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Against the backdrop of the many social ills affecting the country, South Africa continues to makestrides in the creation of a non-racist, non-sexist and non-violent society. The media’s role inthis endeavour is important. Hence, this research examined whether the media in South Africaoffered alternatives to violence in their coverage of the municipal protests recorded between 2009and 2011. The research revealed that the media’s coverage of these protests was narrow andpartial. In order for the coverage to be holistic, it is critical that the media go beyond reportingthe violence, its causes and its effects to offering alternatives to violence. However, offeringalternatives to violence is not the magic tool to prevent or even stop violence – it is a professionalactivity that highlights the key issues the media could focus on in order fully to inform the audiencein the public interest. It is also about socially responsible media.

Blast-induced traumatic brain injury (bTBI) is common in veterans of the Iraq- and Afghanistan-era conflicts. However, the typical subtlety of neural alterations and absence of definitive biomarkers impede clinical detection on conventional imaging. This preliminary study examined the structure and functional correlates of executive control network (ECN) white matter in veterans to investigate the clinical utility of using high-definition fiber tracking (HDFT) to detect chronic bTBI. Demographically similar male veterans (N = 38) with and without bTBI (ages 24 to 50 years) completed standardized neuropsychological testing and magnetic resonance imaging. Quantitative HDFT metrics of subcortical-dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) tracts were derived. Moderate-to-large group effects were observed on HDFT metrics. Relative to comparisons, bTBI demonstrated elevated quantitative anisotropy (QA) and reduced right hemisphere volume of all examined tracts, and reduced fiber count and increased generalized fractional anisotropy in the right DLPFC-putamen tract and DLPFC-thalamus, respectively. The Group × Age interaction effect on DLPFC-caudate tract volume was large; age negatively related to volume in the bTBI group, but not comparison group. Groups performed similarly on the response inhibition measure. Performance (reaction time and commission errors) robustly correlated with HDFT tract metrics (QA and tract volume) in the comparison group, but not bTBI group. Results support anomalous density and integrity of ECN connectivity, particularly of the right DLPFC-putamen pathway, in bTBI. Results also support exacerbated aging in veterans with bTBI. Similar ECN function despite anomalous microstructure could reflect functional compensation in bTBI, although alternate interpretations are explored.

News media play a fundamental role in shaping discourses across a wide range of public interests. This chapter analyses how issues of migration are reported by 14 online news media in four African countries, namely South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Tanzania. The media were monitored and analysed over a six-month period. Results indicate that in all four countries, stories about migration were dominated by political and legal approaches, and by the voices and views of the sociopolitical elite. The coverage failed to explore the opinions of the very people most affected by migration and thus presented a very narrow and simplistic view of migration issues.

Programme card In the UK, total adult physical activity has fallen from 216 Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET)-hours per week in 1961 to 173 MET-hours per week in 2005 (a 20% decline).1 If current …

Human health depends on nature. This is a basic statement on which the fundaments of this book rest. Functional and diverse ecosystems, from which we derive fresh air and water, soil to grow food, timber to build houses, settings for play and recreation, are a prerequisite for human health and survival. The latest centuries’ unprecedented speed in societal and environmental changes has come to threaten the health of natural environments and by this threatening our own health. While we cannot, and should not, reverse the trend of sound development, we need to find better and healthier ways to interact with nature—in urban as well as in non-urban areas. This chapter will give a background to this book’s development and put the topic of nature and public health into a broad, outreaching context. It also presents an overview of the book’s full content, giving a brief description of each chapter.

Disconnection from nature seems to increase the risk of chronic stress. This is followed by a range of deleterious influences on our bodily systems. Many of these changes are related to chronic inflammation. This chapter evolves around the premise that natural environments are prerequisites for resilience to the various stressors of our daily lives. If our resilience and coping mechanisms are insufficient, we are at risk of entering a vicious circle of negative organ reactions and feedback loops. As stress is prolonged, stress hormones and poor health behaviour are followed by alterations in the gut microbiota and an increase in visceral fat. These reactions lead to damage of the cells’ mitochondria from oxidative stress and release of reactive oxidative species. Finally, the results of oxidative damage and chronic inflammation lead to the shortening of telomeres, the DNA-proteins which protect the chromosomes. Shorter telomeres are associated with accelerated ageing and disease.

