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This study examined the effectiveness of using a video-modeling program to improve the motor skills for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Preschool children from 2-5 years old with ASD participated in one of two groups during early motor skill interventions: video-modeling or live-modeling demonstrations. Four motor skills were taught throughout 10 sessions: catching, throwing, standing balance, and walking balance. In all skills, the video-modeling group out-performed the live-modeling group. The findings of this study contribute to knowledge regarding the development of motor skills in children with ASD, and provide caregivers who are working with children a teaching strategy (video-modeling) to enhance motor skills as an early intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine attitudes of Saudi Arabian students with and without disabilities toward PE. A second purpose was to investigate the effect of grade levels and students' participation in physical activity after school on students' attitudes in PE. Participants were sixth to eighth graders from the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia and were between the ages of 11 and 17. Participants for this study were 172 students that included 89 students without disabilities and 83 with disabilities. Students were queried as to personal information and completed the Student Attitudes Toward Physical Education Survey. The results of this study indicated that the overall mean score of attitudes of all participants toward PE was 3.44 on a scale of 1-5, indicating a moderate positive attitude toward PE. In general, students without disabilities had more positive attitudes toward perceived usefulness and enjoyment of physical education than students with disabilities. In addition, eighth grade students had less favorable attitudes toward perceived usefulness and enjoyment of PE than seventh or sixth grade students. Also, students who participated in physical activity outside school showed more positive attitudes toward perceived usefulness and enjoyment of PE than students who did not participate in physical activity outside school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This section presents information on articles related to adapted physical activity. The articles include "Learning through outdoor adventure education," found in an issue of "Teaching Exceptional Children," "Hemispheric specialization and implications for the education of the hearing impaired," found in an issue of "American Annals of the Deaf," and "Modification of spastic gait through mechanical damping," found in an issue of the "Journal of Biomechanics."

Objectives Ethnic minorities are known to have low uptake of cancer screening programmes and Polish populations to have low breast screening uptake. Breast screening uptake by women in Poland and Polish migrants to Scotland is low. We interviewed Polish women living in Lothian, Scotland, about their attitudes to breast screening. Study design and method Telephone interviews were held with a sample of 11 Polish women registered with Lothian general practices and invited for breast screening in 2013 or 2014. Interviews were between November 2014 and February 2015 and were held in Polish then translated, transcribed and analysed thematically. Results Women interviewed (mean age 58 years) had lived in Scotland for an average of 7.5 years. Seven had undergone breast screening in both Poland and Scotland, three in only Scotland and one in Poland alone. Respondents usually used Scottish and Polish health systems and screening programmes in parallel. Convenience and familiarity shaped screening choices with written information neither accessed nor answering key questions e.g. about coordination between programmes. Conclusion Polish women living in Scotland have difficulties in accessing screening there and often use both Polish and Scottish system. Language issues, misunderstandings about screening and different health cultures are key barriers. Combined information in Polish about all cancer screening programmes could help address low uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Birth outcomes in migrants vary, but the relative explanatory influence of obstetric practice in origin and destination countries has been under-investigated. To explore this, birth outcomes of Scots and Polish migrants to Scotland were compared with Polish obstetric data. Poles are the largest group of migrants to Scotland, and Poland has significantly more medicalized maternity care than Scotland. Study design: A population-based epidemiological study of linked maternal country of birth, maternity and birth outcomes. Methods: Scottish maternity and neonatal records linked to birth registrations were analysed for differences in modes of delivery and pregnancy outcomes between Polish migrants and Scots, and compared with Polish Health Fund and survey data. Results: 119,698 Scottish and 3105 Polish births to primiparous women in Scotland 2004-9 were analysed. Poles were less likely than Scots to have a Caesarean section and more likely to have a spontaneous vaginal or instrumental delivery. The Caesarean section rate in Poland is significantly higher and instrumental delivery rate lower than for either group of women in Scotland. Conclusions: Methodologically, comparing a large group of migrants from one country with the host population has advantages over grouping migrants from several countries into a single category, and allows more informed analysis of the effect of health services. Polish mothers' being slightly healthier explains some of their lower Caesarean section rate compared to Scots in Scotland. However, dominant models of obstetrics in the two countries seem likely to influence the differences between Poles delivering in Poland and Scotland. Further investigation of both is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Objective: To describe how changes in legislation to control sales and thus restrict the general availability of paracetamol have affected deprivation-related inequalities in deliberate self-harm associated with the drug in Scotland. Design and setting: A descriptive analysis of routine death and hospital discharge data for the entire Scottish population between 1995 and 2002. Participants: Patients in Scotland admitted to hospital with a diagnosis of poisoning and deaths in Scotland due to poisoning 1995-2002. Outcome measures: Changes in mortality and overdose rates by deprivation quintile, and case fatality rates due to poisoning involving paracetamol. Results: Rates of overdose involving paracetamol, while much higher in disadvantaged quintiles, felt in each deprivation quintile following the 1998 legislation. They then returned to levels similar, or above those in the mid 1990s. All quintiles were affected to a similar extent with the relationship between them remaining constant over time. Case fatality rates were significantly higher in more disadvantaged quintiles. Conclusions: Marked inequalities exist in paracetamol related harm in Scotland. The most disadvantaged groups (both male and female) have higher overdose and death rates, as well as higher case fatality rates. Following the restrictions all social groups saw similar reductions in paracetamol related harm. This effect has been short-lived and rates have returned to pre-legislation levels. Legislation has not permanently affected overall use of paracetamol in overdose in Scotland or reduced the proportion of patients taking paracetamol as a component of the overdose in the longer term. An important public health policy has failed to achieve its objective and it is not clear why. We need a better understanding of why this measure had only short-term benefits if its full potential is to be achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the proposal of road user fee for tramlines by the City of Edinburgh Council (CEC) in Scotland in 2004 as a way to delay the growth in traffic volume and raise revenue for public transport. It cites the concerns raised by the British National Health Service (NHS) Lothian on the congestion charge including its effect on the NHS budget and the implications of limited number of exemptions. It emphasizes the importance of fairness and equity as legislative criteria for road user charging in Scotland.

