Cost-effectiveness of a telephone-delivered education programme to prevent early childhood caries in a disadvantaged area : a cohort study

Objectives Early childhood caries is a highly destructive dental disease which is compounded by the need for young children to be treated under general anaesthesia. In Australia, there are long waiting periods for treatment at public hospitals. In this paper, we examined the costs and patient outcomes of a prevention programme for early childhood caries to assess its value for government services. Design Cost-effectiveness analysis using a Markov model. Setting Public dental patients in a low socioeconomic, socially disadvantaged area in the State of Queensland, Australia. Participants Children aged 6 months to 6 years received either a telephone prevention programme or usual care. Primary and secondary outcome measures A mathematical model was used to assess caries incidence and public dental treatment costs for a cohort of children. Healthcare costs, treatment probabilities and caries incidence were modelled from 6 months to 6 years of age based on trial data from mothers and their children who received either a telephone prevention programme or usual care. Sensitivity analyses were used to assess the robustness of the findings to uncertainty in the model estimates. Results By age 6 years, the telephone intervention programme had prevented an estimated 43 carious teeth and saved £69 984 in healthcare costs per 100 children. The results were sensitive to the cost of general anaesthesia (cost-savings range £36 043–£97 298) and the incidence of caries in the prevention group (cost-savings range £59 496–£83 368) and usual care (cost-savings range £46 833–£93 328), but there were cost savings in all scenarios. Conclusions A telephone intervention that aims to prevent early childhood caries is likely to generate considerable and immediate patient benefits and cost savings to the public dental health service in disadvantaged communities.

TLR2, but Not TLR4, is required for effective host defence against Chlamydia respiratory tract infection in early life

Chlamydia pneumoniae commonly causes respiratory tract infections in children, and epidemiological investigations strongly link infection to the pathogenesis of asthma. The immune system in early life is immature and may not respond appropriately to pathogens. Toll-like receptor (TLR)2 and 4 are regarded as the primary pattern recognition receptors that sense bacteria, however their contribution to innate and adaptive immunity in early life remains poorly defined. We investigated the role of TLR2 and 4 in the induction of immune responses to Chlamydia muridarum respiratory infection, in neonatal wild-type (Wt) or TLR2-deficient (−/−), 4−/− or 2/4−/− BALB/c mice. Wt mice had moderate disease and infection. TLR2−/− mice had more severe disease and more intense and prolonged infection compared to other groups. TLR4−/− mice were asymptomatic. TLR2/4−/− mice had severe early disease and persistent infection, which resolved thereafter consistent with the absence of symptoms in TLR4−/− mice. Wt mice mounted robust innate and adaptive responses with an influx of natural killer (NK) cells, neutrophils, myeloid (mDCs) and plasmacytoid (pDCs) dendritic cells, and activated CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells into the lungs. Wt mice also had effective production of interferon (IFN)γ in the lymph nodes and lung, and proliferation of lymph node T-cells. TLR2−/− mice had more intense and persistent innate (particularly neutrophil) and adaptive cell responses and IL-17 expression in the lung, however IFNγ responses and T-cell proliferation were reduced. TLR2/4−/− mice had reduced innate and adaptive responses. Most importantly, neutrophil phagocytosis was impaired in the absence of TLR2. Thus, TLR2 expression, particularly on neutrophils, is required for effective control of Chlamydia respiratory infection in early life. Loss of control of infection leads to enhanced but ineffective TLR4-mediated inflammatory responses that prolong disease symptoms. This indicates that TLR2 agonists may be beneficial in the treatment of early life Chlamydia infections and associated diseases.

