bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hope in multiple chemical sensitivity: social support and attitude towards healthcare delivery as predictors of hope
Authors: GIBSON PAMELA REED
Published: March 2003

• This paper examines hope, as measured by the Herth Hope Scale, and its predictors in a sample of 305 people self‐identified with multiple chemical sensitivity.

• The sample had relatively low levels of hope with scores unrelated to gender, severity or length of illness, income loss as a result of illness, or reported iatrogenic harm.

• Hope scores were positively correlated with perceived social support, having found personal growth through illness, age, reported level of supportiveness from a partner, an improved course of illness and level of reported safety of the home environment in regard to chemical exposures.

• Negative correlations were found with attitude toward healthcare delivery, fatigue and reported abuse/ostracism from family members other than partner.

• Social support, Healthcare Orientation, growth through illness, fatigue and age predicted hope scores accounted for 55% of the variance. Implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Exercise and nursing therapy for patients with intermittent claudication
Authors: BINNIE ALISON , PERKINS JEREMY , HANDS LINDA
Published: March 2003

• Intermittent claudication is a common manifestation of arterial disease in the second half of life. Invasive treatments may be inappropriate or unsuccessful, leaving patients with a significant handicap. Nursing intervention can improve the functional ability and the general well‐being of many patients.

• This paper provides an account of the development of an out‐patient nursing service for patients with intermittent claudication. It focuses on the exercise training and the psychological support given to patients.

• A review of the first 102 claudicants referred to the programme shows the outcome for the patients in terms of improved walking ability.

• The details of the nursing intervention reported in the paper should help the growing number of nurses starting similar programmes for vascular patients. They may also be of interest to nurses caring for patients with other chronic health problems.
Core competencies for Clinical Nurse Specialists: a usable framework
Authors: Cattini Pat , Knowles Victoria
Published: March 2003

• This article describes a framework of generic core competencies for assessing the role of the Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS). It was devised by a group of CNSs at Kingston Hospital NHS Trust, over a two year period.

• Currently, there is considerable confusion surrounding the role of the CNS. The UKCC is in the process of clarifying what is meant by specialist practice, with the aim of formally recognizing its status on the register.

• There does not seem to be a consensus opinion on the standards of competence required to practise as a CNS.

• This article seeks to address this issue by demonstrating a means of competency‐based assessment for the role of the CNS.
Towards recovery: living in a home‐like setting after the move from a hospital ward
Authors: Pejlert Anita , Asplund Kenneth , Norberg Astrid
Published: March 2003

• Six clients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia were interviewed about their experiences of their lives in a home‐like setting, their key care provider and the care received.

• Their narratives of lived experiences in care were interpreted as living a process of health in the midst of severe mental illness, involving: ‘becoming more’, ‘being disabled’, ‘comforting/confirming relationship’, ‘discomforting/unconfirming relationship’ and ‘caring about the caring relationship’.

• Fatigue and lack of strength influenced the lives of most clients considerably, and the stories were about problems and conflicts. Nevertheless, the clients seemed really to struggle to make communal life work, and there were experiences of increased competence and better self‐confidence in most of the stories.

• On the whole care was described as good, and the process of health seemed to be supported by experiences of comfort and being confirmed in the client–care provider relationship.
Unwillingness to be violated: carers’ experiences of caring for a person acting in a disturbing manner. An interview study
Authors: Hellzen Ove , Asplund Kenneth , Sandman Per‐Olof , Norberg Astrid
Published: March 2003

• Carers working in psychiatric care are sometimes exposed to insane, unpredictable and violent actions. In rare cases a patient appears to be resistant to all forms of pharmacological treatment.

• Fifteen carers (four registered nurses, 11 enrolled nurses) on a psychiatric ward in Sweden were interviewed about their experiences when caring for a person who acted in a disturbing manner. Narrative interviews were conducted and interpreted using a method inspired by Ricoeur.

• Four themes were formulated which describe the carers’ uncertainty about the future, their inability to interpret the patient’s disturbing behaviour and their own overall feeling of meaninglessness.

• The carers were of the opinion that the patient had the power and ruled the ward, which led to them feeling they were subjugated victims. The interviews also revealed the carers’ recognition of forbidden feelings and actions and unknown negative sides.

• These results were interpreted and reflected on in the light of an ethical framework in order to achieve a deeper understanding of the text.

• This paper shows that an ethical perspective is important when searching for the meaning of caring for patients acting in a disturbing manner. The study raises the question: ‘Is it possible to establish good when evil has dominion?’.
Waiting for a liver transplant: the experience of patients with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy
Authors: Jonsén Elisabeth , Athlin Elsy , Suhr Ole B.
Published: March 2003

• Liver transplant is a new treatment for familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy.

