North Kent Research Articles

Carer Engagement and Support in North and West Kent Rehabilitation Services

Carer Engagement and Support in North and West Kent Rehabilitation Services

Experience, Heritage & Strong Partnerships

The success of north Kent machine tool supplier RK International Machine Tools continues. A key part of this ongoing success over the last eight decades has been the strong relationships that the company has forged and continue to develop

An update on the ecology, seasonality and distribution of Culex modestus in England

Abstract Culex (Barraudius) modestus is an important vector of West Nile virus (WNV) in Europe and it has the potential to play a bridge vector role in future WNV transmission in the UK. Here we provide an update on the known distribution of the species in England based on adult and larval data, characterise the preferred Cx. modestus larval habitats, and present adult and larval data from sites where the species is known to occur. Culex modestus is primarily found in the south-east of England, particularly in North Kent, the Thames Estuary, and along the Essex coast, and as far east as Orford Ness, Suffolk, and in Rainham Marshes, Essex, in the West. Adult numbers peak in mid-late July, with larval numbers highest in late August / early September. Preferred habitats in North Kent are warm, shallow, narrow ditches, with an abundance of marginal, submerged, and floating vegetation. Such environmental data on the distribution, seasonality and habitat preference of Cx. modestus are critical for informing WNV surveillance programmes, identifying at risk areas (associated with this species) and providing information for a targeted control strategy in the event of WNV transmission.

A-294 Duplicate Testing of Samples Suspected of SARS-CoV-2 Infection Could Prevent Misdiagnosis of Covid-19

Abstract Background There is no doubt that the whole world has been shaken by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, which has affected both global health and the global economy. At the same time the importance of molecular methods for the accurate diagnosis of respiratory infections has been reinforced together with the need of testing methodologies that minimize the risk of misleading results. During the last three years of the pandemic, SARS-CoV-2 exhibited a tremendous adaptation capability through numerous mutations, leading to the appearance of the well-known Variants of Concern (VOCs) responsible of increased transmission rates. Therefore, the development of molecular methods capable of detecting all variants has become a challenge. To overcome this, potential genetic targets with low mutation rates have been identified, including ORF1ab, N gene, S gene and E gene. While Real-time PCR based detection assays of viral genomes are very accurate, testing naso/oropharyngeal samples using singlet analysis does not guarantee the error free detection of true positive results for SARS-CoV-2 infections. Furthermore, it has been documented that the probability of a false-negative testing results is influenced by a number of variables . Therefore, testing protocol adaptations, such as replicate testing, has been shown to efficiently reduce the probability of missing SARS-CoV-2 positive cases. The pilot study presented here investigates the outcome of testing 10 014 nasopharyngeal samples collected from patients with a suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection using two separate detection kits. In this study the error rate of single vs duplicate testing is discussed. Methods 10 014 nasopharyngeal swabs, collected from three different U.K. hospital trusts and Kent based care homes, were tested at the North Kent Pathology Service (NKPS). Each swab collected was placed in sterile transport media and stored at 4°C prior to viral genome isolation using the HigherPurity™ Viral RNA extraction kit. All collected specimens were processed within 24 h from collection. Total RNA isolated was immediately analyzed using two commercial CE-IVD kits: Vitassay qPCR SARS-CoV-2 and Primerdesign™ LTD, Coronavirus (COVID-19) Genesig Real-Time PCR assay. All samples were tested in duplicate. Results Following the testing and subsequent analysis, 491 samples (4.9%) were detected positive for SARS-CoV-2 using both assay kits. Of these, 302 samples (61.5%) were reported as duplicate positive (on both replicate 1 and 2) whereas 189 samples (38.5%) were detected positive on either replicate 1 or 2. In particular, 85 (17.3%) were detected positive on replicate 1 and 104 (21.2%) were detected positive on replicate 2. Conclusions Approximately 19% of tested individuals were detected as SARS-CoV-2 positive based on a positive Real-time PCR result in one of the two reactions. This percentage represents the potential SARS-CoV-2 infections that can be missed when a single reaction Real-time PCR testing is employed for infection detection in the wider population, and equates to 940 individuals out of 100 000 potentially being falsely confirmed as SARS-CoV-2 negative The authors believe that in the presence of fast transmitting variants this is a significant number of false negative tests and should be taken into consideration when testing protocols are developed and disease modelling is employed.