This study investigates the background to low uptake of nasal influenza vaccination in Polish pupils in Edinburgh, Scotland. In autumn 2018, one week after their child's nasal flu vaccination sessions, 365 Polish parents were sent a questionnaire exploring influences on their vaccination choices. The questionnaire included a series of 10 vaccine hesitancy questions recommended by the WHO SAGE Working Group on Vaccine Hesitancy. 128 questionnaires were returned representing 43.4% of vaccinated, 41.9% of refusing and 23.8% of non-consent form returning parents. Responses highlighted concerns about side effects, new vaccines and the accuracy of professional advice and information sources. There was complacency expressed about vaccination against diseases that are not common any more. Vaccine refusers were consistently more negative about all aspects vaccination and more likely to answer 'don't know'. Almost half of refusers were uncertain about the quality of health information offered to them. Polish migrants in Scotland come with their beliefs about vaccination and modify these as they acculturate to the UK system. They also continue to be influenced by developments and opinions, norms and values from their home country, as well as diaspora media. We have highlighted issues of concern among Polish migrants as a group and gained additional insights by comparing responses of parents who have refused or accepted vaccination. These insights can inform and target messages and strategies to build confidence and encourage immunisation, which should lead to improved vaccine uptake among ethnic population groups., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Vaccine hesitancy is increasing and failure to vaccinate is well-recognised in Europe as a contributing factor to outbreaks of infectious diseases. In Lothian and Scotland, low vaccine uptake has been seen in migrants - notably in the Polish group who have arrived since 2004. The recent Vaccine Confidence in European Union report highlights a concerning recent decline in vaccine confidence in Poland. We held three focus groups containing 13 Polish women about the childhood vaccination programme in Lothian, with specific focus on influenza and Human Papillomavirus vaccinations. Key emergent themes were: trust in the national vaccination policy, trust in the vaccination providers (health professionals), trust in the individual vaccines, balancing the risk of disease, and language and communication. Polish norms, beliefs and behaviours shape how Polish migrants navigate the UK health system and its vaccination programme. While not confident in the Scottish primary care model and its generalist practitioners, the participants liked the ethos of informed consent in Scotland and compared this favourably with the compulsory vaccination policy in Poland. There was a belief that vaccines in Scotland were of higher quality than Poland and with fewer adverse effects. Respondents reported returning to Poland for specialist clinical appointments and diagnostic testing. They regularly access Polish clinical expertise and their opinions about health are influenced by Polish friends and family. They say they have difficulty finding official UK Government and health authority vaccination material and often access Polish media, online resources and information. They are familiar with anti-vaccination activities in Poland. Consequently, there are important unmet information needs for this group of parents who may not be making truly informed choices about vaccination. This requires further investigation especially as migration continues and declining immunisation uptake is reported in many countries across Europe., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines are currently utilised globally in national immunisation programmes. Many new European migrants have settled in the United Kingdom (UK) since the 2004 European Union expansion with approximately 91,000 Polish people resident in Scotland. Following anecdotal reports from several NHS Boards within Scotland of lower HPV vaccine uptake in Polish communities compared with other ethnic minorities, an extract containing both forename and surname, was taken from the Scottish Immunisation Recall System (SIRS) for all girls in S2 and S3 in school years 2014/15 to 2016/17. We then used the OnoMap algorithm software to derive ethnicity. OnoMap identified between 289 and 321 age-eligible girls as Polish with significant disparity noted for completed HPV vaccine uptake between UK (87.2-89.8%) and Polish ethnicities (69.7-77.2%) (P < 0.01). Preliminary discussions with Polish families suggest that vaccine programme differences, trust in medical/healthcare practitioners, and cultural influences may be important drivers of acceptance., (Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Failure to vaccinate is well-recognised in Europe as a contributing factor to outbreaks of infectious diseases. Low immunisation rates are often associated with religious, social and ethnic minorities, including refugees