Exploring UK sonographers' views on the use of professional supervision in clinical practice - Stage one findings of a mixed method study.

INTRODUCTION: Professional Supervision has been described across multiple professional groups, however to date, minimal research has been conducted exploring the use of professional supervision within the United Kingdom (UK) sonographer workforce. METHODS: An online self-administered survey was conducted to explore UK sonographers views on the use of professional supervision in practice. The survey was open to sonographers, consultant or clinical specialist sonographers, ultrasound managers and professional body officers. Multiple choice questions were utilised to obtain quantitative data on the provision of support mechanisms, with free text questions allowing qualitative data to be elicited further to explore thoughts of participants. RESULTS: A total of 112 participants completed the survey in full and response rates varied across the subgroups. Varying support mechanisms were in place for sonographers. However only 55.4 % of sonographers felt supported in the clinical workplace. Thematic analysis of qualitative data highlighted that workload pressures, staffing and retention of sonographers, were key concerns that professional supervision could improve. It was highlighted that time to undertake professional supervision could be challenging, however if training for professional supervision was in place then this could provide improved quality of care and staff support. CONCLUSION: Participants highlighted the challenges faced by UK sonographers and the positive impact that professional supervision could have on retention and staff support. There are limited support mechanisms in place for UK sonographers and this is impacting on how participants felt they were being supported in the workplace. Stage 2 of this research project will explore sonographers' views in more detail. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: The approach to support mechanisms for sonographers should be considered to support improvement of professional wellbeing and retention of the sonographic workforce.

Is there a role for professional supervision in supporting the professional and personal wellbeing of the sonographic workforce? A literature review.

OBJECTIVES: The sonographer workforce in the UK is under pressure due to chronic staff shortages and increased service demands. The Health and Care Professions Council and the Society of Radiographers both advocate for the use of professional supervision to support wellbeing and development, however the use of professional supervision is not widespread within the sonographer workforce. The aim of this literature review was to explore the evidence around the use of professional supervision and how this could support sonographer wellbeing. KEY FINDINGS: Professional supervision was found to be of importance for providing emotional support which can lead to increased job satisfaction, lower levels of burnout and subsequently impact on retention of the workforce. Professional supervision supported personal development and therefore increased quality of patient care, allowing professionals to discuss evidence-based care, policies and practice development through reflection. Whilst important for emotional and professional support, this review found that there are conflicting pressures which can impact the effectiveness of supervision including the supervisory relationship itself and time and organisational pressures. Demands on the workforce made a significant impact on the availability of quality clinical supervision. CONCLUSION: Professional supervision has an important role in supporting the sonography workforce and enable increased wellbeing and emotional support. There are clear benefits to undertaking professional supervision to support the workforce however there are competing demands which may affect the effectiveness of professional supervision. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: There is limited international research on the use of professional supervision in the radiographer and sonographer workforce. There are clear benefits for supporting professional wellbeing and development under a structured professional supervision framework however within the United Kingdom there is a significant gap in the literature where further research is required.

Essential oil spray reduces clinical signs of insect bite hypersensitivity in horses.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of an herbal spray combining various essential oils, with a claim of mast cell stabilisation, antipruritic, anti-inflammatory, and insect repellent effects on the clinical presentation of insect bite hypersensitivity (IBH) in horses. DESIGN: Double-blinded, placebo-controlled, randomised, cross-over clinical trial. METHODS: Twenty adult horses with clinical IBH were treated with a daily application of herbal spray or placebo for 28 days in a randomised, cross-over fashion, separated by a>28-day washout period. Horses were examined and scored prior to and after the completion of each treatment. Histopathology was performed on four horses. Owners kept daily diaries of observations. RESULTS: The herbal spray significantly reduced the severity of all assessed parameters (pruritus, excoriations, lichenification and alopecia; P < 0.05) compared with baseline values (pretreatment) and with placebo. Owners reported improvement of pruritus in 19/20 horses (95%) with complete resolution in 17 horses (85%) following treatment. Skin biopsies showed resolution of orthokeratosis in 4/4 horses, reduced thickness of the stratum spinosum in 2/4 horses and complete resolution of histopathological abnormalities in 1/4 horses after treatment, compared with either no change or deterioration of histopathologic lesions after placebo. No side effects were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The tested herbal spray may be an effective treatment for the management of equine IBH.

