Category / Research themes

Under-grad Midwifery Students and Examination of the Newborn – a pilot project.

BU Challenges, Fusion, Training

Five pre-registration midwifery students were successful in their application to take part in a pilot project which will equip them with the knowledge, skills and competency to undertake  examination of the newborn prior to qualification as a midwife. Midwives have always undertaken an initial examination of a baby soon after birth and the 24 hour ‘medical’ examination was traditionally undertaken by junior doctors or GP trainees. Following a change in doctor’s hours and a call for more holistic midwifery care, midwives began to take on the role of examining newborns following a period of rigorous training and education delivered through universities throughout the UK. Bournemouth University, for many years now, has been actively involved in educating midwives into this role, both locally and as far a field as Brighton and Gloucester. Currently the under-graduate midwifery curriculum does not offer this learning to its midwifery students although there is a strong push nationally for students to qualify with the skills. Two universities have already embedded the skills into their three year curriculum and BU will begin to educate and train students with the necessary skills/competencies in 2014 with a brand new midwifery curriculum. In the meanwhile we are fast tracking five motivated students. The students (Bex, Jenna, Katie, Luzie and Jeanette (not in photograph)  have to access all the post grad teaching and learning days (x5) which started last week. As well as undertaking an assessed presentation (6th day) with their qualified colleagues, they will have to undertake 30 newborn examinations under the watchful eye of their midwifery mentor who already has the qualification.  The unit leader (myself) will undertake their final assessment in practice in conjunction with their mentor. If successful the students will be awarded with 20 CPD credits for use after qualification.

Undertaking the pilot will be demanding for the students as they will still have to obtain their EU midwifery numbers, but it will not be at the expense of the pilot. Their under-grad training takes precedence.Furthermore a number of conditions were attached to the offers of a place:  the pilot cannot be used as mitigation for any referred  unit  in their 3rd year and the credits cannot be used to top up their degree should they not achieve the requisite 120 credits for completion.  All the students expressed strong commitment to obtaining the necessary skills and they have until September 2014 to complete. The pilot will pave the way for the new curriculum and will help with exposing any shortfalls in practice. I am immensely proud of the students for taking on this extra work. They have so many competing demands on their time and this will be just another. However it will provide the students with the skills to examine newborn babies when they are newly qualified midwives, which in turn will benefit women and their babies.  If anybody is interested in knowing more about the pilot please contact me on:  lcbutler@bournemouth.ac.uk

Bigger on the Inside

BU research, Festival of Learning, Publishing, Uncategorized

 

 

 

 

 

The Doctor, his TARDIS-driven adventures, along with companions and iconic monsters, are all over the TV and newspapers. The Inner World of Doctor Who is a new book, just out. Written by Prof Mike Rustin (UEL, Tavsitock Clinic) and Prof. Iain MacRury in the Media School here at BU. This publication offers an accessible account of Doctor Who. It focusses just on the most recent television output – 2005 to 2013 – and examines why the show continues to fascinate us.
The Doctor’s relationships with his companions are to the fore. Various chapters also consider the dramatic meanings of monsters and time travel – linking the show back to ideas about audience experience – and what we might ‘learn’ from Doctor Who. It looks at the complexity of the new Doctor Who in its depictions of the suffering of the Doctor, as well that of his at times vulnerable and dependent companions. A connection is made between TV content and some (but not all) elements in the experience of psychotherapy.
We propose that one way of thinking about the Doctor is to see him as a kind of inadvertent ‘therapist’ – with the TV dramas on screen rendering troubled states of mind and society within a rich cultural frame. Doctor Who extends a fairy-tale and children’s fictional tradition across its contemporary media platforms. As we argue: In Doctor Who everyday life is often revealed to be “Bigger on the inside.”

The 50th anniversary won’t come again and it provided a chastening deadline we’re glad to have met it! The book was inspired by the startling success of the show in recent years. Why does it attract such attention and affection? While thinking about it I  got further daily encouragement from the TARDIS that sits on the ground floor of Weymouth House, courtesy of our former Media School colleague, Dr Andrew Ireland.

