If you've dark skies (and even if you are under urban skies) look out for Comet Holmes, which has brightened suddenly:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap071026.html
See also an animated Astronomy Picture of the Day
More to follow in 2008!
Dear Peter Jones
My name is Rachel Magee. I am a registered mental health nurse working for Bolton Salford and Trafford Trust at the Prestwich site. I work in a medium secure unit called The Edenfield Centre. We have recently opened a new department called -
TEMSS (Therapeutically Enhanced Medium Secure Service) for Women.
As I am a newly qualified nurse I am looking to learn more about this model and see if it would be a useful tool to incorporate into the women's service as part of my preceptorship project.
I am writing to you, to ask if you have any information or views on this particular area, which I could possibly use to help me in my research.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Many thanks
Rachel Magee (RMN)
----------------------
Thanks for your interest Rachel this sounds an exciting time for you -
response to follow....
[used with permission of Rachel Magee]
Just trying to get an idea of what Drupal can do. It really is powerful (in the right hands!). There's no text as yet - or what is there - is not formatted. Still not sure about the content beyond the Archive comprising Brian's course notes, my intro and (updated) reflections; the Book and the h2cm Chronology.
Weird that A, B, C ... just wish it was easier.
The book may need to wait, but is I believe a great global project - wish I were a midwife....
In the 4Ps post last year each 'P' (purpose, process, policy and practise) sat in its own domain. I made no effort to differentiate them; each 'P' was left to stand for itself - so here's a question for you...
Assuming you agree with this 4P formulation, which 'P', if any, do you think is primary?
For me the mainstay is PROCESS because chronological and pathological TIME ticks in the SCIENCES domain. Plans and actions are situated (see Hodges' model) in time and besides pathologically speaking I only have one pair of hands tied to a finite metabolism and hence limited information processing capacity.
Now, casting my vote to PROCESS within the SCIENCES domain, may seem something of a sell out to advocates of the humanities and me a mental health professional to boot... Where is the warm-touchy-feely essence of care? So, as we look to the HUMANISTIC hemisphere for quality assurance the next query is yours:
Without a sense of PURPOSE tasks x, y, and z will not be done properly, if even initiated?
Very true. PROCESS like PURPOSE has its micro-macro dimensions. PROCESS in particular is notorious in the extent to which it can be reduced to ever finer detail.
Looking at h2cm, the antipodes must not be ignored. Sometimes people believe they are on solid ground, secure (smug even) literally in the knowledge where PROCESSES abound; but the need to take in other perspectives can prove a wake-up call in the form of a sudden dousing.
Balancing POLITICAL need, encapsulated coherently in POLICY, must constantly be weighed against actual PRACTICE in the SOCIOLOGICAL domain and the constraints that operate there.
Just because you have TI:ME and individuals allotted on the Gant and PERT charts, subjective ti:me can literally slap us in the face if the mood is judged wrongly. PROCESS may be primary, but its ramifications are and must be constantly transformed-translated and enacted in personal and social form.
Although Brian Hodges created the model in the 1980s the key elements have been around a long time!
Thanks to the Culture Show BBC2 27 Oct 2007
In the developed world the constant to brand and consume generally and medicalise, diagnose and prescribe specifically means that vast quantities of food and drugs go straight down the hatch: rapid swallowed-whole without ever touching the sides. Now the effects of the wind produced is being noticed because the consequences mean a shake of the grim reaper's hand sooner than might be expected.
When health care budgets are compromised it is often the public (mental) health practitioners that find their piggy-bank in pieces. Although evidence-based medicine has its roots in the POLITICAL and SCIENCES domains, its impact seems solely hemispheric - 'local' - largely restricted to the right in terms of Hodges' model. It fails to reach the INTRA - INTERPERSONAL and SOCIAL domains, the places where change really counts.
Using Hodges' model can help the food and drugs to touch the sides, although actually by then of course we are too late!
