Communities of practice: An alternative approach to bridging the theory-practice gap in radiography?

OBJECTIVES: There is an increasing need to engage with evidence-based practice (EBP) and continuing professional development (CPD) to effectively respond to the current healthcare demands and challenges. This review critically synthesises key knowledge diffusion and implementation theories, with particular emphasis on Communities of Practice (CoPs), a theory as yet unexplored in radiography practice. KEY FINDINGS: Prominent theories including implementation science, translational science and knowledge diffusion theories have previously been proposed to bridge the theory-practice gap. However, the radiography profession is a fast-paced, complex and a highly regulated profession which makes the application of rigid theories more challenging. CoPs, which have their origins in Social Learning Theory, represents a potentially more viable approach to bridging the theory-practice gap. CONCLUSION: Cultivating and maintaining CoPs is a more practical approach to improve knowledge dissemination, EBP and CPD, allowing radiographers in practice to share knowledge, best practices, and experiences out with an organisational hierarchy. The collective pool of knowledge, and history created may contribute to further establishing the radiography profession and the radiographer identity as the CoPs connect, expand, and advance over time. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: CoPs may be cultivated and further investigated in radiography practice to improve knowledge dissemination, EBP and CPD, with the ultimate aim of improving individual and organisational performance in radiography practices.

A national survey investigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on core and higher breast radiology training in the UK.

AIM: To investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on core and higher breast radiology training in the UK from the perspective of trainees and new consultants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A survey comprising 25 questions was distributed to UK radiology trainees via the regional Junior Radiologists Forum representatives under the auspices of the British Society of Breast Radiology (BSBR). RESULTS: Sixty-nine eligible responses were received representing all UK training regions. Fifty-five per cent of respondents completing either a core or higher breast rotation felt that the pandemic had a negative effect on their breast training. There was an overall reduction in exposure to the key breast imaging methods when rotations took place during the pandemic. Completing a core breast rotation during the pandemic was less likely to attract trainees to higher breast training. Three out of four breast radiology consultants in their first year after receiving their Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) felt the pandemic reduced their preparedness for becoming consultants. Positive outcomes included the increased use of online educational resources and remote multidisciplinary meetings. CONCLUSIONS: As well as having a negative impact on breast radiology training overall, the pandemic has had a detrimental effect on attracting trainees to breast radiology as a future career. It is of key importance that trainees have a positive core breast rotation as this experience appears central to many trainees' decisions to pursue higher breast training. Increased use of online learning resources has also been positively received and is a valuable approach to learning that can be maintained in the longer term.

Patient experiences of adjusting to life in the first 2 years after bariatric surgery: a qualitative study.

There is currently little research into the experiences of those who have undergone bariatric surgery, or how surgery affects their lives and social interactions. Adopting a constructivist grounded theory methodological approach with a constant comparative analytical framework, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 18 participants (11 female, 7 male) who had undergone permanent bariatric surgical procedures 5-24 months prior to interview. Findings revealed that participants regarded social encounters after bariatric surgery as underpinned by risk. Their attitudes towards social situations guided their social interaction with others. Three profiles of attitudes towards risk were constructed: Risk Accepters, Risk Contenders and Risk Challengers. Profiles were based on participant-reported narratives of their experiences in the first two years after surgery. The social complexities which occurred as a consequence of bariatric surgery required adjustments to patients' lives. Participants reported that social aspects of bariatric surgery did not appear to be widely understood by those who have not undergone bariatric surgery. The three risk attitude profiles that emerged from our data offer an understanding of how patients adjust to life after surgery and can be used reflexively by healthcare professionals to support both patients pre- and post-operatively.

Marginal ulcers after one anastomosis (mini) gastric bypass: a survey of surgeons.