The Inner World of Doctor Who is published with Karnac books. It should be of interest to diehard fans. But it is written, too, for people who probably wouldn’t claim the title ‘fan’ but for whom all the fuss about Time Lords and Tardises just now (The Doctor is even on postage stamps!) is provoking the thought: “What’s this all about!?” The Inner World of Doctor Who offers some answers.
 – Written with a colleague, Prof. Mike Rustin, from UEL and the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust the book emerges from an enriching collaboration that began in some teaching sessions at the Tavistock clinic on their MA in Psychoanalytic Studies. It has now developed into this book. The book came together quite quickly and has been usefully supported by an AHRC funded network called “Media and the Inner World”. The book is published as part of their new series with Karnac called Psychoanalysis and Popular Culture.
If you are interested the book can be found at http://www.karnacbooks.com/Product.asp?PID=34857 or as an e-book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Inner-World-Doctor-Psychoanalytic-Psychoanalysis/dp/1782200835

BU’s new research website, launching this month!

Research news, Research themes, Training

Why is there a new research website?

As regular readers of this blog know, across BU there is a wealth of research and knowledge exchange activities that take place through a wide array of projects, which in-turn bridge our academic schools, engage the public and have considerable impact on society.

However, it is difficult for readers of our current research webpages to understand the wealth of BU’s research expertise.  Most of the information about BU’s research is scattered across assorted school pages, microsites and news sections with many outdated materials still online.

Readers’ expectations of websites have changed considerably as well. When BU first started presenting information digitally, the norm was to display static content.  As we enter 2014 we need a digital platform which presents information in a dynamic and narrative driven way.

Therefore, we are about to launch BU’s new research website. The new site will have an updated design and will present our research around our eight societally focused research themes. In each section will be content on research news, research impact, public engagement and postgraduate research. It will also be possible to view content by each REF Unit of Assessment and see details of our research centres.

When will the new research website be available?

A beta version (i.e. test site) will go live by the end of November and we will be seeking submissions from across BU to further populate the site. This is to allow us to address any technical issues and for our research community to put forward content that wish to see on the new research website. There will be a full launch of the site in early 2014.

How will I be able to share news about my research?

One of the key reasons for the new research website is to ensure that our researchers are able to easily and frequently share their research online. Everyone will be able to craft their own content and upload articles themselves. The Research and Knowledge Exchange Office (R&KEO) will perform a light-touch check to ensure the correct tags are added new content will go live on the site within 1-2 working days.

There is training available on the new research website – please see this post to reserve a session.

If you are unable to attend one of these sessions, further dates are being organised on a rolling basis in 2014, so please register your interest by emailing Rebecca Edwards.

FAQs

I’ve got really important information that is available on our current research webpages, will this get deleted at the end of the month?

No! Any content which is taken down from our publicly available servers will still remain available within BU. Therefore, if there is content which needs to appear on the new research website, and doesn’t already, you will be able to access the old material to create something new for the new research website.

What will happen to our research centre?

Each approved research centre will have its own page which can be designed and updated in a way which is most suitable for that community. New research centres needs to be approved by R&KEO in advance – please contact Rebecca Edwards in the first instance if you have a query about this.

Some research centres will retain a separate microsite and some new microsites will be created, subject to one of the following four criteria:

  1. Existing sites that can demonstrate an exceptional level of traffic
  2. Existing sites that already have a wealth of relevant content which is frequently updated
  3. Where a research grouping has external recognition, such as a national centre (e.g. the NCCA)
  4. An externally funded project where a separate microsite is part of the impact/dissemination plan

If you are unsure as to whether your microsite will be closed, please contact your Deputy Dean for Research. If you require a new microsite, please log a job with M&C in the usual way, and they will contact R&KEO to confirm a new microsite is permissible.

How will I add content to the new research webpages?

The new research website is built in WordPress, like the research blog. Therefore, you’ll be able to log into the site and add your own content. R&KEO will double check that the content is correctly tagged (to ensure everything appears in the right place on the new site) and it will be publicly available within one to two working days.

If you have not used WordPress before or would like to learn more about how the new research website will work, there are training sessions available (see above) to help familiarise you with the new the new system.

