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Beyond belief: Advancing death education through children’s experiences of non-corporeal continuation
Get PDFProponents of death education in schools acknowledge that children understand the biological aspects of death, and many hold co-existing beliefs in non-corporeal continuation. This paper offers originality by highlighting a gap in the death education literature, arguing that to increase curriculum relevance, we need to move beyond considering children’s “beliefs about” life after death/before life to also acknowledge their “experiences of” it. Using thanatological principles, it draws from different disciplines to document children and young people’s encounters with other lives, including: communicating with the deceased in waking and dream life; having near death experiences (NDEs); and remembering past lives. The implications of including non-corporeal continuation in the curriculum are explored. While challenges are acknowledged, the paper argues that the topic contributes to a meaningful curriculum by foregrounding a child-centered approach which privileges their voice(s) and agency. Simultaneously, it can potentially alleviate some of the fears about discussing death in schools
Understanding caregiver perspectives on the management of individuals with Parkinson’s disease in Thailand: A qualitative study
No full textResearch question: What are the experiences, challenges, coping mechanisms, and support needs of caregivers for individuals with Parkinson’s disease?
Materials and Methods: Ten caregivers of individuals with individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD) at the Physical Therapy Centre, Mahidol University, Thailand, were invited to participate in individual, face-to-face, in-depth interviews, which were audio-recorded. The interview questions and thematic analysis were developed and conducted by experts in PD and qualitative research.
Results: Four key themes emerged: (1) caregivers’ understanding of PD, (2) daily caregiving responsibilities, (3) concerns and challenges in PD care, and (4) unmet needs and expectations. Caregivers reported significant challenges in recognizing and managing motor symptoms such as tremors, bradykinesia, and postural instability, particularly during medication “off” periods. Physiotherapy management emerged as a major concern, with many caregivers expressing difficulties in maintaining individual’s motivation and engagement in exercise routines and uncertainty about appropriate interventions. In the absence of formal education, caregivers frequently relied on self-directed learning through online platforms, hospital-provided brochures, and experiential knowledge. Emotional strain, fear of causing injury, and the substantial time burden associated of managing medication adjustments and daily care compounded the challenges of caregiving. Importantly, caregivers highlighted substantial unmet needs, including access to stage-specific educational materials, clear physiotherapy guidance, and financial support to sustain long-term care responsibilities.
Conclusion: This study underscores the multifaceted challenges encountered by caregivers of individuals with PD in Thailand, particularly in relation to physiotherapy, symptom management, information gaps, and resource limitations. Caregivers reported experiencing both emotional and physical burdens, a lack of knowledge about disease progression, and insufficient access to tailored support services. Addressing these gaps through structured caregiver education, physiotherapy training, and improved access to information and financial support is crucial for enhancing caregiving capacity and the quality of care for individuals with PD
Landscapes of Un/belonging: An Empirical Psychosocial Study of Lithuanian Migration to London since the Early 1990s
Get PDFThis thesis illuminates the cultural imaginary of migrants who have come to London since the early 1990s from a poorly-known country, Lithuania. The country went through a traumatic history in the XXc., marked by the Holocaust and Soviet occupation, accompanied by mass deportations to labour camps and other forced settlements in remote parts of the Soviet Union. Since Lithuania gained its independence in the early 1990s, the population has been falling significantly, yet the academic literature is largely silent on this – even that of the UK, the primary destination of Lithuanian emigrants.
My psychosocial study investigates the possibility that this increased social and physical mobility of Lithuania’s population is partly related to an immobility within the ‘cultural psyche,’ related to the country’s exposure to repeated historical trauma over many decades. The study looks at how the cultural imaginary is produced out of this history. Regarding the present day, some migrants are ‘haunted’ by legacies of the past. People cannot provide a transparent and coherent story about their migration: they are defended about their status, are conflicted and nostalgic. The study explores and elucidates these intangibles.
The research cohort comprises and represents three generational groups, those in their 60s, 40s and 20s. Visual Matrix and Free Association Narrative Interview methods are used. Each matrix and interview is presented in the form of a case study: these case studies are crafted in a scenic way, as the thesis draws on the ideas of Alfred Lorenzer and has a strong imagistic stance. Furthermore, scenic compositions (in poetic form) are used to distil the gestalt of each case. The study looks at the findings in different age groups.
The findings are framed in terms of four imagistic metaphors: landscape, cityscape, escape and inscape. These present the imaginary as related, respectively, to ‘home’ country, to London, to migration, and to those states of mind generated by the migration experience. The metaphors also represent the cross-disciplinary nature of my study, as it draws largely on psychoanalytic thinking and psychosocial studies, and also on cultural geography and migration studies.