• The purpose of this phenomenological study is to describe the experience of waiting for a liver transplant from the familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy patients’ perspective.

• Unstructured and open‐ended interviews were conducted with 14 familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy patients and the analysis of data was inspired by Colaizzi’s method.

• Waiting was found to involve two theme categories: waiting for a decision; and waiting for the operation. Seven themes were identified: bargaining with oneself; no influence/powerlessness; relief and joy; impatience; agony; time to prepare; and need for information and support.

• Implications for nursing practice, such as informational and emotional support, are discussed.
Older people and laxative use: literature review and pilot study report
Authors: Koch Tina , Hudson Sally
Published: March 2003

• This study explored older adults’ perceptions of constipation, and the measures taken if they believed themselves to be afflicted by this condition.

• The paper provides an overview of the current literature surrounding laxative use, followed by a discussion of the pilot study and its findings.

• The objectives of the pilot study were to establish older people’s definitions of the term ‘constipation’; identify prescribed laxatives, over‐the‐counter laxatives, and home remedies used by older people to manage constipation; produce a detailed account of when these products are used; identify the older person’s belief system underpinning their concepts of constipation, and their consequent use of laxative products; and produce information which will inform nursing practice, with a particular focus on nurses in community practice.

• People who identified themselves as being constipated were interviewed on a one to one basis.

• Participants shared their stories of loneliness, social isolation and anxiety related to constipation and the need to use laxatives on a daily basis, and described persistent unpleasant and often painful physical symptoms such as bloating, urges, excessive flatus, nausea and cramps, commonly associated with laxative ingestion.

• Nurses are challenged to work with older people within a ‘wellness’ framework, helping clients to maintain their bowel function, rather than fall back on short‐term options, which provide only brief relief of symptoms, while ignoring the underlying causes.
Updating cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills: a study to examine the efficacy of self‐instruction on nurses’ competence
Authors: Davies Nigel , Gould Dinah
Published: March 2003

• Nurses’ competence in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has been shown to be consistently poor over the past decade. Studies have suggested that CPR teaching methods need to be evaluated and refined in order to improve practice. Self‐instruction has been suggested as one alternative to formal retraining programmes, but has not been evaluated with respect to nurses in the UK.

• A quasi‐experimental design utilizing random allocation of matched subjects to one experimental and two control groups was adopted with a sample of 20 undergraduate nursing students. The subjects’ CPR ability was assessed concurrently using a resuscitation manikin and an observational checklist.

• Subjects undertaking self‐instruction produced significantly (P < 0.05) higher ability scores than those who did not participate in retraining. The time spent in self‐instruction was evaluated positively by the students.

• The results are discussed in the light of previous research and current recommendations for regular CPR updating by all clinical nurses.
Cancer nursing practice development: understanding breathlessness
Authors: Krishnasamy Meinir , Corner Jessica , Bredin Mary , Plant Hilary , Bailey Chris
Published: March 2003

•  This paper considers methodological and philosophical issues that arose during a multi‐centre, randomized controlled trial of a new nursing intervention to manage breathlessness with patients with primary lung cancer.

•  Despite including a diverse range of instruments to measure the effects of the intervention, the uniqueness of individuals’ experiences of breathlessness were often hidden by a requirement to frame the study within a reductionist research approach.

•  Evidence from the study suggests that breathlessness is only partly defined when understood and explored within a bio‐medical framework, and that effective therapy can only be achieved once the nature and impact of breathlessness have been understood from the perspective of the individual experiencing it.

•  We conclude that to work therapeutically we need to know how patients interpret their illness and its resultant problems and that this demands methodological creativity.
Staff activities and behaviour are the source of many feelings: relatives’ interactions and relationships with staff in nursing homes
Authors: Hertzberg Annika , Ekman Sirkka‐Liisa , Axelsson Karin
Published: March 2003

• Family members do not give up their involvement in the life of their older relatives when they move to an institution.

• Relatives feel that it is they who take the initiative to establish a working relationship with the staff at the nursing home.

• Relatives want more spontaneous information from staff, particularly about residents’ daily lives, and there is a need for relatives to have opportunities to talk with staff under relaxed conditions.

• Staff behaviour and activities towards residents and relatives are a source of many feelings for relatives.

• Relatives’ understandings of the challenges faced by staff are not communicated to staff, nor are positive or negative experiences explicitly passed on to staff.
Is good ‘quality of life’ possible at the end of life? An explorative study of the experiences of a group of cancer patients in two different care cultures INFORMATION POINT: Factor analysis
Authors: Sahlberg‐Blom Eva , Ternestedt Britt‐Marie , Johansson Jan‐Erik
Published: March 2003

• The purpose of this paper was to explore how a group of gravely ill patients, cared for in different care cultures, assessed their quality of life during their last month of life.