Constitutive production of IL-13 promotes early-life Chlamydia respiratory infection and allergic airway disease

Deleterious responses to pathogens during infancy may contribute to infection and associated asthma. Chlamydia respiratory infections in early life are common causes of pneumonia and lead to reduced lung function and asthma. We investigated the role of interleukin-13 (IL-13) in promoting early-life Chlamydia respiratory infection, infection-induced airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), and severe allergic airway disease (AAD). Infected infant Il13−/− mice had reduced infection, inflammation, and mucus-secreting cell hyperplasia. Surprisingly, infection of wild-type (WT) mice did not increase IL-13 production but reduced IL-13Rα2 decoy receptor levels compared with sham-inoculated controls. Infection of WT but not Il13−/− mice induced persistent AHR. Infection and associated pathology were restored in infected Il13−/− mice by reconstitution with IL-13. Stat6−/− mice were also largely protected. Neutralization of IL-13 during infection prevented subsequent infection-induced severe AAD. Thus, early-life Chlamydia respiratory infection reduces IL-13Rα2 production, which may enhance the effects of constitutive IL-13 and promote more severe infection, persistent AHR, and AAD.

Early career teacher attrition: A case study of independent Catholic girls' schools in Queensland

This research study sought to understand why so many early career teachers in an Australian Religious Institute education sector were leaving teaching. Previous studies on early career teacher attrition across all sectors were based on supply and demand theory, as well as contemporary career theory, and identified various factors such as remuneration, student behaviour and school resourcing as influencing factors. These Australian Religious Institute education sector schools take pride in their good standing. The schools in this sector have worked at addressing many of the factors associated with early career teacher attrition yet despite their efforts they are also experiencing attrition of their early career teachers. A case study of the Queensland independent Catholic girls' school sector explored firstly, the construct of being a teacher in these schools, and secondly, the sociocultural discourses giving rise to unique situations contributing to early career teachers making the decision to leave teaching. Eight early career teachers who had left the profession for which they had recently trained, and eight long standing teachers who were still employed in the sector were interviewed to yield a rich data set. The interviews were conducted within a theoretical framework of what it means to be a teacher by Graham and Phelps (2003) and pedagogic identity and pedagogic practice as noted by Bernstein (2000). The distributive rules and the evaluative rules (Bernstein, 2000) provided the analytical framework to confirm that particular discourses, together with the ways in which the early career teachers realised being a teacher, were important factors in the decision not to remain in teaching. It emerged that being a teacher in the Queensland independent Catholic girls' school sector was complex and demanding. Being a teacher required long hours of personal time to realise the demands of teaching, a situation which did not fare well with the early career teachers who struggled to balance the requirements of teaching with their own personal time. Furthermore, evidence was found that the schools had multifaceted sociocultural discourses that the early career teacher research participants struggled to understand. In contrast, long standing teachers had, through time, experience and observation, developed skills that allowed them to navigate these complex discourses and thus remain long term in the sector. Another finding revealed the considerable dichotomy in how the charism of the schools (the unique way Catholic institutions transmit the beliefs and teachings of the Catholic Church) unfolded for students and staff. While these schools transmit their charism effectively to the students, it is ineffectively transmitted to early career teachers. In contemporary times when a majority of teachers in Australia are moving into their 50s and large numbers are retiring or resigning, (Australian Government, 2011; Australian Government Department of Education, 2007b) it is important for the long term viability of the independent Catholic school sector to retain a stable staff. This study demonstrates that if Catholic schools want to retain their unique identity in the education community and sustain their unique charisms, then they must adopt positive practices to support early career teachers.

The impact of professional development on early childhood educators’ confidence, understanding and knowledge of education for sustainability