 

 

 

 

Breastfeeding poster presentation at Royal College of Midwives conference

BU research, Featured academics, Publishing, Research news, Uncategorized

Dr. Catherine Angell, Senior Lecturer in Midwifery attended the annual RCM conference on November 13-14 in Telford.  Catherine presented an academic poster to highlight some of BU’s key research in the Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health.  The poster (Fig. 1) reported findings of a survey of users of the Healthtalkonline webpages on breastfeeding.  These webpages are based on breastfeeding research conducted at BU can be found here.  BU research has fed into research-based training modules for midwives, lactation consultants and other professionals.  Currently the breastfeeding webpages receive around 37,000 hits each month, representing around 1,500 individuals.

The problem with clicks on webpages is that it suggests interest but it does not constitute evidence of changing knowledge or behaviour.  Dr. Angell teamed up with BU colleagues Prof. Vanora Hundley, Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen, and Senior Lecturer Alison Taylor as well as Prof. Kath Ryan from La Trobe University Australia to study the effect of the webpages.

To ascertain the impact of the webpages the team developed and conducted an online questionnaire survey of users of the breastfeeding webpages between Nov.2012- Feb. 2013.  A questionnaire study was administered after ethical approval had been granted. The survey was completed by 159 people, mainly from the UK, but also from other parts of the world such as Australia and New Zealand (12.6%) and the USA/Canada (2.5%).

BU was also represented at the RCM conference through BU Visiting Faculty Jillian Ireland.  Jillian is a community midwife working for NHS Poole, who presented a poster on the benefits to mothers and staff of the RCM Bournemouth & Poole Community choir.

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health

 

 

‘all professions are conspiracies against the laity’ George Bernard Shaw, The Doctor’s Dilemma, 1906

Uncategorized

British social services, without doubt, represent one of the best systems of social work throughout the world for protecting children, supporting families where circumstances and experience make them vulnerable and ensuring people with mental health problems are appropriately sustained. That notwithstanding, social work services in Britain, and in England in particular, have journeyed towards a more individualistic model of care and treatment promoted primarily in the US, and the roots of community action and practice that are truly ‘social’ have become less visible. This places our social work services, excellent as they are in key areas, on the margins of international understandings of social work.

Perhaps the changes articulated above are understandable given our affaire de Coeur with neoliberal philosophies and our celebration of the cult of the individual derived from Margaret Thatcher’s governments, perpetuated by Tony Blair and continued aggressively by the Coalition government of the day.

These changes have significant impact on people and their communities, reassigning blame from social structure to the individuals themselves. Also, there remains a potentially negative impact on social work globally. Many countries have followed the US and British social work models to develop services, sometimes as a direct result of colonialism, sometimes because of implicit global power relations. There is a legitimate concern that adoption of an individualistic approach reflects a neo-imperialist agenda, with problems resulting for those communities and groups made invisible within this process.

Our new book Professional Social Work (edited by Jonathan Parker BU & Mark Doel Sheffield Hallam) seeks to address some of these challenges. We suggest there is such a thing as ‘professional’ social work, that it must be distinct from ‘unprofessional’ social work. Our thesis is that it is imperative that we reclaim social work and its former radicalism and iconoclastically confront governmental established priorities, emphasising humanity’s social condition rather than its atomisation. In the book, we grapple with the fraught and complex definitions, practices and understandings of ‘professionalism’, exploring how the concept can be used to justify differing perspectives.

Including the work of some of the foremost thinkers in contemporary British social work (Stephen Cowden & Gurnam Singh, Pat Higham, Graham Ixer, Ray Jones, Malcolm Payne, Gillian Ruch, Steven Shardlow, Roger Smith, Neil Thompson, Sue Whist, and Marion Bogo from Canada) we promote professional social work practices that are relational, critical and reflexive, that challenge and help people and their communities to reconstruct themselves in their chosen ways.

Can We Sell Security Like Soap? A New Approach to Behaviour Change

BU research

Our next Interdisciplinary Cyber Security Seminar will take place on Tuesday, 19th November at 5pm. Our seminars are approachable, and require nothing more than a general interest in security, and an enquiring mind.

