Paper - 'Women's voices in rural Malawi: antenatal care research and community learning'

Dear HIFA colleagues,

My friend, Ted Lankester, suggested I share my recently published research with this community.

The paper, published in PLOS Global Public Health, explores women’s perceptions of pregnancy and antenatal care in Chizenga village, Chikwawa, Malawi. It arose from my MSc dissertation at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, with co-authors Deborah Nyirenda and Terry Kana.

Through interviews with 14 pregnant women, we explored how understanding of antenatal care interacts with transport costs, distance, nutritional constraints, gender dynamics and experiences of respectful and disrespectful care. Women also expressed a desire for more community-based education and outreach.

The full open-access paper is available here: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0005515

Layton H, Nyirenda D, Kana T (2026) A qualitative study to explore women’s perceptions of pregnancy and antenatal care in Chizenga village, Chikwawa, Malawi. PLOS Glob Public Health 6(9): e0005515. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0005515

Their accounts inspired me to develop the Sangalala Maternal Health Partnership Programme with local partners, through The Reach Foundation UK. Our first cohort (39 women and 1 man) has recently completed the programme in Uganda, and we are now learning from participants’ experiences to strengthen it.

I would welcome members’ experiences of making maternal health information accessible and useful in rural communities, particularly where information needs sit alongside practical barriers to accessing care.

I promised the women who participated that I would help raise their voices. Sharing their perspectives and learning from this community is one way I hope to honour that promise.

Best Wishes,

Helen

HIFA profile [and my source]: Helen Layton is a Nurse and Global Health Consultant; Founder & Clinical Director, The Marula Institute; Co-founder & Executive Director, The Reach Foundation UK/Spain. My professional interests include maternal and child health, global health equity, respectful maternity care, community-led health education, and translating research into practice. As Co-founder and Executive Director of The Reach Foundation UK and Founder and Clinical Director of The Marula Institute, I am particularly interested in strengthening health systems, workforce education, safe care for children with complex needs, and ensuring women’s and families’ voices inform care. 
Helen AT cathcom.org

Social Inclusion: Transnational Organization of Labour, Mobility, and Senior Care in Central and Eastern Europe

Dear colleagues,

Social Inclusion has just released a new issue, fully open access, and all articles are free for you and others to read, download and share.

Transnational Organization of Labour, Mobility, and Senior Care in Central and Eastern Europe (2026, Volume 14)

Edited by Ewa Palenga-Möllenbeck, Dóra Gábriel, Olena Fedyuk and Kristine Krause

Complete issue: https://doi.org/10.17645/si.i533

Table of Contents:

Transnational Organization of Labour, Mobility, and Senior Care in Central and Eastern Europe
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.13078
By Ewa Palenga-Möllenbeck, Dóra Gábriel, Olena Fedyuk and Kristine Krause

Migrant Live‐In Care Workers in the Global Care Chain: Results From an Online Survey
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.11728
By Silvia Wojczewski, Simona Ďurišová, Sabine Pleschberger, Anna Ernst, Rojin Bagheri, Kathryn Hoffmann and Viktoria Adler

Selling Care Skills? The Multiple Meanings of Training for Polish Live‐In Care Workers in Germany
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.11909
By Roxana Fiebig-Spindler

The Invisible Hand of Care: A Typology of Brokerage Actors in Migrant Care Labour
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.11953
By Ewa Palenga-Möllenbeck, Ivanna Kyliushyk and Roxana Fiebig-Spindler

Care Extractivism Beyond Households: Migration and Care for Older People in the Post‐Yugoslav Semi‐Periphery
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.11975
By Majda Hrženjak

Caring Communities in Urban Hungary: A Civil Society Perspective
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12023
By Dóra Gábriel, Bettina Török and Noémi Katona

Care Under Constraint: Unmet Care Needs Among Older Adults in Romania
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12028
By Mihaela Hărăguș and Ionuț Földes

Skill Construction and Challenges of Professionalization in the Hungarian Home Care Market
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12029
By Noemi Katona and Dóra Gábriel

The Right to Care and Support: From Care Theory to Human Rights Law
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12056
By Maroš Matiaško

Senior Care in Wartime Ukraine: A Fragmented Continuum of Arrangements Inside an “Unpromising Sector”
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12060
By Oksana Dutchak, Olena Fedyuk and Anna Oksiutovych

Bounded Transport, Mobility Justice, and Claims for Recognition Among Live‐in Care Workers
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12191
By Petra Ezzedine

In Times of the Market and Community Shift: On Live‐In Care and Caring Communities
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12295
By Brigitte Aulenbacher, Klaus Wegleitner, Jonas Hagedorn and Bernhard Emunds

