What is a serving size: A guide for pre-schools

This guide offers practical help to all those providing food for pre-school age children. It is a pictorial manual giving real life serving sizes to guide care-givers, parents and guardians on suitable size servings. This booklet also provides sound advice on family-style eating habits, the introduction of new foods and the environment which nurtures healthy eating habits for life. Establishing good lifestyle habits, including positive attitudes and behaviours around food is one of the key cornerstones to shaping future health. This starts during the pre-school years when children grow rapidly and begin to learn about the environment around them. Providing an environment that supports healthy eating both at home and at school is important. It is well recognised that gauging portion sizes for young children can besomewhat difficult; they need to be adequate without being excessive.

Building Children and Young People's Resilience in Schools

Evidence Review 2 - Building children and young people's resilience in schools Briefing 2 - Building children and young people's resilience in schools This pair of documents, commissioned by Public Health England, and written by the UCL Institute of Health Equity, address the role of schools in building children and young people’s resilience and capabilities. They provide a summary of evidence about the effect of resilience on health, the unequal distribution of resilience and its contribution to levels of health inequalities. The review outlines the potential actions that can be taken in schools in order to build resilience for all children and young people and reduce inequalities in resilience. Throughout, a social determinants approach to resilience is taken. Children and young people’s individual characteristics are seen as shaped by, and related to, inequities in power, money and resources, and the conditions in which they are born, grow, live, and in which they will work and age. Family and community resilience are highly significant and similarly shaped by wider social and economic factors. The full evidence review and a shorter summary briefing are available to download above. This document is part of a series. An overview document which provides an introduction to this and other documents in the series, and links to the other topic areas, is available on the ‘Local Action on health inequalities’ project page. A video of Michael Marmot introducing the work is also available on our videos page.

Accident & Emergency Nursing Assessment of Deliberate Self Harm. Exploring the Impact of Introducing a Suicide Education Programme and a Suicide Intent Scale into A&E/MAU Nursing Practice: A Pilot Study

A proposal to pilot nursing assessment of self harm in Accident and Emergency Departments (A&E) was developed by key stakeholders in nurse education and suicide prevention in the South East and submitted to the National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery in April 2002.The proposal included the introduction of a suicide intent scale. Following an initial training programme, a suicide intent scale was utilised by nursing staff in A&E and the Medical Assessment Unit (MAU),Wexford General Hospital and evaluated over a period of nine months. Four months into the study the National Suicide Research Foundation (NSRF) was invited to collaboratively prepare a successful submission to the Health Research Board (HRB) as part of ‘Building Partnerships for a Healthier Future Research Awards 2004’. The NSRF undertook independent scientific evaluation of the outcomes of the suicide awareness programme. The study is in line with priorities determined by Reach Out, the National Strategy for Action on Suicide Prevention 2005-2014 (HSE, 2005) and the HSE-South East Suicide Prevention Programme through raising nursing staff awareness of the public health issue of suicide/deliberate self harm and by improving the efficiency and quality of nursing services offered to persons who present to acute hospitals with deliberate self harm. The study findings indicate evidence to positively support nursing assessment of DSH using a suicide intent scale in terms of assessing behavioural characteristics of individual clients and their suicide risk. Enhanced confidence levels of nursing personnel in caring for suicidal clients was demonstrated by staff who participated in an education programme related to risk assessment and specifically the use of a suicide intent scale.This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.

A Study of the Epidemiology of AIDS in Ireland and an Evaluation of an AIDS Education Programme in Second-level Schools

