Consultant staffing in UK congenital cardiac services: a 10-year survey of leavers and joiners.

OBJECTIVES: To report the numbers of consultant congenital cardiac surgeons and cardiologists who have joined and left UK practice over the last 10 years and explore the reasons for leaving. METHODS: Retrospective observational questionnaire study completed between 11 June 2019 and 1 July 2020 by UK level 1 congenital cardiac centres of 10-year consultant staff movement and reasons suggested for leaving UK practice. RESULTS: At survey completion there were 218 (202 whole time equivalent (WTE)) consultant cardiologists and surgeons working within level 1 centres made up of 39 (38 WTE) surgeons, 137 (128.5 WTE) paediatric cardiologists, 42 (35.5 WTE) adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) cardiologists. 161 (74%) consultants joined in the last 10 years of whom 103 (64%) were UK trained. There were 91 leavers giving a staff turnover rate 42% (surgeons 56%, paediatric cardiologists 42%, ACHD cardiologists 29%). Of those, leaving 43% moved to work abroad (surgeons 55%, paediatric cardiologists 40%, ACHD cardiologists 67%). Among the 65 reported reasons for leaving 16 were financial, 9 for work life balance, 6 to working conditions within the National Health Service (NHS) and 12 related to the profession in the UK including six specifically highlighting the national review process. CONCLUSIONS: There has been a high turnover rate of consultant staff within UK congenital cardiac services over the last 10 years with almost half of those leaving moving to work overseas. Financial reasons and pressures relating to working in the NHS or the specialty in the UK were commonly reported themes for leaving. This has major implications for future planning and staff retention within this specialised service.

The laparoscopy in emergency general surgery (LEGS) study: a questionnaire survey of UK practice.

INTRODUCTION: Recent consensus guidelines suggest that the laparoscopic approach may be a useful, safe and feasible approach in emergency general surgery. Despite this, the UK National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) suggests the rate of laparoscopy is low (9% fully laparoscopic) and slow to increase over time. A European survey found uptake to be variable. This UK survey was therefore undertaken to establish current UK practice and to determine factors affecting implementation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A questionnaire survey of currently practising UK consultant general surgeons was carried out by the North West Surgical Research Collaborative, using a secure web-based database maintained by the North West Surgical Trials Centre. RESULTS: A total of 151 completed questionnaires were returned from 22 UK centres; 18% of respondents were unaware that laparoscopic cases should be reported to NELA. Appendicectomy (97%) and cholecystectomy (87%) were routinely performed laparoscopically. Laparoscopy was infrequently used in perforation, ischaemia or obstructed hernias. There appears to be equipoise regarding laparoscopic compared with open surgery in small-bowel obstruction among all subspecialty emergency general surgeons, in perforated peptic ulcer among upper gastrointestinal surgeons and in Hinchey III diverticulitis among colorectal surgeons. CONCLUSION: Uptake of laparoscopy in UK emergency general surgery is influenced by surgeon preference, subspecialty, patient and operative factors. Further research into outcomes may help to identify areas of greatest potential benefit. The rate of laparoscopy reported by NELA may be an underestimate due to the 18% of surgeons unaware that laparoscopic cases should be reported, which may affect the validity of analyses performed from this dataset.

Translating research into clinical practice: quality improvement to halve non-adherence to methotrexate.

