Category / Fusion themes

Participants needed for a study on faith-based organisations and the climate change crisis in the UK

BU research, ESRC

  • Are you a Christian and do you identify with at least one religious organisation?
  • Do you live in Bournemouth, Christchurch or Poole?
  • Is your place of worship in Bournemouth, Christchurch or Poole?
  • Can you please take 10 minutes to fill out a survey?

If you answered “yes” to the above questions, we would like to invite you to participate in a survey to access the roles of faith-based organisations in mitigating the climate change crisis in Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole.

Please click here to participate in the survey.

Be assured that all answers you provide will be kept strictly confidential and you will not be identified in any way in the data.

Your participation will be appreciated.

If you have any questions, please contact one of us at:

 

New volume on skyscape archaeology edited by Dr Fabio Silva

BU research

A new volume on skyscape archaeology, co-edited by Dr Fabio Silva of IMSET and the Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, has been published this week.

Solarizing the Moon: Essays in Honour of Lionel Sims (Archaeopress, 2022) gathers contributions from thirteen anthropologists, archaeologists and cultural astronomers that delve into three key areas: (1) Anthropology and Human Origins, (2) Prehistory and Megalithic Monuments, and (3) Theoretical Developments. These represent the research interests of our colleague Prof Lionel Sims (Emeritus, University of East London), who passed away in 2021, and which this volume celebrates.

More details, including a free download of the introduction, can be found here.

 

New paper by Dr. Orlanda Harvey

BU research, Featured academics, international, Publishing, student research, Uncategorized, writing

Congratulations to Dr. Orlanda Harvey and Dr. Margarete Parrish both in the Department of Sociology and Social Work on the acceptance of their latest paper ‘Mixed-methods research on androgen abuse – a review’ by the journal Current Opinion in Endocrinology & Diabetes [1]. Orlanda was invited to write this review on the basis of her PhD research project.  Her PhD used a mixed-methods approach with people using un-prescribe /recreational Anabolic Androgenic Steroid (AAS) in several high-income countries including the UK.  Anabolic Androgenic Steroids are synthetic drugs mimicking male sex hormones, especially testosterone, and are often used for their anabolic effects, for example, increasing muscle and strength.  This PhD study resulted in several high-quality academic publications [2-4] as well as a feature article in HED Matters under the title ‘ECR Spotlight: From Social Work to Studying Steroids’ [5].
Congratulations!
Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen
CMMPH
References:
  1. Harvey, O., van Teijlingen, E., Parrish, M. (2022) Mixed-methods research on androgen abuse – a review, Current Opinion in Endocrinology & Diabetes (accepted)
  2. Harvey, O., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E, Trenoweth, S. (2021) Libido as a reason to use non-prescribed Anabolic Androgenic Steroids, Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy 29:3,276-288,DOI: 10.1080/09687637.2021.1882940
  3. Harvey, O., Keen, S., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E. (2019) Support for people who use Anabolic Androgenic Steroids: A Systematic Literature Review into what they want and what they access. BMC Public Health 19: 1024 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7288-x https://rdcu.be/bMFon
  4. Harvey, O., Parrish, M., van Teijlingen, E., Trenoweth, S. (2020) Support for non-prescribed Anabolic Androgenic Steroids users: A qualitative exploration of their needs Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy 27:5, 377-386. DOI 10.1080/09687637.2019.1705763
  5. Harvey, O., (2019) ECR Spotlight: From Social Work to Studying Steroids, HED Matters 2(2):16-19.

Dealing with difficult reviewers

BU research, Featured academics, international, open access, Publishing, research methods, Research news, Uncategorized, writing

This week saw the publication of another Bournemouth University paper on academic writing and publishing.  This latest paper ‘Struggling to reply to reviewers: Some advice for novice researchers‘ has been published in the scientific journal Health Prospect: Journal of Public Health.  This  journal is published in Nepal and it is Open Access, hence freely available across the globe.

Peer review is the process by which academic journals assess and regulate the quality of content they publish, by inviting academic experts to review your submitted manuscripts.  It is a process of quality control. Once you have submitted your paper to a journal the editor will select potential peer reviewers within the field of research to peer-review your manuscript and make recommendations. In many case the peer review process can be a positive experience for you as it allows you to develop your skills and improve your written work.  For example, good reviewers may notice potential imbalances, point out missing key references or highlight different potential perspectives, and thus help you to enhance the overall quality of the paper.  On some occasions, however a reviewer can be a complete pain in the neck!

The paper is written by a multidisciplinary team based in the Department of Nursing Sciences (Dr. Regmi), the Department of Social Sciences and Social Work (Dr. Harvey), and the Department of Midwifery & Health Sciences (Dr. Taylor & Prof. van Teijlingen).  The authors bring their combined expertise in midwifery, social work, health education, sociology and health services research to offers the readers advice how to deal with the more difficult reviewers.

