4208 research outputs found
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Real-time monitoring of volatile fatty acids using a novel VFAs analyser and automated high solids separation system
Full text linkVolatile fatty acids (VFAs) are key intermediates in anaerobic digestion (AD), serving as essential indicators for process control and biogas yield optimization. This study presents and evaluates an innovative, fully automated system for real-time VFAs monitoring, which combines a VFAs analyser with an automated solids separation unit (SSU). The VFAs analyser is based on capillary electrophoresis and is capable of quantifying acetate, propionate, and butyrate over a wide concentration range (1–50 mg/L, extendable to 1–5000 mg/L through the integrated auto-dilution feature), with high linearity (r2 > 0.999) and precision (RSD < 3 %). A built-in auto-dilution algorithm dynamically adjusts the sample dilution factor, enabling continuous, unattended operation. To ensure accurate analysis of complex AD samples, the SSU automatically prepares solids-free filtrates using disposable syringe filters and includes automated filter replacement. The SSU processed 2106 digestate samples with high reliability and minimal manual intervention. Furthermore, the impact of common anions and matrix components on analytical performance was investigated to assess robustness. The fully integrated system enables reliable, high-frequency VFA measurements directly from digestate, providing a valuable tool for enhancing AD process monitoring, stability, and control
The role of professional football clubs in enhancing young people’s mental health: A mixed-method survey of interventions delivered by English Football League Trusts
Full text linkAims: Football Club Community Trusts (FCCTs) that are attached to professional football clubs in the UK use the sport brand to engage marginalised populations in various initiatives designed to address public health agendas. Studies highlight the impact that FCCTs can have on adults’ mental health, yet less is known about programmes for young people under 18 years. This study is the first to identify the mental health-focussed interventions for young people that are delivered by the FCCTs in the English Football League (EFL), including the key programme features and challenges to implementation. Methods: A 60-item mixed-method survey was sent to all 70 FCCTs in the EFL during the 2018–2019 season in September 2018. In total, 54 (77.1%) FCCTs responded. Results: In total, 21 FCCTs were delivering mental health-focused interventions to young people and 23 different initiatives were identified. Reported aims included promoting resilience (n = 19/21, 90.5%) and self-esteem (n = 19/21, 90.5%), as well as identifying young people at risk of developing a mental health problem (n = 9/21, 42.9%). However, features of individual programmes varied. Some used football to increase social inclusion and overall wellbeing, whereas others included education sessions to improve mental health literacy (e.g. anti-stigma, strategies to promote mental health). FCCTs also reported challenges with evaluating their own interventions, sustaining funding, and keeping up to date with mental health training. Conclusions: This study contributes to the limited literature on professional sport club community trust interventions, highlighting the value of programmes targeting children and young people’s mental health. FCCT programmes align with mental health promotion and prevention policy, by providing opportunities to participate in physical activity (PA), develop mental health literacy, and identify young people at risk of developing mental health problems. Collaboration with organisations with expertise in service evaluation, audit, and research is essential to support FCCTs in evaluating their impact and demonstrating the significance of their work.</p
The Use of Triage in Primary Care in the UK: An Integrative Review and Narrative Synthesis
Full text linkAims: To examine the use of triage systems in primary care in the UK. Design: Integrative literature review and narrative synthesis. Data Sources: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and Cochrane Library were searched in October 2024. Methods: An integrative literature review was conducted following Whittemore and Knafl's (2005) five‐step process. Of 1440 articles retrieved, 305 duplicates were removed, and 1086 excluded after title and abstract screening. Two additional articles were identified through citation and hand searches. Twenty studies were quality‐assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, and data were extracted for narrative synthesis. Results: Twenty studies were selected, including four randomised controlled trials, three quasi‐experimental studies, eleven descriptive studies and two qualitative studies. The most common type of triage was telephone triage, most frequently performed by nurses. The most common health outcomes included subsequent patient re‐contacts after triage, patient symptoms or complaints, current health status and patient safety. The benefits of triage included high patient satisfaction, workload redistribution, reduced GP workload and emergency department crowding, improved resource utilisation, access to care and communication. The challenges of triage included increased overall contact time, mis‐triage issues, recruitment and retention challenges, the unsuitability of the decision support tool for the primary care setting and lower usage among older and less affluent groups. Conclusions: This review examined the current use of triage in primary care in the UK, identifying common patterns in triage processes and classifications. Several benefits were identified, though some ongoing concerns about triage remain. Impact: This paper provides essential evidence about the current use, effectiveness and challenges of triage in UK primary care. The findings can support healthcare policymakers, practitioners and researchers in planning and improving triage systems. No Patient or Public Contribution: Integrative review.<br/