Second-level school students have been identified by the Minister for health as a priority group for education on AIDS. An education programme was accordingly initiated in 1988 in Community Care Area 1 in South county Dublin. This report evaluates this education intervention by means of pre- and post- intervention questionnaires. The questionnaire examined knowledge and attitudes of students relevant to AIDS. The results showed that the level of knowledge of students living in this area was high prior to intervention. The education programme succeeded in improving some aspects of knowledge and also influenced some attitudes of the students. A study of the epidemiology of Aids in Ireland reveals that the epidemic is at a relatively early stage with a consequent rapid doubling time of 9-10 months. In comparison with most developed countries Ireland has a high proportion of AIDS cases occurring among intravenous drug abusers and directly related to this a high number of HIV infected children. Examination of the literature reveals that behaviour change has occurred most noticeably among the homosexual/bisexual risk group. There is some evidence that the comprehensive programmes can achieve change in the behaviour of intravenous drug abusers. There are very few reports linking behaviour change among adolescents and young adults to education programmes. Much of the available literature relates to changes in knowledge and attitudes. International recommendations on the nature of the ideal health education intervention on AIDS are reviewed. The importance of a comprehensive health education programme which incorporates AIDS education and which commences early in youth is noted. The role of the community physician in relation to education programmes and other aspects of monitoring and management of the AIDS epidemic is discussed.This resource was contributed by The National Documentation Centre on Drug Use.

Summer School 2011 Event Flyer

The Quantitative Methodologies in Policy and Practice for Child Health and Wellbeing Summer School is organised by the Children’s Research Network for Ireland and Northern Ireland in conjunction with TCD School of Nursing & Midwifery. The Children’s Research Network for Ireland and Northern Ireland is a not for profit membership-based organization which supports the research community to better understand and improve the lives of children and young people, by creating and maintaining an inclusive, independent network through which  information, knowledge, experience, learning and skills can be shared. Membership to the network facilitates access to workshops, summer schools, and events focused on children’s research. The Summer School is funded by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.

A Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial to Evaluate a Policy of Making Hip Protectors Available to Residents of Nursing Homes

Objectives: to evaluate the effectiveness of a policy of making hip protectors available to residents of nursing homes. Design: a cluster randomised controlled trial of the policy in nursing and residential homes, with the home as the unit of randomisation. Setting: 127 nursing and residential homes in the greater Belfast area of Northern Ireland. Participants: 40 homes in the intervention group (representing 1,366 occupied beds) and 87 homes in the control group (representing 2,751 occupied beds). Interventions: a policy of making hip protectors available free of charge to residents of nursing homes and supporting the implementation process by employing a nurse facilitator to encourage staff in the homes to promote their use, over a 72-week period. Main outcome measures: the rate of hip fractures in intervention and control homes, and the level of adherence to use of hip protectors. Results: there were 85 hip fractures in the intervention homes and 163 in the control homes. The mean fracture rate per 100 residents was 6.22 in the intervention homes and 5.92 in the control homes, giving an adjusted rate ratio for the intervention group compared to the control group of 1.05 (95% CI 0.77, 1.43, P = 0.76). Initial acceptance of the hip protectors was 37.2% (508/1,366) with adherence falling to 19.9% (272/1,366) at 72 weeks.Conclusions: making hip protectors available to residents of nursing and residential homes did not reduce the rate of hip fracture. This research does not support the introduction of a policy of providing hip protectors to residents of nursing homes.

Learning collaboration in General Internal Medicine: a pilot project for undergraduate students in nursing, physiotherapy and medicine

Background: A form of education called Interprofessional Education (IPE) occurs when two or more professions learn with, from and about each other. The purpose of IPE is to improve collaboration and the quality of care. Today, IPE is considered as a key educational approach for students in the health professions. IPE is highly effective when delivered in active patient care, such as in clinical placements. General internal medicine (GIM) is a core discipline where hospital-based clinical placements are mandatory for students in many health professions. However, few interprofessional (IP) clinical placements in GIM have been implemented. We designed such a placement. Placement design: The placement took place in the Department of Internal Medicine at the CHUV. It involved students from nursing, physiotherapy and medicine. The students were in their last year before graduation. Students formed teams consisting of one student from each profession. Each team worked in the same unit and had to take care of the same patient. The placement lasted three weeks. It included formal IP sessions, the most important being facilitated discussions or "briefings" (3x/w) during which the students discussed patient care and management. Four teams of students eventually took part in this project. Method: We performed a type of evaluation research called formative evaluation. This aimed at (1) understanding the educational experience and (2) assessing the impact of the placement on student learning. We collected quantitative data with pre-post clerkship questionnaires. We also collected qualitative data with two Focus Groups (FG) discussions at the end of the placement. The FG were audiotaped and transcribed. A thematic analysis was then performed. Results: We focused on the qualitative data, since the quantitative data lacked of statistical power due to the small numbers of students (N = 11). Five themes emerged from the FG analysis: (1) Learning of others' roles, (2) Learning collaborative competences, (3) Striking a balance between acquiring one's own professional competences and interprofessional competences, (4) Barriers to apply learnt IP competences in the future and (5) Advantages and disadvantages of IP briefings. Conclusions: Our IP clinical placement in GIM appeared to help students learn other professionals' roles and collaborative skills. Some challenges (e.g. finding the same patient for each team) were identified and will require adjustments.