Care Outsourcing From Germany to Central and Eastern Europe
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12319
By Kristine Krause, Veronika Prieler, Hanna Horváth, Matouš Jelínek, Mariusz Sapieha, Zuzana Sekeráková Búriková, Petra Ezzeddine and Luise Schurian‐Dąbrowska

Imagining Care: Transnational Inequality and Older Age Prospects for Ukrainian Caregivers in Italy
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12324
By Oksana Dutchak, Olena Fedyuk and Anna Oksiutovych

The Winding Road to Professionalisation: Care Work in Romanian Nursing Homes
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12326
By Neda Deneva, Ionuț Földes, Denisa Ursu and Mihaela Hărăguş

The Limits of State Control in Regulating Live‐In Care Work in The Netherlands
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12375
By Siënna Hernandez, Kristína Bartošová and Franca van Hooren

Home Care for Sale: Marketisation and Social Change
https://doi.org/10.17645/si.12737
By Attila Melegh

Kind regards,

Mariana Pires
Cogitatio Press, Portugal
si AT cogitatiopress.com
Social Inclusion
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/socialinclusion

My source: COMPLEXITY-PRIMARY-CARE list

RCN Congress 2026 & RCN North West Multicultural Group (NWMG)

England's North West is certainly in the news at present, on two counts:

1. The current Labour party machinations in the Makerfield ward;
2. and RCN Congress in Liverpool.

 As I attend Congress a key focus is the debates and how I can relate these to Hodges'model - (with some links to previous posts):

1. Nursing as a STEM profession
Matter for discussion submitted by the Eastern Board
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the recognition of nursing as a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) profession, valuing the scientific, technical and analytical expertise of nurses.

STEM - science : technology : engineering : mathematics

2. Safe, ethical, person‑centred nursing
Resolution submitted by the Cheshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to urgently develop and implement a UK‑wide framework for realistic person‑centred care, ensuring that nursing practice is safe and ethical.

safe : ethics : person-centred 

3. Regular redeployment
Matter for discussion submitted by the Wiltshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the impact of the daily redeployment of nursing staff on morale, team work and patient safety.

re- deployment

4. Unpaid hours
Matter for discussion submitted by the North East London Inner Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the culture of nursing staff missing breaks and working beyond their contracted hours.

work

5. National safety standards for lone working
Resolution submitted by the Health and Safety Reps Committee
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to lobby for the implementation of national safety standards for lone working, ensuring access to appropriate safety equipment, technology and protocols to protect staff across all care settings.

lone working

6. Accountable, compassionate and psychologically safe leadership
Matter for discussion submitted by the Cheshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses how the RCN can help create a culture where accountability, compassion, and psychological safety coexist, enabling managers to lead effectively while ensuring all staff feel respected and protected.

accountability : compassion : leadership 

7. Misinformation in health care
Matter for discussion submitted by the Women's Health Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses misinformation in health care and the impact this has on the nursing workforce.

misinformation : information disorder

8. Confidence to address racism
Matter for discussion submitted by the South West London Outer Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses how to build the confidence of nursing staff in addressing racism.

confidence : racism

Once again the North West Multicultural Group will have a stand:

The RCN North West Multicultural Group (NWMG) creates a community for members across the region from multicultural ethnic backgrounds to connect with each other, share their lived experience, knowledge and diverse ideas that help drive change around racism to ensure that their various organisations is the best place to work.

Membership is open to RCN members of Royal College of Nursing from multicultural backgrounds and their allies.

Mission statement: 

The aim of the North West Multicultural Group is to stand against racism and discrimination by using members lived experiences, encouraging organisations to be anti-racist and with the support of allies.  

Aims and objectives: 

• To raise the issues around race, discrimination and equality in the workplace and to find potential solutions. 
• To challenge misconceptions about people from different ethnic backgrounds.
• To recognise the skills and contribution to care for people from all backgrounds make.
• To acknowledge that racism is a social construct that needs to be eradicated together.  Together we are stronger.
• To be a platform for black, Asian and minority ethnic staff and allies to work collaboratively to address racism in practice.
• To help amplify the voice black, Asian and minority ethnic staff.
• To be role models, set examples as allies and develop confidence.
• To provide training and support about anti-racist practice.
• To work with the RCN to support campaigns to make sure communication is fit for purpose and acknowledges any cultural differences. 

