10137 research outputs found
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Beyond Survival: Transformative Impacts of Integrating Mental Health and Livelihood Support in Conflict Zones
Get PDFYasin Duman - ORCID: 0000-0003-1367-1842
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1367-1842This article presents a case study of an integrated humanitarian intervention that combines mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) with livelihood assistance to enhance the psychosocial well-being, interpersonal relations, and social cohesion of internally displaced persons. Focusing on International Organization for Migration's MHPSS and Livelihood Integration project in Iraq, this paper critically assesses its outcomes and limitations in a protracted conflict and displacement context. Key findings reveal that MHPSS and Livelihood Integration project participants, compared to those in non-integrated programs, reported improved emotional well-being, new life skills and social skills, enhanced problem-solving and stress management abilities, as well as greater adaptability and motivation. Integration of MHPSS and livelihood activities also facilitated social network development and a sense of connectedness. These results show the effectiveness of integrated interventions in supporting the mental health and well-being of internally displaced persons, returnees, and vulnerable community members while promoting a sense of belonging and community cohesion, contributing indirectly to intracommunal peace and positive social transformation. Offering valuable empirical insights, this study contributes to humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding research by demonstrating how structured MHPSS activities can be integrated into livelihood programs to support the mental health and emotional well-being of affected populations in a protracted conflict setting.https://doi.org/10.1177/1542316624129384419pubpub2-
Embrace the Strange: Creativity within Festival Research
No full textKyla Tully - ORCID: 0000-0002-3023-7370
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3023-7370Item is not available in this repository.This chapter focuses on the utilisation of sketch illustration and still life photography during observations of the management and production of an experimental film festival. The author’s research details the incorporation of creative methods of field documentation within virtual and in-person ethnographic research.https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781032686424-6/embrace-strange-kyla-tullyinpressinpres
Co-creating a Rooted Herstory: Participatory practice with primary school children, and the case of Anne Livingstone, Countess of Kilmarnock
Get PDFThis article explores the development of a new herstorical play co-created with primary school children in Kilmarnock, Scotland. The play, which centred on the life of Countess Anne Livingstone Boyd, was produced through a series of workshops with the children and facilitated by the author. The process of exploring herstory with school children is the principal focus of this article. Through an exploration of methods and responses from participants, the author suggests key principles for the planning and delivery of such creative work in the primary classroom, and how these can be understood within a new framework termed rooted herstory.aheadofprintaheadofprin
A hypothetical intervention on the use of hearing aids for the risk of dementia in people with hearing loss in UK Biobank
Get PDFChristine Johnson - ORCID: 0000-0001-8573-5396
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8573-5396Observational studies have reported that hearing aid (HA) use is associated with a reduced risk of dementia diagnosis, suggesting a possible protective effect. However, extant observational studies do not explicitly model causal effects, while randomised controlled trials on the effect of HA on dementia exhibit short follow-up. Here we used self-report, hearing tests, and healthcare records in UK Biobank to design a hypothetical intervention for the effect of HA use on the risk of dementia diagnosis in people with incident hearing loss (HL). HA users exhibited a higher risk of dementia diagnosis than non-users (RR=1.43, 95%CI=1.08-1.88). Associations between HA use and dementia diagnosis were robust across sensitivity analyses (RRs: 1.34-1.59) but adjustment for primary healthcare utilisation (0.77, 0.44-1.33) or primary and secondary care utilisation (0.68, 0.39-1.18) substantially decreased the observed effect. The decrease in effect estimates upon adjustment for primary (1.30, 0.95-1.78) and primary and secondary healthcare utilisation (1.30, 0.94-1.78) was smaller when participants with relatively early diagnoses of HL were included in the sample compared to when they were not. While the findings are not conclusive, they suggest residual confounding by healthcare utilisation and dating of HL diagnosis in participants without primary care data in UK Biobank.https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwae452inpressinpres
Building Age-Inclusive Communities
No full textItem is not available in this repository.Sarah Kantartzis - ORCID: 0000-0001-5191-015X https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5191-015XAge-inclusive communities are broadly defined as communities that enable the participation of all members across the age spectrum. Given the centrality of occupation within age-inclusive communities, it is vital that occupational therapists are part of ongoing intersectoral and interdisciplinary efforts to build such communities and do so in partnership with older adults. Two broad models that address key contextual elements central in building age-inclusive communities are presented in this chapter, including the widely used World Health Organization’s (WHO) Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Framework (WHO, 2007) and a more recent critically informed Model of Social Exclusion proposed by Walsh et al. (2017). In addition, the chapter draws on contributions from various occupational therapy scholars who provide examples of concepts and processes that can inform occupational therapy practice aimed at contributing to age-inclusive communities, pointing to diverse possibilities and the centrality of collaboration with older adults and community stakeholders. © 2025 Elsevier Inc., its licensors, and contributors. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.pubpu
A Case Study in Non-Directive Child-Centred Play Therapy & Silent Nonverbal Communication. Self-expression through different play mediums and symbols in the playroom.
