We conducted a systematic review of the medical, nursing, forensic, and social science literature describing events and processes associated with what happens after a traumatic death in the socio-cultural context of largely Western and high-income societies. These include death notification, why survivors choose to view or not view the body, forensic practices affecting viewing the body, alternatives to viewing, and social and cultural practices following the death. We also describe how elements of these processes may act to increase or lessen some of the negative cognitive and emotional consequences for both survivors and providers. The information presented is applicable to those who may be faced with traumatic deaths, including those who work in medicine, nursing, and law enforcement, as well as first responders, forensic investigators, funeral directors, and the families of the deceased.

Schizotypal traits include abnormalities in cognition, behavior, and interpersonal relationships that are similar, yet less severe than psychotic symptomology. It is estimated that approximately 5% of the general population displays psychotic symptoms and experiences that can be considered schizotypal in nature, but there is little research examining the neurological correlates of these traits. The mismatch negativity (MMN) event-related potential is an objective measure of auditory change detection derived from electroencephalography. The current study contributes to the limited body of evidence examining the neurobiological underpinnings of schizotypy in a non-clinical sample using the MMN. Participants were recruited from the general population and divided into high and low-schizotypy groups for comparison. Individuals with high schizotypal traits displayed reduced MMN amplitudes in response to frequency and location deviants, and longer MMN latencies in response to location deviants. Specific sub-traits of schizotypy were uniquely related to frequency and location amplitudes, suggesting the previously reported inconsistencies in the literature may be due to diverse samples and differing deviant tone types. Finally, impulsivity and sensation-seeking likely contributed to the slower processing seen in location deviance detection. Ultimately, the current results provide evidence that the neurobiological abnormalities seen in clinical populations of schizotypal personality disorder and psychosis also extend to non-clinical populations.

Background: Surgical delays are in common in Canada. Wait times in elective spine surgery and their impact on outcomes remain uncharacterized. Methods: This was a single-center analysis of elective spine surgery data between 2009-2020. Wait times between referral and consultation (T1), consultation and surgical booking (Ti), and booking and surgery (T2) were assessed. Results: 2041 patients were included. Longitudinal analyses were adjusted for age, sex, diagnosis, surgical volume, while outcomes analyses were age and sex-adjusted. Total T1+Ti+T2 increased 8.1% annually (p<0.001). T1 decreased 4.3% annually (p=0.032). It was not associated with adverse events (AEs) or disposition. Every 100 days of T1 was associated with 1.0% longer hospitalization (p=0.001). Ti increased 21.0% annually (p<0.001). Every 100 days of Ti was associated with 2.9% increased odds of an adverse event (p=0.002), 1.8% longer hospitalization (p<0.001), and 15.9% increased likelihood of discharge home (p<0.001). T2 increased 7.0% annually (p<0.001) and was not associated with AEs. Every 100 days of T2 was associated with 11.6% longer hospitalization (p<0.001) and 76.5% increased likelihood of discharge home (p<0.001). Conclusions: Total wait times for elective spine surgery have increased between 2009-2020. Notably, Ti increased ninefold and was associated with AEs. This study highlights areas of delay and targets for healthcare optimization.

Background: Mountain biking (MTB) is an increasingly popular sport that has been associated with serious spinal injuries, which can have devastating effects on patients and significant impacts on healthcare resources. Herein, we characterized the occurrence of these MTB spinal injuries over a 15-year period and analyzed the affiliated acute-care hospital costs. Methods: Patients seen at Vancouver General Hospital for MTB spinal injuries between 2008-2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Demographics, injury details, treatments, outcomes, and resource requirements for acute hospitalization were collected. The Canadian Institute for Health Information was referenced for cost analysis. Results: Over the 15 years of analysis, 149 MTB spinal injuries occurred. The majority (87.2%) were male. 59 (39.6%) were associated with spinal cord injury; most of these were in the cervical spine (72.3%) and majority were AIS Grade A (36.1%). 102 patients (68.5%) required spine surgery; 26 (17.4%) required intensive care; 34 (22.8%) required inpatient rehabilitation. Mean length of stay was 13.5 days and acute admission costs for the healthcare system averaged $35,251 (95% CI $27,080-$43,424). Conclusions: MTB spinal injuries are associated with significant medical, personal, and financial burden. As injury prevention remains paramount, further investigation of the roles of education and safety measures is recommended.