OBJECTIVE: MTX remains the cornerstone for therapy for RA, yet research shows that non-adherence is significant and correlates with response to therapy. This study aimed to halve self-reported non-adherence to MTX at the Kellgren Centre for Rheumatology. METHODS: An anonymous self-report adherence questionnaire was developed and data collected for 3 months prior to the introduction of interventions, and then regularly for the subsequent 2.5 years. A series of interventions were implemented, including motivational interviewing training, consistent information about MTX and development of a summary bookmark. Information on clinic times was collected for consultations with and without motivational interviewing. Surveys were conducted to ascertain consistency of messages about MTX. A biochemical assay was used to test MTX serum levels in patients at two time points: before and 2.8 years following introduction of the changes. Remission rates at 6 and 12 months post-MTX initiation were retrieved from patient notes and cost savings estimated by comparing actual numbers of new biologic starters compared with expected numbers based on the numbers of consultants employed at the two time points. RESULTS: Between June and August 2016, self-reported non-adherence to MTX was 24.7%. Following introduction of the interventions, self-reported non-adherence rates reduced to an average of 7.4% between April 2018 and August 2019. Clinic times were not significantly increased when motivational interviewing was employed. Consistency of messages by staff across three key areas (benefits of MTX, alcohol guidance and importance of adherence) improved from 64% in September 2016 to 94% in January 2018. Biochemical non-adherence reduced from 56% (September 2016) to 17% (June 2019), whilst remission rates 6 months post-initiation of MTX improved from 13% in 2014/15 to 37% in 2017/18, resulting is estimated cost savings of £30 000 per year. CONCLUSION: Non-adherence to MTX can be improved using simple measures including focussing on the adherence and the benefits of treatment, and providing consistent information across departments.

Young people's advisory groups in health research: scoping review and mapping of practices.

BACKGROUND: Young people's advisory groups (YPAGs) for research are comprised of children or adolescents who work with researchers to shape different stages of the research process. Their involvement is expected to ensure studies better reflect the preferences and needs of targeted youth populations. However, despite their increasing use in health research, there is little systematic evidence on the methods and impacts associated with YPAGs. METHOD: To address this gap, we conducted a scoping review of YPAGs in youth-focused health studies. We systematically searched MEDLINE for empirical studies in populations between 12 years and 18 years of age published in 2019. If a potential YPAG was identified, authors were contacted for additional information about the activities and level of involvement of the YPAG. FINDINGS: Of all studies that collected primary data from persons aged 12-18 years, only 21 studies reported using youth advice during their research. This represents less than 1% of all published empirical child and adolescent studies. There was variation in the type of research activity undertaken by YPAGs and their level of involvement. Most studies involved YPAGs in co-production of research design and/or in dissemination activities. The majority of authors that responded were positive about the impact of YPAGs. INTERPRETATION: Recommendations for consistent reporting of YPAG involvement in empirical studies include reporting on the match between YPAG and study populations, frequency/format of meetings, and the nature and level of involvement.

Surgical training rotation design: effects of hospital type, rotation theme and duration.

BACKGROUND: Entrants into UK surgical specialty training undertake a 2-year programme of core surgical training, rotating through specialties for varying lengths of time, at different hospitals, to gain breadth of experience. This study aimed to assess whether these variables influenced core surgical trainee (CST) work productivity. METHODS: Intercollegiate Surgical Curriculum Programme portfolios of consecutive CSTs between 2016 and 2019 were examined. Primary outcome measures were workplace-based assessment (WBA) completion, operative experience and academic outputs (presentations to learned societies, publications and audits). RESULTS: A total of 344 rotations by 111 CSTs were included. Incremental increases in attainment were observed related to the duration of core surgical training rotation. The median number of consultant-validated WBAs completed during core surgical training were 48 (range 0-189), 54 (10-120) and 75 (6-94) during rotations consisting of 4-, 6- and 12-month posts respectively (P < 0·001). Corresponding median operative caseloads (as primary surgeon) were 84 (range 3-357), 110 (44-394) and 134 (56-366) (P < 0·001) and presentations to learned societies 0 (0-12), 0 (0-14) and 1 (0-5) (P = 0·012) respectively. Hospital type and specialty training theme were unrelated to workplace productivity. Multivariable analysis identified length of hospital rotation as the only factor independently associated with total WBA count (P = 0·001), completion of audit (P = 0·015) and delivery of presentation (P = 0·001) targets. CONCLUSION: Longer rotations with a single educational supervisor, in one training centre, are associated with better workplace productivity. Consideration should be given to this when reconfiguring training programmes within the arena of workforce planning.