Hydrogeochemical indications of regional flow in the Lower Greensand aquifer of the London Basin

The Lower Greensand (LGS) forms the second most important aquifer in the London Basin but, being largely absent beneath the city itself, has received much less attention than the ubiquitous overlying Chalk aquifer. While the general directions of groundwater flow in the Chalk are well established, there has been much less certainty about flow in the LGS owing to regionally sparse borehole information. This study focuses on two hitherto uncertain aspects of the confined aquifer: the sources of recharge to the west-central London Basin around Slough, and the fate of LGS water where the aquifer thins out on the flank of the London Platform in the Gravesend–Medway–Sheppey area on the southern side of the basin. The application of hydrogeochemical techniques including environmental isotopes indicates that recharge to the Slough area is derived from the northern LGS outcrop, probably supplemented by downward leakage from the Chalk, while upward leakage from the LGS in north Kent is mixing with Chalk water to the extent that some Chalk boreholes on the Isle of Sheppey are abstracting high proportions of water with an LGS fingerprint. In doing so, this study demonstrates the value of re-examining previously published data from a fresh perspective. Thematic collection: This article is part of the Hydrogeology of Sandstone collection available at: https://www.lyellcollection.org/cc/hydrogeology-of-sandstone

Fossils explained 78

The coastal town of Margate in north Kent, south‐east England, is geologically well known, with extensive cliffs of chalk with locally common Upper Cretaceous fossils. But to the ichnologist the modern beach is at least as fascinating, with a trinity of borings in chalk clasts and mollusc shells posing interesting questions relevant to palaeoecology and taphonomy.

Recognition of 16-18-Year-Old Adolescents for Guiding Physical Activity Interventions: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Adolescence is a rapid life stage requiring special attention wherein personal autonomy is developed to govern independent lifestyles. Unhealthy lifestyles are integral to prevailing adolescent physical inactivity patterns. Understudied 16–18-year-olds were investigated to establish physical activity prevalences and influencing health-related lifestyle factors. Adolescents were recruited randomly across 2017–2019 from Farnborough College of Technology and North Kent College, UK. Demographic and health-related lifestyle information were gathered anonymously and analysed using SAS® 9.4 software. Among the 414 adolescents included (48.3% male and 51.7% female), the mean (standard deviation (SD)) age was 16.9 (0.77). Approximately 15.2% smoked and 20.8% were overweight/obese. There were 54.8% perceiving themselves unfit and 33.3% spent >4 h/day on leisure-time screen-based activity. Around 80.4% failed to meet the recommended fruit/vegetable daily intake and 90.1% failed to satisfy UK National Physical Activity Guidelines, particularly females (p = 0.0202). Physical activity levels were significantly associated with gender, body mass index, smoking status, leisure sedentary screen-time, fruit/vegetable consumption and fitness perceptions. Those who were female, overweight/obese, non-smoking, having poor fitness perceptions, consuming low fruit/vegetables and engaging in excess screen-based sedentariness were the groups with lowest physical activity levels. Steering physical activity-oriented health interventions toward these at-risk groups in colleges may reduce the UK’s burden of adolescent obesity.

The energyscape of the lower Thames and Medway: Britain’s changing patterns of energy use

ABSTRACT This article examines the history of the energy landscape — the energyscape — of the lower River Thames and Medway from the 1860s to the present. It explores why, and in what ways, the energy industries have exploited the area and its landscape. Key factors include its accessibility for ocean-going shipping; the proximity to energy consumers in London and south-east England; the availability of large areas of land; and water resources. The energy industries included oil storage and refining; petrochemicals; gas manufacture and handling; and electricity generation and distribution. The article argues that the development of energy infrastructure in the Thames/ Medway landscape reflects the shifting patterns of energy use in the UK. For example, the recent demolition of Grain and Kingsnorth power stations — prominent north Kent landmarks since the 1970s — exemplifies the decline of coal and oil as primary fuels for electricity generation. Similarly, the seascape of the outer Thames estuary has been transformed by the advent of renewable energy and the construction of four major offshore wind farms. The article demonstrates how patterns of energy use are a mosaic of social needs, technological capabilities, environmental concerns, political expediency, and economic forces. The Thames/ Medway energyscape has developed, evolved and been adapted to these influences, and continues to support the energy needs of the UK economy.