In recent times, Australia has recognised and enacted a range of initiatives at service, system and community levels that seek to embed sustainability into the early childhood sector. This paper explores the impact of a professional development (PD) session that provided opportunities for early childhood educators to learn and share ideas about the theory and practice of sustainability generally and early childhood education for sustainability (ECEfS) specifically. The PD was entitled ‘Living and Learning about Sustainability in the Early Years’ and was offered on three occasions across Tasmania. A total of 99 participants attended the three PD sessions (one 5 hour; two 2 hour). The participants had varying levels of experience and included early childhood teachers, centre based educators and preservice teachers. At the start and end of the PD, participants were invited to complete a questionnaire that contained a series of likert scale questions that explored their content knowledge, level of understanding and confidence in regards to ECEfS. Participants were also asked at the start and end of the PD to ‘list five words you think of when you consider the word sustainability.’ A model of teacher professional growth was used to conceptualise the results related to the changes in knowledge, understanding and confidence (personal domain) as a result of the PD related to ECEfS (external domain). The likert-scale questions on the questionnaire revealed significant positive changes in levels of knowledge, understanding and confidence from the start to the end of the PD. Differences as a function of length of PD, level of experience and role are presented and discussed. The ‘5 words’ question showed that participants widened their understandings of ECEfS from a narrow environmental focus to a broader understanding of the social, political and economic dimensions. The early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector has been characterised as having a pedagogical advantage for EfS suggesting that early childhood educators are well placed to engage with EfS more readily than might educators in other education sectors. This article argues that PD is necessary to develop capability in educators in order to meet the imperatives around sustainability outlined in educational policy and curriculum documents in ECEC.

Early challenges of shifting an Australian manufacturer’s utilisation of design

This paper presents the findings from the initial exploration phase of an 11 month project, identifying the early challenges that a design innovation catalyst faces while initiating a shift in the way a medium sized manufacturing firm utilises design. Ultimately, the overarching aims of the project are to transform the utilisation of design within the participating company from a styling tool to a strategic process through the implementation of a design led approach to innovation. Insights were found through qualitative interviews with company staff and reflective journal entries as part of an Action Research methodology. Challenges identified include managing expectations, conveying the potential of a design innovation catalyst and a design led approach to innovation, and a siloed and risk averse culture. Findings presented in this paper will assist in identifying and understanding the preliminary challenges encountered by a design innovation catalyst when embarking on a design led transformation. Future innovation catalysts can prepare for possible barriers by highlighting considerations, opportunities and challenges when embarking on a design led transformation. Implications of this research are provided as possible approaches to overcoming these challenges.

Development of school connectedness as a component of an injury prevention program for early adolescents

The current program of research addresses the need for multi-level programs to target the major increase in injury rates that occurs throughout adolescence. Specifically, it involves the investigation of school connectedness as a protective factor for adolescent injury, and the development of school connectedness as a component of an injury prevention program. To date, school-based risk taking and injury prevention has frequently been limited to addressing adolescents' knowledge and attitudes to risk behaviours, and has largely overlooked the importance of the wider school social context as a protective factor in adolescent development. Additionally, school connectedness has been primarily studied in terms of its impact on student achievement, wellbeing and risk taking behaviour, and research has not yet addressed possible links with injury. Further, school connectedness intervention programs have targeted risk taking behaviours without evaluating their potential impact on injury outcomes. This is the first reported research to develop strategies to increase school connectedness as part of a school-based injury prevention program. The research program was conceptualised as three distinct stages. The development of these research stages was informed by a comprehensive review of the literature on adolescent risk taking, injury and school-based prevention, as well as on school connectedness and its importance in adolescence. A review of the school connectedness literature indicated that students' connectedness is largely influenced by relationships within the school context including with teachers and other school staff, and is therefore a potentially modifiable factor that may be targeted in school-based programs. Overall, the literature shows school connectedness to be a key protective factor in adolescent development. This review established a foundation from which the current program of research was designed. The first stage of the research involved an empirical investigation of the relationship between adolescent risk taking-related injuries and school connectedness. Stage one incorporated two studies. The first involved the development of a measure of adolescent injury, the Extended Adolescent Injury Checklist (E-AIC), for use in the current research as well as in future school-based studies and program evaluation. The results of this study also highlighted the extent of the problem of risk-related injury in adolescence. The second study in Stage one examined the relationship between students' reports of school connectedness, risk taking behaviour and risk taking-related injuries on the E-AIC. The results of this study showed significant relationships between increased school connectedness and reduced reported engagement in transport and violence risk taking, and fewer associated injuries. This study therefore suggested the potential for school-based injury prevention programs to incorporate strategies targeting increased adolescent connectedness to school. The second stage of this research involved the compilation of an evidence base to inform the design of a school connectedness intervention. Stage two also incorporated two studies. The first study in Stage two involved a systematic review of programs that have targeted school connectedness for reduced risk taking and injury. The results of this study revealed that interventions targeting school connectedness can be effective in reducing adolescent risk taking behaviour, and also provided an evidence base for the design of the current school connectedness intervention. The second study in Stage two examined teachers' understanding and perceptions of school connectedness. This qualitative study indicated that teachers consider students' connectedness to be an important factor that relates to their risk taking behaviour; and also provided directions and content for the intervention design stage. The third stage of this research built upon the findings of each of the previous studies, and involved the design, implementation and evaluation of a school connectedness intervention as a component of an adolescent injury prevention program, Skills for Preventing Injury in Youth (SPIY). This connectedness intervention was designed as a professional development workshop for teachers of 13 to 14 year old adolescents, and was developed as a complementary component to the curriculum-based SPIY program. The SPIY connectedness component was implemented and evaluated using process and six-month impact evaluation methodologies. The results of this study revealed that teachers saw value in the program and made use of the strategies presented, and that program school students' self-reported violence risk behaviour was reduced at six-month follow-up. Despite these promising findings, the results of this study did not demonstrate a significant impact of the program on change in students' connectedness to school, relative to comparison schools. The positive impact on self-reported violence risk behaviour was however replicated in additional analyses comparing students participating in the connectedness version of SPIY with students participating in an earlier curriculumonly version of the program. This finding indicated that the connectedness component has additional benefits relating to reduction in violence risks, over and above a curriculum-only version of the program. This research was the first reported to address the relationship between school connectedness and adolescent injury outcomes, and to develop school connectedness as a component of an adolescent injury prevention program. Overall, the results of this program of research have demonstrated the importance of incorporating strategies targeting the wider school social context, including school connectedness, in adolescent injury prevention programs. This research has important implications for future research and practice in adolescent injury prevention.

