Service Men Research Articles

Inequality in America and Spillover Effects on Mediation Practice: Disputing for the 1 Per Cent and the 99 Per Cent

We are living in an era of vast inequality. Income and wealth gaps between ‘the haves’ and ‘have-nots’ have reached epidemic proportions. The top 1 per cent of earners in the United States pulled in a whopping 19.3 per cent of household income in 2012, their biggest slice of total income in more than 100 years. In 2014, the World Economic Forum listed severe income inequality as the number one global risk and Tom Piketty’s unlikely best seller, Capital in the 21st Century, documented the rising ratio of wealth to income and the growth of a ‘rentier class’. Even in Australia, where the mining industry continues to power economic growth, the income and wealth gap between the lowest and highest quintile of earners is stark. According to recent data, the top 20 per cent of Australians earn five times the income of the bottom 20 per cent, while holding 71 times more wealth. The question for mediation scholars and practitioners is whether this growing gap is affecting the way in which society’s ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ access and experience mediation. At the low end of the socio-economic totem pole, government cuts in legal services – combined with mediation practitioners’ obsession with neutrality – potentiate uninformed decision-making by unrepresented parties. At the high end, models of practice catering to legal professionals’ preferences threaten to rob mediation of its transformative, therapeutic potential. This paper will explore these troubling developments and query whether growing social inequality should precipitate shifts in our thinking about mediation ethics and the way we educate the next generation of lawyers.

Teacher Strike! Public Education and the Making of a New American Political Order by Jon Shelton

While many have blamed racial tension in the 1960s for the decline of liberalism, in his book Teacher Strike!, Jon Shelton argues that strikes led by teacher unions in the 1960s through the 1980s helped dismantle the liberal coalition between labor and the Democratic Party constructed during the New Deal era. This coalition helped form a social contract that led to a number of programs that allowed many workers to catapult into the middle class. Programs such as the National Labor Relations Act, the Wagner Act, the G. I. Bill, and Medicare provided “greater access to economic opportunity, more workplace democracy through unions and a social safety net when the job market failed to provide a minimum level of economic security” (3). The Keynesian economic approach championed by the labor-liberal coalition maintained that the state had an obligation to play a role in the lives of citizens. Public sector workers, including teachers, benefited from this alliance, which gave them the right to unionize and collectively bargain.But during the economic crisis of the 1970s, federal, state, and local governments abandoned their obligation to uphold the social contract with workers and instead adopted austerity measures that led to large cuts in social services and massive layoffs of city workers, including teachers. In response to layoffs and demands for greater productivity without pay raises, teachers fought back by using the strike as a weapon. Teacher strikes during periods where liberalism faced challenges only weakened the alliance of Democrats, civil rights, and labor.Proponents of neoliberal policies were successful in portraying teachers as overpaid employees who placed their self-interest above the needs of taxpayers. As the neoliberal agenda of shrinking government and privatizing social services took hold, race and gender were important in the discrediting of teachers. Shelton argues that public school teachers were considered unproductive members of the working class along with welfare recipients and others who relied on taxpayers for their livelihood. He notes that gender was also a crucial factor in the campaign to diminish the role of teachers. Because the majority of teachers were women, many contended that they were violating their role as caretakers by prioritizing their career over the public good.Shelton does not address the political direction teachers unions in New York, Chicago, Newark, and other cities took that hindered them from building alliances with parents and communities. Many of the demands of teachers for higher salaries, due process, improving the grievance procedure, and greater health benefits did not address debilitated school buildings, children receiving less than a full day of instruction, students being assigned the least experienced teachers in racially segregated schools, and other concerns raised by black and brown people in these urban centers. The author does cover the battle between proponents of Black Power who called for community control of schools and teachers who attempted to uphold due process. However, long before the confrontation between teacher unions and community control activists, black and brown communities had developed an adversarial relationship with teachers.Teacher Strike! is a major contribution to the growing literature on teacher unionism. The author’s examination provides the reader with a clearer picture of why strikes in New York, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Detroit, and other major urban centers during a period of deindustrialization helped fuel the political backlash and led to reversing the gains made by the labor-liberal alliance. The author convincingly argues that the attack on teachers unions has been part of a larger scheme to discipline labor and assure that the neoliberal pursuit of privatizing services that were provided by government will not be curtailed.