Legal pluralism at the beach: Public access, land use, and the struggle for the “coastal commons”

The constantly shifting boundaries between land and sea pose fundamental challenges in resolving land‐use disputes at the coast. In the UK, these difficulties are compounded by the fact that multiple agencies and authorities are charged with managing the coastline. This means the coast is a space of legal plurality, subject to overlapping jurisdiction. This paper demonstrates the consequences of this with reference to Whitstable, on the north Kent coast, where customary law and established (“as of right”) use is clashing with private property rights concerning the ownership of, and access to, a town beach. Noting that the legal authorities are struggling to reconcile these different rights claims, the paper concludes that the effective resolution of land‐use conflicts on a changing coastline demands legal pliability and, ideally, a reduction in the overall number of organisations responsible for the regulation of the “coastal commons.”

Walking a lonely path: gender, landscape and ‘new nature writing’

‘New’ nature writing in Britain has been praised for shifting the focus of landscape appreciation towards the vernacular, the quotidian and the marginal. However, it has sometimes been accused of being insufficiently critical, and occluding questions of class, race and gender. Noting this, this article considers Carol Donaldson’s On the Marshes – an account of the diverse life of the north Kent marshes – in relation to debates concerning the way that the landscape is both walked and written. It concludes that Donaldson’s book offers a familiar trope of self-discovery via solitude, but that this takes on distinctly political dimensions given her ‘bold walking’ rejects many dominant assumptions about the way that women should experience and relate to nature.

Editor's perspective—Fascinating issues and complexities associated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Remediation JournalVolume 28, Issue 3 p. 3-6 EDITOR'S PERSPECTIVE Editor's perspective—Fascinating issues and complexities associated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons John A. Simon, Corresponding Author John A. Simon Jsimon@nathaninc.com Nathan Associates, Arlington, VA Correspondence John A. Simon, Nathan Associates Inc., 1777 North Kent Street, Arlington, VA 22209. Email: Jsimon@nathaninc.comSearch for more papers by this author John A. Simon, Corresponding Author John A. Simon Jsimon@nathaninc.com Nathan Associates, Arlington, VA Correspondence John A. Simon, Nathan Associates Inc., 1777 North Kent Street, Arlington, VA 22209. Email: Jsimon@nathaninc.comSearch for more papers by this author First published: 06 June 2018 https://doi.org/10.1002/rem.21556Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume28, Issue3Summer 2018Pages 3-6 RelatedInformation

The replicability of the negative testing effect: Differences across participant populations.

Although memory retrieval often enhances subsequent memory, Peterson and Mulligan (2013) reported conditions under which retrieval produces poorer subsequent recall-the negative testing effect. The item-specific-relational account proposes that the effect occurs when retrieval disrupts interitem organizational processing relative to the restudy condition. Rawson et al. (2015), in contrast, failed to replicate the negative testing effect despite repeated high-powered attempts. This article examines the discrepant results, ruling out differences in procedures, and concludes that differences in participant population produced the varying outcome. Specifically, participants from the University of North Carolina (UNC) and Kent State University (KSU) completed the same version of the negative-testing paradigm and were assessed on several measures of cognitive ability (working memory capacity, Raven's progressive matrices, and SAT or ACT score). For the UNC sample, free recall scores and the amount of category clustering (a measure of organizational processing) was greater in the restudy than retrieval condition (i.e., the negative testing effect was found); for the KSU sample, there was no difference on either measure. Furthermore, in the restudy condition, recall and clustering was greater for UNC than KSU students whereas in the retrieval condition, there was no effect of site on either measure. As expected, measures of cognitive ability were greater for the UNC than KSU sample. The results indicate that the negative testing effect is replicable but is subject to limitation related to the participant population. An analysis in terms of the relationship between cognitive ability and memory predicted this pattern of results. (PsycINFO Database Record

Investigating the depression‐anxiety link in clients receiving Integrative Counselling

ObjectiveThe aim of this article was to investigate how anxiety and depression impact upon each other over the course of a counselling intervention.MethodA single‐group repeated measures quasi‐experimental design was employed. Data were collected at four time points: at pre‐therapy assessment and at first, third, and last sessions. The sample consisted of 562 predominantly white British clients receiving Integrative Counselling at North Kent Mind, UK. Two measures were used: the Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) Scale to measure anxiety and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) to measure depression.ResultsClients improved in both dimensions at every measurement point. Path analysis suggested that anxiety and depression remained interlinked throughout treatment but they presented different effect profiles. They both appeared to have a premature effect on the other, but they did so in different ways.ConclusionsThe therapeutic relationship may be a crucial factor in understanding the premature effect observed and future research should utilise direct measures of the relationship.

