Conectar
Three-quarters of mental health problems start before the age of 25. However, young people are the least likely to receive mental healthcare. Some young people (such as those from ethnic minorities) are even less likely to receive mental healthcare than others. Long-term impacts of mental health problems include poorer physical health, relationships, education and employment. We aim to elicit the views, experiences and needs of diverse young people (aged 16–24 years), to better understand (1) their experiences of under-representation, mental health and coping, (2) mechanisms that shape mental health trajectories and (3) how online arts and culture might be made engaging and useful for young people’s mental health. We also aim to do this with autistic young people.
Narrative inquiry will be employed as a tool for gathering young people’s perspectives for an iterative analysis. The narrative method proposes that critical insights and knowledge are distributed across social systems and can be discovered in personal stories and that knowledge can be relayed, stored and retrieved through these stories. Data will be transcribed and explored using a combination of thematic and intersectional analysis. Young people will be core members of the research team, shape the research and be involved in the coding of data and interpretation of the findings.
This study (IRAS project ID 340259) has received ethical approval from the HRA and Health and Care Research Wales (REC reference 24/SC/0083). The outputs will identify touch points and refine the logic model of how online arts and culture might support the mental health of those from under-represented backgrounds. We will share knowledge with young people, policy makers, health professionals, carers, teachers, social workers and people who work in arts and culture. We will produce research papers, blogs, newsletters, webinars, videos and podcasts.
The incidence of anal carcinoma is increasing, with the current gold standard treatment being chemoradiotherapy. There is currently a wide range in the radiotherapy dose used internationally which may lead to overtreatment of early-stage disease and potential undertreatment of locally advanced disease.
PLATO is an integrated umbrella trial protocol which consists of three trials focused on assessing risk-adapted use of adjuvant low-dose chemoradiotherapy in anal margin tumours (ACT3), reduced-dose chemoradiotherapy in early anal carcinoma (ACT4) and dose-escalated chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced anal carcinoma (ACT5), given with standard concurrent chemotherapy.
The primary endpoints of PLATO are locoregional failure (LRF)-free rate for ACT3 and ACT4 and LRF-free survival for ACT5. Secondary objectives include acute and late toxicities, colostomy-free survival and patient-reported outcome measures. ACT3 will recruit 90 participants: participants with removed anal tumours with margins ≤1 mm will receive lower dose chemoradiotherapy, while participants with anal tumours with margins >1 mm will be observed. ACT4 will recruit 162 participants, randomised on a 1:2 basis to receive either standard-dose intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in combination with chemotherapy or reduced-dose IMRT in combination with chemotherapy. ACT5 will recruit 459 participants, randomised on a 1:1:1 basis to receive either standard-dose IMRT in combination with chemotherapy, or one of two increased-dose experimental arms of IMRT with synchronous integrated boost in combination with chemotherapy.
This study has been approved by Yorkshire & The Humber – Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee (ref: 16/YH/0157, IRAS: 204585), July 2016. Results will be disseminated via national and international conferences, peer-reviewed journal articles and social media. A plain English report will be shared with the study participants, patients’ organisations and media.
To understand experiences of stigma and discrimination among adults who are homeless across multiple care and support system contexts.
Cross-sectional survey embedded within an ethnographic case study.
South London, UK, 2024.
Convenience sample of 74 people experiencing homelessness, aged over 18 years.
Participants most commonly reported unfair treatment in public settings (85%), legal settings (72%), housing and homelessness services (68%) and health settings (65%). These experiences were attributed to a range of factors and identities, with homelessness the most commonly cited; people commonly linked unfair experiences to multiple identities. People with more comorbidities reported experiencing unfair treatment across more system settings, including and beyond health systems.
Unfair treatment was reported across multiple care and support systems with greater ill-health associated with more unfair treatment. Future larger-scale surveys should measure the extent of stigma and discrimination across the population.
The Puerto Rico Department of Health (PRDH) seeks to identify dengue epidemics as early as possible with high specificity.