The aim of this study was to better understand the relation of schizotypy traits with sensory gating ability in a sample of community-dwelling individuals with high and low schizotypy traits. Sensory gating was assessed through the paired click paradigm and mid-latency evoked responses (i.e., P50, N100, P200), while schizotypy traits were assessed through the SPQ-BR which was used to classify participants into “high” and “low” schizotypy groups. Based on prior work, we hypothesized that those with the highest schizotypy scores would have reduced sensory gating ability. While this study does not show differences between relatively low and high schizotypy groups on sensory gating ability, it does suggest that our participants may have been experiencing deficits in attention allocation, a downstream cognitive processing measure. Scores on the SPQ-BR suggest that our sample was not close to the high end of the schizotypy traits which may help explain why no differences were found. This research shows the importance of including all levels of schizotypy ratings in clinical research as we can gain a clearer view of the impact of schizotypy on the brain and cognitive functioning in those with “high” levels of schizotypy. Additionally, this work highlights the importance of including measures of important factors such as impulsivity and sensation-seeking to better understand what aspects of schizotypy may be driving these sensory gating alterations reported in the literature.

A review of the literature was undertaken to consider the possible effects of human intervention (shepherding) at around the time of parturition in extensively farmed sheep. There is little clear empirical evidence to suggest that shepherding ensures either easy births or the integrity of ewe–lamb contact — factors closely linked to the welfare of the animals at this time. There is similarly no clear support for shepherding being harmful. However, the following suggestions are made: first, human presence can inhibit or delay parturition; second, extended parturition can increase the risk of, or is associated with, dystocia; and third, disturbance at birth can compromise ewe-lamb bonding and consequently lamb survival. Furthermore, sheep populations that have undergone rigorous selection for ease of lambing and minimal shepherding in extensive environments have well-documented physical and behavioural traits underlying their predisposition for enhanced lamb survival. Although our cultural legacy may impose a duty to intensively monitor animals at lambing, it is concluded that, at least in some situations, shepherding may not be entirely beneficial. The commonly held view of the necessity for some human intervention in extensive livestock systems is perhaps overly paternalistic, and requires a more comprehensive appraisal.

The current study examines the construct validity of the Maximization Scale (MS; Schwartz et al., 2002) and the Maximization Tendency Scale (MTS; Diab et al., 2008) as well as the nomological net of the maximizing construct. We find that both scales of maximizing suffer psychometrically, especially in their proposed dimensionality. Using confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory (IRT) we identify and remove three problematic items from the MTS and six problematic items from the MS. Additionally, we find that the MS appears to be measuring difficulty and restlessness with the search for the best alternative, whereas the MTS is more focused on the search for the best option, regardless of choice difficulty. We then examined these revised scales in relation to other psychological constructs in the nomological net for maximizing and found that maximizers may not be unhappy but are generally distressed in the decision-making context. Finally, we suggest that future maximizng research use revised form of the MTS that seems to us to be most consistent with the original concept of maximizing/satisficing.

Imagine that you have just received a colon cancer diagnosis and need to choosebetween two different surgical treatments. One surgery, the "complicatedsurgery," has a lower mortality rate (16% vs. 20%) but compared to the othersurgery, the "uncomplicated surgery," also carries an additional 1% risk of eachof four serious complications: colostomy, chronic diarrhea, wound infection, oran intermittent bowel obstruction. The complicated surgery dominates theuncomplicated surgery as long as life with complications is preferred overdeath.

In our first survey, 51% of a sample (recruited from the cafeteria of auniversity medical center) selected the dominated alternative, the uncomplicatedsurgery, justifying this choice by saying that the death risks for the twosurgeries were essentially the same and that the uncomplicated surgery avoidedthe risk of complications. In follow-up surveys, preference for theuncomplicated surgery remained relatively consistent (39%-51%) despite (a)presenting the risks in frequencies rather than percents, (b) grouping the 4complications into a single category, or (c) giving the uncomplicated surgery asmall chance of complications as well. Even when a pre-decision "focusingexercise" required people to state directly their preferences between life witheach complication versus death, 49% still chose the uncomplicated surgery.

