Do we practice what we preach? Dialysis modality choice among healthcare workers in the United Kingdom.

BACKGROUND: In the United Kingdom, over 80% of end-stage kidney disease patients receive in-center hemodialysis. We conducted a survey of UK renal healthcare workers on their preferred dialysis modality if they needed dialysis themselves. METHODS: An anonymized online survey was disseminated to all renal healthcare workers in the United Kingdom. We asked "Assume you are an otherwise well 40-year-old (and, separately, 75-year-old) person approaching end stage kidney disease, you have no living kidney donor options at present. There are no contraindications to any dialysis options. Which dialysis therapy would you choose?" We also asked about factors influencing their choice. RESULTS: 858 individuals with a median age of 44.3 years responded. 70.2% were female, 37.4% doctors, and 31.1% were senior nurses. There was a preference for peritoneal dialysis over in-center hemodialysis (50.47% v. 6.18%; p < 0.001 for 40-year-old and 49.18% v. 17.83%; p < 0.001 for 75-year-old assumption) and home hemodialysis (50.47% v. 39.28%; p < 0.001 for 40-year-old and 49.18% v. 18.41% for 75-year-old assumption). There was a preference for home hemodialysis over in-center hemodialysis for 40-year-old (39.28% v. 6.18%; p < 0.001) but not for 75-year-old. On logistic regression, senior doctors were more likely to opt for PD when compared to nurses. Nurses, allied healthcare professionals, and those of Asian/British Asian ethnicity were more likely to choose in-center hemodialysis. CONCLUSIONS: Most healthcare workers in renal medicine would choose home-based treatment for themselves although the majority of end-stage kidney disease patients receive in-center hemodialysis in the United Kingdom; the reasons for the discrepancy need to be explored.

Symptom burden and health-related quality of life in chronic kidney disease: A global systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The importance of patient-reported outcome measurement in chronic kidney disease (CKD) populations has been established. However, there remains a lack of research that has synthesised data around CKD-specific symptom and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) burden globally, to inform focused measurement of the most relevant patient-important information in a way that minimises patient burden. The aim of this review was to synthesise symptom prevalence/severity and HRQOL data across the following CKD clinical groups globally: (1) stage 1-5 and not on renal replacement therapy (RRT), (2) receiving dialysis, or (3) in receipt of a kidney transplant. METHODS AND FINDINGS: MEDLINE, PsycINFO, and CINAHL were searched for English-language cross-sectional/longitudinal studies reporting prevalence and/or severity of symptoms and/or HRQOL in CKD, published between January 2000 and September 2021, including adult patients with CKD, and measuring symptom prevalence/severity and/or HRQOL using a patient-reported outcome measure (PROM). Random effects meta-analyses were used to pool data, stratified by CKD group: not on RRT, receiving dialysis, or in receipt of a kidney transplant. Methodological quality of included studies was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist for Studies Reporting Prevalence Data, and an exploration of publication bias performed. The search identified 1,529 studies, of which 449, with 199,147 participants from 62 countries, were included in the analysis. Studies used 67 different symptom and HRQOL outcome measures, which provided data on 68 reported symptoms. Random effects meta-analyses highlighted the considerable symptom and HRQOL burden associated with CKD, with fatigue particularly prevalent, both in patients not on RRT (14 studies, 4,139 participants: 70%, 95% CI 60%-79%) and those receiving dialysis (21 studies, 2,943 participants: 70%, 95% CI 64%-76%). A number of symptoms were significantly (p < 0.05 after adjustment for multiple testing) less prevalent and/or less severe within the post-transplantation population, which may suggest attribution to CKD (fatigue, depression, itching, poor mobility, poor sleep, and dry mouth). Quality of life was commonly lower in patients on dialysis (36-Item Short Form Health Survey [SF-36] Mental Component Summary [MCS] 45.7 [95% CI 45.5-45.8]; SF-36 Physical Component Summary [PCS] 35.5 [95% CI 35.3-35.6]; 91 studies, 32,105 participants for MCS and PCS) than in other CKD populations (patients not on RRT: SF-36 MCS 66.6 [95% CI 66.5-66.6], p = 0.002; PCS 66.3 [95% CI 66.2-66.4], p = 0.002; 39 studies, 24,600 participants; transplant: MCS 50.0 [95% CI 49.9-50.1], p = 0.002; PCS 48.0 [95% CI 47.9-48.1], p = 0.002; 39 studies, 9,664 participants). Limitations of the analysis are the relatively few studies contributing to symptom severity estimates and inconsistent use of PROMs (different measures and time points) across the included literature, which hindered interpretation. CONCLUSIONS: The main findings highlight the considerable symptom and HRQOL burden associated with CKD. The synthesis provides a detailed overview of the symptom/HRQOL profile across clinical groups, which may support healthcare professionals when discussing, measuring, and managing the potential treatment burden associated with CKD. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO CRD42020164737.

Factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine intentions during the COVID-19 pandemic; a systematic review and meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies.

BACKGROUND: A high COVID-19 vaccine uptake is essential to achieve herd immunity to combat the current strain of COVID-19 and potential future variants. This review aimed to identify factors associated with public intention to receive COVID-19 vaccines until February 2021 to provide accessible data to policymakers to inform framing and targeting of messages designed to optimise vaccine uptake. METHODS: Medline, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, Sociological Abstracts and Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts were searched for cross-sectional studies reporting data regarding COVID-19 vaccine intentions, published between 01/01/2020 and 12/02/2021. Title/abstract and full-text screening were performed independently by two authors. The Appraisal Tool for Cross-sectional Studies (AXIS) was used to assess bias and quality. Both random-effects meta-analysis and narrative synthesis were used to describe vaccine intentions and associated factors. A subgroup analysis assessing the impact of sex, sampling method and time of survey on COVID-19 vaccine intention was performed. RESULTS: Searches identified 4739 studies, and 23 cross-sectional studies were deemed eligible for the review; 22 used online surveys and one used a mixed-methods study design. Eighteen surveys were conducted in the first half of 2020 and five were conducted in the latter half of 2020. Fifteen countries were represented, with the most common being the United States (n = 4) and the United Kingdom (n = 4) sampling 41,403 participants across all surveys. Most studies employed convenience sampling and 11 non-responder rates raised concerns over non-response bias. From the 18 studies included in the meta-analysis, the pooled proportion of survey participants willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine was 73.3% (n = 18, 95% Confidence Interval 64.2 to 81.5%, I2 = 99.7%). Factors associated with a higher COVID-19 vaccine acceptance included greater perceived risk of COVID-19, lower level of perceived vaccine harm, higher educational attainment and household income, older age, being of White ethnicity and male sex. CONCLUSIONS: There was a high willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine which was influenced by sociodemographic factors and risk perceptions. The findings suggest future research should explore reasoning behind vaccine intentions for different sociodemographic groups to allow targeted communication strategies to be formulated by public health agencies. REGISTRATION: PROSPERO Registration Number: CRD42021239134.

Remote Consultations Versus Standard Face-to-Face Appointments for Liver Transplant Patients in Routine Hospital Care: Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial of myVideoClinic.

BACKGROUND: Using technology to reduce the pressure on the National Health Service (NHS) in England and Wales is a key government target, and the NHS Long-Term Plan outlines a strategy for digitally enabled outpatient care to become mainstream by 2024. In 2020, the COVID-19 response saw the widespread introduction of remote consultations for patient follow-up, regardless of individual preferences. Despite this rapid change, there may be enduring barriers to the effective implementation of remote appointments into routine practice once the unique drivers for change during the COVID-19 pandemic no longer apply, to which pre-COVID implementation studies can offer important insights. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of using real-time remote consultations between patients and secondary care physicians for routine patient follow-up at a large hospital in the United Kingdom and to assess whether patient satisfaction differs between intervention and usual care patients. METHODS: Clinically stable liver transplant patients were randomized to real-time remote consultations in which their hospital physician used secure videoconferencing software (intervention) or standard face-to-face appointments (usual care). Participants were asked to complete postappointment questionnaires over 12 months. Data were analyzed on an intention-to-treat basis. The primary outcome was the difference in scores between baseline and study end by patient group for the three domains of patient satisfaction (assessed using the Visit-Specific Satisfaction Instrument). An embedded qualitative process evaluation used interviews to assess patient and staff experiences. RESULTS: Of the 54 patients who were randomized, 29 (54%) received remote consultations, and 25 (46%) received usual care (recruitment rate: 54/203, 26.6%). The crossover between study arms was high (13/29, 45%). A total of 129 appointments were completed, with 63.6% (82/129) of the questionnaires being returned. Patient satisfaction at 12 months increased in both the intervention (25 points) and usual care (14 points) groups. The within-group analysis showed that the increases were significant for both intervention (P<.001) and usual care (P=.02) patients; however, the between-group difference was not significant after controlling for baseline scores (P=.10). The qualitative process evaluation showed that-according to patients-remote consultations saved time and money, were less burdensome, and caused fewer negative impacts on health. Technical problems with the software were common, and only 17% (5/29) of patients received all appointments over video. Both consultants and patients saw remote consultations as positive and beneficial. CONCLUSIONS: Using technology to conduct routine follow-up appointments remotely may ease some of the resource and infrastructure challenges faced by the UK NHS and free up clinic space for patients who must be seen face-to-face. Our findings regarding the advantages and challenges of using remote consultations for routine follow-ups of liver transplant patients have important implications for service organization and delivery in the postpandemic NHS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN Registry 14093266; https://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN14093266. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): RR2-10.1186/s13063-018-2953-4.

