Abigail Breen, Sophie Brock, Katrina Crawford, Mary Docherty, Gavin Drummond, Lucy Gill, Sophie Lawton, Vivienne Mankarious, Andrea Oustayiannis, Gemma Rushworth and Kevin G. Kerr
Food‐borne infection remains a major public health concern and it is important that healthcare professionals in training understand the epidemiology of gastro‐intestinal infection…
Abstract
Purpose
Food‐borne infection remains a major public health concern and it is important that healthcare professionals in training understand the epidemiology of gastro‐intestinal infection and strategies for its prevention. This article describes a student selected component (SSC), i.e. an element which supplements the core curriculum for undergraduate medical students and its use as an educational tool.
Design/methodology/approach
The SSC incorporated a refrigerator safari in which students examined a number of domestic refrigerators for factors which might affect adversely the microbiological quality of the food within them as well as determining refrigerator temperatures with a sensitive thermometer.
Findings
The refrigerator safaris, although small in number (n=25) highlighted a number of frequently occurring factors such as unacceptable refrigerator temperatures and foods which had passed their use by/best before dates. Student feedback indicated that the safari was much appreciated as a practical way of learning about food safety.
Originality/value
The refrigerator safari is a novel method for the teaching of undergraduate students about food hygiene in the domestic setting and emphasises that consumers have important roles and responsibilities in protecting themselves from food‐borne infection.
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Ketan Ramesh Sonigra, Lucy McIvor, James Payne-Gill, Tim Smith and Alison Beck
There is a proportion of psychiatric service users whose needs are not met by existing models of care. This can lead to a reliance on acute and crisis services. These service…
Abstract
Purpose
There is a proportion of psychiatric service users whose needs are not met by existing models of care. This can lead to a reliance on acute and crisis services. These service users may be considered high intensity users (HIUs). The purpose of this research is to evaluate the Crisis Plus model, an intervention designed to better support HIUs in the community and reduce dependency on acute and crisis services.
Design/methodology/approach
Forty-seven HIUs were involved in Crisis Plus. The core intervention of Crisis Plus was an Anticipatory Management Plan (AMP), produced in collaboration with service users, their families and their care coordinators. AMPs were shared with relevant services and attached to electronic patient notes to ensure a uniform, psychologically informed approach to care.
Findings
HIU service use was compared pre and post-AMP. On average, number of inpatient admissions, number of days spent on the ward, accepted psychiatric liaison referrals and accepted home treatment team (HTT) referrals decreased significantly.
Practical implications
Crisis Plus has taken a collaborative, proactive approach to engage HIUs, their families and the services that care for them. Crisis interventions that emphasise collaborative working and service user agency are key.
Originality/value
The provision of dedicated psychological support to HIUs and their professional and personal network is crucial to reduce reliance on acute and crisis care. Crisis Plus is unique in that it instigates co-production and active consultation with HIUs and services to improve clinical outcomes, in addition to reducing NHS expenditure.
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Sam Bennett, Helen Sanderson and Gill Bailey
The active and passive flow of information that this issue of WwOP has so far explored is all about the betterment of older people's lives. But how far can we drill down into the…
Abstract
The active and passive flow of information that this issue of WwOP has so far explored is all about the betterment of older people's lives. But how far can we drill down into the minutiae of an individual's life in order to make it better without being intrusive? Through the story of Dennis, Sam Bennett, Helen Sanderson and Gill Bailey now describe a method that is being refined to do just that.
Claire Lewis, Biza Stenfert-Kroese and Alex O'Brien
While an increasing number of adults with an intellectual disability are having children, research suggests that they face an increased risk of having their children removed. The…
Abstract
Purpose
While an increasing number of adults with an intellectual disability are having children, research suggests that they face an increased risk of having their children removed. The purpose of this paper is to explore child and family social workers’ experiences of working with parents with intellectual disability, in order to further our understanding of this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
Seven social workers were interviewed. Each had experience of working on safeguarding cases where a parent had a diagnosis of intellectual disability. Data were analyzed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis.
Findings
Five super-ordinate themes were identified. These were: “feeling torn,” “experiencing a power imbalance,” “hopelessness,” having “pride” in their work’ and experiencing “barriers.”
Research limitations/implications
The results are discussed in the context of the increased risk that parents with an intellectual disability face of having their children removed. Several areas for future research are identified.
Practical implications
The study highlights several areas for development regarding services for parents with intellectual disability.
Originality/value
The study describes some of the difficulties experienced by social workers in this area of their work, from their own perspective. It also strengthens existing ideas about improving services for parents with intellectual disability.
