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Biomedical subjects

K W Allen

Publications and source records attributed to K W Allen.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2002

Doncaster: the public health response to a local cluster of heterosexually acquired HIV infection.

In recent years, clusters of sexually transmitted HIV infection have attracted some media prominence in the UK. We describe our response to a local HIV cluster of five cases that acquired a high media profile. Practical difficulties encountered included: ensuring medical confidentiality in an outbreak control team which included many professional groups; handling a large volume of helpline calls; differing views on how specific health promotion should be; and the impact of summer leave on the control team's continuity. Following publicity, two further cases of HIV infection were found, bringing the total cluster to seven. Both later cases named the man at the centre of the cluster as a sexual partner. Of these two cases, one was local, identified as a direct result of the campaign. The other, living 170 miles distant in London, was identified as a result of increased media awareness. Eventually, the press named the man they thought to be the source case, which the outbreak control team had avoided doing. Good inter-disciplinary working made a co-ordinated public health response possible, and the 1,600 helpline calls dealt with served to reassure the public. Over 1,000 of the callers were advised to contact the Genito Urinary Medicine (GUM) department of their local hospital for counselling and testing of whom 772 took the advice. However, the longer-term effect on sexual behaviour was minimal as evidence by a subsequent survey.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Behavioural psychotherapy training for nurses in Australia: a pilot program.

This paper describes a pilot program that examined the feasibility of training for qualified mental health nurses in behavioural psychotherapy in response to the perceived need for improved client access to services. A 6-month course was conducted with four nurses from the in-patient mental health unit at Flinders Medical Centre, South Australia. They received a combination of workshop training and supervised practice by qualified and experienced nurse behavioural psychotherapists and were assessed throughout the period for clinical competency and level of knowledge in the subject. All four nurses completed the training satisfactorily. Each trainee treated four clients who presented with a range of anxiety disorders. The implications for further training of suitably qualified mental health professionals in the area are discussed.

Australia↗
PubMed1999

Administration of time-expired yellow fever vaccine: public health response and results of a serological investigation.

The discovery that a local travel clinic had administered 101 doses of time-expired yellow fever vaccine over a six month period prompted an immediate investigation in order to advise vaccinees about to travel to areas where yellow fever is endemic. No data were available to provide adequate reassurance about the potential efficacy of time-expired vaccine, so a rapid serological investigation was conducted, which provided evidence that the yellow fever vaccine had remained potent beyond its expiry date.

Antibodies, Viral↗
PubMed1999

Legionella pneumonia from a novel industrial aerosol.

After a worker from a plastics factory was diagnosed with legionella pneumonia it was learnt that a retired employee at the factory had been in hospital with a serious chest infection six months before and legionella pneumonia was diagnosed in retrospect from stored serum. The likeliest common source was a machine cooling system that took water from an uncovered water tank outdoors (from which Legionella pneumophila was isolated) and which generated an aerosol through a crack in the flow meter sight glass.

Aerosols↗
PubMed1997

Sterilization of instruments in general practice: what does it entail?

There is increasing interest amongst general practitioners in carrying out minor surgical procedures but it is unclear what resources are available for this. We decided to assess the level of knowledge of sterilization and the use of benchtop sterilisers in general practice by circulating a postal questionnaire to the 883 general practices in the Trent Regional Health Authority. The response rate was 49%. Minor surgical procedures were performed in 86% of practices but less than half of respondents understood what was meant by sterilization, 28% considered that the floor of the surgery should be disinfected or sterilised and 13% believed that immersion in 2% glutaraldehyde for 10 min constituted sterilization. 93% had a benchtop steriliser, only a quarter kept a log book, and approximately a third had it serviced at intervals of one year or longer. Less than 50% understood the correct position in which a bowl or kidney dish should be placed and 41% had used or had access to a local sterile services department. The concept of sterilization is not clearly understood and the use of benchtop sterilisers in Trent is suboptimal. On-going education of staff in primary care is required and consideration should be given to a system of accreditation.

England↗
PubMed1996

Chronic nailbiting: a controlled comparison of competing response and mild aversion treatments.

Recent studies have suggested that competing response, an abridged version of Azrin and Nunn's (1973) habit reversal method (Behaviour Research and Therapy, 11, 619-628), is a key component in the treatment of chronic nailbiting (Horne & Wilkinson, 1980, Behaviour Research and Therapy, 18, 287-291; Silber & Haynes, 1992, Behaviour Research and Therapy, 30, 15-22). This study replicated and extended the latter by adding an 8 week follow-up period and by using a non-student sample. Forty-five chronic nailbiter Ss were divided into three experimental groups. One method involved the use of mild aversion in which Ss painted a bitter substance on their nails. A second method required the subject to perform a competing response whenever they had the urge to nailbite or found themselves biting their nails. Both methods included self-monitoring of the behaviour and a third group of Ss performed self-monitoring alone as a control condition. The study lasted 12 weeks. Mild aversion resulted in significant improvements in nail length, with the competing response method just failing to show significance in this regard. There was no significant improvement for the control group. The implications for further study and the benefits of competing response in the light of these findings are discussed in terms of treatment success and use of therapist time.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

The prevalence of multiple sclerosis in the health district of Bassetlaw.

Planning by norms for health services means than any significant variation of need observed in a district must be quantified and taken into account. A postal questionnaire to all health care groups who might be giving a service to sufferers from Multiple Sclerosis yielded 182 names, representing 98 individual patients, a prevalence of 98 per 100,000 total population, 22% over the expected number based on other published sources and almost up to what would have been considered the exceptional levels in the Orkneys. General Practitioners notified 51% of cases; a higher proportion than any other group. Community occupational therapists, hospital medical records and the community nursing service accounted for nearly all the others.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Design of an actively controlled snow ski release binding.

A new electronic ski binding has been designed which may better protect skiers from lower extremity injuries. A four-step procedure for developing binding release criteria aimed at preventing specific injuries is outlined. Using simplified biomechanical models, the release criteria for tibia fracture in both torsion and flexion are derived. A binding design which embodies the derived release criteria is described. The binding consists of three subsystems: 1) a dynamometer, 2) an analog computer controller, and 3) an electromechanical release mechanism. The strain gage dynamometer directly measures torsion and bending moments between the boot and ski. An analog computer controlled processes dynamometer signals. Dual release mode capability is achieved by parallel solution of differential equations which model the leg in both medial-lateral rotation and flexion. When the model solution reaches a critical value, the controller actuates the release mechanism. The release mechanism incorporates a unique closed circuit hydraulic system which rigidly locks the boot to the ski until release. Laboratory tests on a prototype confirm that the computer-controlled binding prevents inadvertent release under noninjurious high-magnitude, short-duration loads but releases before quasi-static loads reach injurious levels.

Athletic Injuries↗