MEDREV (pharmacy-health psychology intervention in people living with dementia with behaviour that challenges): the feasibility of measuring clinical outcomes and costs of the intervention.

BACKGROUND: People living with dementia in care homes frequently exhibit "behaviour that challenges". Anti-psychotics are used to treat such behaviour, but are associated with significant morbidity. This study researched the feasibility of conducting a trial of a full clinical medication review for care home residents with behaviour that challenges, combined with staff training. This paper focusses on the feasibility of measuring clinical outcomes and intervention costs. METHODS: People living with moderate to severe dementia, receiving psychotropics for behaviour that challenges, in care homes were recruited for a medication review by a specialist pharmacist. Care home and primary care staff received training on the management of challenging behaviour. Data were collected at 8 weeks, and 3 and 6 months. Measures were Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Home version (NPI-NH), cognition (sMMSE), quality of life (EQ-5D-5 L/DEMQoL) and costs (Client Services Receipt Inventory). Response rates, for clinical, quality of life and health economic measures, including the levels of resource-use associated with the medication review and other non-intervention costs were calculated. RESULTS: Twenty-nine of 34 participants recruited received a medication review. It was feasible to measure the effects of the complex intervention on the management of behaviour that challenges with the NPI-NH. There was valid NPI-NH data at each time point (response rate = 100%). The sMMSE response rate was 18.2%. Levels of resource-use associated with the medication review were estimated for all 29 participants who received a medication review. Good response levels were achieved for other non-intervention costs (100% completion rate), and the EQ-5D-5 L and DEMQoL (≥88% at each of the time points where data was collected). CONCLUSIONS: It is feasible to measure the clinical and cost effectiveness of a complex intervention for behaviour that challenges using the NPI-NH and quality of life measures. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN58330068. Retrospectively registered, 15 October 2017.

The challenge of managing mild to moderate distress in patients with end stage renal disease: results from a multi-centre, mixed methods research study and the implications for renal service organisation.

BACKGROUND: Lower-level emotional and psychological difficulties ('distress') in patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD), can lead to reduced quality of life and poor clinical outcomes. National guidelines mandate provision of emotional and psychological support for renal patients yet little is known about the support that patients may require, or the challenges that staff experience in identifying and responding to patient distress. METHODS: Mixed methods study in renal units at four NHS Trusts in the West Midlands, UK involving cross-sectional surveys of ESRD patients and renal unit staff and semi-structured interviews with 46 purposively-sampled patients and 31 renal unit staff. Interviews explored patients' experience of distress and personal coping strategies, staff attitudes towards patient distress and perceptions of their role, responsibility and capacity. RESULTS: Patient distress was widespread (346/1040; 33.3%), and emotional problems were frequently reported. Younger patients, females, those from black and minority ethnic (BME) groups and patients recently initiating dialysis reported particular support needs. Staff recognised the value of supporting distressed patients, yet support often depended on individual staff members' skills and personal approach. Staff reported difficulties with onward referral to formal counselling and psychology services and a lack of immediate access to less formalised options. There was also a substantial training/skills gap whereby many staff reported lacking the confidence to recognise and respond to patient distress. Staff fell broadly into three groups: 'Enthusiasts' who considered identifying and responding to patient distress as integral to their role; 'Equivocators' who thought that managing distress was part of their role, but who lacked skills and confidence to do this effectively, and 'Avoiders' who did not see managing distress as part of their role and actively avoided the issue with patients. CONCLUSIONS: Embedding the value of emotional support provision into renal unit culture is the key to 'normalising' discussions about distress. Immediately accessible, informal support options should be available, and all renal staff should be offered training to proactively identify and reactively manage patient distress. Emotional support for staff is important to ensure that a greater emphasis on managing patient distress is not associated with an increased incidence of staff burnout.

