Application of a reliability model generator to a pressure tank system

A number of mathematical modelling techniques exist which are used to measure the performance of a given system, by assessing each individual component within the system. This can be used to determine the failure frequency or probability of failure of the system. Software is available to undertake the task of analysing these mathematical models after an individual or group of individuals manually create the models. The process of generating these models is time consuming and reduces the impact of the model on the system design. One way to improve this would be to automatically generate the model. In this work the procedure to automatically construct a model, based on Petri nets, for systems undergoing a phased-mission is applied to a pressure tank system, undertaking a four phase mission

Automated generation of a reliability model for a system undertaking phased missions

There are various mathematical models available to assess the reliability of a given system, these models relate the performance of the system to the performance of the components of which it is comprised and can be used to determine the failure probability or failure frequency of the system in question. Currently there is software available to perform the mathematical analysis of the model but its construction, which is used as input to the software, is undertaken manually. This is quite a lengthy process and can limit the usefulness of the model. One way of improving this situation would be to automate the construction process. In this work a procedure is developed to automatically generate a reliability model, based upon Petri Nets, for a system undertaking a phased mission

Application of a reliability model generator to a pressure tank system

A number of mathematical modelling techniques exist which are used to measure the performance of a given system, by assessing each individual component within the system. This can be used to determine the failure frequency or probability of failure of the system. Software is available to undertake the task of analysing these mathematical models after an individual or group of individuals manually create the models. The process of generating these models is time consuming and reduces the impact of the model on the system design. One way to improve this would be to automatically generate the model. In this work the procedure to automatically construct a model, based on Petri nets, for systems undergoing a phased-mission is applied to a pressure tank system, undertaking a four phase mission

Automatic construction of a reliability model for a phased mission system

There are a number of mathematical modelling techniques available to determine the reliability of any system design, for example Fault Trees, Event Trees etc. These models relate the performance of the system to the performance of the components of which it is comprised and are generally quite difficult to construct. Once constructed the analysis of the models can be performed using commercially available software. This stage of the analysis is well developed and can be performed efficiently. The model construction however is a lengthy process and reduces the impact of the reliability study on the system design. One way of improving this situation would be to automate the construction process. In this work a procedure is developed to automatically generate a reliability model, based upon Petri Nets, for a system undertaking a phased mission

Early evaluation of the Children and Young People's Mental Health Trailblazer programme:a rapid mixed-methods study

BACKGROUND: The Children and Young People’s Mental Health Trailblazer programme is funding the creation of new mental health support teams to work in schools and further education colleges. Mental health support teams directly support children and young people with ‘mild to moderate’ mental health problems and work with school and college staff to promote well-being for all. A new workforce of education mental health practitioners is being trained for the teams. OBJECTIVE(S): The National Institute for Health and Care Research Birmingham, RAND and Cambridge Evaluation Rapid Evaluation Centre and Policy Innovation and Evaluation Research Unit undertook an early evaluation of the Trailblazer programme to examine the development, implementation and early progress of mental health support teams in the programme’s first 25 ‘Trailblazer’ sites. DESIGN: A mixed-methods evaluation, comprising three work packages: 1. Establishing the baseline and understanding the development and early impacts of the Trailblazer sites, including two rounds of surveys with key informants and participating education settings in all 25 sites. 2. More detailed research in five purposively selected Trailblazer sites, including interviews with a range of stakeholders and focus groups with children and young people. 3. Scoping and developing options for a longer-term assessment of the programme’s outcomes and impacts. Fieldwork was undertaken between November 2020 and February 2022. The University of Birmingham Institute for Mental Health Youth Advisory Group was involved throughout the study, including co-producing the focus groups with children and young people. RESULTS: Substantial progress had been made implementing the programme, in challenging circumstances, and there was optimism about what it had the potential to achieve. The education mental health practitioner role had proven popular, but sites reported challenges in retaining education mental health practitioners, and turnover left mental health support teams short-staffed and needing to re-recruit. Education settings welcomed additional mental health support and reported positive early outcomes, including staff feeling more confident and having faster access to advice about mental health issues. At the same time, there were concerns about children who had mental health problems that were more serious than ‘mild to moderate’ but not serious enough to be accepted for specialist help, and that the interventions offered were not working well for some young people. Mental health support teams were generally spending more time supporting children with mental health problems than working with education settings to develop ‘whole school’ approaches to mental health and well-being, and service models in some sites appeared to be more clinically oriented, with a strong focus on mental health support teams’ therapeutic functions. LIMITATIONS: Despite efforts to maximise participation, survey response rates were relatively low and some groups were less well represented than others. We were not able to gather sufficiently detailed data to develop a typology of Trailblazer sites, as was planned. CONCLUSIONS: Key lessons for future programme implementation include: - Whether mental health support teams should expand support to children and young people with more complex and serious mental health problems. - How to keep the twin aims of prevention and early intervention in balance. - How to retain education mental health practitioners once trained. FUTURE WORK: The findings have important implications for the design of a longer-term impact evaluation of the programme, which is due to commence in summer 2023

Evaluation of next generation sequencing platforms for population targeted sequencing studies

Human sequence generated from three next-generation sequencing platforms reveals systematic variability in sequence coverage due to local sequence characteristics

Minimum Unit Pricing: Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Homeless Drinkers, Street Drinkers and Service Providers

Aims: Alcohol Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) was introduced in Scotland in May 2018. Existing evidence suggests MUP can reduce drinking in the general population, but there is little evidence regarding its impact on vulnerable groups. This qualitative study aimed to capture the experiences of MUP among homeless drinkers, street drinkers, and the support services that work with them