On the institutional work of widening participation practice

This study is motivated by the following question: when practitioners engage in the project of ‘widening participation’ (WP), what are they hoping to do? Due to both its grounding in neoliberal logics and its aspirations for social justice, the very idea of WP is contested and subject to contradiction. WP, therefore, can mean substantially different things to different people, particularly to practitioners. While practitioner perspectives are chronically understudied in WP research, a nascent body of work on WP practitioners demonstrates that practitioner perspectives are crucial to understanding how policies are translated into material realities on the ground. Contributing to this work, I explore the ways in which WP practitioners understand and assess the institutional change work they are tasked to perform. To do so, I conducted a qualitative case study of the diverse community of WP practitioners who work on the UNIQ residential outreach programme at the University of Oxford, which comprises career WP workers and two previously unexplored subpopulations of practitioners: student interns, and in-house evaluators. Through a conceptual review of WP literature, I show that dominant conceptual models in what I call ‘critical WP research’ are insufficient for capturing how actors agentically navigate change-work in institutional and organisational contexts. This thesis’ primary theoretical contribution is its proposal that the neoinstitutional sociology of institutions and organisations—often referred to as ‘organisational institutionalism’ (OI)—lends us powerful tools for understanding how actors actively intervene within and/or against institutions as they work toward making higher education institutions (HEIs) more accessible and inclusive. Namely, the growing institutional work perspective (IWP) offers a cogent model for examining how organisational actors engage in purposive action in service of creating, maintaining and/or disrupting institutions. In the WP context, I argue that WP represents a recognisable ‘organisational field’ in UK social life, and thus operates via a unique set of institutional logics, and that higher educational institutions are better understood as organisations that are governed by wider institutional forces. WP practice, I contend, amounts to a form of institutional work, which is enacted in/on HEIs. To explore the empirical realities of institutional work in the WP context, I selected Oxford WP as my object of inquiry because Oxford represents an exceptional case of how the institutional forces buttressing WP—massification, neoliberalism, an increasing societal priority on inclusivity and social mobility—clash with the formerly hegemonic elite paradigm of education that Oxbridge embodies. Palpable contradictions find their way in every aspect of an Oxford WP practitioner's work: from selecting and targeting students, to determining which ‘myths’ about Oxford to debunk, to evaluating the ‘success’ of their interventions. Practitioners draw on an array of strategies of institutional work, like identity work and category work, to navigate these contradictions. I found that any attempt to make sense of the contradictions inherent to WP practice at Oxford amounts to acts of (de)legitimising Oxford WP. Depending on how they ‘come up against’ (Ahmed 2012:26) these contradictions through practice, WP practitioners either reify the institutional order, or gain access to transformative knowledge that inspires them to push against it

Major Cold-Season Precipitation Events at Iqaluit, Nunavut

This study focuses on cold-season (October-April) precipitation events at Iqaluit, Nunavut, that exceed the 97th percentile of daily corrected precipitation accumulation. This corresponds to a threshold of 9.5 mm. The characteristics of 194 major precipitation events are described for the 1955 - 96 period. On the basis of NCEP-NCAR and NARR reanalysis data, these events were classified into four storm tracks: south, west, Atlantic, and other. South- and Atlantic-originating systems tended to be associated with the most severe events. The duration and precipitation rate of the events, rather than the speed of motion, were critical factors influencing precipitation accumulation. Snow was the dominant precipitation type. Surface warm frontal passage was a common tropospheric feature, and the topography was important in terms of altering surface wind direction during the events. No significant trend in the occurrence of major precipitation is evident.Ce travail traite des événements de précipitations qui sont supérieurs au 97e rang centile des précipitations quotidiennes à Iqaluit, Nunavut, durant la saison froide, soit d'octobre à avril. Cela correspond à un seuil de précipitation de 9,5 mm. Nous décrivons les caractéristiques de 194 événements de précipitations majeures qui se sont déroulés entre 1955 et 1996. Selon les données traitées par NCEP-NCAR et NARR , les systèmes dépressionnaires responsables de ces événements ont été classés en quatre catégories : sud, ouest, Atlantique et autre. Les systèmes provenant du sud et de l'Atlantique ont eu tendance à être associés aux événements les plus sévères. Plus que la vitesse des systèmes dépressionnaires, la durée et le niveau des précipitations ont été des facteurs déterminants sur les accumulations. La neige a été le principal type de précipitation. La présence de fronts chauds en surface a représenté une caractéristique troposphérique commune de ces événements et la topographie a influencé de manière importante la direction du vent à la surface. Aucune tendance de la fréquence des événements de précipitations majeures n'est évidente

