Loneliness and Social Isolation Among Older People in North Yorkshire : Executive summary

There has been a growing interest in the topic of loneliness and social isolation over a number of years and a recognition that they have an impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities. Local strategic organisations have an important role to play in tackling the problem of loneliness and social isolation in older people. Stage 1 of the report reviews current literature and examines the concepts of loneliness and social isolation, how they are understood, their impact on individuals and communities and why they should be important concerns of local strategic organisations such as health and wellbeing boards. The type and range of interventions aimed at alleviating loneliness and social isolation are examined and evidence about their effectiveness reviewed. Findings are related to the national and local demographic context. Stage 2 of the research aimed to identify the range of statutory and third sector organisations in North Yorkshire that could or should be able to identify older people at risk of loneliness and/or social isolation. Through these organisations, the sorts of activities that exist across North Yorkshire and some of their characteristics were described

Loneliness and Social Isolation Among Older People in North Yorkshire : Stage 1 report

The report aims to provide a review of current literature that brings together knowledge about the extent and nature of loneliness among older people.This will help to clarify current thinking about what a "good practice" or service looks like and start to identify likely models of good practice in North Yorkshire.The report looks at how loneliness and social isolation are understood in the literature, why they should be important concerns of local strategic organisations, such as health and wellbeing boards, and what might be done. This evidence is set in the context of the geography and demography of North Yorkshire and suggestions for future work are made

Loneliness and Social Isolation Among Older People in North Yorkshire : Stage 2 report

There has been a growing interest in the topic of loneliness and social isolation over a number of years and a recognition that they have an impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities. Local strategic organisations have an important role to play in tackling the problem of loneliness and social isolation in older people. The research aimed to identify the range of statutory and third sector organisations in North Yorkshire that could or should be able to identify older people at risk of loneliness and/or social isolation. Through these organisations, the sorts of activities that exist across North Yorkshire and some of their characteristics were described

Can general practitioner commissioning deliver equity and excellence? : Evidence from two studies of service improvement in the English NHS

Objectives: To explore some of the key assumptions underpinning the continued development of general practitioner-led commissioning in health services. Methods: Qualitative data from two studies of service improvement in the English NHS were considered against England's plans for GP-led commissioning. These data were collected through in-depth interviews with a total of 187 professionals and 99 people affected by services in 10 different primary care trust areas across England between 2008 and 2009. Results: Internationally, GPs are seen to have a central position in health systems. In keeping with this, the English policy places emphasis on the 'pivotal role' of general practitioners, considered to be ideally placed to commission in the best interests of their patients. However, our evidence suggests that general practitioners do not always have a pivotal role for all patients. Moreover, it is planned that the new commissioning groups in England will not be subject to top-down performance management and this raises the question of how agreed quality standards will be met under the proposed new system. Conclusions: This paper questions the assumption that GPs are best placed to commission health services in a way that meets quality standards and leads to equitable outcomes. There is little evidence to suggest that GPs will succeed where others have failed and a risk that, without top-down performance management, service improvement will be patchy, leading to greater, not reduced, inequity

Integrated policy making in England for adults with long-term neurological conditions (LTNCs): some preliminary findings from a scoping study

Introduction: Long-term neurological conditions are a major cause of disability in the UK and internationally. Their successful management, in order to enhance health and well-being, requires both sophisticated organisation across a number of health, social care and other service boundaries, and the real involvement of people with neurological conditions and members of their support networks. <br><br> Policy development: This paper reports on part of the preliminary scoping phase of a study designed to evaluate the impact of the National Service Framework for long-term neurological conditions on integrated care. It describes current policies in England and reports on discussions with a range of people involved in the planning, provision or use of services, which took place during the scoping exercise. These interviews inform how policy affecting people with long-term neurological conditions has been received and implemented so far. <br><br> Conclusion and discussion: Findings suggest that progress towards integrated service provision is patchy and slow. In the competing priorities within government policy, neurological conditions have tended to be marginalised, within healthcare policy generally and in initiatives to support people with long-term conditions in particular. The reasons for this are explored and will inform the next stages of the research

Classroom enrichment through children's specialties.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Vision rehabilitation services : what is the evidence? Final report.

Sight loss affects all aspects of well-being including daily functioning and mental health. Demographic trends suggest that the number of people with visual impairment is set to rise significantly, with many people experiencing an additional disability or health problems. By 2050, the number of blind and partially sighted people in the UK is estimated to increase by around 122 per cent, to approximately four million. Promoting preventive and rehabilitation interventions is recognised as a high priority for all care settings as a way of reducing demands on health and social care services. This research, funded by the Thomas Pocklington Trust, aimed to provide an overview of the evidence base for community-based vision rehabilitation services for people over the age of 18 with visual impairment. The study focused on rehabilitation services funded by local authorities to find out how these services are currently supporting people with visual impairment, what possible outcomes they might achieve and to identify gaps in the evidence base about current service arrangements. The study was carried out in England. Findings were intended to inform a future full scale evaluation as well as inform services

Direkte bemarking en spam deur middel van elektroniese kommunikasies : ’n ontleding van die regulerende raamwerk in Suid-Afrika

Direkte bemarking en spam deur middel van elektroniese kommunikasies : 'n ontleding van die regulerende raamwerk in Suid-Afrika Hierdie artikel weerlê die feit dat die reguleering van "spam" en direkte bemarking aanlyn nie holistiese aandag geniet nie en dat die gefragmenteerde benadering in terme van die Wet op Elektroniese Kommunikasies en Transaksies 25 van 2002, Wet op Verbruikersbeskerming 68 van 2008 en die Wet op Beskerming van Persoonlike Inligting 4 van 2013 ongewens is. Dit het die gevolg dat verbruikers onvoldoende beskerming geniet en 'n onvermoë van die reg om "spam" en direkte bemarking aanlyn effektief te beheer. Terwyl aanlyn direkte bemarking en "spam" tot 'n mate oorvleuel is "spam" 'n wyer konsep as direkte bemarking. Dit is belangrik om in gedagte te hou dat nie alle direkte bemarking "spam" is nie, en nie alle "spam" direkte bemarking is nie. Die beperking van die regulering van "spam" tot kommersiële kommunikasies of selfs die meer noue konsep, kommunikasies wat met direkte bemarking betrekking het, is nie voldoende nie omdat daar dan steeds baie verskillende tipes "spam" is wat nog ongereguleerd sal bly. Die artikel argumenteer dat hoewel onlangse regulatoriese veranderinge kan gesien word as 'n verbetering op die vorige posisie in sekere aspekte, is daar nog meer aspekte wat onaangeraak bly en daar is 'n paar bepalings wat nuwe probleme skep. Ten spyte van die onlangse veranderinge in die regulatoriese omgewing is dit waarskynlik dat verbruikers steeds blootgestel gaan word aan 'n deurlopende stroom van nuusbriewe, meningsopnames, godsdienstige boodskappe, politieke inhoud, virus waarskuwings en virus bedrog, nuus, ketting briewe, haatpos en noukeurige vervaardigde elektroniese kommunikasies wat bedrieglike of misleidende inhoud bevat.http://www.dejure.up.ac.za/tm201