• The study material comprised quality of life assessments from 47 cancer patients, completed during their last month of life. Two quality of life questionnaires, the EORTC QLQ‐C30 and a psychosocial well‐being questionnaire, were used. The data were treated in accordance with instructions for the respective questionnaires, and the results are presented primarily as means, mostly at the group level. Assessments from patients in two different care cultures, care‐orientated and cure‐orientated, were compared.

• The results show that despite having an assessed lower quality of life in many dimensions than people in general, several patients experienced happiness and satisfaction during their last month of life.

• ‘Cognitive functioning’ and ‘emotional functioning’ were the dimensions that differed least from those of the general population, and ‘physical functioning’, ‘role functioning’ and ‘global health status/quality of life’ differed the most. ‘Fatigue’ showed the highest mean for the symptom scales/items.

• There was a tendency for those cared for in the cure‐orientated care culture to report more symptoms than those in the care‐orientated care culture. An exception to this was ‘pain’, which was reported more often by those in the care‐orientated care culture.

• The implications of the results are discussed from different angles. The significance of knowledge concerning how patients experience their quality of life is also discussed with respect to the care and the planning of care for dying patients.
Examining the validity of pressure ulcer risk assessment scales: developing and using illustrated patient simulations to collect the data INFORMATION POINT: Visual Analogue Scale
Authors: Gould Dinah , Kelly Daniel , Goldstone Len , Gammon John
Published: March 2003

• Simulations are of particular advantage in research studies where large samples are necessary to achieve statistical power and the information must be collected under uniform conditions in order to aid interpretation.

• In the study reported below, simulation was achieved through the use of medical photography accompanied by case studies of the same patients. All information was collected on the same day. The purpose of the study was to determine the validity of the three pressure ulcer risk assessment scales most commonly used in clinical nursing practice in the UK.

• Each clinical nurse assessed the same four patients using three risk assessment scales and a visual analogue scale designed to capture their own clinical judgement. External validity was assessed by a panel of tissue viability experts who provided independent ratings.

• Data were obtained from 236 clinical nurses, yielding 941 risk assessments.

• Experience with this approach to data collection suggests that it requires careful planning. This should include measures to ensure that the simulated information is valid and that all data collectors have been adequately trained and are able to motivate the nurses participating in the study. Providing consideration is given to these issues, the use of simulation can help to collect data that would be difficult to obtain by more conventional means. It is also important to recognize that clinical decisions are de‐contextualized in simulations because they are reduced to verbal and visual summaries. The decision to use simulations should thus be taken only if this is acknowledged.
Families, nurses and intensive care patients: a review of the literature
Authors: HOLDEN JANET , HARRISON LYNNE , JOHNSON MARTIN
Published: March 2003

• Nurses striving to give holistic care to provide quality care for their patients, need to recognize the importance of caring for patients' families.

• A detailed review of the literature examining the relationships between nurses and intensive care patients' families was undertaken to examine its strengths and weaknesses as a basis for further study.

• Studies show that although nurses are often in the best position to meet families' needs, their needs are not always met.

• The building of good relationships with families is essential for nurses, and yet evidence shows that some nurses have difficulties in this area.

• Good practice is identified and obstacles nurses face in forming relationships with families are explored.

• Strategies for improving the interaction process between intensive care nurses and patients' families are systematically evaluated.
Investigating the effect of erectile dysfunction on the lives of men: a qualitative research study
Authors: PONTIN DAVID , PORTER TIM , Mc DONAGH RURAIDH
Published: March 2003

• The aim of this project was to identify and explore the issues facing men who live with erectile dysfunction (ED), in particular men's' relationships with women partners and men's interactions with the wider world.

• In order to gain an understanding of their everyday lives, a qualitative research design was used. This is an account of the interpretation and analysis of nine interviews with men living with ED that were carried out during the autumn of 1997.

• The analysis identified two main themes, `loss' and `being alone with it'; with meta‐categories `making sense of it' and `telling other people', and `place of sex'. The latter acts as a bridge between the two themes.

• The implications for nursing practice are considered and recommendations are made for practice, education and research.
The effect of visual stimuli on pain threshold and tolerance
Authors: TSE MIMI M. Y. , NG JACOBUS K. F. , CHUNG JOANNE W. Y. , WONG THOMAS K. S.
Published: March 2003

• For many hospital patients, the experience brings pain and anxiety. Unfamiliar surroundings, various diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, and the sight and sounds of medical procedures exacerbate pain and anxiety.

• To block off the anxiety‐inducing sights and sounds of hospital surroundings and create a pleasing environment, the therapeutic potential of visual stimulation as a nursing intervention was investigated.

