Collaborative research exploring mental health service user perspectives on acute inpatient occupational therapy

Introduction:User perspectives are important for understanding why people engage with occupational therapy during an admission for acute mental health issues, and can be used to inform service provision and development. Method: Twenty-two recent and current inpatients participated in six semi-structured individual interviews and three focus groups. Data from the two methods were initially subject to separate thematic analysis. Then a further stage of constant comparative analysis, of both data sets, generated the findings presented here. Findings: Three themes were identified: (1) ‘A tiny sort of world’ expressed experiences of being restricted; (2) ‘Relief’ indicated how occupational therapy offered relief from the ward and experiences of mental ill-health; and (3) ‘Something to do’ suggested specific purposes for engaging in occupation. These themes indicate how service users experience and value occupational therapy for different reasons at different times. The approach of occupational therapists to service users, valuing them as occupational beings, is a key aspect of their experience. Conclusion: The profession is challenged to design flexible opportunities for occupational engagement which simultaneously provide relief and distraction, address diverse occupational needs, and are feasible within the resource restrictions of acute mental health services

The production of a physiological puzzle: how Cytisus adami confused and inspired a century’s botanists, gardeners, and evolutionists

‘Adam’s laburnum’ (or Cytisus adami), produced by accident in 1825 by Jean-Louis Adam, a nurseryman in Vitry, became a commercial success within the plant trade for its striking mix of yellow and purple flowers. After it came to the attention of members of La Société d’Horticulture de Paris, the tree gained enormous fame as a potential instance of the much sought-after ‘graft hybrid’, a hypothetical idea that by grafting one plant onto another, a mixture of the two could be produced. As I show in this paper, many eminent botanists and gardeners, including Charles Darwin, both experimented with Adam’s laburnum and argued over how it might have been produced and what light, if any, it shed on the laws of heredity. Despite Jean-Louis Adam’s position and status as a nurseryman active within the Parisian plant trade, a surprising degree of doubt and scepticism was attached to his testimony on how the tree had been produced in his nursery. This doubt, I argue, helps us to trace the complex negotiations of authority that constituted debates over plant heredity in the early 19th century and that were introduced with a new generation of gardening and horticultural periodicals

Clinical experience with the use of two diphosphonates in the treatment of Paget's disease.

The effects of EHDP (20 mg/kd/day) and APD (4.5 mg/kg/day) given for three months to patients with severe symptomatic Paget's disease have been compared in an open trial of 17 patients. Both drugs were equally effective in producing a prompt reduction in pair scores, urine hydroxyproline, and serum alkaline phosphatase levels. The remission was maintained for a variable period after stopping treatment. Both drugs were well tolerated, and a one-month course of either drug was not effective. Comparison with published responses from previous studies indicates that EHDP given at this dose as a relatively short course is more effective than a lower dose for a longer period of time; the present study does not suggest that APD has significant advantages

Time on Task Effects during Interactive Visual Search

There is a major shift taking place in airports across the globe, changing from 2D dual-view X-ray screening to 3D CT screening. 3D CT screening is believed to improve target detection since it enables screeners to interact with images of passenger baggage (i.e., rotating and zooming into the displays). The change in screening technology is moving what was once a purely visual search task to an interactive search task. Here, we conducted two experiments with a large sample size during February of 2023 (695 participants) to examine (1) changes in search performance between a simulated dual-view and simulated interactive search task and (2) the effects of time on task upon performance. Consistent with past research, we found that interactive search, when compared with dual-view search, produced higher response accuracy rates coupled with increased reaction times. However, while we found effects of time on task (RTs reduced, and participants became more likely to respond ‘absent’ as the experiments progressed) there was no evidence that these effects differed across simulated dual-view and simulated interactive searches. The results are discussed in relation to benefits of interactive search for supporting target detection by airport screeners

Use of the golden apple snail, cassava, and maize as feeds for the tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon in ponds

Abstract onlyPenaeus monodon stocked in ponds at 8,000/ha were fed four types of farm-made feeds starting on day 16 of a 4-month culture period. The feeds were golden apple snail alone or in combination with cooked cassava or maize, or maize alone. Mixed feeds resulted in significantly higher production and better size-frequency distribution of shrimp. Survival (88-99%) was not significantly different among the treatments. Maize alone and snails alone were inadequate. Presumably, the high amount of carbohydrate in cassava (92%) or maize (87%) provided the needed energy, and the high protein content of golden snail (54%) was available for growth. The fatty acid profile of the golden snail shows that it is a good source of 18:2n-6, 18:3n-3, and 20:5n-3 which are essential fatty acids for P. monodon. Golden snails, with an essential amino acid index (EAAI) of 0.91, are a suitable alternative source of protein for tiger shrimp. Feeding shrimps with golden snails and cassava yielded the highest net income (P 49,332/ha-crop) and return on investment (ROI = 213%) better than feeding with maize alone (net income = P 23,626/ha-crop; ROI = 125%). If shrimp farmers tap golden snails as direct feed or as feed ingredient, the problem of snail infestation in rice fields may be reduced