Music

STRANGE things you never thought would come to pass. Queueing to enter a supermarket. Being thrilled by the sight of the bin lorry arriving. Making your own surgical mask. These days. But the oddest thing of all? Being glad to see politicians.

Following the thrill of launching new businesses, two ed-tech startups are facing the challenges of making smart decisions to attract more customers and grow revenues.

The public-private initiative between the technology company and a city school aims to prepare students for future careers.

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210.”

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210.”

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210.

Monday 13 January: Royals’ family meeting

This week, our resident cartoonist turned his pen on the Coronavirus outbreak, Bernie Sanders rising popularity in the United States and the battle for an SNP seat at Holyrood.

This week, our resident cartoonist turned his pen on the Coronavirus outbreak, bullying claims surrounding the home secretary and Scotland making in to the world list of top beaches.

Framed prints of Steven Camley's cartoons are available by calling 0141 302 6210

WHAT’S a little distancing between us? Go on, stick your nose closer to the page or screen. Let’s snuggle in a little closer.

While ed-tech entrepreneurship may be less risky than other sectors, there are still many uncertainties to be aware of. Financial, technology, and market sectors are all areas for deep thought and caution.

The social media giant, which is facing withering scrutiny over its data-collection practices, has announced a partnership with the National Urban League.

Serious study is needed to find out why people can't look away from their screens.

University of Texas at Austin researchers find that the presence of your mobile phone in the room is all it takes to crater overall brain power. Here's how to use that to your advantage.

I'm amazed at how reliant this younger generation is on their smartphones. I think it's weird, but you can use that generation's screen addiction to your benefit.

Investing in early learning makes the biggest impact on a student's achievement, says Marion County, S.C., Superintendent Kandace Bethea. When a teacher is not available, we have to find other ways to get the job done, such as community partnerships.

Celebrated artist and wood sculptor, Tim Stead, may be best known for public works such as the Millennium Clock in the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, the furniture in Glasgow's Cafe Gandolfi and the North Sea Oil Industries Memorial Chapel in Aberdeen, but his masterpiece is closer to home.

For three decades now, the artist and playwright John Byrne has been sitting regularly for photographer David Eustace, the Glasgow-born photographer who left school at 16 and joined first the navy and then the prison service before settling on a career behind a camera.

By John-Paul Holden

Building off of his piece last week, Marc Tucker looks at how the economics of higher education and lacking state governance combine to weaken schools of education.

An Albanian man's heart is forever changed after suffering a heart attack and meeting Jesus in his recuperation.

Penn State Schuylkill LionLaunch held its fourth annual Business Plan Competition on Thursday, April 16. The program awarded $6,000 in funding to three small businesses at the competition, totaling $69,000 awarded to 21 small businesses throughout Schuylkill County over the last four years.

OM Japan and an outreach team encourage and help people who suffered from the tsunami in Ishinomaki and the area around Minami Sanriku.

A pastor and OM couple start a new church in Tonami, Japan, a rural town of 50,000.

Two OMers were asked to help a church network deliver relief supplies to churches in Kumamoto after two large earthquakes had struck the area.

Source: The Irish Times - Harold Kingston, who runs a dairy farm in Courtmacsharry, Co Cork, with 160 cattle, is typical of the new generation of smart farmers, who have adjusted how they work in response to climate change.

Dig into what two leading Democratic presidential candidates have to say in their platforms about charter schools with Education Week's detailed analysis.

There have been no previous large studies of congenital heart disease in very low birth weight infants.

This study characterized the frequency, mortality rate, and lesion distribution of serious congenital heart disease in very low birth weight infants by using a large international multicenter database. (Read the full article)

Many patient and family demographic characteristics are well-known risk factors for nonurgent emergency-department use. No previous study has examined the primary care physician perspective on parental decisions regarding specific nonurgent emergency-department visits by children.

When discussing specific instances when families in their practices sought nonurgent care for children in the emergency department, physicians believed that parents acted appropriately. Neither parents nor primary care physicians saw nonurgent emergency-department visits as a significant enough problem to warrant change. (Read the full article)

Previous analyses have suggested that center volume is associated with outcome in children undergoing heart surgery. There are limited data regarding factors that may mediate this volume–outcome relationship.

A multicenter analysis of 35 776 children revealed that the higher mortality observed at lower volume centers may be related to a higher rate of mortality in those with postoperative complications, rather than a higher rate of complications alone. (Read the full article)

Studies of the association between process and outcome measures of the quality of acute asthma care for children have been mixed. These studies are limited by small, single-institution settings or by examining the association at the aggregate level.

This first multicenter analysis of the process-outcome association in acute asthma care for children revealed no association. Because the validity of process measures depends on association with outcomes, further study is needed before implementing existing process measures as performance metrics. (Read the full article)

Recent studies have called into question the benefit of perioperative corticosteroids in children undergoing heart surgery, but have been limited by small sample size, the lack of placebo control, and the grouping of various steroid regimens together in analysis.

We evaluated outcomes across methylprednisolone regimens versus no steroids in a large cohort of neonates and found no mortality or length-of-stay benefit associated with any regimen, and a higher risk of infection in certain subgroups. (Read the full article)

Previous observational studies and randomized trials have reported an association between the use of epidural analgesia for pain relief in labor and intrapartum maternal fever. Studies have also reported an increase in adverse neonatal outcomes with intrapartum maternal fever.