Gathering momentum for the way ahead: fifth report of the Lancet Standing Commission on Liver Disease in the UK

This report presents further evidence on the escalating alcohol consumption in the UK and the burden of liver disease associated with this major risk factor, as well as the effects on hospital and primary care. We reiterate the need for fiscal regulation by the UK Government if overall alcohol consumption is to be reduced sufficiently to improve health outcomes. We also draw attention to the effects of drastic cuts in public services for alcohol treatment, the repeated failures of voluntary agreements with the drinks industry, and the influence of the industry through its lobbying activities. We continue to press for reintroduction of the alcohol duty escalator, which was highly effective during the 5 years it was in place, and the introduction of minimum unit pricing in England, targeted at the heaviest drinkers. Results from the introduction of minimum unit pricing in Scotland, with results from Wales to follow, are likely to seriously expose the weakness of England's position. The increasing prevalence of obesity-related liver disease, the rising number of people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and its complications, and increasing number of cases of end-stage liver disease and primary liver cancers from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease make apparent the need for an obesity strategy for adults. We also discuss the important effects of obesity and alcohol on disease progression, and the increased risk of the ten most common cancers (including breast and colon cancers). A new in-depth analysis of the UK National Health Service (NHS) and total societal costs shows the extraordinarily large expenditures that could be saved or redeployed elsewhere in the NHS. Excellent results have been reported for new antiviral drugs for hepatitis C virus infection, making elimination of chronic infection a real possibility ahead of the WHO 2030 target. However, the extent of unidentified cases remains a problem, and will also apply when new curative drugs for hepatitis B virus become available. We also describe efforts to improve standards of hospital care for liver disease with better understanding of current service deficiencies and a new accreditation process for hospitals providing liver services. New commissioning arrangements for primary and community care represent progress, in terms of effective screening of high-risk subjects and the early detection of liver disease.

Transforming the landscape of liver disease in the UK

In 2014, The Lancet published the inaugural report of the Lancet Commission on Liver Disease in the UK. 1 Williams R Aspinall R Bellis M et al. Addressing liver disease in the UK: a blueprint for attaining excellence in health care and reducing premature mortality from lifestyle issues of excess consumption of alcohol, obesity, and viral hepatitis. Lancet. 2014; 384: 1953-1997 Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (405) Google Scholar With mortality from liver diseases having risen four-fold over the previous four decades, the report was timely and urgently needed. Led by Roger Williams of the UK's Foundation for Liver Research, Institute of Hepatology, King's College London, the Commission provided a comprehensive analysis of the disease burden in the UK and carefully examined access to, and quality of, care for patients with liver disease. Having accumulated a strong foundation of evidence, the Commission made ten recommendations aimed at reducing unacceptable premature mortality and improving care for patients. The recommendations addressed unmet needs of patients with liver disease, as well as areas in which the greatest population-wide impacts could be made. They covered the full spectrum of health care, including community, general practice, specialised services, and paediatric care. Obesity, alcohol, and hepatitis were identified as key modifiable risk factors. The need for a response to commercial drivers of poor liver health—the alcohol and food industries—was also highlighted as a priority area to focus political action. Gathering momentum for the way ahead: fifth report of the Lancet Standing Commission on Liver Disease in the UKThis report presents further evidence on the escalating alcohol consumption in the UK and the burden of liver disease associated with this major risk factor, as well as the effects on hospital and primary care. We reiterate the need for fiscal regulation by the UK Government if overall alcohol consumption is to be reduced sufficiently to improve health outcomes. We also draw attention to the effects of drastic cuts in public services for alcohol treatment, the repeated failures of voluntary agreements with the drinks industry, and the influence of the industry through its lobbying activities. Full-Text PDF Place of death and factors associated with hospital death in patients who have died from liver disease in England: a national population-based studyThe high risk of hospital death in patients with sepsis, hepatorenal syndrome, or peritonitis warrants further investigation, and the low chance of hospital death in patients with alcohol-related disorders also needs to be explored. Prevention strategies and end-of-life care services are urgently needed to prevent and tackle harms from liver disease. Full-Text PDF Alcohol drinking patterns and liver cirrhosis risk: analysis of the prospective UK Million Women StudyIn middle-aged women, cirrhosis incidence increases with total alcohol intake, even at moderate levels of consumption. For a given weekly intake of alcohol, this excess incidence of cirrhosis is higher if consumption is usually without meals, or with daily drinking. Full-Text PDF Open Access

Austerity and the lives of people with learning disabilities. A thematic synthesis of current literature

