Ascertaining women’s preferred mode of address and preferred choice of title during pregnancy and childbirth

To determine how women in pregnancy would like to be addressed and to ascertain their preferred choice of title during pregnancy. A questionnaire was administered to 925 antenatal women. Midwifery and medical staff (183) were invited to respond to a similar questionnaire.The response rate was 71.2% from the survey of pregnant women. The vast majority (82.1%) preferred to be addressed by their first name. Women were in favour of being called ’patient’ (32.8%) as their first choice. The staff survey yielded a response rate of 77%. The majority (81.8%) of health professionals preferred to address women by their first name. ’Mother’ (28.7%) was the most popular first choice. We conclude that women in pregnancy do have a preference on how they would like to be addressed and this is predominantly by first name. Health professionals also prefer to call pregnant women by their first name. The term ’patient’ was the most popular first choice of title of women in pregnancy but the term ’mother’ was the preferred choice of the health professionals. Medical staff were more likely to choose ’patient’ than midwives

Molecular and phenotypic characterization of the alternative seasonal growth habit and flowering time in barley (Hordeum vulgare ssp. vulgare L.)

Barley can be classified into three major agronomic types, based on its seasonal growth habit (SGH): spring, winter and alternative. Winter varieties require exposure to vernalization to promote subsequent flowering and are autumn-sown. Spring varieties proceed to flowering in the absence of vernalization and are sown in the spring. The ‘alternative’ (also known as ‘facultative’) SGH is only loosely defined and can be sown in autumn or spring. Here, we investigate the molecular genetic basis of alternative barley. Analysis of the major barley vernalization (VRN-H1, VRN-H2) and photoperiod (PPD-H1, PPD-H2) response genes in a collection of 386 varieties found alternative SGH to be characterized by specific allelic combinations. Spring varieties possessed spring loci at one or both of the vernalization response loci, combined with long-day non-responsive ppd-H1 alleles and wild-type alleles at the short-day photoperiod response locus, PPD-H2. Winter varieties possessed winter alleles at both vernalization loci, in combination with the mutant ppd-H2 allele conferring delayed flowering under short-day photoperiods. In contrast, all alternative varieties investigated possessed a single spring allele (either at VRN-H1 or at VRN-H2) combined with mutant ppd-H2 alleles. This allelic combination is found only in alternative types and is diagnostic for alternative SGH in the collection studied. Analysis of flowering time under controlled environment found alternative varieties flowered later than spring control lines, with the difference most pronounced under short-day photoperiods. This work provides genetic characterization of the alternative SGH phenotype, allowing precise manipulation of SGH and flowering time within breeding programmes, and provides the molecular tools for classification of all three SGH categories within national variety registration processes

Insight into rural and remote GP training and supervision in Queensland

Many rural and remote communities are struggling to attract and retain GPs while experiencing poorer population health outcomes and burden of disease. Therefore, the provision of a reliable rural GP workforce is vital. Registered Training Organisations provide high quality training experiences for GP registrars. A collaborative project between JCU and Monash University aimed to identify aspects of GP training which impact registrars’ experience. Perspectives were obtained from GP registrars, supervisors, and practice managers. This presentation focuses on training and supervision aspects in rural and remote north-west Queensland. A mixed methods study was undertaken and both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. A modified survey based on the adapted Critical Access Hospital Community Apgar Questionnaire was used to collect data about perceptions of rural GP training and supervision with the highest rated factor being medical quality and the lowest rated being scope of practice. Semi-structured interviews were then used to gather additional information about training and supervision experiences. Interviews were thematically analysed and primary themes relating to attractors and barriers for workforce training and supervision, and impact of rural remote practice were elicited. Attractors included lifestyle, rural medicine, scope of practice, services and incentives while barriers included workforce factors, lifestyle, location, services and incentives. Rural remote GP training experiences contribute a variety of attractors and barriers which impact on a positive training experience for registrars. Identification of these factors make it possible to tailor training accordingly and foster a positive rural experience that may translate to a future reliable workforce

Insight into rural and remote GP training and supervision in Queensland

Many rural and remote communities are struggling to attract and retain GPs while experiencing poorer population health outcomes and burden of disease. Therefore, the provision of a reliable rural GP workforce is vital. Registered Training Organisations provide high quality training experiences for GP registrars. A collaborative project between JCU and Monash University aimed to identify aspects of GP training which impact registrars’ experience. Perspectives were obtained from GP registrars, supervisors, and practice managers. This presentation focuses on training and supervision aspects in rural and remote north-west Queensland. A mixed methods study was undertaken and both quantitative and qualitative data were collected. A modified survey based on the adapted Critical Access Hospital Community Apgar Questionnaire was used to collect data about perceptions of rural GP training and supervision with the highest rated factor being medical quality and the lowest rated being scope of practice. Semi-structured interviews were then used to gather additional information about training and supervision experiences. Interviews were thematically analysed and primary themes relating to attractors and barriers for workforce training and supervision, and impact of rural remote practice were elicited. Attractors included lifestyle, rural medicine, scope of practice, services and incentives while barriers included workforce factors, lifestyle, location, services and incentives. Rural remote GP training experiences contribute a variety of attractors and barriers which impact on a positive training experience for registrars. Identification of these factors make it possible to tailor training accordingly and foster a positive rural experience that may translate to a future reliable workforce

What is the clinical and ethical importance of incidental abnormalities found by knee MRI?