The Value of Counter-Storytelling in Decolonising the Curriculum: Insights from an Art School Educational Developer
Full text linkDevelopment and validation of a reflective tool to measure compassionate care for older people in health and social care settings
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Neural Networks for Phase Shift Optimization of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces under Imperfect Channel State Information
Full text linkReconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is a key enabling technology for the sixth generation (6G) of mobile networks. It can focus the signal at an intended location (e.g., a user hotspot) through dynamically adjusting the phase shifts of its passive reflecting elements, thereby enhancing the signal quality and network coverage. However, the optimal configuration of the phase shift profile of RIS is challenging since it requires accurate channel state information (CSI), which is prohibitively expensive to acquire in practice because the number of reflecting elements in RIS is usually large. To address this limitation, in this paper, we train and test a fully-connected neural network (FCN) that estimates the optimal phase shift profile of RIS from noisy CSI measurements. We evaluate the performance of the proposed Machine Learning (ML) model in terms of different key performance indicators (KPIs), including the system bit error rate (BER) and throughput, phase shift estimation mean square error (MSE), and the training time of the neural network itself. Simulation results demonstrate that our proposed technique can significantly improve the performance in RIS-assisted wireless networks, reducing the gap to the optimal network throughput to below 1 %.</p
We fed people a milkshake with 130g of fat to see what it did to their brains – here’s what we learned
Full text linkMusic for displaced dyads: a mixed methods feasibility study on the impact of music therapy on the mental health and wellbeing of Ukrainian refugee families
Full text linkBackground: Global displacement has reached unprecedented levels, with refugee mothers and children particularly vulnerable to psychological distress. Following the war in Ukraine, many families face trauma, disrupted parenting, and limited access to mental health services. Music therapy (MT) offers a non-pharmacological, culturally adaptable approach to support psychosocial wellbeing. This feasibility study explored the impact of a dyadic MT intervention on Ukrainian refugee caregivers and their children resettled in the UK. Methods: Four groups of 4–6 caregiver-child dyads participated in an 8-week improvisational MT program, co-designed with caregivers and culturally tailored. A mixedmethods approach included: (1) quantitative pre/post measures of PTSD, depression, anxiety, wellbeing, cognitive functioning, parenting self-efficacy, musical home environment, and social connectedness; (2) physiological assessment of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) as an index of autonomic regulation; and (3) post-intervention semi-structured interviews with caregivers.Results: Significant improvements were observed in caregivers’ PTSD, depression, anxiety, and cognitive functioning. RSA data indicated increased parasympathetic activity, suggesting improved emotional regulation. Non-significant trends emerged in parenting and home musical engagement. Qualitative analysis identified enhanced child communication, socioemotional functioning, and transference of musical engagement into the home.Conclusion: This study is the first to demonstrate the feasibility and potential efficacy of MT for improving mental health and parent-child dynamics among displaced Ukrainian families. Findings support MT as a low-cost, trauma-informed, and scalable intervention. Further research is needed to evaluate its impact in larger, culturally diverse refugee populations through randomized controlled trials
Drag and Heat Reduction for Blunt Bodies in Hypersonic Flows using a Novel Double Aerodisk
Full text linkHigh speed aerodynamic drag and heating are the two major causes of concern in fly missions of hypersonic vehicles. For such flows, the installation of an aerospike in front of the vehicle's nose has been an effective solution for reducing wave drag and thermal loads over the vehicle's body for years. In this study, a novel design of the blunt nose attached with a double-aerospike for hypersonic vehicles is proposed, which reduces both the drag and the aerodynamic heating. The fluid and thermal fields around the double-aerospike at the ratio of spike length (L) to diameter of the blunt body (D) of 2 and various angles-of-attack (AOA) are investigated numerically using ANSYS-Fluent at a Mach number of 6. The results show a good agreement with the available experimental data of a flat-faced attached single aerospike and that the novel double aerospike significantly reduces the drag coefficient by 15.55% and 29.23% at 5º and 8º angles-of-attack, respectively, compared to the single spiked configuration. The novel double aerospike reduces the aerodynamic heating for all the studied angles of attack (α=0º, 5º & 8º). The modified configuration also shows a reduction in the temperature difference between the upper and lower frontal areas of the blunt body by 96.25% at 8º AOA compared to the single spike model