ANTECEDENTES: Los residentes de especialidades quirúrgicas del Reino Unido realizan un período troncal de formación quirúrgica de 2 años, en el que rotan por diversas especialidades durante periodos de tiempo variables y en diversos hospitales, a fin de conseguir una experiencia amplia. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar si estas variables influyeron en la productividad de los residentes durante el período troncal (core surgical trainee, CST). MÉTODOS: Se examinaron los inventarios de los programas del Intercollegiate Surgical Curriculum Programme (ISCP) de CST consecutivos entre 2016 y 2019. Las variables principales fueron la puntuación final del Workplace-Based Assessment (WBA), y la actividad quirúrgica y académica (presentaciones a sociedades académicas, publicaciones y auditorías) realizadas. RESULTADOS: Se incluyeron 344 rotaciones de 111 CST. Se constataron mejores resultados en relación con la duración de la rotación de CST. La mediana (rango) de la puntuación de los supervisores en las WBA fue de 48 (0'189), 54 (10'120) y 75 (6'94) (P < 0,001) en las rotaciones a los 4, 6 y 12 meses, respectivamente. El número de intervenciones (como cirujano principal) fue de 84 (3'357), 110 (44'394) y 134 (56'366) (P < 0,001) y de presentaciones a sociedades científicas fue de 0 (0-12), 0 (0- 14) y 1 (0-5) (P = 0,012). No hubo relación entre el tipo de hospital o la especialidad y la productividad en el lugar de trabajo. El análisis multivariable identificó la duración de la rotación como único factor independientemente relacionado con la puntuación de la WBA (P = 0,001), la finalización de la auditoría (P = 0,015) y el número de presentaciones realizadas (P = 0,001). CONCLUSIÓN: Las rotaciones de periodos de tiempo largos con un solo supervisor y en un solo centro se asocian con una mejor productividad en el lugar de trabajo. Debería tenerse en cuenta este factor al reconfigurar los programas de capacitación desde el punto de vista laboral.

Does declared surgeon specialist interest influence the outcome of emergency laparotomy?

INTRODUCTION: In the UK, general surgeons must demonstrate competency in emergency general surgery before obtaining a certificate of completion of training. Subsequently, many consultants develop focused elective specialist interests which may not mirror the breadth of procedures encountered during emergency practice. Recent National Emergency Laparotomy Audit analysis found that declared surgeon special interest impacted emergency laparotomy outcomes, which has implications for emergency general surgery service configuration. We sought to establish whether local declared surgeon special interest impacts emergency laparotomy outcomes. METHODS: Adult patients having emergency laparotomy were identified from our prospective National Emergency Laparotomy Audit database from May 2016 to May 2019 and categorised as colorectal or oesophagogastric according to operative procedure. Outcomes included 30-day mortality, return to theatre and length of stay. Binomial logistic regression was used to identify any association between declared consultant specialist interest and outcomes. RESULTS: Of 600 laparotomies, 358 (58.6%) were classifiable as specialist procedures: 287 (80%) colorectal and 71 (20%) oesophagogastric. Discordance between declared specialty and operation undertaken occurred in 25% of procedures. For colorectal emergency laparotomy, there was an increased risk of 30-day mortality when performed by a non-colorectal consultant (unadjusted odds ratio 2.34; 95% confidence interval 1.10-5.00; p = 0.003); however, when adjusted for confounders within multivariate analysis declared surgeon specialty had no impact on mortality, return to theatre or length of stay. CONCLUSION: Surgeon-declared specialty does not impact emergency laparotomy outcomes in this cohort of undifferentiated emergency laparotomies. This may reflect the on-call structure at Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, where a colorectal and oesophagogastric consultant are paired on call and provide cross-cover when needed.