A multiplanet system of super-Earths orbiting the brightest red dwarf star GJ 887.

The closet exoplanets to the Sun provide opportunities for detailed characterization of planets outside the Solar System. We report the discovery, using radial velocity measurements, of a compact multiplanet system of super-Earth exoplanets orbiting the nearby red dwarf star GJ 887. The two planets have orbital periods of 9.3 and 21.8 days. Assuming an Earth-like albedo, the equilibrium temperature of the 21.8-day planet is ~350 kelvin. The planets are interior to, but close to the inner edge of, the liquid-water habitable zone. We also detect an unconfirmed signal with a period of ~50 days, which could correspond to a third super-Earth in a more temperate orbit. Our observations show that GJ 887 has photometric variability below 500 parts per million, which is unusually quiet for a red dwarf.

Using Safety Barrier Analysis to Facilitate Quality Improvement in Health Care: Improving Venous Thromboembolism Prophylaxis as a Proof of Concept.

Effective quality improvement is a key factor in optimizing the care of hospitalized patients. Unfortunately, the US health care system has a poor safety record when compared to other major industries. For example, at 250 000 per year, medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. Safety barrier management, a widely used methodology in high-risk industries such as commercial airline transportation and oil drilling, has not been widely used in traditional quality improvement efforts in health care, which rely more on standard lean Six Sigma quality approaches. The authors describe a quality improvement project that uses safety barrier analysis to help inform solutions to improve venous thromboembolism prophylaxis in hospitalized patients. This study found that safety barrier analysis helped inform solutions to improve venous thromboembolism prophylaxis at the study institution and can be a useful adjunct to standard lean Six Sigma methodologies for quality improvement in health care.

What makes a great clinical team? Stakeholder perspectives on the attributes of effective veterinary health care teams in Australia.

Extensive research in the business and organisational literature links teamwork to enhanced productivity and employee job satisfaction. Good teamwork capability is also a highly regarded graduate attribute linked to employability. This study explored desirable teamwork attributes for veterinary technology graduates in Australia, by surveying veterinarians, veterinary technology graduates, veterinary nurses, clients and academics. Respondents highlighted the importance of seven attributes sourced from the cross-disciplinary teamwork literature-'flexibility' (in approach to work), 'agreeableness', being 'cooperative', 'socially sensitive and perceptive', 'conscientiousness', being 'accepting of others' and 'sharing professional values'. The majority in each stakeholder group viewed all attributes important for teamwork concurring with findings in other fields. Few differences were found between and within groups with veterinarians and academics rating 'conscientiousness' higher than others and female clients placing more importance on relational attributes compared to male clients. Thematic analysis of an open-ended item asking the veterinary health care groups, and veterinary academics, to define teamwork generated nine themes centred on: collaboration, goals and outcomes, sharing values, relationships, diversity, communication, task-orientation, personal attributes, and workplace culture. This study illuminates an interprofessional perspective on veterinary teamwork. Results will be useful for veterinary technology, veterinary nursing and veterinary educators when developing a curriculum for interprofessional teamwork to enhance team performance, employability and, ultimately, the quality of veterinary services.

Engagement through online discussion: perceptions of laying hen welfare in furnished cages.

Furnished cage housing for laying hens has been introduced in some countries as a 'welfare-friendly' alternative to conventional cage systems. Whether this housing system would be acceptable to the public remains unknown. This pilot study aimed to engage the public through online discussions in order to investigate their knowledge, support and perception of laying hen welfare housed in furnished cages. During these discussions, a science-based information statement about furnished cages was introduced. Through a mixed method approach, surveys to assess beliefs and knowledge were administered to participants before and after the online discussion. We qualitatively analysed the online discussion transcripts to determine recurrent themes, and quantitatively measured levels of knowledge and support for furnished cages using pre- and post-forum surveys. Support for the introduction increased from 55% pre-forum to 65% post-forum. Additionally, the participants' perceived welfare of laying hens in furnished cages and objective knowledge of furnished cages significantly increased after online discussion. These results suggest that engagement with the public combined with the delivery of science-based information may be important factors when considering whether to introduce new farming practices. Trust in industry through transparency and willingness to engage in discussions with the public might also mitigate public concerns.

Relationships between handling, behaviour and stress in lambs at abattoirs.