The Financial Crisis of 2008 resulted in many western economies implementing cuts in health and social care. This systematic review provides a holistic picture of the impact of austerity policy on the lives of people with learning disabilities (LD) and the collateral effects on the people who support them. Our review suggests that in the current climate of economic austerity, available funding to support people with LD is no longer aligned to their care needs. Cuts in disability services have adversely affected the well-being both of people with LD and their informal carers. Individuals with LD have lost social support and are experiencing increased social isolation. Heightened demands on family carers’ time have negatively influenced their wider roles, including parental functioning, and labour market participation. Our review provides the foundations for further discourse and research on the effects of austerity on people with LD and their family carers.

Effects of the 2008 global financial crisis on population health.

We compare the transmission channels through which the 2008 global financial crisis affected health. We find that postponing or skipping visits to the doctor after falling ill and stopping buying regular medication had the strongest negative effects on health, followed by a reduced consumption of staple foods, utilities being cut, being forced to move, and having to sell assets. In comparison, experiencing cuts in TV, phone, and internet services, as well as delaying payments for utilities had relatively weaker negative impacts. In contrast, having a household head or household member lose a job also had negative effects on health status, although this effect was relatively lower. Finally, a reduced flow of remittances had the weakest negative effect.

Government retrenchment and citizen participation in volunteering: A cross-national analysis of OECD countries

In most industrialized countries, politicians and policy makers face unprecedented levels of fiscal pressure. Such pressure has compelled governments to conduct substantial cuts in government spending and services. While policy makers have attempted to build a strong civil society to compensate for the declining government role, previous studies have not examined the link between government retrenchment and citizen involvement in volunteering. This study examines such a relationship by conducting a cross-national study of OECD countries. After controlling for individual- and country-level factors, the findings show that government retrenchment is positively associated with citizen volunteering.

Integrated services cut costs and improve health

Integrated services cut costs and improve health

Signpost appointments in an adult psychological therapies team

PurposeIn Scotland, individuals referred for NHS psychological therapies are expected to commence “treatment” within 18 weeks of receipt of referral. With high demand, high non-attendance rates and limited capacity, this can be a challenging goal. The service discussed here was keen to develop a way of seeing individuals referred sooner and improving the efficiency of the assessment process. The purpose of this paper is to look at the impact of introducing assessment (“Signpost”) appointments on waiting times, attendance, and treatment planning.Design/methodology/approachSignpost appointments were offered to all existing, and any new referrals, to an adult psychological therapies team (PTT) in NHS Lanarkshire. Clinicians kept a record of the outcomes of these appointments over a six month period. Waiting times and attendance figures were compared before and after the introduction of the Signpost system.FindingsFollowing the introduction of Signpost appointments, individuals were seen sooner for both assessment and therapy. Attendance at first appointments improved and Signpost appointments helped inform treatment planning. Although alternatives were discussed, the majority of clients were still offered individual therapy. Service user and staff satisfaction was high.Practical implicationsThe results from this study led to assessment (“Signpost”) appointments being rolled out across other adult PTTs in NHS Lanarkshire.Originality/valueThere is little research looking at the impact of assessment/signpost appointments on adult mental health services in the UK. In the current climate of public service cuts, this study provides an innovative way of reducing waiting times and maintaining service user satisfaction, without requiring more resources.

After Deschamps: men, masculinities, and the Canadian Armed Forces

In 2015, an external review into sexual harassment and misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), conducted by former Supreme Court Justice Marie Deschamps, found that there was a sexualized culture in the organization. In light of this report, much attention has been (rightly) focused on women, and there is a large body of research exploring the related experiences of women in the CAF. What is less examined is the way in which sexual harassment and its related misconduct is gendered within the organization, and how it marginalizes those women and men in the CAF who do not conform to a warrior narrative. In this article, I focus on the ways in which military masculinities and femininities are performed in the CAF. I argue that it is important to understand how women and men who do not perform expected and accepted forms of masculinity (and femininity) are marginalized. I examine masculinity in the CAF from historical and contemporary perspectives. Problematizing men's service through the lens of mascu...

