The overlapping COVID-19 crisis and the war starting in 2022 threaten front-line healthcare workers’ mental health, well-being and job retention in Ukraine. This paper provides a synopsis of a panel discussion held by the Global Mental Health Humanitarian Coalition in May 2022 and expert consultations with clinicians between December 2022 and February 2023 on these challenges. The crises created new problems and exacerbated many pre-existing difficulties. We found that healthcare workers had needed to mobilise previously untapped strengths, including portable emergency medical documents and bespoke local psychosocial support services, amid the costs and pressures of ongoing healthcare reforms.

To increase inclusivity, diversity, equity and accessibility in Antarctic science, we must build more positive and inclusive Antarctic field work environments. The International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC) has engaged in efforts to contribute to that goal through a variety of activities since 2018, including creating an open-access ‘Field and Ship Best Practices’ guide, engaging in pre-field season team dynamics meetings, and surveying post-field season reflections and experiences. We report specific actions taken by ITGC and their outcomes. We found that strong and supported early career researchers brought new and important perspectives regarding strategies for transforming culture. We discovered that engaged and involved senior leadership was also critical for expanding participation and securing funding to support efforts. Pre-field discussions involving all field team members were particularly helpful for setting expectations, improving sense of belonging, describing field work best practices, and co-creating a positive work culture.

The present study aimed to develop an isotope protocol to achieve equilibrium of 13CO2 in breath of cats during carbon oxidation studies using L-[1-13C]-Phenylalanine (L-[1-13C]-Phe), provided orally in repeated meals. One adult male cat was used in two experiments. In each experiment, three isotope protocols were tested in triplicate using the same cat. During carbon oxidation study days, the cat was offered thirteen small meals to achieve and maintain a physiological fed state. In experiment 1, the isotope protocols tested (A, B and C) had a similar priming dose of NaH13CO3 (0⋅176 mg/kg; offered in meal 6), but different priming [4⋅8 mg/kg (A) or 9⋅4 mg/kg (B and C); provided in meal 6] and constant [1⋅04 mg/kg (A and B) or 2⋅4 mg/kg (C); offered in meals 6–13] doses of L-[1-13C]-Phe. In experiment 2, the isotope protocols tested (D, E and F) had similar priming (4⋅8 mg/kg; provided in meal 5) and constant (1⋅04 mg/kg; provided in meals 5–13) doses of L-[1-13C]-Phe, but increasing priming doses of NaH13CO3 (D: 0⋅264, E: 0⋅352, F: 0⋅44 mg/kg; provided in meal 4). Breath samples were collected using respiration chambers (25-min intervals) and CO2 trapping to determine 13CO2:12CO2. Isotopic steady state was defined as the enrichment of 13CO2, above background samples, remaining constant in at least the last three samples. Treatment F resulted in the earliest achievement of 13CO2 steady state in the cat's breath. This feeding and isotope protocol can be used in future studies aiming to study amino acid metabolism in cats.

This article discusses the objectives of the Stone Age Man in Caves of the Tatra Mountains project, which aims to explain the mysterious absence of evidence for the Palaeolithic in the Tatra Mountains of Eastern Europe. We present preliminary work from Hučivá Cave, which demonstrates clear traces of Magdalenian settlement within this region.

Illegal killing of wildlife is a major conservation issue that, to be addressed effectively, requires insight into the drivers of human behaviour. Here we adapt an established socio-psychological model, the theory of planned behaviour, to explore reasons for hunting the Endangered Bewick's swan Cygnus columbianus bewickii in the European Russian Arctic, using responses from hunters to a questionnaire survey. Wider ecological, legal, recreational and economic motivations were also explored. Of 236 hunters who participated overall, 14% harboured intentions to hunt Bewick's swan. Behavioural intention was predicted by all components of the theory of planned behaviour, specifically: hunters' attitude towards the behaviour, perceived behavioural control (i.e. perceived capability of being able to perform the behaviour) and their subjective norms (perception of social expectations). The inclusion of attitude towards protective laws and descriptive norm (perception of whether other people perform the behaviour) increased the model's predictive power. Understanding attitudes towards protective laws can help guide the design of conservation measures that reduce non-compliance. We conclude that conservation interventions should target the socio-psychological conditions that influence hunters' attitudes, social norms and perceived behavioural control. These may include activities that build trust, encourage support for conservation, generate social pressure against poaching, use motivations to prompt change and strengthen peoples' confidence to act. This approach could be applied to inform the effective design, prioritization and targeting of interventions that improve compliance and reduce the illegal killing of wildlife.

