Biomedical subjects

Kathryn Jones

Publications and source records attributed to Kathryn Jones.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Leading an empowered organization (LEO): does it work?

Leading an empowered organization (LEO) is a three-day course that has been delivered to over 40,000 front-line managers in the NHS, among them many district nurses. The aim of this review was to identify and assess all published literature about LEO; to critically appraise such evidence relating to the impact of LEO on participants' leadership behaviour and to critically appraise any evidence of the need for follow-up activities to sustain participants learning. Because of the limited quantity and quality of research literature (n = 6) it was considered legitimate to also include discussion papers (n = 2) and descriptive papers (n = 4) in the review. All papers are reviewed using a framework devised by the author broadly based on the critical appraisal checklist for qualitative research (Greenhalgh and Donald, 2000). From the available evidence it can be concluded that the LEO programme does have a positive impact on the leadership behaviour of participants, and that follow-up activities are valuable to consolidate and sustain participants' learning.

Community Health Nursing↗

PubMed2004

Health consumer groups in the UK: a new social movement?

This paper argues that a health consumer movement has developed in the United Kingdom over the last decade. Drawing on two empirical studies of groups that promote and/or represent the interests of patients, users and carers, it argues that groups formed by people with personal experience of a condition are now more widespread. Feelings of pain and loss can lead to the identification of others in a similar position, and to the formation of groups and action in the political sphere. Research shows that groups share a common discourse and follow similar participative practices, and there is extensive networking. Informal and formal alliances have formed to pursue joint action and indicate a wider health consumer movement. As governments have also increased the opportunities for participation, this has the potential for patients and carers to shape services in ways more responsive to their needs.

Community Participation↗

PubMed2004

Influencing the national policy process: the role of health consumer groups.

INTRODUCTION: Whilst recent research has focused on consumer involvement at local level in the UK, there have been few studies of the representation of user, carer and patients' interests nationally. This paper concentrates on the role of health consumer groups in representing the collective interests of patients, users and carers in the national policy process. METHODS: The research consisted of (a) a semi-structured postal questionnaire survey of 123 health consumer groups; (b) semi-structured interviews with key informants from 39 health consumer groups; and (c) semi-structured interviews with 31 policy actors. RESULTS: Health consumer groups were diverse in their origins, scope and structure, and undertook a wide range of activities relating to policy and service provision. Whilst around half the groups described their primary purpose as service provision, over four-fifths identified influencing policy at national level as 'very important' or 'important'. Health consumer groups had developed relationships with civil servants, ministers, MPs and peers to widen their policy objectives. Key facilitators in the policy process included experiential knowledge, relationships with policy makers and working in alliances with other health consumer groups or other stakeholders. Key barriers included problems relating to the political agenda, problems with the consultation process, lack of resources and working within a context of unequal power relationships. CONCLUSION: Health consumer groups are becoming increasingly involved in the health policy process and collectively are becoming an increasingly influential stakeholder. They have a key role to play in ensuring that the patient, user and carer voice is heard in the policy process.

Community Participation↗

PubMed2003

The largest protein observed to fold by two-state kinetic mechanism does not obey contact-order correlation.

To probe the folding-energy landscape for a very large protein, we used Borrelia burgdorferi VlsE as a model. VlsE is a single-domain, predominantly alpha-helical protein with 341 residues. Remarkably, time-resolved folding and unfolding processes for VlsE follow two-state behavior. VlsE is by far the largest protein characterized that folds by a two-state kinetic mechanism. Thus, the common rule of thumb, that proteins larger than 110 residues fold by complex, multistate kinetic mechanisms, must be used with caution. In contrast with smaller helical proteins, the folding speed in water for VlsE is slow (5 +/- 2 s-1, pH 7, 20 degrees C) and does not agree (by 4 orders of magnitude in different directions) with the speeds predicted on the basis of native-state contact order and the topomer-search model. It is therefore questionable if the barrier height for folding is defined by gross topology for large two-state folders.

Antigens, Bacterial↗

PubMed2002

Patient involvement. Hearing voices.

The government's proposals for public and patient involvement in the NHS seem more robust than the current structures. They involve a greater degree of accountability. They represent some consensus among health consumer groups.

Community Participation↗

PubMed2002

Health care clinicians in sexual health medicine: focus on erectile dysfunction.

A consensus guidelines model was developed for managing erectile dysfunction (ED) by urology nurses and other health care clinicians. The model emphasizes identification of ED in all males older than 40, education and counseling as keys to intervention, and inclusion of partners whenever possible. These guidelines are intended to provide a comprehensive care model for ED patients and their partners, which would be optimally cost effective and clinically relevant. If successful, this new model will allow quality sexual health care to be provided to increasing numbers of patients and their partners.

Counseling↗

PubMed2001

Formation of a linear [3Fe-4S] cluster in a seven-iron ferredoxin triggered by polypeptide unfolding.

Cubic iron-sulfur ([Fe-S]) clusters are common inorganic cofactors in proteins. The presence of a linear [3Fe-4S] cluster in a protein was first observed in beef-heart aconitase at high pH, where the protein structure was perturbed. Not long ago, the same linear cluster was discovered upon unfolding of a thermophilic di-cluster seven-iron ferredoxin, suggesting a more general relevance for this type of linear clusters in Nature. Since structure-induced cluster rearrangements may be important regulatory, on-going processes in living systems, we decided to further characterize the formation of the linear iron-sulfur cluster observed upon ferredoxin unfolding. Here we present a kinetic investigation of parameters that affect the linear-cluster formation and disassembly in the Sulfolobus acidocaldarius seven-iron ferredoxin. We find the linear cluster to be an intermediate on the protein-mediated cluster-degradation pathway under a wide range of pH and denaturant conditions. The linear species forms in parallel with secondary-structure disappearance. In contrast, the disassembly rate constant for the linear cluster is independent of denaturant concentration but depends strongly on solution pH. At high pH, the disassembly rate is slower and the linear iron-sulfur species has a longer lifetime, than at low pH.

Circular Dichroism↗