The Alice Springs Hospital Readmission Prevention Project (ASHRAPP): a randomised control trial

Background: Hospitals are frequently faced with high levels of emergency department presentations and demand for inpatient care. An important contributing factor is the subset of patients with complex chronic diseases who have frequent and preventable exacerbations of their chronic diseases. Evidence suggests that some of these hospital readmissions can be prevented with appropriate transitional care. Whilst there is a growing body of evidence for transitional care processes in urban, non-indigenous settings, there is a paucity of information regarding rural and remote settings and, specifically, the indigenous context. Methods: This randomised control trial compares a tailored, multidimensional transitional care package to usual care. The objective is to evaluate the efficacy of the transitional care package for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian patients with chronic diseases at risk of recurrent readmission with the aim of reducing readmission rates and improving transition to primary care in a remote setting. Patients will be recruited from medical and surgical admissions to Alice Springs Hospital and will be followed for 12 months. The primary outcome measure will be number of admissions to hospital with secondary outcomes including number of emergency department presentations, number of ICU admissions, days alive and out of hospital, time to primary care review post discharge and cost-effectiveness. Discussion: Successful transition from hospital to home is important for patients with complex chronic diseases. Evidence suggests that a coordinated transitional care plan can result in a reduction in length of hospital stay and readmission rates for adults with complex medical needs. This will be the first study to evaluate a tailored multidimensional transitional care intervention to prevent readmission in Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australian residents of remote Australia who are frequently admitted to hospital. If demonstrated to be effective it will have implications for the care and management of Indigenous Australians throughout regional and remote Australia and in other remote, culturally and linguistically diverse populations and settings

\u3ci\u3eDrosophila\u3c/i\u3e SNAP-29 Is an Essential SNARE That Binds Multiple Proteins Involved in Membrane Traffic

Each membrane fusion event along the secretory and endocytic pathways requires a specific set of SNAREs to assemble into a 4-helical coiled-coil, the so-called trans-SNARE complex. Although most SNAREs contribute one helix to the trans-SNARE complex, members of the SNAP-25 family contribute two helixes. We report the characterization of the Drosophila homologue of SNAP-29 (dSNAP-29), which is expressed throughout development. Unlike the other SNAP-25 like proteins in fruit fly (i.e., dSNAP-25 and dSNAP-24), which form SDS-resistant SNARE complexes with their cognate SNAREs, dSNAP-29 does not participate in any SDS-resistant complexes, despite its interaction with dsyntaxin1 and dsyntaxin 16 in vitro. Immunofluorescence studies indicated that dSNAP-29 is distributed in various tissues, locating in small intracellular puncta and on the plasma membrane, where it associates with EH domain-containing proteins implicated in the endocytic pathway. Overexpression and RNAi studies suggested that dSNAP-29 mediates an essential process in Drosophila development

The Anatomical Society core embryology syllabus for undergraduate medicine

A modified Delphi methodology was used to develop a consensus regarding a series of learning outcome statements to act as the foundation of an undergraduate medical core embryology syllabus. A Delphi panel was formed by recruiting stakeholders with experience in leading undergraduate teaching of medical students. The panel (n = 18), including anatomists, embryologists and practising clinicians, were nominated by members of Council and/or the Education Committee of the Anatomical Society. Following development of an a priori set of learning outcome statements (n = 62) by the authors, panel members were asked in the first of a two‐stage process to ‘accept’, ‘reject’ or ‘modify’ each learning outcome, to propose additional outcomes if desired. In the second stage, the panel was asked to either accept or reject 16 statements which had either been modified, or had failed to reach consensus, during the first Delphi round. Overall, 61 of 62 learning outcome statements, each linked to examples of clinical conditions to provide context, achieved an 80% level of agreement following the modified Delphi process and were therefore deemed accepted for inclusion within the syllabus. The proposed syllabus allows for flexibility within individual curricula, while still prioritising and focusing on the core level of knowledge of embryological processes by presenting the essential elements to all newly qualified doctors, regardless of their subsequent chosen specialty