This thesis provides a psychoanalytically-informed, psychosocial and aesthetic analysis of migration, namely how it affects the imaginary that one calls to mind, particular ways in which one misses (or not) one’s country of origin, and how one settles in London. There is a search (by the research participants) for cultural containers in the imaginary, predominantly through landscape, which plays out differently between generational groups. Re-configuring of the cultural imaginary is explored using Winnicott’s psychoanalytic thinking on ‘object relating,’ ‘object use,’ and the ‘third space,’ and also using Bion’s theory on linking
An Inference Spatiotemporal Machinery Prognostics Approach Based on Graph Learning
No full textMachinery prognostics facilitates predictive maintenance, minimizing downtime and operational expenses. Nonetheless, challenges persist due to low signal-to-noise ratio and non-stationary signals. Spatiotemporal feature extraction through recurrent and convolutional neural networks has shown promise in addressing these challenges. Nevertheless, the traditional convolutional learning algorithm, which is based on Euclidean distances between the learned features, can increase the model uncertainty. Moreover, traditional feature fusion techniques can weaken the model's performance. This study proposes a novel inferential spatiotemporal approach. Two independent networks based on long short-term memory and a graph convolutional network are designed to extract the influential spatiotemporal features. Then an adaptive neurofuzzy inferential network is introduced to calculate the remaining useful life based on the extracted spatiotemporal features. Experimental validation using a benchmark bearing dataset under various operational conditions demonstrates that the proposed approach outperforms existing state-of-the-art methods by 59.34 %
Assessing medical students' awareness of the link between oral and systemic health: a questionnaire-based study in a cohort of year 3 and 4 MBBS students in the UK
No full textBACKGROUND: Oral health is crucial for overall well-being, as conditions like periodontitis are increasingly associated with systemic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological disorders. Research in the UK and globally has revealed limited awareness among medical students about these connections, emphasizing the need for curriculum enhancements. This study assessed the awareness of year 3 and 4 medical students about oral-systemic disease connections.
METHODS: Following approval from the University of Central Lancashire School of Medicine and Dentistry Ethics Committee, a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was conducted. The survey, consisting of multiple-choice questions with multiple answer options, was delivered anonymously via an internal Teams channel to a representative cohort of year 3 and 4 medical students. The questionnaire covered general awareness of oral-systemic health, specific oral disease knowledge, and a focused evaluation of the periodontitis-diabetes relationship. Statistics included descriptive analysis and chi-square tests to assess associations between responses. Measures of association, such as Phi and Cramér’s V, were also calculated.
RESULTS: A total of 122 students participated (65.67% year 3, 34.33% year 4). Most (91.04%) acknowledged the link between oral and general health. While 80.6% identified periodontitis as gum disease, 8.96% associated it with tooth decay, and 10.45% were unaware. Awareness of the bidirectional relationship with diabetes was limited; 60% recognized that diabetes increases periodontitis risk, but only 29.9% understood the reverse.
CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights gaps in medical students’ knowledge of oral-systemic health, emphasizing the need for better integration of oral health education in the medical curriculum. Aligning with WHO strategies and European Federation of Periodontology initiatives, improved interprofessional education can enhance patient care through collaboration between medical and dental professionals
Reviving the debate: Forced or unconstrained distribution in Q method Implementation: investigation of opinions on sustainability impact of the CAP - the case of Hungary
Get PDFThe paper investigates multi-stakeholders’ opinions on the CAP path towards greening and sustainability. The main analytical tool employed is Q method used to reveal whether there are systematic differences in the opinions on the EU CAP. A set of 60 statements was presented to 30 stakeholders in Hungary using convenience sampling common for Q studies. Data was generated through Q sorting in December 2024 under two distributions - the commonly used quasi-normal forced distribution and a free one. The data under both distributions was analysed through inverted factor analysis, first, without bootstrapping and, second, adding additional statistical insights from the bootstrap. The outcome indicated three groups (factors) without any meaningful differences according to the distribution. Overall, the factors showed widespread scepticism towards CAP greening and sustainability. Neither standard errors by statements generated by bootstrapping nor the estimated bias showed significant differences according to the distribution. It is worth replicating the study under different type of forced distribution and splitting the sessions with forced and free distribution in time to avoid respondents memorising their ranking under forced conditions and reproducing them under free choice
Comparing Extraction and Direct Amplification Methods for Enhanced Touch DNA Profiling
No full textThis study compares the effectiveness of traditional DNA extraction and direct amplification methods for Touch DNA profiling across various surface sizes and materials. The methods were evaluated based on DNA yield and profile quality, with RFU signal strength and allele detection used as key metrics. The results show that direct amplification—using MicroFLOQ™ Direct swabs and SceneSafe Fast™ minitape—exhibits superior performance on smaller surfaces (p < 0.05), enabling faster and more efficient DNA recovery. In contrast, extraction is more effective for larger surface areas (p < 0.001), suggesting a complementary role for both methods depending on the forensic context. These findings underscore the importance of selecting appropriate collection and amplification techniques based on surface size, improving both the efficiency and accuracy of forensic DNA analysis. The research offers valuable guidance for optimizing Touch DNA profiling, with potential applications in criminal investigations and forensic laboratories. Future work could explore the integration of these methods with advanced DNA technologies to further enhance recovery from challenging samples
Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis on Therapeutic Management of Faecal Impaction in the Paediatric Population.