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Lucy Rattrie and Markus Kittler
The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore well-being experiences of international business travellers (IBTs) and contribute to our understanding of personal and job…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore well-being experiences of international business travellers (IBTs) and contribute to our understanding of personal and job characteristics as antecedents of ill- or well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors’ insights are based on semi-structured in-depth interviews with 32 IBTs assigned to various destinations ranging from single-country travel to global operation. Participants in this study represent a range of traveller personas (regarding demographics, type of work, travel patterns). Thematic analysis is used to reveal new insights.
Findings
The authors’ analysis revealed trip-load (i.e. workload, control, organisational support) and intensity of travel (i.e. frequency, duration and quality) as job characteristics that sit on an energy stimulation continuum, driving work-related outcomes such as stress and burnout or health and well-being. Energy draining and boosting processes are moderated by cognitive flexibility and behavioural characteristics.
Practical implications
Findings represent a framework for managing IBT well-being via adjustments in job and travel characteristics, plus guidance for training and development to help IBTs self-manage.
Originality/value
The insights within this paper contribute to the conversation around how to enhance well-being for IBTs and frequent flyers. The study intends to offer direction as to which specific job, psychological and behavioural characteristics to focus on, introducing a novel framework for understanding and avoiding serious consequences associated with international mobility such as increased stress, burnout and ill-health.
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Tullio Caputo, Michael Louis McIntyre, Lucy Meng Yi Wang and Tarah K. Hodgkinson
The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a test in a policing context of a performance assessment tool that is based on a “public values” approach. The Capability…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a test in a policing context of a performance assessment tool that is based on a “public values” approach. The Capability, Importance, and Value (CIV) Tool allows police organizations to examine the roles their members carry out to determine whether they are being capably done, are important, and deliver value to stakeholders.
Design/methodology/approach
Five focus groups were conducted with front line officers from a large Canadian police service. The focus group process incorporated elements of Appreciative Inquiry and Structured Brainstorming.
Findings
Valuable information can be collected from front line police officers with the CIV Tool. Police organizations could use this information to improve performance while ensuring that the roles undertaken by their members align with broader organizational goals and objectives including providing value to stakeholders.
Research limitations/implications
This study was designed as a limited test of the CIV Tool. More extensive testing is required with a larger sample that includes police investigators and members of other specialty units.
Practical implications
The CIV Tool can serve to augment existing police performance measurement strategies. It can help to identify which roles contribute to achieving organizational goals and which do not. Based on this information, ameliorative action can be taken.
Social implications
A “public values” approach places emphasis on stakeholder needs and expectations. Addressing these directly can result in enhanced performance as well as greater police transparency, responsiveness, and accountability.
Originality/value
Ongoing police performance assessment based on a “public values” approach is uncommon in policing. Its use has important implications for police organizations and their stakeholders.
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Lucy Tinning, Kate Harman, Rachel Lee and June Brown
Promoting mental health and meeting the needs of the large numbers of the general public with problems of anxiety and depression is a big challenge. Particular difficulties are…
Abstract
Promoting mental health and meeting the needs of the large numbers of the general public with problems of anxiety and depression is a big challenge. Particular difficulties are the low capacity of the therapy services and the reluctance of the general public to seek help. The aim of this study was to compare the attendance, effectiveness and characteristics of participants self‐referring to six different psycho‐educational workshops, each using non‐diagnostic titles: self‐confidence; stress; sleep; relationships; happiness; and anger. The series of day‐long workshops ran for one year and were offered to members of the general public in south east London. Over a quarter had not previously sought help from their GP. The take‐up rates for the self‐confidence, sleep and anger workshops were highest and one month after attending these workshops, participants reported significantly lower depression and distress. It was concluded that a self‐referral route to some day‐long workshops can attract quite large numbers of the general public and provide access to effective psychological treatment. These workshops can be used as an effective way of promoting mental health and improving the provision of evidence‐based mental health treatment in the community, possibly within the Improving Access to Psychological Treatments (IAPT) programme in the UK.
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This paper, based on the experience of running a workshop on library automation in Estonia combined with visits to several major libraries, outlines the main problems faced by…
Abstract
This paper, based on the experience of running a workshop on library automation in Estonia combined with visits to several major libraries, outlines the main problems faced by Estonian libraries in recent years and the steps taken to improve the situation. It provides insight, through analysis of articles published by (mostly) Estonian professionals into the problems of identifying the problems — lack of funds, lack of qualifications, organisational problems, and searching for possible solutions: networking, resource sharing, use of information technology and international co‐operation. A description of the role of the Open Society's Regional Library Programme in supporting these steps and details about some of the Estonian libraries that were visited prior to the workshop complete the picture of a varied library landscape, richer for its splendid new national library in one of the smallest states on the outskirts of the new Europe.