Publications by authors named "Marietta John-White"

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to create a prioritized list of research themes and essential data points related to mental health issues in children and adolescents presenting to emergency departments (ED).
  • A Delphi survey involving various stakeholders, including clinicians and patients, was conducted to gather and prioritize these research themes and data points.
  • The final results highlighted 71 key items, focusing on safety in the ED, the effectiveness of mental health spaces, follow-up care, and important data like risk factors and behavioral disturbances.
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Objective This study aimed to describe and compare the proportion of patients classified as an emergency department (ED) mental health presentation under different definitions, including the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) definition. Methods This retrospective cohort study enrolled all patients that presented to the EDs of a multi-centre Victorian health service between 1 January 2020 and 30 June 2023. Varying definitions of a mental health presentation were applied to each ED attendance, applying the current AIHW definition (using selected diagnosis codes), broader diagnosis-based coding, the presenting complaint recorded at triage and whether the patient was seen by or referred to the emergency psychiatric service (EPS).

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Background And Objectives: Virtual reality (VR) may be useful for reducing needle-based pain and distress. Our objective was to compare VR against standard care for children undergoing routine four-year-old immunisations.

Method: This was a randomised controlled superiority trial conducted in a single suburban general practice, comparing a VR sequence of an interactive marine adventure to standard care (parental comfort, distraction of child).

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Introduction: Pain caused by routine immunisations is distressing to children, their parents and those administering injections. If poorly managed, it can lead to anxiety about future medical procedures, needle phobia and avoidance of future vaccinations and other medical treatment. Several strategies, such as distraction, are used to manage the distress associated with routine immunisations.

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β-Aminopeptidases have the unique capability to hydrolyze N-terminal β-amino acids, with varied preferences for the nature of β-amino acid side chains. This unique capability makes them useful as biocatalysts for synthesis of β-peptides and to kinetically resolve β-peptides and amides for the production of enantiopure β-amino acids. To date, six β-aminopeptidases have been discovered and functionally characterized, five from Gram-negative bacteria and one from a fungus, Here we report on the purification and characterization of an additional four β-aminopeptidases, one from a Gram-positive bacterium, (BapA), one from a yeast, (BapA), and two from Gram-negative bacteria isolated from activated sludge identified as spp.

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β-Aminopeptidases are a unique group of enzymes that have the unusual capability to hydrolyze N-terminal β-amino acids from synthetic β-peptides. β-Peptides can form secondary structures mimicking α-peptide-like structures that are resistant to degradation by most known proteases and peptidases. These characteristics of β-peptides give them great potential as peptidomimetics.

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