Letter to editor: A new core gross anatomy syllabus for medicine

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A Qualitative Study of Workplace Factors Influencing Expertise in the Delivery of Children’s Education and Mental Health Services

Background: Interest in professional expertise is growing. Interactional and developmental perspectives are being adopted to understand the nature of expertise and the environmental factors that influence its development. This article provides qualitative information about the workplace factors and experiences considered important by individuals providing education or mental health services to children, with one group working within an interprofessional team approach (service providers) and the other working in a discipline-specific manner (teachers).Methods and Findings: Two focus groups were held: one involving 5 elementary or secondary school teachers and principals, and one involving 9 therapists who provide specialized children’s mental health services. Information arising in these group sessions was used to develop themes reflecting key elements discussed; the themes were then contrasted to infer differences between the two groups. The findings point to the importance of establishing a collaborative, learning-oriented workplace culture, including opportunities for varied work experiences, peer interaction and dialogue, and feedback.Conclusions: Implications include adopting relationship-oriented and collaborative service delivery models and ensuring that workplace settings encourage natural learning opportunities involving interaction, dialogue, and feedback, as well as meaningful professional development experiences of value to participants

Seroprevalence of Zika virus in wild African green monkeys and baboons

ABSTRACT Zika virus (ZIKV) has recently spread through the Americas and has been associated with a range of health effects, including birth defects in children born to women infected during pregnancy. Although the natural reservoir of ZIKV remains poorly defined, the virus was first identified in a captive “sentinel” macaque monkey in Africa in 1947. However, the virus has not been reported in humans or nonhuman primates (NHPs) in Africa outside Gabon in over a decade. Here, we examine ZIKV infection in 239 wild baboons and African green monkeys from South Africa, the Gambia, Tanzania, and Zambia using combinations of unbiased deep sequencing, quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR), and an antibody capture assay that we optimized using serum collected from captive macaque monkeys exposed to ZIKV, dengue virus, and yellow fever virus. While we did not find evidence of active ZIKV infection in wild NHPs in Africa, we found variable ZIKV seropositivity of up to 16% in some of the NHP populations sampled. We anticipate that these results and the methodology described within will help in continued efforts to determine the prevalence, natural reservoir, and transmission dynamics of ZIKV in Africa and elsewhere. IMPORTANCE Zika virus (ZIKV) is a mosquito-borne virus originally discovered in a captive monkey living in the Zika Forest of Uganda, Africa, in 1947. Recently, an outbreak in South America has shown that ZIKV infection can cause myriad health effects, including birth defects in the children of women infected during pregnancy. Here, we sought to investigate ZIKV infection in wild African primates to better understand its emergence and spread, looking for evidence of active or prior infection. Our results suggest that up to 16% of some populations of nonhuman primate were, at some point, exposed to ZIKV. We anticipate that this study will be useful for future studies that examine the spread of infections from wild animals to humans in general and those studying ZIKV in primates in particular. Podcast: A podcast concerning this article is available

Towards a feminist philosophy of engagements in health-related research

Engagement with publics, patients, and stakeholders is an important part of the health research environment today,and different modalities of 'engaged' health research have proliferated in recent years. Yet, there is no consensus on what, exactly, 'engaging' means, what it should look like, and what the aims, justifications, or motivations for it should be. In this paper, we set out what we see as important, outstanding challenges around the practice and theory of engaging and consider the tensions and possibilities that the diverse landscape of engaging evokes. We examine the roots, present modalities and institutional frameworks that have been erected around engaging, including how they shape and delimit how engagements are framed, enacted, and justified. We inspect the related issue of knowledge production within and through engagements, addressing whether engagements can, or should, be framed as knowledge producing activities. We then unpack the question of how engagements are or could be valued and evaluated, emphasising the plural ways in which 'value' can be conceptualised and generated. We conclude by calling for a philosophy of engagements that can capture the diversity of related practices, concepts and justifications around engagements, and account for the plurality of knowledges and value that engagements engender, while remaining flexible and attentive to the structural conditions under which engagements occur. Such philosophy should be a feminist one, informed by feminist epistemological and methodological approaches to equitable modes of research participation, knowledge production, and valuing. Especially, translating feminist tools of reflexivity and positionality into the sphere of engagements can enable a synergy of empirical, epistemic and normative considerations in developing accounts of engaging in both theory and praxis. Modestly, here, we hope to carve out the starting points for this work