Category / Research themes

VOOM 2016: Pitch to Richard Branson to win a share of £1M in prizes

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange

VOOM 2016 takes place over 14 weeks, including a huge public vote, a 29-hour Pitchathon (a Guinness World Records attempt, in fact), and a series of competitive face-to-face workshops.

Competition finalists will have the opportunity to pitch to Richard Branson and the six winning businesses will share over £1 million (€1.2 million) in prizes, plus additional support.

There are two categories:

  • START-UP – aimed at early stage start-up businesses
  • GROW – for businesses with revenue that are looking to grow

The winner of each category will receive social and PR support, a broadband and telecoms package, a carriage wrap on Virgin Trains, mentoring, financial advice, a £50,000 (€60,000) cash prize and much more. There are also prize packages for four runners up.

Crowdfunder are offering you the chance to run a crowdfunding campaign on top of (and as an integral part of) your competition entry. So while you are working hard to secure public support for your entry, you could also raise money at the same time.

The competition also allows you to put yourself forward for awards within your category:

  • The Impact Award – for businesses that put social and environmental impact, as well as profit, at the heart of their business
  • The Great Award – for businesses that fly the flag for Great Britain
  • The Crowdfunder Award – for those businesses that run a crowdfunding campaign in parallel with their competition entry

Key dates:

Public vote opens: 5 April 2016

Applications close: 10 May 2016

Voting closes: 23 May 2016

Find out more at https://www.vmbvoom.com

NETNEP 6th International Nurse Education Conference, Brisbane

international, student research, Women's Academic Network

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Four academics, Dr Susan Way, Dr Vanessa Heaslip, Ashley Spriggs and Dr Dawn Morley, from FHSS are presenting papers at the Nurse Education Today / Nurse Education in Practice Conference this week, 3rd – 6th April, in Brisbane. The conference is recognised as a leading nurse education event where cutting edge research and innovation ideas from across the world are disseminated. This year the conference has been expanded for the first time to include Midwifery Education.

The title of Dr Susan Way’s presentation is, ‘Leading with a SMiLE: Exploring a student-led clinic, practice education model for educational impact and service improvement’. The Student Midwives integrated Learning Environment (SMiLE) offers an alternative, reliable and collaborative student-led clinic practice education model for equipping midwives of the future with the knowledge, skills and competencies they will need to provide safe and effective postnatal care, to mothers, babies and their families. Early service evaluation of the clinic suggests that students found it benefitted their learning, built their confidence and gave them opportunities to develop their postnatal skills. Peer learning and teamworking relationships were also improved.

Dr Vanessa Heaslip and Ashley Spriggs present their collaborative study entitled “humanising the interview process”; an evaluation of service user/carers contribution to value based recruitment in a pre-registration adult nursing programme. The mixed-method evaluation analysed the perspectives of differing stakeholders (Candidates, SU/Carers, Academics and Practice Partners) regarding the role SU/Carer engagement in Adult Nursing Pre-registration interviews. Early findings from candidates have highlighted they value the involvement of SU/Carers in the interview process, SU/Carers add a “human dimension” ensuring a focus on the heart of nursing and its value base rather than the role of nursing and associated nursing tasks.

Dr Dawn Morley’s presentation focuses on the ‘ebb and flow model of mentoring students in practice’. Twenty one first year student nurses interviewed were insightful as to how their practice learning experience could be improved on their first placement.

The findings of her research highlighted the importance of consistently working with an expert who could encapsulate the “whole” of professional practice but who could also question and coach students through their learning experiences. The research suggested that this was best achieved through an “ebb and flow” model of mentorship where student and mentor were constantly negotiating short term learning goals and opportunities together that accommodated the challenge of workforce demands. By working and learning in this organic manner students were party to the professional decision making and observation of qualified nurses and were educated to a critical decision making level from the earliest opportunity in their clinical practice.

Professor Steve Tees, Executive Dean of the Faculty was also at the Conference in his capacity as one of the Editors of Nurse Education Today journal.