There is community concern about the treatment of farm animals post-farm gate, particularly animal transport and slaughter. Relationships between lamb behavioural and physiological variables on farm, stockperson, dog and lamb behavioural variables pre-slaughter and plasma cortisol, glucose and lactate in lambs post-slaughter were studied in 400 lambs. The lambs were observed in three behavioural tests, novel arena, flight distance to a human and temperament tests, before transport for slaughter. Closed-circuit television video footage was used to record stockperson, dog and lamb behaviour immediately before slaughter. Blood samples for cortisol, glucose and lactate analyses were collected on farm following the three behavioural tests and immediately post-slaughter. The regression models that best predicted plasma cortisol, glucose and lactate concentrations post-slaughter included a mixture of stockperson and dog behavioural variables as well as lamb variables both on-farm and pre-slaughter. These regression models accounted for 33%, 34% and 44% of the variance in plasma cortisol, glucose and lactate concentrations post-slaughter, respectively. Some of the stockperson and dog behaviours pre-slaughter that were predictive of the stress and metabolic variables post-slaughter included the duration of negative stockperson behaviours such as fast locomotion and lifting/pulling lambs, and the duration of dog behaviours such as lunging and barking at the lamb, while some of the predictive lamb behaviour variables included the durations of jumping and fleeing. Some of the physiological and behavioural responses to the behavioural tests on farm were also predictive of the stress and metabolic variables post-slaughter. These relationships support the well-demonstrated effect of handling on fear and stress responses in livestock, and although not direct evidence of causal relationships, highlight the potential benefits of training stockpeople to reduce fear and stress in sheep at abattoirs.

A candidate super-Earth planet orbiting near the snow line of Barnard's star.

Barnard's star is a red dwarf, and has the largest proper motion (apparent motion across the sky) of all known stars. At a distance of 1.8 parsecs1, it is the closest single star to the Sun; only the three stars in the α Centauri system are closer. Barnard's star is also among the least magnetically active red dwarfs known2,3 and has an estimated age older than the Solar System. Its properties make it a prime target for planetary searches; various techniques with different sensitivity limits have been used previously, including radial-velocity imaging4-6, astrometry7,8 and direct imaging9, but all ultimately led to negative or null results. Here we combine numerous measurements from high-precision radial-velocity instruments, revealing the presence of a low-amplitude periodic signal with a period of 233 days. Independent photometric and spectroscopic monitoring, as well as an analysis of instrumental systematic effects, suggest that this signal is best explained as arising from a planetary companion. The candidate planet around Barnard's star is a cold super-Earth, with a minimum mass of 3.2 times that of Earth, orbiting near its snow line (the minimum distance from the star at which volatile compounds could condense). The combination of all radial-velocity datasets spanning 20 years of measurements additionally reveals a long-term modulation that could arise from a stellar magnetic-activity cycle or from a more distant planetary object. Because of its proximity to the Sun, the candidate planet has a maximum angular separation of 220 milliarcseconds from Barnard's star, making it an excellent target for direct imaging and astrometric observations in the future.

Numerical study of turbulent separation bubbles with varying pressure gradient and Reynolds number.

A family of cases each containing a small separation bubble is treated by direct numerical simulation (DNS), varying two parameters: the severity of the pressure gradients, generated by suction and blowing across the opposite boundary, and the Reynolds number. Each flow contains a well-developed entry region with essentially zero pressure gradient, and all are adjusted to have the same value for the momentum thickness, extrapolated from the entry region to the centre of the separation bubble. Combined with fully defined boundary conditions this will make comparisons with other simulations and turbulence models rigorous; we present results for a set of eight Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes turbulence models. Even though the largest Reynolds number is approximately 5.5 times higher than in a similar DNS study we presented in 1997, the models have difficulties matching the DNS skin friction very closely even in the zero pressure gradient, which complicates their assessment. In the rest of the domain, the separation location per se is not particularly difficult to predict, and the most definite disagreement between DNS and models is near reattachment. Curiously, the better models tend to cluster together in their predictions of pressure and skin friction even when they deviate from the DNS, although their eddy-viscosity levels are widely different in the outer region near the bubble (or they do not rely on an eddy viscosity). Stratford's square-root law is satisfied by the velocity profiles, both at separation and reattachment. The Reynolds-number range covers a factor of two, with the Reynolds number based on the extrapolated momentum thickness equal to approximately 1500 and 3000. This allows tentative estimates of the improvements that even higher values will bring to the model comparisons. The solutions are used to assess models through pressure, skin friction and other measures; the flow fields are also used to produce effective eddy-viscosity targets for the models, thus guiding turbulence-modelling work in each region of the flow.

