ABSTRACT
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the world struggled to address growing educational inequalities and fulfil the commitment to Sustainable Development Goal 4, which seeks to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. The pandemic has exacerbated these inequalities and changed how education functions, moving to online and hybrid methods. The challenges in global education highlighted and worsened by the pandemic make it necessary to re-evaluate education systems and the policies in place to support access, quality and equal opportunity. This article focuses on analysing education policies at a national level. It tests a pilot policy analysis tool, the International Education Index (IEI), developed as a starting point to begin this reconsideration and create an accessible and comprehensive way to evaluate national education systems to inform decision-making and policies in the new context. This research uses Ireland and Northern Ireland to test the IEI pilot tool. The IEI consists of 54 questions across nine indicators, including institutional frameworks, education strategies, digital skills and infrastructure, twenty-first century skills, access to basic social services, adherence to international standards, legal frameworks, data gathering and availability and international partnerships. Countries can score 108 points to be categorised as having developed, emerging or nascent national education systems. Ireland scored 94 and Northern Ireland 81, indicating that they have developed national education systems.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Community pharmacies are key in the delivery of care to people who use drugs (PWUD), providing specialist harm reduction, and treatment interventions such as naloxone, Injecting Equipment Provision and opiate replacement treatment. PWUD are disproportionately burdened with mental ill-health and frequently report trauma history which impacts on engagement. A successful approach in the homeless sector, is that of Psychologically Informed Environments (PIE). The core elements of a PIE are: creating a space which engenders a sense of safety and wellbeing;reflective practice so staff can develop a shared model of working;training and support for staff;and considering the therapeutic aspects of service provision to vulnerable people (1). Aim: This pilot study tested training pharmacy staff in applying a psychologically informed environments approach to improve the delivery of care to PWUD. Methods: Three pharmacies were recruited from those with high involvement with PWUD. A range of location and type of pharmacy were included. Whole pharmacy teams were invited to an evening training session. Bespoke training was provided by clinical psychologists with PIE expertise. Training was assessed by anonymous quantitative questionnaires using rating scales. Changes in the attitudes of staff were assessed by questionnaire before and 6 months after training. Descriptive statistics were applied. Qualitative interviews with staff at 6 months (planned for 3 months) explored what changes, were made after PIE training to adapt the delivery of care. The study used peer researcher-led telephone interviews for patient/client feedback on observed changes and experiences in participating pharmacies. Recruitment was via the three pharmacy teams due to covid restrictions. Thematic analysis was applied to qualitative data. Normalisation Process Theory provided a framework for assessing change. Results: Three pharmacies (16 staff) participated. Training evaluation was positive;all participants rating training structure and delivery as very good or excellent. Covid-19 lockdowns restricted follow-up data collection which took place at six months rather than three. Attitude scores were positive (>0) for all participants at baseline (median 15.0) increasing to 20.0 at 6 months. This was not statistically significant (S=4, p=0.549). Staff interviews revealed training had encouraged staff to reflect on communication and considered the impact of current practice which could be discriminatory e.g. their use of first names, use of private areas and level of explanation to people. The increased mental health challenges for patients from Covid-19 restrictions gave an opportunity for staff to apply their new skills to this patient group and others who were struggling with isolation, as staff across pharmacies noted mental health challenges for patients. Five patients from two pharmacies were interviewed but time delays in data collection meant changes in delivery of care were difficult to recall. Conclusion: The study was limited by small sample size and covid-related delays. However, findings indicated that training whole pharmacy teams in PIE was well received and justifies a larger study. The approach allowed staff to reflect on practice and identify previous, potentially discriminatory practice. The importance of clear and compassionate communication was evident.
ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has placed severe restrictions on people’s behavior worldwide with school closures in many countries. These closures have shifted education from the classroom to the home. This change is unprecedented, and home-schooling has placed substantial stress on families across the world. As of 9 April 2020, 1.57 billion children were being educated by families that had little or no experience of protracted home-schooling. An essential but neglected issue related to COVID-19 is the psychological impact of home-schooling on family wellbeing, especially considering the other stressors they are experiencing including social isolation, fears of infection, frustration, boredom, inadequate information, and financial stress. This study explores the impact of home-schooling on family psychological wellbeing during COVID-19. These findings will help develop supports and interventions for this population. Methods: An exploratory qualitative study will be conducted using semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of families (at least one parent and one child). Participants will be recruited using social media outlets, contacts of academic members and snowball sampling. Interviews will take place using Microsoft Teams and via telephone and recorded for transcription purposes. These transcripts will be analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Ethical approval has been granted by the Social Research Ethics Subcommittee (SRESC) Maynooth University (2407411). The Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) has funded the research with the COVID-19 rapid response grant. The dissemination of findings will be through open access journal publications, distribution of lay summaries, press release and policy papers. Discussion: The research findings will discuss the impact that home-schooling has had on family psychological wellbeing. It will examine how parents are managing their children’s education and learning while handling the other stresses associated with COVID-19. A deeper understanding of the impact of school closures and home-schooling on family processes is essential if the psychological wellbeing of families is to be protected and supported during challenging times such as health-related disasters. © The Author(s) 2020.