Digital Commons Network^™

Engagement And Access To Support For Oral Health, Substance Use, Smoking And Diet By People With Severe And Multiple Disadvantage: A Qualitative Study, Neha Jain, Emma A. Adams, Emma C. Joyes, Gillian Mclellan, Martin Burrows, Martha Paisi, Laura J. Mcgowan, Lorenzo Iafrate, David Landes, Richard Watt, Falko F. Sniehotta, Eileen Kaner, Sheena E. Ramsay

Peninsula Dental School

Background Severe and multiple disadvantage (SMD) is the combined effect of experiencing homelessness, substance use and repeat offending. People experiencing SMD have high burden of physical and mental health issues. Oral health is one of the most common health problems in people experiencing SMD which interacts with substance use, smoking, and unhealthy diet to create a cycle of harm and disadvantage. However, burden of these conditions is worsened by poor access to health services. This study aimed to identify pathways to improve engagement and access to health interventions, for oral health, substance and alcohol use, smoking and diet. Methods Using …

The Impact Of Community Engaged Healthcare Education On Undergraduate Students’ Empathy And Their Views Towards Social Accountability; A Mixed Methods Systematic Review, Anastasios Plessas, Martha Paisi, Nilufar Ahmed, Zoe Brookes, Lorna Burns, Robert Witton

Peninsula Dental School

Background: Many non-communicable diseases are rooted in social factors that determine health outcomes. Complex topics such as the social determinants of health are difficult to teach through traditional didactic methods. Since the introduction of the social accountability of medical schools’ framework in 1995 by the World Health Organisation, healthcare education institutions are encouraged to shift their traditional education models towards a socially accountable approach. Community engagement can facilitate a deeper understanding of health inequity, barriers to health care, and the social determinants of health whilst enabling institutions to meet their obligation to the communities they serve. This systematic review aimed …

Terrestrial Evidence For Volcanogenic Sulfate-Driven Cooling Event ~30 Ka Before The Cretaceous–Paleogene Mass Extinction: Volcanism-Induced Cooling ~30 Ka Pre-K–Pg Boundary, Lauren O'Connor, Rhodri Jerrett, Gregory Price, Tyler Lyson, Sabine Lengger, Francien Peterse, Bart Van Dongen

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Alongside the Chicxulub meteorite impact, Deccan volcanism is considered a primary trigger for the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) mass extinction. Models suggest that volcanic outgassing of carbon and sulfur—potent environmental stressors—drove global temperature change, but the relative timing, duration, and magnitude of such change remains uncertain. Here, we use the organic paleothermometer MBT′5me and the carbon-isotope composition of two K–Pg-spanning lignites from the western Unites States, to test models of volcanogenic air temperature change in the ~100 kyr before the mass extinction. Our records show long-term warming of ~3°C, probably driven by Deccan CO2 emissions, and reveal a transient (<10 kyr) ~5°C cooling event, coinciding with the peak of the Poladpur “pulse” of Deccan eruption ~30 kyr before the K–Pg boundary. This cooling was likely caused by the aerosolization of volcanogenic sulfur. Temperatures returned to pre-event values before the mass extinction, suggesting that, from the terrestrial perspective, volcanogenic climate change was not the primary cause of K–Pg extinction.

Touching Distant Time And Place: Place-Based Augmented Reality Storytelling, Misha Myers

School of Art, Design and Architecture

Storying place through augmented reality technologies, such as software and applications which enhance and encourage interaction with physical environments with digital visual and audio elements and place digital objects in specific locations, offers multisensory tactile ways of inter-mediating relationships between self and changing environments. This chapter examines and compares how four site-specific, site-responsive and site-generic augmented reality storytelling works made for smartphones augment specific living environments through augmented spatiality, immersive audio, geo-located and interactive sound and/or visually augmented three-dimensional animations of digital entities and objects. This chapter considers how the application of specific augmented technologies in each of the works …