No full textSilence and nonverbal communication carry many meanings; however, society and educational settings often may not see them as valuable communication or self-expression tools. In the Play Therapy context, that is more recognisable, but still, some therapists may hold prejudice against silence and nonverbal cues as means for connecting and expressing one's inner self. Even though language is a unique human trait and skill that allows us to verbally articulate our interpretations of the world, children might not find language as easily accessible. Trauma, adversity, brain development and the ineffectiveness of language for capturing the depths of our experiences might be why some children use silent and nonverbal communication through different play mediums (e.g. painting, clay, building blocks) in the therapeutic space.
To conduct the case study, I used hermeneutic phenomenology with thematic and phenomenological analysis to explore the interpretation of my and the child's meaning of silent nonverbal communication in the playroom. Through observations, supervision, reviewing images of the child's work and my own process and holding the unknown at the centre of our shared experience, I could identify and synthesise the child's work into themes and use reflection and reflexivity to gain insights into the shared phenomenon.
The child used those play mediums and symbols to explore and make sense of their trauma and family dynamics, which are, in general, difficult to articulate verbally and in the course of attending Play Therapy, the child became more confident, relaxed, self-aware and validating of themselves. However, that empowerment may not be solely due to the therapeutic intervention. Moreover, considering the unknown factor of hermeneutic phenomenology, cultural differences and day-to-day circumstances, my interpretations of the phenomenon and the child's work may have a different meaning than the child's meaning-making
Promoting wellbeing in physiotherapy students on placement: The Placement Wellbeing Project. A pilot study.
Get PDFJenna Rhodes - ORCID: 0000-0002-9973-4383
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9973-4383AM replaced with VoR 2024-07-01Background
The current healthcare workforce crisis in the United Kingdom has highlighted the need to equip graduates with the skills to maintain their personal wellbeing whilst working in increasingly pressurised environments. The Placement Wellbeing Project is an intervention designed to support the wellbeing of physiotherapy students during their studies, while on placement and as they enter the workforce.
Methods
This project used a single group, repeated measures design. A convenience sample of 14 participants were recruited and provided with the Placement Wellbeing Toolkit (PWT) and took part in pre-placement facilitated group discussions and a post-placement de-briefing session. Outcomes measured were perceived coping abilities and self-efficacy, using the Placement Coping Scale (PCS) and the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSE). The PCS was measured on recruitment, before and after placement and the GSE on recruitment and after placement.
Results
Significant improvements were observed in the total PCS score (Friedman's test χ2(2) = 19.75, p<0.001) and all individual items of the PCS from baseline to post-placement. Post hoc analysis detected significant improvements between baseline and pre-placement total PCS scores (p = 0.005). Total GSE scores improved significantly from baseline to final measure (Wilcoxon sum-rank test Z = 2.105, p =0.035).
Conclusion
To develop a resilient future workforce, students should be supported to prepare for a variety of placement challenges and supported to maintain their wellbeing on placement. The results of this study indicate that physiotherapy students may benefit from interventions to develop positive coping strategies for placement.pubpu
A RETROSPECTIVE CLINICAL AUDIT OF THE CLINICAL APPLICATION OF THE RAYPILOT REAL TIME MOTION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND THE FEASABILITY OF ITS USE FOR FURTHER DOSE ESCALATED STEREOTACTIC BODY RADIOTHERAPY FOR PROSTATE CANCER.