Natural environments have been used in healthcare for centuries. Modern approaches to incorporating nature in treatment include a range of methods, often named with the umbrella term ‘green care’. Nature can be seen either as a setting for the intervention (nature based), or as an integral part (nature-assisted). Common methods are horticultural therapy, care farming, green exercise, and wilderness therapy. A multitude of variations exists and there is yet no standardized protocol for how a nature-based or nature-assisted intervention shall be designed for a given diagnosis. Traditionally, green care has been used in mental healthcare, with some good results for symptoms of depression and schizophrenia. Green care has also been implied as rehabilitation after stroke and myocardial events, as well as for patients with autism, learning disabilities, dementia, and behavioural problems. Most research studies show positive results, but the current lack of consistently robust evidence prevents broader implementation.

There is a shift in healthcare from treatment of diseases based on the medical model, to a more holistic approach based on prevention and health promotion, using social and environmental factors that impact on an individual to improve their health and prevent disease. This shift is in response to the rapid rise in long-term conditions such as obesity, diabetes, dementia, and mental illness. Healthcare professionals are only slowly adjusting to this shift of healthcare and in this chapter we will look at how the healthcare professional can connect patients with green space to help them increase physical activity and reduce stress. Four initiatives have been used to illustrate how healthcare professionals can engage patients with nature to help tackle the main disease burden.

To realize the potential value of tractography in traumatic brain injury (TBI), we must identify metrics that provide meaningful information about functional outcomes. The current study explores quantitative metrics describing the spatial properties of tractography from advanced diffusion imaging (High Definition Fiber Tracking, HDFT). In a small number of right-handed males from military TBI (N = 7) and civilian control (N = 6) samples, both tract homologue symmetry and tract spread (proportion of brain mask voxels contacted) differed for several tracts among civilian controls and extreme groups in the TBI sample (high scorers and low scorers) for verbal recall, serial reaction time, processing speed index, and trail-making. Notably, proportion of voxels contacted in the arcuate fasciculus distinguished high and low performers on the CVLT-II and PSI, potentially reflecting linguistic task demands, and GFA in the left corticospinal tract distinguished high and low performers in PSI and Trail Making Test Part A, potentially reflecting right hand motor response demands. The results suggest that, for advanced diffusion imaging, spatial properties of tractography may add analytic value to measures of tract anisotropy.

Climate change can be viewed as human-induced change to climate and depletion of natural systems. It potentially the biggest global health threat of the 21st century.1 It is predicted to have wide-ranging impacts upon human mental health and well-being, through changes and challenges to people’s environment, socioeconomic structures and physical security. Even the most conservative estimates of the health impacts are extremely alarming. Increasingly, the causes of poor human health and environmental damage are related. This implies that there are common solutions. For example, there are co-benefits to human health and biodiversity from mitigating and adapting to climate change (e.g. promoting active transport and reducing car use reduces CO2 emissions, benefits our environment and reduces morbidity and mortality associated with a sedentary lifestyle). This article outlines how climate change impacts upon mental health and well-being. It introduces ecological concepts, applies these to public health and outlines their implications in transforming the way that we prioritize and deliver public health in order to promote both environmental and human health. Evidence, from psychology and neuroscience, suggests that the perception of being disconnected from our inner selves, from each other and from our environment has contributed to poor mental and physical health. We argue that we must transform the way we understand mental health and well-being and integrate it into action against climate change. We describe a Public Health Framework for Developing Well-Being, based on the principles of ecological public health.

