Nurses' Experiences and Perceptions of P2/N95 Mask Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia: A Qualitative Study.

Experiencing side effects when wearing N95/P2 masks has negative impacts on health workers and increases exposure to pathogens. While side effects of wearing P2/N95 masks have been reported previously, these masks have never been used as widely as during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines Australian hospital nurses' experiences and perceptions of P2/N95 mask usage and its impacts on patient care at a time when P2/N95 masks were widely used.

Developing nurse and midwife centred rostering principles using co-design: a mixed-methods study.

Background: Current nursing and midwifery rosters are based on guidelines which may no longer adequately meet the needs of health services or staff and often result in decreased job satisfaction, poor health and wellbeing, and high turnover. Little is known about the rostering needs and preferences of contemporary nurses and midwives in Australia. The aim of this study was to identify the rostering concerns, needs and preferences of nurses and midwives, and co-design acceptable, equitable and feasible rostering principles.

Psychosocial well-being and diabetes distress in the transition to motherhood among women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Objective: To investigate the associations between psychological well-being, measured with the Postnatal Well-being in Transition (PostTrans) Questionnaire, and diabetes distress among mothers with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Method: Eighty-two postnatal women completed a cross-sectional survey. The survey included the Diabetes Distress Scale, and the PostTrans Questionnaire to assess the psychosocial well-being of women transitioning to motherhood.

Hospital costs of COVID-19, post-COVID-19 condition and other viral pneumonias: a cost comparison analysis.

Objectives: To compare hospital admission costs for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases to hospital admission costs for other viral pneumonia cases in Australia, and to describe hospital admission costs for post-COVID-19 condition.

Design, Setting, Participants: A cost comparison analysis of hospital admissions due to COVID-19 or other viral pneumonias between 1 January 2020 and 30 June 2021 at Victorian public health acute and subacute services.

Main Outcome Measures: Demographic characteristics, clinical outcomes (including diagnoses, impairment, subacute admission, intensive care unit admissions, ventilation, and length of stay) and cost data (including diagnostic-related groups, and total, direct and indirect costs).

Surface-mutagenesis strategies to enable structural biology crystallization platforms.

A key prerequisite for the successful application of protein crystallography in drug discovery is to establish a robust crystallization system for a new drug-target protein fast enough to deliver crystal structures when the first inhibitors have been identified in the hit-finding campaign or, at the latest, in the subsequent hit-to-lead process. The first crucial step towards generating well folded proteins with a high likelihood of crystallizing is the identification of suitable truncation variants of the target protein. In some cases an optimal length variant alone is not sufficient to support crystallization and additional surface mutations need to be introduced to obtain suitable crystals.

Identification of biomarkers for COVID-19 associated secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis.

Objectives: We aimed to define and validate novel biomarkers that could identify individuals with COVID-19 associated secondary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (sHLH) and to test whether fatalities due to COVID-19 in the presence of sHLH were associated with specific defects in the immune system.

Design: In two cohorts of adult patients presenting with COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021, clinical lab values and serum proteomics were assessed. Subjects identified as having sHLH were compared to those with COVID-19 without sHLH.

Mediators of monocyte chemotaxis and matrix remodeling are associated with mortality and pulmonary fibroproliferation in patients with severe COVID-19.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) has a fibroproliferative phase that may be followed by pulmonary fibrosis. Pulmonary fibrosis following COVID-19 pneumonia has been described at autopsy and following lung transplantation. We hypothesized that protein mediators of tissue remodeling and monocyte chemotaxis are elevated in the plasma and endotracheal aspirates of critically ill patients with COVID-19 who subsequently develop features of pulmonary fibroproliferation.

Parental leave and returning to work during the COVID-19 pandemic: an exploratory mixed-methods study.

Objective This study explored the experiences, concerns and perceptions of hospital clinical staff returning to work after parental leave during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods An exploratory mixed-methods study was performed. Eligible staff employed at a large metropolitan tertiary health service in Melbourne, Australia, completed an ethics-approved anonymous online cross-sectional survey and/or participated in an interview between February and June 2021.

PD-L1 and PD-1 Are Associated with Clinical Outcomes and Alveolar Immune Cell Activation in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome.

The relationship between the PD-L1 (Programmed Death-Ligand 1)/PD-1 pathway, lung inflammation, and clinical outcomes in acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is poorly understood. We sought to determine whether PD-L1/PD-1 in the lung or blood is associated with ARDS and associated severity. We measured soluble PD-L1 (sPD-L1) in plasma and lower respiratory tract samples (ARDS1 [ = 59] and ARDS2 [ = 78]) or plasma samples alone (ARDS3 [ = 149]) collected from subjects with ARDS and tested for associations with mortality using multiple regression.

Accuracy of a Cancer Registry Versus Clinical Care Team Chart Abstraction in Identifying Cancer Recurrence.

Objective: To evaluate the completeness and reliability of recurrence data from an institutional cancer registry for patients with head and neck cancer.

Patients And Methods: Recurrence information was collected by radiation oncology and otolaryngology researchers. This was compared with the institutional cancer registry for continuous patients treated with radiation therapy for head and neck cancer at a tertiary cancer center.