Get PDFBackground and purpose
Prostate cancer is one of the most prevalent malignancies within oncology cases. Intrafraction motion is an important consideration in the clinical delivery of radiotherapy and indeed, long-term outcome and toxicity for patients. The purpose of this retrospective clinical audit was to review the efficacy of the RayPilot® real time motion management system and the impact that this has on planning target margins in prostate stereotactic body radiotherapy to assess if the RayPilot® system could be used clinically to allow for further dose escalation and fractionation reduction.
Materials and methods
Intrafraction motion was measured and recorded using the RayPilot® real time motion management system in seven patients. The RayPilot® system collated intrafraction data thirty times per second during treatment delivery for each patient. The collected data was then used to replan the patient in the Eclipse treatment planning software using reduced planning target margins to assess if this was a feasible method of dose escalation by reducing treatment fractionation.
Results
The RayPilot® recorded data resulted in 54175 intrafraction motion measurements in total. Mean displacement (following removal of outliers >0.3cm) was 0.1cm (SD± 0.1cm), 0.1cm (SD± 0.1cm) and 0.1cm (SD± 0.1cm) in the lateral, longitudinal and vertical directions respectively. The Van Herk Margin recipe was used to calculate the required clinical margins using the intrafraction motion data resulting in lateral, longitudinal and vertical margins of 0.7cm, 0.7cm and 0.7cm respectively. These margins allowed for dose escalation of 2400cGy in three fractions with no detrimental effects or increase in patient toxicity using dose volume histogram analysis.
Conclusion
RayPilot® is an efficient method of monitoring and recording prostate intrafraction motion and allowed for a reduction in target volume margins resulting in dose escalation in prostate stereotactic body radiotherapy. However, further analysis and research must be carried out to assess the feasibility of it being used as a stand-alone monitoring modality
The transformative power of local language encounters: Implications for teacher education
No full textItem is not available in this repository.Lorna Anderson - ORCID: 0000-0002-1940-5687
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1940-5687Scotland’s “1+2 Approach” introduces a second language (L2) for primary school pupils at age 5 and a third (L3) at age 9. While L2 has received most attention, L3 offers schools flexibility and more creativity. This chapter explores L3 as a radical space for pedagogical innovation, drawing on three Scottish studies of projects which actively engaged local communities, fostering encounters with local languages. They empowered students and teachers to learn and use languages in locally relevant ways, reshaping their identities as learners and educators. Through adopting a secondary analysis of teachers’ oral data, we illustrate how these local language encounters provided opportunities for potentially transformative experiences, for both teachers and pupils alike, and consider the implications for those involved in various teacher education contexts. © 2024 selection and editorial matter, Sandie Mourão and Carolyn Leslie; individual chapters, the contributors. All rights reserved.https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003289043-3pubpu
Walking a tightrope between policy and scholarship: reflections on integration principles in a hostile environment
Get PDFAlison Strang - ORCID: 0000-0003-3064-5283
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3064-5283The term ‘integration’ has received considerable academic attention, much of it critical. Yet it continues to be widely used in policy and practice to capture the processes of change that occur following migration from one country to another. In an environment of increasing hostility and anti-migrant sentiment, we outline the process of working with the UK Home Office and a wide range of stakeholders to revise the original Home Office Indicators of Integration framework [Ager and Strang (2008). “Understanding Integration: A Conceptual Framework.” Journal of Refugee Studies 21: 166–191]. We directly engage with some of the key criticisms of integration by offering four core, co-developed principles: shared responsibility, context, multi-dimensionality and multi-directionality. We believe these principles cut through the institutional cultural bias of policymakers and offer a new framework for thinking about integration policy, practice and scholarship. Our work underlines the importance of scholars taking the opportunity to engage with policy and to present scientific evidence as a mechanism to confront hostile immigration practices and address the social injustices that usually accompany migration.https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2024.236885550pubpub2
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