Among low-risk women receiving epidural analgesia, intrapartum maternal temperature >99.5°F was associated with adverse neonatal outcomes, with the rate of adverse outcomes increasing directly with maximum maternal temperature. Without temperature elevation, epidural use was not associated with adverse neonatal outcomes. (Read the full article)

Bronchiolitis is the most common cause for hospital admission in patients aged <1 year. Hypoxia is a common reason for admission. Despite a multitude of studies looking at various treatment strategies, no clear benefit has been found.

With oxygen therapy being the main therapeutic option, home oxygen offers a novel way to manage bronchiolitis. This study shows that home oxygen is a safe and effective way to decrease hospital admissions in a select group of patients. (Read the full article)

Recent studies report that overall computed tomography utilization in the emergency department has continued to rise. Increased computed tomography use is concerning because of the association with radiation exposure and the potential risk of radiation-induced malignancy, which is highest in children.

Our data showed no overall increase in computed tomography utilization through 2010. In areas where alternative non–radiation-based modalities were options, there were decreased trends in computed tomography use and increased use of potential alternative non–radiation-based modalities. (Read the full article)

Impaired fetal growth is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases in adulthood and is associated with arterial wall thickening, a noninvasive measure of subclinical atherosclerosis, in early childhood. No preventive strategy has been identified.

Dietary omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in early childhood prevented the association of impaired fetal growth with arterial wall thickening, suggesting that this early-life intervention may mitigate the risk of cardiovascular disease in those with impaired fetal growth. (Read the full article)

Stairs are a common source of injury to children. Most injuries are minor soft tissue injuries, with the head and neck region being injured most commonly.

This is the first nationally representative study of stair-related injuries to young children in the United States. A child aged <5 years is treated in a US emergency department, on average, every 6 minutes for a stair-related injury. (Read the full article)

Early administration of oral corticosteroids is essential for children presenting to emergency departments with moderate to severe acute asthma exacerbations, because subsequent admission need is directly related to time to receipt of systemic steroids, yet delays to administration remain long.

A medical directive allowing nurse initiation of oral corticosteroids before physician assessment was associated with improved quality and efficiency of care provided in the pediatric emergency department by ensuring implementation of evidence-based practice. (Read the full article)

Estimates of youth participation in strangulation activity, commonly referred to as the "choking game," range from 5% to 11%. Previous studies have documented correlations between youth choking game participation and health risks such as substance use and mental health issues.

Among Oregon eighth-graders surveyed, >6% had ever participated in the choking game. Participation was linked to poor nutrition and gambling among females, exposure to violence among males, and sexual activity and substance use among both genders. (Read the full article)

Disparities in outcomes of ethnic minority children have been reported, and have been ascribed to having barriers to access to health care. Minority parents have indicated that difficulties in access are because of problems with transportation and being non-English speaking.

This population-based study of Texas infants with severe congenital heart disease reports that neither home distance from a cardiac center nor Hispanic children having a Latin American–born parent were risk factors for first-year mortality. (Read the full article)

Batteries, especially button batteries, are an important source of pediatric injury. Recent reports suggest that fatal and severe button battery ingestions are increasing.

An estimated 3289 battery-related ED visits occurred annually among US children <18 years of age, averaging 1 visit approximately every 3 hours. The number and rate of visits increased significantly during the 20-year study period, driven by increases during the last 8 study years. (Read the full article)

Although obesity is correlated with levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure, there is little evidence if the increases in obesity over the last 40 years have resulted in increased blood pressure levels.

Despite increases in obesity in Bogalusa, Louisiana between 1974 and 1993, there was no increase in systolic or diastolic blood pressure levels. It should not be assumed that trends in high blood pressure have paralleled those for obesity. (Read the full article)

Although many children are treated in general emergency departments, many such facilities have limited pediatric capabilities. Transfer to academic centers improves outcomes for critically ill patients, but transfers of noncritically ill children have not been well studied.

Although more than half of these patients are seriously ill, many transferred patients are discharged directly from the emergency department or are admitted for less than 24 hours. Orthopedic problems, gastrointestinal conditions, and traumatic head injury are the most common complaints. (Read the full article)

The American Academy of Pediatrics prioritized detection of mental illness in children presenting to emergency departments (ED) by using standardized clinical tools. Only a minority of ED physicians indicate that they use evidence-based screening methods to assess mental health concerns.

This study presents the psychometrics of the HEADS ED (home, education, activities/peers, drugs/alcohol, suicidality, emotions/behavior, discharge resources), a brief, standardized screening tool for pediatric EDs. This tool ensures key information is obtained for decision-making, determining acuity level, and areas of need. (Read the full article)

To date, 4 small to moderate sized studies have revealed conflicting results on the clinically important question whether thrombocytopenia contributes to persistent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in very immature, preterm infants.

Thrombocytopenia in the first 24 hours after birth was not associated with the incidence of PDA at postnatal day of life 4 to 5 in a large cohort of preterm infants with <1500 g birth weight. Platelet dysfunction, rather than platelet number, might play a role in ductus arteriosus patency. (Read the full article)

Systematic screening for child abuse of all children presenting at emergency departments might increase the detection rate of child abuse but studies to support this proposal are scarce.

Systematic screening for child abuse in emergency departments is effective in increasing the detection of suspected child abuse. Training emergency department staff and requiring screening legally at emergency departments increase the extent of screening. (Read the full article)