INTRODUCTION: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is increasingly used to examine joints for research purposes. It may detect both suspected and unsuspected abnormalities. This raises both clinical and ethical issues, especially when incidental abnormalities are detected. The prevalence of incidental, potentially clinically significant abnormalities identified by MRI and their clinical significance in a population undergoing knee MRI in research studies are unknown. METHODS: We examined the prevalence of such lesions in healthy asymptomatic adults and those with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis (OA) undergoing knee MRI with limited sequences for the purpose of research. The MRI findings in 601 asymptomatic subjects and 132 with knee OA who underwent at least one limited knee MRI scan for cartilage volume measurement were examined by an MRI radiologist for the presence of potentially clinically significant abnormalities. RESULTS: These were present in 2.3% of healthy and 2.3% of OA subjects. All required further investigation to exclude non-benign disease, including four with bone marrow expansion (0.7%), requiring further investigation and management. A single potentially life-threatening lesion, a myeloma lesion, was identified in a subject with symptomatic knee OA on their second MRI scan in a longitudinal study. CONCLUSION: As musculoskeletal MRI is increasingly used clinically and for research purposes, the potential for detecting unsuspected abnormalities that require further investigation should be recognized. Incorporating a system to detect these, to characterize unexpected findings, and to facilitate appropriate medical follow-up when designing studies using this technology should be considered ethical research practice

Ovarian Cancers Harbour Defects in Non-Homologous End Joining Resulting in Resistance to Rucaparib

Abstract Purpose: DNA damage defects are common in ovarian cancer and can be used to stratify treatment. Although most work has focused on homologous recombination (HR), DNA double-strand breaks are repaired primarily by nonhomologous end joining (NHEJ). Defects in NHEJ have been shown to contribute to genomic instability and have been associated with the development of chemoresistance. Experimental Design: NHEJ was assessed in a panel of ovarian cancer cell lines and 47 primary ascetic-derived ovarian cancer cultures, by measuring the ability of cell extracts to end-join linearized plasmid monomers into multimers. mRNA and protein expression of components of NHEJ was determined using RT-qPCR and Western blotting. Cytotoxicities of cisplatin and the PARP inhibitor rucaparib were assessed using sulforhodamine B (SRB) assays. HR function was assessed using γH2AX/RAD51 foci assay. Results: NHEJ was defective (D) in four of six cell lines and 20 of 47 primary cultures. NHEJ function was independent of HR competence (C). NHEJD cultures were resistant to rucaparib (P = 0.0022). When HR and NHEJ functions were taken into account, only NHEJC/HRD cultures were sensitive to rucaparib (compared with NHEJC/HRC P = 0.034, NHEJD/HRC P = 0.0002, and NHEJD/HRD P = 0.0045). The DNA-PK inhibitor, NU7441, induced resistance to rucaparib (P = 0.014) and HR function recovery in a BRCA1-defective cell line. Conclusions: This study has shown that NHEJ is defective in 40% of ovarian cancers, which is independent of HR function and associated with resistance to PARP inhibitors in ex vivo primary cultures. Clin Cancer Res; 23(8); 2050–60. ©2016 AACR.</jats:p

An improved metaheuristic algorithm for maximizing demand satisfaction in the population harvest Cutting Stock Problem

We present a greedy version of an existing metaheuristic algorithm for a special version of the Cutting Stock Problem (CSP). For this version, it is only possible to have indirect control over the patterns via a vector of continuous values which we refer to as a weights vector. Our algorithm iteratively generates new weights vectors by making local changes over the best weights vector computed so far. This allows us to achieve better solutions much faster than is possible with the original metaheuristic

Small-signal modeling of the incremental optical encoder for motor control

The small-signal model of the incremental optical encoder introduced in this paper provides an insight on the impact of this sensor in the dynamics of the motion control loop of a motor drive. The model is derived and validated for the most commonly employed speed estimation methods: the pulse count and elapsed time methods. Using the model, the reduction of the phase margin due to the encoder phase lag can be quantified at an early design stage. This model facilitates the design of control techniques to compensate for the phase margin reduction due to the associated feedback delays