New paper out this week by Dr. Regmi

international, open access, Publishing, writing

Cover of NJESince his arrival in the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences last year postdoctoral researcher Dr. Pramod Regmi has been busy getting his publications out.  Yesterday saw the latest of his articles appear in print, this time in the latest issue of the Nepal Journal of Epidemiology.  The editorial, co-authored with Dr. Om Kurmi (University of Oxford) and Dr. Puspa R. Pant at the University of the West of England, addresses the growing problem air pollution in low-income countries such as Nepal.  The paper is called: ‘Implication of Air pollution on health effects in Nepal: Lessons from global research’. [1]

The journal is Open Access so the article can be accessed by anybody across the globe for free.

 

Congratulations!

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

 

References:

  1.   Kurmi O, Regmi PR, Pant PR. Implication of Air pollution on health effects in Nepal: Lessons from global research. Nepal J Epidemiol. 2016;6(1); 525-527. (online at: http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJE/article/view/14733/11949 )

FHSS paper in Journal of Neonatal Nursing

international, Publishing, writing

Cover image volume 22, Issue 2The April issue of the Journal of Neonatal Nursing will publish the latest article written by a combination of Faculty of Health & Social Sciences staff and Visiting Faculty.  The paper ‘Experiences of fathers with babies admitted to neonatal care units: A review of the literature’ offers a systematic narrative review on issues affecting fathers, whose babies are admitted to neonatal units. [1] The authors include Visiting Faculty Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust midwife Jillian Ireland and Prof. Minesh Khashu (consultant neonatologist) and FHSS staff Jaqui Hewitt-Taylor, Luisa Cescutti-Butler, and Edwin van Teijlingen.  Twenty-seven papers in this interesting review highlighted four key themes: (1) stress & anxiety; (2) information (or lack thereof); (3) gender roles and (4) emotions.  This paper adds to the growing literature (and understanding) of the role and place of men in maternity care generally and for fathers of babies in neonatal care in particular.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

CMMPH

 

References:

  1. Ireland, J., Khashu, M., Cescutti-Butler, L., van Teijlingen, E., Hewitt-Taylor, J. (2016) Experiences of fathers with babies admitted to neonatal care units: A review of the literature, Journal of Neonatal Nursing [pre-published]

Rewilding Dorset Meeting

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A one-day discussion meeting to explore the application of rewilding concepts to Dorset.

Date: Thursday 5th May

Meeting commences: 10:00 am

Meeting finishes: 5.30 pm

Venue: Charlton Down Village Hall, near Dorchester, Dorset. DT2 9UA

In recent years, rewilding has become a major theme in conservation, stimulated by publications such as George Monbiot’s Feral and the launch of rewilding organisations both in the UK and at the European scale. While a number of rewilding initiatives have been launched in the UK, most of these are predominantly located in upland areas in the north and west of the country. Elsewhere in Europe, many rewilding initiatives are seeking to encourage ecological recovery on agricultural land that has been abandoned. This raises the question of whether rewilding concepts are applicable to intensive agricultural landscapes such as Dorset, and if so, how they might best be implemented.

The aim of this meeting is to examine concept of rewilding: how it is defined, which approaches can be used, and whether such concepts and approaches might be relevant to Dorset.

We are delighted to be able to welcome a number of speakers who will present at the meeting, including leading researchers with expertise in rewilding, and practitioners with experience in implementing rewilding projects. The meeting will also involve representatives from a number of conservation organisations in Dorset, who will be invited to share their perspectives on rewilding. We hope to provide an opportunity to learn about what rewilding entails and to examine its strengths and weaknesses as a concept, and also to discuss its potential application in Dorset.

