Regional Health and Social Care Personal and Public Involvement Forum: Annual Update Report 2012/13

Personal and Public Involvement (PPI) is an essential component in the delivery of truly person centred services.�It is also a statutory duty.�The PHA has leadership responsibilities in respect of the implementation of PPI across HSC.�One of the ways in which the PHA discharges that leadership function, is through the Regional HSC PPI Forum.�This body brings together all HSC organisations, working alongside service users and carers, to bring a focus on involvement.�It promotes the sharing of best practice, identifies and tackles issues of common concern and providers a platform for the active participation of service users and carers.� Each year in response to a Priorities for Action (PFA) target, the PHA, working with HSC partners, service users and carers in the Forum, develop an Annual Report on PPI work taken forward through the Forum.The report for 2012/13 details progress in a number of important areas such as training, development of standards etc.

NanoImpactNet - building a multi-stakeholder dialogue on the health and environmental impact of nanomaterials

NanoImpactNet (NIN) is a multidisciplinary European Commission funded network on the environmental, health and safety (EHS) impact of nanomaterials. The 24 founding scientific institutes are leading European research groups active in the fields of nanosafety, nanorisk assessment and nanotoxicology. This 4-year project is the new focal point for information exchange within the research community. Contact with other stakeholders is vital and their needs are being surveyed. NIN is communicating with 100s of stakeholders: businesses; internet platforms; industry associations; regulators; policy makers; national ministries; international agencies; standard-setting bodies and NGOs concerned by labour rights, EHS or animal welfare. To improve this communication, internet research, a questionnaire distributed via partners and targeted phone calls were used to identify stakeholders' interests and needs. Knowledge gaps and the necessity for further data mentioned by representatives of all stakeholder groups in the targeted phone calls concerned: • the potential toxic and safety hazards of nanomaterials throughout their lifecycles; • the fate and persistence of nanoparticles in humans, animals and the environment; • the associated risks of nanoparticle exposure; • greater participation in: the preparation of nomenclature, standards, methodologies, protocols and benchmarks; • the development of best practice guidelines; • voluntary schemes on responsibility; • databases of materials, research topics and themes, but also of expertise. These findings suggested that stakeholders and NIN researchers share very similar knowledge needs, and that open communication and free movement of knowledge will benefit both researchers and industry. Subsequently a workshop was organised by NIN focused on building a sustainable multi-stakeholder dialogue. Specific questions were asked to different stakeholder groups to encourage discussions and open communication. 1. What information do stakeholders need from researchers and why? The discussions about this question confirmed the needs identified in the targeted phone calls. 2. How to communicate information? While it was agreed that reporting should be enhanced, commercial confidentiality and economic competition were identified as major obstacles. It was recognised that expertise was needed in the areas of commercial law and economics for a wellinformed treatment of this communication issue. 3. Can engineered nanomaterials be used safely? The idea that nanomaterials are probably safe because some of them have been produced 'for a long time', was questioned, since many materials in common use have been proved to be unsafe. The question of safety is also about whether the public has confidence. New legislation like REACH could help with this issue. Hazards do not materialise if exposure can be avoided or at least significantly reduced. Thus, there is a need for information on what can be regarded as acceptable levels of exposure. Finally, it was noted that there is no such thing as a perfectly safe material but only boundaries. At this moment we do not know where these boundaries lie. The matter of labelling of products containing nanomaterials was raised, as in the public mind safety and labelling are connected. This may need to be addressed since the issue of nanomaterials in food, drink and food packaging may be the first safety issue to attract public and media attention, and this may have an impact on 'nanotechnology as a whole. 4. Do we need more or other regulation? Any decision making process should accommodate the changing level of uncertainty. To address the uncertainties, adaptations of frameworks such as REACH may be indicated for nanomaterials. Regulation is often needed even if voluntary measures are welcome because it mitigates the effects of competition between industries. Data cannot be collected on voluntary bases for example. NIN will continue with an active stakeholder dialogue to further build on interdisciplinary relationships towards a healthy future with nanotechnology.

Joint Commissioning Plan of the Health and Social Care Board and the Public Health Agency: 2010-2011

Legislation enacted on 1 April 2009 created a new Commissioning system with the establishment of a region-wide Health and Social Care Board, including 5 Local Commissioning Groups (LCGs), and a Public Health Agency. In line with Departmental direction and guidance the objectives of the new commissioning arrangementswere to:- Approach the future delivery of Health and Social Care from a region-wide perspective focused on outcomes.- Ensure local sensitivity through the creation of five Local Commissioning Groups reflective of their areas.

Strategy for personal and public involvement in Health and Social Care research

This report outlines the strategic need for, and benefits of,�personal and public involvement�to all levels of Health and Social Care Research�&�Development Division activity.

