The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2025

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'This year’s prize relates to the explanations for sustained growth based on technological innovation. Economic historian Joel Mokyr is rewarded with one half of the prize for his description of the mecha­nisms that enable scientific breakthroughs and practical applications to enhance each other and create a self-generating process, leading to sustained economic growth. Because this is a process that challenges prevailing interests, he also demonstrates the importance of a society that is open to new ideas and permits change.' 'The other half of the prize is awarded to the economists Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt. In a joint publica­tion from 1992, they constructed a mathematical model of how companies invest in improved pro­duction processes and new, better-quality prod­ucts, while the companies that previously had the best products are outcompeted. Growth arises through creative destruction. This process is creative because it builds upon innovation, but it is also destructive because older products become obsolete and lose their commercial value.'

'It is apparent that, in the long run, sustained growth does not only have positive consequences for human wellbeing. First, sustained growth is not synonymous with sustainable growth. Innovations can have significant negative side effects. Mokyr argues that such negative effects sometimes initiate processes that uncover solutions to problems, making technological development a self-correcting pro­cess. Clearly, however, this often requires well-designed policies, such as in the areas of climate change, pollution, antibiotic resistance, increasing inequality and the unsustainable use of natural resources.'

Source: https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/2025/popular-information/

Previously on W2tQ: 'Nobel prize' : 'socio-economics'

The Contribution of Disciplines from the Arts and Humanities to addressing Antimicrobial Resistance: final report

The Contribution of Disciplines
from the Arts and Humanities
to addressing
Antimicrobial Resistance

 Dear RIPEN workshop participants

 

It is now over a year since our last main sets of RIPEN workshops and of course so much has happened in that time that I don't know quite where to begin (!!). So I won't start into talking about COVID. Only to say that I very much hope that you and yours are managing to get through this ok so far. I know that I speak for the rest of the RIPEN team when I say that recent events have only served to highlight the central place of nursing and caring in society which is a source of pride (if not so much monetary reward!).

 

Anyway, I thought that some of you might be interested in this link to the final report from a follow-on study that I've just completed. It draws together learning from all the 11 projects funded by the AHRC at the same time as RIPEN: http://radar.gsa.ac.uk/7418/ . 

 

The report is best viewed in double page layout (download, save then open). Obviously, it is of less direct relevance to hands on nursing applications, but I think our experiences on RIPEN showed how important the wider picture often is (as evident in the events of the last six months!).

Please feel free to share with others through any of your own networks as relevant. 

with best wishes

Colin

Dr Colin Macduff

Senior Research Fellow

School of Design

Glasgow School of Art

 

MacDuff, Colin (2020) The Contribution of Disciplines from the Arts and Humanities to addressing Antimicrobial Resistance (CODA AMR). Project Report. The Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow.  

n.b. I will have a read myself and post again before the end of the year.

Open Course: Public education - antibiotic resistance

Following a thread on HIFA on Antibiotic Drug Resistance here is an additional item:

Hello, I’d like to explore the opportunities for HIFA to help promote a new online open, short-course that we have produced specifically for the public, ‘An introduction to antibiotics and drug resistant infections’. We have recently launched this free resource, and it has currently now being used in 70 countries, with a high course-completion rate, and more than 93% rating it highly. Consequently we are keen to provide as many opportunities to help people become aware of this online course, for which they can get their free certificate of completion too.

I’d appreciate any advice and direction to promote, and whether it can be promoted through HIFA too.

https://bit.ly/antibiotics-and-you

https://catalogue.manchester.ac.uk/browse/i3hs/open-courses/courses/antibiotics-and-you-an-introduction-to-antibiotic-resistant-infections

https://www.instagram.com/antibioticsandyou

Regards
Roger

Dr Roger Harrison (PhD)
Senior Lecturer in Public Health
Division Lead for Social Responsibility
Chair ‘Action on Antibiotic Drug Resistance: One student, one campus, one world’.

Division of Population Health, Health Services Research and Primary Care | School of Health Sciences | Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health |The University of Manchester | C4.6 Ellen Wilkinson Building | Oxford Road | Manchester M13 9PT.

Skype rogerharrisonuk

REPORT: Creative methods to envision nursing practices addressing AMR - c/o RIPEN

Between the summer of 2018 and October 2019 a group of nurses from various disciplines and roles took part in a series of research workshops in Glasgow and London, culminating in a policy workshop event at the RCN in London. It was a pleasure and a challenge to be able to contribute and learn about this very urgent and global issue.


Here from the RIPEN website is a description and link to the report:

March 2020: New report:  Creative methods to envision nursing practices addressing AMR

A report on the use of arts and humanities approaches to co-design healthcare service innovation
 
The RIPEN project has asked: “How can relevant arts and humanities approaches help nurses to re-envisage their infection control practice ecologies in response to antimicrobial resistance?”. Our new report shows how we addressed this question, focusing on the creative methods used and lessons learned. We hope this will be useful for nurses and other healthcare professionals, designers and artists, educators, researchers, policy activists, and anyone else with an interest in the arts and health.

Please feel free to download, share and feedback any comments.