A new composite measure of colonoscopy: the Performance Indicator of Colonic Intubation (PICI).

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIM: Cecal intubation rate (CIR) is an established performance indicator of colonoscopy. In some patients, cecal intubation with acceptable tolerance is only achieved with additional sedation. This study proposes a composite Performance Indicator of Colonic Intubation (PICI), which combines CIR, comfort, and sedation. METHODS : Data from 20 085 colonoscopies reported in the 2011 UK national audit were analyzed. PICI was defined as the percentage of procedures achieving cecal intubation with median dose (2 mg) of midazolam or less, and nurse-assessed comfort score of 1 - 3/5. Multivariate logistic regression analysis evaluated possible associations between PICI and patient, unit, colonoscopist, and diagnostic factors. RESULTS : PICI was achieved in 54.1 % of procedures. PICI identified factors affecting performance more frequently than single measures such as CIR and polyp detection, or CIR + comfort alone. Older age, male sex, adequate bowel preparation, and a positive fecal occult blood test as indication were associated with a higher PICI. Unit accreditation, the presence of magnetic imagers in the unit, greater annual volume, fewer years' experience, and higher training/trainer status were associated with higher PICI rates. Procedures in which PICI was achieved were associated with significantly higher polyp detection rates than when PICI was not achieved. CONCLUSIONS : PICI provides a simpler picture of performance of colonoscopic intubation than separate measures of CIR, comfort, and sedation. It is associated with more factors that are amenable to change that might improve performance and with higher likelihood of polyp detection. It is proposed that PICI becomes the key performance indicator for intubation of the colon in colonoscopy quality improvement initiatives.

Medication review plus person-centred care: a feasibility study of a pharmacy-health psychology dual intervention to improve care for people living with dementia.

BACKGROUND: "Behaviour that Challenges" is common in people living with dementia, resident in care homes and historically has been treated with anti-psychotics. However, such usage is associated with 1800 potentially avoidable deaths annually in the UK. This study investigated the feasibility of a full clinical trial of a specialist dementia care pharmacist medication review combined with a health psychology intervention for care staff to limit the use of psychotropics. This paper focuses on feasibility; including recruitment and retention, implementation of medication change recommendations and the experiences and expectations of care staff. METHODS: West Midlands care homes and individuals meeting the inclusion criteria (dementia diagnosis; medication for behaviour that challenges), or their personal consultee, were approached for consent. A specialist pharmacist reviewed medication. Care home staff received an educational behaviour change intervention in a three-hour session promoting person-centred care. Primary healthcare staff received a modified version of the training. The primary outcome measure was the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Nursing Home version at 3 months. Other outcomes included quality of life, cognition, health economics and prescribed medication. A qualitative evaluation explored expectations and experiences of care staff. RESULTS: Five care homes and 34 of 108 eligible residents (31.5%) were recruited, against an original target of 45 residents across 6 care homes. Medication reviews were conducted for 29 study participants (85.3%) and the pharmacist recommended stopping or reviewing medication in 21 cases (72.4%). Of the recommendations made, 57.1% (12 of 21) were implemented, and implementation (discontinuation) took a mean of 98.4 days. In total, 164 care staff received training and 21 were interviewed. Care staff reported a positive experience of the intervention and post intervention adopting a more holistic patient-centred approach. CONCLUSIONS: The intervention contained two elements; staff training and medication review. It was feasible to implement the staff training, and the training appeared to increase the ability and confidence of care staff to manage behaviour that challenges without the need for medication. The medication review would require significant modification for full trial partly related to the relatively limited uptake of the recommendations made, and delay in implementation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN58330068 . Registered 15 October 2017. Retrospectively registered.

