26199 research outputs found
Sort by
Barriers and facilitators to implementation of the Free Water Protocol – Findings from a National Survey of Acute Stroke Unit staff.
No full textThe Free Water Protocol (FWP) offers patients who are at risk of aspiration with thin fluids the option to drink water under controlled conditions to enhance quality of life and hydration while minimising respiratory complications. Research supports its use in selected patients in rehabilitation settings, however evidence in acute stroke is limited. This study aimed to investigate the barriers and facilitators to the FWP implementation from the perspectives of professionals working in acute stroke units in the United Kingdom to inform a future feasibility study. A national web-based survey was undertaken of acute stroke unit staff, including speech and language pathologists, nurses, doctors, dietitians, and support staff. The survey, informed by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, explored perceived barriers and facilitators towards the FWP implementation. Responses (N=171) highlighted key barriers such as concerns around risks of aspiration and chest infections, complexity of patient selection, training challenges, oral hygiene practices, high workload, staffing levels and high turnover of staff disrupting implementation, and lack of clinical guidelines and clear governance. Facilitators included supporting evidence, perceived patient benefits, strong multidisciplinary team (MDT) collaboration, leadership by senior clinicians, effective communication, and adaptability of the FWP specifically patient selection and delivery methods among the FWP users. Successful FWP implementation in acute stroke units depends on overcoming risk aversion, strengthening MDT working, enhancing education and training, and embedding robust mouthcare protocols. These findings will guide stakeholder workshops to codesign an implementation strategy for a feasibility study in an acute stroke unit setting
Quality-by-design-steered development of luliconazole-loaded ultra-deformable ethosomes for topical delivery: improved dermatokinetics and antifungal activity
No full textThis work reports the first systematic formulation strategy guided by Quality-by-Design principles to create an ultra-deformable ethosomes-based nanocarrier for luliconazole (LCZ). The approach addresses the long-standing barriers of poor solubility, limited skin penetration, and rapid drug clearance in dermatophytosis therapy. A Box-Behnken design identified the optimal composition, including phospholipid (PL 90G), Span® 20, and ethanol: propylene glycol, yielding highly elastic nanosized vesicles (196.97 ± 1.57 nm; PDI 0.158 ± 0.03) with exceptional PDE (91.0 %) and sustained release (62 % over 12 h). Incorporation into a Carbopol 980 gel conferred favourable shear-thinning behaviour, enhanced spreadability, and superior texture over a marketed 1 % LCZ cream (MKT-LF). Ex vivo permeation across rat skin demonstrated a 2.4-fold higher flux and 11.3-fold greater cutaneous deposition than MKT-LF, attributed to synergistic vesicle deformability and ethanol-induced fluidization of stratum corneum. LCZ-UDEs demonstrated deep epidermal penetration of intact fluorescently labelled vesicles. Dermatokinetic profiling revealed a 3.4-fold increase in epidermal AUC 0-12, prolonged half-life, and delayed Tmax, indicating enhanced skin retention. Antifungal assays demonstrated a two-fold reduction in MIC, and rapid fungicidal kinetics against Trichophyton rubrum compared with LCZ solution and MKT-LF. Biocompatibility studies validated >90 % HaCaT cell viability, no haemolysis, and absence of dermal irritation. Sustained intradermal LCZ levels minimized sub-therapeutic exposure that drives fungal resistance. By uniting nanoscale vesicle engineering, ethanol-enhanced skin permeation, and QbD-optimized composition, this study delivers a stable, safe, and efficacious topical nanoplatform with potential to transform dermatophytosis management and mitigate antifungal resistance
Nudging migrants around: migrant transit across jurisdictions in the context of a frozen conflict
No full textThis article introduces the concept of nudging around to capture the lateral mobility of irregular migrants in contexts of jurisdictional ambiguity. Drawing on the case of Cyprus, an island simultaneously shaped by its role as a transit point and by a decades-long frozen conflict, we show how irregular migrants are not simply pushed back or moving forward, but are redirected across overlapping and contested jurisdictions: the Republic of Cyprus (RoC), the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), the UK-administered Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) and the UN-controlled buffer zone. Based on semi-structured interviews with policymakers, civil society representatives and international organisations, the paper identifies four interrelated dynamics that structure this process: oscillation between mobility and immobility; reliance on incomplete or misleading information; the effects of international responses; and the vulnerabilities generated by broader crises, such as COVID-19. The contribution of the article is twofold. First, it conceptualises nudging around as a distinct form of mobility within frozen conflicts, complementing but differing from pushbacks, forced returns or linear transit. Second, it expands the literature on frozen conflicts and migration governance by foregrounding how their dynamics shape the trajectories of third-country nationals, a group largely absent from existing research