Speakers:

  • Dr Paul Jepson, Oxford University – “Rewilding policy: risk and opportunities”
  • Dr Christopher Sandom, University of Sussex – “Putting rewilding into practice”
  • Dr Matthew Heard, Centre for Ecology and Hydrology – “Ecological impacts of rewilding using extensive grazing: the case of Knepp Estate”
  • Fiona Bowles, Poole Harbour Catchment Initiative – “Is there space for Dorset Rivers to run wild?”
  • Helen Meech, Rewilding Britain – “Why Rewild Britain?”
  • Professor Richard Brazier, Exeter University – “Quantifying the ecohydrological impacts
  • of reintroducing Eurasian Beaver to intensively managed, lowland agricultural landscapes”
  • Alison Turnock, Dorset AONB – “The Wild Purbeck Nature Improvement Area – towards bigger, better, more, joined”

 

It is essential you book a ticket if you wish to attend, please visit: rewilding-dorset.eventbrite.co.uk.

For all enquiries email Arjan Gosal (agosal@bournemouth.ac.uk)

Photo credit:

European beaver (Castor fiber) by Per Harald Olsen/ NTNU (CC BY)

 

Creative Europe – current funding calls

Funding opportunities

Through the Creative Europe programme, the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency is promoting the following calls and their closing dates:

All closing dates are at 12:00 (CET/CEST, Brussels time)

If you are interested in applying to these funds, please contact Emily Cieciura, REKO’s Research Facilitator for EU & International funding or your relevant faculty Funding Development Officer.

 

Invitation to NERC webinar on national capability research

On 7 April, NERC will be hosting a live webinar showcasing our new investments in multi-disciplinary national capability research within our centres. This will provide an opportunity for the wider academic community to learn more about these programmes and help to generate ideas for strategic research for submission to the NERC Strategic Programme Advisory Group (SPAG).

NERC has challenged its centres to develop a set of core multi-disciplinary programmes which capitalise on centre expertise across the breadth of NERC’s remit. These multi-centre programmes are expected to commence from April 2016. These new collaborative programmes redefine problems outside individual centre boundaries and will provide outcomes based on a new understanding of complex situations. The national capability funds are not new or additional money; the multi-centre programmes are focused plans as to what centres intend to do with a portion of their existing allocations over the next five years.

During the webinar, leads for each programme will present an overview of their research plans and anticipated outcomes. This will allow participants to understand the significance of this strategically-important work, and inform individual plans for strategic research for which these programmes could form the platform.

Programme for the day

09:15 Webinar open, people register and join.

09:30-09:40 Introduction and format of webinar

09:40-10:10 Ocean regulation of climate through Heat & carbon sequestration and transports (ORCHESTRA)

10:20-10:50 Land ocean carbon transfer (LOCATE)

11:00-11:30 The north atlantic climate System: integrated study (ACSIS)

11:40-12:10 UK Earth system modelling project (UKESM)

12:20-12:50 Achieving sustainable agricultural systems (ASSIST)

12:50 Close.

Registration for this event is via the online registration form . Please note that, as numbers will be limited, we would encourage colleagues to participate together where possible, providing one contact point for registering for this ‘shared access’.

Please also note that the event will be recorded, so if you are unable to participate on the day, you will be able to access the slides later from the NERC web site.

Contact, Help, Advice and Information Network (CHAIN) Demonstration THIS COMING WEDNESDAY 23rd March 2016

CHAIN – Contact, Help, Advice and Information Network – is an online mutual support network for people working in health and social care. It gives people a simple and informal way of contacting each other to exchange ideas and share knowledge.

The online Directory can be used to identify and communicate with other members. You might wish to do this to draw from their experience, or to elicit an opinion on an issue or something you are doing. Or you might wish to find collaborators or liaise with fellow-travellers or people with specific skills or interests for a wide range of purposes. You can do this quickly and easily with CHAIN, and part of the advantage is that the people you find will usually be happy to help you if they can.

We are delighted to welcome a representative from CHAIN to BU on 23rd March at 2:30pm in Wollstone Lecture Theatre, Bournemouth House (BG10) to demonstrate how to make the most of being part of the network. All staff are welcome to attend, and please pass the invitation on to students who may be interested in learning more about what CHAIN has to offer.

Contact Lisa Gale-Andrews at lgaleandrews@bournemouth.ac.uk for more information.