 

Reference:

  1. Harvey, O., Taylor, A., Regmi, P.R., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) Struggling to reply to reviewers: Some advice for novice researchers Health Prospect: Journal of Public Health 21(2):19-22

New paper on COVID-19 rumours in Nepal

Awarded & submitted bids, BU research, COVID-19, Featured academics, international, open access, Publishing, Research news, Uncategorized, writing

Today the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health accepted the latest COVID-19 paper from an multidisciplinary team in the Faculty of Health & Social Sciences (FHSS).  The paper ‘Fear, Stigma and Othering: The Impact of COVID-19 Rumours on Returnee Migrants and Muslim Populations of Nepal’ is based on research funded by British Academy Special Research Grants: COVID-19 Awards. This British Academy funded-study brought together social scientists and health researchers interested in social and media aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The project is apart of the Health Research Network for Migrant Workers in Asia and it is led by Dr. Pramod Regmi (Department of Nursing Sciences), Dr. Shovita Dhakal-Adhikari (Department of Social Sciences and Social Work), Dr. Nirmal Aryal (formerly Department of Midwifery & Health Sciences and soon to be appointed in the Department of Nursing Sciences), external collaborator Dr. Sharada Prasad Wasti from the University of Huddersfield, and Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen (Department of Midwifery & Health Sciences).

 

Reference:

  1. Regmi, P., Dhakal Adhikari, S., Aryal, N., Wasti, S.P., van Teijlingen, E. (2022) Fear, Stigma and Othering: The Impact of COVID-19 Rumours on Returnee Migrants and Muslim Populations of Nepal, International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Accepted

My Turing Scheme experience in Nepal

BU research, international, Knowledge Exchange, PG research, Research news, Research Training, Student Engagement, Uncategorized

My name is Sulochana Dhakal-Rai. I am a final-year PhD student at Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (FHSS). My PhD research is related to factors affecting the rising rate of CS in urban hospitals in Nepal. There are several reasons to choose BU to do PhD study. Firstly,  this university offers strong professional orientation with focus on academic excellence and employability to multinational students from multicultural background. Secondly, it provides opportunities to students for undertaking  different activities, for example – international student exchange programme. I am always keen to be involved in such types of activities for my personal and professional development.

I applied for Turing Scheme Fund to do research activities in Nepal. The application process was very easy. I had received positive support from my supervisors and team of international grants. I was delighted to participate in international mobility, because I had a chance not only  sharing my research experience to student and teachers at Manmohan Memorial Institute of Health Sciences (MMIHS), Kathmandu, but also to do my own research activities (secondary data verification and analysis).

Although, it was hot weather, polluted and over-crowded  in Kathmandu, I enjoyed eating Nepali cuisine, meeting own people and speaking Nepali language. For me, there was not any problem in local language and culture. However, it was uncomfortable using public transport at times. I had suffered from of an episode of indigestion problem as well.

I loved meeting students and teachers of MMIHS. During my stay in MMIHS, I had the opportunity to share experience about my research study, using mixed methods in research study and my experience working as a foreign nurse in UK to relevant teachers and students. They were really good and inspiring people. I always received respect and support from them while I was there.

After this international activity, I have learnt how to work with people from different organisation and different place. I have developed my confidence in employability and career skills. I would like to express my thanks to Bournemouth University for providing me such a golden opportunity. I strongly recommend to other student at Bournemouth University to participate these kinds of international mobility programmes.

Sulochana Dhakal-Rai.

Article in Food Control on adapting the Delphi method (during Covid restrictions) for research in the food sector

BU research, open accecss, Publishing

The purpose of the study was to present the first stage of work being undertaken to develop and evaluate a maturity framework designed to assess and benchmark the effectiveness, ability to achieve continuous improvement, and optimise processes and functioning of food safety regulatory and enforcement agencies across the world.

To achieve this aim, a comparison of global food safety regulations (desk review), and Delphi-interviews with stakeholders of food safety regulatory and enforcement agencies from Australia, Canada, Ireland, and USA were carried out. There were 4 members in the panel – each member had a minimum of twenty years of experience in the food regulatory world. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic-related lockdown, the panel was interviewed individually using MS Teams. 2 rounds of interviews were carried out. At the end of the first round, data was analysed using inductive, textual data analysis. A report was presented to each panel member, following which, a second round if individual interviews were carried out. This enabled us (the research team) to overcome the limitations posed by global lockdowns and social distancing measures, while carrying out a robust iterative process. Through inductive, textual data analysis, three dimensions and thirteen sub-dimensions were identified that covered cultural and systems elements influencing the quality and impact of food safety regulations across the world as well as the gaps identified by the stakeholders.

The conclusions of the study were that whilst there was broad support by food safety regulators for developing a benchmarking and evaluation framework for food safety regulatory and enforcement agencies, there were also some outstanding challenges such as defining globally applicable measures, buy-in from specialised agencies and senior management to adopt a maturity framework to change the culture within regulatory agencies, and the role played by governments in influencing the efficiency and functioning of regulatory systems.

The paper is Open-Access and resides here.

Feel free to drop me a message to learn more about the study or the methodology.

Join the Mental Health Research Seminar

BU research, Events, Research Centres, Research news

Are you interested in Mental Health Research and engaging with researchers across Wessex?

