Addressing the gap for racially diverse research involvement: The King's Model for minority ethnic research participant recruitment.

Objectives: Ethnic minorities (EM) are still underrepresented in research recruitment. Despite wide literature outlining the barriers, enablers and recommendations for driving inclusion and diversity in research, there is still little evidence for successful diversity in research participation, which has a direct impact on the quality of care provided to ethnically diverse individuals. A new, comprehensive approach to recruitment strategies is therefore necessary.

Dietary practices, beliefs and behaviours of adults with inflammatory bowel disease: a cross-sectional study.

Background: It is widely accepted that there is an association between diet and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Diet may play a role in disease pathogenesis but also in treatment and management of IBD. There is an increased interest in dietary aspects of people with IBD.

HPV Knowledge Retention and Concurrent Increase in Vaccination Rates 1.5 Years After a Novel HPV Workshop in Medical School.

Comprehensive education regarding human papillomavirus (HPV) pathogenesis, vaccination, and patient counseling are not routinely included in the medical school curriculum; consequently, student and provider knowledge, especially concerning head and neck pathology, remains low. The objective of this study was to demonstrate long-term retention of HPV knowledge and positive attitudes towards HPV vaccination after attending our novel HPV workshop, with a focus on knowledge of oropharyngeal cancer. A follow-up survey was administered to medical students 1.

Missed Testing Opportunities Among HIV-Positive Adults in a Community Emergency Department.

Northern Nevada's most utilized emergency department (ED) could represent a locale of missed opportunity for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) detection, as the ED serves as a source of primary care for many patients at risk for HIV infection. The authors conducted a retrospective chart review, through the electronic health record, evaluating new diagnoses of HIV between 2012 and 2017 within a single hospital system. An opportunity for prior detection of HIV in the hospital's adult ED, within the past 5 years, was recorded as a missed testing opportunity (MTO).

Attaining the age threshold for adolescent mental health services: factors associated with transition of care in the independent sector in Ireland.

Objectives: The transition from adolescent to adult mental health services (AMHS) is associated with disengagement, poor continuity of care and patient dissatisfaction. The aim of this retrospective and descriptive study was to describe the 'care pathways' in an independent mental health service when adolescents reach age 18 and to investigate the level of engagement of those who transitioned to independent AMHS.

Methods: This is a retrospective, naturalistic and descriptive study in design.

The Influence of a Mexican Cultural Immersion Experience on Personal and Professional Healthcare Practices.

The purpose of this study was to understand the influence of a cultural immersion experience on personal and professional healthcare practices of occupational therapists. The experience, a 10-day course in Oaxaca, Mexico, exposed participants to alternative and complementary medicine through interactive sessions with Mexican indigenous traditional healers. The literature indicates that cultural immersion experiences can increase the perceived cultural effectiveness of healthcare professionals.

Psychotic symptoms, functioning and coping in adolescents with mental illness.

Background: Psychotic symptoms in the context of psychiatric disorders are associated with poor functional outcomes. Environmental stressors are important in the development of psychosis; however, distress may only be pathogenic when it exceeds an individual's ability to cope with it. Therefore, one interesting factor regarding poor functional outcomes in patients with psychotic symptoms may be poor coping.

Neurocognitive performance of a community-based sample of young people at putative ultra high risk for psychosis: support for the processing speed hypothesis.

Introduction: A wide variety of neurocognitive deficits have been reported for help-seeking individuals who are at clinical or ultra high risk for psychosis based on fulfilling set criteria for prodromal syndromes/at risk mental states. We wished to extend this research by conducting the first population-based assessment of prodromal syndromes and associated neurocognition.

Methods: A sample of 212 school-based adolescents were assessed for prodromal syndromes using the criteria of prodromal syndromes from the Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes.

Identification and characterization of prodromal risk syndromes in young adolescents in the community: a population-based clinical interview study.

While a great deal of research has been conducted on prodromal risk syndromes in relation to help-seeking individuals who present to the clinic, there is a lack of research on prodromal risk syndromes in the general population. The current study aimed first to establish whether prodromal risk syndromes could be detected in non-help-seeking community-based adolescents and secondly to characterize this group in terms of Axis-1 psychopathology and general functioning. We conducted in-depth clinical interviews with a population sample of 212 school-going adolescents in order to assess for prodromal risk syndromes, Axis-1 psychopathology, and global (social/occupational) functioning.