Factors Influencing The Oral Health Behaviours Of Autistic Children And Young People: A Qualitative Study, Jo Erwin, Sarah Neill, Tara Vassallo, Isaac Vassallo, Rob Witton, Martha Paisi

Peninsula Dental School

Background: Poor oral health (OH) in childhood can cause pain, affect quality of life and significantly impact adult OH. Autistic children and young people (CYP) experience inequalities in OH and are at higher risk of cavities and gum disease than neurotypical CYP. Objective: To provide evidence and insights into the factors affecting the OH behaviours of ACYP from the perspective of ACYP, their parents/carers and Dental Health Professionals (DHPs). Method: Semi-structured online or face-to-face interviews were conducted with CYP, parents/carers and DHPs in Southwest England. Results: Nineteen ACYP (aged 5–18 years old), 20 parents/carers and 16 DHPs were interviewed. The …

Top Ten Epilepsy Research Priorities: A Uk Priority Setting Partnership, Rohit Shankar

Peninsula Medical School

Purpose: Research into epilepsy has experienced decades of chronic underfunding compared to other neurological conditions despite its prevalence and seriousness. To evidence the need for greater investment, the Epilepsy Research Institute (formerly Epilepsy Research UK) funded, led and managed a James Lind Alliance (JLA) Priority Setting Partnership (PSP). This “industry standard” methodology brings together healthcare professionals, patients, carers and patient group representatives to identify and prioritise research uncertainties within a defined area of health or care.Methods: The UK Epilepsy PSP is a once-in-a-generation, national consensus that collated and ranked the research priorities of the UK epilepsy and associated condition community. …

Revisiting The Impact Of Container Port Service Quality On Customer Satisfaction: A Configuration Approach, Saeyeon Roh, Haddoud M Yacine, Adah-Kole Onjewu, Hyunmi Jang, Vinh V. Thai

Plymouth Business School

In global port competitions, container port service quality (CPSQ) plays a critical role in determining user satisfaction and port competitiveness. Despite numerous empirical research efforts on the relationship between CPSQ and customer satisfaction, few studies have analysed the configurational effects of CPSQ on customer satisfaction. To address a gap in research, this study examines the factors that influence customer satisfaction among port users, including cargo owners and logistics service providers. The focus is on container ports in non-transshipment ports in South Korea, as well as a transshipment port in Singapore, which are representative of major global maritime countries. In this …

Is Home Environment Predictive Of Early Grammar Development?, Michelle White, Frenette Southwood

School of Psychology

Research shows that children’s home environment (e.g., the composition of their householdand the resources available in it) has an impact on children’s language development.However, this research has mostly been conducted among English speakers from theminority world and has often only considered vocabulary size. This exploratory studyinvestigated whether home environment factors are predictive of grammar development inAfrikaans-speaking (n = 117) and English-speaking (n = 102) toddlers in South Africa.Moreover, potential differences between these two language groups were explored. Resultsshowed that home environment factors pertaining to family stability predicted two of thethree grammar scores, namely total grammar and complex phrases. Cluster analysis …

Subcutaneous Electroencephalography Monitoring For People With Epilepsy And Intellectual Disability: Co-Production Workshops, Rohit Shankar

Peninsula Medical School

Background Nearly 25% of people with intellectual disability (PwID) have epilepsy compared to 1% of the UK general population. PwID are commonly excluded from research, eventually affecting their care. Understanding seizures in PwID is particularly challenging because of reliance on subjective external observation and poor objective validation. Remote electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring could capture objective data, but particular challenges and implementation strategies for this population need to be understood. Aim This co-production aimed to explore the accessibility and potential impact of a remote, long-term EEG tool (UnEEG 24/7 SubQ) for PwID and epilepsy. Method We conducted six, 2-hour long workshops; three …

Understanding The Current Provisions Of Support For People With An Intellectual Disabilities And/Or Autism In Crisis: A Mixed Methods Study, Rohit Shankar