• In a randomized, controlled, cross‐over study, pain was produced by a modified tourniquet technique in 46 healthy volunteers. Subjects were randomly allocated to two groups (Group V and Group B) with subsequent cross‐over. Those in Group V watched a soundless video display of natural scenery during tourniquet inflation, whereas in Group B subjects watched a static blank screen.

• Pain threshold was defined as the time when subjects reported the first detectable pain, whereas pain tolerance was the time the pain was reported to be intolerable and deflation of the tourniquet was requested.

• With the use of visual stimuli, there was a significant increase in pain threshold (P < 0.05) and pain tolerance (P < 0.01). Gender and the sequence of visual stimuli did not have any significant effect on pain threshold and pain tolerance.

• Further studies specifically addressing level of anxiety and physiological data correlated with pain scores and visual stimuli are needed.

• The findings have implications for nurses and other healthcare professionals to use various visual stimuli as positive adjuncts to other methods of pain relief and for different pain conditions in clinical areas.
Improving glycaemic control of insulin‐treated diabetic patients – a structured audit of specialist nurse intervention
Authors: Yong Alice , Power Eileen , Gill Geoffrey
Published: March 2003

•  Insulin‐treated diabetic patients with poor glycaemic control are frequently referred to diabetes specialist nurses, but little data exist as to the effectiveness of this practice.

•  We therefore analysed the progress of 43 prospectively referred insulin‐treated patients with glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels > 7.5%.

•  Diabetes nurse intervention involved re‐education, dietary advice and insulin dose adjustment. Improvement in control was defined as a final HbA1c < 7.0% or a fall of HbA1c of > 1.0% at 6 months post‐intervention.

•  Almost two‐thirds (63%) of patients achieved improvement status, with no increase in body weight or hypoglycaemic episodes. Disappointingly, however, the ‘non‐improver’ group (37%) showed a mean deterioration in HbA1c.

•  In conclusion, diabetes nurse intervention for poorly controlled insulin‐treated diabetic patients is generally effective, but intervention may be best targeted to responsive patients.

•  The factors which influence diabetic patients' ‘responsiveness to change’ require further investigation.
Organisational culture: electronic support for occupational learning
Authors: Saunders M.
Published: March 2003

This paper outlines the inter‐relationship between telematic learning support and the organisational culture of the workplace. It defines occupational learning and types of organisationally generated knowledge while siting them in different forms of learning context. The paper identifies concepts of organisational culture and assesses the plausibility of the argument that telematics can effect changes in culture. It contextualises these issues in new research on the impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on organisations in general.
Evaluation of CAL in higher education Geography
Authors: Spellman G.
Published: March 2003

Abstract In recent years the promotion and incorporation of computer‐assisted learning courseware has been a feature of many Geography departments in higher education in the UK. There is little disagreement that this development needs to be thoroughly evaluated to ensure quality and effectiveness. However there has been a lack of rigorous evaluation in practice. A detailed illuminative evaluation of 120 Geography students using focus group interviews and an attitude survey reveals that CAL packages remain unpopular with most learners. This can be attributed to the content and presentation of packages but it is also suggested that contexts of use and perhaps staff disinterest are explanatory factors. Some gender‐based and age‐based attitude differences are noted. This type of evaluation is of greater use to curriculum developers than objective‐led approaches.
Assessment and multimedia authoring – a tool for externalising understanding
Authors: McFarlane A. , Williams J.M. , Bonnett M.
Published: March 2003

Abstract Multimedia authoring software has a number of features that, given teacher support, should provide conditions that help pupils create material that genuinely reflects their understanding. This paper reviews the ways in which use of this technology may also support improvements in assessment. Drawing on research findings it describes how pupil‐produced multimedia documents can reveal aspects of performance that traditional tests may not recognise. If such assessment is to be accepted at the policy level, a shared set of criteria for achievement must be developed in terms of technical manipulation and content exposition. Lines of enquiry for further investigation of multimedia authoring, pupil learning and assessment are proposed.
Double‐fading support — a training approach to complex software systems
Authors: Leutner D.
Published: March 2003

