Spotlight on community engagement: NICE resources in the context of COVID-19-NICE public health guidance update

This article focuses on how the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) quality standard on ‘Community engagement: improving health and wellbeing’ (QS148) may be used to support local areas with pandemic recovery planning. This article sets the standard in the context of the coronavirus pandemic, explores some of its content and highlights additional NICE resources to support its use across the health and care system.

Validation of the Polish version of the Movement Disorder Society-Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS)

BACKGROUND

In 2008, the Movement Disorders Society (MDS) published a new Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (MDS-UPDRS) as the official benchmark scale for Parkinson's Disease (PD). We have translated and validated the Polish version of the MDS-UPDRS, explored its dimensionality, and compared it to the original English one.

METHODS

The MDS-UPDRS was translated into Polish by a team of Polish investigators led by JS and GO. The back-translation was completed by colleagues fluent in both languages (Polish and English) who were not involved in the original translation, and was reviewed by members of the MDS Rating Scales Programme. Then the translated version of the MDS-UPDRS underwent cognitive pretesting, and the translation was modified based on the results. The final translation was approved as the Official Working Document of the MDS-UPDRS Polish version, and was tested on 355 Polish PD patients recruited at movement disorders centres all over Poland (at Katowice, Gdańsk, Łódź, Warsaw, Wrocław, and Kraków). Confirmatory and explanatory factor analyses were applied to determine whether the factor structure of the English version could be confirmed in the Polish version.

RESULTS

The Polish version of the MDS-UPDRS showed satisfactory clinimetric properties. The internal consistency of the Polish version was satisfactory. In the confirmatory factor analysis, all four parts had greater than 0.90 comparative fit index (CFI) compared to the original English MDS-UPDRS. Explanatory factor analysis suggested that the Polish version differed from the English version only within an acceptable range.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

The Polish version of the MDS-UPDRS meets the requirements to be designated as the Official Polish Version of the MDS-UPDRS, and is available on the MDS web page. We strongly recommend using the MDS-UPDRS instead of the UPDRS for research purposes and in everyday clinical practice.

Analysis of the effects of the upper limb improvement programme in patients after ischemic stroke treated with botulinum toxin

Introduction: Stroke is not only a medical problem, but also - due to the permanent disability of the injured person - a significant social problem. A significant number of patients after a neurological event develop increased muscle tone. Upper motoneuron damage syndrome promotes pain, stiffness, muscle contracture and weakness, which can potentially delay or prevent success in the rehabilitation process. In the upper limb, the spastic pattern is most often expressed through adduction and internal rotation of the glenohumeral joint, combined with flexion in the elbow, radiocarpal joint and interphalangeal joints. The specificity of spasticity-type increased tension makes rehabilitation of patients suffering from this disorder one of the most difficult tasks of neurological rehabilitation. Aim: The aim of the study was to assess muscle tone and range of motion of the inferior limb in patients after ischemic stroke subjected to 4 cycles of intramuscular injections of a botulinum toxin preparation and subjected to motor rehabilitation. Research Project: Pilot experimental study. Methodology: The study was carried out in the Neurological Unit with Stroke Sub-unit and Sub-Department of Neurological Rehabilitation at John Paul II Specialist Hospital in Krakow in the period from September 2014 to November 2015. The study group consisted of 20 patients after ischemic stroke (13 men, 7 women), age 30 to 72. All patients completed a 4-cycle study, which included injections of the botulinum toxin preparation, combined with a 15-day cycle of individual rehabilitation exercises. Each training session lasted 90 minutes. In order to verify the therapeutic process, active and passive mobility was measured according to the SFTR method and the assessment of muscle tone level was done using the Modified Ashworth Scale. Results: The taken therapeutic actions caused a positive increase in mobility, mostly passive, in the glenohumeral-scapular, elbow and forearm as well as the radiocarpal joints. There was also a slight increase in active mobility of the upper limb joints. In the course of obtaining results, it was shown that the use of botulinum toxin, combined with the rehabilitation exercise programme, significantly reduced pathological muscle tone both within the elbow, radiocarpal joint, and the interphalangeal joints of the hands. Conclusions: The presented results showed that the use of the botulinum toxin combined with medical rehabilitation allows local treatment of spasticity without exposing patients to adverse systemic reactions associated with oral medication. In addition, it has a positive effect on the increase in passive and - to a lesser extent - active range of motion in the joints of the inferior limb.