Bacterial and fungal composition profiling of microbial based cleaning products.

Microbial based cleaning products (MBCPs) are a new generation of cleaning products that are gaining greater use in household, institutional, and industrial settings. Little is known about the exact microbial composition of these products because they are not identified in detail on product labels and formulations are often proprietary. To gain a better understanding of their microbial and fungal composition towards risk assessment, the cultivable microorganisms and rDNA was surveyed for microbial content in five different MBCPs manufactured and sold in North America. Individual bacterial and fungal colonies were identified by ribosequencing and fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) gas chromatography. Metagenomic DNA (mDNA) corresponding to each of the products was subjected to amplification and short read sequencing of seven of the variable regions of the bacterial 16S ribosomal DNA. Taken together, the cultivable microorganism and rDNA survey analyses showed that three of the products were simple mixtures of Bacillus species. The two other products featured a mixture of cultivable fungi with Bacilli, and by rDNA survey analysis, they featured greater microbial complexity. This study improves our understanding of the microbial composition of several MBCPs towards a more comprehensive risk assessment.

Adaptation of a 96-well plate larval migration inhibition test for measuring the sensitivity of cyathostomins to macrocyclic lactone anthelmintics.

The use of macrocyclic lactone drugs for control of equine cyathostomins is threatened by increasing levels of resistance. Detection of changes in drug sensitivity is important for effective and sustainable management of cyathostomins, however, at present such detection relies on the use of the faecal egg count reduction test, which is known to be an insensitive method. The present study therefore aimed to examine the use of a 96-well plate larval migration inhibition test for detection of resistance to macrocyclic lactone drugs in cyathostomins. We optimised conditions for migration of larvae, and examined the effects of larval storage time on drug dose responses. The modified test was able to define the sensitivity of cyathostomin isolates to ivermectin and eprinomectin in terms of dose response curves, and IC50 and IC95 values. The IC95 showed much greater consistency than the IC50 with larvae that had been stored for different periods prior to the test. Comparisons between two isolates, which had both been defined previously as susceptible using faecal egg count reduction tests, showed more variation at the IC50 compared to the IC95. Limitations of the test included the degree of variation in control-well migration despite optimisation of migration incubation conditions, and the need to incorporate a method to determine the species composition of the larval populations to account for possible species differences in drug sensitivity among cyathostomins. Validation of the technique on reference susceptible and resistant isolates of known species composition is still required.

Stockperson attitudes toward pig euthanasia.

Euthanasia is a necessary act for any facility keeping live animals. Nevertheless, the crucial role and responsibility of the stockperson in deciding and conducting on-farm euthanasia has been overlooked. Stockperson characteristics and knowledge that lead to appropriate decision-making and the skills to competently perform the procedure remain to be identified. An important component of the stockperson's characteristics that predict behavior is the stockperson's attitudes. This preliminary study investigated the factors that influence stockperson attitudes toward the practice of on-farm euthanasia in the pork industry. A total of 120 stockpeople from 10 Australian pig farms (ranging in size from 50 to 4,754 sows and from 2 to 32 employees) completed a questionnaire based on focus group input to assess their attitudes toward euthanasia and decision processes. Factors identified included stockperson attitudes and attributes (empathy affect, empathy attribution, feeling bad about euthanizing, and negative attitudes to pigs), beliefs about the working environment (perceived time constraints and relying on others), and factors related to decision-making (comfortable with euthanasia, trouble deciding and avoid if possible, confidence, insufficient knowledge, seeking knowledge, and using sources to get advice). Numerous significant correlations were found between these variables. Furthermore, regression analyses showed confidence as the only significant predictor of being comfortable with euthanasia (12.5% of the variance; < 0.001); insufficient knowledge and empathy attribution both as predictors of trouble deciding and avoid if possible (15.1% of the variance; = 0.001 and = 0.032, respectively); and empathy affect, insufficient knowledge, and perceived time constraints as predictors of feeling bad about euthanizing (23.2% of the variance; < 0.001, = 0.006, and = 0.022, respectively). Stockpeople reported seeking more knowledge if they had not euthanized an animal before working with pigs ( = 0.05), and women reported greater difficulty than men in conducting euthanasia ( < 0.01). The findings indicate that euthanasia, which comprises both a decision-making process and the act itself, can adversely affect stockpeople. This preliminary study offers insights for implementation of successful practical and humane pig euthanasia protocols on farm. This will benefit stockperson well-being and animal well-being alike.