An activity and resource advisory system for manufacturing process chains selection at the early stage of product development

Designers need to consider both the functional and production process requirements at the early stage of product development. A variety of the research works found in the literature has been proposed to assist designers in selecting the most viable manufacturing process chain. However, they do not provide any assistance for designers to evaluate the processes according to the particular circumstances of their company. This paper describes a framework of an Activity and Resource Advisory System (ARAS) that generates advice about the required activities and the possible resources for various manufacturing process chains. The system provides more insight, more flexibility, and a more holistic and suitable approach for designers to evaluate and then select the most viable manufacturing process chain at the early stage of product development.

Mathematical modelling of soft callus formation in early murine bone repair

Fracture healing is a complicated coupling of many processes. Yet despite the apparent complexity, fracture repair is usually effective. There is, however, no comprehensive mathematical model addressing the multiple interactions of cells, cytokines and oxygen that includes extra-cellular matrix production and that results in the formation of the early stage soft callus. This thesis develops a one dimensional continuum transport model in the context of early fracture healing. Although fracture healing is a complex interplay of many local factors, critical components are identified and used to construct an hypothesis about regulation of the evolution of early callus formation. Multiple cell lines, cellular differentiation, oxygen levels and cytokine concentrations are examined as factors affecting this model of early bone repair. The model presumes diffusive and chemotactic cell migration mechanisms. It is proposed that the initial signalling regime and oxygen availability arising as consequences of bone fracture, are sufficient to determine the quantity and quality of early soft callus formation. Readily available software and purpose written algorithms have been used to obtain numerical solutions representative of various initial conditions. These numerical distributions of cellular populations reflect available histology obtained from murine osteotomies. The behaviour of the numerical system in response to differing initial conditions can be described by alternative in vivo healing pathways. An experimental basis, as illustrated in murine fracture histology, has been utilised to validate the mathematical model outcomes. The model developed in this thesis has potential for future extension, to incorporate processes leading to woven bone deposition, while maintaining the characteristics that regulate early callus formation.