Your executive team:

Chair: Olanike Babalola
Vice Chair: Susan Owen-Naz
Communications Officer: Mark Anthony

9. Advanced nursing practice
Resolution submitted by RCN Council
That this meeting of RCN Congress agrees that the RCN will act upon attempts to undermine advanced nursing practice.

advanced : practice : theory

10. Protecting nurse education
Resolution submitted by the Education Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress asks RCN Council to lobby UK governments to protect nurse education from university sector economic pressures.

protect

11. Quality of clinical placements
Matter for discussion submitted by the Students Committee
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses ways in which the quality of clinical placements can be ensured and consistent across all 4 countries.

quality : placement

12. Bank rates
Resolution submitted by the South Yorkshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress demands that employers pay nursing staff bank shifts at their substantive rate.

pay

13. Are external reviews meaningful?
Matter for discussion submitted by the Midwifery Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses whether external reviews and inquiries are genuinely driving meaningful improvements in safety across health and social care.

inquiry : review

14. Improving acute mental health crisis services for children and young people
Resolution submitted by the London Board
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to lobby UK governments to improve the provision of services to children and young people presenting in acute mental health crisis.

children : mental health

15. Access to specialist pain services
Matter for discussion submitted by the Pain and Palliative Care Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses access to specialist pain services and the role of the registered nurse in caring for those in pain.

pain

16. Palliative and end-of-life care
Resolution submitted by the Pain and Palliative Care Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to lobby UK governments to ensure everyone living across all 4 nations has access to specialist palliative and end-of-life care.

palliative

17. Accessible and affordable travel
Matter for discussion submitted by the North Central London Inner Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses what accessible and affordable travel means for the nursing workforce.

18. Uptake of physical health checks
Resolution submitted by the Public Health Forum
That this meeting of RCN Congress requests RCN Council to lobby UK governments to improve the uptake of physical health checks for people with learning disabilities and serious mental illnesses (SMI).

serious mental illness (SMI)

19. Eye donation
Matter for discussion submitted by the Greater Glasgow Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the role nursing has in eye donation in end-of-life care planning.

eye : vision

20. 35-hour week
Resolution submitted by the Lothian and Borders Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to instigate a campaign for a maximum 35 hour working week for the nursing workforce.

21. Inappropriate delegation
Matter for discussion submitted by the Berkshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the delegation of health care tasks to school staff and non-health care professionals.

22. Access to medicinal cannabis
Matter for discussion submitted by the Cheshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress discusses the impact of current NHS prescribing practice on access to medicinal cannabis.

medicinal cannabis

23. SPA time
Resolution submitted by the Wiltshire Branch
That this meeting of RCN Congress calls on RCN Council to lobby for the inclusion of Supporting Professional Activities (SPA) time in all nursing job-plans.

See: https://www.rcn.org.uk/Congress/Agenda 

Are there any lessons from this exercise? Well, I have no posts tagged 'donor', or 'medicinal cannabis' - to make an important distinction. Something to correct and try to follow this week. 

See you there ...?

(I may need to reduce the link-count here.) 

Podcast: Local green spaces and mental health

Dear CHAIN member,

We would like to draw your attention to the following NIHR alert. Please pass on as appropriate. Thank you.

NIHR

Local green spaces are linked with better mental health

Podcast: Local green spaces and mental health

In this podcast, Helen Saul, Editor in Chief of NIHR Evidence, and study author Sarah Rodgers, Professor of Health Informatics, University of  Liverpool, discuss the impact of local green spaces on people's mental health.

Researchers analysed data on more than 2 million people in Wales over 10 years to explore the impact of green spaces on mental health. They linked information about people’s mental health with information about the greenness of their home’s immediate surroundings and how close they lived to green or blue spaces (such as parks, lakes, and beaches). They found that people had a lower risk of anxiety and depression if:

· their home’s immediate surroundings (within 200-300 metres) were greener
· they could access green and blue spaces nearby.

The researchers say that local authorities could improve the mental health of their community by increasing the greenery in their towns and cities and improving access to green and blue spaces.

Read more at: https://evidence.nihr.ac.uk/alert/local-green-spaces-are-linked-with-better-mental-health/?source=chainmail

Regards,

Irina Johnston
CHAIN Administrative Assistant

(and my source.)

Previously: 

c/o @TheLancetPlanet - Paper: Residential greenness and prevalence of major depressive disorders... or "All colours fictitious"

'nature'

'Science' - Air Pollution

Science

• Volume 385|
• Issue 6707|
• 26 Jul 2024

COVER
"Smoke from wildfires burning in Canada enveloped New York City, New York, in June of 2023, shown here in a photo of the Chrysler Building on 7 June. Wildfire smoke events in the past decade have halted or reversed positive air quality trends in the United States. This special issue considers recent developments in monitoring, health effects, and policy dealing with air pollution. See the section beginning on page 378."

individual

|

INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES

humanistic ------------------------------- mechanistic

SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL

|

group

Lyons, S., Nolan, A., Carthy, P. et al. Long-term exposure to PM2.5 air pollution and mental health: a retrospective cohort study in Ireland. Environ Health 23, 54 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-024-01093-z Ferreira, et al. (2024). Impact of Air Quality on Mental Health of Higher Education Students. In: Galvão, et al. (eds) Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Water Energy Food and Sustainability (ICoWEFS 2023). ICoWEFS 2023. Springer Proceedings in Earth and Environmental Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-48532-9_37 Shaw, S., Kundu, S., Chattopadhyay, A. et al. Indoor air pollution and cognitive function among older adults in India: a multiple mediation approach through depression and sleep disorders. BMC Geriatr 24, 81 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-04662-6

