Psychology, Public Policy, and Law23.2 (May 2017): 166-177.
In many common-law jurisdictions around the world, criminal courts are facing or will soon face the unmitigated challenge of prosecuting cases of child sexual abuse that are reported to have happened in the past, often decades earlier. In Canada, criminal prosecutions of historic child sexual abuse (HCSA) have been common for a long time, providing an opportunity to study changes over time in such prosecutions. In the current research, we coded 3,035 HCSA complaints on 12 variables and looked at changes in those variables between 1986 and 2012. Across court dates, the average age of the complainant when the alleged offense began increased, duration decreased, frequency decreased, intrusiveness decreased, and length of delay to criminal court decreased from the late 1990s. Although guilty pleas, convictions, and guilty verdicts decreased through the 1990s, there was an increase in all 3 beginning in the early 2000s. Length of incarceration increased for those convicted. These data are discussed in the context of education, legal change, and social attitudes toward delayed reporting of child sexual abuse. Policy implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract) To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
This dementia-friendly housing charter seeks to make the housing sector including housing organisations, corporate bodies and sector professionals aware of the challenges of living with dementia so that it can improve home environments for people with the condition.
Sleep problems are very common in people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, and impact negatively on functioning and wellbeing. Research regarding interventions to improve sleep in this population has been lacking. Little is known regarding these patient’s perspectives on sleep problems and their treatment, providing very little foundation on which to develop acceptable and patient-centred treatments.
KPMG’s financial analysis found that, where potential changes in care packages could be identified and where financial information could be supplied by care providers, the over-provision of care exceeded the under-provision of care. When extrapolated to a 12 month period there was a potential over-provision of care (potential savings) of £1.577 million and an under-provision of care of £692,000.
The KPMG analysis found that, even taking into account the need to remedy the under-provision, Just Checking would pay for itself within 9 weeks.
Blog post. Back in the 1960s, Nobel-prize winning research shook our understanding of what it means to be a conscious entity. Epilepsy patients who’d had the thick bundle of nerves connecting their two brain hemispheres either severed or removed (as a drastic treatment for their epilepsy) responded in laboratory tasks as if they had two separate minds.
It’s an unsettling idea that has appeared in psychology textbooks for decades. But dig into the original studies and you’ll find the evidence for split brains leading to split minds was mostly descriptive. Now a team of researchers led by Yair Pinto at the University of Amsterdam has conducted systematic testing of two split-brain patients over several years, specifically to find out whether the division of their brains has also separated their consciousness. In fact, the results, published recently in the journal Brain, suggest their consciousness remains unified. It may be time to rewrite the textbooks.
Untreated depression among persons with chronic general health conditions (chronic health conditions) affects mortality, functional disability, quality of life, and health care costs. Currently, studies of the association between depression care and chronic health conditions report inconsistent results, and studies of depression care among persons with specific health conditions are rare. This study investigated the association between chronic health conditions and the likelihood of receiving depression care among individuals with depression. Login at top right hand side of page using your SSSFT NHS Athens for full text. SSOTP - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
Objective: The aim was to illustrate uses and experiences with the secure e-recovery portal “ReConnect” as an adjunct to ongoing community mental health care and explore its potential role in shifting practices toward recovery.
Surrey and Borders Partnership's 'Technology Integrated Health Management' for dementia. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and SFJ Awards have launched a new Level 5 Qualification to ensure staff recognise and develop the knowledge and skills required for intevestigating serious incidents in healthcare care.
Digital technology is changing the world, but is it doing the same for people with dementia? Phil Joddrell and Arlene Astell argue that it can, so long as tablet computer “apps” are adapted so that everyone can enjoy using them. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
The picture exchange communication system (PECS) is an established communication intervention for non-verbal children with autism. The purpose of this paper is to present an evaluation of a computer-based PECS approach, in which young non-verbal children with autism respond to an on-screen “virtual tutor” through the manipulation of picture/symbol cards. The paper presents research to investigate how the virtual tutor’s voice influences the children’s participation and performance. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
Few trials have compared psychosocial therapies for people with bipolar affective disorder, and conventional meta-analyses provided limited comparisons between therapies.