Comparing knowledge with belief can go wrong in two dimensions: If the authors employ a wider notion of knowledge, then they do not compare like with like because they assume a narrow notion of belief. If they employ only a narrow notion of knowledge, then their claim is not supported by the evidence. Finally, we sketch a superior teleological view.

Background: Contaminated surfaces within patient rooms and on shared equipment is a major driver of healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs). The emergence of Candida auris in the New York City metropolitan area, a multidrug-resistant fungus with extended environmental viability, has made a standardized assessment of cleaning protocols even more urgent for our multihospital academic health system. We therefore sought to create an environmental surveillance protocol to detect C. auris and to assess patient room contamination after discharge cleaning by different chemicals and methods, including touch-free application using an electrostatic sprayer. Surfaces disinfected using touch-free methods may not appear disinfected when assessed by fluorescent tracer dye or ATP bioluminescent assay. Methods: We focused on surfaces within the patient zone which are touched by the patient or healthcare personnel prior to contact with the patient. Our protocol sampled the over-bed table, call button, oxygen meter, privacy curtain, and bed frame using nylon-flocked swabs dipped in nonbacteriostatic sterile saline. We swabbed a 36-cm2 surface area on each sample location shortly after the room was disinfected, immediately inoculated the swab on a blood agar 5% TSA plate, and then incubated the plate for 24 hours at 36°C. The contamination with common environmental bacteria was calculated as CFU per plate over swabbed surface area and a cutoff of 2.5 CFU/cm2 was used to determine whether a surface passed inspection. Limited data exist on acceptable microbial limits for healthcare settings, but the aforementioned cutoff has been used in food preparation. Results: Over a year-long period, terminal cleaning had an overall fail rate of 6.5% for 413 surfaces swabbed. We used the protocol to compare the normal application of either peracetic acid/hydrogen peroxide or bleach using microfiber cloths to a new method using sodium dichloroisocyanurate (NaDCC) applied with microfiber cloths and electrostatic sprayers. The normal protocol had a fail rate of 9%, and NaDCC had a failure rate of 2.5%. The oxygen meter had the highest normal method failure rate (18.2%), whereas the curtain had the highest NaDCC method failure rate (11%). In addition, we swabbed 7 rooms previously occupied by C. auris–colonized patients for C. auris contamination of environmental surfaces, including the mobile medical equipment of the 4 patient care units that contained these rooms. We did not find any C. auris, and we continue data collection. Conclusions: A systematic environmental surveillance system is critical for healthcare systems to assess touch-free disinfection and identify MDRO contamination of surfaces.

Funding: None

Disclosures: None

In the present study, we identified the ectoparasite communities of red foxes in three regions of Poland that encompassed two endemic regions for the occurrence of Dermacentor reticulatus, as well as a region that is free of this tick species (‘gap’ area). Our study sites were selected to enable the role of foxes as hosts for juvenile (nest dwelling) and adult (exophilic) D. reticulatus ticks to be determined, and to assess their contribution to the spread of this important vector of Babesia canis. We compared also ectoparasite communities between adult foxes with those of fox cubs. Finally, we carried out a systematic search for subcutaneous ticks determining their prevalence and abundance. In 2016–2018, 366 adult foxes and 25 live-trapped cubs were examined for ectoparasites. Ectoparasites were identified based on morphological features, PCR amplification and sequencing. The total prevalence of ectoparasites was higher in cubs (68%) than in adults (62.8%). In adults, 15 parasite species were recorded, including four tick species, seven flea species, scabies, and one Anopluran species each in the genera Felicola and Lipoptena. In cubs, six ectoparasite species were found, including Ixodes kaiseri, a species not found in adults. Although Ixodes ricinus and D. reticulatus were the dominant tick species on adult foxes, no D. reticulatus ticks were found on cubs. Subcutaneous ticks were common (38%) and abundant in all areas. Molecular analysis of subcutaneous nodules allowed the identification of 17 I. ricinus and five D. reticulatus. In conclusion, red foxes play a minor role as hosts of D. reticulatus.

Domestic courts enjoy generous attention in international political and legal climate change literature. As a result of the reluctance of national governments to pursue climate protection measures, courts are called on to enforce international climate goals. This article assesses two domestic climate change cases (the Thabametsi Case and the Vienna Airport Case) in the light of Anthea Roberts’ functional understanding of the role of domestic courts in international law. It argues that domestic courts play a pivotal role in linking international obligations of conduct with national obligations of result. This role depends on domestic contexts and, therefore, requires a comparative approach.