Plugging a hole and lightening the burden: A process evaluation of a practice education team

Aim: To investigate the perceptions of clinical and senior managers about the role of Practice Educators employed in one acute hospital in the UK. Background: Producing nurses who are fit for practice, purpose and academic award is a key issue for nurse education partnership providers in the UK. Various new models for practice learning support structures and new roles within health care institutions have been established. To sustain funding and policy support for these models, there is a need for evaluation research. Design: A process evaluation methodology was employed to determine the current value of a practice education team and to provide information to guide future direction. Methods: Data were collected through semi-structured telephone interviews using a previously designed schedule. All senior nurse managers (N=5) and a purposive sample of clinical managers (n=13) who had personal experience of and perceptions about the role of practice educators provided the data. Interview notes were transcribed, coded and a thematic framework devised to present the results. Results: A number of key themes emerged including: qualities needed for being a successful practice educator; visibility and presence of practice educators; providing a link with the university; ‘plugging a hole’ in supporting learning needs; providing relief to practitioners in dealing with ‘the burden of students’; alleviating the ‘plight of students’; and effects on student attrition. Conclusions: Findings provided evidence for the continued funding of the practice educator role with improvements to be made in dealing with stakeholder expectations and outcomes. Relevance to clinical practice: In the UK, there still remain concerns about the fitness for practice of newly registered nurses, prompting a recent national consultation by the professional regulating body. Despite fiscal pressures, recommendations for further strengthening of all systems that will support the quality of practice learning may continue to sustain practice learning support roles

Glutathione S-transferase 8-8 expression is lower in alcohol-preferring than in alcohol-nonpreferring rats

OBJECTIVE: A primary focus of alcohol research is to provide novel targets for alcohol treatment by identifying genes that predispose individuals to drink alcohol. Animal models of alcoholism developed by selective breeding are invaluable tools to elucidate both the genetic nature and the underlying biological mechanisms that contribute to alcohol dependence. These selected lines (high alcohol preferring and low alcohol preferring) display phenotypic and genetic differences that can be studied to further our understanding of alcohol preference and related genetic traits. By combining molecular techniques, genetic and physiological factors that underlie the cause of alcoholism can be identified. METHODS: Total gene expression analysis was used to identify genes that are differentially expressed in specific brain regions between alcohol-naive, inbred alcohol-preferring (iP) and -nonpreferring (iNP) rats. Quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, in situ hybridization, Western blot, and sequence analysis were used to further characterize rat glutathione S-transferase 8-8 (rGST 8-8). RESULTS: Lower expression of rGST 8-8 mRNA was observed in discrete brain regions of iP compared with iNP animals, and these expression differences were confirmed. To determine additional expression patterns of rGST 8-8, we used in situ hybridization. Rat GST 8-8 was highly expressed in hippocampus, the choroid plexus of the dorsal third ventricle and the lateral ventricle, and ependymal cells along the dorsal third ventricle and the third ventricle. Western blot analysis showed that rGST 8-8 protein levels were lower in the hippocampus and the amygdala of iP compared with iNP. A silent single-nucleotide polymorphism in the coding region and three single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the 3'-UTR were identified in the rGST 8-8 cDNA. CONCLUSION: There is regional variation of rGST 8-8 expression in the brain, at both the mRNA and protein level, and the iP strain has lower innate rGST 8-8 levels than the iNP strain in discrete brain regions

Screening Λ in a new modified gravity model

Abstract We study a new model of Energy-Momentum Squared Gravity (EMSG), called Energy-Momentum Log Gravity (EMLG), constructed by the addition of the term $$f(T_{\mu \nu }T^{\mu \nu })=\alpha \ln (\lambda \,T_{\mu \nu }T^{\mu \nu })$$f(TμνTμν)=αln(λTμνTμν), envisaged as a correction, to the Einstein–Hilbert action with cosmological constant $$\Lambda$$Λ. The choice of this modification is made as a specific way of including new terms in the right-hand side of the Einstein field equations, resulting in constant effective inertial mass density and, importantly, leading to an explicit exact solution of the matter energy density in terms of redshift. We look for viable cosmologies, in particular, an extension of the standard $$\Lambda$$ΛCDM model. EMLG provides an effective dynamical dark energy passing below zero at large redshifts, accommodating a mechanism for screening $$\Lambda$$Λ in this region, in line with suggestions for alleviating some of the tensions that arise between observational data sets within the standard $$\Lambda$$ΛCDM model. We present a detailed theoretical investigation of the model and then constrain the free parameter $$\alpha '$$α′, a normalisation of $$\alpha$$α, using the latest observational data. The data does not rule out the $$\Lambda$$ΛCDM limit of our model ($$\alpha '= 0$$α′=0), but prefers slightly negative values of the EMLG model parameter ($$\alpha '= -0.032\pm 0.043$$α′=-0.032±0.043), which leads to the screening of $$\Lambda$$Λ. We also discuss how EMLG relaxes the persistent tension that appears in the measurements of $$H_0$$H0 within the standard $$\Lambda$$ΛCDM model.</jats:p

Urban heritages: how history and housing finance matter to housing form and homeownership rates