Our speaker will be Debi Ashenden, who is a Reader in Cyber Security and Head of the Centre for Cyber Security and Information Assurance at Cranfield University, based at the Defence Academy of the UK, Shrivenham. Prior to taking up her post at Cranfield University she was Managing Consultant within QinetiQ’s Trusted Information Management Dept (formerly DERA). She has been working in cyber security since 1998 and specialises in the social and behavioural aspects of cyber security. Her research is built on a socio-technical vision of cyber security that sees people as solutions rather than as the problem. Debi is the co-author of, ‘Risk Management for Computer Security: Protecting Your Network and Information Assets’, Butterworth Heinneman (2004).

Talk Abstract: Many organisations run security awareness programmes with the aim of improving end user behaviours around information security. Yet behavioural research tells us that raising awareness will not necessarily lead to behaviour change. This talk examines the challenge of changing end user behaviour and puts forward social marketing as a new paradigm. Social marketing is a proven framework for achieving behavioural change and has traditionally been used in health care interventions, although there is an increasing recognition that it could be successfully applied to a broader range of behaviour change issues. It has yet to be applied however, to information security in an organisational context. This talk will explore the social marketing framework in relation to information security behavioural change and highlight the key challenges that this approach poses for information security managers. We conclude with suggestions for future research.

The seminar will take place in EB202 in the Executive Business Centre, and will be free and open to all. If you would like to attend, we encourage you to register at http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/interdisciplinary-seminar-in-cyber-security-tickets-9336229915

Sustainable Design Research Centre – Research Seminar

BU research, PG research

Wednesday   20-11-2013

Room:   P302 LT (Poole House, Talbot Campus)

Start: 12:00 Finish: 13:00

APPLICATIONS OF CORROSION MODELLING IN THE PETROLEUM, DEFENCE AND AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES

There have been major developments in computer modelling of galvanic corrosion processes over the last twenty years which have resulted in modelling being widely used to simulate the performance of cathodic protection systems which are used to protect structures from corrosion both offshore and onshore. These physics based models represent the electrode kinetics on the metallic surfaces as well as the current flow through the electrolyte. In recent years similar technology has been developed to simulate galvanic corrosion between dissimilar metals in structures which are exposed to thin electrolyte films. For example aircraft and automobiles subject to humid atmospheres and splashing of de-icing fluids.

The work will present applications of the modelling technology in the Oil & Gas industry and describe recent developments in modelling aircraft structures.

The above work will be presented by Professor Carlos A. Brebbia and Dr Robert A Adey, external speakers from the Wessex Institute of Technology.

Professor Carlos Brebbia is Director of the Wessex Institute. After obtaining his PhD at Southampton, he worked at a major UK Research Laboratory before taking an academic appointment at Southampton University where he rose from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer and Reader.  During his time at Southampton he took leave to become Visiting Professor at many other universities, including Princeton. After having been appointed full Professor of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine, he decided to return to the UK to set up the Wessex Institute in the New Forest.

Professor Brebbia is renowned throughout the world as the originator of the Boundary Element Method, a technique that continues to generate important research work at the Wessex Institute.  He has written numerous scientific papers and is author or co-author of 14 technical books and editor or co-editor of more than 400 volumes. He is also Editor of several journals.

Carlos’ interests span from the analysis of advanced structures such as shells to the modelling of environmental problems, dealing with a wide variety of methodologies.  His most recent efforts have been concentrated on the development of Wessex Institute as an international centre of excellence.

Dr Robert A Adey (Bob) is Director Strategic Development at C M BEASY Ltd.  He has a PhD and MSc from Southampton University. UK.  He has over twenty years’ experience in the development and application of computer modelling software for corrosion and CP applications in the Oil & Gas, Defence and Aerospace industry. He is currently manages BEASY Collaborative R&D projects and major engineering services projects.

INTRODUCTION TO THE WESSEX INSTITUTE

Brief description of the objectives of Wessex Institute as a knowledge transfer organisation. This includes work in the field of computational modelling with a wide variety of applications, training and scientific meetings organisation, and the publication of scientific and technical literature.