BU BMC paper followed up by BMC Series Blog

international, open access, Publishing, writing

media childbirthOur latest paper in the international journal BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth published late last month was highlighted yesterday in a BMC Series Blog.[1]  The blog post reminds us that the media plays an important role in providing the general public with information about a range of issues, including pregnancy and childbirth. The visual media, such as television, can provide planned information (education), for example in documentaries, advertising and the news.  Our paper “Is it realistic?” the portrayal of pregnancy and childbirth in the media’ looked into how the representation of childbirth in the mass media affects childbirth in society as there is evidence to suggest that it can have a negative effect.  BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth is an Open Access journal therefore the paper is freely available for anybody across the globe with an internet connection, for access click here.

interdisciplinary-1Our paper is great example of interdisciplinary research, as celebrated at the forthcoming Interdisciplinary Research Sector Day on June 21st (see here).  The authors of our paper combine expertise in media studies, midwifery, sociology and health services research.   Moreover, it involved collaborations across universities (Bournemouth and Stirling) and within BU across faculties, namely the Faculty of Media & Communcation and the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences.

 

Ann Luce, Marilyn Cash, Vanora Hundley, Helen Cheyne, Edwin van Teijlingen & Catherine Angell

 

Reference:

  1. Luce, A., Cash, M., Hundley, V., Cheyne, H., van Teijlingen, E., Angell, C., (2016) “Is it realistic?” the portrayal of pregnancy and childbirth in the media BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth 16: 40 http://bmcpregnancychildbirth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12884-016-0827-x

 

Digital vision of future local government – connecting our lives in 2025

Business Engagement, Funding opportunities, innovation, Knowledge Exchange, Knowledge Transfer, Research themes

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The report , Connected Councils, explores how councils can use digital tools to transform the way they work and save a potential £14.7 billion every year.

Digital technologies, from apps to online platforms, can help councils provide better services for their residents and mobilise communities to work alongside these services, as well as find new ways of collecting and analysing data, which could have a significant impact on the quality of future services.

Through a series of case studies the report imagines what life might be like in 2025 for ‘digital by default’ councils and their citizens – from retirees to young graduates and new parents.

Key Findings

Local government has made huge progress in enabling residents to carry out basic transactions online. But most councils have a long way to go to deliver smooth, frictionless services and fully digitise their back offices. Digitisation isn’t just about developing digital services; depending on the level of ambition, digital tools can help:

  • Save money and deliver better outcomes by intervening earlier and helping people manage their own conditions.
  • Transform the way that councils work internally, commission services and partners, diagnose and solve problems, use public space, and attract talent.
  • Make services smoother and easier to access, more personalised and user-responsive.
  • Put residents at the heart of local problem-solving and decision-making and create an environment which supports businesses to startup and scale.

The 2025 vision

Like the best tech companies, future councils will be lean, agile and data-driven. Siloed services will be replaced with multi-agency teams that form around specific local challenges. A truly mobile workforce has freed up public space. Almost all transactions take place online. Instead of two-dimensional council websites, interactive platforms connect users with third-party apps and services, and stream personalised content on local democracy, jobs and services.

Relational services (such as social care) still rely heavily on face-to-face contact. But digital tools help people to manage their own long-term conditions and connect to a broader network of support, such as peer mentors, health coaches, friends and family, volunteers and group-based activities. Digital technologies have helped councils take a more ambitious approach to place-shaping. A larger share of public contracts go to high-growth SMEs. Councils systematically engage residents in decisions about how services are commissioned, delivered and evaluated.

Read the report in full.

 

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Happy World Social Work Day!

This year the theme of World Social Work Day is ‘Promoting the Dignity and Worth of Peoples’

This relates to the second pillar of the Global Agenda for Social Work and Social Development which was launched in 2012. Each of the five Global Agenda themes runs for
two years and 2016 is the second year for Promoting the Dignity and Worth of Peoples.