Aims- To combine evidence for the efficacy of psychosocial interventions used as adjunctive treatment of bipolar disorder in adults, using network meta-analysis (NMA). You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
The perinatal period is a time of high risk for onset of depressive disorders and is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality, including maternal suicide. Perinatal depression comprises a heterogeneous group of clinical subtypes, and further refinement is needed to improve treatment outcomes. We sought to empirically identify and describe clinically relevant phenotypic subtypes of perinatal depression, and further characterise subtypes by time of symptom onset within pregnancy and three post-partum periods. Please contact the library to request a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
This briefing note describes how local authority spending on adult social care has evolved since 2000-01, what could happen to spending under current plans, and the challenges faced by social care in the long run.
Before I was a medical librarian my library had been tracking every article, book, and book chapter that somebody within the institution authored. It used to be a list that was published then it evolved into a database that was on a citation management software.
Research News. GPs should refer overweight or obese adults to weight loss programmes for 12 months rather than the standard three months, researchers have recommended.
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Knowledge management has seen something of a resurgence in attention amongst health librarians recently. Of course it has never ceased to exist, but now many library staff are becoming more involved in organisational knowledge management, and positioning themselves as key players in the sphere. No single model of knowledge management is proliferating, but approaches that best fit the organisation's size, structure and culture, and a blending of evidence based practice and knowledge sharing. Whatever it is called and whatever models are used, it's clear that for librarians and information professionals, the importance of putting knowledge and evidence into practice, sharing knowledge well and capturing it effectively, are still what we will continue to do.
Aim: To reduce the incidence of self-harming behaviour and improve well-being and experience of care for individuals who present regularly to the emergency department in one hospital following self-harm, by providing outpatient care.
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App Review. This app is for carers of people with dementia. Developed by Health Education England’s Thames Valley team in partnership with the University of Reading and in collaboration with healthcare professionals and carers, it offers practical information to support users’ understanding of the progressive nature of dementia and the challenges of caring for someone with the condition.
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Calling for the rest of the UK to follow the example of Wales and enshrine safe staffing in law, the RCN reports that a dangerous set of pressures is putting patient safety at risk.
This article introduces the concept of spirituality in mental healthcare and its relevance to practice. It uses a short case study as an example from practice using Borton’s (1970) framework. After this, an analysis of recent literature discusses gaps in spiritual care provision from the perspectives of service users and nurses. The author offers recommendations to improve spiritual care at different levels of mental healthcare, with examples of successful implementation from different NHS trusts.
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Purpose: The purpose of this study was to gain insight from speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) regarding appealing features of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) applications. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
The article discusses the Emergency Contraception (EC) guideline launched by the Faculty for Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH). Topics explored include the concerns raised by the FSRH over results of a ComRes survey on EC awareness, effectiveness of the copper intrauterine device (IUD) particularly in terms of long-term contraception, and the need for healthcare professionals to recommend the copper IUD to women who need EC.
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The aim of this study is to examine the hypotheses stating the importance of amyloid or of its oligomers in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
Open access. Coronary artery disease (CAD) is frequently accompanied by white matter hyperintensities and executive dysfunction. Because acetylcholine is important in executive function, these symptoms may be exacerbated by subcortical hyperintensities (SH) located in cholinergic (CH) tracts. This study investigated the effects of SH on cognitive changes in CAD patients undergoing a 48-week cardiac rehabilitation program.
A nurse whose husband died at home is calling for the end of life helpline she staffs to be rolled out nationally.
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Religion should be included in the vital discussions about the care people and those close to them want to receive in the last two to three days of life, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
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Question Is uncomplicated childhood-onset epilepsy associated with increased brain amyloid accumulation?
Findings In this population-based case-control study of Finnish adults who had childhood epilepsy and were followed up prospectively for more than 50 years from their disease onset and a group of matched controls, individuals with childhood-onset epilepsy, and particularly APOE ε4 carriers, had an increased brain amyloid load as measured with positron emission tomography at late middle age.
Meaning Childhood-onset epilepsy is linked with a biomarker that might be associated with accelerated brain aging and can be considered as a neurobiological predisposition to later-life cognitive disorders. Please contact the library to request a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
With further expansion of the number of conditions for which newborn screening can be undertaken, it is timely to consider the impact of positive screening results and the confirmatory testing period on the families involved. This study was undertaken as part of a larger programme of work to evaluate the Expanded Newborn Screening (ENBS) programme in the United Kingdom (UK). It was aimed to determine the views and experiences of healthcare professionals (HCPs) and parents on communication and interaction during the period of confirmatory testing following a positive screening result.
