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From behaviours to interactions: reframing conceptualisations of the nature and causes of sexual harm among young peopleThis paper examines how educators, police and children’s service providers, alongside young people, conceptualise the nature and causes of sexual harm among young people. Drawing on qualitative research conducted in southeast England, we identify four themes: sexual harm as learned behaviour rooted in personal and familial risk factors; normalisation of harmful experiences among girls; neglect and minimisation of boys’ victimisation; and evolving digital terrains of harm. While some participants engaged with structural and cultural explanations, many framed sexual harm through an individualised, risk-focused behaviourist lens. We suggest the emphasis on behaviour within the prevailing use of the term “harmful sexual behaviour” reinforces reductionist perspectives and overlooks interactional, institutional, and socio-cultural dynamics shaping young people’s experiences. Drawing on sexual script theory and post-digital sexual citizenship, we expand the conceptual terrain, advocating for a holistic and inclusive approach situating sexual harm within broader relational and institutional contexts, requiring nuanced, context-sensitive responses.
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Women entrepreneurs as cultural custodians in tourism: a social feminism theory perspectiveThis study, grounded in social feminism theory, examines how women entrepreneurs in Cyprus use tourism enterprises to preserve and transmit cultural knowledge. Drawing on 26 semi-structured interviews, the research examines how participants balance economic goals with cultural responsibilities. The analysis identifies five interrelated themes, cultural identity, integration, advocacy, collaboration, and resilience, that inform a conceptual framework explaining how entrepreneurial agency is shaped by gendered social roles and expectations. By positioning women entrepreneurs as agents of transformative change, this study extends social feminism theory to include the preservation and transmission of cultural knowledge as a critical dimension of entrepreneurial agency. By linking entrepreneurship to cultural stewardship, the study offers insights into how women deal with structural constraints while engaging in locally meaningful forms of sustainability. These findings offer implications for policymakers and development practitioners who seek to support gender-responsive, culturally rooted entrepreneurship in marginalised tourism contexts.
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A model-based cost-effectiveness analysis of prescribing by dietitians and therapeutic radiographers in EnglandNon-medical prescribing (NMP) was introduced into the UK healthcare system and other countries to improve patient care and facilitate better access to medicine. However, very few studies have evaluated the cost-effectiveness of the prescribing authorities granted to certain healthcare professional groups. This study aims to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of prescribing by dietitians and therapeutic radiographers in England. A model-based cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted to evaluate the services provided by dietitian and therapeutic radiographer prescribers compared to services delivered by dietitian and therapeutic radiographer non-prescribers in terms of direct and indirect costs and effectiveness outcomes, e.g. quality-adjusted life year (QALY) and patient satisfaction, from the National Health Service (NHS) perspective. Unit costs were obtained from the NHS National Reference Costs 2021-22. Sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the robustness of the model parameters. The mean costs associated with NMP were higher for prescribers than non-prescribers due to training costs and consultation time to manage prescriptions. However, these costs were compensated by higher referrals by non-prescribers to other specialists for prescribing. NMP in either profession was perceived as positive by patients. Differences in QALY were not statistically significant among patients managed by prescribers and non-prescribers for either profession. Results were sensitive to the model assumptions and parameters. Our estimates suggest NMP might save £64,269 over five years per dietitian prescriber and £16,570 per therapeutic radiographer prescriber. Despite uncertainties around the cost-effectiveness of NMP, it may save money with minimal or no changes in quality-of-life outcomes for patients being managed by either profession.
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Implementing evidence-based practice in critical care nursing: an ethnographic case study of knowledge useTo explore how critical care nurses access, negotiate and apply knowledge in high-pressure clinical environments, focusing on organisational, cultural and leadership factors influencing evidence-based practice implementation in acute hospital settings. A focused ethnographic collective case study was conducted across two contrasting critical care units in England. Methods included non-participant observation (56 sessions), semi-structured interviews (36 participants) and document review. Spradley's Developmental Research Sequence guided data generation and analysis. Data were collected over an eight-month period (February to September 2022). Five major themes were identified: sources of knowledge and acquisition strategies; institutional and hierarchical influences on knowledge use; role of experiential knowledge and clinical intuition; challenges to evidence-based practice implementation; and strategies for integrating knowledge into practice. Organisational structures, leadership engagement, mentorship and access to updated digital resources were key enablers of evidence-based practice. Barriers included workload pressures, inconsistent guideline dissemination and hierarchical cultures. Adaptive blending of formal evidence, clinical experience and intuition characterised effective knowledge negotiation at the bedside. Knowledge use in critical care nursing is a dynamic, relational process shaped by leadership, organisational culture and systemic pressures. The availability of evidence alone is insufficient; visible leadership, peer learning, protected educational time and valuing of experiential knowledge are critical to embedding evidence-based practice into routine practice. Strengthening organisational systems, investing in nurse manager development, expanding simulation-based learning and legitimising experiential knowledge are vital strategies to enhance evidence-based critical care. This study provides actionable insights for healthcare leaders, educators and policymakers seeking to optimise evidence-based practice adoption in high-acuity clinical environments and improve patient outcomes. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research checklist guided reporting. Patients and the public were not involved in the design, conduct, reporting or dissemination of this research.
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Investigating potential information obtained from blowfly artefacts deposited by Lucilia sericata flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae)Blowflies are amongst the first organisms to arrive at a corpse, their olfactory system attracts these flies to decomposing organic material, where they can feed and deposit their young. It has been accepted that blowflies will regurgitate and defecate as a response to normal feeding behaviours, the resulting stains have been termed fly artefacts. Artefacts have become of interest with the development of techniques to extract DNA from these stains, which have the potential to determine what the blowflies have been feeding on. This information could be of use to forensic casework in cases where the human remains have been removed and only the fly artefacts are available for analysis. The aim of this study was to determine whether artefacts could be differentiated into colour groups for sampling, then to establish whether there is a difference in DNA (food source) quantity between the different groups. Flies were observed depositing artefacts both by eye and through filming, showing that defecated material can be observed in a range of colours (creamy white to deep brown). An artefact sampling colour key was produced to enable a more objective separation of the artefacts into the five colour groups (colourless, very light, light, dark, and very dark) for further analysis. Findings of this study display a correlation between fly artefact colour and the time passed since blowflies ingested food; the longer blowflies were left without porcine liver the lighter the colour of their artefacts became, eventually becoming colourless after a period of 15 days. Adult flies could therefore be collected from a crime scene to enable observation of their artefact, indicating an approximate time since the fly had last ingested food. To determine if there was any advantage in separating the samples for DNA analysis, two real-time PCR DNA assays were developed, one to detect and quantify the food source and blowfly DNA, and the other to detect inhibitors within samples. Very light and light (grouped) artefacts contained the highest mean quantities of DNA (0.62 ng/L and 0.52 ng/L respectively) with no inhibitors detected in any of the colour groups. As the artefacts that gave the best DNA quantities were very light and light, this could make differentiation from blood spatter easier as these are often darker in colour. Based on the findings of this study, a standard operating protocol has been started that can provide guidance for the sampling of artefacts at the crime scene, with scope for further developments identified.