Primary care diabetes prescribing volume and costs are on the increase

Primary care diabetes prescribing volume and costs are on the increase

GPR applications in structural detailing of a major tunnel using different frequency antenna systems

This paper reports an extended study on the applications of ground penetrating radar (GPR) on the structural detailing of a major tunnel located under the River Medway in north Kent, United Kingdom (the Medway Tunnel). Construction of the tunnel was completed in 1996 and it carries a substantial volume of traffic between two major areas of Medway in the south-east of England. The construction of the tunnel is an “immersed tube” tunnel type that connects a number of segments at immersion joint points. This investigation reports the utilisation of two sets of antenna systems with different frequencies (900MHz and 2GHz GPR) in establishing structural details of the tunnel roof at immersion joints. The processed data compiled as a result of this investigation provided essential information to tunnel engineers for forthcoming maintenance planning purposes. The data also provided ample information confirming rather doubted construction design drawings/plans originally produced. The results obtained were conclusive in terms of construction materials and structural design configurations (shape and dimensions) as well as the identification of rebar positions at all three immersion joint locations. A comparison between the different frequency antenna sets provided invaluable information in confirming the above findings. This paper also provides useful information within the context of survey planning and site procedure in a complex operation in terms of adaptation of the GPR systems used.

Marginality and the Third Space of Unadopted Plotlander Roads

This article explores the characteristics and relationships of marginality in informal space and plotlander housing in the context of Homi K. Bhabha’s cultural hybridity and Third Space. To illustrate and examine the processes of marginalization that defined informal space in the United Kingdom, this article will critically analyze the previously undocumented plotlander community at Studd Hill on the North Kent coastline.1 Examining key aspects of this sites social origins and its marginal spatial context reveals the positive implications and challenges of informal space and social hybridization. In this analysis, issues of spatial vulnerability and marginality of plotlander communities are critically reframed as analogous to the sociospatial characteristics and innovative practices highlighted by Bhabha in postcolonial hybrid space. Focusing specifically on the challenges of the unadopted roads at Studd Hill, this article’s comparisons reveal how the anarchistic emergence of plotlander housing in the United Kingdom has produced innovative solutions to their social marginality that reflect the spatial values of postcolonial hybrid spaces.

Evidence for the invasion and successful establishment of Hemigrapsus takanoi Asakura & Watanabe, 2005 (Decapoda, Varunidae) in Great Britain

Following the recent discovery of the brush-clawed shore crab, Hemigrapsus takanoi Asakura & Watanabe, 2005, in Great Britain, new data are presented here on the occurrence of this species from additional locations, five in north Kent and one in Suffolk. This study provides significant evidence to suggest that in Suffolk the species has become well established and now forms a large reproducing population. A new earliest date for introduction of the species to Great Britain is given and the possible vectors involved at the various localities in the SE of England are discussed. Management and eradication of H. takanoi from this area are now considered to be unfeasible. The future spread and potential impact of H. takanoi in Great Britain should be carefully monitored.

Landscapes in the frame: exploring the hinterlands of the British procedural drama

In the wake of the much discussed phenomenon of so-called ‘Nordic Noir’, the significance of landscape in relation to the police procedural has had something of a small-screen renaissance. In this paper, I discuss this with specific reference to recent productions set and filmed in Britain. Broadchurch (ITV, 2013–present) shot in West Dorset, Southcliffe (Channel 4, 2013) filmed in and around Faversham and the North Kent marshes, and Y Gwyll/Hinterland (S4C/BBC, 2013) filmed in and around the Welsh coastal resort of Aberystwyth in Ceredigion, all share something of a ‘post-Nordic-noir’ family resemblance insofar as landscape and location are themselves presented as central characters, prompting reflection on what these narratives reveal about ideas of place and the role of topography and landscape in the cultural imaginary of the British procedural drama.

Development of a multicentre randomised controlled trial of screening and brief alcohol intervention to prevent risky drinking in young people in a high-school setting (SIPS JR-HIGH)