Development and prospective application of an early warning system for dengue epidemics using routine historical surveillance data. A weekly intercept-only negative binomial regression model was fitted using historical probable and confirmed dengue data. A range of threshold definitions was explored using three model-estimated percentiles of weekly dengue case counts.
Dengue is endemic in Puerto Rico with irregular occurrence of large epidemics with substantial impact on health burden and health systems. Probable and confirmed dengue data are routinely collected from all hospitals and private clinics.
A total of 86 282 confirmed or probable dengue virus cases were reported from 1 January 1986 to 30 June 2024, with an annual mean of 2212 cases (median: 1533; range: 40–10 356).
The model was fitted retrospectively to mimic real-time epidemic detection and assessed based on sensitivity and specificity of epidemic detection.
The 75th percentile threshold aligned best with historical epidemic classifications, balancing false alarms and missed detections. This model provides a robust method for defining thresholds, accounting for skewed data, using all historical data and improving on traditional methods like endemic channels.
In March 2024, PRDH declared a public health emergency due to an early, out-of-season surge in cases that exceeded the epidemic alert threshold developed in this study. This real-time application highlights the value of these thresholds to support dengue epidemic detection and public health response. Integrating thresholds with other tools and strategies can enhance epidemic preparedness and management.
To explore the challenges experienced by people with intellectual disability, their carers and health and social care professionals when using and managing medication.
A synthesis of qualitative research using meta-ethnography.
We searched seven databases: MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, Science, Social Science and Conference Proceedings Citation Indices (Web of Science), Cochrane Library, PsycINFO and Proquest Dissertations and Theses from inception to September 2022 (updated in July 2023).
We included studies exploring the challenges and perceptions of people with intellectual disability, their carers and health and social care professionals regarding medication management and use.
We reviewed 7593 abstracts and 475 full texts, resulting in 45 included papers. Four major themes were identified: (1) Medication-related issues, (2) navigating autonomy and relationships, (3) knowledge and training needs and (4) inequalities in the healthcare system. We formulated a conceptual framework centred around people with intellectual disability and described the interconnectedness between them, their carers and health and social care professionals in the process of managing and using medication. We identified challenges that could be associated with the person, the medication and/or the context, along with a lack of understanding of these challenges and a lack of capability or resources to tackle them. We developed an overarching concept of ‘collective collaboration’ as a potential solution to prevent or mitigate problems related to medication use in people with intellectual disability.
The effective management of medication for people with intellectual disability requires a collaborative and holistic approach. By fostering person-centred care and shared decision-making, providing educational and practical support, and nurturing strong relationships between all partners involved to form a collective collaboration surrounding people with intellectual disability, improved medication adherence and optimised therapeutic outcomes can be achieved.
CRD42022362903.
Communication skills assessment (CSA) is essential for ensuring competency, guiding educational practices and safeguarding regulatory compliance in health professions education (HPE). However, there appears to be heterogeneity in the reporting of validity evidence from CSA methods across the health profession that complicates our interpretation of the quality of assessment methods. Our objective was to map reliability and validity evidence from scores of CSA methods that have been reported in HPE.
Scoping review.
MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, ERIC, CAB Abstracts and Scopus databases were searched up to March 2024.
We included studies, available in English, that reported validity evidence (content-related, internal structure, relationship with other variables, response processes and consequences) for CSA methods in HPE. There were no restrictions related to date of publication.
Two independent reviewers completed data extraction and assessed study quality using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument. Data were reported using descriptive analysis (mean, median, range).
A total of 146 eligible studies were identified, including 98 394 participants. Most studies were conducted in human medicine (124 studies) and participants were mostly undergraduate students (85 studies). Performance-based, simulated, inperson CSA was most prevalent, comprising 115 studies, of which 68 studies were objective structured clinical examination-based. Other types of methods that were reported were workplace-based assessment; asynchronous, video-based assessment; knowledge-based assessment and performance-based, simulated, virtual assessment. Included studies used a diverse range of communications skills frameworks, rating scales and raters. Internal structure was the most reported source of validity evidence (130 studies (90%), followed by content-related (108 studies (74%), relationships with other variables (86 studies (59%), response processes (15 studies (10%) and consequences (16 studies (11%).