Shine, S., Tamirie, M., Kumie, A. et al. Pregnant women’s perception on the health effects of household air pollution in Rural Butajira, Ethiopia: a phenomenological qualitative study. BMC Public Health 23, 1636 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-16578-8 Phillip, E., Conroy, R.M., Walsh, A. et al. Using mixed methods and community participation to explore household and ambient air pollution practices in a rural community in Malawi. J Public Health (Berl.) (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-023-02008-x

Nakaishi, T., Yoo, S., Kagawa, S. et al. Impact of air pollution on human morality: A multinational perspective. Humanit Soc Sci Commun 11, 991 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03186-z Wang, K. Is air pollution politics or economics? Evidence from industrial heterogeneity. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 24454–24469 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-23955-0 Wang, X., Tan, H. & Liu, J. The impact of air pollution on commercial health insurance demand amidst China's green transition. Econ Change Restruct 57, 39 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10644-024-09623-y

Price, H.D., Bowyer, C.J., Büker, P. et al. From reflection diaries to practical guidance for transdisciplinary research: learnings from a Kenyan air pollution project. Sustain Sci 18, 1429–1444 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-023-01317-0

My source:  https://x.com/DrMariaNeira

https://x.com/DrMariaNeira/status/1819399316735144414

Previously 'pollution'

ERCIM News No. 138 Special theme: "Sustainable Cities"

Dear ERCIM News reader,

A new ERCIM News issue (Number 138) is online with a special theme on sustainable cities. This ERCIM News special theme reports on research addressing technologies, systems, applications, and services for sustainable smart cities, showcasing Europe's research ecosystem.
You can access the issue at https://ercim-news.ercim.eu/

This special theme was coordinated by our guest editors German Castignani (Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology) and Georgios Mylonas (Industrial Systems Institute, Athena Research Center).

Thank you for reading ERCIM News!

Please share this issue with anyone who might find it interesting. You can also support us on Twitter (@ercim_news) and LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/ercim). Let's keep the conversation going and share the latest updates together!

Next issue:
No. 139, October 2024
Special Theme: "Software Security". Submissions are welcome! See call for contributions.

Announcements in this issue:

• Call for Proposals: Dagstuhl Seminars and Perspectives Workshops - Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik is accepting proposals for scientific seminars/workshops in all areas of computer science.
• ERCIM "Alain Bensoussan" Fellowship Programme - Postdoctoral fellowships available at leading European research institutions. Simple application procedure. Next application deadline: 30 September 2024.
• Call for Participation: Forum Beyond Compliance 2024: Research Ethics in the Digital Age
• Call for Participation: Edge AI Meets Swarm Intelligence - Dubrovnik, Croatia, 18 September 2024
• SmartEdge & AIoTwin Summer School and Workshop, 16-20 September 2024, Dubrovnik, Croatia
• Call for Participation: FMICS 2024 - 29th International Conference on Formal Methods for Industrial Critical Systems, co-located with Formal Methods (FM) 2024 in Milan, 9-11 September 2024
  

---

ERCIM News is published quarterly by ERCIM, the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics. With the printed and online edition, ERCIM News reaches more than 10000 readers.
All issues published to date are available online.

---

About ERCIM

ERCIM - the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics - aims to foster collaborative work within the European research community and to increase cooperation with European industry. Leading European research institutes are members of ERCIM. ERCIM is the European host of W3C.

Subscribe to the ERCIM News quarterly alert

Peter Kunz*                      	
ERCIM Office
2004, Route des Lucioles
BP93
F-06902 Sophia Antipolis Cedex

https://www.ercim.eu
https://ercim-news.ercim.eu 

*My source via email - many thanks.

n.b. A search did not find 'health', 'well-', 'care', or 'pollution' in this issue.

 
Contrast with (and other previous issues):

ERCIM News No. 98 Special theme: "Smart Cities"

ERCIM News No. 137 Special Theme "Extended Reality (XR)"

 Dear ERCIM News reader,

A new ERCIM News issue (Number 137) is online with a special Extended Reality (XR). This special theme on XR highlights the innovative ways researchers are addressing complex challenges and transforming our interaction with information and the world through immersive experiences and advanced data analytics.

You can access the issue at https://ercim-news.ercim.eu/

This special theme was coordinated by our guest editors Ioannis Chatzigiannakis (Sapienza University of Rome and CNIT), Holger Graf (Fraunhofer IGD), Manos Kamarianakis (University of Crete), and Aris Lalos (ISI).