It's one of many ironies that we need safety nets to catch people at risk. What about a sticky net that can stop all that food and reduce the volume of drugs from commencing this metabolic flight?
If we are to tackle and fully exercise the care problems and issues presented by the 21st century our research, interventions, attitudes and aptitudes must be 4-fold* to ensure that the caring touch is not senseless, but is accompanied by thought. Touching the sides means engaging thought at several levels from common sense through to critical appraisal. Whether we are dealing with individuals, groups, populations or the global family - 'X' truly marks the spot!
*5-fold taking into account beliefs.
This link and journal came via the Humanist Discussion Group:
VECTORS Journal (2005-2007)
There is always a tension between content and interface - what do you think? IMHO great delivery that has me hooked with THINKMESH and many other projects..... There are some code views in there too.
Here's a different more direct approach to giving - KIVA - supporting entrepreneurs in developing countries.
I'm waiting for a cloudy night to explore Stellarium - a free open source planetarium.
SHIFT Happens video if your perspectives seem limited. Over the years quite a few people have highlighted the need for a simple intro to Hodges' model. I wonder if this style of presentation could do the trick? Mmmmm...
Free (legal) music downloads at We7.
And last but not least Me.dium.com - a further development of social networking, music and virtual groups. I'm struggling with these as it is...
Thanks to David & Sue McKendrick, Danny J. and Chris Allen.
Bye for now.
In August I posted the news and success of Shannon Frodge's Master's study in which Hodges' model was used as a theoretical framework.
I've copied the abstract, Shannon's reference to Hodges' model and her research questions below. There are some 55 pages, 9,700 words in total, if you want to the read the discussion and conclusion well according to Shannon the text is available on ProQuest.
Every so often I'll bring up the matter of nurse, health and social care recruitment on W2TQ: it really is going to be critical. I do not work in HR - recruitment, but being interested in public (mental) health I am very conscious of demographic trends and be(d)sides standards of care matter too...
Thanks Shannon for the copy, your specific focus on this issue and for recognising and using Hodges' model. I know evidence is important in terms of the tools we use, but you've demonstrated that tools can have a legitimate entry point in their adoption and application. You've posed many questions and presented new angles with recommendations too.
Abstract
The current nursing shortage is complicated by the fact not enough students choose nursing to offset the number of nurses who are nearing retirement. This is distressing to the profession, and is of particular interest to nursing schools. This quantitative, descriptive correlational study examined the perceptions of 99 students in grades sixth through twelfth in a public Midwestern school system regarding nursing as a career choice, 41 current students in the local community college’s nursing program, and recruiting methods that would or did most influence them. The framework for the study is Brian Hodge's Health Career Model. Students were surveyed using a Likert-scale tool with demographics and comments. Descriptive statistics included frequency tables, cross tabulations, chi squared, and confidence intervals. Comments were grouped for qualitative phenomenologic purposes. Findings indicated statistically significant differences in perceptions of students based on sex and grade which could be used to enhance recruitment efforts.
Research Questions
Specific research questions pertaining to this study are:
1. Are middle and high school students in a Midwestern community considering nursing as a career choice?
a. If so, what are the reasons?
b. If not, what are the reasons?
c. What recruitment strategies would most influence these students to decide on nursing as a career choice?
d. What recruitment strategies would most influence these students to seek their education at the Midwestern community college ADN program?
2. Of currently enrolled students in a Midwestern community college ADN program:
a. What recruitment strategies most influenced these students to decide on nursing as a career choice?
b. What recruitment strategies most influenced these students to seek their education at the Midwestern community college ADN program?
Theoretical Framework
The framework for this study is Brian Hodges’ Health Career Model (Hodges, 1997). This model looks at the nurse as an individual whose practice depends on his/her education and past experiences (Hodges, 1997). The model is composed of two intersecting lines that look at the nurse’s attributes both individually and in group settings, and his/her ability to perform job duties both interpersonal and mechanical (Hodges, 1997). Within the four quadrants then, Hodges identifies four major areas of knowledge necessary to practice nursing (Hodges, 1997).