BackgroundYoung people are vulnerable to the effects of alcohol consumption. Adverse effects from alcohol manifest in a range of short-term and long-term physical and psychosocial factors, including neurological issues, cognitive impairment, and risk-taking behaviours. The aim of the SIPS JR-HIGH, a multicentre randomised controlled trial (RCT), is to assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of alcohol screening and brief intervention to reduce risky drinking in young people aged 14–15 years in the English high-school setting. MethodsBuilding on a mixed-method cluster-randomised controlled pilot feasibility trial (Current Controlled Trials, ISRCTN07073105), the proposed sample for the definitive trial, to be conducted from September, 2015, to December, 2017, has been calculated to have 90% power and will follow up 257 young people in each arm at 12-month follow-up (ISRCTN45691494). 20 schools will be recruited (in September, 2015), five of which will be from North East England, North West England, London, and Kent. The RCT will incorporate a control arm of usual school-based practice on alcohol issues and an intervention arm that combines usual care with a 30 min brief intervention delivered by school learning mentors. Individual pupils will be randomised to one of the two arms. The primary outcome will be total alcohol consumed in the past 28 days judged by the 28 day Time Line Follow Back method. Descriptive statistical analysis will be used to report the pupil-level baseline data, with multiple linear regressions being used to compare the primary outcomes between the two arms at 12 months. FindingsThe pilot trial guided the development of the manualised intervention, which includes process information and a 30 min personalised interactive worksheet-based session delivered by learning mentors. The pilot suggested that this intervention was acceptable, but an intervention with parental involvement was not found to be feasible, with parents not engaging with the research. InterpretationLittle evidence exists in a UK context to explore screening and brief intervention to reduce risky drinking in young adolescents. The pilot trial has informed the design of the upcoming definitive trial which, if the intervention is effective, will facilitate the development of manualised screening and brief intervention to be adopted in routine school practice in high schools in England. FundingThis project is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Public Health Research (PHR) programme (project number 13/117/02).

The mineralogy and fabric of ‘Brickearths’ in Kent, UK and their relationship to engineering behaviour

Mineralogical and petrographical investigation of two loessic brickearth profiles from Ospringe and Pegwell Bay in north Kent, UK have differentiated two types of brickearth fabric that can be correlated with different engineering behaviour. Both sequences comprise metastable (collapsing) calcareous brickearth, overlain by non-collapsing ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth. This study has demonstrated that the two types of brickearth are discretely different sedimentary units, with different primary sedimentary characteristics and an erosional junction between the two units. A palaeosol is developed on the calcareous brickearth, and is associated with the formation of rhizolithic calcrete indicating an arid or semi-arid environment. No evidence has been found for decalcification being responsible for the fabric of the upper ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth. Optically-stimulated dates lend further support for the calcareous and ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth horizons being of different age or origins. The calcareous brickearth is metastable in that it undergoes rapid collapse settlement when wetted under applied stresses. It is characterised by an open-packed arrangement of clay-coated, silt-sized quartz particles and pelletised aggregate grains (peds) of compacted silt and clay, supported by an inter-ped matrix of loosely packed, silt/fine-grained sand, in which the grains are held in place by a skeletal framework of illuviated clay. The illuviated clay forms bridges and pillars separating and binding the dispersed component silt/sand grains. There is little direct grain-to-grain contact and the resultant fabric has a very high voids ratio. Any applied load is largely supported by these delicate clay bridge and pillar microfabrics. Collapse of this brickearth fabric can be explained by a sequence of processes involving: (1) dispersion and disruption of the grain-bridging clay on saturation, leading to initial rapid collapse of the loose-packed inter-ped silt/sand; (2) rearrangement and closer stacking of the compact aggregate silt/clay peds; (3) with increasing stress further consolidation may result from deformation and break up of the peds as they collapse into the inter-ped regions. Smectite is a significant component of the clay assemblage and will swell on wetting, further encouraging disruption and breaking of the clay bonds. In contrast, the ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth already possesses a close-packed and interlocking arrangement of silt/sand grains with only limited scope for further consolidation under load. Minor authigenic calcite and dolomite may also form meniscus cements between silt grains. These have either acted as “scaffolds” on which illuviated clay has subsequently been deposited or have encrusted earlier-formed grain-bridging clay. In either case, the carbonate cements may help to reinforce the clay bridge fabrics. However, these carbonate features are a relatively minor feature and not an essential component of the collapsible brickearth fabric. Cryoturbation and micromorphological features indicate that the calcareous brickearth fabric has probably been developed through periglacial freeze–thaw processes. Freezing could have produced the compact silt/clay aggregates and an open porous soil framework containing significant inter-ped void space. Silt and clay were remobilised and translocated deeper into the soil profile by water percolating through the active layer of the sediment profile during thawing cycles, to form the loosed-packed inter-ped silt matrix and grain-bridging meniscus clay fabrics. In contrast, the upper ‘non-calcareous’ brickearth may represent a head or solifluction deposit. Mass movement during solifluction will have destroyed any delicate grain-bridging clay microfabrics that may have been present in this material.