There is an urgent, unmet demand for definitive biological diagnosis of traumatic brain injury (TBI) to pinpoint the location and extent of damage. We have developed High-Definition Fiber Tracking, a 3 T magnetic resonance imaging-based diffusion spectrum imaging and tractography analysis protocol, to quantify axonal injury in military and civilian TBI patients. A novel analytical methodology quantified white matter integrity in patients with TBI and healthy controls. Forty-one subjects (23 TBI, 18 controls) were scanned with the High-Definition Fiber Tracking diffusion spectrum imaging protocol. After reconstruction, segmentation was used to isolate bilateral hemisphere homologues of eight major tracts. Integrity of segmented tracts was estimated by calculating homologue correlation and tract coverage. Both groups showed high correlations for all tracts. TBI patients showed reduced homologue correlation and tract spread and increased outlier count (correlations2.32 SD below control mean). On average, 6.5% of tracts in the TBI group were outliers with substantial variability among patients. Number and summed deviation of outlying tracts correlated with initial Glasgow Coma Scale score and 6-month Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended score. The correlation metric used here can detect heterogeneous damage affecting a low proportion of tracts, presenting a potential mechanism for advancing TBI diagnosis.

Background: Cold weather is associated with increases in mortality and demands on hospital services in the UK, particularly by the elderly. Less is known about the relationship with patterns of consultation in primary care. We wished to determine the magnitude and consistency of associations between cold temperature and consultations for respiratory conditions in primary care settings at different sites in the UK. Methods: Time series analysis of any short-term effects of temperature on daily general practitioner (GP) consultations made by elderly people (65+ years) for lower and upper respiratory tract infections (LRTI, URTI) over a 10-year period, 1992–2001. Practices were situated in 16 urban locations across the UK where a Met Office monitoring station was in operation. Results: An association between low temperatures and an increase in LRTI consultations was observed in all 16 locations studied. The biggest increase was estimated for the Norwich practices for which a 19.0% increase in LRTI consultations (95% CI 13.6, 24.7) was associated with every 1 °C drop in mean temperature below 5 °C observed 0–20 days before the day of consultation. Slightly weaker relationships were observed in the case of URTI consultations. A north/south gradient, with larger temperature effects in the north, was in evidence for both LRTI and URTI consultations. Conclusions: An effect that was consistent and generally strongest in populations in the north was observed between cold temperature and respiratory consultations. Better understanding of the mechanisms by which cold weather is associated with increases in consultations for respiratory infections could lead to improved strategies for prevention and reduced burdens for health services.

Background Active travel to school can be an important contributor to the total physical activity of children but levels have declined and more novel approaches are required to stimulate this as an habitual behaviour. The aim of this mixed methods study was to investigate the feasibility of an international walk to school competition supported by novel swipecard technology to increase children’s walking to/from school. Methods Children aged 9–13 years old participated in an international walk to school competition to win points for themselves, their school and their country over a 4-week period. Walks to and from school were recorded using swipecard technology and a bespoke website. For each point earned by participants, 1 pence (£0.01) was donated to the charity of the school’s choice. The primary outcome was number of walks to/from school objectively recorded using the swipecard tracking system over the intervention period. Other measures included attitudes towards walking collected at baseline and week 4 (post-intervention). A qualitative sub-study involving focus groups with children, parents and teachers provided further insight. Results A total of 3817 children (mean age 11.5 ± SD 0.7) from 12 schools in three cities (London and Reading, England and Vancouver, Canada) took part in the intervention, representing a 95% intervention participation rate. Results show a gradual decline in the average number of children walking to and from school over the 4-week period (week 1 mean 29% ± SD2.5; week 2 mean 18% ± SD3.6; week 3 mean 14% ± SD4.0; week 4 mean 12% ± SD1.1). Post intervention, 97% of children felt that walking to school helped them stay healthy, feel happy (81%) and stay alert in class (76%). These results are supported by qualitative findings from children, parents and teachers. Key areas for improvement include the need to incorporate strategies for maintenance of behaviour change into the intervention and also to adopt novel methods of data collection to increase follow-up rates. Conclusions This mixed methods study suggests that an international walk to school competition using innovative technology can be feasibly implemented and offers a novel way of engaging schools and motivating children to walk to school. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13104-014-0959-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Over the last few decades, structural imaging techniques of the human brain have undergone significant strides. High resolution provided by recent developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows improved detection of injured regions in patients with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). In addition, diffusion imaging techniques such as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has gained much interest recently due to its possible utility in detecting structural integrity of white matter pathways in mild TBI (mTBI) cases. However, the results from recent DTI studies in mTBI patients remain equivocal. Also, there are important shortcomings for DTI such as limited resolution in areas of multiple crossings and false tract formation. The detection of white matter damage in concussion remains challenging, and development of imaging biomarkers for mTBI is still in great need. In this chapter, we discuss our experience with high-definition fiber tracking (HDFT), a diffusion spectrum imaging-based technique. We also discuss ongoing developments and specific advantages HDFT may offer concussion patients.