Molecular spectrum of the SPAST, ATL1 and REEP1 gene mutations associated with the most common hereditary spastic paraplegias in a group of Polish patients

Hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) consist of a heterogeneous group of genetically determined neurodegenerative disorders. Progressive lower extremity weakness and spasticity are the prominent features of HSPs resulting from retrograde axonal degeneration of the corticospinal tracts. Three genetic types, SPG3 (ATL1), SPG4 (SPAST) and SPG31 (REEP1), appear predominantly and may account for up to 50% of autosomal dominant hereditary spastic paraplegias (AD-HSPs). Here, we present the results of genetic testing of the three mentioned SPG genetic types in a group of 216 unrelated Polish patients affected with spastic paraplegia. Molecular evaluation was performed by multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) and DNA sequencing. Nineteen novel mutations: 13 in SPAST, 4 in ATL1 and 2 in REEP1, were identified among overall 50 different mutations detected in 57 families. Genetic analysis resulted in the identification of molecular defects in 54% of familial and 8.4% of isolated cases. Our research expanded the causative mutations spectrum of the three most common genetic forms of HSPs found in a large cohort of probands originating from the Central Europe.

Food provision for older people receiving home care from the perspectives of home-care workers

Malnutrition is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality, particularly among older people. Attention has focused on the inadequacies of food provision in institutions, yet the majority suffering from malnutrition live in the community. The aim of this study was to explore barriers and facilitators to food provision for older people receiving home care. It was a qualitative exploratory study using semi-structured interviews with nine home-care workers in June 2013 employed by independent agencies in a large city in northern England. Data were analysed thematically, based on the principles of grounded theory. Findings showed that significant time pressures limited home-care workers in their ability to socially engage with service users at mealtimes, or provide them with anything other than ready meals. Enabling choice was considered more important than providing a healthy diet, but choice was limited by food availability and reliance on families for shopping. Despite their knowledge of service users and their central role in providing food, home-care workers received little nutritional training and were not involved by healthcare professionals in the management of malnutrition. Despite the rhetoric of individual choice and importance of social engagement and nutrition for health and well-being, nutritional care has been significantly compromised by cuts to social care budgets. The potential role for home-care workers in promoting good nutrition in older people is undervalued and undermined by the lack of recognition, training and time dedicated to food-related care. This has led to a situation whereby good quality food and enjoyable mealtimes are denied to many older people on the basis that they are unaffordable luxuries rather than an integral component of fundamental care.

Exploring the mealtime experience in residential care settings for older people: an observational study

Improving the mealtime experience in residential care can be a major facilitator in improving care, well-being and QoL. Evidence suggests that, despite guidance on the subject of food, nutrition and hydration, there are still concerns. Although there is a range of methods to research and assess the quality of food provision, there is a challenge in capturing the experiences of those residents who are unable or unwilling to describe their feelings and experiences because of frailty, impaired communication or other vulnerability. The aim of this exploratory study was to capture and describe individual residents' mealtime experience. In spring 2011, a small-scale, observational study was carried out in seven dining settings in four residential care homes in Manchester. An adapted dementia care mapping tool was used alongside field notes. Observations showed two major differences in the way the mealtimes were organised: 'pre-plated' and 'family-style' (where either bowls of food are placed in the centre of the table or food is served directly from a hotplate by a chef). These two styles of service are discussed in relation to the emerging themes of 'task versus resident-centred mealtimes', 'fostering resident independence' and 'levels of interaction'. Although improving mealtimes alone is not enough to improve quality of life in care homes, findings showed that relatively small changes to mealtime delivery can potentially have an impact on resident well-being in these homes. Observation is a useful method of engaging residents in care settings for older people who may not otherwise be able to take part in research.