This particular framework lends itself to this study as it looks at traits of individuals who are nurses and helps to explain how their background and knowledge influence the care they give. Hodges writes “the health career is influenced by personal factors of the individual of physical or psychological origin and factors relating to the social world and the policies that govern daily life” (Hodges, pp 1, 1997). Because some of these attributes or interest in these knowledge areas must be present in order for an individual to choose nursing, the model is appropriate to the study.
What is in a health-clinical-social-nursing information system?
REQUIREMENTS SPECIFICATIONS PROCESSES CODE LOGIC FUNCTIONS RULES ARRAYS DATA STRUCTURES INFORMATION KNOWLEDGE MENUS FIELDS ... ... ...
In my inbox today was a question from Ryan Robertson sent through LinkedIn. Many thanks Ryan for the question and the go-ahead for the post here:
Question Details:
--------------------
Global Patient Centricity
If we are one of the most dominant nations (UK) based on OUR ability to provide Total Patient Care, considering we run the Public Sector National Programme for IT/Connecting for Health, largest Public Sector programme in the world to be implemented, then why have we not come together as an International consortium to better enhance Global Patient Centricity?
Last month I started a thread on global health, now Ryan's timely question has helped me think beyond butterflies:
Hi Ryan
My response would be that yes the horses are in the starting gate, but globally the gate is staggered and not just to allow for the curvature of the Earth.
Much of what follows you may have figured already of course....
The staggered gates is a reason to do this as much as a barrier. Initiatives-tools like GAPMINDER show the great variation in infrastructure, finance and supplier-customer proximity (to be socio-technical - you can't do this remotely), national politics and priorities (the government - SA Aids?), demographics - 'national' priorities (public involvement), information standards, intellectual property, legal frameworks, languages (one country-many languages), coding & classification (clearly there are some excellent resources already available - ICD, SNOMED...), ability to use intelligence (backend data), interface, safety[!] and so the list goes on.
There are signs of pubescent stirrings. The six billion+ humongous hum of hormones is working some real magic as in addition to WHO, UNESCO... there are various international consortia covering education, epidemiology, coding and classification - helping to bring global standards and scalability. The recent rise of funding from rich benefactors is another significant factor.
I'm working on a paper at present - socio-technical structures - and undoubtedly culture figures very large here. Relationships matter and do vary in how they are defined, so when we talk about the demographics component how do you manage the 'pick and mix' sensitively? The software would have to be Internationalised in new ways (that makes role based access look easy-peasy). Some countries comprise many distinct cultures that seek to retain their 'independence' and identity. Ethnic medicine is not just a fashion, it needs to be sustained like the environments native people inhabit.
Speaking of natives - selling the global ideal to the 'public' # is itself a fascinating question; especially given the (on-going) issue of clinical and public engagement in England.
The solutions suppliers of course (and bio-medtech industry) seek to 'add value' to their services through communications, consultancy, life-cycle management, training... They are after all corporate not social enterprises. Not all global users may be willing to 'underwrite' these extras? However, from a corporate and social responsibility perspective should the suppliers devote a (derived) percentage to support those nations at a certain (dynamic) threshold? That threshold could also be subject to 'rewards' if the government gets to grips with corruption, infrastructure, public health education, and EDUCATION... Definitions of 'government' are key here with some debate online this past week - is a benevolent dictator better than a corrupt-puppet democracy?
If time permitted I'd like to work on Hodges' model as a global framework to underpin global health. I've an embryonic global frameworks group c/o some 22nd C. thinkers and doers at Global Alliance for Nursing and Midwifery Communities of Practice (GANM), but the h2cm blog (and now Drupal) has rather taken me over. Please find below some web links to related groups. There are many others - medical, voluntary.... If you have any suggestions - I've added the h2cm POLITICAL domain links page below also.