Thank you for reading ERCIM News!

Please share this issue with anyone who might find it interesting. You can also support us on Twitter (@ercim_news) and LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/ercim). Let's keep the conversation going and share the latest updates together!

Next issue:

No. 138, July 2024
Special Theme: "Sustainable Cities". Submissions are welcome! See call for contributions.

Announcements in this issue:

• Call for Proposals: Dagstuhl Seminars and Perspectives Workshops - Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik is accepting proposals for scientific seminars/workshops in all areas of computer science.
• ERCIM "Alain Bensoussan" Fellowship Programme - Postdoctoral fellowships available at leading European research institutions. Simple application procedure. Next application deadline: 30 September 2024.
• Call for Papers: Forum Beyond Compliance 2024: Research Ethics in the Digital Age
• 43rd SAFECOMP 2024 and 19th DECSoS Workshop - Florence, Italy, 17-20 September 2024
• Call for Papers: Edge AI Meets Swarm Intelligence - Dubrovnik, Croatia, 18 September 2024

ERCIM News is published quarterly by ERCIM, the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics. With the printed and online edition, ERCIM News reaches more than 10000 readers.
All issues published to date are available online.

---

About ERCIM

ERCIM - the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics - aims to foster collaborative work within the European research community and to increase cooperation with European industry. Leading European research institutes are members of ERCIM. ERCIM is the European host of W3C.

Peter Kunz                      	
ERCIM Office
2004, Route des Lucioles
BP93
F-06902 Sophia Antipolis Cedex

https://www.ercim.eu
https://ercim-news.ercim.eu

New animated film Social Care Future - #SocialCareFuture

Individual

|

     INTERPERSONAL    :     SCIENCES               

HUMANISTIC --------------------------------------  MECHANISTIC      

SOCIOLOGY  :   POLITICAL 

|

dyad / couple  family  group COMMUNITY population

	Government(s) politics power policy social care funding integration of care

"Watch our story

Without big changes to the way we think about social care, we and the people we care about face losing control of our lives and contact with the people and things that make our lives worthwhile. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Watch our new film, narrated by actress, comedian, broadcaster and international disability rights activist Liz Carr and directed by multi-award winning filmmaker Yoav Segal.

View accessible versions, including BSL, subtitles and comic book."

 

Animating our #SocialCareFuture – the story behind our animated film

My source: 

https://x.com/socfuture/status/1714909895416242221?s=20

New York – Livable Cities: A Conference on Issues Affecting Life in Cities

NEW YORK Conference: Abstract Deadline

New York / Virtual

14-16, June 2023

Abstracts: Nov 20th, 2022 (Round One)

https://amps-research.com/conference/livable-cities-new-york/

A cross-departmental conference held at City Tech (CUNY) with the Departments of Architectural Technology, Construction Management, Civil Engineering and Environmental Technology

LIVABLE CITIES - NEW YORK is a conference covering architecture, design, planning, health, technology, urban economics and social policy. It is calling for contributions to specific strands of sustainability, resilience, design, planning and construction.

These strands seek to explore issues related to net-zero energy buildings, sea defenses and strategic retreat, life cycle analysis in the construction industry, Building Environmental Assessment methods, EcoHomes, BREEAM, alternative energy generation in cities, material science and much more. 

The conference is organized across departments at City Tech (City University of New York) with Amps and publication support from Routledge and UCL Press.

CALL SUMMARY

What makes a city livable? Transport, housing, health and environment. Matters of culture, entrepreneurship, crime and safety. Affordability and education. Depending on whose ‘livability index’ you look at, it may include design quality, sustainability and the digital infrastructures of the smart city. Other criteria applied may encompass food access, job opportunities or walkability. Inclusivity and the politics of participation also come into play.

The past two decades have seen an exponential rise of livability measures. Reflecting increased urbanity globally, they risk making the notion of the city ever more contested. The two cities that host this event are cases in point. The Mercer Livability Ranking takes New York as the datum by which all other cities globally are graded – as better or worse. London, by contrast, measures itself: the London Assembly scoring everything from air quality to indices of deprivation. When we consider the livability of cities then, it is clear we are dealing with a plethora of issues – both isolated and, inevitably, interconnected.

Within this broad livability framework, we seek to develop strands and publications around themes of the design and construction sectors – particularly as they relate to sustainability and resilience.

https://amps-research.com/conference/livable-cities-new-york/

My source: http://www.cosmobilities.net/ list

n.b. A suggestion: consider the conference themes and the structure and domains of Hodges' model; what relationships, dichotomies, synergies, and opportunities can you glean?

