferences and preferred self-descriptive adjectives. The thesis concludes with the current status of education for the academically talented in Ireland with recommendations for future practice

In Search of Excellence: Perceived effects of special classes for gifted students in Ireland from the perspective of the students and their parents

This thesis focuses on high ability students and the effects of Saturday and summer courses on their academic and social development. These students who have been identified through assessment are in the top 5% of the population academically. After qualifying from the assessment they are invited to participate in courses run by the Irish Centre for Talented Youth (CTYI) at Dublin City University and other colleges around the country. This study looks at students who have participated on these programmes and their parents in relation to the impact of these courses on their academic and social development. Results show that participating students and their parents have a significantly higher level of academic satisfaction with classes at CTYI compared to school. Furthermore the parents and students perceive themselves to have a more positive attitude towards attending CTYI classes compared to school. Both parents and students within this study note a lack of academic challenge at school and believe that they receive little support from their classmates in relation to their ability. Parents tend to rank their children’s ability as much better than their peers in all academic subjects while most of the students rank themselves as much better in selected subjects. Students and parents within the study are mostly comfortable with their academic ability although this is seen to decline slightly as the child gets older. Most of the parents and the students who have attended special classes for high ability children are somewhat uncomfortable with the term gifted to describe their ability

Scoping bullying and cyberbullying victimisation among a sample of gifted adolescents in Ireland

Research has indicated that gifted adolescents experience an increased amount of bullying and cyberbullying compared to their non-gifted peers. However, there has not been a sufficient attempt to investigate the extent of bullying and cyberbullying victimisation among gifted adolescent populations in Ireland. A total of 195 gifted adolescents between the ages of 14 and 18 years completed a comprehensive online survey assessing the bullying and cyberbullying prevalence, wellbeing, indicative mental health, and friendship quality outcomes. The results showed considerably higher prevalence rates of bullying and cyberbullying victimisation among gifted adolescents compared to an all-Ireland national prevalence rate. Bullying and cyberbullying victimisation was associated with higher levels of negative outcomes. Females, LGBTI +, and twiceexceptional participants scored signifcantly lower on satisfaction with life and signifcantly higher on negative outcomes compared to other gifted participants. The results are discussed alongside recommendations for anti-bullying policies and teacher education provision

Sonosensitive cavitation nuclei-a customisable platform technology for enhanced therapeutic delivery

Ultrasound-mediated cavitation shows great promise for improving targeted drug delivery across a range of clinical applications. Cavitation nuclei-sound-sensitive constructs that enhance cavitation activity at lower pressures-have become a powerful adjuvant to ultrasound-based treatments, and more recently emerged as a drug delivery vehicle in their own right. The unique combination of physical, biological, and chemical effects that occur around these structures, as well as their varied compositions and morphologies, make cavitation nuclei an attractive platform for creating delivery systems tuned to particular therapeutics. In this review, we describe the structure and function of cavitation nuclei, approaches to their functionalization and customization, various clinical applications, progress toward real-world translation, and future directions for the field

Usage of unscheduled hospital care by homeless individuals in Dublin, Ireland: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: Homeless people lack a secure, stable place to live and experience higher rates of serious illness than the housed population. Studies, mainly from the USA, have reported increased use of unscheduled healthcare by homeless individuals.We sought to compare the use of unscheduled emergency department (ED) and inpatient care between housed and homeless hospital patients in a high-income European setting in Dublin, Ireland. SETTING: A large university teaching hospital serving the south inner city in Dublin, Ireland. Patient data are collected on an electronic patient record within the hospital. PARTICIPANTS: We carried out an observational cross-sectional study using data on all ED visits (n=47 174) and all unscheduled admissions under the general medical take (n=7031) in 2015. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The address field of the hospital's electronic patient record was used to identify patients living in emergency accommodation or rough sleeping (hereafter referred to as homeless). Data on demographic details, length of stay and diagnoses were extracted. RESULTS: In comparison with housed individuals in the hospital catchment area, homeless individuals had higher rates of ED attendance (0.16 attendances per person/annum vs 3.0 attendances per person/annum, respectively) and inpatient bed days (0.3 vs 4.4 bed days/person/annum). The rate of leaving ED before assessment was higher in homeless individuals (40% of ED attendances vs 15% of ED attendances in housed individuals). The mean age of homeless medical inpatients was 44.19 years (95% CI 42.98 to 45.40), whereas that of housed patients was 61.20 years (95% CI 60.72 to 61.68). Homeless patients were more likely to terminate an inpatient admission against medical advice (15% of admissions vs 2% of admissions in homeless individuals). CONCLUSION: Homeless patients represent a significant proportion of ED attendees and medical inpatients. In contrast to housed patients, the bulk of usage of unscheduled care by homeless people occurs in individuals aged 25-65 years