Abstract  A new approach to software training is presented, the so‐called Double‐Fading Support (DFS) approach. According to this approach, which is based on Carroll's training‐wheels idea and on cognitive theories of skill acquisition, two types of user support when learning to use a complex software system — locking the software's functionality and detailed guidance — are faded out gradually during the training course, so that the learners are able to use the complex software with minimal instructional support at the end of the training. Two 30‐hour training experiments with two different CAD software systems and CAD‐inexperienced university students were conducted. The results of Experiment 1 with 88 participants indicate the effectiveness of the DFS‐approach for CAD software with a deeply structured menu system. Participants working with the initially reduced software outperformed participants of the full software functionality group; additionally, participants of the slowly faded guidance group outperformed participants receiving medium, fast or no fading of guidance at all. Results of Experiment 2 with 120 participants, however, indicate less effectiveness of the DFS‐approach for an icon‐based CAD software in which most of relevant functions are permanently visible to the user. It seems that the two factors (fading out the locking of software's functionality and fading out detailed guidance) overcompensate each other.
An activity‐based analysis of hands‐on practice methods
Authors: Wiedenbeck S. , Zavala J.A. , Nawyn J.
Published: March 2003

Abstract The success of exploration‐based training is likely to be strongly influenced by what activities the learner undertakes during training. This paper presents a study of the activities undertaken during training by 51 experienced computer users learning to use an application package through exercises, exploration or a combined approach to training. Results suggest that exploration learners practice procedures selectively, fail to consolidate skills through repetition, and do not devise activities which extend their knowledge beyond the scope of the training materials. It is argued that these characteristics may lead to subsequent difficulties in performance.
Microhabitat specialization in a species‐rich palm community in Amazonian Ecuador
Authors: Svenning Jens‐Christian
Published: March 2003

1Relationships between microhabitat variables (altitude, inclination, topographic position, drainage, canopy height) and the distribution and abundance of palms and palm‐like plants in 50 ha of old‐growth terra firme rain forest in the Yasuní National Park, lowland Amazonian Ecuador, were examined using 118 20 × 20 m plots laid out in a stratified random design.

2If microhabitat niche differentiation is important for maintaining the species richness of the community, then (i) the distribution of the palms will be strongly influenced by microhabitat heterogeneity and (ii) palms of similar growth form will show antagonistic microhabitat relationships.

3Mantel and cluster analyses showed that palm species distributions were strongly structured by topography. The main difference in species composition was between plots in the bottomland and plots on the upper slopes and hill tops.

4Logistic and logit analyses showed that 20 of the 31 palm and palm‐like taxa analysed had distributions that were significantly related to the microhabitat variables measured, mainly to topography but also to drainage and canopy height.

5Spatial autocorrelation in the overall community structure was not explained by the microhabitat variables. Analyses of distributions or abundances of single species showed neighbourhood effects for seven taxa.

6Antagonistic patterns of microhabitat preferences were recognizable among some species pairs of small palms, medium‐sized palms and palm‐like plants, but not among canopy palms.

7It is concluded that microhabitat specialization is an important factor in maintaining the diversity of this palm community, while mass effects might also be important.
Herbivores, seed banks and seedling recruitment in mesic grassland
Authors: Edwards G. R. , Crawley M. J.
Published: March 2003

1 An experiment was carried out in a species‐poor acid grassland to determine the effect of insect, mollusc and rabbit herbivory on the size and composition of the seed bank and on seedling recruitment from the seed bank and seed rain. From 1991 to 1997, insects and molluscs were excluded with pesticides, and rabbits with fences. Seedling recruitment was monitored over 22 months in gaps established in the vegetation in summer 1995.

2 The most common species recorded from the seed bank in early summer 1995 were dicots (17 species), but perennial grasses (five species) were numerically the most abundant (65% of total). There was no relationship between the species composition of the seed bank and the established vegetation.

3 The size of the seed bank of eight species was greater on fenced plots, a result that reflected increased seed rain where rabbits were excluded. Insects and molluscs had no effect on the size of the seed bank of any species. The number of species in the seed bank was not affected by any of the herbivore exclusions.

4 A comparison of seedling emergence in gaps formed over the original soil with gaps where the soil had been sterilized indicated that only Galium saxatile and Cytisus scoparius recruited from the seed bank. Seedling recruitment was almost entirely derived from the recent seed rain, was dominated by the most abundant perennial grasses in the vegetation (Festuca rubra and Holcus lanatus), and had a species composition that resembled the established vegetation. Results highlight that the potential for seedling establishment in gaps to bring about vegetation change in this grassland is low.

5 Six species had higher seedling densities on rabbit‐fenced plots, but the significant effect of fencing disappeared by plant maturity for most species. Survival of seedlings was lower on fenced plots where non‐grazed biomass accumulated, so that after 22 months Agrostis capillaris was the only species with more plants present where rabbits were excluded. Rumex acetosa and Stellaria graminea showed higher seedling emergence where molluscs were excluded. More seedlings of Rumex acetosa were also found where insects were excluded. These invertebrate effects were still evident at plant maturity.
Migration of herbaceous plant species across ancient–recent forest ecotones in central Belgium
Authors: Bossuyt Beatrijs , Hermy Martin , Deckers Jozef
Published: March 2003

1 We studied the migration of forest plant species using their percentage cover and frequency in 197 plots distributed over 26 transects across ecotones between ancient and recent deciduous forests in the Meerdaal forest complex in central Belgium. The recent forest stands varied in age between 36 and 132 years, and all occurred on silty, well‐drained soils.