Financial ties between leaders of influential US professional medical associations and industry: cross sectional study.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the nature and extent of financial relationships between leaders of influential professional medical associations in the United States and pharmaceutical and device companies. DESIGN: Cross sectional study. SETTING: Professional associations for the 10 costliest disease areas in the US according to the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Financial data for association leadership, 2017-19, were obtained from the Open Payments database. POPULATION: 328 leaders, such as board members, of 10 professional medical associations: American College of Cardiology, Orthopaedic Trauma Association, American Psychiatric Association, Endocrine Society, American College of Rheumatology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Thoracic Society, North American Spine Society, Infectious Diseases Society of America, and American College of Physicians. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Proportion of leaders with financial ties to industry in the year of leadership, the four years before and the year after board membership, and the nature and extent of these financial relationships. RESULTS: 235 of 328 leaders (72%) had financial ties to industry. Among 293 leaders who were medical doctors or doctors of osteopathy, 235 (80%) had ties. Total payments for 2017-19 leadership were almost $130m (£103m; €119m), with a median amount for each leader of $31 805 (interquartile range $1157 to $254 272). General payments, including those for consultancy and hospitality, were $24.8m and research payments were $104.6m-predominantly payments to academic institutions with association leaders named as principle investigators. Variation was great among the associations: median amounts varied from $212 for the American Psychiatric Association leaders to $518 000 for the American Society of Clinical Oncology. CONCLUSIONS: Financial relationships between the leaders of influential US professional medical associations and industry are extensive, although with variation among the associations. The quantum of payments raises questions about independence and integrity, adding weight to calls for policy reform.

Magnitude and determinants of interactions between dentists and dental supply representatives in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between dentists and dental supply representatives is not as well known as that between physicians and pharmaceutical sales representatives. AIMS: To estimate the magnitude, associated factors and characteristics of the interaction between dentists and dental supply representatives in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among dentists working in major governmental and private hospitals in different regions of Saudi Arabia. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to all participants, either in electronic or paper format, depending on the proximity of the participants. A total of 672 participants completed the survey (response rate, 67.2%). RESULTS: Approximately 68% of participants reported an interaction with dental supply representatives. Saudi dentists had a lower interaction with dental supply representatives than non-Saudi dentists (65.1% vs 73.1%). Dentists working in private hospitals had more interactions with dental supply representatives than those working in public hospitals (78.1% vs 63.2%). Compared to residents and interns, dental consultants and specialists had more interactions with dental supply representatives. Dentists who had a prior history of working abroad showed more interactions with dental supply representatives than those with no such history (75.9% vs 63.7%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that the following characteristics were independently associated with greater dentist-dental supply representatives interaction: male sex, older age, living in the eastern region, unsure about income satisfaction, certain job titles (such as specialists), and certain specialties. CONCLUSION: Dentists have a high number of interactions with dental supply representatives in Saudi Arabia. Most of the issues identified are common to those seen in other parts of the world.

Sedation Provided for Consultations in the Pediatric Emergency Department: Another Perspective.

BACKGROUND: Many procedures requiring sedation in the pediatric emergency department are performed by consultants from outside the department. This team usually includes orthopedic surgeons and general surgeons. As sedation is now a standard of care in such cases, we evaluated consultants' views on sedation. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate consultants' views on sedation. METHODS: A questionnaire with both open-ended questions and Likert-type scores was distributed to all orthopedic surgeons and general surgeons performing procedures during the study period. The questionnaire was presented at three medical centers. RESULTS: The questionnaire was completed by 31 orthopedic surgeons and 16 general surgeons. Although the vast majority (93-100%) considered sedation important, a high percentage (64-75%) would still perform such procedures without sedation if not readily available. CONCLUSIONS: Sedation is very important for patients and although consultants understand its importance, the emergency department staff must be vigilant in both being available and not allowing procedures to "escape" the use of sedation.

Medical Student Consulting: Providing Students Leadership and Business Opportunities While Positively Impacting the Community.

Introduction: Medical schools are increasingly attempting to prepare future physicians for diverse new leadership roles in the health care system. Many schools have implemented didactic leadership curricula, with varying levels of structure and success. Project-based learning via completion of real-world projects using a team-based approach remains an underutilized approach to developing student leadership skills. Methods: We designed and implemented the Medical Educational Consulting Group (Med ECG)-a student-run consulting program that provides medical students with opportunities to develop leadership skills by completing consulting projects with local clients. We provide an overview of the Med ECG model, including a combination of didactic training sessions and project-based learning via both simulation and real-world projects. Surveys were used to evaluate the value of Med ECG to clients, the community, and students. Results: Fourteen medical students (eight first-years, two second-years, three third-years, and one fourth-year, including five dual-degree candidates) completed the Med ECG program. Client feedback pointed to the value of Med ECG's projects and their impact on the community through partner organizations. Finally, linear regression analysis showed a strong positive correlation (R2 = .61) between the amount of effort devoted to various leadership attributes and the perceived improvement while working with Med ECG. Discussion: Med ECG's experiences show that a medical student-led project-based learning program is a novel way to develop leadership skills for future physician leaders. Efforts to replicate these types of programs will help additional students develop their leadership and business skills, making a positive impact outside of the classroom.