Prognostic Value of Myocardial Scarring on CMR in Patients With Cardiac Sarcoidosis.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to understand the prognostic value of myocardial scarring as evidenced by late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) on cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging in patients with known or suspected cardiac sarcoidosis. BACKGROUND: Although CMR is increasingly used for the diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis, the prognostic value of CMR has been less well described in this population. METHODS: PubMed, Cochrane CENTRAL, and metaRegister of Controlled Trials were searched for CMR studies with ≥1 year of prognostic data. Primary endpoints were all-cause mortality and a composite outcome of arrhythmogenic events (ventricular arrhythmia, implantable cardioverter-defibrillator shock, sudden cardiac death) plus all-cause mortality during follow-up. Summary effect estimates were generated with random-effects modeling. RESULTS: Ten studies were included, involving a total of 760 patients with a mean follow-up of 3.0 ± 1.1 years. Patients had a mean age of 53 years, 41% were male, 95.3% had known extracardiac sarcoidosis, and 21.6% had known cardiac sarcoidosis. The average ejection fraction was 57.8 ± 9.1%. Patients with LGE had higher odds for all-cause mortality (odds ratio [OR]: 3.06; p < 0.03) and higher odds of the composite outcome (OR: 10.74; p < 0.00001) than those without LGE. Patients with LGE had an increased annualized event rate of the composite outcome (11.9% vs. 1.1%; p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with known or suspected cardiac sarcoidosis, the presence of LGE on CMR imaging is associated with increased odds of both all-cause mortality and arrhythmogenic events.

A survey of macrocyclic lactone efficacy in Australian cyathostomin populations.

The macrocyclic lactone (ML) drugs are central to the control of equine strongyles but recent international reports raise concerns about reduced efficacy of these drugs against cyathostomins. The objectives of the present study were firstly, to evaluate the efficacy of ML drugs against cyathostomins on a cross-section of Australian horse farms, and secondly, to determine the egg reappearance period (ERP) following treatment of horses with MLs. A total of 419 horses on 43 properties were treated orally with ivermectin, abamectin or moxidectin, at recommended dose rates and drug efficacy was determined using the faecal egg count reduction test. Efficacy of 100% at 14days post-treatment was reported on all of the 43 farms. ERP following ivermectin treatment was 6weeks on two properties and ERP following moxidectin treatment was 12weeks on a third property. These ERPs are shorter than those reported at the time of commercial release of these drugs which likely reflects changing drug susceptibility of the cyathostomin populations tested. Ongoing surveillance of drug efficacy and ERPs should be part of an integrated management approach to equine worm control that prioritises the preservation of anthelmintic efficacy.

Direct Numerical Simulation and Theory of a Wall-Bounded Flow with Zero Skin Friction.

We study turbulent plane Couette-Poiseuille (CP) flows in which the conditions (relative wall velocity ΔU w ≡ 2U w , pressure gradient dP/dx and viscosity ν) are adjusted to produce zero mean skin friction on one of the walls, denoted by APG for adverse pressure gradient. The other wall, FPG for favorable pressure gradient, provides the friction velocity uτ , and h is the half-height of the channel. This leads to a one-dimensional family of flows of varying Reynolds number Re ≡ U w h/ν. We apply three codes, and cover three Reynolds numbers stepping by a factor of 2 each time. The agreement between codes is very good, and the Reynolds-number range is sizable. The theoretical questions revolve around Reynolds-number independence in both the core region (free of local viscous effects) and the two wall regions. The core region follows Townsend's hypothesis of universal behavior for the velocity and shear stress, when they are normalized with uτ and h; universality is not observed for all the Reynolds stresses, any more than it is in Poiseuille flow or boundary layers. The behavior at very high Re is unknown. The FPG wall region obeys the classical law of the wall, again for velocity and shear stress, but could suggest a low value for the Karman constant κ, possibly near 0.37. For the APG wall region, Stratford conjectured universal behavior when normalized with the pressure gradient, leading to a square-root law for the velocity. The literature, also covering other flows with zero skin friction, is ambiguous. Our results are very consistent with both of Stratford's conjectures, suggesting that at least in this idealized flow geometry the theory is successful like it was for the classical law of the wall. We appear to know the constants of the law within a 10% bracket. On the other hand, again that does not extend to Reynolds stresses other than the shear stress, but these stresses are passive in the momentum equation.