Research on Digital Platform User Retention Strategies and Marketing Model Optimization from a Data-Driven Perspective
No full textThis review paper synthesizes existing research on digital platform user retention strategies and marketing model optimization from a data-driven perspective. It examines various approaches employed by platforms to enhance user engagement and loyalty, leveraging data analytics to personalize experiences and improve marketing effectiveness. The review encompasses an historical overview of user retention techniques, delving into the evolution of marketing models in the digital age. Core themes explored include data-driven personalization, behavioral targeting, and dynamic pricing strategies. A comparative analysis of different retention models is presented, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses, and addressing the challenges associated with data privacy and algorithmic bias. Furthermore, the paper explores future research directions, anticipating the impact of emerging technologies such as AI and blockchain on user retention and marketing practices. This review aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the data-driven landscape of user retention, offering insights for both academics and practitioners
A Nation of Petitioners: Petitions and Petitioning in the United Kingdom, 1780–1918. By Henry J.Miller. Cambridge University Press, 2023. 314 pp. £88.
No full textTuning into the Frequencies: Interpreting children and young people's abstract mark making through a semiotic orientation
No full textFrequencies is an artistic initiative developed by Turner Prize-winning artist Oscar Murillo, as an enterprise which opens connections between children and young people geographically thousands of miles apart. The Frequencies initiative has involved the Murillo Studio Team laying empty canvases across desks and tables, in hundreds of schools, across over thirty countries and five continents. Children and young people, ages 10-16 years, are invited to freely mark the empty canvases. In this article, I discuss a research project that examined a sample of marks made by children and young people on the Frequencies canvases. I identify abstract (non-figurative nor textual) marks created by children and young people, across various cultural and geographical spaces, Through the article, I apply a semiotic orientated approach, drawing on indigenous and philosophical ideas that posit human and more-than-human worlds as deeply interconnected - suggesting these abstract marks as a manifestation of our deep connectedness. I highlight the forms and potential functions of abstract marks produced by children and young people, as a system of signs that may tune into the deeper aspects of self, potentially shared beyond social identities, cultures, spaces and histories. Paying attention to the abstract, and potentially, universal mark making of children and young people may support wider understandings
about how self and subjectivity is expressed through free creativity
Journalistic Professionalism in Higher Education: Teaching and Defining Journalism in the UK
No full textThis book provides a rich exploration of how concepts of contemporary journalistic professionalism are understood, articulated, and taught by journalism educators in higher education settings in the UK.
Drawing on in-depth interviews with HE journalism instructors, the author identifies the key themes and drivers behind definitions of journalistic professionalism and considers how these shape the way journalists and journalism educators are perceived and perceive themselves, as well as who they understand their audiences to be. Readers will examine how the changing media environment in which journalists operate impacts the way their role is defined and how, by considering different ethical and philosophical perspectives, journalism can be considered both a profession and a trade. Building on theoretical frameworks and critiques of The Four Theories of the Press and Social Responsibility Theory, this book points to the overarching importance of academization in debates concerning characteristics of contemporary journalism practice.
Journalistic Professionalism in Higher Education is recommended reading for advanced students and researchers working at the intersection of journalism education and professional identity
Electromyographic activation of pectoralis major and triceps brachii during diamond, standard and wide hand positioning push-ups: A comparative study.