Improving monitoring for metabolic syndrome using audit.

Audit has been defined as "a quality improvement process that seeks to improve patient care and outcome, through systematic review of care and comparison with explicit criteria, followed by the implementation of change". As of May 2011, under the Medical Practitioners Act 2007, doctors are legally obliged to join in professional competence schemes, following requirements set by the Medical Council. These include the obligation for doctors to conduct one clinical audit per year.

A quiet revolution? Beneath the surface of Ireland's alternative food initiatives.

Getting food to our plates has become a highly complex, industrialised and globalised process. However, transformations in how our food is supplied are not without resistance. Initiatives are emerging that take a step back to simpler, alternative methods of food supply, bringing the producer and consumer closer together.

Telepsychiatry and carer education for schizophrenia.

Objective: Despite the scientific evidence, most families of people with schizophrenia in Europe never receive a carer education programme. We evaluated whether a carer education course delivered by telepsychiatry was as effective as a carer education course delivered in situ.

Method: We delivered the carer education course for schizophrenia simultaneously to a carers group in rural north west Ireland (remote) via three ISDN lines and live to a carers group in a city (host).

Structural and functional brain correlates of subclinical psychotic symptoms in 11-13 year old schoolchildren.

Studying children experiencing psychotic symptoms provides a unique opportunity to examine the vulnerability to psychosis within the context of development. Using neuroimaging techniques this study investigated cognitive control functions, brain volumetrics and white matter integrity in an at-risk cohort of children. Between-subjects assessment of brain function and structure among 11 school-going, non-treatment seeking children aged 11-13 who were at symptomatic risk for psychosis (AR) and 14 healthy control children aged 11-12 without subclinical psychotic symptoms (CON).

The Letter-Number Sequencing Test and its association with potential to work among people with psychotic illness.

Post hoc analysis of occupational attainment and performance on a standard neurocognitive battery suggests that performance on letter-number sequencing is strongly associated with work attainment. Letter-number sequencing may warrant further investigation as a clinically useful tool to inform decisions around vocational rehabilitation.

Are screening instruments valid for psychotic-like experiences? A validation study of screening questions for psychotic-like experiences using in-depth clinical interview.

Individuals who report psychotic-like experiences are at increased risk of future clinical psychotic disorder. They constitute a unique "high-risk" group for studying the developmental trajectory to schizophrenia and related illnesses. Previous research has used screening instruments to identify this high-risk group, but the validity of these instruments has not yet been established.

Effectiveness of surveillance of infrainguinal grafts.

Objective: To audit the surveillance programme of infrainguinal vein graft in a tertiary vascular unit, and find out how effective it was in preventing occlusion of grafts.

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: Teaching hospital, Scotland.

Optimum lead positioning for recording bipolar atrial electrocardiograms during sinus rhythm and atrial fibrillation.

Background: To date, Holter monitoring has been predominantly utilized in the investigation and monitoring of ventricular arrhythmias and myocardial ischemia. Whether currently employed lead configurations are optimal for recording atrial electrocardiograms (ECGs) is unknown.

Hypothesis: This study was undertaken to determine which conventional and novel lead configurations are optimal for recording atrial electrical activity during sinus rhythm and atrial fibrillation.

Acute exercise and markers of endothelial injury in peripheral arterial disease.

Objectives: To determine the acute effects of exercise on plasma levels of markers of endothelial damage in patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD).

Design: Prospective observational study of patients with angiographically proven PAOD undergoing treadmill exercise testing prior to surgical or radiological intervention.

Materials And Methods: Ante-cubital venous blood sampling was performed in 20 patients with symptomatic PAOD prior to, and 2 min after, treadmill exercise testing.

Insonation and impedance analysis in graft surveillance.

Seventy consecutive patients with infrainguinal bypass grafts entered a 1-year graft surveillance programme involving colour duplex scanning, direct graft insonation and computer-assisted impedance analysis. Graft patients with a positive duplex scan, high frequencies on graft insonation or an impedance value above 0.50 subsequently underwent arteriography.