After Deschamps: men, masculinities, and the Canadian Armed Forces

In 2015, an external review into sexual harassment and misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), conducted by former Supreme Court Justice Marie Deschamps, found that there was a sexualized culture in the organization. In light of this report, much attention has been (rightly) focused on women, and there is a large body of research exploring the related experiences of women in the CAF. What is less examined is the way in which sexual harassment and its related misconduct is gendered within the organization, and how it marginalizes those women and men in the CAF who do not conform to a warrior narrative. In this article, I focus on the ways in which military masculinities and femininities are performed in the CAF. I argue that it is important to understand how women and men who do not perform expected and accepted forms of masculinity (and femininity) are marginalized. I examine masculinity in the CAF from historical and contemporary perspectives. Problematizing men's service through the lens of masculinity can help in understanding how gender operates for men and women, as well as for those who do not fit that binary; this, in turn, can help inform cultural change in response to Deschamps.

Social Rights Protection in Europe in Times of Crisis: ‘A Tale of Two Cities’

Abstract Europe can be considered a sort of fortress of the protection of socio-economic rights. However, this bright scenario has been unsettled by the eruption of the Eurozone crisis, which has challenged the narrative of social Europe and swept away protections for social rights in Member States grappling with sovereign debt crises such as Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Cyprus, Latvia and Romania. In these countries, austerity measures led to persistent violations of social rights, under the external constraint of conditionality regimes which involved cuts in wages, pensions and welfare services. Consequently, austerity measures were challenged in domestic and European Courts and before the ECSR. In other words, there has been a ‘turn to the law’, in order to give concrete effect to the potential offered by the relevant legal instruments. What has been the general attitude of the Courts and quasi-judicial bodies to actions challenging austerity measures? Since the analysis of how the Courts and other human rights bodies manage the complex and controversial balance between austerity and social rights is an excellent ‘stress test’ to determine the ‘weight’ of the latter not only in the political debate, but also in the human rights discourse, this paper will focus on the ‘crisis cases’ in Europe, so as to shed light on the actual level of protection for social rights.

Were We Really All in it Together? The Distributional Effects of the 2010–15 UK Coalition Government's Tax‐benefit Policy Changes

AbstractThis article examines the distributional impacts of changes to benefits, tax credits, pensions and direct taxes between the UK general elections of May 2010 and May 2015. The changes did not have a common effect on all household incomes; nor did the direct tax‐benefit changes contribute to deficit reduction. Effectively, reductions in benefits and tax credits financed part of the direct taxes cuts, but the overall net fiscal cost increased pressure for cuts in other public services and increases in other (more regressive) taxes. The main gains were in the upper middle of the income distribution, and the main losers were at the bottom and those close to, but not at, the very top. Across most of the distribution the changes were regressive. By comparing with other analyses of policy changes in the same period, we illustrate the importance of analytical choices and assumptions for detailed conclusions on their distributional effects. We also show how some groups were clear losers or gained little on average – including lone parent families, large families and families with younger children. Others were gainers, including two‐earner couples, and those in their fifties and early sixties. The findings show that a dominant feature of the period was that the combination of higher tax‐free income tax allowances, financed by cuts in benefits and tax credits, was generally regressive. As this combination also lies at the heart of the proposed policies of the Conservative government since 2015, we would expect these effects to be intensified in the coming years.

La salud de las personas mayores en España durante la crisis económica

IntroductionNumerous studies have shown that economic crises are linked to a worsening of health conditions of the population. During the current economic crisis in Spain, there have been significant cuts in social and health services and a general worsening of the emotional well-being of the population. All these changes could have an impact on the health of the population, especially in the most vulnerable groups like older people. Material and methodsThe evolution of life expectancy and healthy life years in the period 2004-2014 have been examined in order to examine the health status of people aged 65 years and over in Spain during the economic crisis. ResultsChanges are observed in the evolution of healthy life years of people aged 65 years and over, particularly in the case of women. ConclusionsThe results do not show that the current economic crisis has had a negative impact on the health conditions of older people in Spain, but there has been a decline in their well-being and quality of life.