The effectiveness of integrated care interventions in improving patient quality of life (QoL) for patients with chronic conditions. An overview of the systematic review evidence.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effectiveness of integrated care interventions in improving the Quality of Life (QoL) for patients with chronic conditions. DESIGN: A review of the systematic reviews evidence (umbrella review). DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, ASSIA, PsychINFO, HMIC, CINAHL, Cochrane Library (including HTA database), DARE, and Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews), EPPI-Centre, TRIP and Health Economics Evaluations databases. Reference lists of included reviews were searched for additional references not returned by electronic searches. REVIEW METHODS: English language systematic reviews or meta-analyses published since 2000 that assessed the effectiveness of interventions in improving the QoL of patients with chronic conditions. Two reviewers independently assessed reviews for eligibility, extracted data, and assessed the quality of included studies. RESULTS: A total of 41 reviews assessed QoL. Twenty one reviews presented quantitative data, 17 reviews were narrative and three were reviews of reviews. The intervention categories included case management, Chronic care model (CCM), discharge management, multidisciplinary teams (MDT), complex interventions, primary vs. secondary care follow-up, and self-management. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, the 41 reviews that assessed QoL provided a mixed picture of the effectiveness of integrated care interventions. Case management interventions showed some positive findings as did CCM interventions, although these interventions were more likely to be effective when they included a greater number of components. Discharge management interventions appeared to be particularly successful for patients with heart failure. MDT and self-management interventions showed a mixed picture. In general terms, interventions were typically more effective in improving condition-specific QoL rather than global QoL. This review provided the first overview of international evidence for the effectiveness of integrated care interventions for improving the QoL for patients with chronic conditions.

Improving safety in care homes: protocol for evaluation of the Walsall and Wolverhampton care home improvement programme.

BACKGROUND: Improving safety in care homes is becoming increasingly important. Care home residents typically have multiple physical and/or cognitive impairments, and adverse events like falls often lead to hospital attendance or admission. Developing a safety culture is associated with beneficial impacts on safety outcomes, but the complex needs of care home residents, coupled with staffing pressures in the sector, pose challenges for positive safety practices to become embedded at the individual and organisational levels. Staff training and education can positively enforce safety culture and reduce the incidence of harms, but improvement initiatives are often short lived and thorough evaluation is uncommon. This protocol outlines an evaluation of a large-scale care home improvement programme in the West Midlands. METHODS: The programme will run in 35 care homes across Walsall and Wolverhampton over 24 months, and we anticipate that 30 care homes will participate in the evaluation (n = 1500 staff). The programme will train staff and managers in service improvement techniques, with the aim of strengthening safety culture and reducing adverse safety event rates. The evaluation will use a pre-post design with mixed methods. Quantitative data will focus on: care home manager and staff surveys administered at several time points and analysis of adverse event rates. Data on hospital activity by residents at participating care homes will be compared to matched controls. Qualitative data on experience of training and the application of learning to practice will be collected via semi-structured interviews with staff (n = 48 to 64) and programme facilitators (n = 6), and staff focus groups (n = 36 to 48 staff). The primary outcome measure is the change in mean score on the safety climate domain of the Safety Attitudes Questionnaire between baseline and programme end. DISCUSSION: This mixed methods evaluation of a large-scale care home improvement programme will allow a substantial amount of qualitative and quantitative data to be collected. This will enable an assessment of the extent to which care home staff training can effectively improve safety culture, lower the incidence of adverse safety events such as falls and pressure ulcers, and potentially reduce care home resident's use of acute services.

Cytomegalovirus infection does not impact on survival or time to first treatment in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widely prevalent herpes virus which establishes a state of chronic infection. The establishment of CMV-specific immunity controls viral reactivation and leads to the accumulation of very large numbers of virus-specific T cells which come to dominate the immune repertoire. There is concern that this may reduce the immune response to heterologous infections and HCMV infection has been associated with reduced survival in elderly people. Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) suffer from a state of immune suppression but have a paradoxical increase in the magnitude of the CMV-specific T cell and humoral immune response. As such, there is now considerable interest in how CMV infection impacts on the clinical outcome of patients with B-CLL. Utilizing a large prospective cohort of patients with B-CLL (n = 347) we evaluated the relationship between HCMV seropositivity and patient outcome. HCMV seropositive patients had significantly worse overall survival than HCMV negative patients in univariate analysis (HR = 2.28, 95% CI: 1.34-3.88; P = 0.002). However, CMV seropositive patients were 4 years older than seronegative donors and this survival difference was lost in multivariate modeling adjusted for age and other validated prognostic markers (P = 0.34). No significant difference was found in multivariate modeling between HCMV positive and negative patients in relation to the time to first treatment (HR = 1.12, 95% CI: 0.68-1.84; P = 0.65). These findings in a second independent cohort of 236 B-CLL patients were validated. In conclusion no evidence that HCMV impacts on the clinical outcome of patients with B-CLL was found. Am. J. Hematol. 91:776-781, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Mixed-methods evaluation of an enhanced asthma biologics clinical pathway in the West Midlands UK.