Your question Ryan could also be related to the global citizenry movement.# Citizenry is a loaded term for (the) many, but governments need to be held to account. Economies need to be re-engineered. Would-be consumers need to be headed off at the pass (teach your children to sing NOT consume beyond their needs) to address climate change, quality of life and HEALTH FOR ALL.
For all my previous sounding on cognitive therapy and the primary-secondary care sectors, people need to leave school with a basic understanding of stress, thoughts and beliefs. Well-being needs to be the order of the day and night.
Well-being + Global Patient (Public-Citizen?) Centricity [Health Education]
= Global Personal Actors (with everyone playing their part whatever their ability)
As evidence for the staggered starting gates you could point to various nations and their need to focus on reproductive health, malaria, AIDS.... In terms of intervention and OUR notion of personal health record does the record start and end with the individual? Is there a need in some situations to focus more on the family, community? Once some equivalence is achieved then the Open Source movement may also have a look in, complementing the traditional suppliers. IMHO Hodges' model is a global framework with great potential - there are bound to be others out there across the oceans, across borders and across time.
Thanks again for asking the question Ryan, I'll do a blog post on this - do you mind if I mention you as initiating the above?
Hope this helps - there's a paper in your question!
Best regards
Peter
Image source: Attila Szegedi - Butterfly fractals
Today is Blog Action Day when bloggers unite, posting on the key theme of the environment:
Think of Hodges' model as a watering hole.
h2cm is not the starting point. We must bring experience, birth and death and all that is in-between to help solve our problems: transform attitudes. While we may be reaching for the stars there is nowhere to run.
Last week there was quite an announcement about psychological therapies - specifically cognitive behavioural therapy, with a £170 million boost to help treat the millions of people affected by anxiety and depression. Stuck with their condition many are also stuck on waiting lists.
On the media the inevitable debate followed about research, the evidence base and the possibility that perhaps nurses could undertake some of this work. You guessed it - the 'but' followed in the form of 'training'. True, training will be needed, as the conveyor belt that is the workforce takes on-board the new kids in town and seeks to squeeze the best out of its more senior clinicians. With mention of training though someone had better watch that £170 million, to ensure it really does deliver quality therapy with the required supervision. There's also an invitation here for the various schools of therapy to take up arms - and this could be a further distraction.
A stock-take of EXISTING skills would be in order. Many people have already been trained in CBT as part of a skills set to deliver psychosocial intervention. Personnel information systems that are breathing (alive!) are critical, since there are many nurses (one hand raised here) and other disciplines who have the skills to maximise the effectiveness of that investment. Polish those rusty skills and there's a regular Genie there. So where are they?
Well many are playing tennis and it sure is not pretty...
If you listen carefully you can hear the grunts; the thud-after-thud as the players seek the sweet-spot. Any applause was lost a long time ago. You see, primary and secondary care are locked in a tie-break. Primary care refer; secondary care continue to hone their return of service, trying to spot the attempted ace down the centre. Screening tools are perfected, referral thresholds revised - the net gets dizzy; meanwhile, who is doing the therapy, the carer support, the public mental health education? Of course, this word therapy also comes with economic and status baggage.
You have to feel sorry for both these players and their coaches, now they can't just run to return the ball, the rules say that between shots they have to include a gymnastic element too.
Wimbledon 2008 should be fascinating: there's bound to be a break soon - I bet your demographic dollar$
Image source http://www.tennisserver.com/set/set_03_09.html
It's been a busy week...
On Wednesday night the turnout for the 1st NW England Drupal user group was excellent. A great springboard for next month. I've ordered another book! The title reflects an aspirational air. Although search inside helps, there's nothing like having chance to open the book for real and scan. Especially, when you've also been shown (thanks Chris!) some basics of installation and must-have modules. So, if this blog suffers through the Solstice well you know why ;-).
