Historically the voices of children in research have been silent. They are often seen as victims or beneficiaries of research rather than co-researchers or partners. This is beginning to change with rowing awareness that involving children in the design, delivery and evaluation of services can make services more accessible to them and their peers. This article reviews the processes involved n a research project commissioned by Children's Fund, which investigated the use and non-use of services within a local area. The involvement of children was paramount and resulted in the recruitment f nine young researchers between the ages of 7-13. Various cycles of participatory action research evolved throughout the project and this article focuses specifically on two-recruiting the researcher and training young researchers. We consider the cycles of reflection and action crucial to any participatory project and discuss how lessons were learned to inform further stages of the process. Themes such as challenges, power and participation are discussed throughout.
BackgroundPrimary care research networks have been established internationally since the 1960s to enable diverse practitioners to engage in and develop research and education and implement research evidence.The newly established Western Research and Education Network (WestREN) is one such network consisting of a collaboration between the Discipline of General Practice at NUI Galway and 71 West of Ireland general practices. In September 2009 all member practices were issued with a questionnaire with two objectives: to describe the structure and characteristics of the member practices and to compare the results to the national profile of Irish general practice.MethodsA postal survey was used followed by one written and one email reminder.ResultsA response rate of 73% (52/71) was achieved after two reminders.Half of practices were in a rural location, one quarter located in an urban setting and another quarter in a mixed location.Ninety-four per cent of general practitioners practice from purpose-built or adapted premises with under 6% of practices being attached to the general practitioner's residence. Over 96% of general practitioners use appointment systems with 58% using appointment only.All practices surveyed were computerised, with 80% describing their practices as 'fully computerised'. Almost 60% of general practitioners are coding chronic diagnoses with 20% coding individual consultations. Twenty-five per cent of general practitioners were single-handed with the majority of practices having at least two general practitioners, and a mean number of general practitioners of 2.4. Ninety-two per cent of practices employed a practice nurse with 30% employing more than one nurse.Compared to the national profile, WestREN practices appear somewhat larger, and more likely to be purpose-built and in rural areas. National trends apparent between 1982 and 1992, such as increasing computerisation and practice nurse availability, appear to be continuing.ConclusionsWestREN is a new university-affiliated general practice research network in Ireland. Survey of its initial membership confirms WestREN practices to be broadly representative of the national profile and has provided us with valuable information on the current and changing structure of Irish general practice.
Objective To perform a pilot study that evaluates the nutritional and dietary habits of primary school children in a socioeconomically disadvantaged area prior to and following a healthy eating intervention programme.Design A quantitative study whereby the food intakes of 20 boys and 20 girls aged 8 to 9 years old were recorded for five days prior to, and for five days after the intervention. Discussions with the children to ascertain their attitudes towards healthy foods were carried out and parental support was encouraged. Setting A primary school in a socioeconomically disadvantaged area in the city of Limerick, Republic of Ireland. Method Food intake data was collected using food diaries and analysed using the computer package Diet 5 for Windows. Paired t-tests were performed to assess any significant changes in the dietary intakes. Results Following intervention, there were significant increases in the consumption of energy ( P <0.001), protein ( P<0.001 ), fat ( P<0.01 ), and calcium ( P<0.0001 ). Whilst most of the nutrients were consumed in appropriate amounts, the percentage energy from fat was higher than recommendations, whilst iron intakes were below recommendations.Conclusion Although, the changes in food consumption were positive, future interventions should emphasise the need to monitor fat intakes, at Selcuk Universitesi on February 7, 2015 hej.sagepub.com Downloaded from 321 improve iron status and encourage discussion outside the classroom environment. Similar interventions based on this pilot study could also be used with respect to other areas of health promotion, for example, activity, anti-smoking and so on.
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