Developing, Administering, and Scoring the Healthcare Ethics Consultant Certification Examination.

In November 2018, the practice of health care ethics consultation crossed a major threshold when 138 candidates took the inaugural Healthcare Ethics Consultant Certification Examination. This accomplishment, long in the making, has had and continues to have both advocates and critics. The Healthcare Ethics Consultant Certification Commission, a functionally autonomous body created and funded by the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, was charged with overseeing creation of the certification process, developing the exam, and formulating certification standards and policies to assess candidates' qualifications. In this essay, as members of the commission, we describe the process of developing, administering, and scoring the certification examination as well as the historical context and the outlook for certification. By detailing the decisions and actions of the commission, we aim to provide a transparent account of the commission's efforts to develop a psychometrically sound, reliable, and secure examination through a deliberative, fair, and data-driven process.

A national survey of out-of-hours working and fatigue in consultants in anaesthesia and paediatric intensive care in the UK and Ireland.

The tragic death of an anaesthetic trainee driving home after a series of night shifts prompted a national survey of fatigue in trainee anaesthetists. This indicated that fatigue was widespread, with significant impact on trainees' health and well-being. Consultants deliver an increasing proportion of patient care resulting in long periods of continuous daytime duty and overnight on-call work, so we wished to investigate their experience of out-of-hours working and the causes and impact of work-related fatigue. We conducted a national survey of consultant anaesthetists and paediatric intensivists in the UK and Ireland between 25 June and 6 August 2018. The response rate was 46% (94% of hospitals were represented): 84% of respondents (95%CI 83.1-84.9%) contribute to a night on-call rota with 32% (30.9-33.1%) working 1:8 or more frequently. Sleep disturbance on-call is common: 47% (45.6-48.4%) typically receive two to three phone calls overnight, and 48% (46.6-49.4%) take 30 min or more to fall back to sleep. Only 15% (14.0-16.0%) reported always achieving 11 h of rest between their on-call and their next clinical duty, as stipulated by the European Working Time Directive. Moreover, 24% (22.8-25.2%) stated that there is no departmental arrangement for covering scheduled clinical duties following a night on-call if they have been in the hospital overnight. Overall, 91% (90.3-91.7%) reported work-related fatigue with over half reporting a moderate or significantly negative impact on health, well-being and home life. We discuss potential explanations for these results and ways to mitigate the effects of fatigue among consultants.

The implementation and utilization of an organ donation dedicated medical advisory service: A descriptive study.

BACKGROUND: Obstacles encountered during the organ donation process may result in the loss of organs. A centralized medical advisory service (MAS), providing a 24/7/365 service, was established in 2007 to respond to queries from healthcare professionals regarding organ safety, brain death (BD) determination, and donor management. METHODS: Data collected from 2007 to 2017 included the number and context of the queries and the mean number of organs transplanted/donor. Since 2012, the number of six donor management goals (DMGs) met at the time of consent has been monitored. RESULTS: The number of queries relative to the number of potential donors increased from 12.4% (n = 78 queries) in 2007 to 48.2% (304 queries) in 2009 and has remained widely utilized, with most queries consistently related to organ safety. The context of the queries informed the formulation of protocols relating to donor infections and malignancy and identified difficulties regarding BD determination and subsequent implementation of solutions. A mean of 5.0 ± 0.7 DMGs was achieved, while the number of organs transplanted/donor increased from 3.4 in 2007 to 4.0 in 2017. CONCLUSION: We suggest that this model may provide a valuable resource to improve the safety, standardization, and quality of the donation process.

Shedding light on the HTA consultancy market: Insights from Poland.

