The return of raptors to Scotland's skies: Investigating the diets of reintroduced red kites and white-tailed eagles using stable isotopes.

Species reintroductions are increasingly seen as important methods of biodiversity restoration. Reintroductions of red kites Milvus milvus and white-tailed eagles Halieaeetus albicilla to Britain, which were extirpated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, represent major conservation successes. Here, we measured stable isotope ratios of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) in feather keratin and bone collagen of museum specimens of red kites and white-tailed eagles, which were collected from across Scotland between the 1800s and 2010s.

Medically Tailored Meals in Heart Failure: A Systematic Review of the Literature, 2013-2023.

Background: Dietary interventions have potential to improve symptoms and outcomes in patients with heart failure (HF), but there are barriers to eating nutrient-dense diets. One strategy to address challenges is to provide medically tailored meals (MTMs), fully prepared meals that align with an individual's nutritional needs. In this systematic review, we examined clinical outcomes of studies that provided MTMs to patients with HF.

Correction: A quantitative analysis of Final Palaeolithic/earliest Mesolithic cultural taxonomy and evolution in Europe.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Molecular protocol for genome-wide and cell-type-selective profiling of in vivo small noncoding RNA:target RNA interactions by CIMERA-seq.

Small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) can regulate gene expression by guiding the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) to targeted transcripts for translational repression and/or target destabilization. Here, we present a robust benchtop protocol, termed CIMERA-seq, for the unambiguous profiling of sncRNA:target RNA interactions in a genome-wide and cell-type-selective manner. We describe steps for in vivo crosslinking and harvesting tissue, immunoprecipitation and covalent ligation of sncRNAs to target RNAs within the RISC, and sequencing of the resulting chimeric sncRNA:target RNA interactions.

The Impact of a Guardianship Social Worker on Inpatient Time-To-Guardianship and Costs: Preliminary Findings.

Unrepresented patients who lack decision-making capacity can remain in hospitals for weeks awaiting guardianship and subsequent discharge, resulting in medically unnecessary and costly extended stays. The guardianship process is complicated and requires collaboration between the medical and legal systems. The Rocky Mountain Regional Veteran Affairs Medical Center created a guardianship social worker position to improve the guardianship process by developing subject matter expertise, infrastructure, and standardized procedures.

Nursing Home Staff With Children: Unique Needs Among Single and Partnered Parents.

Background And Objectives: Nursing home (NH) staff job dissatisfaction and turnover are associated with lower care quality. However, little is known about the impact of being single on workplace experiences. Guided by the Job Demands-Control-Support Model, we compared job satisfaction, turnover intention, and psychological distress for single and partnered parents working in NHs.

Equity and Inclusion for LGBTQ+ Residents: Lessons Learned from the Initial Long-Term Care Equality Index (LEI).

Objectives: Most older adults with lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, questioning, transgender, and related identities (LGBTQ+) are concerned about receiving lower-quality care and/or being mistreated in nursing homes. Older LGBTQ+ veterans may have additional reservations about care in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) nursing homes (Community Living Centers [CLCs]) because of experience with past discriminatory military policies (eg, bans on participating in military service, Don't Ask Don't Tell). This article describes one of the first VA CLCs to participate in the Human Rights Campaign-developed Long-Term Care Equality Index (LEI).

Genome-wide and cell-type-selective profiling of in vivo small noncoding RNA:target RNA interactions by chimeric RNA sequencing.

Small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs) regulate biological processes by impacting post-transcriptional gene expression through repressing the translation and levels of targeted transcripts. Despite the clear biological importance of sncRNAs, approaches to unambiguously define genome-wide sncRNA:target RNA interactions remain challenging and not widely adopted. We present CIMERA-seq, a robust strategy incorporating covalent ligation of sncRNAs to their target RNAs within the RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) and direct detection of in vivo interactions by sequencing of the resulting chimeric RNAs.

Implementing Montessori approaches after training: A mixed methods study to examine staff understanding and movement toward action.

This paper uses Normalization Process Theory (NPT) to examine staff impressions of Montessori-based program training and implementation at Veterans Affairs Community Living Centers (VA CLCs; nursing homes). We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation of Montessori Approaches to Person-Centered Care (MAP-VA) at eight VA CLCs. Trainings were conducted as either a live virtual course or a pre-recorded asynchronous class.

Plastic ingestion and trace element contamination of Manx shearwaters Puffinus puffinus on the Faroe Islands.

Procellariiform seabirds can accumulate high levels of plastic in their gastrointestinal tracts, which can cause physical damage and potentially provides a contamination route for trace elements. We examined plastic ingestion and trace element contamination of fledgling Manx shearwaters Puffinus puffinus that were harvested for human consumption in 2003 and 2018 on Skúvoy, Faroe Islands (North Atlantic Ocean). Overall, 88% of fledglings contained plastic in their gastrointestinal tracts, with a mean (± SD) of 7.

Mercury Concentrations in Feathers of Albatrosses and Large Petrels at South Georgia: Contemporary Patterns and Comparisons with Past Decades.

Mercury (Hg) is an environmental contaminant that can negatively impact the health of humans and wildlife. Albatrosses and large petrels show some of the highest levels of Hg contamination among birds, with potential repercussions for reproduction and survival. Here, body feather total Hg (THg) concentrations were determined in breeding adults of five species of albatrosses and large petrels in the foraging guild at South Georgia during the mid-2010s.