A video is also available on the website.

Antimicrobial Resistance - an AMR TOOLBOX

Dear All,

AMR (antimicrobial resistance) is an increasing threat to global public health worldwide that requires cross-sectional and cross-disciplinary action. It is present in every country and is spurred by several human made factors including over- and/or inadequate use of antibiotics, poor hygiene and infection prevention control, excessive usage of antibiotics outside the health care sector e.g. in life stock production. And there are reasonable assumptions that the current COVID-19 pandemic might fuel AMR in the hospital.

The AMR TOOLBOX (www.amrbox.org) is a comprehensive knowledge repository designed to provide its users with practical, up-to-date information on antimicrobial resistance. It collates documents, guidelines, posters, training tools as well as information sources for various disciplines and backgrounds including among others health care sector, veterinary and agriculture sector, but also the general public. Thereby, it contributes to the fight against AMR by providing high quality information for all stakeholders involved.

The AMR TOOLBOX is part of MEDBOX http://www.medbox.org and was jointly created by Apotheker Helfen e.V. and the MEDBOX team.

We hope you find this new toolbox useful! If you have any feedback regarding the content, please feel free to contact us under info AT medbox.org.

Best regards,

the MEDBOX team & Andreas Wiegand Apotheker helfen e.V.


Sieglinde Mauder
Project Manager MEDBOX
Karin Geffert
Project Assistant MEDBOX
www.medbox.org


HIFA profile: Sieglinde Mauder is Librarian at the Medical Mission Institute, Würzburg, Germany. She collects and distributes resources on HIV/AIDS, tropical diseases, humanitarian aid, health service management, e-learning for partners in developing countries.

sieglinde.mauder AT medmissio.de


My source: HIFA

Glove Awareness Week: Under the SSKIN ii

Glove Awareness Week

29 April - 3 May 2019

WHO 5th May - Hand Hygiene Awareness Day

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"What should I do?"	Glove Awareness: RCN
What can we do?	What must I/we do?

On the 15th April in London I attended the 3rd RIPEN workshop (Re-envisioning Infection Practice Ecologies in Nursing) I learned a lot from listening to colleagues far closer day-to-day - night-to-night to the sharp end of infection control and protective measures. Of particular interest was discussion on hand-washing and the circumstances, frequency and numbers of dressing packs that are used and the constant search for evidence-based practice.

Actually without taking anything from those people at the infection coal-face, can I take back that reference to "far closer"?

Take it back, because this really matters to us ALL.

See also:
Under the SSKIN 

Drupal - update: a blast from the past!

I scratched (blew up) the draft Drupal site - for the umpteenth time - some five-six weeks ago. It did not take long to be back up and 'core' refreshed. As I build the content I keep saving them. It's just the the three archive pages. I've not resurrected the timeline, but get the gist now. The spreadsheet with the content is there when / if needed. The conclusion of this is that well into our summer and yes, the focus drifted again.

Off the Gosport ferry 1977... 2018

Perhaps, it's the hot-for-us summer and the World Cup? The presentation at the UKSS conference is now completed and discovering another very learned community. That trip to Portsmouth provided for some reminiscence of train - ferry and walks made 41 years earlier. It's not just the NHS that sees change. While Gosport has been in the news of late for all the wrong reasons; the trip was an opportunity to reflect and revisit a brief but key experience of my teenage years. What if... indeed...

I'm clearer about the draft paper on threshold concepts, deprivation of liberty safeguarding and Hodges' model. That paper may have found a home at last, but as two papers not one. I've pushed that revision division back to late summer - autumn. Reading for the next book review is proving really enjoyable. The book will accompany me to London this weekend for the RIPEN workshop tomorrow. I've responded to the virtual learning environment invitation and - for my prep - answered the workshop's four questions against Hodges' model of course. After the workshop there's an exhibition to head for in the early evening.

As for Drupal, I've been using Composer and trying to solve some of the errors that 'Status Report' reveals. Now at least d3.js and highlight.js are resolved. CDN warnings have been turned off. The constant push that is Drupal has moved on to 8.5.5 with a message today about September 5th release for 8.6. Maybe I should wait, but the practice, the practice..! I'm not going to Drupal Europe much as I might like, I've not earned the stripes. I am looking f/w to grappling once again. I need to find the modules that are key to the new site so that I can reward - encourage myself with something tangible and upload (something!!).

FROM: Worry TO: Funding & Policy (What lies in-between?)

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real WORRY	BBC Inside Science Fighting Antimicrobial Resistance
BBC In Our Time Penicillin	POLICY - FUNDING

Acknowledgement:
BBC Radio 4

International Antibiotics Awareness Day

Dear HIFA2015 and CHILD2015 colleagues,

Today is International Antibiotics Awareness Day. The message below is forwarded from the forum of the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), which is a longstanding official HIFA Supporting Organisation.

"Inappropriate use of antibiotics has become a serious threat to public health globally". It is a major cause of needless death and suffering today, and threatens death and suffering on an unimaginable scale in the future. A major contributing factor is lack of access to relibable, unbiased information for prescribers and consumers. Information is either absent, or is restricted to biased marketing materials from big pharma.