Peninsula Medical School

Background:There has been significant reduction in inpatient beds for people with intellectual disability and/or autism (PwID/A) in the UK in the last decade following high profile national scandals in specialist psychiatric hospitals. To reduce inappropriate admissions a new strategy (Blue-Light, an emergency multi-disciplinary meeting to prevent admission to hospital) was introduced. However, there is no research on the influence of Blue-Light on crisis management for PwID/A.Aim:To assess Blue-Light’s impact on PwID/A’s crisis presentationsMethods:Co-produced with experts-by-experience, a mixed methods approach using a 13 question Likert based survey of health and social-care professionals along with semi-structured interviews of carers involved with consecutive …

Taxonomy Of Cyber Risk Mitigation Cost Benefit Analysis Methods For Energy Infrastructure, Yvonne Kam Hwei Syn, Kevin Jones, Kimberly Tam, Robert Rawlinson-Smith

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Cybersecurity is a critical aspect for the energy industry to defend against cyber attacks. However, justifying the costs of cybersecurity measures is essential. A cost-benefit analysis (CBA) is commonly used to support decision-making for risk mitigation, helping to identify strategies that optimally balance mitigation costs and risk reduction. In this survey, we analyse existing approaches and provide a taxonomic overview of methods for cyber risk mitigation cost-benefit analysis, focusing on key aspects that determine their applicability to energy systems. The survey includes both general and contextual works, employing various methodologies for CBA, whether analytical or criteria-based. We conclude with an …

Contextualizing Adolescent’S Experiences Of Dementia In England, Esra Hassan, Ben Hicks, Naji Tabet, Nicolas Farina

Peninsula Medical School

Adolescents represent an under-researched group that mayalready have experiences of dementia. In this study, we aimedto capture adolescents’ level of contact (frequency) and qualityof contact (whether experiences were positive or negative) withpeople living with the condition. In this cross-sectional study,1,371 adolescents (aged 11–18 years old) across England wererecruited. Descriptive statistics, cross-tabulations, and regres-sions were employed to explore the association between socio-demographic factors and the frequency and quality of dementiacontact in adolescents. Over 64% of adolescents had comeacross people living with dementia, while over a quarter ofadolescents had looked after someone living with the condition.The level of contact and quality of …

Mental Health, Well-Being And Resilience In Agricultural Areas: Gaps And Priorities. A Research Agenda For The Global North, Caroline Nye, Rebecca Wheeler, David Rose, Florence Becot, Mark Holton, Duska Knezevic Hocevar, Jorie Knook, Sarah Kyle, Maria Partalidou, Mark Riley, Artur Steiner, Hannah Whitley

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

This paper offers an overview of research perspectives, gaps, and priorities within the field of mental health and well-being among farming communities in the Global North. Developed by an international working group of scholars with expertise in the mental health and well-being of agricultural and rural communities, it outlines the importance of developing an international research agenda in this subject area by presenting five propositions. Each of the propositions addresses current research gaps and/or highlights potential advancements in investigations into one of the following areas of study: i) who is being researched, ii) what is being researched, iii) geographical gaps …

Particle Size And Settling Velocity Of Bed And Suspended Sediments For Mud-Sand Beds, Leo Van Rijn, Luitze Perk, Bas Van Maren, Andy Manning

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

The particle size and the settling velocity of sediments are key parameters in sediment transport studies. However, it remains surprisingly difficult to determine particle size and settling velocity distribution of fine-grained sediments (mud-sand). A large range of methodologies exist to measure either the particle size distribution or to measure the settling velocity. An important influential parameter is the shape of fine-grained sediments, with clay minerals being shaped as plates rather than as spheres. Furthermore, the settling velocity of fine particles is influenced by turbulent shear and flocculation processes. Sometimes, the sediment samples are pre-treated (destroying inter-particle bonds) to measure the …

Qatar Dental Student Perceptions Of Sirona Prep-Check Software For Learning Crown Preparations, Hanin Daas, María Arregui, Lluís Giner Tarrida, Rebecca Glanville, Kamran Ali

