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Editorial: Sex differences in aging: a cognitive and behavioral perspective
No full textNo financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article
Allied health professionals’ experiences and views towards improving musculoskeletal services in the UK for patients with musculoskeletal and co-existing mental health conditions: a qualitative study
Get PDFData Availability:
The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.TC and CH collected data as part of their final year research project within their MSc pre-reg physiotherapy programme at Brunel University.Electronic supplementary material is available online at: https://link-springer-com.ezproxy.brunel.ac.uk/article/10.1186/s12891-023-06878-w#Sec39 .Background:
Interplay between physical and mental health (MH) is widely recognised amongst patients with Musculoskeletal and co-existing MH conditions. Evidence suggests that psychological interventions improve outcomes and satisfaction in patients with physical conditions, however current healthcare models continue to separate physical and mental health care, as health services are fragmented. If the delivery of MH support could be facilitated by Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), such as physiotherapists and occupational therapists (OTs), this could be an effective, low-cost way to achieve routine integration. This study aimed to explore the experiences of UK physiotherapists and OTs working with patients with MSK and co-existing MH conditions and to understand views on improving MSK services.
Methods:
This was an exploratory-descriptive qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. Participants were recruited via social media and professional organisations using convenience sampling. Participants included registered UK physiotherapists or OTs within MSK settings who managed patients with MH conditions. Inductive thematic analysis was used, where single and double-level coding, single counting and inclusion of divergent cases were conducted to enhance methodological rigour.
Results:
Three overarching themes were identified. Overarching theme one referred to openness to provide MH support, with scope of practice and lack of confidence as themes. Overarching theme two described challenges, incorporating mental health stigma, the clinical environment, and limited experience. The overarching theme referring to training, identified the need for further training and strategies to implement as themes.
Conclusion:
Many challenges to achieving optimal integration of physical and mental health care exist within MSK services. These challenges go beyond the need for additional training and knowledge acquisition and include departmental readiness such as funding, diary management, and supervision by senior colleagues/or psychologists. These need consideration in parallel to match the evolving needs of the MSK population.Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) Charity
Applying the Non-adoption, Abandonment, Scale-up, Spread and Sustainability (NASSS) framework to evaluate automated evidence synthesis in health behaviour change
Get PDFData availability (sharing) statement: The data from the current study are available in the Github and Open Science Framework repositories at https://github.com/HumanBehaviourChangeProject and https://osf.io/efp4x/. Application of the NASSS framework to HBCP in this brief review is based on the available published evidence on the HBCP via published papers, information on the project’s Open Science Framework pages (https://osf.io/efp4x/) and the project’ website (https://www.humanbehaviourchange.org/).Automated tools to speed up the process of evidence synthesis are increasingly apparent within health behaviour research. This brief review explores the potential of the Non-adoption, Abandonment, Scale-up, Spread and Sustainability framework for supporting automated evidence synthesis in health behaviour change by applying it to the ongoing Human Behaviour-Change Project, which aims to revolutionize evidence synthesis within behaviour change intervention research. To increase the relevance of NASSS for health behaviour change, we recommend i) terminology changes (‘condition’ to ‘behaviour’ and ‘patient’ to ‘end user’) and ii) that it is used prospectively address complexities iteratively. We draw conclusions about i) the need to specify the organizations that will use the technology, ii) identifying what to do if interdependencies fail and iii) even though we have focused on automated evidence synthesis, NASSS would arguably be beneficial for technology developments in health behaviour change more generally, particularly for invention development.The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article
Livelihood Trajectories of Rural Young People in Southern Africa: Stuck in Loops?