Designing for Changing Values (Event & Journal CfP)

I learned of the following research project via

Philos-L "The Liverpool List" Department of Philosophy, University of Liverpool
[ https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/philosophy/philos-l/ @PhilosL ]

- with news of a call for papers:

CFP: Corpus Analysis, Conceptual Change, and Socially Disruptive Technologies

Hodges' model is ideally to suited to critique of systems and socio-technical dimensions as previously described:

Jones, P. (2009) Socio-Technical Structures, the Scope of Informatics and Hodges’ model, IN, Staudinger, R., Ostermann, H., Bettina Staudinger, B. (Eds.), Handbook of Research in Nursing Informatics and Socio-Technical Structures, Idea Group Publishing, Inc. Chap. 11, pp. 160-174.

Plus, there are many posts tagged 'socio-technical' - hyphenated to emphasize the inter- multi- trans-disciplinary bridges that the model provides (some posts are also tagged 'sociotechnical').

The research project Designing for Changing Values provides encouragement here for the increasing relevance of Hodges' model:

How to Deal with Value Change in Sociotechnical System Design

"Not value neutral

A key insight from philosophy of technology is that technological artifacts and sociotechnical systems are not value neutral, but support or inhibit certain values. Several philosophical accounts for understanding the embedding of values in technological artifacts have been proposed and approaches like Value Sensitive Design, Design for Values and Responsible Innovation have been established for integrating values into technical design.

A theoretical blind spot

A blind spot is, however, the possibility of value change after a sociotechnical system has been designed. For example, when many of our current energy and transportation systems were designed sustainability was not yet a central value, and we are now struggling to incorporate this value into these systems. Progress in the field is currently inhibited by the lack of a philosophical theory of value change in sociotechnical systems.

Better design strategies

This project fills the gap by developing such a theory. It moves beyond the state of the art by proposing a dynamic rather than a static account of values, by developing insights in the dynamics of value change, by extending analysis about the embedding of values in technical artefacts to sociotechnical systems and by developing design strategies that aim at designing sociotechnical systems that can better deal with value change."

https://www.valuechange.eu/

I do wonder about the subjective-objective and qualitative-quantitative 'metrics' of value and values (and other metrics - change, complexity, emergence). In human and mechanistic terms there are marked differences too between value and values. Values are, should, must be, embedded in individual nurses and hence the domains of Hodges' model. This is how (in part) the model supports reflection, and critical thinking.

No surprise then being created for practice, Hodges' model is dynamic. The model can help capture and present an ongoing sequence of frames. Where were we? Where are we going? How have things changed? (This is

Hodges' model prompted the thought of 'holistic bandwidth', the call for papers on corpus analysis seeks examples of formal work. The model, initially blank provides a conceptual framework upon which to capture a conceptually situated corpus. The structure of Hodges' model is a foundation for a relational ontology that draws upon semantic distance between the model's two axes (as per the table below):

INDIVIDUAL <-> GROUP 

HUMANISTIC <-> MECHANISTIC

Not just that but the synonyms that may apply. So for 'individual': person, patient, client, self, client, 'I', 'me', Peter, Chi, student, teacher and whatever role is applicable. This point is vital as there is a potential and workflow that runs from:

1. Neutral, blank, non-judgemental (the model as a template): the content - empty, null state.

2. The model's essential structure.

With a potential for conceptual explosion - from a basic (very simplistic) inherent corpus, to one that is explicit:

3. A response to a situation, a context.

4. That then changes according to events, aims, objectives, strategies, philosophical perspective (recovery, strengths, self-care), policy emphasis ...

In health and social care as suggested above we would hope that the model is employed to shift from the general to the specific - person-centred approach.

 INDIVIDUAL
|

 INTERPERSONAL    :     SCIENCES               

HUMANISTIC --------------------------------------  MECHANISTIC      

SOCIOLOGY  :   POLITICAL 

|

GROUP

value(S)	VALUE(S)
value(s)	VALUE(S)

This conceptual framework is not limited to strategy either, but can also encompass deliberation on operational and tactical concerns.


See also:

Soc. Philosophy & Technology Conf: Charleston, S.C. 8-11 July 2007

20/20 vision minus 1, 2, or 4 blind spots....

'corpus'

Jones, P. (2012). Exploring several dimensions of local, global and glocal using the generic conceptual framework Hodges's model. The Journal Of Community Informatics. 8(3). Retrieved from https://openjournals.uwaterloo.ca/index.php/JoCI/article/view/3034

Jones P. Exploring the relationship of threshold concepts and Hodges’ model of care from the individual to populations and global health. Rev Cuid. 2017; 8(3): 1697-720. http://dx.doi.org/10.15649/cuidarte.v8i3.464

Online resources - Operational Research (OR) for Developing Countries

- responsibility, creativity, optimization (by IFORS)

The aim of the IFORS (International Federation of Operational Research Societies) Developing Countries Online Resources page is to offer the OR worker all publicly-available materials on the topic of OR for Development. It also aims to provide a venue for people who are working in the area to share their completed or in-process work, learn from others, and stimulate comments and discussions on the work. Regarding IFORS Developing Countries OR resources website, its regular updates - and your possible submission of "free" (not copyright protected) material, you might occasionally visit

http://ifors.org/developing_countries/index.php?title=Main_Page

With this open resources page we aim to make research and application results better accessible to the many friends in the Developing Countries (DCs). We would be glad about interest.