This scoping review identified gaps in the sources of validity evidence related to assessment method that have been used to support the use of CSA methods. These gaps could be addressed by studies explicitly defining the communication skill construct(s) assessed, clarifying the validity source(s) reported and defining the intended purpose and use of the scores (ie, for learning and feedback, for decision making purposes). Our review provides a map where targeted CSA development and support are needed. Limitations of the evidence come from score interpretation being constrained by the heterogeneity of the definition of communication skills across the health professions and the reporting quality of the studies.
Cervical cancer remains a significant global health concern and is the fourth most prevalent cancer among women. In South Africa, it is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women aged 15–44 years. The disease is typically preceded by persistent high-risk HPV infection, leading to cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and eventually cancer. Currently, in South Africa, management primarily involves excision, particularly through large loop excision of the transformation zone, which has associated risks and limitations. Thermal ablation is an alternative cost-effective treatment method, providing a straightforward approach to treatment, particularly advantageous in environments characterised by limited resources. The study aims to assess the efficacy, safety and patient experience of thermal ablation, providing valuable data for potential integration into South Africa’s cervical cancer prevention policies.
Randomised controlled trial in which 420 women living with HIV aged 30–60 years will be recruited from the Colposcopy Clinic at Tygerberg Hospital and will be followed up for a period of two years. The primary study endpoint is a test of cure that will be assessed by HPV genotyping, cervical cytology and histology at six month intervals. Other endpoints include the occurrence of adverse events.
The study protocol has been approved by the Health Research Ethics Committee of Stellenbosch University (Ethics Reference No: M20/11/035) and by the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness via the National Health Research Database (WC_202109_016). All study procedures comply with the Declaration of Helsinki, South African Good Clinical Practice Guidelines and the Medical Research Council’s ethical guidelines. Trial results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed journals, national and international conference presentations and professional associations. A lay summary will be shared with the Community Advisory Board to guide community-level dissemination.
Pan African Clinical Trial Registry: PACTR202504820339039.
Background
In sub-Saharan Africa, the risk of obstetric complications remains high throughout the postpartum period.
Objective
We developed and tested a novel, integrated model of group postpartum care titled Focused-Postpartum Care (Focused-PPC) to improve outcomes. In this paper, we report clinical outcomes of participants in the intervention arm and differences in knowledge of postbirth warning signs among those in the intervention and control arms.
Methods
Focused-PPC encompassed recommended clinical assessments, targeted education, and peer support up to 1 year after birth. Focused-PPC was implemented as a parallel randomized controlled trial involving 192 postpartum women across four health centers in Tamale, Ghana, from February 2022 to August 2023. Eligible participants 18 years or older with a live birth were randomly assigned to either the Focused-PPC intervention arm or the control arm at a 1:1 allocation and were not blinded to their allocation. At each health center, 48 participants were allocated to either an intervention or control arm. Focused-PPC groups in the intervention arm consisted of eight participants per group. Participants in the intervention arm received the Focused-PPC integrated group model of care. Participants in the control arm received the standard of postnatal care already administered at each health center.
Results
Baseline analysis included 96 participants from the control arm and 91 participants from the intervention arm. We found that vital signs and clinical outcomes were relatively stable; however, incidences of hypertension substantially decreased among participants in the intervention arm. By 3 months postbirth, most participants in the intervention arm were able to identify all postbirth warning signs and retain this knowledge compared to the control arm. Those in the intervention arm were also knowledgeable of more warning signs at each time point compared to the control arm.
Discussion
An integrated, evidence-based approach to postpartum care, such as Focused-PPC, has potential to increase knowledge and improve clinical outcomes among mothers in Ghana. To explore the role of nurse practitioners (NPs) in delivering models of acute and urgent care in local communities informing the development of NPs as a solution to providing sustainable and effective healthcare in these settings.
Descriptive qualitative multicase study.
The study population comprised NPs, clinic managers and general practitioners from NP-led acute and urgent care clinics across urban and rural Aotearoa New Zealand. Data were gathered from 20 semistructured interviews across seven sites. Data were thematically analysed to identify themes. Clinic-level operational data relating to the governance, team structures, and service delivery models were also collated and content from these data was integrated into the analysis and findings.