Get PDFAttempts to boost rural development in the Global South tend to focus on ways in which people can transform their lives. Interventions are often designed to help overcome specific envisioned constraints and push individuals onto a pathway out of poverty. Research has contributed to nuancing this vision by documenting the non-linearity of pathways, which often results in people being left in limbo or stuck, rather than moving forward. Based on a study in two villages in Malawi and Lesotho, this article argues that even these nuances do not fully capture the real-life experiences of the 63 young people who participated. Interviews tracing the course of their lives between 2007–08 and 2016–17 reveal trajectories that are circular rather than linear, and show the detrimental effects of being stuck in these frustrating loops of taking action without progressing. Conceptualizing rural young people's livelihood trajectories in contexts of severe poverty as loops highlights the structural issues that need to be addressed if their lives are to be transformed. Understanding development as emancipation from sources of unfreedom means focusing on the structural constraints that keep some people in poverty, and the importance of attaining agency if they are to put their needs on the agenda and demand basic rights.This research was funded through the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)-DfID Joint Fund for Poverty Alleviation Research grant number (ES/M009076/1
On the Enhancement and Suppression of Turbulent Wall Pressure by Large Eddy Break Up Devices
Get PDFAcknowledgement: A CC BY or equivalent licence is applied to the Author Accepted Manuscript arising from this submission, in accordance with the grant’s open access conditions. The authors would also like to thank the PhD studentship sponsored by the Thomas Gerald Gray Charitable Trust in the United Kingdom.Data Availability: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.An experimental study is presented on the application of Large Eddy BreakUp (LEBU) on a flat plate as a sourcetargeting device to perturb the wall pressure fluctuations of a turbulent boundary layer. When interacting with a LEBU wake, the wall pressure spectra can establish a self-similar behaviour against s′, which is a normalised separation distance between the LEBU’s trailing edge and the targeted location for aeroacoustics noise source mitigation. It is found that s′ >3is neededto achieve an overall reduction in the wall pressure fluctuations. The fundamental mechanism by which the LEBUcanreducethewall pressure fluctuation is investigated by studying the spatio-temporal evolution of turbulent spots. When the emanated LEBU wake is interacted with the outer part of turbulent spot, the shielding effect can always inhibit the turbulent fluids ejection from the spot’s leading edge. However, incursion of the high momentum f luids wall-sweeping event at the spot’s trailing edge can only be effectively prevented when s′ > 3.This research was funded, in whole or in part, by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council in the United Kingdom through research grant No. EP/K002309/1 (Quiet Aerofoils of the Next Generation)
Intermediality, Hybridity, and Disruption, in the Operas of Wagner and Verdi
Get PDFA previous version of this paper was published in Performing/Transforming: Trangressions and Hybridizations Across Texts, Media, Bodies, edited by Floriana Puglisi, published by OTTO editore, Torino, 2021.‘Intermediality’ and ‘Hybridity’ are often discussed as if they apply only to creative works of the last century and of the future, and that their use necessarily entails the presence of contemporary technology. But in our careers as academic, author and artist, we are increasingly reminded of how the most innovative work in performance almost inevitably resonates with that of the past, sometimes quite remote past, and with genres which may, today, frequently seem conservative in their realisation. Recently we have come to see that many of our discussions could relate to a complex, and of course, deeply hybrid genre of performance, so thoroughly embedded in our culture that we no longer perceive how strange and problematic it is, that is Opera
Robust Precoding for HF Skywave Massive MIMO with Slepian Transform
Get PDFIn this paper, we address robust precoding in high-frequency (HF) skywave massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems with imperfect channel state information (CSI). We first employ a sparse beam based a posteriori channel model and demonstrate that robust precoding can be efficiently solved in the Slepian transform domain with a large number of base station (BS) antennas. Next, we introduce two Slepian transform based robust precoding methods, including a joint approach that leverages inverse fast Fourier transform (IFFT) for reduced complexity with a large number of user terminals (UTs). We then establish a local optimum for the Slepian transform domain robust precoder (STRP) design using the majorization minimization (MM) algorithm, taking advantages of HF skywave massive MIMO channel sparsity and Slepian sequence properties. Further, two distinct designs are presented: separate STRP (SSTRP) and joint STRP (JSTRP). Simulation results confirm the effectiveness of proposed robust precoders, showcasing their excellent ergodic sum-rate performance and low complexity.National Key R&D Program of China under Grant 2018YFB1801103; Jiangsu Province Basis Research Project under Grant BK20192002; Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities under Grant 2242022k60007; Key R&D Plan of Jiangsu Province under Grant BE2022067; Huawei Cooperation Project
The application of antimicrobial stewardship knowledge to nursing practice: A national survey of United Kingdom pre-registration nursing students
Get PDFData Availability Statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Data utilized in the submitted article have been lawfully acquired in accordance with The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from Their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity.Supporting Information is available online at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jan.16195#support-information-section .Antimicrobial stewardship in nurse education.[Correction added on 06 August 2024, after first online publication: The spelling of Rebecca Dickinson’s name has been corrected in this version.]Aim:
To assess student nurses understanding and skills in the application of antimicrobial stewardship knowledge to practice.
Design:
Quantitative.
Methods:
Cross-sectional survey.
Results:
Five hundred and twenty three student nurses responded across 23 UK universities. Although students felt prepared in competencies in infection prevention and control, patient-centred care and interprofessional collaborative practice, they felt less prepared in competencies in which microbiological knowledge, prescribing and its effect on antimicrobial stewardship is required. Problem-based learning, activities in the clinical setting and face-to-face teaching were identified as the preferred modes of education delivery. Those who had shared antimicrobial stewardship teaching with students from other professions reported the benefits to include a broader understanding of antimicrobial stewardship, an understanding of the roles of others in antimicrobial stewardship and improved interprofessional working.