Biologic treatments can alleviate severe asthma symptoms and reduce health service use. However, service capacity limits and low referral rates from primary care indicate unmet patient need. We report a mixed-methods evaluation of an enhanced severe asthma pathway implemented in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent, UK which aimed to optimise primary care referrals through training/education, and increased capacity in specialist clinics. Quantitative analysis assessed patient wait times between pathway stages, prescribing changes, exacerbations, hospital admissions and asthma control. Interviews with 12 stakeholders evaluated perceptions of the enhanced pathway across settings. In 12 months, 564 patients from 28 general practices were reviewed for biologics eligibility, of whom 125 (22.2%) were referred for specialist assessment. Wait times were significantly lower under the enhanced pathway when compared against historic patients following the standard pathway, and reduced overall from a mean of 76.4 to 26.7 weeks between referral and biologics initiation (p < 0.001). Patients commencing biologics (n = 46) showed significantly reduced reliever inhaler prescribing rates (p = 0.037), 60% lower oral steroid use (p < 0.001), significantly reduced exacerbation rates (p < 0.001) and fewer hospital admissions (p < 0.001) compared with the 12 months pre-treatment. Mean asthma control scores reduced from 3.13 pre-initiation to 1.89 post-initiation (p < 0.001) - a clinically significant improvement. Interviewees viewed the enhanced pathway positively, although ongoing issues related to difficulties engaging primary care amid concerns around increased workloads and pathway capacity. The large number of referrals generated from a comparatively small number of general practices confirms substantial unmet need that an enhanced severe asthma pathway could help address if implemented routinely.

Working the Edge: The Emotional Experiences of Commissioning and Funding Arrangements for Service Leaders in the Sexual Violence Voluntary Sector.

The specialist voluntary sector plays a crucial role in supporting survivors of sexual violence. However, in England, short-term funding underpins the sector's financial stability. This article examines sector leaders' ways of coping, resisting and being affected by funding practices. Using the concept of edgework, we show how funding and commissioning dynamics push individuals to the edge of service sustainability, job satisfaction, and emotional well-being. We examine how these edges are "worked," for example, by circumventing and remolding the edge. We offer an original way to theorize participants, make visible the emotional toll of service precarity and offer suggestions for support.

Centre variation in home dialysis uptake: A survey of kidney centre practice in relation to home dialysis organisation and delivery in England.

BACKGROUND: Disparities in home dialysis uptake across England suggest inequity and unexplained variation in access. We surveyed staff at all English kidney centres to identify patterns in service organisation/delivery and explore correlations with home therapy uptake, as part of a larger study ('Inter-CEPt'), which aims to identify potentially modifiable factors to address observed variations. METHODS: Between June and September 2022, staff working at English kidney centres were surveyed and individual responses combined into one centre-level response per question using predetermined data aggregation rules. Descriptive analysis described centre practices and their correlation with home dialysis uptake (proportion of new home dialysis starters) using 2019 UK Renal Registry 12-month home dialysis incidence data. RESULTS: In total, 180 responses were received (50/51 centres, 98.0%). Despite varied organisation of home dialysis services, most components of service delivery and practice had minimal or weak correlations with home dialysis uptake apart from offering assisted peritoneal dialysis and 'promoting flexible decision-making about dialysis modality'. Moderate to strong correlations were identified between home dialysis uptake and centres reporting supportive clinical leadership (correlation 0.32, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 0.05-0.55), an organisational culture that values trying new initiatives (0.57, 95% CI: 0.34-0.73); support for reflective practice (0.38, 95% CI: 0.11-0.60), facilitating research engagement (0.39, 95% CI: 0.13-0.61) and promoting continuous quality improvement (0.29, 95% CI: 0.01-0.53). CONCLUSIONS: Uptake of home dialysis is likely to be driven by organisational culture, leadership and staff attitudes, which provide a supportive clinical environment within which specific components of service organisation and delivery can be effective.

PPI, paradoxes and Plato: who's sailing the ship?

Over the last decade, patient and public involvement (PPI) has become a requisite in applied health research. Some funding bodies demand explicit evidence of PPI, while others have made a commitment to developing PPI in the projects they fund. Despite being commonplace, there remains a dearth of engagement with the ethical and theoretical underpinnings of PPI processes and practices. More specifically, while there is a small (but growing) body of literature examining the effectiveness and impact of PPI, there has been relatively little reflection on whether the concept/practice of PPI is internally coherent. Here, the authors unpick a 'paradox' within PPI, which highlights a tension between its moral and pragmatic motivations and its implementation. The authors argue that this 'professionalisation paradox' means we need to rethink the practice, and purpose, of PPI in research.

