Beyond 50. challenges at work for older nurses and allied health workers in rural Australia: a thematic analysis of focus group discussions

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The health workforce in Australia is ageing, particularly in rural areas, where this change will have the most immediate implications for health care delivery and workforce needs. In rural areas, the sustainability of health services will be dependent upon nurses and allied health workers being willing to work beyond middle age, yet the particular challenges for older health workers in rural Australia are not well known. The purpose of this research was to identify aspects of work that have become more difficult for rural health workers as they have become older; and the age-related changes and exacerbating factors that contribute to these difficulties. Findings will support efforts to make workplaces more 'user-friendly' for older health workers.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Nurses and allied health workers aged 50 years and over were invited to attend one of six local workshops held in the Hunter New England region of NSW, Australia. This qualitative action research project used a focus group methodology and thematic content analysis to identify and interpret issues arising from workshop discussions.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Eighty older health workers from a range of disciplines attended the workshops. Tasks and aspects of work that have become more difficult for older health workers in hospital settings, include reading labels and administering medications; hearing patients and colleagues; manual handling; particular movements and postures; shift work; delivery of babies; patient exercises and suturing. In community settings, difficulties relate to vehicle use and home visiting. Significant issues across settings include ongoing education, work with computers and general fatigue. Wider personal challenges include coping with change, balancing work-life commitments, dealing with attachments and meeting goals and expectations. Work and age-related factors that exacerbate difficulties include vision and hearing deficits, increasing tiredness, more complex professional roles and a sense of not being valued in the context of greater perceived workload.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Older health workers are managing a range of issues, on top of the general challenges of rural practice. Personal health, wellbeing and other realms of life appear to take on increasing importance for older health workers when faced with increasing difficulties at work. Solutions need to address difficulties at personal, workplace and system wide levels.</p

Alcohol and Farm Workplace Project

Provides a review of literature in relation to the impact of alcohol on farm injury in an Australian setting. Outlines current data within NSW comparing alcohol use between farm and non-farm populationsAlcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundatio

Farm noise emissions during common agricultural activities

Noise injury in agriculture is a significant yet often unrecognized problem. Many farmers, farm workers, and family members are exposed to noise levels above recommended levels and have greater hearing loss than their non-farming contemporaries. The aim of this study was to gather up-to-date information on farm noise levels and to enhance the quality of information available to assist farmers in reducing noise exposure and meeting Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) regulations regarding noise management. Farm visits were conducted on 48 agricultural establishments that produce a range of commodities. Noise levels were measured at the ears of operators and bystanders involved in typical activities on farms. The average and peak noise levels were measured for 56 types of machinery or sites of farming activity, totaling 298 separate items and activities. Common noise hazards identified included firearms, tractors without cabs, workshop tools, small motors (e.g., chainsaws, augers, pumps), manual handling of pigs, shearing sheds, older cabbed tractors, and heavy machinery such as harvesters, bulldozers, and cotton module presses. We found that use of firearms without hearing protection presents a pressing hearing health priority. However, farming activities involving machinery used for prolonged periods also present significant risks to farmers’ hearing health. Noise management strategies on the farm are essential in order to prevent noise injury among farmers

Hearing screening program impact on noise reduction strategies

The objective of this study was to determine the impact of the New South Wales Rural Hearing Conservation Program on the implementation of personal hearing protection (PHP) and noise management strategies among farmers who had participated in this program in New South Wales, Australia. A follow-up survey of a random sample of people screened through the New South Wales Rural Hearing Conservation Program was linked to their baseline data. The use of PHP at baseline was compared to use at follow-up in four specific scenarios: use with non-cabbed tractors, with chainsaws, with firearms, and in workshops. For non-cabbed tractors, the net gain in PHP use was 13.3%; the net gain was 20.8% for chainsaws, 6.7% for firearms, and 21.3% for workshops. Older farmers and those with a family history of hearing loss were less likely to maintain or improve PHP use. Those with severe hearing loss, males, and participants reporting hearing problems in situations where background noise was present were more likely to maintain or improve PHP use. Forty-one percent of farmers had initiated other strategies to reduce noise exposure beyond the use of PHP, which included engineering, maintenance, and noise avoidance solutions. The early (hopefully) identification of hearing deficit in farmers and farm workers can help promote behavior change and help reinforce a farm culture that supports hearing conservation. The continuation and expansion of hearing screening programs such as these should be encouraged as basic public health strategy in farming communities

Management strategies to minimize the dredging impacts of coastal development on fish and fisheries