Conclusion:
There are gaps in student nurses' knowledge of the basic sciences associated with the antimicrobial stewardship activities in which nurses are involved, and a need to strengthen knowledge in pre-registration nurse education programmes pertaining to antimicrobial management, specifically microbiology and antimicrobial regimes and effects on antimicrobial stewardship. Infection prevention and control, patient-centred care and interprofessional collaborative practice are areas of antimicrobial stewardship in which student nurses feel prepared. Interprofessional education would help nurses and other members of the antimicrobial stewardship team clarify the role nurses can play in antimicrobial stewardship and therefore maximize their contribution to antimicrobial stewardship and antimicrobial management.
Implications for the Profession:
There is a need to strengthen knowledge from the basic sciences, specifically pertaining to antimicrobial management, in pre-registration nurse education programmes.
Patient or Public Contribution:
No patient or public contribution.
Impact:
What Problem Did the Study Address?
Nurses must protect health through understanding and applying antimicrobial stewardship knowledge and skills (Nursing and Midwifery Council 2018); however, there is no research available that has investigated nurses understanding and skills of the basic sciences associated with the antimicrobial stewardship activities in which they are involved.
What Were the Main Findings?
There are gaps in student nurses' knowledge of the basic sciences (specifically microbiology and prescribing) associated with the antimicrobial stewardship activities in which nurses are involved. Problem-based learning, and activities in the clinical setting, were reported as useful teaching methods, whereas online learning, was seen as less useful.
Where and on Whom Will the Research Have an Impact?
Pre-registration nurse education programmes.
Reporting Method:
The relevant reporting method has been adhered to, that is, STROBE.This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. The study was carried out as part of our routine work through allocated research hours
Abortion Attitudes Across Cultural Contexts: Exploring the Role of Gender Inequality, Abortion Policy, and Individual Values
Get PDFOpen Data: The information needed to reproduce all of the reported results is available via Figshare—data (https://doi.org/10.17633/rd.brunel.24119271) and syntax (https://doi.org/10.17633/rd.brunel.24119307) are both publicly available.Part of a special issue: Reproductive Justice – Global and Psychological Perspectives.We explored between-country and within-country variability in abortion attitudes, using country-level factors (e.g., gender equality) and individual-level factors (e.g., gender role attitudes) as predictors. Participants from Mexico (N = 215), India (N = 215), the United States (N = 215), and the United Kingdom (N = 206) were recruited via Qualtrics Panels. Regression models and ANOVAs were used to assess whether estimates of gender inequality, gender role attitudes, motherhood norms, belief in big/moralizing gods, and sexual strategy were associated with abortion attitudes. As predicted, individuals living in countries with greater gender inequality, and more restrictive abortion policy, reported more restrictive abortion attitudes and stronger support for banning abortion. Furthermore, individuals who endorsed more traditional gender role ideologies, who reported belief in big/moralizing gods and who used long-term sexual strategies also reported more restrictive abortion attitudes and stronger support for banning abortion. Exploratory analyses highlight how these relationships vary as a function of cultural context. We can conclude that both contextual factors (e.g., local abortion legislation and gender inequality) as well as individual factors (e.g., gender role attitudes and religious/spiritual belief) shape people’s attitudes toward abortion. Implications regarding the bidirectional relationship between attitudes and policy in reproductive health are discussed
Persistence in the realized betas: some evidence from the stock market
Get PDFJEL Classification: C22; G11Data Availability Statement:
The authors declare that all data supporting the findings of this study is available within the article. In particular, the calculation datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on request. The results/data/figures in this manuscript have not been published elsewhere, nor are they under consideration by another publisher, and there are not hyperlinks to publicly archived datasets analysed or generated during the study except for the public information collected.This paper examines the stochastic behaviour of the realized betas in the CAPM model for the ten largest companies in terms of market capitalisation included in the U.S. Dow Jones stock market index. Fractional integration methods are applied to estimate their degree of persistence at daily, weekly, and monthly frequencies over the period July 2000–July 2020 over time spans of 1, 3, and 5 years. On the whole, the results indicate that the realized betas are highly persistent and do not exhibit weak mean-reverting behaviour at the weekly and daily frequencies, whilst there is some evidence of weak mean reversion at the monthly frequency. Our findings confirm the sensitivity of beta calculations to the choice of frequency and time span (the number of observations).Luis A. Gil-Alana and Miguel Martín-Valmayor gratefully acknowledges financial support from the Grant PID2020-113691RB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, from ‘Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación’ (MICIN), Agencia Estatal de Investigación’ (AEI) Spain and ‘Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional’ (FEDER)
Data sources:
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