Research on health technology assessment (HTA) from a policy perspective typically examines public HTA bodies, with little attention devoted to how manufacturers develop their evidence submissions. Taking Poland as a crucial case, we explored the market of HTA consultancy firms which assist drug manufacturers in developing these submissions, called HTA reports. We reviewed 318 HTA reports from 2012 to 2015, data from the Polish National Company Registry, the content of HTA consulting firms' websites, and appraisal reports developed by the Polish HTA body. We identified HTA consultancy firms which developed 96-98% HTA reports. We found that the transparency of information about the authors of HTA reports provided by the HTA body had improved between 2012 and 2015. Six companies with market shares from 10 to 30% dominated the market. The market size was estimated to be 5-6 million EUR annually. HTA consultancies had a broad service portfolio related to preparation of HTA reports. Over 90% of HTA reports did not meet the official minimum quality requirements, and only half of the resubmissions took into account remarks made by the HTA body. Our study provides insights into the structure, evolution and role of the for-profit HTA consultancy market as a crucial part of the public HTA system. This raises important policy points about transparency and regulation at the intersection of public and private sectors in HTA.

A Spatial Analysis of Breastfeeding and Breastfeeding Support in the United States: The Leaders and Laggards Landscape.

BACKGROUND: To better track progress in achieving the Healthy People 2020 goals, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes an annual Breastfeeding Report Card (BRC) that represents a compilation of data on breastfeeding practices in all states. With data drawn from the CDC National Immunization Survey, the BRC provides an especially valuable source of information about geographic trends in breastfeeding and related support activities. RESEARCH AIM: This study aimed to identify important geographic trends in both breastfeeding practices and support structures in the United States, highlighting their spatial disparities. METHODS: Exploratory spatial data analysis, including local indicators of spatial association, is combined with spatial regression models to highlight geographic variations in breastfeeding practices and support. RESULTS: Geographic variation in both breastfeeding practices and allied support exists within the United States. Geographic hot spots of breastfeeding are found in the western and northeastern sections of the United States, and cool spots are located primarily in the Southeast. Regression results suggested that unemployment and demographic diversity are negatively associated with breastfeeding rates, whereas higher education and the presence of International Board Certified Lactation Consultants® (IBCLCs®) are positively connected to persistent breastfeeding practices. Further, although the availability of professional support (IBCLC) strengthened nationwide between 2011 and 2016, the availability of mother-to-mother support (La Leche League) softened. CONCLUSION: Although breastfeeding initiation rates continue to increase in the United States, rates of exclusive breastfeeding at 3 and 6 months remain low, displaying significant geographic variation. The ability to pinpoint lagging regions can help to efficiently allocate additional breastfeeding support resources and interventions.

A prospective study of consecutive emergency medical admissions to compare a novel automated computer-aided mortality risk score and clinical judgement of patient mortality risk.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the performance of a validated automatic computer-aided risk of mortality (CARM) score versus medical judgement in predicting the risk of in-hospital mortality for patients following emergency medical admission. DESIGN: A prospective study. SETTING: Consecutive emergency medical admissions in York hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Elderly medical admissions in one ward were assigned a risk of death at the first post-take ward round by consultant staff over a 2-week period. The consultant medical staff used the same variables to assign a risk of death to the patient as the CARM (age, sex, National Early Warning Score and blood test results) but also had access to the clinical history, examination findings and any immediately available investigations such as ECGs. The performance of the CARM versus consultant medical judgement was compared using the c-statistic and the positive predictive value (PPV). RESULTS: The in-hospital mortality was 31.8% (130/409). For patients with complete blood test results, the c-statistic for CARM was 0.75 (95% CI: 0.69 to 0.81) versus 0.72 (95% CI: 0.66 to 0.78) for medical judgements (p=0.28). For patients with at least one missing blood test result, the c-statistics were similar (medical judgements 0.70 (95% CI: 0.60 to 0.81) vs CARM 0.70 (95% CI: 0.59 to 0.80)). At a 10% mortality risk, the PPV for CARM was higher than medical judgements in patients with complete blood test results, 62.0% (95% CI: 51.2 to 71.9) versus 49.2% (95% CI: 39.8 to 58.5) but not when blood test results were missing, 50.0% (95% CI: 24.7 to 75.3) versus 53.3% (95% CI: 34.3 to 71.7). CONCLUSIONS: CARM is comparable with medical judgements in discriminating in-hospital mortality following emergency admission to an elderly care ward. CARM may have a promising role in supporting medical judgements in determining the patient's risk of death in hospital. Further evaluation of CARM in routine practice is required.

