Laboratory study of the effectiveness of substituting traditional wheat flour with low dust flour and use of different sieve designs as controls to reduce exposure to inhalable flour dust in commercial bakeries.

Exposure to flour dust remains one of the leading causes of occupational asthma in Great Britain (GB). The average annual incidence rate per 100,000 bakers and flour confectioners in GB was 47.8 for the 3 yr period 2017 to 2019 compared with 0.

Validation of personal protective equipment ensembles, incorporating powered air-purifying respirators protected from contamination, for the care of patients with high-consequence infectious diseases.

Background: The UK High-Consequence Infectious Diseases (HCID) Network of high-level isolation units provides care for patients with contact- or airborne-transmissible highly infectious and highly dangerous diseases. In most HCID units, the healthcare workers (HCWs) wear personal protective equipment (PPE) ensembles incorporating a powered air-purifying respirator (PAPR) for head and respiratory protection. Some PAPRs have components worn outside/over other PPE, necessitating decontamination of re-usable elements.

INFORMed choices: facilitating shared decision-making in health care.

A clinical audit was undertaken before and after the introduction of a five-minute video presentation as an adjunct to the clinical consultation in the setting of ruptured membranes at term. The video framed clinical information using an INFORM structure: providing Information, Facts, Options, Reasons, Meaning. Subsequently, women were more likely to report that information was unbiased, based on facts and evidence that they were involved in the decision-making and overall satisfied with the information provided.

Reducing the risk of harm from intravenous potassium: a multi-factorial approach in the haematology setting.

Aims: To describe the implementation of safety systems for the use of intravenous potassium chloride in haematology patients.

Methods: We assessed the use of intravenous potassium in a haematology ward at a tertiary hospital. Initially, we prospectively analysed the prescribing and administration of intravenous potassium to all patients over a two-week period.

Flammable gas cloud build up in a ventilated enclosure.

Ventilation is frequently used as a means for preventing the build up of flammable or toxic gases in enclosed spaces. The effectiveness of the ventilation often has to be considered as part of a safety case or risk assessment. In this paper methods for assessing ventilation effectiveness for hazardous area classification are examined.