Peninsula Dental School

Background: Contemporary dental education requires swift assimilation of technological advancements to prepare the future generation of dentists. Integrating digital tools, such as prepCheck software in crown preparations offers a promising avenue for enhancing the learning experiences of dental students. This study aimed to evaluate the perceptions and experiences of undergraduate dental students regarding the use of PrepCheck software for learning crown preparations. Methods: An interventional study design was employed to investigate the perceptions of undergraduate dental students regarding the use of Sirona prepCheck software their learning experiences in the prosthodontics course at the College of Dental Medicine. were recruited using …

What Are The Views Of Those Participating In A Trial Investigating Acute Post-Traumatic Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo? A Qualitative Study, Rebecca M. Smith, Bithi Sahu, Caroline Burgess, Jenna Beattie, Abby Newdick, Vassilios Tahtis, Jonathan Marsden, Barry M. Seemungal

School of Health Professions

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of patients and healthcare professionals participating in a randomized feasibility trial exploring the management of acute post-traumatic benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV), and to establish the acceptability and tolerability of BPPV assessment and treatment procedures. Methods: This was a multi-center qualitative study nested within a wider randomized feasibility trial. Purposive sampling was used to gather a cohort of healthcare professionals and patients from three major trauma centres in London, UK. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews and were analyzed using Framework analysis. Results: Fifteen healthcare professionals and 26 patients …

Space Of Resilience: Architecture, Communication, And Immersive Experience In “St Sebastian: Plague Memory”, Mathew Emmett

School of Art, Design and Architecture

This paper examines St Sebastian: Plague Memory, a multi-channel audiovisual installation that redefines architecture through sensory and immersive media. Developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, the project unfolds in two phases: first, transforming the interior of the Museo dell’Arte Classica in Rome into an experiential environment that fosters resilience and communal healing, and later evolving into a façade projection for La Notte dei Musei. ¹ Drawing on Mallgrave’s (2013) concept of the body as a neurological experience, the installation transcends traditional physical boundaries, establishing a dynamic spatial framework shaped by embodied interactions. By positioning installations as a form of architecture, this …

Chagos Archipelago, Claire Collins, David J. Curnick, Tom Letessier, Joanna Harris

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Higher Abundance Of Disturbance-Favoured Trees And Shrubs In European Temperate Woodlands Prior To The Late-Quaternary Extinction Of Megafauna, Elena A. Pearce, Florence Mazier, Ralph Fyfe, Charles W. Davison, Signe Normand, Maria Antonia Serge, Paolo Scussolini, Jens Christian Svenning

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

Large herbivorous mammals strongly influence vegetation structure by creating and maintaining open areas and causing disturbance within closed woody habitats. The herbivores alive today in Europe are only a small remnant of the large species that existed in high diversity and abundance before modern humans. The extinction of so many large herbivores during the last 50,000 years, and the loss of megaherbivores (body weight ≥1000 kg) from most of the continent before the Pleistocene–Holocene transition, is likely to have had cascading effects on vegetation structure and composition. To evaluate these effects within the European temperate forest biome, we examine the …

Piloting A Community Health And Well-Being Worker Model In Cornwall: A Guide For Implementation And Spread, John Tredinnick-Rowe, Richard Byng, Tamsyn Brown, Donna Chapman

Peninsula Medical School

Background: This paper evaluates the introduction of ten Community Health and Well-being Workers (CHWW) in four pilot sites across Cornwall. The period evaluated was from the initial start in June 2022 until June 2023, covering the project setup and implementation across a range of Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and Voluntary sector partners (VSCO). Methods: All ten CHWWs and their managers at each site were interviewed (n = 16) to understand the barriers and enablers to implementation and wider learning that could be captured around the project setup. Qualitative methods were used for data collection, including semi-structured interviews and focus groups. …