Co-design of a question prompt list about pregnancy and childbearing for women with polycystic kidney disease: an exploratory sequential mixed-methods study.

Background: Although women with polycystic kidney disease (PKD) generally have healthy pregnancies and babies, pregnancy is associated with a greater risk of maternal complications and requires planning and management of their condition. Given these possible complications, routine communication about childbearing between women with PKD and their treating team is important. A question prompt list (QPL), a structured list of questions used by patients during consultations with healthcare providers, may be beneficial in assisting women with PKD to discuss their childbearing concerns with, and seek related information from, their treating team.

The transcriptional and phenotypic characteristics that define alveolar macrophage subsets in acute hypoxemic respiratory failure.

The transcriptional and phenotypic characteristics that define alveolar monocyte and macrophage subsets in acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) are poorly understood. Here, we apply CITE-seq (single-cell RNA-sequencing and cell-surface protein quantification) to bronchoalveolar lavage and blood specimens longitudinally collected from participants with AHRF to identify alveolar myeloid subsets, and then validate their identity in an external cohort using flow cytometry. We identify alveolar myeloid subsets with transcriptional profiles that differ from other lung diseases as well as several subsets with similar transcriptional profiles as reported in healthy participants (Metallothionein) or patients with COVID-19 (CD163/LGMN).

Worsening psychological wellbeing of Australian hospital clinical staff during three waves of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Objective This study aimed to assess and compare the psychological wellbeing of Australian hospital clinical staff at three timepoints during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Methods An anonymous, online, cross-sectional survey was conducted at three timepoints during the COVID-19 pandemic (T1: May-June 2020; T2: October-December 2020; T3: November 2021-January 2022). The surveys were completed by nurses, midwives, doctors and allied health staff employed at a large metropolitan tertiary health service located in Melbourne, Australia.

Views of educators working with pupils with Down syndrome on their roles and responsibilities and factors related to successful inclusion.

Background: Whilst the majority of primary-school aged children with Down syndrome are educated in mainstream schools, little is known about the roles of Teachers and TAs in their education provision or their views on issues related to their effective inclusion.

Aims: This study explored the perceptions of Teachers and TAs working with pupils with Down syndrome in mainstream primary schools in the UK using an online survey.

Methods And Procedures: Responses from 105 TAs and 94 Teachers were collected.

Structural modulation of membrane-intercalating conjugated oligoelectrolytes decouples outer membrane permeabilizing and antimicrobial activities.

We report a series of membrane-intercalating conjugated oligoelectrolytes (MICOEs) to probe how structural features impact bacterial membrane integrity and antibiotic activity. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) and outer membrane (OM) permeability correlated to different structural parameters suggesting that the antimicrobial mechanism is not related to OM permeabilization. However, lipid order parameters and MICs correlated to the same structural feature suggesting a possible link.

Processes for the 3D Printing of Hydrodynamic Flow-Focusing Devices.

Flow focusing is an important hydrodynamic technique for cytometric analysis, enabling the rapid study of cellular samples to identify a variety of biological processes. To date, the majority of flow-focusing devices are fabricated using conventional photolithography or flame processing of glass capillaries. This article presents a suite of low-cost, millifluidic, flow-focusing devices that were fabricated using a desktop sterolithgraphy (SLA) 3D printer.

Mediators of monocyte chemotaxis and matrix remodeling are associated with the development of fibrosis in patients with COVID-19.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) has a fibroproliferative phase that may be followed by pulmonary fibrosis. This has been described in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, but the underlying mechanisms have not been completely defined. We hypothesized that protein mediators of tissue remodeling and monocyte chemotaxis are elevated in the plasma and endotracheal aspirates of critically ill patients with COVID-19 who subsequently develop radiographic fibrosis.

Psychological wellbeing of Australian community health service staff during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal cohort study.

Background: Hospital clinical staff have reported poor psychosocial wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Little is known about community health service staff who undertake various roles including education, advocacy and clinical services, and work with a range of clients. Few studies have collected longitudinal data.

Feasibility and acceptability of an online guided self-determination program to improve diabetes self-management in young adults.

Objective: Evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of an online guided self-determination (GSD) program to improve diabetes self-management skills among young adults with type 1 diabetes (YAD).

Methods: An online program comprising seven structured interactive conversations was designed. A pre- and post- interventional study used a sequential, two-phase multiple method design.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Australian community health service staff's occupational and personal lives: a longitudinal study.

Background: Little is known about the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on community health service staff. The aim of this study was to assess the immediate and longer-term psychosocial impacts of COVID-19 on community health service staff in Australia.

Methods: A prospective cohort design with an anonymous cross-sectional online survey that was administered at two time points (March-April 2021; n =681 and September-October 2021; n =479).

Patient-Centered Care Experiences of First-Generation, South Asian Migrants with Chronic Diseases Living in High-Income, Western Countries: Systematic Review.

Background: First-generation migrants from South Asia account for a considerable proportion of the immigrant populations in high-income, western countries and are at a high risk of developing complex, chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Yet, previous systematic reviews have not synthesized information about the healthcare needs and preferences of such migrants and the best ways for health services to provide them with appropriate, culturally sensitive, patient-centered care. The aim of this study is to systematically review the international evidence about first-generation, South Asian migrants' healthcare experiences from the patients' perspectives.