or migrant groups. Polish people form Scotland's newest and largest migrant group. They have moved to Scotland since 2004, joining established ethnic minorities from China, the Indian subcontinent and Africa. Scotland has had a seasonal influenza nasal vaccination programme for all primary school children since 2013. We investigated three primary schools in Edinburgh, which had reported low influenza vaccination uptake rates in 2016 and 2017 and found that these schools contained many pupils from ethnic minorities, the majority of whom were Polish. Pupils were categorized as one of three ethnic groupings: White British, Polish and Other Identified Ethnic Minority (OIEM). We ascertained ethnicity using NHS and Education Department information sources and name recognition. We examined vaccine acceptance, declination and non-return of consent forms. In 2017, nasal influenza vaccine uptake was 70.7% (65.2-75.6%, p < 0.001) in White British, 60.9% (53.9-67.6%%, p < 0.001) in other identified ethnic minorities and 25.0% (20.9-29.6%, p > 0.001) in Polish children. White British children were more likely to return completed forms (78.9%) than other groups (OIEM 68.2% and Polish 61.8%). 36.8% of Polish families completed a consent form declining vaccination compared to 6.2% of White British families. These findings demonstrate that significant differences exist in nasal influenza vaccination uptake rates, which have important implications for the trans-national study of vaccine hesitancy. Further qualitative work and an investigation of uptake rates of other childhood immunisations in Polish and other migrant groups is required to assess differences in uptake and behaviours., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Health inequalities between ethnic minorities and the general population are persistent. Addressing them is hampered by the inability to classify individuals' ethnicity accurately. This is addressed by a new name-based ethnicity classification methodology called 'Onomap'. This paper evaluates the diagnostic accuracy of Onomap in identifying population groups by ethnicity, and discusses applications to public health practice., Study Design: Onomap was applied to three independent reference datasets (birth registration, pupil census and register of Polish health professionals) collected in Britain and Poland at individual level (n = 260,748)., Methods: Results were compared with the reference database ethnicity 'gold standard'. Outcome measures included sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV). Ninety-five percent confidence intervals and Chi-squared tests were used., Results: Onomap identified the majority of those in the British participant group with high sensitivity and PPV (>95%), and low misclassification (<5%), although specificity and NPV were lowest in this group (56-87%). Outcome measures for all other non-British groupings were high for specificity and NPV (>98%), but variable for sensitivity and PPV (17-89%). Differences in misclassification by gender were statistically significant. Using maiden name rather than married name in women improved classification outcomes for those born in the British Isles (0.53%, 95% confidence interval 0.26-0.8%; P < 0.001) but not for South Asian or Polish groups., Conclusions: Onomap offers an effective methodology for identifying population groups in both health-related and educational datasets, categorizing populations into a variety of ethnic groups. This evaluation suggests that it can successfully assist health researchers, planners and policy makers in identifying and addressing health inequalities., (Copyright © 2011 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: There has been a twelve-fold increase in the number of New European migrants giving birth in Lothian between 2004 and 2007. The objective of this study was to audit obstetric care standards in Lothian for new migrants and recommend service improvements., Methods: A retrospective audit of 114/136 (84%) obstetric case records of new European migrants giving birth in Lothian hospitals in 2006 was conducted. Assessment was against care standards for antenatal booking, antenatal attendance and interpretation. Obstetric outcomes were audited against the general population., Results: Eighty percent were primiparous. Fifty five percent had booked by the end of week 14. Mean birth weights and lengths of stay were similar to the general population. Intervention rates were 23% for Caesarean Sections (C/S) and 17% for instrumental deliveries (versus 27% and 19% respectively in the general population). Epidural or spinal anaesthesia was used for 57% compared to 50% of the general population. The interpretation services (ITS) were used infrequently., Conclusions: Full compliance with antenatal and interpretation standards was not achieved for this population. ITS was most commonly used to meet the needs of healthcare professionals, rather than as a routine. While there were no significant differences in maternity outcomes, poor communication did affect care.