2 The total cover, number and diversity of field layer species did not differ significantly between ancient and recent forest stands.

3 The number and cover of the ancient forest plant species and of ant‐dispersed species correlated positively with the age of the recent forest and negatively with both the duration of its former agricultural land use and the distance to the ancient forest. This implies a slow colonization of the recent forest stands by these species; all species were, however, able to migrate across the ecotones.

4 The cover of four species (Anemone nemorosa, Lamium galeobdolon, Convallaria majalis and Polygonatum multiflorum) declined along the transect, suggesting that they are limited by seed dispersal. Their colonization rates, calculated from the occurrence of the farthest individual, ranged from < 0.05 to 1.15 m year−1 and for other measures from < 0.05 to 0.65 m year−1. Anemone and Lamium appeared to colonize the recent forest by establishment of isolated individuals, while Polygonatum and Convallaria expanded populations from existing patches on the border between ancient and recent forest.

5 Several forest species were able to colonize the recent forest rapidly, where some of them even reached a higher abundance, due to the increased availability of colonization sites with a higher nutrient content and a thinner organic layer.
Reduced fecundity and offspring performance in small populations of the declining grassland plantsPrimula verisandGentiana lutea
Authors: Kéry Marc , Matthies Diethart , Spillmann Hans‐Heinrich
Published: March 2003

1 We studied reproduction and offspring performance in relation to population size in the declining self‐incompatible perennialsPrimula verisandGentiana lutea. In both species, reproduction was strongly reduced in small populations, where plants produced fewer seeds per fruit and per plant. Total seed mass per plant was higher in large populations, but individual seeds were smaller, indicating a trade‐off between seed number and size. Reproduction was depressed most strongly in populations consisting of less thanc.200 (P. veris) andc.500 plants (G. lutea), respectively.

2 The inclusion of plant size (an integrated measure of habitat quality) in the statistical models did not change the relationships between fecundity and population size. Pollen limitation or inbreeding depression in small populations are therefore more likely explanations for these patterns than is habitat quality.

3 Germination rate and survival of seedlings in a common environment was not related to population size in either species, althoughP. verisdeveloped into larger rosettes when seeds were derived from large populations. This suggests that inbreeding depression occurs in small populations ofP. veris.

4 In a factorial fertilizer‐by‐competition experiment withP. veris, offspring from larger populations grew significantly larger and responded more strongly to fertilizer. For this declining species genetic deterioration as a result of habitat fragmentation may therefore aggravate the effects of environmental changes such as habitat eutrophication.

5 Our results suggest that small populations may face an increased short‐term risk of extinction because of reduced reproduction, and an increased long‐term risk because they are less able to respond to environmental changes.
Long‐term change and spatial pattern in a late‐successional hemlock–northern hardwood forest
Authors: Woods Kerry D.
Published: March 2003

1 Tree populations were monitored for six decades on a grid of 140 permanent plots in old‐growth mesic (hemlock‐northern hardwood) forests in northern Michigan, USA. Multiple remeasurements allow assessment of stability of late‐successional forests and analysis of spatial patterns and environmental linkages.

2 This forest is not compositionally stable. Betula alleghaniensis has declined with little regeneration, suggesting dependence on episodic canopy disruption for persistence. Tsuga canadensis and Fagus grandifolia have increased in dominance in all size classes independently of major disturbances. Acer saccharum populations have remained little changed overall. Dynamics appear to be successional in nature, even though there has been no major disturbance for at least 400 years. Different areas in the stand may have experienced different histories.

3 Fagus grandifolia has invaded the stand recently through range expansion, and has come to dominate regeneration in some parts of the stand.

4 Canonical correspondence analysis suggests that soil texture, chemistry, and drainage influence successional dynamics, producing strong spatial pattern. Fagus grandifolia has invaded only on relatively fine‐textured soils with impeded drainage.

5 Trends suggest that Fagus, Tsuga, and perhaps Acer saccharum would, in different parts of the stand, achieve near‐total dominance in the absence of large‐scale disturbance, but only after elapsed time of a millennium or more. Estimated return times for major disturbance in this region are of similar magnitude.
Unexpected density‐dependent effects of herbivory in a wild population of the annual Collinsia torreyi
Authors: Parmesan Camille
Published: March 2003

1 Herbivory is known to affect plant fitness, but has rarely been studied under realistic conditions, i.e. by manipulation of real herbivores in a wild plant population. Furthermore, its interaction with competition, another factor known to affect plant physiology and reproduction, has usually been neglected.