ICT and internet usage in early childhood education : a comparative study of Australian and Malaysian teachers' beliefs and current practices

The thesis is a comparative study of ICTs and Internet use of Australian and Malaysian early childhood teachers in terms of their personal and professional comfort with ICTs, pedagogical beliefs, and their reported classroom practice. The study discovered teachers from both countries as relatively comfortable with digital technologies and the Internet, with most teachers held positive beliefs about ICT usage. The structural barriers in classrooms include lack of Internet access and the wide gap that exists between teachers’ positive beliefs and classroom practice. The study suggests the need for strategic and targeted professional development for teachers.

Research capacity and culture in podiatry : early observations within Queensland Health

Background Research is a major driver of health care improvement and evidence-based practice is becoming the foundation of health care delivery. For health professions to develop within emerging models of health care delivery, it would seem imperative to develop and monitor the research capacity and evidence-based literacy of the health care workforce. This observational paper aims to report the research capacity levels of statewide populations of public-sector podiatrists at two different time points twelve-months apart. Methods The Research Capacity & Culture (RCC) survey was electronically distributed to all Queensland Health (Australia) employed podiatrists in January 2011 (n = 58) and January 2012 (n = 60). The RCC is a validated tool designed to measure indicators of research skill in health professionals. Participants rate skill levels against each individual, team and organisation statement on a 10-point scale (one = lowest, ten = highest). Chi-squared and Mann Whitney U tests were used to determine any differences between the results of the two survey samples. A minimum significance of p < 0.05 was used throughout. Results Thirty-seven (64%) podiatrists responded to the 2011 survey and 33 (55%) the 2012 survey. The 2011 survey respondents reported low skill levels (Median < 4) on most aspects of individual research aspects, except for their ability to locate and critically review research literature (Median > 6). Whereas, most reported their organisation’s skills to perform and support research at much higher levels (Median > 6). The 2012 survey respondents reported significantly higher skill ratings compared to the 2011 survey in individuals’ ability to secure research funding, submit ethics applications, and provide research advice, plus, in their organisation’s skills to support, fund, monitor, mentor and engage universities to partner their research (p < 0.05). Conclusions This study appears to report the research capacity levels of the largest populations of podiatrists published. The 2011 survey findings indicate podiatrists have similarly low research capacity skill levels to those reported in the allied health literature. The 2012 survey, compared to the 2011 survey, suggests podiatrists perceived higher skills and support to initiate research in 2012. This improvement coincided with the implementation of research capacity building strategies.

Early stages of growth of YBa2Cu3O7-δ high Tc superconducting films on (001) Y-ZrO2 substrates

The early stages of growth of high quality YBa2Cu 3O7-δ (YBCO) films grown on (001) Y-ZrO2 (YSZ) substrates by pulsed laser deposition have been studied using a combination of atomic force microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A one unit cell thick YBCO layer and relatively large CuO particles formed in the initial stages. Additional YBCO grew on top of the first layer in the form of one or a few unit cell high c-axis oriented islands about 30 nm in diameter. The rounded islands subsequently coalesced into faceted domains. Elongated Y 2BaCuO5 particles nucleated after the first layer of YBCO. A highly textured BaZrO3 layer formed between the YSZ and the YBCO with a cube-on-cube dominant orientation relationship with respect to the YBCO film.