Trends and geographic differences in social work telehealth utilization.

We plotted trends in social work telehealth use among Veterans in a U.S. national social work staffing program and examined the relationship between geographic factors (rurality and neighborhood disadvantage) and telehealth use (audio and video) using linear probability models.

A quantitative analysis of Final Palaeolithic/earliest Mesolithic cultural taxonomy and evolution in Europe.

Archaeological systematics, together with spatial and chronological information, are commonly used to infer cultural evolutionary dynamics in the past. For the study of the Palaeolithic, and particularly the European Final Palaeolithic and earliest Mesolithic, proposed changes in material culture are often interpreted as reflecting historical processes, migration, or cultural adaptation to climate change and resource availability. Yet, cultural taxonomic practice is known to be variable across research history and academic traditions, and few large-scale replicable analyses across such traditions have been undertaken.

Improving safety and preventing falls using an evidence-based, front-line staff huddling practice: protocol for a pragmatic trial to increase quality of care in State Veterans Homes.

Introduction: Falls in nursing homes are a major cause for decreases in residents' quality of life and overall health. This study aims to reduce resident falls by implementing the LOCK Falls Programme, an evidence-based quality improvement intervention. The LOCK Falls Programme involves the entire front-line care team in (1) focusing on evidence of positive change, (2) collecting data through systematic observation and (3) facilitating communication and coordination of care through the practice of front-line staff huddles.

Safety and Effectiveness Assessment of Ultraviolet-C Disinfection in Aircraft Cabins.

Aircraft cabins, susceptible to disease transmission, require effective strategies to minimize the spread of airborne diseases. This paper reviews the James Reason Swiss Cheese Theory in mitigating these risks, as implemented by the International Civil Aviation Organization during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also evaluates the use of airborne ultraviolet-C (UV-C) light as an additional protective measure.

Home-Delivered Meals and Nursing Home Placement Among People With Self-Reported Dementia: A Pilot Pragmatic Clinical Trial.

Importance: Home-delivered meals promote food security and independence among homebound older adults. However, it is unclear which of the 2 predominant modes of meal delivery, daily-delivered vs mailed (or drop-shipped) frozen meals, promotes community living for homebound older adults with dementia.

Objective: To assess the risk of nursing home admission within 6 months between homebound individuals receiving daily-delivered vs drop-shipped frozen meals.

A Novel Home-Based Medication Management Program and Its Influence on Hospitalization Rates among Home Health Care Recipients.

Patients do not take their medicine as prescribed 50% of the time, and of medication-related hospital admissions in the United States, 33% to 69% are due to poor medication adherence, at a cost of approximately $100 billion a year. Continue CareRx (CCRx) is a novel home-based medication management program that includes adherence packaging alongside medication reconciliation, review, and education by clinicians. We hypothesized that home health patients receiving the CCRx service may have a lower hospitalization rate than control home health patients.

Deleterious effects of mercury contamination on immunocompetence, liver function and egg volume in an antarctic seabird.

Mercury (Hg) is a globally important pollutant that can negatively impact metabolic, endocrine and immune systems of marine biota. Seabirds are long-lived marine top predators and hence are at risk of bioaccumulating high Hg concentrations from their prey. Here, we measured blood total mercury (THg) concentrations and relationships with physiology and breeding parameters of breeding brown skuas (Stercorarius antarcticus) (n = 49 individuals) at Esperanza/Hope Bay, Antarctic Peninsula.

A pan-European dataset revealing variability in lithic technology, toolkits, and artefact shapes ~15-11 kya.

Comparative macro-archaeological investigations of the human deep past rely on the availability of unified, quality-checked datasets integrating different layers of observation. Information on the durable and ubiquitous record of Paleolithic stone artefacts and technological choices are especially pertinent to this endeavour. We here present a large expert-sourced collaborative dataset for the study of stone tool technology and artefact shape evolution across Europe between ~15.

VA social workers identify factors predictive of enrollment and variability in Veterans' access to aid and attendance benefits.

The Aid and Attendance (A&A) benefit is a cash entitlement for Veterans who served in the U.S. military to obtain personal care services.

Retention of older veterans with serious mental illness in a clinical exercise program.

Older adults with serious mental illness (SMI) have compromised physical function that could be improved with exercise; however, retention in exercise programs is a challenge. This study was a retrospective analysis of retention for the 150 older veterans with SMI that enrolled in Gerofit, a clinical exercise program offered in the Veterans Health Administration. Chi-square and -tests were conducted to evaluate baseline differences between those that were and were not retained at six and 12 months.

Feasibility of conducting qualitative research with persons living with dementia and their caregivers during a home-delivered meals pilot trial.

Background: Among older adults, food insecurity is associated with poor health status and health outcomes; people living with dementia (PLWD) are at increased risk for insecurity. Approaches to addressing food insecurity among homebound older adults include two modes of home-delivered meals: (1) meals delivered daily to participants' homes by a volunteer or paid driver who socializes with the client or (2) frozen meals that are mailed to participants' homes. Research has not examined benefits of these meals for PLWD or their caregivers nor compared the effectiveness of these two approaches in reducing food insecurity.

Quality Improvement Efforts in VA Community Living Centers Following Public Reporting of Performance.

For two decades, the U.S. government has publicly reported performance measures for most nursing homes, spurring some improvements in quality.