Contributions from art and science, communication and education sectors are warmly welcome by our community which has very little access to emerging documents on arts and sciences, research, design and development. Particularly, the disciplines and areas MRI and Physics could serve the DCs very well.

The International Federation of Operational Research Societies (IFORS; http://ifors.org/) is an almost 60-year old organization which is currently composed of 51 national societies. Regional Groups of IFORS are: ALIO (The Latin American Ibero Association on Operations Research), APORS (The Association of Asian-Pacific Operational Research Societies), EURO (The Association of European Operational Research Societies), NORAM (The Association of North American Operations Research Societies). IFORS conferences are taking place every three years. On successfully celebrated IFORS 2021, Seoul, South Korea, August 22-27, 2021, please refer to http://www.ifors2020.kr/.

Thank you very much for your attention.

With kind regards,
best wishes,
Gerhard-Wilhelm Weber

PS: Feedback is welcome via    

gerhard.weber AT put.poznan.pl

My source: AI-SGES list

A new citation of Hodges' model: "A multi-agent system approach to dynamic ridesharing for older people" 2020

Given the volume of new research published each year and even daily, I am always looking for validation of Hodges' model and my belief (and time ...) in the model's generic utility.

An email from ResearchGate this morning prompted a search, revealing the following conference paper by Iris Lohja, Yves Demazeau and Christine Verdier. 

This a very rewarding read for me as the paper states that Hodges' is situated, person-centred, socio-technical and combines the individual and group.

"Situation Theory is a theoretical approach, according to which a system is defined as the composition of situation-related concerns. To collect information about these concerns and to address the user preferences BP, we use the Hodges’ Health Career Model (H2CM) [15]. It is a model centred around the person, based on the situation,considering all contexts (or as many as possible), and allows for simple modelling. One of the main reasons why this model is adapted to our context is that it allows for individualism and holism at the same time. We use H2CM to structure knowledge or features of older people around two axes – the vertical axis of individual and group and the horizontal axis of humanistic and mechanistic – which create four knowledge domains – Interpersonal, Sciences, Sociology, and Political. The vertical axis indicates our primary focus on the older person as an individual and as a group. The horizontal axis separates features into humanistic – related to the social aspect of the older person/people – and mechanistic – related to the technical aspects concerning the older person/people. Figure 1 shows the H2CM model for the passenger population, where we can see some features identified and classified into the four knowledge domains.

Modelling the passenger population with H2CM in IMOPOP helps to identify and include in the system their preferences and constraints, thus addressing the user preferences BP. A UML representation of a passenger agent is shown in Figure 2.

Table 1 compares the approaches we have considered for the modelling of the agents, according to our main criteria." p.54

I will post again and if possible with Figure 1 and Table 1 from the paper. 

Figure 1 could be extended and Table 1 is a very useful approach by the authors, contrasting Hodges' model with other approaches.

"In this paper, we discussed about various MAS techniques for dealing with the first two blocking points. Viewing our multi-agent system as componential, we considered various models for modelling each of its components. We used the socio-technical Hodges’ Health Career Model, which originates from the social care domain but we still described as it is crucial for IMOPOP. It is used to model the older people as the agents in the system, addressing the user preferences blocking point. Given that we consider ridesharing as activity-based, we discussed about activities and proposed modelling the urgency and importance of these activities in the system. In the environment, we modelled agents’ points of interest and the main players in the ridesharing market." p.57.

MAS: multi-agent systems (the MAS described is called IMOPOP)

Iris Lohja, Yves Demazeau, Christine Verdier. A multi-agent system approach to dynamic ridesharing for older people: State-of-the-art work and preliminary design. 18èmes Rencontres des Jeunes Chercheurs en Intelligence Artificielle, RJCIA’20, Jun 2020, Angers, France. pp.52-59. ⟨hal-02897446⟩

 See also from Aug. 2020:

a Paper: Hodges' model and mental health nursing in bushfire-affected communities

 

ERCIM News No. 123 Special Theme: "Blue Growth"

Dear ERCIM News Reader,

ERCIM News No. 123 has just been published at https://ercim-news.ercim.eu/

This special theme is devoted to the application of ICT technologies to the "blue growth" field, which includes machine learning and artificial intelligence, cyber-physical systems of systems, IoT/M2M communications, space communications and observations, big data infrastructures, unmanned and autonomous systems.

