The Utilisation of Music by Casino Managers: An Interview Study

Music is ubiquitous in retail and commercial environments, with some managers believing that music can enhance the customer experience, increase footfall and sales and improve consumer satisfaction. Casino gambling is popular in the United Kingdom and anecdotal evidence suggests that music is often present. However, little is known about the rationale for music use from the perspective of casino managers. In this study semi-structured interviews were conducted with five casino managers to establish their motivations for utilising music, the factors informing their choice of music and the extent to which music is used with the intention of influencing gambling behaviour. Results showed that casino managers utilised two types of music—recorded background music, often sourced via external music supply companies and live music. Live music was often situated away from the gaming floor and used primarily to accompany participation in non-gambling activities. Recorded background music was not used with the direct aim of influencing customers’ gambling behaviour, but to create the right atmosphere for gambling and to promote certain moods within the casinos. To achieve these aims casino managers manipulated the tempo, volume and genre of the recorded background music. Casino managers also reported that some gamblers listen to music via portable music players, possibly with the intention of customising their gambling experience. This study is unique as it has provided a first-hand account of casino managers’ implicit theories with regards to why they utilise music and the roles which music is considered to fulfil in casinos

One size does not fit all— application of accelerometer thresholds in chronic disease

No abstract available

The Good, the Bad, the Clunky

Introduction Administrative data arising via the operation of public service delivery systems hold great benefits for citizens and society providing they can be made available for research in a safe, socially-acceptable way. In recognition of this potential, the UK Administrative Data Research Network was established in 2013 to enable new research for public benefit. However, there are considerable challenges to be overcome for effective data use, and many of these are common to administrative data enterprises in general. Using this network as a practical case study, we set out to explore the challenges, and to share the ‘good’, suggest solutions to the ‘bad’, and improve the ‘clunky’ issues. Methods A qualitative survey replicating the data use pathway was carried out across the network, followed by a workshop to discuss the summarised findings and make further suggestions. This led to a set of recommendations to inform the development of an action plan for implementation. Results The survey respondents (N=27) and workshop participants (N=95) comprised multi‑disciplinary staff from across the network. The responses were summarised by consensus of three researchers and grouped into six areas: A) Data acquisition pathway; B) Approval processes; C) Controls on access & disclosure; D) Data and metadata; E) Researcher support; and F) Data reuse & retention, leading to an embedded set of 18 recommendations. Key developments promoted by this study were the development of themed research partnerships to progress data acquisition, and a policy of data retention and reuse for research. Conclusion The network has broken new ground in using administrative data for research. This study has enabled the development of an evidence-based action plan to address many challenges in the effective use of administrative data. It represents a practical worked example, widely relevant to enterprises working with administrative data across the world. Keywords Administrative data research, data access, data linkag

Cardiac rehabilitation and physical activity : systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE: To undertake a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the impact of cardiac rehabilitation (CR) on physical activity (PA) levels of patients with heart disease and the methodological quality of these studies. METHODS: Databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, PsychINFO and SportDiscus) were searched without language restriction from inception to January 2017 for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing CR to usual care control in adults with heart failure (HF) or coronary heart disease (CHD) and measuring PA subjectively or objectively. The direction of PA difference between CR and control was summarised using vote counting (ie, counting the positive, negative and non-significant results) and meta-analysis. RESULTS: Forty RCTs, (6480 patients: 5825 CHD, 655 HF) were included with 26% (38/145) PA results showing a statistically significant improvement in PA levels with CR compared with control. This pattern of results appeared consistent regardless of type of CR intervention (comprehensive vs exercise-only) or PA measurement (objective vs subjective). Meta-analysis showed PA increases in the metrics of steps/day (1423, 95% CI 757.07 to 2089.43, p<0.0001) and proportion of patients categorised as physically active (relative risk 1.55, 95% CI 1.19 to 2.02, p=0.001). The included trials were at high risk of bias, and the quality of the PA assessment and reporting was relatively poor. CONCLUSION: Overall, there is moderate evidence of an increase in PA with CR participation compared with control. High-quality trials are required, with robust PA measurement and data analysis methods, to assess if CR definitely leads to important improvements in PA

Factors associated with objectively assessed physical activity levels of heart failure patients

Aim: To determine the level of objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in patients with heart failure (HF), and to assess the association between MVPA and patient sociodemographic, exercise capacity, and health status factors. Methods: Baseline MVPA data was available in 247 HF patients with 7-day wrist-worn accelerometry from two randomized controlled trials. Associations between MVPA and patient sociodemographic, exercise capacity, and health status factors were assessed using univariate and multivariable linear regression models. Results: 247 patients (28% female, mean age 71 ± 10 years) with HF with reduced ejection fraction (n=198) and preserved ejection fraction (n=49) were included in the analysis. Average MVPA was 283. 3 min/week and ranged widely from a minimum of 0 mins/week to maximum of 2626. 7 mins/week (standard deviation: 404. 1 mins/week). 111 (45%) of patients had a level of PA that met current guidelines of at least 150 minutes/week of MVPA. Multivariable regression showed patient’s age, body mass index, employment status, smoking status, New York Heart Association class, NT-proBNP and exercise capacity to be strongly associated (p&lt;0. 001) with the level of MVPA (p&lt;0. 001). Conclusion: Whilst 45% of HF patients had objectively measured levels of MVPA that met current PA recommendations, we observed a wide range in the level of MVPA across this patient sample. As a number of factors were found to be associated with MVPA our findings provide important information for future interventions aiming to increase MVPA in HF patients