 Wessex Institute collaborates with many institutions around the world and acts as a focus for the dissemination of the latest advances in a variety of fields.

If you have any questions or would like to know more about this seminar or any general inquires about research, enterprise or professional practice activities within Sustainable Design Research Centre please contact:

Dr Zulfiqar Khan (Associate Professor)

Director SDRC

e-mail: zkhan@bournemouth.ac.uk

The BUDI Themes – how you can get involved with dementia research!

Research themes


The Bournemouth University Dementia Institute (BUDI) continues to expand and build on its excellent start since its launch in May 2012. We are pleased to have recently welcomed three research assistants to the team who are helping prepare grant proposals for various research and enterprise income. On the 24 October BUDI held an away day with 25 staff (7 others were unable to attend) to discuss our strategy for meeting our targets for developing successful research proposals. While we had a successful meeting and are energised to write research grant proposals, the BUDI team would like to extend an invitation to colleagues from across all schools to partner with us in writing bids for research and enterprise income. 

To this end, BUDI will be hosting an informal tea / coffee and cake morning on Tuesday 28 January 2014 in The Retreat, for staff to come and meet the team and discuss their potential collaboration with BUDI on dementia research projects. 

To help staff see where they might work with BUDI, we have summarised the five BUDI themes below. Under each theme we engage in research, and provide consultancy, service evaluation, and education / training services. However for this event, we are looking in particular to partner with colleagues in developing research grant proposals:

Theme 1: Dementia Awareness and Knowledge Translation
This theme is about raising awareness of dementia in the community and translating knowledge into practice. It is about challenging stereotypes and assumptions made of people with dementia. For example, we are holding an ESRC-funded public engagement event on dementia and showcasing the work of BUDI.

For more information, please contact Anthea Innes or Clare Cutler.
http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/dementia-institute/dementia-awareness-education-and-knowledge-translation/

Theme 2: Dementia Friendly Environments
This theme is about making sure that the environments in which people live and frequent are designed in a manner that is accessible for people with dementia. For example, ensuring care homes and hospitals are designed to help prevent people getting lost and able to access toilets, gardens.

For more information, please contact Jan Wiener or Mariela Gaete-Reyes.
http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/dementia-institute/dementia-friendly-environments/

Theme 3: Improving Services and Care Provision
This theme is about striving to provide the best in health and social care for people with dementia and best support for their carers. For example, working with care homes and community services to evaluate and improve the care they provide so that it better meets the needs and preferences of individuals.

For more information, please contact Samuel Nyman or Clare Cutler.
http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/dementia-institute/improving-services-and-care-provision/

Theme 4: Dementia Friendly Leisure
This theme is about working with the leisure and tourism industry to improve the accessibility of services so that they can be enjoyed by people with dementia. For example, helping museums, art galleries, hoteliers, etc. become more dementia friendly to facilitate social participation by people with dementia in their local community and tourist sites.

For more information, please contact Stephen Page or Anthea Innes
http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/dementia-institute/dementia-friendly-tourism-and-leisure/

Theme 5: Leadership, Education and Staff Development
This theme is about influencing leaders and managers so that organisations can improve their dementia awareness and effectiveness in serving people with dementia. It is also about developing the knowledge and skills of staff who directly serve people with dementia.

For more information, please contact Rick Fisher or Anthea Innes
http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/dementia-institute/leadership-and-staff-development/

We hope that many colleagues will be able to attend the event and foster research proposals together. If you are able to attend, please inform Michelle O’Brien mobrien@bournemouth.ac.uk in advance by Monday 20 January for catering purposes. If you are unable to attend but would like to discuss a research theme, please contact the relevant theme lead mentioned above.

 

The BUDI team

Social Work in Palestine

Women's Academic Network

Conference logo

Social Work in Palestine, 2nd conference Palestine-UK Social Work Network
The 2nd National Conference of the Palestine-UK Social Work Network, supported by members of the British Association of Social Work, was held on the 12th November at the Amnesty International Centre off dingy Shoreditch High Street, and was an absolute bargain. For a registration fee of only £15.00 it offered a programme of rare value and threw in a two-course vegetarian lunch as well. It was also one of the most compelling and powerful conferences that I’ve ever had the privilege of attending. One heard with almost disbelief and certainly intense disquiet several level-headed presentations reporting the daily and systematic oppression of the Palestinian people, and the fragmentation of any semblance to normality through the enforced occupation of the territories that has continued for over sixty years.