Individuals with intellectual disability experience the same chronic diseases and conditions as the general population, but are more likely to have physical and psychological co-morbidities, resulting in a higher risk of experiencing pain and having more frequent or severe pain.
This position paper aims to highlight the importance of pain assessment for people with intellectual disability. Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
In the UK, a significant proportion of male remand prisoners have alcohol problems. Alcohol Brief Interventions (ABIs) are an effective component of a population-level approach to harmful and hazardous drinking. ABIs have been shown to reduce the aggregate level of alcohol consumed and therefore reduce harm to the individual and to others. However, in relation to remand prisoners, there is no evidence as to how effective ABIs could be. The aims of this study are therefore to explore the feasibility and acceptability of an ABI for adult male remand prisoners and to develop an ABI for this group to be piloted in a future trial.
Open Access Article
Befriending is an emotional supportive relationship in which one-to-one companionship is provided on a regular basis by a volunteer. It is commonly and increasingly offered by the voluntary sector for individuals with distressing physical and mental conditions. However, the effectiveness of this intervention on health outcomes is largely unknown. We aim to conduct a systematic review of the benefits of befriending.
Open Access Article
Regular physical activity is a fundamental means of improving people and population's physical and mental health.
...This infographic demonstrates that regular physical activity throughout the life-course enables people to live better and longer lives. It inspires people to “make physical activity a part of daily life, during all stages of life”.
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Mental health in sport is a hard-hitting topic that is frequently the subject of news coverage and increasingly a theme for avid research. Some suggest that cricketers, participating in a game unique in its statistical analysis of individual performance, prolonged periods of play away from home and extended solitary game time to reflect on errors, may be especially prone to developing depression. This hypothesis is supported by a higher rate of suicide among male Test cricketers when compared with the UK male general population.
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Depression in bipolar disorder (BipD) requires a therapeutic approach that is from treating unipolar major depressive disorder (UniD), but to date, no reliable methods could separate these two disorders. The aim of this study was to establish the clinical validity and utility of a non-invasive functional MRI-based method to classify BipD from UniD. Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that originates from childhood trauma experiences can develop into a chronic condition that has lasting effects on an individual’s functioning and quality of life. While there are evidence-based guidelines for treating adult onset PTSD, treatments for adults with childhood trauma-related PTSD (Ch-PTSD) are varied and subject to ongoing debate. This study will test the effectiveness of two trauma-focused treatments, imagery rescripting (ImRs) and eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) in participants with Ch-PTSD. Both have been found effective in treatment of adult PTSD or mixed onset PTSD and previous research indicates they are well-tolerated treatments. However, we know less about their effectiveness for treating Ch-PTSD or their underlying working mechanisms.
Across the four countries of the UK, at least one-third of adults are insufficiently active, which is higher than the global average, the majority of our European neighbours and the USA.
The 2011 physical activity recommendations, published by the four UK Chief Medical Officers (CMOs), emphasised the goal of achieving an active lifestyle across the life course. The challenge of increasing and sustaining the physical activity levels of the UK's child and adult populations has been central to national policies and plans since the mid-1990s. ... However, basic knowledge of the physical activity recommendations, and their components, has remained consistently low across health professionals and the public with as few as 11–15% correctly recalling the current guidelines.
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Sufferers from bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder (BED) underestimate the severity risk of their illness and, therefore, postpone seeking professional help for years. Moreover, less than one in five actually seek professional help and only 50% respond to current treatments, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). The impetus for the present trial is to explore a novel combination treatment approach adapted from physical exercise- and dietary therapy (PED-t). The therapeutic underpinnings of these separate treatment components are well-known, but their combination to treat BN and BED have never been previously tested. The purpose of this paper is to provide the rationale for this new treatment approach and to outline the specific methods and procedures.
To determine the magnitude and pattern of internet usage by undergraduate medical students to retrieve medical information. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
Using my clinical academic knowledge and understanding of dementia, with the library team provided the underpinning research based framework; we were able to highlight skills and understanding to enhance care, and support patients and staff in a more person centred approach.
dementia 3Our dementia volunteers all receive dementia care as part of their corporate training, and attend additional presentations about meal time support. There are opportunities to attend further sessions such as Sage and Thyme and Dignity Awareness. Evidence of their visits and input is recorded to capture the difference it is making and to be able to report back to Carers and Patients’ Experience (CAPE) board.