Over the last few decades, structural imaging techniques of the human brain have undergone significant strides. High resolution provided by recent developments in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows improved detection of injured regions in patients with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). In addition, diffusion imaging techniques such as diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has gained much interest recently due to its possible utility in detecting structural integrity of white matter pathways in mild TBI (mTBI) cases. However, the results from recent DTI studies in mTBI patients remain equivocal. Also, there are important shortcomings for DTI such as limited resolution in areas of multiple crossings and false tract formation. The detection of white matter damage in concussion remains challenging, and development of imaging biomarkers for mTBI is still in great need. In this chapter, we discuss our experience with high-definition fiber tracking (HDFT), a diffusion spectrum imaging-based technique. We also discuss ongoing developments and specific advantages HDFT may offer concussion patients.

The article reviews the books, “Hybrid Factory: The Japanese Production System in the United States,” edited by Tetsuo Abo, “The Japanese Firm: Sources of Competitive Strength,” edited by Masahiko Aoki and Ronald Dore, and “Does Ownership Matter: Japanese Multinationals in Europe,” edited by Mark Mason and Dennis Encarnation.

This study examines linkages between business strategy and human resource management (HRM) strategy in Japanese subsidiaries in the U.S. It investigates whether or not fit between a subsidiary's business strategy and its HRM strategy is associated with higher performance. The data show that subsidiaries with matched strategies performed better than unmatched ones in terms of HRM-related performance measures such as rates of promotion and turnover. Japanese subsidiaries with a business strategy/HRM strategy match were also more likely to experience better business performance versus competitors than were unmatched ones.© 1995 JIBS. Journal of International Business Studies (1995) 26, 23–46

Background: Hospital admissions for exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) impact considerably on disease evolution and healthcare provision. Building on previous studies, this study postulated that COPD patients could be stratified by risk of admission to determine which groups provide the greatest burden on resources, and how interventions should be targeted to prevent admissions.Methods: COPD admissions during 1997-2003 in three Strategic Health Authorities in England were analysed (n = 80,291). Patients admitted during winter (1 November-31 March) were stratified into three groups according to the number of admissions during the previous year: 0 (NIL), 1-2 (MOD) or >= 3 (FRQ). Winter weeks were classified as "average", "above average", "high", or "very high" risk, compared with the long-term mean.Results: The risk of admission during winter for FRQ and MOD patients was 40% and 12% respectively. NIL patients contributed to 70% of winter admissions, and 90% of the variation between "average" and "very high" weeks, versus 9% and 1% for MOD and FRQ.Conclusions: Patients with no previous admissions have lower individual risk, but contribute to a high overall. utilisation of health care resources and should be targeted to prevent admissions. Focusing upon high-risk patients (frequent attenders or more severe) may only reduce a small proportion of admissions, and therefore clinicians should ensure that all. COPD patients receive appropriate therapy to reduce risk of exacerbations. Crown Copyright (c) 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Parchmore Partnership, London, audited 11 evidence-based criteria relating to patient knowledge and COPD morbidity during December 2004 to March 2005 using questionnaires and practice records. 32 patients with moderate to severe COPD participated, and during the project they received information and extra care. Patient knowledge and clinical indicators showed significant improvements. Crown Copyright