Guest editors: Alberto Gotta (ISTI-CNR) and John Mardikis (EPLO - Circular Clima Institute)

This issue is also available for download in pdf and ePub.

Thank you for your interest in ERCIM News. Feel free to forward this message to anyone who might be interested.

Next issue:
No. 124,  January 2021
Special Theme: "Epidemic Modelling"

Announcements in this issue:

---

Call for Proposals: Dagstuhl Seminars and Perspectives Workshops
Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik is accepting proposals for scientific seminars/workshops in all areas of computer science, in particular also in connection with other fields. https://www.dagstuhl.de/dsproposal

---

Seven open positions from PhD students to research scientists at the the SIMULA HPC department
https://www.simula.no/about/job-openings/simula-research-laboratory

---

Positions available at Inria
Throughout the year, Inria welcomes new employees to its research teams and departments, whether through competitions, mobility within the public service, contractual agreements or internship proposals
https://jobs.inria.fr/public/classic/en/offres

---

Special Issue on “Test Automation: Trends, Benefits, and Costs”
Call for papers and submission information:
https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-systems-and-software/call-for-papers/special-issue-on-test-automation-trends-benefits-and-costs

---

ERCIM News
is published quarterly by ERCIM, the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics.
The printed edition reaches about 10000 readers.
This email alert reaches more than 8000 subscribers.
Advertise in ERCIM News

---

About ERCIM
ERCIM - the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics - aims to foster collaborative work within the European research community and to increase co-operation with European industry. Leading European research institutes are members of ERCIM. ERCIM is the European host of W3C.

https://www.ercim.eu/
@ercim_news
ERCIM LinkedIn Group
------------------------------------------------------------------------
You can unsubscribe from this quarterly alert at
https://lists.ercim.eu/wws/signoff/ercim-news

-- 
Peter Kunz                      	
ERCIM Office

2004, Route des Lucioles
BP93
F-06902 Sophia Antipolis Cedex

https://www.ercim.eu
https://ercim-news.ercim.eu 
--------------------------------
@ercim_news
http://twitter.com/ercim_news

join the ERCIM Linkedin Group
https://www.linkedin.com/groups/81390/

Ack. Thanks to Peter Kunz.

The humanistic and mechanistic in patient transport & safety

individual

|

INTERPERSONAL : SCIENCES

humanistic ----------------------------------------------- mechanistic

SOCIOLOGY : POLITICAL

|

group - population

Person - Identity 'Suspended personhood' ? Dissociation -> Alienation ? MENTAL - physical health Clinical assessment Mental Illness Mental Health Crisis Orientation - Mental capacity Anxiety - Distress - Stress 'Lived experience' Risk to Self / Self neglect Can person's needs be met? Trauma Individual sense-making "If I am in a cage ..." SUBJECTIVE - objective QUALITY - quantity Aesthetic (psychological) impact of conveyance

PHYSICAL - mental health Open - Closed Wards/Units Locked - Secure Clinical assessment Risk to Self / Self neglect Physical MECHANICAL restraint: Handcuffs Vehicle: Cage vans - confined space Logistics: Patient transport 'Transfer' local <---><-> remote Location of Specialist Units Number of places Data gathering Records OBJECTIVE - subjective QUANTITY - quality

Risk to Others Ability to cooperate Families - contact / visiting Shared lived experience: Treatment, Care Vs. Punishment Patient-Public Involvement Discourse Collective sense-making Perpetuation of stigma Blunted / Polarised dialogue:  Anti- Critical Psychiatry Barriers to dialogue: 'Service-users' - Services

Police & Policing Law Mental Health Act Mental Capacity Act Liberty Protection Safeguards Duty of Care Accountability - Liability Staff involved in transfers Policy Policy Instruments Data - Reporting: Commissioned Research? Employee safety Mental Health Services Commissioning: Private Sector - Public Sector Transport Services Standards Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit

I'm sure the vast majority of transport service providers - public and private, are of a high-standard, seek to assure safety of all involved and professional, but exceptions must be addressed.

See also:

Carli Brosseau and Alex Lang

Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article230255979.html#storylink=cpy

‘How many have to die?’ SC mental health patients endure nightmare transport conditions.

https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article230255979.html

If I come across further information (esp. UK centred) I will add here.

h2cmng AT yahoo.co.uk

Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article230255979.html#storylink=cpy

My source:

Cage vans are used routinely in the UK for patient transport between hospitals. There is currently no record of how frequently used. There is no requirement to demonstrate that this degree of imprisonment is proportionate, or that less restrictive transport is impossible https://t.co/jvVL2atSVe

— Alex Thomson (@AlexBThomson) July 25, 2020