Snorkellers' environmentally conscious behaviour after visiting the Great Barrier Reef

The majority of tourists who visit Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (GBR) engage in snorkelling. Yet little is known about how snorkellers perceive this experience. The aim of this study was to investigate snorkeller behaviour by exploring their environmental opinions and to provide insights on the association between climate concerns and environmentally conscious behaviours of snorkellers. A self-administered questionnaire (n = 273) was distributed onboard reef tourism vessels visiting the study area. Approximately one-third of respondents believe that climate change and global warming are major threats to the GBR. Regression results indicate the environmentally conscious behaviour model (ECBM), a modified version of the norm activation model, is effective in understanding how a snorkeller’s level of climate concern (LCC) both directly and indirectly activates and influences a snorkeller’s environmentally conscious behaviour (ECB). LCC has a positive direct effect on ECB, and a positive indirect effect via environmental identity (EI), and personal environmental norms (PEN)

Global patient outcomes after elective surgery: prospective cohort study in 27 low-, middle- and high-income countries.

BACKGROUND: As global initiatives increase patient access to surgical treatments, there remains a need to understand the adverse effects of surgery and define appropriate levels of perioperative care. METHODS: We designed a prospective international 7-day cohort study of outcomes following elective adult inpatient surgery in 27 countries. The primary outcome was in-hospital complications. Secondary outcomes were death following a complication (failure to rescue) and death in hospital. Process measures were admission to critical care immediately after surgery or to treat a complication and duration of hospital stay. A single definition of critical care was used for all countries. RESULTS: A total of 474 hospitals in 19 high-, 7 middle- and 1 low-income country were included in the primary analysis. Data included 44 814 patients with a median hospital stay of 4 (range 2-7) days. A total of 7508 patients (16.8%) developed one or more postoperative complication and 207 died (0.5%). The overall mortality among patients who developed complications was 2.8%. Mortality following complications ranged from 2.4% for pulmonary embolism to 43.9% for cardiac arrest. A total of 4360 (9.7%) patients were admitted to a critical care unit as routine immediately after surgery, of whom 2198 (50.4%) developed a complication, with 105 (2.4%) deaths. A total of 1233 patients (16.4%) were admitted to a critical care unit to treat complications, with 119 (9.7%) deaths. Despite lower baseline risk, outcomes were similar in low- and middle-income compared with high-income countries. CONCLUSIONS: Poor patient outcomes are common after inpatient surgery. Global initiatives to increase access to surgical treatments should also address the need for safe perioperative care. STUDY REGISTRATION: ISRCTN5181700

Optimisation of Perioperative Cardiovascular Management to Improve Surgical Outcome II (OPTIMISE II) trial: study protocol for a multicentre international trial of cardiac output-guided fluid therapy with low-dose inotrope infusion compared with usual care in patients undergoing major elective gastrointestinal surgery.

INTRODUCTION: Postoperative morbidity and mortality in older patients with comorbidities undergoing gastrointestinal surgery are a major burden on healthcare systems. Infections after surgery are common in such patients, prolonging hospitalisation and reducing postoperative short-term and long-term survival. Optimal management of perioperative intravenous fluids and inotropic drugs may reduce infection rates and improve outcomes from surgery. Previous small trials of cardiac-output-guided haemodynamic therapy algorithms suggested a modest reduction in postoperative morbidity. A large definitive trial is needed to confirm or refute this and inform widespread clinical practice. METHODS: The Optimisation of Perioperative Cardiovascular Management to Improve Surgical Outcome II (OPTIMISE II) trial is a multicentre, international, parallel group, open, randomised controlled trial. 2502 high-risk patients undergoing major elective gastrointestinal surgery will be randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio using minimisation to minimally invasive cardiac output monitoring to guide protocolised administration of intravenous fluid combined with low-dose inotrope infusion, or usual care. The trial intervention will be carried out during and for 4 hours after surgery. The primary outcome is postoperative infection of Clavien-Dindo grade II or higher within 30 days of randomisation. Participants and those delivering the intervention will not be blinded to treatment allocation; however, outcome assessors will be blinded when feasible. Participant recruitment started in January 2017 and is scheduled to last 3 years, within 50 hospitals worldwide. ETHICS/DISSEMINATION: The OPTIMISE II trial has been approved by the UK National Research Ethics Service and has been approved by responsible ethics committees in all participating countries. The findings will be disseminated through publication in a widely accessible peer-reviewed scientific journal. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN39653756.The OPTIMISE II trial is supported by Edwards Lifesciences (Irvine, CA) and the UK National Institute for Health Research through RMP’s NIHR Professorship

Miernik aktywnosci wody

W pracy przedstawiono charakterystykę techniczną i sposób działania oraz wstępne wyniki badań wykonanych z pomocą miernika aktywności wody opracowanego i wykonanego w "COBRABiD" Oddział w Poznaniu.This publication presents technical characteristics, operation and preliminary results of research on Water Activity Unit. This apparatus is elaborated and made in COBRABiD Poznań

Impacts of the 2016 and 2017 mass coral bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef tourism industry and tourism-dependent coastal communities of Queensland

Pabel, A ORCiD: 0000-0003-1409-5496The aim of this research is to report on concerns by the local community, the tourism industry and tourists about long-term impacts of the 2016 and 2017 coral bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR)

Impacts of the 2016 and 2017 mass coral bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef tourism industry and tourism-dependent coastal communities of Queensland

Pabel, A ORCiD: 0000-0003-1409-5496The aim of this research is to report on concerns by the local community, the tourism industry and tourists about long-term impacts of the 2016 and 2017 coral bleaching events on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR)

THE USE OF BIOSENSORS IN DETERMINATION OF DIFFERENT SUBSTANCES BY HIGH PERFORMANCE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY

A rapid, simple and economic method was developed, which combines the specificity of enzymes with the high sensitivity of HPLC. Therefore sample pretreatment is reduced to simple dilution or extraction steps. In this work oxidases for alcohol, glucose, oxalic acid, ascorbic acid and galactose were immobilized and used as biosensors. Food samples were fruit juices and vegetable products, soft drinks and wine. The detection limit e.g. for oxalic acid was in the picomol range

Tourists' concerns with the state of the Great Barrier Reef

Pabel, A ORCiD: 0000-0003-1409-5496; Thompson, MM ORCiD: 0000-0002-7909-3523This research reports on concerns held by tourists about climate change impacts on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), Australia and what implications this may have for coral reef dependent destinations such as Cairns. The findings showed a high level of concern (60%) that the GBR will become extinct in the next several decades, while 90% are worried about the future health of the GBR. Overall, the results point to a high level of concern about the GBR and pessimism about its future. These findings indicate a need to consider alternative tourism experiences, but Cairns appears to be locked-into a path that remains focused on the GBR. From a destination perspective, the research highlights the need to consider ‘next steps’ required to address the likely flow-on effects of a decline in the GBR, including building community resilience and identifying opportunities to develop alternative tourism strategies