To try to convey what this means, Prof. Manuel Hassassian, Palestinian Ambassador claims that every single Palestinian living under occupation suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. We also learned what ‘peace’ has meant for these people over the last twenty years since the Oslo Agreement 1993: 7,000 Palestinians killed, twelve thousand+ Palestinian homes destroyed, a further 250,000+ Israeli settlers in Palestinian territories, and finally, 441 miles of apartheid walls built to corral people into armed, patrolled ghettoes.

Jerusalem, historical home of so many Palestinians, is subject to what Issa Rabadi, Officer of the Palestinian Union of Social Workers & Psychologists, described as an ‘undeclared war of ethnic cleansing’, where apparently the goal of the occupational authorities is that the Palestinian population should not exceed 15-20% by the Year 2020. To this end, one third of Palestinian homes in Jerusalem are at risk of being demolished on the official grounds that these are illegal lodgings, with a predicted peak of destruction of homes due in 2014. Yet, apparently gaining legal rights to live in Jerusalem for resident Palestinians is so complex and protracted a process (lasting decades in many cases) that ‘Kafkaesque’ hardly begins to describe it.

The most distressing stories, unsurprisingly, referred to the detainment and torture of Palestinians; particularly those accounts concerning Palestinian children. Many of these child prisoners are as young as 12- or 13-years-old, and are arrested normally on the charge of throwing stones at the occupying forces. This was exemplified by the experiences of speaker, Mohammed Abu al Reesh, who was arrested on two separate occasions in his recent boyhood and subjected on both occasions to brutal physical maltreatment and psychological intimidation throughout this time. Mohammed’s story was by no means exceptional, rather than the reverse. In addition to physical abuse children may also be placed in solitary confinement for up to a month where the only contact is their interrogator. Arrested and imprisoned children are not normally permitted to see their families and even accessing legal support is achieved only with great difficulty. In the case of Mohammed, within a fortnight of being released from his last sentence, he enrolled at university, eventually gaining a BA in media studies with the ambition, now achieved, of becoming a journalist in order to better inform the world of human rights violations taking place in the territories.

So where does social work feature in this catalogue of utter wretchedness? The Global Agenda for Social Work, which seeks to unite social work educators and practitioners universally in the promotion of this year’s theme ‘Promoting social and economic inequalities’, directly resonates with the UN Millennium Development Goals.

Palestinian social workers live and work under the same high levels of daily oppression and insecurities as the communities they courageously serve. They are unsupported by State legal systems or by Israeli fellow social workers, who to-date appear ominously aloof to the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. As lecturer, Barry Levine of Glasgow Caledonian University, also pointed out, any international criticism of state tactics is very likely to result in accusations of anti-Semitism, which effectively serves to stifle debate and to muddy attempts towards a clearer understanding of what constitutes discrimination and oppression in the territories.

Despite this, the Palestine-UK social work network is actively seeking collegial links with anyone interested in the Palestinian plight to further the goals of the Global Agenda and to constructively work towards peace. To this end, plans are being made to hold the next conference in Jerusalem, where hopefully UK social worker academics and practitioners will be able to witness the situation for ourselves; and equally importantly, show solidarity with social work colleagues internationally.

BUDI – Hot in Malta

BU research, Featured academics, Research news

In October, five members of the BUDI team attended the annual Alzheimer’s Europe International Conference 2013, hosted on the very beautiful (and very hot) Island of Malta. This annual conference attracts practitioners, academics, carers, people with dementia, medical professionals and clinicians from all over the world.

This year Bournemouth University was represented by the BUDI team who were accepted to present four oral presentations (Ben Hicks, Clare Cutler, Anthea Innes and Derek Eland) and one poster presentation (Clare Cutler) showcasing some of BUDI’s innovative projects (Technology Club, Tales of the Sea, Malta Hospital Care, (Don’t) mention Dementia and War and dementia).