Accelerating coastal development and shipping activities dictate that dredging operations will intensify, increasing potential impacts to fishes. Coastal fishes have high economic, ecological, and conservation significance and there is a need for evidencebased, quantitative guidelines on how to mitigate the impacts of dredging activities. We assess the potential risk from dredging to coastal fish and fisheries on a global scale.We then develop quantitative guidelines for two management strategies: threshold reference values and seasonal restrictions. Globally, threatened species and nearshore fisheries occur within close proximity to ports. We find that maintaining suspended sediment concentrations below 44 mg/L (15–121 bootstrapped CI) and for less than 24 hours would protect 95% of fishes from dredging-induced mortality. Implementation of seasonal restrictions during peak periods of reproduction and recruitment could further protect species from dredging impacts. This study details the first evidence-based defensible approach to minimize impacts to coastal fishes from dredging activities

Climate-driven regime shift of a temperate marine ecosystem.

Ecosystem reconfigurations arising from climate-driven changes in species distributions are expected to have profound ecological, social, and economic implications. Here we reveal a rapid climate-driven regime shift of Australian temperate reef communities, which lost their defining kelp forests and became dominated by persistent seaweed turfs. After decades of ocean warming, extreme marine heat waves forced a 100-kilometer range contraction of extensive kelp forests and saw temperate species replaced by seaweeds, invertebrates, corals, and fishes characteristic of subtropical and tropical waters. This community-wide tropicalization fundamentally altered key ecological processes, suppressing the recovery of kelp forests

The contribution of macroalgae-associated fishes to small-scale tropical reef fisheries

Macroalgae-dominated reefs are a prominent habitat in tropical seascapes that support a diversity of fishes, including fishery target species. To what extent, then, do macroalgal habitats contribute to small-scale tropical reef fisheries? To address this question we: (1) Quantified the macroalgae-associated fish component in catches from 133 small-scale fisheries, (2) Compared life-history traits relevant to fishing (e.g. growth, longevity) in macroalgal and coral-associated fishes, (3) Examined how macroalgae-associated species can influence catch diversity, trophic level and vulnerability and (4) Explored how tropical fisheries change with the expansion of macroalgal habitats using a case study of fishery-independent data for Seychelles. Fish that utilised macroalgal habitats comprise 24% of the catch, but very few fished species relied entirely on macroalgal or coral habitats post-settlement. Macroalgal and coral-associated fishes had similar life-history traits, although vulnerability to fishing declined with increasing contribution of macroalgae association to the catch, whilst mean trophic level and diversity peaked when macroalgal-associated fish accounted for 20%-30% of catches. The Seychelles case study revealed similar total fish biomass on macroalgal and coral reefs, although the biomass of primary target species increased as macroalgae cover expanded. Our findings reinforce that multiple habitat types are needed to support tropical fishery stability and sustainability. Whilst coral habitats have been the focus of tropical fisheries management, we show the potential for macroalgae-associated fish to support catch size and diversity in ways that reduce vulnerability to overfishing. This is pertinent to seascapes where repeated disturbances are facilitating the replacement of coral reef with macroalgal habitats

Pelagic larval duration of 10 temperate cryptobenthic fishes

The pelagic larval duration (DPL) for 10 temperate cryptobenthic species belonging to three families: Gobiidae, Gobiesocidae and Blenniidae was investigated. Overall, the Gobiesocidae presented short DPLs varying between 11 and 18 days, the Gobiidae’s DPL ranged between 14 and 39 days, and Parablennius pilicornis (Blenniidae) had an average of 33 days (range 31–37 days). Two subtypes of settlement marks were found among individuals of the same species

A review of applying second-generation wavelets for noise removal from remote sensing data.

The processing of remotely sensed data includes compression, noise reduction, classification, feature extraction, change detection and any improvement associated with the problems at hand. In the literature, wavelet methods have been widely used for analysing remote sensing images and signals. The second-generation of wavelets, which is designed based on a method called the lifting scheme, is almost a new version of wavelets, and its application in the remote sensing field is fresh. Although first-generation wavelets have been proven to offer effective techniques for processing remotely sensed data, second-generation wavelets are more efficient in some respects, as will be discussed later. The aim of this review paper is to examine all existing studies in the literature related to applying second-generation wavelets for denoising remote sensing data. However, to make a better understanding of the application of wavelet-based denoising methods for remote sensing data, some studies that apply first-generation wavelets are also presented. In the part of hyperspectral data, there is a focus on noise removal from vegetation spectrum