Book Review: The Long Depression: How It Happened, Why It Happened, and What Happens Next by Michael Roberts

Michael Roberts The Long Depression: How It Happened, Why It Happened, and What Happens Next, Chicago, IL: Haymarket Books, 2016; $19 There was a cheer on social media when Iceland put 26 of their top bankers in prison for crimes ranging from insider trading to fraud, money laundering, misleading markets, breach of duties and lying to the authorities, as the Great Recession has been associated with the greed of the bankers. The Independent wondered why we can't do the same in the United Kingdom (Birrrell 2015). The authorities in the United Kingdom were in no mood to listen to such questions as they were busy filling the coffers of banks by offering them monies at near zero interest rates for in their opinion it is the lack of greed that has been delaying the recovery. These contradictory prognoses confuse only the uninitiated. For whenever there is a recession or depression, there is neither a consensus on the causes nor how to get out of it among the experts. The reason is simple; these experts are looking for explanations in the wrong places. They are to be found not in the mind of this greedy banker or that exploitative CEO or in the lack of effective demand caused by an unpredictable shock, but rather in the law of motion of capital--that is, in the tendency of the rate of profit to fall. This is the point that Michael Roberts convincingly establishes in The Long Depression. As the recession persisted, experts compared it with the Great Depression of 1929-1940, and called it 'The Great Recession' as this was the longest among the 18 recessions that have been identified by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) since the end of World War II (WWII). In its intensity and length, this recession is to be compared with the Great Depression of late 19th century (1874-1897) and the Great Depression of mid-20th century (1929-1940). In Roberts' view, one can only say the economy has recovered if a pre-crisis level/long-run trend of growth is restored. To put it concretely, that means 3% per annum growth is restored in advanced countries. Roberts predicts we may have to wait until 2018 to reach that level. Marx had proposed that the tendential law of falling rate of profit thanks to the increasing organic composition of capital (c/v), will lead to the ultimate breakdown of capitalism. Being a tendency, there are also counter tendencies and Marx mentioned five of them: (1) the increasing intensity of exploitation, which could increase the surplus value; (2) the relative cheapening of the elements of constant capital; (3) the deviation of the wage rate from the value of labour power; (4) the existence and increase of a relative surplus population; and (5) the cheapening of consumption and capital goods through imports. Marx had neither the time nor the facilities to examine the data related to these tendencies to clinch the argument. Michel Roberts and a number of researchers of Marxist persuasion were able to test these tendencies and find that the propositions have stood the test of time and help us to predict economic events like recession/depression. On the causes of the first great depression of 1884-1897 and the second one of 1929-1940, the author finds that the rate of profit was falling and the organic composition of capital was rising. Recovery from the second great depression occurred only after enough capital was destroyed so that the remaining capital's profitability began to rise once war production began with the break out of the Second World War. However, from the mid 1960s, we have again seen a fall in profitability as the organic composition of capital has risen thanks to increased mechanization and investment in new industries. The response to this crisis was to have anti-labour reforms, privatization, cuts in government services and pensions, a lowering of taxes on the corporate sector, and the deregulation of the financial sector. …

Subjective remaining lifetime and concreteness of the future as differential predictors of preparation for age-related changes

Demographic changes have been linked to the expectation of cuts in government-provided social security services, emphasizing individual responsibility to prepare for old age and concomitant challenges and changes. Accordingly, the identification of psychological variables predicting preparation is a matter of theoretical as well as practical importance. We thus consider different aspects of a person's future time as theoretically prominent psychological predictors of preparation. The subjectively perceived quantity of remaining lifetime, the concreteness of future time, and preparation for life domains indicative of an active third age as well as of a more dependent fourth age were assessed in a longitudinal study in a core sample of N=593 participants (30-80years old at T1) at two measurement occasions 4years apart. The quantity of subjective remaining lifetime predicted subsequent changes in preparation, but this effect was restricted to preparation for the fourth age. In contrast, a more open and concrete outlook on ones' personal future predicted changes in preparation for an active third age. Our findings highlight the importance of distinguishing between different aspects of future time-its quantity versus its relation to goals and action plans-when predicting specific facets of developmental self-regulation.