2 Interactions among plant density, insect herbivore damage and plant fitness components (survival and lifetime fecundity) were investigated by both observation and experiment in a population of a native montane annual, Collinsia torreyi, and its primary insect herbivore, the butterfly Euphydryas editha. Larvae were manipulated to inflict predetermined levels of experimental damage.

3 Increases in either plant density or herbivory generally had negative effects on fitness. Loss of only 5% of seedling leaf area significantly reduced adult lifetime fecundity.

4 Herbivory reduced fitness at low, but not at high, plant density. This form of interaction between effects of competition and herbivory is theoretically unexpected and opposite in direction to interactions found in other published studies. Low resource availability may be an important factor.

5 Where such an interaction occurs, it would cause the selective effects of herbivores to be density‐dependent, i.e. when plants are crowded, the absence of selection would oppose any evolutionary increase in costly defences.
Influence of pressurized ventilation on performance of an emergent macrophyte (Phragmites australis)
Authors: Vretare Viveka , Weisner Stefan E. B.
Published: March 2003

1 Pressurized ventilation, which increases gas exchange between aerial and submerged plant parts, has been found in various emergent macrophyte species. We investigated the potential for this mechanism to affect growth, morphology and biomass allocation in Phragmites australis in glasshouse experiments.

2 Inhibition of pressurized ventilation by perforation of stems above the water surface resulted in decreased oxygen concentrations in stem bases and rhizomes. Perforation caused little mechanical damage.

3 Allometric methods were used to evaluate treatment effects on biomass allocation and morphology.

4 Inhibition of pressurized ventilation resulted in decreased allocation to below‐ground weight and decreased rhizome penetration into the substrate in two of three experiments. Treatment also decreased growth rate, rhizome length and number of rhizomes when substrate had a high organic content. In the third experiment, growth clearly decreased in deep water, although inhibition of pressurized ventilation did not affect growth, biomass allocation or morphology at either of the water depths tested.

5 Decreased allocation to below‐ground parts and decreased rhizome lengths may be adaptations to allow the oxygen concentration in roots and rhizomes to be maintained above a critical level when the oxygen supply is low.

6 Pressurized ventilation may improve the performance of P. australis but only under certain conditions (e.g. not when growth rate is low or the substrate has a high redox potential).
Fruit dispersal and seed banks inAtriplex sagittata: the role of heterocarpy
Authors: Mandák Bohumil , Pyšek Petr
Published: March 2003

Atriplex sagittata, an arly succesional, annual species of disturbed habitats in Central Europe, produces three types of fruits. We studied the differences in dispersal between the fruit types in order to investigate their ecological roles.

The typical positive relationship between dispersal ability and germinability is not found in this species. Type A (ebracteate) fruits produced deeply dormant seeds and had the lowest dispersal potential, but of the two fruits with bracts, type B, with dormant seeds, was better dispersed by both water and wind than type C, which produces non‐dormant seeds.

Wind, temperature and precipitation have significant effects on fruit release but their effects differ between fruit types. The release of fruit types with bracts was positively correlated with wind whereas all fruit types tended to be negatively correlated with precipitation and temperature range.

Type C fruit, which contains non‐dormant seed, are absent from the soil in summer and have a Type II transient seed bank. Type A and B fruits, containing dormant seeds, form a persistent seed bank.

Heterocarpy, where fruit types show distinct ecological behaviour, enables colonizing species such asA. sagittatato survive both major disturbance (by ensuring that some seeds persist) and unfavourable conditions (by spreading germination over a long period).

InA. sagittata, seed dynamics can be explained by the germination behaviour of seeds produced by the three types of fruit. All fruit types mature in autumn, but few of Type A fall from the mother plant until spring, when germination is probably inhibited because of insufficient stratification. Type C fruit, however, show peak dispersal in winter and the majority of these non‐dormant seeds are able to germinate as soon as conditions become more suitable.
Calcium and pH in north and central Swedish mire waters
Authors: Sjörs H. , Gunnarsson U.
Published: March 2003

We present data on calcium concentrations and pH in mire waters collected from different mire types in central and northern Sweden, compiled from published literature or calculated from field determinations of electrical conductivity and pH.

Measurements of electrical conductivity (after subtracting that of H+ ions) were used to calculate the most probable Ca concentrations, but only when pH was 4.7 or higher. At lower pH the possible errors become too large.

The data support a continuous gradient in water chemistry, but with considerable overlap, from mineral‐poor ombrotrophic bogs and minerotrophic extremely poor fens, to moderately poor fens, intermediate fens, moderately rich fens and finally to extremely rich fens, rather than a discrete division. However, for hydrological reasons, we wish to retain the separation of ombrotrophy (bog) from minerotrophy (fen).