Retaining public health volunteers beyond COVID-19.

OBJECTIVES: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a change in people's volunteering behaviours; participation has increased in informal volunteering (giving unpaid help to those who are not a relative) while decreasing in formal volunteering (unpaid help to groups or clubs). There is an interest from stakeholders who have experienced increased participation in maintaining the positive patterns of volunteering, aligning with National Health Service (NHS) objectives and realising benefits in a wider public health context. This research uses a local COVID-19 public health volunteering programme case study to explore the volunteer's journey and perspective using volunteers' reported experiences to consider the potential for volunteer retention and role expansion into other public health issues beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Recruitment was undertaken by Birmingham City Council Public Health Team via the COVID-19 Community Champions programme mailing list. Semi-structured focus group discussions, one-to-one interviews and email interviews were conducted with volunteers. Data were analysed through directed thematic analysis using an iteratively developed coding frame. RESULTS: Data were collected from three focus group discussions, four interviews, and one email interview involving a total of 16 participants. Six themes were identified: volunteer motivations and expectations; volunteer management; programme organisation; feeling valued; continued need for role, and interest in new responsibilities. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that the factors which are conducive to volunteer recruitment, retention and re-purposing were: maintaining the original terms of engaging with the volunteering opportunity (including retaining the original brief and remit), adjusting these through consultative processes with an emphasis on seeking permission from the volunteers already involved and ensuring a reliable and consistent management and support structure. While some of the learning is specific to the local volunteer programme in question and the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, there are lessons that can be generalised to other scenarios and settings.

Public health intelligence challenges for local public health authorities responding to disease outbreaks: a mixed-methods systematic review protocol.

Background: Information management capacity is crucial for controlling risks from health emergencies. But little is known about how sub-national public health bodies overcome public health intelligence challenges when responding to disease outbreaks. This paper describes a protocol for a mixed-methods systematic review to fill this knowledge gap. In addition to describing the evidence base and characterising public health intelligence responses, it will explore reported facilitators and barriers to response. Methods: Research on sub-national Public Health Intelligence disease outbreak responses will be synthesised. The review will be limited to articles published in English, during or after 2019. Key electronic databases will be searched for peer-reviewed, primary research studies. Two reviewers will independently screen articles for relevance. Articles that refer to a public health intelligence response to a propagated disease outbreak by a sub-national Public Health Authority will be included. Quality assessment of included articles will be undertaken using published tools. Data integration will be by the Pillar Integration Process (PIP). Discussion: This review will describe and synthesise the recent literature on sub-national Public Health Authorities' responses to propagated disease outbreaks. The systematic design will limit bias and the inclusion of data from quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods studies will ensure relevant evidence is considered regardless of the methodology used to produce it. The review is part of a larger research project which aims to explore the role of sub-national public health intelligence during the COVID-19 pandemic and investigate how public health intelligence preparedness could be improved in the future. This could provide information to support the development of training, preparedness indicators and/or ways of implementing directives. PROSPERO registration: CRD42022308042 (08/02/2022).

What are the information challenges for local public health services responding to an outbreak of disease? Useful information is vital for planning public health activities. This means good information management is very important during an outbreak of disease. But little is known about how local public health bodies overcome challenges in this area. Examples of challenges could include not receiving sufficient data and/or not having enough staff to analyse it. This paper describes planned research based on a review of the literature. We want to know how local public health bodies have collected, analysed and provided useful information during disease outbreaks and what makes it easier or harder for them to do this. To make the results more reliable, the review will take a structured approach. Two people will work on some stages to check each other's work. We will search databases of research articles to find any kind of study that describes information challenges for local public health organisations during a disease outbreak. Specific criteria will be used to judge which studies to include. To be included, studies must be about a disease that spreads from person-to-person, and they must have been published in or after 2019. Included studies will be summarised. Results will feed into further research on how local public health bodies could be better prepared for disease outbreaks in the future.

Effectiveness of weight loss interventions in breast cancer survivors: a systematic review of reviews.

