Caregiver factors and pool fencing: An exploratory analysis

To explore the relationship between caregiver characteristics and the adequacy of domestic swimming pool fencing.A typical metropolitan area of a large Australian capital city, Brisbane.From a reanalysis of the dataset of the 1989 Brisbane Home Safety Survey of 1050 householders, associations between 10 caregiver factors, pool ownership, and quality of pool fencing, were analysed. Household characteristics relating to toddlers (children < or = 4 years), and socioeconomic measures were also included in the analyses. Pool fencing quality was measured on an ordinal scale derived from Australian Standards Association guidelines, confirmed through home visits by trained inspectors.Caregiver factors did not distinguish households with a swimming pool from those without, nor were they associated with adequacy of pool fencing among pool owners. Pool owners, with or without children, were less likely to perceive having a childproof fence as being important. Strongest correlates of adequacy of pool fencing were socioeconomic indicators of surrounding districts.These results do not support the arguments of opponents of compulsory pool fencing that caregiver factors are adequate to prevent toddler drownings and obviate the need for a pool fence. Pool owners do not appear to perceive their pool as a hazard for young children, and complacency about the adequacy of pool fencing needs to be replaced by increased caregiver health beliefs, skills, and perceptions. Article in Injury Prevention 3(4):257-61 · December 1997

Social support group interventions in people with dementia and mild cognitive impairment: a systematic review of the literature

Abstract Despite the large number of studies evaluating social support groups for people with dementia, there are no systematic reviews of current evidence.The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of social support group interventions for people with dementia and mild cognitive impairment.A systematic review was performed. We searched electronic databases for randomised controlled trials. Two reviewers worked independently to select trials, extract data and assess risk of bias. A total of 546 studies were identified of which two met the inclusion criteria. We were not able to pool data for further analyses, as the interventions tested in the studies meeting the inclusion criteria were too dissimilar in content.The first trial (n = 136) showed a benefit of early-stage memory loss social support groups for depression and quality of life in people with dementia.The second trial (n = 33) showed that post-treatment self-reported self-esteem was higher in the group receiving a multicomponent intervention of social support compared with that in the no intervention control group.Limited data from two studies suggest that support groups may be of psychological benefit to people with dementia by reducing depression and improving quality of life and self-esteem.These findings need to be viewed in light of the small number, small sample size and heterogeneous characteristics of current trials, indicating that it is difficult to draw any conclusions. More multicentre randomised controlled trials in social support group interventions for people with dementia are needed.������������

Addressing High Level ICT Skills Recruitment Needs

Ireland is a successful major centre for ICT operations with ten of the top ICT companies in the world having substantial operations here. The large talent pool of ICT professionals that exists here is valuable both for foreign-owned and Irish companies. The cluster of internationally renowned firms and Irish companies offer a range of attractive career opportunities for professionals. A range of skills recruitment difficulties have been raised through the work of the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN), specifically the immediate issue of high-level ICT skills within both the ICT sector and from other sectors such as international financial services, banking and business services. Forfs, with the support of IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, engaged in discussions with a selected range of foreign–owned and Irish companies employing approximately 30,000 employees to establish the nature of positions involved, the reasons for recruitment difficulties and to identify measures to help address them. Consultations were also held with key stakeholders including IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, ICT Ireland, Software Ireland, IT@Cork, Engineers Ireland and Dublin Chambers of Commerce. Discussions were held with the heads of the computing departments of all Universities and Institutes of Technology at a meeting chaired by the Higher Education Authority. An in-depth analysis of third-level ICT supply statistics and trends was undertaken to inform the research.