Multisensory Environmental Therapy (Snoezelen) for Job Stress Reduction in Mental Health Nurses: a Randomised Trial

This independent measures experimental design study conducted in the UK and USA, assessed the benefits of multisensory environmental therapy (MSET) using a snoezelen room to reduce occupational stress in sixteen mental health nurses. An independent staff member randomly allocated each participant to one of two intervention conditions: either the hospital /university unit lounge (control group n = 8) or MSET (experimental group n=8). The intervention was undertaken for four weeks, two sessions per week, for thirty minutes. Measures of pulse rate were obtained both pre-and post-intervention. In addition, pre-and post-measures were obtained on the State-Trait Anxiety Scale and the Profile of Mood States and, upon conclusion of the study, an intervention satisfaction questionnaire was completed. Sixteen participants were included in the analysis of the primary outcomes. A significant treatment by pre-post interaction was found for pulse rates, the State Anxiety Scale, and on the Confusion Bewilderment sub-scale of the Profile of Mood States scale. In conclusion, nurses reported unanimous satisfaction with MSET and felt their on-the-job performance was enhanced in the areas of holistic caring for patients and problem solving.The Hope Foundatio

Wild and laboratory exposure to cues of predation risk increases relative brain mass in male guppies

There is considerable diversity in brain size within and among species, and substantial dispute over the causes, consequences and importance of this variation. Comparative and developmental studies are essential in addressing this controversy. Predation pressure has been proposed as a major force shaping brain, behaviour and life history. The Trinidadian guppy, Poecilia reticulata, shows dramatic variation in predation pressure across populations. We compared the brain mass of guppies from high and low predation populations collected in the wild. Male but not female guppies exposed to high predation possessed heavier brains for their body size compared to fish from low predation populations. The brain is a plastic organ, so it is possible that the population differences we observed were partly due to developmental responses rather than evolved differences. In a follow‐up study, we raised guppies under cues of predation risk or in a control condition. Male guppies exposed to predator cues early in life had heavier brains relative to their body size than control males, while females showed no significant effect of treatment. Collectively our results suggest that male guppies exposed to predation invest more in neural tissue, and that these differences are at least partly driven by plastic responses

Monthly engagement with EIP keyworkers was associated with a five-fold increase in the odds of engagement with psychosocial interventions

Abstract Background Early intervention in psychosis (EIP) supports people who are experiencing their first episode of psychosis (FEP). A new Model of Care (MoC) for EIP services was launched in Ireland in 2019. Three EIP demonstration sites were chosen to test this MoC through a ‘hub and spoke’ approach. These services were a new way of organising care for people experiencing FEP, based upon a recovery model of care, and which sought to standardise care, improve access by clinically led multidisciplinary teams. This included newly created EIP keyworker roles whereby keyworkers assumed responsibilities regarding assessment, comprehensive individual care planning and coordination of care. Methods A mixed methods design utilising the UK Medical Research Council’s process evaluation framework. Purposive sampling techniques were utilised. Descriptive analyses and logistic regression were performed to examine how increased keyworker engagement influenced the use of other psychosocial interventions within the EIP demonstration sites. Thematic analyses was used for qualitative data. Results There was a strong positive relationship between keyworker contacts and psychosocial interventions offered. Specifically, the odds of achieving at least monthly engagement with cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis (CBTp; (5.76 (2.43–13.64), p < 0.001), and behavioural family therapy (BFT; (5.52(1.63–18.69, p < 0.006)) increased by fivefold with each additional monthly keyworker contact. For individual placement support (IPS) each additional monthly keyworker contact was associated with a three-fold increase in the odds of achieving monthly attendance with IPS (3.73 (1.64–8.48), p < 0.002). Qualitative results found that the EIP keyworker role as viewed by both service users and staff as a valuable nodal point, with a particular emphasis on care coordination and effective communication. Conclusions This study advances the understanding of keyworker effects through qualitative evidence of keyworkers functioning as a “linchpin” to the service, while the positive response association between keyworker contacts and engagement with other services provides quantitative support for keyworkers reducing the organisational or structural barriers to service access. Given the importance of these positions, health systems should ensure that EIP programmes identify qualified and experienced staff to fill these roles, as well as allocate the appropriate funding and protected time to support keyworker engagement and impact

Template-controlled acidity and catalytic activity of ferrierite crystals

A synthesis strategy to tailor the acid sites location in ferrierite crystals has been developed. The zeolite catalysts were synthesised in fluoride medium using different combinations of organic structure directing agents (SDAs) in the absence of inorganic cations. Therefore, the negative charge associated to the incorporation of aluminium to the framework was compensated exclusively by the positive charge of the organic SDAs. In this way, Al sitting in the zeolite framework was driven by the specific location of the different SDA molecules within the zeolite void volume. Following this synthesis strategy, it has been found that the distribution of strongly acidic hydroxyl groups in the proton form of the zeolites obtained after removal of the organic templates was dependent on the combination of organic molecules used as SDAs. Moreover, the catalytic activity of the zeolites in m-xylene and 1-butene isomerisation increased as the relative population of strong Brönsted acid groups in sterically constrained sites inside the ferrierite cavity decreased.This work has been financially supported by the MICINN (project CTQ2006-06282).Peer reviewe

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Raw read files for AfrRA

57P1

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57P3

Barcode file for AftrRA