BACKGROUND: Elevated body mass index (BMI) in breast cancer survivors (BCS) is associated with cancer recurrence and poorer treatment response. Guidelines recommend 5%-10% weight loss for overweight or obese BCS. OBJECTIVES: To assess effectiveness of lifestyle interventions for female BCS on weight loss, BMI, body composition, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), physical functioning, psychosocial measures, biomarkers. DESIGN: Systematic review of reviews and meta-analyses. SETTING: All clinical settings. PARTICIPANTS: Adult female BCS (active treatment or post-treatment). METHODS: Medline, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library (including Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects) were searched for systematic reviews published in English between 1990 and 2022, with weight, BMI or body fat as primary outcome. Narrative reviews, editorials, letters, conference abstracts were excluded. Review quality was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute quality assessment tool. RESULTS: 17 reviews were included. Twelve reported significant reductions in one or more anthropometric outcomes: weight -1.36 kg (95% CI:-2.51 to -0.21) to -3.8 kg (95% CI: -5.6 to -1.9); BMI -0.89 kg/m2 (95% CI: -0.15 to -0.28) to -3.59 kg/m2 (95% CI: -6.29 to 0.89) or body fat -1.6% (95% CI: -2.31 to -0.88) to -2.6% (95% CI not reported). Significant reductions in two or more anthropometric outcomes were reported in 7/12 reviews, with effective interventions comprising aerobic exercise/aerobic exercise plus resistance training (n=5), or diet and exercise with or without counselling (n=2). Significant improvements were also reported for HRQoL (8/11 reviews), mental health (4/7) and physical functioning (2/3). Group interventions comprising aerobic exercise or aerobic exercise plus resistance training were most likely to improve outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Lifestyle interventions can significantly improve outcomes for BCS. Multimodal interventions are likely to have the greatest impact in reducing weight, BMI and body fat. Further research must define the optimal combination, intensity and duration of effective interventions. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42021283481.

Real-time remote outpatient consultations in secondary and tertiary care: A systematic review of inequalities in invitation and uptake.

BACKGROUND: Health policies in most high income countries increasingly recommend provision of routine outpatient care via remote (video and/or telephone) appointments, especially due to the pandemic. This is thought to improve access to care and promote efficiency within resource-constrained health services. There is limited evidence about the impact on existing inequalities in the invitation and uptake of health services when remote outpatient care is offered. AIM: To systematically review the evidence on the offer and/or uptake of real-time remote outpatient consultations in secondary and tertiary care, assessed according to key sociodemographic characteristics. METHODS: Seven electronic bibliographic databases were searched for studies reporting the proportion of patients with key characteristics (following PROGRESS Plus criteria) who were offered and/or accepted real-time remote outpatient consultation for any chronic condition. Comparison groups included usual care (face-to-face), another intervention, or offer/uptake within a comparable time period. Study processes were undertaken in duplicate. Data are reported narratively. RESULTS: Twenty-nine studies were included. Uptake of video consultations ranged from 5% to 78% and telephone consultations from 12% to 78%. Patients aged over 65, with lower educational attainment, on lower household incomes and without English as a first language were least likely to have a remote consultation. Females were generally more likely to have remote consultations than males. Non-white ethnicities were less likely to use remote consultations but where they did, were significantly more likely to choose telephone over video appointments (p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Offering remote consultations may perpetuate or exacerbate existing health inequalities in access to healthcare. More research is needed on current health disparities by sociodemographic characteristics and to explore what works well for different patient groups and why so that processes can be designed to ameliorate these health disparities. TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration no: CRD42021241791.

How do patients and their family members experience the transition from peritoneal dialysis to incentre haemodialysis? A multisite qualitative study in England and Australia.

BACKGROUND: While numerous studies have explored the patient experience of dialysis or other end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) treatments, few have explored the process of transitioning between dialysis modalities. This study aimed to develop an in-depth understanding of patient and caregiver perceptions and experiences of the transition from peritoneal to haemodialysis (HD) and to identify ways in which transitions can be optimised. METHODS: Fifty-four in-depth, semi-structured interviews were undertaken at six study sites across the West Midlands, UK (n = 23), and Queensland, Australia (n = 31). Thirty-nine participants were patients with ESKD; the remainder were family members. An inductive analytical approach was employed, with findings synthesised across sites to identify themes that transcended country differences. RESULTS: Of the 39 patient transitions, only 4 patients reported a wholly negative transition experience. Three cross-cutting themes identified common transition experiences and areas perceived to make a difference to the treatment transition: resistance to change and fear of HD; transition experience shared with family; and bodily adjustment and sense of self. CONCLUSION: Although each transition is unique to the individual and their circumstances, kidney care services could optimise the process by recognising these patient-led themes and developing strategies that engage with them. Kidney care services should consider ways to keep patients aware of potential future treatment options and present them objectively. There is potential value in integrating expert support before and during treatment transitions to identify and address patient and family concerns.