People’s fear of complications leads them to ignore important differencesbetween treatments. This tendency appears remarkably resistant to debiasingapproaches and likely leads patients to make healthcare decisions that areinconsistent with their own preferences.

Captive bolts or firearms are unsuitable for euthanasia of livestock when an intact brain is required for diagnostics. Injectable barbiturates can be used, but this method carries risk of poisoning animals eating the carcase. Intravenous saturated salt solutions have been used to euthanase heavily sedated ruminants and are cheap, readily available and not a risk to scavenging animals. However, there is concern that they may be painful or cause distress to animals that are not unconscious. This study aimed to determine the suitability of saturated salt solutions, in combination with xylazine, as a method of euthanasia of ruminants using a sheep model. Thirty-two sheep were sedated with xylazine (0.4 mg kg-1 IM) and euthanased with an intravenous overdose of pentobarbitone (PENT; n = 10), saturated potassium chloride (KCL; n = 11) or saturated magnesium sulphate (MGS; n = 10). Time until end of rhythmic breathing and cardiac arrest, and movement events were recorded. Conscious perception of pain was evaluated by measuring cortical brain activity by electroencephalography (EEG). There was no evidence of perceived pain or unpleasant sensory experience for any treatment as indicated by P50, P95 and Ptot and so all methods were deemed humane. Time until transient EEG was comparable for all treatments. Time until onset of isoelectric EEG was prolonged for KCL. Animals euthanased with KCL consistently exhibited severe reflex movements during infusion (eg kicking, convulsion). No severe movement events were observed in animals euthanased with MGS, hence, physiological and movement data support the preferential use of MGS over KCL.

We present GECKOS (Generalising Edge-on galaxies and their Chemical bimodalities, Kinematics, and Outflows out to Solar environments), a new ESO VLT/MUSE large program. The main aim of GECKOS is to reveal the variation in key physical processes of disk formation by connecting Galactic Archaeology with integral field spectroscopic observations of nearby galaxies. Edge-on galaxies are ideal for this task: they allow us to disentangle the assembly history imprinted in thick disks and provide the greatest insights into outflows. The GECKOS sample of 35 nearby edge-on disk galaxies is designed to trace the assembly histories and properties of galaxies across a large range of star formation rates, bulge-to-total ratios, and boxy and non-boxy bulges. GECKOS will deliver spatially resolved measurements of stellar abundances, ages, and kinematics, as well as ionised gas metallicities, ionisation param- eters, pressure, and inflow and outflow kinematics; all key parameters for building a complete chemodynamical picture of disk galaxies. With these data, we aim to extend Galactic analysis methods to the wider galaxy population, reaping the benefits of detailed Milky Way studies, while probing the diverse mechanisms of galaxy evolution.

The marketisation of disability support driven by individualised funding brings new dilemmas for multi-agency collaboration, in particular how to provide personalised supports while remaining commercially viable. This article explores the challenges, risks and adaptations of organisations to navigate the tensions of personalisation and collaboration. Framed by street-level research and using the context of Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), this article draws on interviews with twenty-eight organisational managers. Multi-agency challenges are highlighted when several providers are delivering parts of a NDIS participant’s plan, blurring organisational responsibilities and accountabilities. Interviews also revealed the paradox of organisational disconnection and organisational dependence concerning quality support provision and described the collaborative responses organisations implement to ensure their sustainability. There is commitment among organisations to build a trusted ecosystem of providers, but this is largely discretionary and there is a need for further policy mechanisms to enable organisations to negotiate a way through multi-agency dilemmas.

Within growing marketisation of publicly funded services, the internet has provided new opportunities for marketing, delivery, and coordination of those services. Using web scraping and hyperlink network analysis techniques, this paper examines the ways in which organisations operating in Australia’s evolving National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) system inter-connect online. Social media plays the most important role in the online network. Government agencies also play a central role, with many disability service organisations linking their web users to them. Government agency websites do not hyperlink to disability service providers, suggesting that governments do not see their role as assisting access to such services. Advocacy and peak disability organisations are important in online connections between the websites of government and service organisations. Innovative uses of the internet for online brokerage of disability services are evident. The implications of these findings for service delivery are discussed.