A Sentinel Watching Over Inter-Tidal Seagrass Phenology Across Western Europe And North Africa, Bede Ffinian Rowe Davies, Simon Oiry, Philippe Rosa, Maria Laura Zoffoli, Ana I. Sousa, Oliver R. Thomas, Dan A. Smale, Melanie C. Austen, Lauren Biermann, Martin J. Attrill, Alejandro Roman, Gabriel Navarro, Anne Laure Barillé, Nicolas Harin, Daniel Clewley, Victor Martinez-Vicente, Pierre Gernez, Laurent Barillé

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Seagrasses are marine flowering plants that form extensive meadows from the inter-tidal zone up to ~50 m depth. As biological and ecological Essential Biodiversity Variables, seagrass cover and composition provide a wide range of ecosystem services. Inter-tidal seagrass meadows provide services to many ecosystems, so monitoring their occurrence, extent, condition and diversity can be used to indicate the biodiversity and health of local ecosystems. Current global estimates of seagrass extent and recent reviews either do not mention inter-tidal seagrasses and their seasonal variation, or combine them with sub-tidal seagrasses. Here, using high-spatial and high-temporal resolution satellite data (Sentinel-2), we demonstrate …

Waves Of Flickering Murmurs In Everyday Life: Playing Between Ages, Joanna Haynes, Jan Georgeson, Karen Wickett, Mandy Andrews, Dani Landau, Kathrin Paal, Emma Bush, Magda Costa Carvalho, Viktor Johansson, Tiago Almeida, Lois Peach, Giovanna Caetano-Silva, Rose-Anne Reynolds, Bakhtawar Khosa, Patricia Hannam, Arthur C Wolf, Claudia Blandon, Georgios Petropoulos, Hanna Oester-Barkey

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

The article explores the rich and varied experiences of a collective writing project, unfolding through an anecdote involving Charlie, a young boy who creatively disrupted conventional pho-tography methods. This incident, during an evening promenade by the sea in Ericeira (Portugal), epitomizes the project's embrace of playfulness and exploration of diverse perspectives—materialized through Charlie's playful insistence on experimenting with different angles. The event embodied the group’s approach to writing, leading to a collective inquiry into the interplay of ages, angles, and other themes like waves, threads, shadows, and liminal spaces. The project, driven by the Between Ages Collective, began with informal …

The Impact Of Myosteatosis On Postoperative Outcomes And Survival Of Patients Undergoing Pancreatoduodenectomy For Suspected/Confirmed Malignancy, Paul Jenkins, Andrew Maccormick, Adam Streeter, Mark Puckett, Gemma Miles, Somaiah Aroori

Peninsula Medical School

BACKGROUNDS/AIMS: While the effects of myosteatosis are emerging, the evidence for its use as a predictor of outcomes in patients undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) still needs to be established. The study aims to evaluate the effect of myosteatosis on the shortand long-term outcomes of PD.

METHODS: We analyzed the effect of myosteatosis on the short- and long-term outcomes of patients who underwent PD between July 2006 and May 2013. Myosteatosis was measured retrospectively from preoperative computed tomography (CT) at the L3 vertebra level, and dichotomized as a binary exposure variable as < 38.5 Hounsfield unit (HU) for males, and < 36.1 HU for females.

RESULTS: A total of 214 patient (median age 62 years, …

Bridging High-Performance Work System And Hotel’S Innovation Performance: A Serial Mediation Of Human Resource Flexibility And Knowledge Absorptive Capacity, Saad Hassan, Fatima Tahir, Zeeshan Ahmed, Saqlain Raza, Muhammad Kashif Nawaz

Plymouth Business School

Purpose: The study advances research on the high-performance work system (HPWS) and innovation performance (IP) linkage by empirically analyzing the serial mediation of human resource flexibility (HRF) and knowledge absorptive capacity (KAC). Previous research on the HPWS–IP linkage underscores the presence of a “black box.” Therefore, the present study aims to unravel the underexplored HPWS–IP relationship through HRF and KAC mediation in the context of the hotel industry. Design/methodology/approach: Survey-based time-lagged data were collected from 303 mid-level managers in the hotel industry. Structural equation modeling (SEM) using Smart-PLS 4 was used to test hypothesized relationships. Findings: The results reveal that …