The report of the Outbreak Control Team of the investigation of an outbreak of listeriosis in the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust during May to November 2008

This is the report of the interagency Outbreak Control Team (OCT) of an investigation of an outbreak of listeriosis which occurred during May to November 2008 in the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust.The report describes the chronology of the outbreak and the outcome of epidemiological, environmental health and microbiological investigations. The report concludes with recommendations for public health, Trusts, the Department of Health and Social Services and Public Safety, the Food Standards Agency, and those responsible for hospital food procurement.�

Comparison between morphological and staining characteristics of live and dead eggs of Schistosoma mansoni

Schistosoma mansoni eggs are classified, according to morphological characteristics, as follows: viable mature and immature eggs; dead mature and immature eggs, shells and granulomas. The scope of this study was to compare the staining characteristics of different morphological types of eggs in the presence of fluorescent labels and vital dyes, aiming at differentiating live and dead eggs. The eggs were obtained from the intestines of infected mice, and put into saline 0.85%. The fluorescent labels were Hoechst 33258 and Acridine Orange + Ethidium Bromide and vital dyes (Trypan Blue 0.4% and Neutral Red 1%). When labelled with the probe Hoechst 33258, some immature eggs, morphologically considered viable, presented fluorescence (a staining characteristic detected only in dead eggs); mature eggs did not present fluorescence, and the other types of dead eggs, morphologically defined, showed fluorescence. As far as Acridine Orange + Ethidium Bromide are concerned, either the eggs considered to be live, or the dead ones, presented staining with green color, and only the hatched and motionless miracidium was stained with an orange color. Trypan Blue was not able to stain the eggs, considered to be dead but only dead miracidia which had emerged out of the shell. Neutral Red stained both live and dead eggs. Only the fluorescent Hoechst 33258 can be considered a useful tool for differentiation between dead and live eggs.

Health and social care workers: don't risk flu infection

This leaflet explains why health and social care workers should receive the new flu vaccine. It provides a range of information, including how to get vaccinated, how the vaccine works, how effective it is and possible side effects.

Directory of services to help improve mental health and emotional wellbeing

These five directories list the names, numbers and web addresses (where applicable) of organisations that offer services to help improve mental health and emotional wellbeing. Where possible, additional information has also been provided, such as email addresses and contact details within each Health and Social Care Trust area.

Don't risk flu infection - (Health and social care workers poster)

Poster: Protect youself, your family and your patients

Regional Health and Social Care Personal and Public Involvement Forum: Annual Update Report 2013/14

The Regional HSC PPI Annual Report for 2013/14 provides an up-date of the work of the Forum and outlines the key areas that have been progressed including the development of PPI standards and the advancement of a generic PPI awareness raising and training programme.

Prevention and Early Intervention in Children and Young People’s Services- Child Health and Development

IPH developed this report for the Centre for Effective Services (CES). The report explores learning from evaluations of 10 programmes operated as part of the Prevention and Early Intervention Initative funded by Atlantic Philanthropies and others. The report provides insights into the outcomes of prevention and early intervention initiatives relevant to early child development, school-based programmes and the integration of child services. A briefing paper is also available.

Brain Health and Dementia Prevention in Ireland - a discussion paper

Joint discussion paper funded by the Alzheimer Society of Ireland and authored by the Institute of Public Health Approximately 47,849 people were living with dementia in Ireland in 2011. This number is expected to double by 2031 to about 90,000 as incident rates of dementia are set to rise with population ageing (Pierce et. al. 2014). Although much remains to be established at a causal level, epidemiological research indicates that there is scope for reducing dementia prevalence and age-specific incidence through addressing modifiable risk factors. There is a growing consensus for the mobilisation of public health approaches to attempt to reduce the prevalence of dementia through primary prevention. This discussion paper presents a rapid review of evidence on the primary prevention of dementia and presents estimates for the number of dementia cases that could potentially be preventable through modifying specific risk factors in Ireland. The paper focuses only on primary prevention which relates to delaying or preventing the onset of dementia. Specifically, the discussion paper presents: a rapid review of the current evidence-base on dementia prevention internationally estimates of the number of dementia cases that might be prevented by addressing modifiable risk factors considerations for integrating a brain health and dementia prevention perspective into public health research, policy and practice in Ireland.

Identification and functional characterization of a monofunctional peroxisomal enoyl-CoA hydratase 2 that participates in the degradation of even cis-unsaturated fatty acids in Arabidopsis thaliana.

A gene, named AtECH2, has been identified in Arabidopsis thaliana to encode a monofunctional peroxisomal enoyl-CoA hydratase 2. Homologues of AtECH2 are present in several angiosperms belonging to the Monocotyledon and Dicotyledon classes, as well as in a gymnosperm. In vitro enzyme assays demonstrated that AtECH2 catalyzed the reversible conversion of 2E-enoyl-CoA to 3R-hydroxyacyl-CoA. AtECH2 was also demonstrated to have enoyl-CoA hydratase 2 activity in an in vivo assay relying on the synthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoate from the polymerization of 3R-hydroxyacyl-CoA in the peroxisomes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. AtECH2 contained a peroxisome targeting signal at the C-terminal end, was addressed to the peroxisome in S. cerevisiae, and a fusion protein between AtECH2 and a fluorescent protein was targeted to peroxisomes in onion cells. AtECH2 gene expression was strongest in tissues with high beta-oxidation activity, such as germinating seedlings and senescing leaves. The contribution of AtECH2 to the degradation of unsaturated fatty acids was assessed by analyzing the carbon flux through the beta-oxidation cycle in plants that synthesize peroxisomal polyhydroxyalkanoate and that were over- or underexpressing the AtECH2 gene. These studies revealed that AtECH2 participates in vivo to the conversion of the intermediate 3R-hydroxyacyl-CoA, generated by the metabolism of fatty acids with a cis (Z)-unsaturated bond on an even-numbered carbon, to the 2E-enoyl-CoA for further degradation through the core beta-oxidation cycle.