Life after suicide: psychotherapists and practitioners speak about their experiences of working with suicidal clients and the impact it has on them when their client dies

Suicide is a significant problem in Britain. The Office for National Statistics (2016) states that in 2014 that there were 6,122 suicides and considerably more who attempted to end their life. For practitioners working alongside suicidal clients it can have a major effect on them if their client dies. The first phase of this research project used an online survey which covered a broad range of questions in relation to the impact of working with suicidal clients. The responses were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. In the second phase of the research project, sixteen participants were interviewed using a narrative approach in order to hear at first-hand their experiences of working with suicidal clients. The transcripts were analysed using both narrative and thematic analysis. The findings highlighted how overwhelmed practitioners felt at the time of their client’s death expressing shock, sadness, anger, guilt and helplessness. In addition the findings revealed that years later practitioners were still marked by the experience stating “You don’t forget”, “Thinking about it produces a feeling of horror” and “It creates anxiety and apprehension when I encounter similar patients”. The findings identified that practitioners faced challenges with decision making, transference and countertransference and risk assessment. They were unprepared for the emotional impact following the suicide of their client and the need for intentional self-care. It was also recognised that practitioners required support at a personal and professional level and that training needed to be fit for purpose. Analysis from a mixed methods pluralistic perspective would suggest that there is not a single answer to aiding practitioners when their client dies. The recommendation is made that practitioners would be best supported if the issue of client suicide is recognised as a shared responsibility, between employers, professional bodies, training providers, supervisors and practitioners, and working together to maintain standards of care, support and training. This will aid and prepare practitioners for working with suicidal clients, and should their client die by suicide, practitioners will have a greater degree of support to enable them to negotiate the practical, emotional and professional challenges in the days, months and years which follow

Molecular techniques for pathogen identification and fungus detection in the environment

Many species of fungi can cause disease in plants, animals and humans. Accurate and robust detection and quantification of fungi is essential for diagnosis, modeling and surveillance. Also direct detection of fungi enables a deeper understanding of natural microbial communities, particularly as a great many fungi are difficult or impossible to cultivate. In the last decade, effective amplification platforms, probe development and various quantitative PCR technologies have revolutionized research on fungal detection and identification. Examples of the latest technology in fungal detection and differentiation are discussed here

Characterization of Coastal Urban Watershed Bacterial Communities Leads to Alternative Community-Based Indicators

BACKGROUND: Microbial communities in aquatic environments are spatially and temporally dynamic due to environmental fluctuations and varied external input sources. A large percentage of the urban watersheds in the United States are affected by fecal pollution, including human pathogens, thus warranting comprehensive monitoring. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using a high-density microarray (PhyloChip), we examined water column bacterial community DNA extracted from two connecting urban watersheds, elucidating variable and stable bacterial subpopulations over a 3-day period and community composition profiles that were distinct to fecal and non-fecal sources. Two approaches were used for indication of fecal influence. The first approach utilized similarity of 503 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) common to all fecal samples analyzed in this study with the watershed samples as an index of fecal pollution. A majority of the 503 OTUs were found in the phyla Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria. The second approach incorporated relative richness of 4 bacterial classes (Bacilli, Bacteroidetes, Clostridia and alpha-proteobacteria) found to have the highest variance in fecal and non-fecal samples. The ratio of these 4 classes (BBC:A) from the watershed samples demonstrated a trend where bacterial communities from gut and sewage sources had higher ratios than from sources not impacted by fecal material. This trend was also observed in the 124 bacterial communities from previously published and unpublished sequencing or PhyloChip- analyzed studies. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: This study provided a detailed characterization of bacterial community variability during dry weather across a 3-day period in two urban watersheds. The comparative analysis of watershed community composition resulted in alternative community-based indicators that could be useful for assessing ecosystem health