Objective: To calculate the uptake of the Children's Traffic Club in Scotland (CTCS) in Lothian and the road traffic casualty rate of children aged 0-14 living in areas with different deprivation categories., Design: Analysis of road traffic accident hospital admissions, 'STATS 19' (road traffic accident police reports) and CTCS uptake data in affluent, 'intermediate' and disadvantaged households., Setting: The Lothian Health Board area., Results: Affluent households have both the highest CTCS uptake rates and the lowest rates of road traffic accidents. The most disadvantaged populations have hospital discharge rates over three times that of people living in more affluent parts of Lothian., Conclusions: Minor changes in how the CTCS is run and fostering a multiagency approach to childhood accident prevention could improve both CTCS uptake and effectiveness of road safety measures.

An 83% response rate was obtained to a postal questionnaire survey of general practitioners (GPs) carried out as part of a national infertility audit in Scotland. This provided information about how GPs are managing infertility and their opinions on 12 suggested criteria for good practice in a primary care setting.

As a preliminary to evaluating the introduction of a primary care emergency centre in Midlothian, information was recorded about 2,236 out-of-hours contacts made with eight general practices in the ten weeks before the centre opened. The overall rate of calls was estimated at 265 cells per 1,000 patients per year, with 63% of calls resulting in a home visit, 8% in the patient being seen at the surgery and 29% in telephone advice only; 18% of the out-of-hours calls generated a night visit fee. Eighty-five per cent of patients who requested a home visit were seen by a doctor and 15% of patients contacting their general practitioner out of hours were referred to hospital, either for admission or for treatment in an accident and emergency department. Doctors classified 61% of the calls as necessary, 29% as unnecessary and were unsure about the need for 9% of calls.

This survey of house officers in the Northern Health and Social Services Board in Northern Ireland demonstrated that they have complaints not just about the number of hours they work. Thirty-nine per cent noted poor standards of food and/or accommodation. Many complained about doing routine "non-medical" work and thought that their working conditions would be improved by nurses having more responsibility for managing intravenous medication and the employment of phlebotomists. Doctors expressed concerns about a lack of career counselling and availability of training in research methods in their posts.

A study was carried out to examine aspects of the health status of children from a group of 'travelling people' in Northern Ireland. A total of 350 children, aged under 16 years, were included in the study. Data were gathered by community health doctors and health visitors using a standardised questionnaire. The study revealed that this community has a high degree of consanguinity and points to higher levels of congenital abnormalities than in the settled community. Uptake of immunisation was less than the settled community and hospital admissions in the younger age group were particularly due to infectious diseases. The authors conclude that provision of health services for travelling people in Northern Ireland should be urgently reviewed with consideration of the needs and lifestyle of this group. The provision of suitable sites for travelling people with adequate water and sewage facilities to reduce potential risks to health is also advocated.

This study examined the effects of a cardiovascular screening programme on a group of 79 patients in an Edinburgh general practice. Serum cholesterol levels were measured two to four months after the original screening interview and risk scores recalculated to see if the collection of data was reliable; a control group was used. Patient attitudes to this screening were assessed by questionnaire and the repeatability of the risk score calculation investigated. The programme was popular with patients and was successful in changing their reported behaviour. However, it may have been counter-productive in some patients by sanctioning personal habits detrimental to health. This effect was particularly marked in patients at lower risk levels who it is shown may have raised serum cholesterol levels. It is suggested that the risk score calculation could be improved, in particular by improving the accuracy of the serum cholesterol measurement. It is concluded that more research is needed into the behavioural aspects of cardiovascular screening.

This study examined effects of a bogus objective measure (bogus-pipeline) on self-reports of experimentation, frequency, intentions, beliefs, and attitudes related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use. One hundred ninety-one adolescents (means age = 11.74 years) were assigned randomly to one of three conditions: a bogus-pipeline with saliva collection, a bogus-pipeline only, or a questionnaire only control. A significantly greater percentage of participants in the questionnaire only condition (28%) reported having experimented with alcohol, compared to those in the bogus-pipeline only condition (22%), and the bogus-pipeline with saliva condition (21%). No differences were found across conditions for subject experimentation with other drugs, frequency of drug use, intentions to use drugs, and beliefs and attitudes related to drug use (p greater than .05). The discrepancy among studies suggesting a validity enhancing effect due to bogus-pipeline procedures and those indicating no effect may be accounted for by variables including age, experimental setting, population under study, and drug types. The broad, unquestioned application of the bogus-pipeline in tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use prevention programs, or epidemiological studies of drug use, cannot be recommended at present.