Preventive health care of Pony Club horses in rural New South Wales, Australia.

OBJECTIVE: To describe preventive health care provided to a cohort of Pony Club horses in rural New South Wales, Australia, and the associated veterinary involvement. DESIGN: Prospective longitudinal study METHODS: Observational data collected for 48 Pony Club horses using daily owner-kept diaries and monthly veterinary visits for 9-12 months. RESULTS: Frequency of healthcare events varied markedly between the horses; 54% of horses received 5 or more foot-care treatments, 69% received 1-3 anthelmintic treatments, 40% received dental care, 21% received chiropractic care; only 8% were vaccinated. Farriers and owners administered most of the health care. Veterinarians were infrequently involved, administering 2 of the 111 anthelmintic administrations and 2 of the 244 foot-care treatments. No annual health checks or prepurchase examinations were recorded. All dental care was provided by non-veterinary dentists. Horse turnover appeared quick, with 54% of horses acquired within the previous 12 months. CONCLUSION: The majority of preventive health care was provided by farriers and the owners themselves. The type and frequency of healthcare events varied markedly and most commonly involved foot care and anthelmintic administration. The reasons for the lack of veterinary involvement are unclear. Veterinarians engaging with Pony Club families in a preventive context would likely bring health benefits to this population of horses. This may require adaptation of existing veterinary services to meet the demands of this unique population of horses and young riders. Furthermore, epidemiological studies are required to describe the effects of various preventive healthcare interventions on subsequent and long-term horse health.

Mental Schemas Hamper Memory Storage of Goal-Irrelevant Information.

UNLABELLED: Mental schemas exert top-down control on information processing, for instance by facilitating the storage of schema-related information. However, given capacity-limits and competition in neural network processing, schemas may additionally exert their effects by suppressing information with low momentary relevance. In particular, when existing schemas suffice to guide goal-directed behavior, this may actually reduce encoding of the redundant sensory input, in favor of gaining efficiency in task performance. The present experiment set out to test this schema-induced shallow encoding hypothesis. Our approach involved a memory task in which faces had to be coupled to homes. For half of the faces the responses could be guided by a pre-learned schema, for the other half of the faces such a schema was not available. Memory storage was compared between schema-congruent and schema-incongruent items. To characterize putative schema effects, memory was assessed both with regard to visual details and contextual aspects of each item. The depth of encoding was also assessed through an objective neural measure: the parietal old/new ERP effect. This ERP effect, observed between 500-800 ms post-stimulus onset, is thought to reflect the extent of recollection: the retrieval of a vivid memory, including various contextual details from the learning episode. We found that schema-congruency induced substantial impairments in item memory and even larger ones in context memory. Furthermore, the parietal old/new ERP effect indicated higher recollection for the schema-incongruent than the schema-congruent memories. The combined findings indicate that, when goals can be achieved using existing schemas, this can hinder the in-depth processing of novel input, impairing the formation of perceptually detailed and contextually rich memory traces. Taking into account both current and previous findings, we suggest that schemas can both positively and negatively bias the processing of sensory input. An important determinant in this matter is likely related to momentary goals, such that mental schemas facilitate memory processing of goal-relevant input, but suppress processing of goal-irrelevant information. HIGHLIGHTS: - Schema-congruent information suffers from shallow encoding.- Schema congruency induces poor item and context memory.- The parietal old/new effect is less pronounced for schema-congruent items.- Schemas exert different influences on memory formation depending on current goals.

Suspected ivermectin resistance in a south-east Queensland Parascaris equorum population.

BACKGROUND: There have been several international reports of macrocyclic lactone (ML)-resistant Parascaris equorum over the past decade, but the resistance status of Australian P. equorum populations is largely unknown. A case of apparent reduced efficacy of ivermectin against P. equorum in Australia was investigated. METHODS AND RESULTS: A faecal egg count reduction test carried out on a group of weanling foals in south-east Queensland showed the efficacy of ivermectin to be 65%. CONCLUSION: The case highlights the need to review current worm control strategies, especially for young horses.