Impact of clinical ethics support on daily practice-First-line managers' experiences in the Euro-MCD project.

AIM: To explore first-line managers' experiences of what Moral Case Deliberation has meant for daily practice, to describe perceptions of context influence and responsibility to manage ethically difficult situations. BACKGROUND: In order to find measures to evaluate Moral Case Deliberation, the European Moral Case Deliberation Outcome instrument was developed and is now in the stage of revision. For this, there is a need of several perspectives, one of them being the managerial bird-eye perspective. METHOD: Eleven first-line managers at workplaces, participating in the European Moral Case Deliberation Outcome instrument project, were interviewed and thematic analysis was applied. RESULTS: Managers' experiences were interpreted as enhanced ethical climate: a closer-knit and more emotionally mature team, morally strengthened individuals, as well as ethics leaving its marks on everyday work and morally grounded actions. Despite organizational barriers, they felt inspired to continue ethics work. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: This study confirmed, but also added ethical climate aspects, such as morally grounded actions. Furthermore, adding ethical climate as a construct in the European Moral Case Deliberation Outcome instrument should be considered. First-line managers need clear directives from their managers that ethics work needs to be prioritized for the good of both the staff and the patients.

The nurse consultant in mental health services: A national, mixed methods study of an advanced practice role.

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THE SUBJECT?: Internationally, systematic reviews have identified evidence of equal or improved clinical outcomes comparing advanced practitioner treatment with medical treatment as usual, across a range of specialities. Studies of nurse consultants in the United Kingdom have largely been non-empirical. Most studies specifically related to nurse consultant roles in mental health services are case studies or reports of views on this role. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: The study demonstrates that nurse consultant numbers vary over time and by clinical specialty. This is influenced by the value invested in the role by local nursing leadership and by national policy change. A lack of role clarity affects the uptake and sustainability of advanced practice roles internationally and is also an issue for the nurse consultant role in England's mental health services. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: Successfully introducing advanced practice nursing roles in mental health services requires role clarity and support from local nurse directors. The continued absence of robust evidence as to the clinical/cost-effectiveness of nurse consultant roles in mental health settings places an onus on individual posts to generate data to justify the role at a time of financial constraint. Detailed post holder characteristics reported in this paper provide a basis for future comparison with other advanced practice roles in mental health services and other specialties nationally and internationally. Abstract Introduction The nurse consultant is an advanced practice role providing expert clinical practice, consultancy and professional leadership. To date, few studies have examined this role within mental health services and none have described the professional characteristics of post holders. Aims The main aims of the study were to identify changes in nurse consultant numbers in mental health services, identify post holder characteristics and factors influencing number of posts. Method We used a triangulated mixed methods approach comprised of a longitudinal examination of national workforce data, a national cross-sectional survey of post holder characteristics and semi-structured interviews with directors of nursing. Results Of 58 mental health organizations, 51 (88%) responded, identifying 123 nurse consultant posts, and a range of 0-12 posts per organization. One in 229 mental health nurses and 1 in 186 learning disability nurses were nurse consultant. An average of 40% of nurse consultants' work time was reported as being in clinical practice. Themes identified as important in relation to role sustainability were cost and value, contribution of individual post holders, role clarity and domains of work. Discussion Nurse consultants are represented to a greater extent in the mental health service workforce than in nursing generally, but their roles often lack clarity. Attitudes of local professional leaders and national policies are likely to affect post numbers. Implications for practice Developing and sustaining nurse consultant roles requires role clarity and active support from nurse leaders. Roles need to demonstrate their value to the clinical systems in which they work.