WSWDThe theme is particularly poignant this year as we have witnessed unprecedented levels of mass migration around the world, levels of which we have not experienced since the Second World War. Images of desperate families risking their lives in an attempt to flee conflict and persecution are reported daily in the media. Many are traumatised by their experiences and face uncertain futures. In this context of human suffering it is essential to uphold the commitment to value every human life and embrace shared human experience, and social work is ideally placed to champion this approach.

Social work as a profession is underpinned by a commitment to human rights, and the current president of the International Federation of Social Work, Ruth Stark, has suggested that “Social work is a human rights discipline. It’s not just an element of it- it is the core principle.” 

Such a stance requires social workers to respect the inherent dignity and worth of every IMG_7386person, and this includes respect for human rights as expressed in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Such an approach is underpinned by five core notions of human rights: human dignity; non-discrimination; civil and political rights; economic, social and cultural rights; and solidarity rights (Wronka, 2007).

It has been argued that social work has often blurred the line between a focus on human needs and human rights (Healy, 2008), however there is an opportunity for social work to grasp a central role in upholding the rights of all peoples across the world. If this opportunity is taken ‘ human rights provide the profession with a clear direction for a presence at the international level, while also bridging local and national issues with global concerns’ (Healy 2008:745).

World Social Work Day provides an opportunity for the global community of social work to come together through cross-national dialogue, to promote a human rights approach which is rooted in social action as a means to uphold the dignity and worth of all peoples across the global world. We therefore should not just ‘talk the talk’ about upholding the dignity and rights of all, but more importantly ‘walk the walk’ by implementing these principles into action in everyday practice.

References

Healy, L.M. (2008) Exploring the history of social work as a human rights profession, International Social Work, 51, 735-748.

Wronka, J. (2007) Human Rights and Social Justice: Social Action and Service for the Helping and Health Professions, Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage.

Guide to develop understanding of financial scamming launched at recent Parliamentary event

A recent awareness raising event at the House of Commons, hosted by Conor Burns MP, discussed the problem of financial scamming and mass marketing fraud in the UK and highlighted the work being undertaken by the NCPQSW at Bournemouth University.

The event included an address from Bournemouth University’s Professor Keith Brown, and explored some of the work of the NCPQSW around financial scam prevention and at risk groups. Bournemouth University, in partnership with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute, National Trading Standards Scams Team, North Yorkshire Trading Standards, and City of London Trading Standards, has created a Financial Scamming Guide to offer advice and guidance on what to watch for and how to avoid falling foul of scamming techniques and schemes.

This guide includes a campaign to raise awareness of the risks of financial scamming, as well as calling for a more integrated approach to tackling the issues from the financial sectors. In particular the campaign asks that …..

  1. All agencies, especially financial institutions, should:
  • Recognise that consumers/clients with dementia are by definition more at risk of chair
    being scammed. Therefore measures to protect this population group are required
    as part of a ‘duty to care, and those with a diagnosis of dementia have by definition a cognitive impairment which means that their potential ‘unwise decision’ is a result of their cognitive state rather than simply an unwise decision.
  1. All organisations that hold personal data should:
  • Only share or pass on personal details to other organisations via a clear ‘opt in’ as opposed to an ‘opt out’ process. Data should only be allowed for a maximum of 12 months before permission needs to be sought again.
  • Recognise that the normal default position should be that charities do not share, pass on or sell personal details to help prevent ‘Suckers Lists’. The exception being to report a safeguarding concern to statutory agencies where there is a suspicion that the person(s) is/are at risk of harm or scamming and this information should be used in accordance to The Care Act (2014).
  1. Citizens who feel at risk of financial scamming should be able to:
  • Formally notify their bank/building society stating that they feel at risk, requesting that all transactions above a defined threshold (say £1,000) have a 24 hour delay before being processed.
  • At the start of the 24 hour delay period, an email/text alert is automatically sent to the customer’s nominated representative (relative/friend) stating that the customer is attempting to make a large transaction. This will give the opportunity for the proposed transaction to be challenged with a view to potentially stop it leaving consumers account.

To find out more about the work of the NCPQSW in relation to financial scamming, please CLICK HERE.