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools

The role of the school is to provide an appropriate education for all its pupils. A stable, secure learning environment is an essential requirement to achieve this goal. Bullying behaviour, by its very nature, undermines and dilutes the quality of education. Research shows that bullying can have short and long-term effects on the physical and mental well-being of pupils, on engagement with school, on self-confidence and on the ability to pursue ambitions and interests. School-based bullying can be positively and firmly addressed through a range of school-based measures and strategies through which all members of the school community are enabled to act effectively in dealing with this behaviour. While it is recognised that home and societal factors play a substantial role both in the cause and in the prevention of bullying, the role of the school in preventative work is also crucial and should not be underestimated. School-based initiatives can either reinforce positive efforts or help counteract unsuccessful attempts of parents to change unacceptable behaviour. Parents and pupils have a particularly important role and responsibility in helping the school to prevent and address school-based bullying behaviour and to deal with any negative impact within school of bullying behaviour that occurs elsewhere. In this document, any reference(s) to parent(s) can be taken to refer also to guardian(s) where applicable.

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 1 Template anti-bullying policy

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 1 Template anti-bullying policy. Provided by the Department of Education and Skills, Ireland.

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 2 Practical tips for building a positive school culture and climate

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 2 Practical tips for building a positive school culture and climate. Provided by the Department of Education and Skills, Ireland.

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 3 Template for recording bullying behaviour

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 3 Template for recording bullying behaviour. Provided by the Department of Education and Skills, Ireland.

Anti Bullying Procedures for Primary and Post Primary Schools - Appendix 4 Checklist for annual review of the anti-bullying policy and its implementation

The Board of Management (the Board) must undertake an annual review of the school’s anti-bullying policy and its implementation. The following checklist must be used for this purpose. The checklist is an aid to conducting this review and is not intended as an exhaustive list. In order to complete the checklist, an examination and review involving both quantitative and qualitative analysis, as appropriate across the various elements of the implementation of the school’s anti-bullying policy will be required.

Delivering Equality Of Opportunity In Schools - An Action Plan for Educational Inclusion

This action plan focuses on addressing the educational needs of children and young people from disadvantaged communities, from pre-school through second-level education (3 to18 years). Its frame of reference is based on the definition of “educational disadvantage” in the Education Act (1998) as: “...the impediments to education arising from social or economic disadvantage which prevent students from deriving appropriate benefit from education in schools.” The action plan is, therefore, one element of a continuum of interventions to address disadvantage, which include second-chance education and training and access measures for adults to support increased participation by under-represented groups in further and higher education. A further element of this continuum is the ongoing development of provision for pupils with special educational needs in light of the enactment of the Education for Persons with Special Needs Act (2004) and the establishment of the National Council for Special Education.

Delivering Equality Of Opportunity In Schools - An Action Plan for Educational Inclusion - Summary

This action plan focuses on addressing the educational needs of children and young people from disadvantaged communities, from pre-school through second-level education (3 to18 years). Its frame of reference is based on the definition of “educational disadvantage” in the Education Act (1998) as: “...the impediments to education arising from social or economic disadvantage which prevent students from deriving appropriate benefit from education in schools.” The action plan is, therefore, one element of a continuum of interventions to address disadvantage, which include second-chance education and training and access measures for adults to support increased participation by under-represented groups in further and higher education. A further element of this continuum is the ongoing development of provision for pupils with special educational needs in light of the enactment of the Education for Persons with Special Needs Act (2004) and the establishment of the National Council for Special Education.