Today, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park proved a great find for me; with Criggy and Andy there were just three of us for the Northern England CHE group meet. It was overcast and drizzled occasionally, but the conversation and exhibits ensured it was really warm and sunny. Walking and bike riding in the 90s around Grizedale Forest I remember Andy Goldsworthy's work: brilliant! Hope to go back before this exhibition ends in January. Strange how I'd seen it featured on the Culture Show - BBC 2 and the programme returned for a new series tonight.
Back very soon... CBT and CMHNs: - Anyone for tennis?
As a mental health nurse, informatics enthusiast and website developer, I have a multi-fold appreciation of the meanings of 'access-ability':
While grappling with Drupal is an opportunity to learn new skills and put the website on a more professional and potentially dynamic-database-driven footing that is just one step. The other step is the need to evaluate the content and have a right sort out!
One thing that has bugged me for a long time is the name of the top left care domain - this junction of the HUMANISTIC - INDIVIDUAL axes. Being focussed on the individual - the label should read INTRAPERSONAL not INTERPERSONAL as reflected in the following definitions:
INTRAPERSONAL: Existing or occurring within the individual self or mind.
INTERPERSONAL:
The developmental potential and scope of Hodges' health career model is obvious in this fusion of health and career. When using h2cm, development and to be more generic time can be found throughout.
I usually try to stress that the word career in h2cm, is not intended as an invitation to search the website for jobs, but refers to an individual's life-chances throughout their life. The model can represent individual, family, community, organisational and political development as illustrated below:
If h2cm is about anything (or any-think) it is about locating and crossing boundaries. For health and social care organisations, their informatics staff and academic partners travel is essential. This assumes though that the organisation:
a) wants to cross boundaries
b) recognise the need to cross
c) have the ability to cross
Working through a-c THEN
1) If a) is a 'yes' - can you find your way? That's why partnerships matter!
2) Is this quest important enough to be recognised? Without executive buy-in - no tickets!
3) Given 1-2 as the team don their boots they will find a way using some new tools and learning new skills.
Visiting a health care organisation HQ the reception area often features the latest report, plus a statistical or public (mental) health display that explains what the organisation about, what projects are ongoing and what are its future plans and aspirations (to use a word of the moment). ...
One way to check where you are is to take a look at your fellow travellers and what is happening in the 'shop' windows? The mannequins reflect many aspects of local lifestyles.
I have this image in my mind of cardboard cut-outs or mannequins showing the 'average' local members of the public and the 'average' users of local services.
Suitably attired - dressed with information these statuesque models, although mute, can speak volumes and tell us at least two things...
1. Who may need to call in to 'buy' our services; and
2. Who are the existing customers.
This really is about crossing boundaries. If you haven't anything to dress your mannequins in - well that's a bit embarrassing isn't it? That is not all though...
Medically, we know a lot about what makes people tick [sciences-political]:
What about the tock [social-intrapersonal]?
When people engage with health and social care services - do they have heads?
Original mannequin image source Planet Visual with thanks.
With apologies to readers elsewhere, but it looks like the 1st Drupal NW user group meeting scheduled for next Wednesday 10th may be in Manchester 7-9.30pm and not Preston. I'm awaiting news of the exact details. I was going to stay on at work and catch up on electronic-Care Programme Approach data entry. Also an opportunity to learn and test, but I'll reserve some other time. I'd prefer Manchester really for other reasons.
Reading and searching Drupal resources this Content Management System [CMS] is really powerful - the themes, modules, and the code under the hood - CSS, PHP, Ajax. I've had two books sat on the shelf, well now the dust has gone Babin's Beginning Ajax with PHP and Darie et al Ajax and PHP are good intros.
This weekend I'll draft out a structure for the first draft experimental site. A case of looking at the existing website and asking what content can readily be 'saved'. Brian's original notes will certainly have a home there, plus the h2cm and website chronology. (Currently) the Drupal community offers a timeline module - the solution is based on the SIMILE project from MIT, but this may be too grand for my needs?