In addition to the presentations, BUDI was also invited to exhibit the (Don’t) Mention Dementia project in the main foyer of the conference suite. The exhibition attracted many people who filmed and photographed the exhibition.  Some people were physically touched by the stories and enquired about how this method could be replicated in other countries to give people with dementia a voice.

On the last day of the conference our very own Anthea Innes was invited to provide the closing conference key note speech. Anthea’s presentation touched on many of the challenges faced by people living with dementia and stressed that there is still much important work to do to make our societies dementia friendly to enable those living with dementia to live well with dementia. Whilst the presentation focused on the hard times ahead, it was concluded with a wonderful feel good message (provided by the voices of High School musical) that ‘we are all in this together’! This got a lot of laughs and was a great way to end the conference.

 

Above and beyond presenting we were given the opportunity to network with world leading dementia specialists at the annual INTERDEM evening meal and the Alzheimer’s Gala dinner (which had a very good band although you couldn’t really understand what the singer was saying, but never the less, you could hum along to the tune). The Gala dinner was preceded with a special visit to the Maltase Presidents summer palace, where the delegates were taken around sections of the very old and very beautiful house and gardens.  

After much hard work presenting, networking, and profiling BUDI and BU, we ended the conference with an evening relaxing on the beach and a bit of a boogie in a local bar!

 

Since being home we have started following up contacts made at the conference and look forward to some potential collaborations.

 

Clare Cutler, BUDI Project Manager

A Review of Gaming Technologies for Stroke Patients

BU research, PG research, Research news

Our next Creative Technology Research Centre Research Seminar will be presented by Owen O’Neil.

Title: A Review of Gaming Technologies for Stroke Patients

Date: Wednesday 13th November 2013

Time: 2 – 3PM

Venue: P302 LTCentre For Digital Entertainment

Abstract: Stroke is a global pandemic and the largest cause of severe adult disability in the world. Incidence rates in the UK suggest that over 150,000 suffer a first time stroke, and over 80% of survivors will suffer some form of motor disability. Rehabilitation typically consists of high volumes of motor practice to engage the mechanism of neural plasticity, a form of cortical rewiring that allows the brain to adapt after damage. Meeting the rehabilitation needs for this population through one-to-one physiotherapy care is currently not possible.  There is a growing impetus on research institutions to explore cost-effective methods for increasing access to rehabilitation that may promote improved functional recovery for patients at home and in the clinic. Recent approaches include the use of video game technology as a method of increasing patient engagement and upkeep to rehabilitation programs. Of particular interest is the emergence of low cost commercial off-the-shelf devices such as the Nintendo Wii and Xbox Kinect.  In this presentation we introduce the state-of-the art application of video game technology as a modality of upper limb motor practice. We translate current approaches and technology in the literature that show particular promise to meet the needs of this population.

Research wins for CMC

Awarded & submitted bids, BU research, Research news

The Corporate & Marketing Communications academic group the Media School is celebrating two successful research bids within 24 hours. The first is that Prof Tom Watson was successful in gaining a British Council Researcher Links Workshop award for a project to be conducted with Chulalongkorn University in Thailand.

The bid was chosen in competition with 400 submissions. The national coordinator in Thailand is Assoc Prof Jirayudh Sinthuphan of the Faculty of Communication Arts and the workshop will be held in Bangkok in February next year.

Both national coordinators will have early career researchers as deputy coordinators: Dr Ana Adi at BU and Dr Phansasiri Kularb at Chulalongkorn. Others involved in the project include Dr Dan Jackson, Prof Iain MacRury, Dr Georgiana Grigore and Dr Tasos Theofilou. The team may be expanded to include other colleagues and PGRs.

The second “good research news” is that Dr Grigore, Dr Theofilou and Prof Watson gained another grant for CSR research from the Arthur W. Page Center at Penn State University in the US. They won a similar grant in mid-year.

For 2013/14 funding, reports Marcia DiStaso, senior research fellow at the Page Center, a record number of proposals was received, but only 13 out of 43 were awarded grants. This is a very competitive process and it is unusual to win two-in-a-row. Dr Grigore wrote the bid document with contributions from her co-researchers.