I have invited Students Targeting Antibiotics Resistance Today (START) and IFMSA members worldwide to join us to promote a future where every prescriber and user has access to reliable, independent information on medicines, including and especially antibiotics.

A suggested starting point would be to make independent, reliable publications such as the British National Formulary freely available to all on the internet.

Best wishes,
Neil
-----

Today, Nov 18th  is International Antibiotics Awareness day.

What is the problem? Antibiotic resistance is now an everyday problem in hospitals across the globe. The selection and spread of resistant bacteria in hospitals is a major patient safety issue. Infections with antibiotic resistant bacteria increase morbidity and mortality, as well as the length of stay in hospitals. Inappropriate use of antibiotics may increasingly cause patients to become colonised or infected with resistant bacteria. There are few new antibiotics in the development pipeline. As resistance in bacteria grows it will become more difficult to treat infection and this affects patient care

Why do we need an  Antibiotic Awareness Day? The inappropriate use of antibiotics has become a serious threat to public health globally, Taking antibiotics for the wrong reasons or incorrectly causes bacteria to develop resistance against antibiotic treatments with a risk of rendering antibiotics ineffective in the future.

What is the aim of Antibiotic Awareness Day? The aim of European Antibiotic Awareness Day is to emphasis the importance of taking antibiotics responsibly by putting an end to unnecessary use of antibiotics and encouraging people to follow their doctor’s instructions on how to take antibiotics in the appropriate way. The purpose of the day is to build on and reinforce the success of national campaigns on responsible use of antibiotics

Why is responsible use of antibiotics important? Keeping antibiotics effective is everyone’s responsibility. Responsible use of antibiotics can help reverse the growing trend of antimicrobial resistance and keep antibiotics effective for the use of future generations. On this basis, it is appropriate to inform the public, health professionals and carers of the sick, elderly and children about when and how to take antibiotics responsibly.

How can I get involved? Here are several ideas on how to help support this initiative: Spread the word Talk about the International  Antibiotic Awareness Day and its significance with your friends, family, colleagues and your Patients Make use of the materials by advertising the International Antibiotic Awareness Day in newsletters, on websites, in the media and on the Internet, by inserting a link on your website, in your e-mail signature or in your blog. Organise and participate in activities.

LET'S SAVE ANTIBIOTICS FOR THE NEXT GENERATION.

On behalf of Students Targeting Antibiotics Resistance Today (START) Team
Cecilia Kallberg, Jannie Dressler, Oluwasaanu Bunmi Michael.

My source: HIFA2015

Information Prescriptions: Just don't say "job done" or "next!"

The information prescription (IP) is not new. It is what should be a routine intervention that benefits from such initiatives as the specific IP project in 2007, which also produced a final report in 2008.

If people today are expected to self-care, there are recognized problems when they self-information prescribe (or is that paternalism at work?). The provenance of information on the web is a key concern.

In the 1980s and 90s the prescriptions and the management of benzodiazepines in community mental health gradually emerged as a problem. Today (for our children and their children) there's an acute problem with the frequency of antibiotic prescribing. Listen to the informative and sobering BBC Radio 4 programme:

The Path of Least Resistance

As people are directed to validated and creditable information resources we need to consider the bigger picture that a prescription ('plan') of any sort represents.

A response in the form of a drug/treatment or information prescription does (of course) not mean "job done".

Some follow up may be needed (duh!) as to what has been done with said information. When we speak to people we quickly make global assumptions about their understanding, literacy, motivation and the constraints within which they can operate when outside the clinical encounter. General Practitioners usually have the benefit, and in this context - a great benefit, of having known the patient and the family for many years. Other practitioners may not have that informational reservoir upon which to draw. General practice may itself see changes - pressures on the established patient - family doctor relationship.

The quote below is from the information prescription website:

Information prescriptions contain a series of links or signposts to guide people to sources of information about their health and care – for example information about conditions and treatments, care services, benefits advice and support groups.

Information prescriptions let people know where to get advice, where to get support and where to network with others with a similar condition. They include addresses, telephone numbers and website addresses that people may find helpful, and show where they can go to find out more. They help people to access information when they need it and in the ways that they prefer.

Working in nursing homes I know how demanding and challenging information exchange can be. While the above quote lists suggested content, I've had to signpost in person, once, twice, three times before the time was right for a carer to approach a specific agency for a resource.

Whatever your lingo, personalised information prescriptions are really cool - and hot. We need them.

After all isn't a prescription for drugs just another form of information prescription, molecular, biochemical? One that is also destined to become more personalised and yet on a different informational (genetic) level. More than anything else though we need a public, citizenry who can understand the value, potency of the infoscript in their hand. Is there an antidote for advertising?

 Although the informational exchanges in nursing homes and elsewhere are challenging: we keep trying. To do that the prescriptions should not be used as a means to say "Next!".

Crossroads have historically been meeting places. A space of choices (information) and signposts, make the right choice don't hurry.

Quality outcomes take time, but then I would say that ...