No full textBackground To date, there is no universally accepted or standardised protocol for management of faecal impaction (FI) in paediatric population. If left untreated, it can lead to serious consequences for the health and well-being of the child. We set out to determine the effectiveness and safety of existing therapeutic interventions for FI in children and identify any gaps occurring in current research.
Methods We have performed a systematic literature review on treatment of FI in paediatric population in accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. We have included randomised controlled trials (RCTs) on all interventions for children (0–18 years old) with FI on background of functional constipation and excluded children with organic causes of FI. Our primary outcomes were treatment success, defecation frequency and withdrawals due to adverse events. We have performed a meta-analysis of the data.
Results Out of 13 341 records identified, only eight RCTs met our inclusion criteria with a total of 513 participants randomised. The diagnosis of functional constipation was mainly made using ROME III criteria. The diagnosis of FI varied from study to study. We identified several intervention groups based on our search. Our analysis has shown that there is no difference probably between PEG (Polyethylene Glycol).
and PEG with sodium picosulphate, and there may be no difference between PEG and rectal enema for treatment success, but enema may lead to greater stool frequency. No other studies produced anything other than very low certainty evidence.
Conclusions No therapeutic approach was superior to others, with evidence limited by significant clinical heterogeneity related to varying patient and clinical factors, different outcome measures and limited study numbers. More high-quality research is needed to determine effective strategies for FI. Moreover, a consensus should be reached regarding the definition and diagnosis of FI as based on that a standardised approach to patient’s care can be determined
Reimagining Physical Education in Cyprus: Curriculum Standards, Teacher Training, and the Emergent Role of Physical Literacy
No full textCyprus is addressing the global challenge of physical inactivity through ongoing reforms to its Physical Education (PE) curriculum. Over the past 15 years, the Ministry of Education, Sport, and Youth has advanced a vision oriented towards lifelong physical activity (PA) and holistic student development, responding to pressing issues such as high childhood obesity rates and youth inactivity. This country report provides an overview of the Cyprus PE system, focusing on curriculum structure, teacher training, and emerging research trends related to Physical Literacy (PL). The current national PE curriculum, spanning from pre-primary to secondary education, is based on six standards that encompass physical, cognitive, emotional, and social learning domains, promoting the inclusion of theoretical content related to movement, health, and sports science. Assessment practices emphasise individual progress through diagnostic, formative, and summative approaches. Although not formally embedded in policy, the concept of PL is increasingly reflected in curricular goals and emerging research. PE teacher qualifications are regulated by national legislation and aligned with EU directives. This report also identifies current research efforts that aim to explore how PL can be more systematically embedded into curriculum design and implementation, and teacher training, positioning Cyprus within international efforts to enhance inclusive and evidence-informed PE
Making Physical Literacy Finally Visible Within England’s Physical Education Curriculum: The Importance of Teacher Training.
No full textThe chapter describes England’s Physical Education curriculum content in light of the current and ongoing national teaching curriculum review. This curriculum consultation process presents the Physical Education subject and its teachers, a wonderful opportunity to shape children’s future knowledge and practical activity. Physical Literacy, previously absent from all curriculum documents, is now being considered as a foundational principle to support England’s Quality PE provision. However, for this to be achieved in practice and for Physical Literacy to be fully embraced, teacher training programmes’ content and delivery mechanisms will require reviewing and enhancement. The chapter then explores
what this is starting to look like in England and some of the challenges that it is presented with. To conclude we consider what will be needed to facilitate children’s positive PE experiences underpinned by the Physical Literacy concept and the vital role of the new teachers joining the profession