Identifying the optimal exercise prescription for patients with coronary artery disease undergoing cardiac rehabilitation: protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized control trials

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity. Exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (EBCR) has been shown to improve clinical outcomes in these patients, and yet clinicians are often challenged to prescribe the most effective type of exercise training. Therefore, this systematic review and network meta-analysis (NMA) aims to formally quantify the optimal dose of exercise training interventions to improve exercise capacity and quality of life by undertaking direct and indirect pooled comparisons of randomized controlled trials. A detailed search will be conducted on PubMed/MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL), EMBASE and Web of Science. Two reviewers will screen the existing literature and assess the quality of the studies. Disagreements will be resolved through consensus. We anticipate that the analysis will include pairwise and Bayesian network meta-analyses. Most of the trials have studied the impact of exercise training comparing one or two modalities. As a result, little evidence exists to support which interventions will be most effective. The current NMA will address this gap in the literature and assist clinicians and cardiac rehabilitation specialists in making an informed decision. Results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals. Ethical approval is not applicable, as no research participants will be involved. PROSPERO Registration number: CRD42022262644

Determinants of occupational mobility: the importance of place of work

The LSCS is supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)/JISC, the Scottish Funding Council, the Chief Scientist’s Office, and the Scottish government.This research focuses on individual and place-based determinants of occupational mobility in Scotland over the period 2001–11. Its originality relates to the importance of workplace location, rather than residential locations, on occupational mobility, and in questioning the idea that spatial mobility accelerates occupational mobility. The findings also indicate that skill level and employment in ‘knowledge-intensive’ sectors are key determinants of career progression. Urban career escalator effects are found to be particularly evident for higher-skilled workers. The findings point to the importance of spatial sophistication and sectoral sensitivity in understandings of occupational mobility.PostprintPeer reviewe

Association of latent class analysis-derived multimorbidity clusters with adverse health outcomes in patients with multiple long-term conditions: Comparative results across three UK cohorts

Background It remains unclear how to meaningfully classify people living with multimorbidity (multiple long-term conditions (MLTCs)), beyond counting the number of conditions. This paper aims to identify clusters of MLTCs in different age groups and associated risks of adverse health outcomes and service use. Methods Latent class analysis was used to identify MLTCs clusters in different age groups in three cohorts: Secure Anonymised Information Linkage Databank (SAIL) (n = 1,825,289), UK Biobank (n = 502,363), and the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) (n = 49,186). Incidence rate ratios (IRR) for MLTC clusters were computed for: all-cause mortality, hospitalisations, and general practice (GP) use over 10 years, using <2 MLTCs as reference. Information on health outcomes and service use were extracted for a ten year follow up period (between 01st Jan 2010 and 31st Dec 2019 for UK Biobank and UKHLS, and between 01st Jan 2011 and 31st Dec 2020 for SAIL). Findings Clustering MLTCs produced largely similar results across different age groups and cohorts. MLTC clusters had distinct associations with health outcomes and service use after accounting for LTC counts, in fully adjusted models. The largest associations with mortality, hospitalisations and GP use in SAIL were observed for the “Pain+” cluster in the age-group 18–36 years (mortality IRR = 4.47, hospitalisation IRR = 1.84; GP use IRR = 2.87) and the “Hypertension, Diabetes & Heart disease” cluster in the age-group 37–54 years (mortality IRR = 4.52, hospitalisation IRR = 1.53, GP use IRR = 2.36). In UK Biobank, the “Cancer, Thyroid disease & Rheumatoid arthritis” cluster in the age group 37–54 years had the largest association with mortality (IRR = 2.47). Cardiometabolic clusters across all age groups, pain/mental health clusters in younger groups, and cancer and pulmonary related clusters in older age groups had higher risk for all outcomes. In UKHLS, MLTC clusters were not significantly associated with higher risk of adverse outcomes, except for the hospitalisation in the age-group 18–36 years. Interpretation Personalising care around MLTC clusters that have higher risk of adverse outcomes may have important implications for practice (in relation to secondary prevention), policy (with allocation of health care resources), and research (intervention development and targeting), for people living with MLTCs. Funding This study was funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR; Personalised Exercise-Rehabilitation FOR people with Multiple long-term conditions (multimorbidity)—NIHR202020)

Institutional legacies and HRM: similarities and differences in HRM practices in Portugal and Mozambique

This is a study of institutional change and continuity, comparing the trajectories followed by Mozambique and its formal colonial power Portugal in HRM, based on two surveys of firm level practices. The colonial power sought to extend the institutions of the metropole in the closing years of its rule, and despite all the adjustments and shocks that have accompanied Mozambique’s post-independence years, the country continues to retain institutional features and associated practices from the past. This suggests that there is a post-colonial impact on human resource management. The implications for HRM theory are that ambitious attempts at institutional substitution may have less dramatic effects than is commonly assumed. Indeed, we encountered remarkable similarities between the two countries in HRM practices, implying that features of supposedly fluid or less mature institutional frameworks (whether in Africa or the Mediterranean world) may be sustained for protracted periods of time, pressures to reform notwithstanding. This highlights the complexities of continuities which transcend formal rules; as post-colonial theories alert us, informal conventions and embedded discourse may result in the persistence of informal power and subordination, despite political and legal changes