No full textStudies examining the electromyographic activation of pectoralis major (PM) and triceps brachii (TB) muscles during push-ups of varied hand positions are limited, and findings are inconsistent. The aim was to investigate the electromyographic activation of PM and TB during standard, diamond, and wide hand position push-ups. Twenty young males performed six repetitions of each push-up variation while the electrical activity of PM and TB was recorded, averaged, and normalized to the peak root mean square (RMS) across repetitions for each push-up. RMS (mV) and normalized RMS (%) were calculated for each muscle, push-up variation, and contraction phase (eccentric/concentric). Two separate three-way ANOVAs with Bonferroni post hoc correction were used (α = 0.05). TB demonstrated statistically significantly higher RMS (mV) and normalized RMS (%) than PM (p 0.05) and there was no significant three-way interaction (p > 0.05). Diamond push-ups elicited the highest relative activation for both the PM and TB. Normalized RMS revealed the consistency of muscle effort in both contraction phases, sustaining near-maximal activation regardless of hand position. These findings support adaptable training strategies, with potential applications in rehabilitation and strength training contexts
Interpreting peripheral oxygen saturation variability in critical illness: A directional framework adjusted for hypoxia severity
No full textPeripheral oxygen saturation ( S p O 2 ) exhibits a complex pattern of fluctuations during hypoxia, which can be quantified using entropy measures. S p O 2 entropy analysis provides insights into dynamic physiological regulation by non‐invasively reflecting the body's capacity to adapt to internal or external physiological challenges. However, the interpretation of S p O 2 entropy alone is limited without contextualisation and the degree of physiological challenge encountered (e.g. the severity of hypoxia). This proof‐of‐concept retrospective study analysed continuous 1 Hz S p O 2 recordings extracted from MIMIC‐III dataset's Intensive Care Unit ICU patients with sepsis (n = 164), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (n = 58), acute liver failure (ALF) (n = 59), or cirrhosis (n = 169). Sample entropy was computed directly from raw 20‐min S p O 2 signals and normalised to mean S p O 2 using directional parenclitic deviation (δ), derived from a healthy hypoxia‐exposure reference dataset. Cox‐regression models assessed 30‐day ICU mortality. In sepsis, δ was significantly higher in non‐survivors (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.20, P < 0.0001) and independently predicted 30‐day mortality (HR = 1.79, P < 0.0001). δ was not predictive in the COPD, ALF and cirrhosis cohorts. Unlike other patient groups, the cirrhosis group demonstrated unexpected mean negative δ values, suggesting aberrant regulatory engagement, potentially related to the pathophysiology of hepatopulmonary syndrome. These findings demonstrate that δ provides physiological contexts to entropy‐based S p O 2 analysis. By linking variability to the severity of hypoxia, this framework enables a more interpretable and a potentially clinically applicable biomarker of systemic regulation in critical illnesses. Future validation across diverse cohorts could support its potential to aid in personalised care within intensive care settings
Public Trust in Science: A Systematic Literature Review
No full textThis systematic literature review of factors influencing public trust in science provides insights for strengthening science-society relationships and informing responsible research practices. Our analysis of 124 empirical studies reveals multiple factors that are linked to trust in science, which we organize into three key categories: (a) Receiver—individual characteristics of the public, (b) Message—scientific information and its delivery, and (c) Source—scientists and the scientific method. Our synthesis demonstrates that trust in science is related to multiple factors, from individual factors (prior beliefs, attitudes, values, epistemic beliefs) to communication (such as channel credibility, ethics communication) and scientific practices (open science, replicability). Our findings have several important implications for research practice, science communication and education. Most notably, the findings highlight the pivotal role of research integrity in fostering and maintaining public trust in science, with scientists’ perceived integrity, epistemic practices that support transparency, and epistemic inclusion all being fundamentally interconnected in shaping public trust