Digging For Literature On Tailoring Cultural Offers With And For Older People From Ethnic Minority Groups: A Scoping Review, Stephanie Tierney, Jordan Gorenberg, Marta Santillo, Debra Westlake, Geoffrey Wong, Kerryn Husk, Sofia Vougioukalou, Ruthanne Baxter, Shoba Dawson, Nia Roberts, Caroline Potter, Harriet Warburton, Beth Mcdougall, Johannah Latchem, Kamal R Mahtani

Peninsula Medical School

INTRODUCTION: Social prescribing addresses non-medical issues (e.g., loneliness, financial worries, housing problems) affecting physical and/or mental health. It involves connecting people to external support or services, including 'cultural offers'-events, groups and activities run within or by cultural organisations. Such offers need to be acceptable and accessible to diverse populations if forming part of a social prescription.

METHODS: A scoping review was conducted to identify what existing literature, conducted in the United Kingdom, tells us about tailoring cultural offers for older people (aged 60+ years) from ethnic minority groups. Relevant literature was searched for on electronic databases, through Google, via a …

Regeneration: A Collaborative Writing, Making, And Moving Inquiry, Melissa Dunlop, Alys Mendus, Mark Price, Karen Abadie, Laurinda Brown, Carol Laidler, Marian Liebmann, Marina Malthouse, Grace Mendus

School of Art, Design and Architecture

Nine members of the Collaborative Artful Narrative Inquiry network (CANI-net) gathered to explore a regenerative intention. This article tracks our interplay of writing, making, and moving together and questions that arose: How do we go about regenerating? Can we find openings to processes happening outside awareness? How does the refrain “now let’s write” act in relation to the un/intention of regeneration? Is our material, embodied co-presence regenerative? Answers were intimated through listening, touching hands, printmaking, and sculpting clay; in letting things be said and unsaid, writing as response, in making shapes and animal sounds, and dancing Zorba’s Dance.

“It’S Not Because They’Re Gypsy”: Practitioners Perspectives Of Gypsies, Travellers And Crime And Justice, Raegan Booth, Kirsty Koral, Kitty Lymperopoulou

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

In dominant public, political and media narratives of Gypsy and Traveller communities, they have often been associated with criminality, deviance, violence, idleness and reluctance to assimilate into settled society. A discourse of othering predicated on negative stereotypes further affect their marginalisation and social exclusion. This empirical article critically examines reflections on, and responses to, these dominant narratives among practitioners who have engaged with Gypsy and Travellers operationally and strategically, in relation to crime and criminal justice. We find evidence of compliance with dominant narratives which include perceptions that deny and minimise experiences of victimisation and racism, while also suggesting a …

An Evaluation Of A Multidisciplinary Care Planning Tool For People With Intellectual Disabilities And Behaviours Of Concern, Rohit Shankar

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

Exploring The Efficacy And Limitations Of Histogram-Based Fake Image Detection, Dirk Hölscher, Christoph Reich, Frank Gut, Martin Knahl, Nathan Clarke

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics

Generative image models pose challenges to image authenticity and trustworthiness, blurring the line between real and fake content. This paper addresses these concerns by proposing a histogram-based approach using pre-trained models (vgg16, ResNet50, Xception) to train classification networks for distinguishing real from generated images. Leveraging histograms derived from images, the method aims to accurately classify images as authentic or synthetic. Through experiments, the paper examines the effectiveness of the approach in mitigating the risks associated with fake contents widespread dissemination. Results demonstrate promising advancements in detecting image manipulation and preserving the integrity of visual information amidst the spread of generative …

Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy (Efp) And Well-Being: Exploring The Experiences Of Uk Military Veterans Using A Dialogical Narrative Approach, Imogen Campbell, David Murphy

School of Psychology

No abstract provided.