The University of California, San Francisco School of Dentistry wanted to determine if a predental school manual dexterity test predicts: 1) subsequent grades in preclinical restorative courses, and 2) faculty perceptions of satisfactory performance in these skills that would indicate the student is ready to advance to the clinic. The study population was comprised of all 244 applicants admitted to UCSF School of Dentistry's D.D.S. program from Classes of 2000 to 2002 and who matriculated into the program. The manual dexterity test (MDT) consisted of a two-hour block-carving test. Three preclinical faculty, three clinical faculty, and two basic science faculty graded the blocks. Even after instruction and calibration, faculty varied greatly in their grading (intra-rater reliability kappa statistics ranging from 0.34 to 1.00). Two of three preclinical raters gave No Passes for the MDT in 9.8 percent of the incoming, first-year dental students. Of these twenty-three students, only four (17 percent) were in the lower 10 percent of their classes according to their five preclinical restorative laboratory courses after two years, and four (33 percent) were among the twelve students the three preclinical laboratory directors identified as laboratory cautions. The MDT did not significantly (p=0.342) predict students in the bottom 10 percent after five restorative preclinical laboratory courses, above and beyond current admissions criteria. Among current admissions criteria, PAT score was the only item at least moderately correlated with preclinical average percentile class rank (Spearman correlation = 0.34). In conclusion, the MDT did not appear to add information to the current admissions criteria.

Study objective: To compare health walks, a community based lay-led walking scheme versus advice\ud only on physical activity and cardiovascular health status in middle aged adults.\ud Design: Randomised controlled trial with one year follow up. Physical activity was measured by questionnaire.\ud Other measures included attitudes to exercise, body mass index, cholesterol, aerobic capacity,\ud and blood pressure.\ud Setting: Primary care and community.\ud Participants: 260 men and women aged 40–70 years, taking less than 120 minutes of moderate\ud intensity activity per week.\ud Main results: Seventy three per cent of people completed the trial. Of these, the proportion increasing\ud their activity above 120 minutes of moderate intensity activity per week was 22.6% in the advice only\ud and 35.7% in the health walks group at 12 months (between group difference =13% (95% CI 0.003%\ud to 25.9%) p=0.05). Intention to treat analysis, using the last known value for missing cases,\ud demonstrated smaller differences between the groups (between group difference =6% (95% CI -5% to\ud 16.4%)) with the trend in favour of health walks. There were improvements in the total time spent and\ud number of occasions of moderate intensity activity, and aerobic capacity, but no statistically significant\ud differences between the groups. Other cardiovascular risk factors remained unchanged.\ud Conclusions: There were no significant between group differences in self reported physical activity at\ud 12 month follow up when the analysis was by intention to treat. In people who completed the trial,\ud health walks was more effective than giving advice only in increasing moderate intensity activity above\ud 120 minutes per week.

For much of the history of international business, academics have focused on the foreign direct investment decision. While the decision to expand overseas is an important one, it is only the first step in a long journey for multinational company (MNC) managers. Setting up the necessary systems for managing the overseas affiliate and ensuring that it contributes to organisational goals are much longer-term, more complicated issues that have only recently received the scholarly attention they deserve.

The article presents a review of the book “Remade in America: Transplanting and Transforming Japanese Management Systems,” edited by Jeffrey K. Liker, W. Mark Fruin and Paul S. Adler.

Background – We combined a large clinical stroke registry with the UK Met Office database to assess the association between meteorological variables and specific clinical subtypes of acute stroke. Methods – We used negative binomial regression and Poisson regression techniques to explore the effect of meteorological values to hospital with acute stroke. Differential effects of atmospheric conditions upon stroke subtypes were also investigated. Results – Data from 6389 patients with acute stroke were examined. The mean age (SD) was 71.2 (13.0) years. About 5723 (90%) patients suffered ischaemic stroke of which 1943 (34%) were lacunar. Six hundred and sixty-six patients (10%) had haemorrhagic stroke. Every 1°C increase in mean temperature during the preceding 24 h was associated with a 2.1% increase in ischaemic stroke admissions (P = 0.004). A fall in atmospheric pressure over the preceding 48 h was associated with increased rate of haemorrhagic stroke admissions (P = 0.045). Higher maximum daily temperature gave a greater increase in lacunar stroke admissions than in other ischaemic strokes (P = 0.035). Conclusion – We report a measurable effect of atmospheric conditions upon stroke incidence in a temperate climate.