IVF failure is hard to accept!

BU research, Uncategorized

 

On today’s BBC webpage is a very interesting article under the title ‘I wish IVF had never been invented’ (www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24725655).  The article lists comments, experiences and/or feelings from readers of Magazine about the frequency with which In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) fails.

The article reminded me that some years ago colleagues at the University of Aberdeen and I published a series of articles on the often difficult decision for couples to end IVF treatment after having tried for a long time (1-3).  We noted that couples embarking on their IVF  programme are full of optimism with unrealistically high expectations. Then we noted that IVF yield only a 20-25 percent pregnancy rate per cycle, today the success rate is still less than one in three for women under 35 according to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), in short many couples leave the IVF clinic childless. We also noted that IVF treatment can also be a source of tension for couples.

We concluded at the time that the decision to end IVF treatment is a complex interaction between (a) the experience of diagnosis of infertility; investigations and IVF treatment; and (b) the emotions around involuntary childlessness. Our results indicated the need for improved psychological preparation of couples who decide to end IVF treatment.

 

We commented that IVF clinics should adapt their systems to facilitate the needs of this client group and consider a policy, which would help couples ‘plan for the end’ in the beginning. Finally, our study suggested that health care staff involved in IVF care need to examine their roles in providing an environment, which (1) encourages realistic expectations to ensure realistic decisions; (2) offers accurate and consistent information; and (3) deliver an efficient support system, which encompasses listening skills and recognises grief for which at present, there appears to be little validation. Only then, can reflective practice improve service provision for those who decide to end IVF treatment. Reading the various comments on the BBC webpages today suggests to me that many of our original recommendations still have currency!

 

Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health

 

References

  1. Peddie, V., van Teijlingen, E., Bhattacharya, S (2004) Decision making in in-vitro fertilisation: How women view the end of treatment Human Fertility, 7: 31-37.
  2. Peddie, V.L., van Teijlingen E., Bhattacharya, S. (2005) A qualitative study of women’s decision-making at the end of IVF treatment, Human Reproduction, 20 (7): 1944-1951.
  3. Peddie, V.L., Porter, M., van Teijlingen E., Bhattacharya, S. (2006) Research as a therapeutic experience? An investigation of women’s participation in research on ending IVF treatment, Human Fertility, 9(4): 231-238.

Sport Students Learn About Employability Of Their European Peers – And More

EU

Once again, beginning of October the Sports group hosted senior academics from some of its European partner universities in order to provide students with international insights into topics of their study and future career. In addition, the visitors worked with BU staff on progressing international research agendas and teaching models, such as intercultural mixed-group student management games partly facilitated via online conferencing.

Dr Stefan Walzel (German Sport University Cologne) and Gerco van Dalfsen (Hanzehogeschool Groningen and Secretary General European Association for Sport Management) presented and discussed with students of all UG/PG levels and all Sport pathways topics of neuromarketing, sport city strategies, leadership and provided insights into the employability and career prospects of their own respective graduates. Both visitors stressed the need for their universities to include an array of international activities and learning experiences into their students’ curriculum in order to lift their competitiveness on an increasingly international job market.

Together with BU sport management colleague Dr Tim Breitbarth, they also progressed a collaborative international study on community perceptions of professional sport clubs’ social responsibility initiatives by collecting further data in Bournemouth. A fourth set of data was collected in the USA end of October.

Gerco and Stefan were also very interested to meet with BU sport students who will study in Cologne and Groningen in semester 2, and receive feedback from the Sport group’s ever-first incoming Erasmus exchange student in order to manage expectations and processes for future exchanges, such as the four students arriving in Bournemouth for semester 2.

 

Dr Stefan Walzel presenting on sport, neuroscience and marketing

Sport students of all levels and Sport pathways during Dr Walzel’s presentation in the Fusion Seminar Series

Gerco van Dalfsen with Level I students of all Sport pathways

Gerco van Dalfsen with sport management Masters student Andreas Stylianides and Philip Smith (from left to right)

European visitors and incoming/outgoing Sport students get-together.