Many surgeons believe that one anastomosis (mini) gastric bypass (OAGB/MGB) is associated with a high marginal ulcer (MU) rate and that this is associated with complications in a significant number of patients. The purpose of this survey was to find out the participant-reported incidence of MU after OAGB/MGB and its complications. We also aimed to understand practices in this cohort concerning prophylaxis, diagnosis, treatment and management of complications. Bariatric surgeons who perform OAGB/MGB procedures were invited to participate in a confidential, online survey using SurveyMonkey®. A total of 86 surgeons performing OAGB/MGB procedures participated in the survey. The total number of OAGB/MGB procedures reported was 27 672, revealing 622 MU, giving an MU rate of 2.24 %. Most participants (69/84, 82.4%) routinely use proton pump inhibitor (PPI) prophylaxis, but there was variation in drugs, dosages and duration. The majority (49/85, 57.6%) of participants 'always' use endoscopy for diagnosis, and 48.1% (39/81) 'always' perform an endoscopy to ensure healing. Most (49/55) perforated ulcers were treated with laparoscopic repair +/- omentoplasty +/- drainage. Most (55/59, 93.0%) of the bleeding ulcers were managed with PPI +/- blood transfusions +/- endoscopic intervention (23/59, 39.0%). Non-healing ulcers were treated by conversion to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) in 46.5% of patients (n = 20/43). The participants did not report any MU-related mortality but described a number of risk factors for it. This survey is the first detailed attempt to understand the incidence of MU following OAGB/MGB; its complications; and practices concerning prophylaxis, diagnosis, treatment and management of complications.

Pituitary-adrenal and autonomic responses to stress in women after sexual and physical abuse in childhood.

CONTEXT: Evidence suggests that early adverse experiences play a preeminent role in development of mood and anxiety disorders and that corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) systems may mediate this association. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether early-life stress results in a persistent sensitization of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis to mild stress in adulthood, thereby contributing to vulnerability to psychopathological conditions. DESIGN AND SETTING: Prospective controlled study conducted from May 1997 to July 1999 at the General Clinical Research Center of Emory University Hospital, Atlanta, Ga. PARTICIPANTS: Forty-nine healthy women aged 18 to 45 years with regular menses, with no history of mania or psychosis, with no active substance abuse or eating disorder within 6 months, and who were free of hormonal and psychotropic medications were recruited into 4 study groups (n = 12 with no history of childhood abuse or psychiatric disorder [controls]; n = 13 with diagnosis of current major depression who were sexually or physically abused as children; n = 14 without current major depression who were sexually or physically abused as children; and n = 10 with diagnosis of current major depression and no history of childhood abuse). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol levels and heart rate responses to a standardized psychosocial laboratory stressor compared among the 4 study groups. RESULTS: Women with a history of childhood abuse exhibited increased pituitary-adrenal and autonomic responses to stress compared with controls. This effect was particularly robust in women with current symptoms of depression and anxiety. Women with a history of childhood abuse and a current major depression diagnosis exhibited a more than 6-fold greater ACTH response to stress than age-matched controls (net peak of 9.0 pmol/L [41.0 pg/mL]; 95% confidence interval [CI], 4.7-13.3 pmol/L [21.6-60. 4 pg/mL]; vs net peak of 1.4 pmol/L [6.19 pg/mL]; 95% CI, 0.2-2.5 pmol/L [1.0-11.4 pg/mL]; difference, 8.6 pmol/L [38.9 pg/mL]; 95% CI, 4.6-12.6 pmol/L [20.8-57.1 pg/mL]; P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and autonomic nervous system hyperreactivity, presumably due to CRF hypersecretion, is a persistent consequence of childhood abuse that may contribute to the diathesis for adulthood psychopathological conditions. Furthermore, these results imply a role for CRF receptor antagonists in the prevention and treatment of psychopathological conditions related to early-life stress. JAMA. 2000;284:592-597

The effects of neonatal stress on brain development: implications for psychopathology.

Recent studies have focused on the behavioral and neurobiological sequella of exposure to early adverse events. We hypothesize that early adverse experiences result in an increased sensitivity to the effects of stress later in life and render an individual vulnerable to stress-related psychiatric disorders. This vulnerability may be mediated by persistent changes in corticotropin-releasing-factor (CRF)-containing neurons, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and the sympathetic nervous system. We therefore present an overview of the CRF system and its role as a mediator in the development of the stress response, major depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder. The literature pertaining to behavioral and neurobiological alterations associated with exposure to early adverse life events in rodents, nonhuman primates, and humans is reviewed. We focus on animal models that precipitate depressive and anxiety symptoms while producing neuroendocrine alterations that mimic those seen in adults with those disorders. The literature integrating neurobiological and behavioral consequences of early life stress is also reviewed, focusing primarily on infants born to mothers with depression and on infants who were abused or neglected.