Some 18 months ago I updated the multiple choice questions using Hot Potatoes, they have been sat off-line ever since. Now with Drupal I can check on the available educational modules. The meeting will help next week. I know nobody else is going to do this for me, that'd spoil the fun. It's listening and seeing what others are doing - a gravitational assist! Anyway I'm really looking forward to it and Yorkshire Sculpture Park too a week Saturday.
Podcasts: Yes I know part 1 is looking lonely (and needs to be improved upon).
The audio kit is back from Danny - our eldest - which I used for the first podcast. I've three drafts ready to roll, including the one that wrote itself on the trip to London last year when I managed to visit Tate Modern. Must get over to Tate Liverpool sometime. When I do record Part II, I'll use the software to put it together in parts - easier on the voice. We'll see if we can have that done for the year end.
Dan is buying an iMac and reckons I should head that way. I've visited the Apple Store in Manchester and no doubt about it absolutely cool kit and apps. If you were reading the QUAD earlier in the year I visited the Regent St store in London - cool then too. In the late 1980s-early 90s I think it was Bruce Webster in Byte magazine who did a 3D-star map program for the Mac. I wrote (yes that long ago) and he duly replied with a disc. I still have the letter and disc somewhere. Finally got to see the program on the Apple stand at the Which Computer Show in Birmingham. Those shows were quite something, for the UK at any rate, three halls at the NEC.
I've always had an affection for Apple - the beginning, the design, style and innovation, the OS developments. The market has needed that green presence even if it has waxed and waned. So when funds allow and Apple pick up the real green agenda as suggested in the Mac mags - then the podcasts might trip more lightly! In the 80s Acorn helped me out with special pricing for the BBC micro, but there's no time to justify any serious development efforts at present. Plus there's the small matter and foggy remoteness of steep learning curves...
There is a change of plans for the 3rd Northern England Centre for Human Ecology group on 13 October.
People are struggling to get over to Rivington, Bolton; so Andy Wynne has suggested we meet at 11.00 at the main entrance of the Yorkshire Sculpture Park to see the Andy Goldsworthy exhibition. I think I saw this featured earlier in the year on the Culture Show BBC 2, it looked great on TV so...
Dressed for wet weather and walking we will decide on how to play it when we meet taking the weather into account.... We won't have a meeting place as such although there is a restaurant and cafe.
Well-being is still a very worthy topic in human ecology, sustainable communities and of course health and social care. With Rivington a major water capture area that is another ecological theme.
Apparently, entrance to the exhibition is free - great value - all day parking needs 4x£1 coins. I'm heading over to Manchester to get a lift with Andy and hope my daughter will come along too.
The idea is to look around for a couple of hours, then have lunch and perhaps those who are so inclined could take the long walk around to the other gallery and the outside intallations followed by coffee/tea in the afternoon. We'll chat informally as we go around and possibly more formally at the breaks.
Before this weekend meet, there's the Drupal NW UK User Group event in Preston 10 October. Not sure how this will pan out with two of us so far attending and seven 'watching'...
 |
| Brian E. Hodges - c/o Brian's family. |
Born in Liverpool, UK.
Community Mental Health Nurse NHS, Part-time Lecturer,
Researcher Nursing & Technology Enhanced Learning
Registered Nurse - Mental Health & General
Community Psychiatric Nursing (Cert.) MMU
PG Cert. Ed.
BA(Joint Hons.) Computing and Philosophy - BIHE - Bolton
PG(Dip.) Collaboration on Psychosocial Education [COPE] Univ. Man.
MRES. e-Research and Technology Enhanced Learning, Lancaster Univ.
Live and work in NW England - seeking a global perspective.
The views expressed on W2tQ are entirely my own, unless stated otherwise.
Comments are disabled.
If you would like to get in touch please e-mail me at h2cmng AT yahoo.co.uk
orcid.org/0000-0002-0192-8965