Changing times

It is becoming apparent that the environment in which Executive Masters in Public Administration programmes operate has changed dramatically in the wake of economic crisis and subsequent cuts in public spending. Changes in the funding of public sector organisations has been compounded by a broader “crisis” in the wider public sector which has seen job losses, resources pressures, and the questioning of who delivers public services. Despite arguing for the need for public management education in the face of adversity and austerity, the reality is that the demand for traditional university based courses is falling and despite the proven success of XMPA courses, public sector employers are just not funding or releasing their staff in the way that they did to attend these courses. Arguably, they may have justifiable “business” arguments such as loss of funding and staff and increasing demands on resources, ironically some of the senior managers who are saying no to their staff are the very ones who benefitted from more generous employer support themselves. However what this means for the development and continuance of public management programmes is that public management educators have to seriously think how to continue to develop and sustain XMPA programmes and show that they are not a burden to the organization and the sector but are of great value and benefit. This paper argues for the need for public management courses, and in particular XMPAs, during a period of questioning and uncertainty in a changing public sector. It suggests some of the changes to courses and course delivery that are needed and uses the example of the XMPA, public management education programme at London South Bank University. Such suggestions include: Delivering “Bite size XMPA”, portfolio of course accumulation, a Ladders and Bridges Framework, and Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Changes to course curriculum and content, a flexible approach to course timing and delivering courses off site to organizations. Further developing Learning Communities to respond to specific workplace managerial challenges, creating a safe learning environment and developing case studies from students own professional and practical experiences. The aim of this paper is to consider ways in which public management educators can continue to provide relevant courses and skills and argues that despite the cuts in the public sector and the deprioritization of education and training, Executive Masters in Public Administration (XMPA) are much needed to enable managers to deal effectively with the managerial challenges and dilemmas in service provision, not least citizen’s expectations and demands for improved services at lower cost, brought about as a consequence of the fiscal crisis and resulting public service cuts. The emphasis is on external training in the form of post graduate academic degrees and CPD (which are outside mandatory clinical and essential professional minimum training requirements), and specifically XMPA programmes.

When changing welfare states and the Eurocrisis meet

The aftermath of the global financial crisis of 2008 certainly marks a “stress test” for European welfare states. Massive increases in fiscal deficits and public debt, required to pre-empt a more severe global meltdown, have since forced policymakers to consider deep cuts in welfare services, including health, education, and social transfers to the poor, the unemployed and pensioners, in order to shore up public finance solvency and economic stability. The crisis has affected different economies differently, as a result of their relative vulnerability to endogenous and external economic shocks and also because of the differing institutional capacities they were able to mobilise to address the economic duress. Policies with a social investment flavour (activation, childcare) have been somewhat more resilient in the face of fiscal austerity in the early days of financial crisis management. But will the social investment carry the day as demographic headwind will bring social contracts under further duress, especially in countries facing high unemployment and the most daunting budgetary pressures, where long-run population ageing and the feminization of the workforce have not been adequately dealt with before the crisis. In the current context of fiscal predicament, it is crucial not to overlook the growth potential of productive social policies. This contribution examines what is needed to rescue an affordable social investment impetus from the one-sided short term policy orientations triggered by the financial and fiscal crisis at both the level of the European Union and its member states. Questions of institutional design today encompasses two, tightly interconnected, dimensions. Any long term resolution to the crisis has to be both effective and legitimate at level of the EU as well as at the domestic level of the national politics. At the level of the EU, the task is to devise a stable macroeconomic regime for the euro-zone, which is able to better accommodate and discipline the diverse needs of different member economies. Domestically, institutional change requires recalibrating the welfare state by combining capacitating social policy supports with a fair distribution of life chances. The key challenge is to make long-term social investment and short-term fiscal consolidation mutually supportive at both the EU level and in the Member States. The critical challenge lies in redirecting the broad political support for the welfare state in most EU member countries toward designing a new model of welfare state that is able to equip European citizens and societies to face endogenous social change and growing global competition.

Evaluation of direct indicators of physical performance in servicemen via simulation of typical elements of the military-professional activities

Relevance. Servicemen wearing body armor (BA) have reduced physical performance as well as quantitative and qualitative indices of training and combat activities. Objective. To assess the influence of modern body armor on direct indicators in servicemen performing standard elements of military professional activity. Methodology. 195 volunteers from motorized rifle units and parachute units equipped with modern body armor were examined. Direct indicators of physical performance were assessed during military-professional activity: 5 km quick march and obstacle course. Exercise time was documented along with specific obstacle elements servicemen could not overcome. Results and Discussion. The research has shown that greater body armor weights disturbed the quality and ability to overcome obstacles typical for combined-arms battle. This weight is undoubtedly one of the most important medical and technical characteristics and should be considered in relation to the body weight of servicemen (SM) to derive the (mBA/mSM) ratio and assess influence on direct indicators of physical performance. Conclusion. Modern trends in body armor development include increased area and protection level; this is associated with increased physical load and lower effectiveness, thus creating additional risks of exposure to enemy fire.

The blueprints to a new way of working.

Sustainability and transformation plans hit the headlines in August, along with concerns that these 'secret' arrangements will lead to deep cuts in NHS services across England. For many nurses, this will have been the first time they heard of so-called STPs. So what are they and what do they mean for nurses?