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Prolonged hospital admissions frequently overshadow the experience of gynaecological cancer patients. In East Kent, we identified obstacles in the inpatient journey through the hospital by performing a patient pathway mapping audit of admissions in May/June 2006 and 2007. We achieved substantial reductions in the length of stay for major gynaecological oncology surgery. The number of the lead consultant's patients with a total duration of admission of no more than 5 days increased from one of 28 in Q1 2006 (3.6%), to 17 of 28 (60.7%) in Q4 2007. Identified problems prolonging the length of stay included admission the day before surgery, prolonged use of i.v. antibiotics and late referrals to social services. Early discharge planning involving staff and patients as active participants has the greatest impact on reduction of duration of hospital admission. A reduction in duration of hospital admissions is associated with an increase in the rate of readmissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five studies tested whether intergroup contact reduces negative outgroup attitudes through a process of ingroup distancing. Based on the deprovincialization hypothesis and Social Dominance Theory, we hypothesized that the indirect effect of cross-group friendship on outgroup attitudes via reduced ingroup identification is moderated by individuals' Social Dominance Orientation (SDO), and occurs only for members of high status majority groups. We tested these predictions in three different intergroup contexts, involving conflictual relations between social groups in Germany (Study 1; N = 150; longitudinal Study 2: N = 753), Northern Ireland (Study 3: N = 160; Study 4: N = 1,948), and England (Study 5; N = 594). Cross-group friendship was associated with reduced ingroup identification and the link between reduced ingroup identification and improved outgroup attitudes was moderated by SDO (the indirect effect of cross-group friendship on outgroup attitudes via reduced ingroup only occurred for individuals scoring high, but not low, in SDO). Although there was a consistent moderating effect of SDO in high-status majority groups (Studies 1-5), but not low-status minority groups (Studies 3, 4, and 5), the interaction by SDO was not reliably stronger in high- than low-status groups. Findings are discussed in terms of better understanding deprovincialization effects of contact.

This research reported here speaks to a contentious debate concerning the potential negative consequences of diversity for trust. We tested the relationship between neighborhood diversity and out-group, in-group, and neighborhood trust, taking into consideration previously untested indirect effects via intergroup contact and perceived intergroup threat. A large-scale national survey in England sampled White British majority (N = 868) and ethnic minority (N = 798) respondents from neighborhoods of varying degrees of diversity. Multilevel path analyses showed some negative direct effects of diversity for the majority group but also confirmed predictions that diversity was associated indirectly with increased trust via positive contact and lower threat. These indirect effects had positive implications for total effects of diversity, cancelling out most negative direct effects. Our findings have relevance for a growing body of research seeking to disentangle effects of diversity on trust that has so far largely ignored the key role of intergroup contact.