Immunocompromised children and young people are at no increased risk of severe COVID-19.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to prospectively describe the incidence and clinical spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 infection in immunocompromised paediatric patients in the UK. METHODS: From March 2020 to 2021 weekly questionnaires were sent to immunocompromised paediatric patients or their parents. Information, including symptom presentation and SARS-CoV-2 PCR test results, was collected from 1527 participants from 46 hospitals. Cross-sectional serology was investigated in February and March 2021. RESULTS: Until the end of September 2020, no cases were reported. From September 28th 2020 to March 2021 a total of 38 PCR-detected SARS-CoV-2 infections were reported. Of these, four children were admitted to hospital but none had acute severe COVID-19. Increasing age in association with immunodeficiency increased reporting of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Worsening of fever, cough, and sore throat were associated with participants reporting SARS-CoV-2 infection. Serology data included 452 unvaccinated participants. In those reporting prior positive SARS-CoV-2 PCR, there were detectable antibodies in 9 of 18 (50%). In those with no prior report of infection, antibodies were detected in 32 of 434 (7•4%). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows SARS-CoV-2 infections have occurred in immunocompromised children and young people with no increased risk of severe disease. No children died.

eScience for molecular-scale simulations and the eMinerals project.

We review the work carried out within the eMinerals project to develop eScience solutions that facilitate a new generation of molecular-scale simulation work. Technological developments include integration of compute and data systems, developing of collaborative frameworks and new researcher-friendly tools for grid job submission, XML data representation, information delivery, metadata harvesting and metadata management. A number of diverse science applications will illustrate how these tools are being used for large parameter-sweep studies, an emerging type of study for which the integration of computing, data and collaboration is essential.

Density functional calculations of the properties of silicon-substituted hydroxyapatite.

Ab initio density functional plane-wave calculations are performed on silicon-substituted hydroxyapatite (SiHA). Formation energies are obtained for the substitution of a phosphorus atom by a silicon atom in each of the six phosphate groups of the unit cell in turn. It is found that the co-removal of a hydroxyl group to maintain charge neutrality is energetically favourable and the calculated unit cell volumes for the single silicon substitutions agree extremely well with experimental observation. The substitution of a second silicon atom in the unit cell is found to be almost as energetically favourable as the first (and on one site more favourable) and there can be an attractive interaction between the two Si substituents when they are closely separated. However, experimental observation suggests that for this concentration of silicon a phase transformation to a different structure occurs which, because of the imposed boundary conditions, could not be accessed in the calculations. The density of states of the SiHA indicates that new states are introduced deep into the valence band and the band gap decreases by 1.6 eV compared to phase-pure HA. No new states are introduced into the band gap indicating that the Si incorporation does not make the material inherently electrically active. Furthermore a population analysis shows that the Si impurity has only a small effect on the neighbouring ionic charge.

A health promotion practicum targeting the college-age population.

Senior and sophomore baccalaureate nursing students at the University of Kentucky developed a health promotion exposition that targeted college students. This experience gave senior students the opportunity to practice leadership and management skills, such as planning, organizing, collaborating, delegating, evaluating, and time management and conflict resolution. Sophomore students developed teaching abilities, practiced assessment and communication techniques, and increased their knowledge of health-promoting behaviors. Both groups experienced team building and demonstrated accountability. Students reported a positive learning experience that met various course objectives in an innovative way.

Nursing law violations. A threat to competent and safe nursing practice.

Nurse Practice Act violations pose threats to consumers of nursing services and lead to disciplinary actions against nurses by boards of nursing. To analyze nursing law violations, the actions and decisions of boards of nursing, and evaluate trends in negligent and unsafe nursing practice, the authors reviewed nursing law violations as well as rates of recidivism among nurses who received actions against their nursing licenses in Kentucky. The authors discuss how their findings can assist nurse administrators in investigating nurse care givers before employment and in initiating safeguards against nurse violations that affect client safety.

Academia as partner in organizational change.

Partnerships are valuable strategies for promoting organizational change. Collaboration between academia and service can provide rapid access to new clinical service delivery mechanisms and real-world laboratories for implementing and testing novel approaches to care delivery. Academic-service partnerships also provide opportunities for work force development. One example of a partnership is described in this article. Details of a Nursing Care Management Institute illustrate principles of good practice for community-campus partnerships.

Nursing home patients: liaison nurse visits influence recidivism.

1. Nursing home residents who were visited at least once every 60 days by VA nurses (who were master's prepared and had experience in gerontological nursing) had fewer emergency room visits and hospital readmissions than those who were not visited. 2. The establishment of a good rapport between the liaison nurses and the nursing home staff was essential in initiating nursing interventions. 3. The recommendations most often made by the liaison nurses to the nursing home staff were for collaborative actions with other disciplines.

Decreased rehospitalization costs through intermittent nursing visits to nursing home patients.

This study determined if visits by a nurse to patients in contract nursing homes would reduce the cost of patient returns to the discharging medical center. The authors discuss an approach that reduced readmissions and emergency room visits, producing a net savings of $70,394.90.