Surveillance of Modern Motherhood: An exploration of the experiences of mothers that have attended a Universal Parenting Course.

This thesis explores the experiences of mothers of children aged 0-3 years that have attended universal parenting courses. The aim of this research was to gain a deeper understanding of the factors that motivate mothers to attend a universal parenting course and to explore the wider experiences of early modern motherhood in the UK. In order to develop this understanding, the research explored participant perceptions of any benefit or otherwise in attending a parenting course and also considered the different forms of parenting advice accessed by mothers and how this provides an insight into the wider constructs and experiences of modern motherhood. Ultimately, the goal of this research was to consider the social and cultural pressures within modern motherhood in relation to different levels of surveillance (Henderson et al., 2010) and to produce new knowledge for practice within the early years sector in relation to the support currently offered to new mothers. A feminist post-structuralist worldview was taken to explore the dominant discourses within modern motherhood. This approach provided a ‘productive contradiction’ (Baxter, 2003, p. 2) whereby multiple experiences could be considered, particularly in relation to feelings of oppression, empowerment and being ‘good enough’ (Winnicott, 1964) within modern motherhood. A qualitative methodology was developed with the first phase being a survey with a range of questions designed to generate insight into the experiences of mothers (30 participants), followed by qualitative interviews with a sample of mothers using semi-structured photo elicitation interviews (7 participants). Findings revealed that universal parenting courses can provide opportunities for new mothers to build daily structure, social networks and reduce feelings of isolation. Some negative experiences of parenting courses were reported when health professionals and early years practitioners were considered ‘pushy’ or ‘non neutral’ – particularly regarding sensitive areas such as breastfeeding or the reaching of developmental milestones. Participants demonstrated that there is a perceived place in society for parenting courses when they are practical, supportive and neutral rather than formulaic, homogenous or grounded in psychoanalytical or neurodevelopmental underpinnings, which can promote feelings of judgement or added pressure. Findings also link to the wider ‘parenting culture’ (Furedi, 2008; Lee et al., 2014) with societal pressures, motherhood ideologies, comparisons between mothers and other aspects of interpersonal surveillance including social media and celebrity culture all adding to the challenge of retaining an identity and of finding confidence and agency within the role. Overall, self-surveillance is identified as the most powerful aspect of modern motherhood with challenges relating to a reluctance to discuss ‘taboo’ aspects of motherhood including difficulty with attachment following birth and the internalisation of social and cultural pressures. It was important to note that, although there are clear levels of surveillance that are embedded into society which resulted in evidence of self-doubt and dependency, there was also evidence of agency and autonomy in the responses to these levels which were developed through strong social networks and support systems. Following on from this research; proactive, empathetic, practical and localised support from health professionals and early years practitioners is needed along with empowering opportunities for new mothers to develop confidence in an informal environment and foster truthful, non-judgmental interpersonal support networks. It is through these support systems that new mothers will continue to be able to resist or reshape the dominant discourses and ultimately, enjoy the experience to its full potential.Staff Sponsorshi

Random plasma glucose in early pregnancy is a better predictor of gestational diabetes diagnosis than maternal obesity.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: Asymptomatic pregnant women are screened for gestational diabetes (GDM) at 24-28 weeks' gestation. Recent guidelines also recommend screening early in gestation to identify undiagnosed pre-existing overt diabetes. We assessed the performance of random plasma glucose (RPG) testing at antenatal booking in predicting GDM diagnosis later in pregnancy. METHODS: Data from 25,543 consecutive singleton pregnancies at the Rosie Hospital in Cambridge (UK) were obtained from hospital electronic records as a service evaluation. All women were invited for an antenatal RPG (12-16 weeks) and a 50 g glucose challenge test (GCT; 24-28 weeks) with a 75 g OGTT if GCT >7.7 mmol/l (139 mg/dl). RESULTS: At booking, 17,736 women had an RPG that was able to predict GDM (receiver operating characteristic AUC 0.8) according to various diagnostic criteria in common use. A cut-off point of ≥7.5 mmol/l (135 mg/dl) gave a sensitivity of 0.70 and a specificity of 0.90 for GDM diagnosis. Theoretically, using this screening policy, 13.2% of women would have been categorised at high risk (26.3% had GDM) and 86.8% of women at low risk (1.7% had GDM). RPG performed better than maternal age (AUC 0.60) or BMI (AUC 0.65) at predicting GDM diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: RPG at booking has reasonable performance as a screening test and is better than maternal age or BMI for identifying women at high risk of GDM. RPG cannot replace OGTT for diagnosis but it may be useful to exclude women who do not need further investigation for GDM and to identify women who could be prioritised for early diagnosis or lifestyle interventions.This project was not supported by any specific funding. Claire Meek receives salary funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013; grant agreement n° 266408) and from the Wellcome Trust Translational Medicine and Therapeutics Programme which is funded by the Wellcome Trust in association with Glaxo SmithKline.This is the final version of the article. It was first available from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00125-015-3811-