The frequency histogram of pH values from central and northern Sweden shows a bimodal tendency, although a considerable number of mires still occur close to the minimum (pH 5.3). Over‐sampling in species‐rich areas could have contributed to the depth of this apparent minimum, but not to its position along the pH scale.

Changes in calcium concentrations in mire waters during the last 50 years are discussed and related to changes in pH and conductivity.
Year‐to‐year variation in plant competition in a mountain grassland
Authors: Herben Tomáš , Krahulec František , Hadincová Věra , Pecháčková Sylvie , Wildová Radka
Published: March 2003

We used a series of removal experiments to examine how species response to competition and climatic differences varied in three different years. We tested the interaction between removal of the dominant grass species, Festuca rubra, and year‐to‐year environmental variation in a mown mountain grassland.

In each year, we quantified shoot frequency and above‐ground biomass of all remaining plant species. Above‐ground responses were tested both by analysis of covariance and by redundancy analysis with randomization tests of changes in total species composition.

Analysis of above‐ground biomass data showed that other species compensated for the removal of F. rubra biomass within 2 years and that the response in total biomass of the community did not differ among years in which the experiment was started.

Multivariate tests showed that species composition changed as a result of the removal; grass biomass and frequency increased more than that of dicotyledons. However, response of species composition to removal of F. rubra was significantly different between onset years. Specific conditions in individual years thus affect the competitive ability of individual species in a non‐additive way.

Our results indicate that the year‐to‐year variation at the site has the potential to affect species coexistence and richness. As a consequence, year‐to‐year variation of climatic parameters may be an important driving factor in community dynamics and should be taken into account in studies of ecosystem response to climate.
Do ants feed plants? A 15N labelling study of nitrogen fluxes from ants to plants in the mutualism of Pheidole and Piper
Authors: Fischer Renate C. , Wanek Wolfgang , Richter Andreas , Mayer Veronika
Published: March 2003

Nutrient fluxes play a significant role in the interaction of myrmecophytic plants and their symbiotic ants. There is a clear flux from plants to ants via nectar or food bodies but nutrient fluxes from ants to plants are less obvious.

We report on a nitrogen flux from ants to plants in the association between Pheidole bicornis (Formicidae‐Myrmicinae) and two myrmecophytic Piper species (P. fimbriulatum and P. obliquum, Piperaceae). Pulse experiments were performed by feeding ants with 15N‐labelled glycine supplied in sucrose solution. Workers passed ingested label on to other ants and the brood by trophallaxis.

The distribution of label within the colony showed highest incorporation rates in larvae and in the working caste, while the reproductive caste received only a small amount of the 15N‐labelled food.

Nutrient transfer from ants to plants occurred remarkably fast. Within 6 days, up to 25% of the nitrogen ingested by the ants was incorporated by the plants.

However, ant distribution within P. fimbriulatum plants did not correlate with the intra‐plant uptake pattern of 15N, and ant‐mediated nitrogen uptake by myrmecophytic P. fimbriulatum accounted for less than 1% of the plants’ above‐ground nitrogen demand.
An evaluation of adverse incident reporting
Authors: Stanhope Nicola , Crowley‐Murphy Margaret , Vincent Charles , O'Connor Anne M , Taylor‐Adams Sally E.
Published: March 2003

Abstract: To examine the reliability of adverse incident‐reporting systems we carried out a retrospective review of the mother and baby case notes from a series of 250 deliveries in each of two London obstetric units. Notes were screened for the presence of adverse incidents defined by lists of incidents to be reported in accordance with unit protocols. We assessed the percentage of adverse incidents reported by staff to the maternity risk manager at each unit; the percentage of incidents detected by each risk manager, but not reported; and the percentage of incidents identified only by retrospective case note review. A total of 196 adverse incidents was identified from the 500 deliveries. Staff reported 23% of these and the risk managers identified a further 22%. The remaining 55% of incidents were identified only by retrospective case‐note review and not known to the risk manager. Staff reported about half the serious incidents (48%), but comparatively few of the moderately serious (24%) or minor ones (15%). The risk managers identified an additional 16% of serious incidents that staff did not report. Drug errors were analysed separately; only two were known to the risk managers and a further 44 were found by case‐note review. Incident‐reporting systems may produce much potentially valuable information, but seriously underestimate the true level of reportable incidents. Where one risk manager covers an entire trust, rather than a single unit, reporting rates are likely to be very much lower than in the present study. Greater clarity is needed regarding the definition of reportable incidents (including drug errors). Staff should receive continuing education about the purposes and aims of clinical risk management and incident reporting and consideration should be given to designating specific members of staff with responsibility for reporting.