Data from: Usage of unscheduled hospital care by homeless individuals in Dublin, Ireland: a cross-sectional study

Objectives: Homeless people lack a secure, stable place to live, and experience higher rates of serious illness than the housed population. Studies, mainly from the US, have reported increased use of unscheduled health care by homeless individuals. We compared the use of unscheduled ED and inpatient care between housed and homeless hospital patients in a high-income European setting. Setting: A large university teaching hospital serving the south inner city in Dublin, Ireland. Patient data is collected on an electronic patient record within the hospital. Participants: We carried out an observational cross-sectional study using data on all ED visits (n=47,174) and all unscheduled admissions under the general medical take (n=7,031) in 2015. Primary and Secondary Outcome Measures: The address field of the hospital’s electronic patient record was used to identify patients living in emergency accommodation or rough sleeping (hereafter referred to as homeless). Data on demographic details, length of stay and diagnoses was extracted. Results: In comparison to housed individuals in the hospital catchment area, homeless individuals had higher rates of ED attendance (0.16 attendances per person/annum vs 3.0 attendances per person/annum respectively) and inpatient bed days (0.3 bed days per person/annum vs 4.4 bed days per person/annum. The rate of leaving ED before assessment was higher in homeless individuals (40% of ED attendances vs 15% of ED attendances in housed individuals). The mean age of homeless medical inpatients was 44.19 (95% CI 42.98-45.40), whereas that of housed patients was 61.20 (95% CI 60.72-61.68). Homeless patients were more likely to terminate an inpatient admission against medical advice (15% of admissions vs 2% of admissions in homeless individuals). Conclusion: Homeless patients represent a significant proportion of ED attendees and medical inpatients. In contrast to housed patients, the bulk of usage of unscheduled care by homeless people occurs in individuals younger than 65

Adrenal insufficiency is common amongst kidney transplant recipients receiving maintenance prednisolone and can be predicted using morning cortisol

Background: Long-term glucocorticoid therapy is a key component of immunosuppression for kidney transplant recipients (KTRs), leading to significant cumulative glucocorticoid exposure. The aims of this study are to investigate the prevalence of adrenal insufficiency (AI) in KTRs taking prednisolone and to develop a screening algorithm to identify patients at the highest risk of AI. Methods: In this cross-sectional cohort study, 67 KTRs receiving prednisolone underwent a short synacthen test (SST) and measurement of cumulative glucocorticoid exposure. Results: A total of 72% (n = 48) of participants failed the SST. Participants with AI had a higher daily prednisolone dose (4.9 versus 4.2 mg/day; P = .002) and greater cumulative glucocorticoid exposure (289 versus 111 mg/kg; P = .03) than those with intact adrenal function. Participants with AI had lower baseline cortisol than participants with intact adrenal function (143 versus 303 nmol/L; P 288 nmol/L predicted a normal SST with 100% specificity [95% confidence interval (CI) 92-100] and 70% sensitivity (95% CI 56-78%), therefore excluding AI. Conclusions: Our results suggest KTRs are at a higher risk for AI than previously reported. A morning serum cortisol measurement is a useful screening tool in this cohort, reducing the need for stimulatory testing by 44%. KTRs with AI need education regarding glucocorticoid sick rules, similar to patients with other forms of AI.</p

Urinary Soluble CD163 in Active Renal Vasculitis

A specific biomarker that can separate active renal vasculitis from other causes of renal dysfunction is lacking, with a kidney biopsy often being required. Soluble CD163 (sCD163), shed by monocytes and macrophages, has been reported as a potential biomarker in diseases associated with excessive macrophage activation. Thus, we hypothesized that urinary sCD163 shed by crescent macrophages correlates with active glomerular inflammation. We detected sCD163 in rat urine early in the disease course of experimental vasculitis. Moreover, microdissected glomeruli from patients with small vessel vasculitis (SVV) had markedly higher levels of CD163 mRNA than did those from patients with lupus nephritis, diabetic nephropathy, or nephrotic syndrome. Both glomeruli and interstitium of patients with SW strongly expressed CD163 protein. In 479 individuals, including patients with SW, disease controls, and healthy controls, serum levels of sCD163 did not differ between the groups. However, in an inception cohort, including 177 patients with SW, patients with active renal vasculitis had markedly higher urinary sCD163 levels than did patients in remission, disease controls, or healthy controls. Analyses in both internal and external validation cohorts confirmed these results. Setting a derived optimum cutoff for urinary sCD163 of 0.3 ng/mmol creatinine for detection of active renal vasculitis resulted in a sensitivity of 83%, specificity of 96%, and a positive likelihood ratio of 20.8. These data indicate that urinary sCD163 level associates very tightly with active renal vasculitis, and assessing this level may be a noninvasive method for diagnosing renal flare in the setting of a known diagnosis of SW