Five key themes were identified: meeting the needs of the community; development of NP-led acute care services; NPs as part of the healthcare team; training and support systems and supporting junior NPs and NP candidates.
Nurse practitioners have a valuable role to play in delivering acute and urgent care services to local communities. Increasing awareness of the NP role, the prioritisation of community needs and strengthening training and support structures at both a workforce and clinic level were key findings from this research.
Findings from this research guided the development of a set of recommendations which consider community, clinic and wider national perspectives and aim to support the future growth of NP-led community acute/urgent care.
This research has adhered to the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR) guidelines.
The authors have nothing to report.
To synthesise international literature to identify mechanisms that maintain racism in nursing and understand the factors that contribute to designing and implementing anti-racist praxis to inform nursing in Aotearoa New Zealand.
An integrative literature review was undertaken, integrating Indigenous Kaupapa Māori methodologies to ensure a cultural and philosophical lens.
Peer-reviewed literature published, between January 2011 and July 2023 were sourced. Of 1296 articles, 16 met the inclusion criteria and 4 were identified via citation chaining. In total, 20 articles were included. The Johns Hopkins Research Evidence Tool was applied, findings extracted, and thematic analysis completed utilising Indigenous Kaupapa Māori principles.
Databases, including CINAHL, Scopus, PubMed and Aus/NZ Reference Centre, were searched in July 2023.
Two key themes were identified: (1) colonial active resistance to change; and (2) transformational, visionary, and proactive nursing.
Nurses are well-positioned to confront the structures that maintain racism in health and education systems but are often actors in maintaining status quo. Anti-racist praxis can be a mechanism for nurses to reimagine, redefine and transform nursing care, leadership, and nursing education to begin to eradicate racism.
This integrative review adhered to the 2020 Preferred Reporting for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method.
No patient or public contribution.
Racism remains prevalent in nursing and the healthcare system. It is necessary to implement anti-racist praxis and policies that resist, deconstruct, and dismantle power and racism while validating Indigenous values, beliefs and practices. This is vital to deliver equitable health care.
This integrative review presents lived realities and knowledge of Indigenous and racially minoritised nurses and scholars, alongside nursing allies to inform anti-racist praxis. This evidence signifies that it is time to walk the walk to challenge the colonising systems and processes that hold racism in place.
To explore the experiences of nursing students in England who had worked through the first wave and transitioned to qualification in the ongoing pandemic.
Experiences of health professionals and student nurses during the pandemic are now well documented, but the transition of students to qualification is less well understood. In Summer 2020, we interviewed 16 student nurses who had worked as health care assistants on paid extended placements as part of the COVID-19 response in the East of England, finding surprisingly positive experiences, including perceived heightened preparedness for qualification. A year later, we re-interviewed 12 participants from the original study to hear about transitioning to qualification during the ongoing pandemic. This study provides novel insights into their experiences.
A qualitative study design was used.
Twelve newly qualified nurses who had participated in the original study took part in qualitative, online interviews where they shared their experiences of working and transitioning to qualification during the ongoing pandemic since we spoke to them a year earlier. The data was analysed using thematic analysis. COREQ guidelines were used in developing and reporting this study.
Three themes were identified. Constant change: in the clinical environment and arising out of the transition to newly qualified nurse, mental health and well-being and reflecting on the past to learn for the future.
Participants experienced a unique transition to qualification. The perceived heightened preparedness for qualification that participants who had worked as students during the first wave of the pandemic had become a reality, ameliorating some of the known effects of transition. However, increased expectations and added responsibilities in extremely busy, fluctuating clinical environments with minimal support add weight to calls for mandatory preceptorship programmes. While heightened resilience was evident, provision of ongoing mental health and well-being support is strongly recommended.
We need a partnership approach with nurse educators and practice colleagues which ensures preparation for qualified practice is appropriate. If we do not effectively prepare students for qualified nurse posts, patient care will almost certainly be compromised.
FreshRSS 