Contemporary Western cities are not uniform but display a variety of different housing forms and tenures, both between and within countries. We distinguish three general city types in this paper: low rise, single-family dwelling cities where owner-occupation is the most prevalent tenure form; multi-dwelling building cities where tenants comprise the majority and; multi-dwelling building cities where owner occupation is the principal tenure form. We argue that historical developments beginning in the nineteenth century are crucial to understanding this diversity in urban form and tenure composition across Western cities. Our path-dependent argument is twofold. First, we claim that different housing finance institutions engendered different forms of urban development during the late-nineteenth century and had helped to establish the difference between single-family dwelling cities and multi-dwelling building cities by 1914. Second, rather than stemming from countries’ welfare systems or ‘variety of capitalism’, we argue that these historical distinctions have a significant and enduring impact on today’s urban housing forms and tenures. Our argument is supported by a unique collection of data of 1095 historical cities across 27 countries

Towards a comprehensive estimate of national spending on prevention

Background Comprehensive information about national spending on prevention is crucial for health policy development and evaluation. This study provides a comprehensive overview of prevention spending in the Netherlands, including those activities beyond the national health accounts. Methods National spending on health-related primary and secondary preventive activities was examined by funding source with the use of national statistics, government reports, sector reports, and data from individual health associations and corporations, public services, occupational health services, and personal prevention. Costs were broken down by diseases, age groups and gender using population-attributable risks and other key variables. Results Total expenditures on prevention were €12.5 billion or €769 per capita in the Netherlands in 2003, of which 20% was included in the national health accounts. 82% was spent on health protection, 16% on disease prevention, and 2% on health promotion activities. Most of the spending was aimed at the prevention of infectious diseases (34%) and acute physical injuries (29%). Per capita spending on prevention increased steeply by age. Conclusion Total expenditure on health-related prevention is much higher than normally reported due to the inclusion of health protection activities beyond the national health accounts. The allocative efficiency of prevention spending, particularly the high costs of health protection and the low costs of health promotion activities, should be addressed with information on their relative cost effectiveness

The Dynamic Landscape of Novel Psychoactive Substance (NPS) Use in Ireland: Results from an Expert Consultation

In Ireland, legislators encountered a new phenomenon in 2005 onwards with the advent of ‘legal highs’ sold in headshops. Use of ‘legal highs’ containing herbal and synthetic new psychoactive substances (NPS) was not confined to problematic drug users, and included social recreational users. Legislative controls were enacted in 2010, 2011 and 2015. The study aimed to investigate expert perspectives on the NPS situation with regard to changing and emergent trends in use, health and social consequences and service implications. This brief report presents descriptive findings from a national consultation using a structured guide with experts in 2016. Four themes emerged and centred on; ‘Definitions of NPS used within Professional Roles’; ‘Professional Experiences of NPS‘; ‘Types of NPS Users, Sourcing and Consequences of Use’; and ‘Service Response.’ Findings underscored the mental health and addiction related consequences of NPS use, with prevention, clinical and treatment services ill- equipped to deal with the particular characteristics of this form of drug abuse. Enhanced strategies, services and clinical responses are warranted to address the challenges encountered. © 2016 Springer Science+Business Media New Yor

The disruption of proteostasis in neurodegenerative diseases

Cells count on surveillance systems to monitor and protect the cellular proteome which, besides being highly heterogeneous, is constantly being challenged by intrinsic and environmental factors. In this context, the proteostasis network (PN) is essential to achieve a stable and functional proteome. Disruption of the PN is associated with aging and can lead to and/or potentiate the occurrence of many neurodegenerative diseases (ND). This not only emphasizes the importance of the PN in health span and aging but also how its modulation can be a potential target for intervention and treatment of human diseases.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Police performance measurement: an annotated bibliography

This study provides information to assist those involved in performance measurement in police organisations. The strategies used to identify the literature are described. Thematic sections cover; general overviews; methodological issues; performance management in other industries; national, international and cross-national studies; frameworks (e.g. Compstat; the Balanced Scorecard); criticisms (particularly unintended consequences); crime-specific measures; practitioner guides; performance evaluation of individual staff; police department plans and evaluations; annotated bibliographies in related areas, and; other literature. Our discussion offers two conclusions: the measures best aligned with performance are typically more expensive, while most operational data should only provide contextual information; the philosophy of open governance should be pursued to promote transparency, accountability and communication to improve police performance

Lower prevalence of hip fractures in foreign-born individuals than in Swedish-born individuals during the period 1987-1999

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This is the first longitudinal study with a 22-year follow-up, based on a national and complete sample, to determine whether the prevalence of hip fracture and the age when it occurs are influenced by migration and by being foreign-born. Cultural background and environmental factors such as UV-radiation and lifestyle during childhood and adolescence may influence the risk of a hip fracture event later in life. Differences in prevalence might occur between the indigenous population and those who have migrated to a country.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was based on national population data. The study population consisted of 321,407 Swedish-born and 307,174 foreign-born persons living in Sweden during the period 1987-1999.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Foreign-born individuals had a reduced risk of hip fracture, with odds ratios (ORs) of 0.47-0.77 for men and 0.42-0.88 for women. Foreign-born women had the hip fracture event at a higher age on average, but a longer time spent in Sweden was associated with a small but significant increase in risk.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We found that there was a reduced risk of hip fracture in all foreign-born individuals, and that the hip fracture event generally happened at a higher age in foreign-born women. Migration must therefore be considered in relation to the prevalence and risk of hip fracture. Migration can therefore have a positive effect on one aspect of the health of a population, and can influence and lower the total cost of healthcare due to reduced risk and prevalence of hip fracture.</p