Early time course of Akt phosphorylation after endurance and resistance exercise

Purpose The aim of this study was to determine the early time course of exercise-induced signaling after divergent contractile activity associated with resistance and endurance exercise. Methods Sixteen male subjects were randomly assigned to either a cycling (CYC; n = 8, 60 min, 70% V?O2peak) or resistance (REX; n = 8, 8×5 leg extension, 80% one-repetition maximum, 3-min recovery) exercise group. Serial muscle biopsies were obtained from vastus lateralis at rest before, immediately after, and after 15, 30, and 60 min of passive recovery to determine early signaling responses after exercise. Results There were comparable increases from rest in AktThr308/Ser473 and mTORSer2448 phosphorylation during the postexercise time course that peaked 30-60 min after both CYC and REX (P<0.05). There were also similar patterns in p70S6K Thr389 and 4E-BP1Thr37/46 phosphorylation, but a greater magnitude of effect was observed for REX and CYC, respectively (P<0.05). However, AMPKThr172 phosphorylation was only significantly elevated after CYC (P<0.05), and we observed divergent responses for glycogen synthaseSer641 and AS160 phosphorylation that were enhanced after CYC but not REX (P<0.05). Conclusions We show a similar time course for Akt-mTOR-S6K phosphorylation during the initial 60-min recovery period after divergent contractile stimuli. Conversely, enhanced phosphorylation status of proteins that promote glucose transport and glycogen synthesis only occurred after endurance exercise. Our results indicate that endurance and resistance exercise initiate translational signaling, but high-load, low-repetition contractile activity failed to promote phosphorylation of pathways regulating glucose metabolism.

Early life predictors of preschool overweight and obesity : a case–control study in Sri Lanka

Background Childhood obesity increases the risk of obesity in adulthood and is associated with cardiovascular disease risk factors. Our aim was to assess the early life risk factors associated with overweight and obesity among preschool children. Methods In this case–control study, from the 1087 preschool children measured, age, sex and ethnicity matched 71 cases and 71 controls were recruited. Cases and controls were defined according to the WHO 2006 growth standards. The birth and growth characteristics were extracted from the child health development records. Infant feeding practices and maternal factors were obtained from the mother. Rapid weight gain was defined as an increase in weight-for-age Z score (WHO standards) above 0.67 SD from birth to 2 years. The magnitude and significant difference in mean values of the variables associated with overweight and obesity were evaluated using logistic regressions and paired t-test, respectively. Results Cases had significantly shorter duration (months) of breastfeeding (19.4, 24.6, p = 0.003), and smaller duration (months) of exclusive breastfeeding (3.7, 5.1, p = 0.001) compared to controls. Rapid weight gain (OR = 6.3, 95% CI = 2.04–19.49), first born status (OR = 3.6, 95% CI = 1.17-10.91) and pre-pregnancy obesity (OR = 4.0, 95% CI = 1.46-10.76) were positively associated with overweight and obesity. Breastfeeding more than 2 years (OR = 0.2, 95% CI = 0.06-0.57) was negatively associated with overweight and obesity. Conclusion Rapid weight gain within first two years, first–born status and pre-pregnancy obesity of the mother contributed for preschool obesity. Our results suggest that intervention may be indicated earlier in infancy and during the toddler and preschool years to tackle the increasing prevalence of obesity.

The effect of consumer education on unit price usage : an early exploratory study

Consumer awareness and usage of Unit Price (UP) information continues to hold academic interest. Originally designed as a device to enable shoppers to make comparisons between grocery products, it is argued consumers still lack a sufficient understanding of the device. Previous research has tended to focus on product choice, effect of time, and structural changes to price presentation. No studies have tested the effect of UP consumer education on grocery shopping expenditure. Supported by distributed learning theories, this is the first study to condition participants over a twenty week period, to comprehend and employ UP information while shopping. A 3x5 mixed factorial design was employed to collect data from 357 shoppers. A 3 (Control, Massed, Spaced) x 5 (Time Point: Week 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20) mixed factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to analyse the data. Preliminary results revealed that the three groups differed in their average expenditure over the twenty weeks. The Control group remained stable across the five time points. Results indicated that both intensive (Massed) and less intensive (Spaced) exposure to UP information achieved similar results, with both group reducing average expenditure similarly by Week 5. These patterns held for twenty weeks, with conditioned groups reducing their grocery expenditure by over 10%. This research has academic value as a test of applied learning theories. We argue, retailers can attain considerable market advantages as efforts to enhance customers’ knowledge, through consumer education campaigns, can have a positive and strong impact on customer trust and goodwill toward the organisation. Hence, major practical implications for both regulators and retailers exist.