Assimilation and Transformation: Application of Digital Textile Printing

The goal of this project was to develop textile designs and implementing the design using digital textile printing in order to showcase a textile design collection based on time spent studying abroad in Italy. Designers such as Helmut Lang, Akris, and Dolce and Gabbana have featured the use of digitally printed textiles in their runway collections (Binkley, 2010)

Likelihood of ‘falling through the net’ relates to contemporary prevalence of gestational diabetes. Reply to Ikomi A, Mannan S, Anthony R, Kiss S

This project was not supported by any specific funding. Claire Meek receives salary funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013; grant agreement n° 266408) and from the Wellcome Trust Translational Medicine and Therapeutics Programme which is funded by the Wellcome Trust in association with Glaxo SmithKline.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00125-015-3737-

Likelihood of 'falling through the net' relates to contemporary prevalence of gestational diabetes. Reply to Ikomi A, Mannan S, Anthony R, Kiss S [letter].

This project was not supported by any specific funding. Claire Meek receives salary funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013; grant agreement n° 266408) and from the Wellcome Trust Translational Medicine and Therapeutics Programme which is funded by the Wellcome Trust in association with Glaxo SmithKline.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00125-015-3737-

The Ursinus Weekly, November 16, 1964

11 students elected to Who\u27s who in American colleges • Museum director Turner speaks on American art • Lord and Lady, class officers named at Senior Ball, Friday: Extensive decorations create Camelot atmosphere • Curtain Club stages Fall play this weekend: Free student performance Friday • Temple scientists to visit campus, discuss careers • Summer harvest movie shown to PSEA members • Karen Wagner chosen Jr. Miss Montgomery Co. • German Club discusses life in Europe • Local NAACP members to speak to student tutors • PAC sponsors work camp talk • Editorial: Our policing system • Life up the hill at Fircroft social club • Letters to the editor • Questions and answers about Giefan • UC history: Cheerleaders • How to be an All-American; A case study • Hockey undefeated 3rd year in a row: Gettysburg succumbs 4-1 in final game; Victory extends unbeaten streak record • Friday 13 unlucky soccermen fall 1-0 to Muhlenberg foe • Football beaten 47-22 by Lebanon Valley: Injury-racked squad no match for foe; Degenhardt scores all U.C. points • Greek gleaningshttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/weekly/1234/thumbnail.jp

Investigating rates and risk factors for hepatitis C virus reinfection in people receiving antiviral treatment in England

England has committed to the World Health Organization target to eliminate hepatitis C virus (HCV) as a public threat by the year 2030. Given successful treatments for HCV in recent years, it is unclear whether HCV reinfection will impact England's ability to achieve HCV elimination. We aimed to estimate the HCV reinfection rate among a cohort of patients receiving antiviral treatment using available surveillance data. Linkage between a treatment dataset from 2015-2019 and an HCV RNA testing dataset were used to identify people who experienced reinfection using three criteria. A Cox proportional hazards model was used to determine risk factors associated with HCV reinfection among a cohort who received treatment and had follow-up HCV RNA testing. The reinfection rate among those receiving HCV treatment was 7.91 per 100 person-years (PYs, 95% confidence interval (CI) 7.37-8.49) and highest among current injecting drug users (22.55 per 100 PYs, 95%CI 19.98-25.46) and people who had been in prison (20.42 per 100 PYs, 95%CI 17.21-24.24). In the adjusted model, women had a significantly reduced risk of reinfection. Being of younger age, current injecting drug users, and receipt of first treatment in prison were each significantly associated with increased risk of reinfection. Two-fifths of those with reinfection (43%, n=329/767) were linked to treatment after reinfection, and of those starting treatment, three quarters (75%, n=222/296) achieved a sustained virologic response. Guidance for testing groups at risk of reinfection and harm reduction strategies to minimize transmission should be implemented if England is to achieve HCV elimination targets

The Effects of Management and Vegetation on Soil Carbon Stocks in Temperate Australian Grazing Systems

The natural spatial variability in soil organic carbon (SOC) found under perennial pasture systems can make it difficult to determine differences between contrasting agricultural management practices. Pasture composition in large, extensively grazed paddocks can give an indication of pasture growth, utilisation and fertility that influence SOC and are a result of management over the longer-term. This paper examines SOC stocks on the central and southern tablelands of NSW, Australia (average rainfall from 615 to 915 mm and average annual temperature from 10.6 to 15.6°C) at three scales (regional, between similar sites and within site) to determine the influence of management, pasture composition, herbage mass and root mass. After allowing for variability due to climate, landscape and soil properties there were no differences in management comparisons, e.g. high v low fertiliser input, introduced v native pastures and rotational grazing v set stocking. The total herbage mass measured at the time of sampling had a significant relationship with SOC between and within sites and the presence of some species was associated with lower SOC. Root mass measured at an intensively monitored site showed a significant relationship with SOC. These results reflect the complexity of grazing/pasture systems, with natural variability explaining most of the variability in SOC stock; and pasture productivity leading to higher root production explaining differences in SOC levels rather than grazing management