Join us for a seminar (6 October 2022) given by Professor Sam Chamberlain, Professor of Psychiatry, University of Southampton and NIHR ARC Wessex Mental Health Research Hub Lead.

He will highlight projects currently supported through the Mental Research Hub, as part of the NIHR ARC Wessex. The Hub aims to bring together researchers from different disciplines and partners throughout the region to plan and conduct research and look at ways to implement findings at the point of care. It also encourages and support new research talent through mentorship, internships, a summer school, and new post-doctoral positions.

This seminar will provide a valuable opportunity to find out more about the Mental Health Research Hub, engage with researchers in Wessex to develop new research and potentially be involved with current projects.

Please sign up asap using this Eventbrite link (venue to be confirmed)

https://nihr-arc-mental-health.eventbrite.co.uk

Raising Awareness: Menopause & the Workplace Research Findings

Women's Academic Network

As the current UCU Equality Officer, I’d like to share some recent research (2022) on menopause and the workplace, which is presented by the Fawcett Society*. The research (see: https://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/Handlers/Download.ashx?IDMF=9672cf45-5f13-4b69-8882-1e5e643ac8a6) follows on from the C4 documentary ‘Davina McCall: Sex, Mind and the Menopause’ commissioned by Finestripe Productions.

This televised popular cultural representation raised awareness of the menopause. Additionally, Finestripe commissioned Savanta ComRes to conduct a  survey of 4,014 UK women aged 45-55 who are currently or have previously experienced the perimenopause or the menopause. The Fawcett Society, who were involved in the research design, acknowledge their gratitude “to Channel 4 and to Finestripe for enabling us to use that data in this report. We are also grateful to The Wates Group (a construction company), without whose sponsorship this report could not have been produced.”

Key findings from the research are as follows:

  • 77% of women experience one or more symptoms they describe as ‘very difficult’. 69% say they experience difficulties with anxiety or depression due to menopause, 84% experience trouble sleeping and 73% experience brain fog.
  • More women described difficulty sleeping and brain fog as being ‘difficult’ or ‘very difficult’ than hot flushes or night sweats (70%).
  • 44% of women said their ability to work had been affected, comprising 18% of women who said that their symptoms currently affected their ability to do their jobs, and 26% in the past. 61% said that they had lost motivation at work due to their symptoms, and 52% said they had lost confidence.
  • One in ten women who have been employed during the menopause have left work due to menopause symptoms. Mapped on to the UK population that would represent an estimated 333,000 women leaving their jobs due to the menopause. 14% of women had reduced their hours at work, 14% had gone part-time, and 8% had not applied for promotion.
  • Disabled women are affected more by menopause symptoms. 22% said they had left a job due to menopause symptoms, compared to 9% of non-disabled women.
  • Severe symptoms are worse for working class women. 44% of women described three or more symptoms as ‘very difficult’, and women in a household where the main earner works in semi-skilled or unskilled manual work were more likely than those where they work in managerial roles to have difficulty with physical and psychological symptoms.
  • The taboo around menopause extends to sick notes. 26% of women who have been employed during the menopause had taken time off work due to their symptoms, but just 30% of them gave menopause as the main reason on their sick note. Working class women were even less likely to cite the real reason.
  • Employers are not taking action to support most menopausal women. There is consistent evidence that a mix of appropriate interventions by employers can support women: culture change, training, advice on menopause, adapting absence policies, flexible work, and environmental changes.But for each of these, eight out of ten women in our survey said their employer had not put them in place. When they do, women say that they are helpful.
  • Women are not approaching their GP surgery about the menopause. Just 55% of women said they had talked to someone at their practice, while 45% said they had not. Even among women with five or more severe symptoms, 29% had not spoken to anyone at their GP practice about menopause.
  • Women overall said their GPs appeared knowledgeable about menopause. 67% of menopausal women who did speak to their GP agreed that their healthcare professionals seemed well informed about the menopause.

At the end of October 2021, the UK Government issued a Press Release (see: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/more-support-for-women-experiencing-the-menopause) outlining action for a Menopause Taskforce to better support women experiencing the menopause. The Task force will be co-chaired by the Minister for Women’s Health and Carolyn Harris MP and aims to address the role of education, training and workplace policies. The Civil Service will be involved in developing workplace menopause policy to ensure women can continue to work to their full potential.

At BU, we have Menopause Guidelines (see: https://staffintranet.bournemouth.ac.uk/workingatbu/healthsafetywellbeing/hsfire/menopause/) for members of staff and managers, which states that: “Research shows that the majority of women are unwilling to discuss menopause-related health problems with their line manager, nor ask for the support or adjustments that they may need”

One of the aims of the BU guidelines is to: “Foster an environment in which colleagues can openly and comfortably instigate conversations, or engage in discussions about menopause“.

Hopefully, existing menopause and workplace research findings, accompanied by policy reform, will impact change in the workplace and make menopause easier to talk about and support.

The TUC also have an informative and useful menopause toolkit: https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/Menopause%20toolkit%20Eng%20FINAL.pdf

*The Fawcett Society is a UK charity, established in 1866; campaigns for women’s rights