Thematic Working Groups Research Articles

Development of a stepped care intervention model of evidence-based interventions for the management of posttraumatic stress in the Belgian Police

ABSTRACT Background: Police officers are frequently exposed to a wide variety of potentially traumatic events (PTE) and are therefore at a considerable risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Previous research estimated the point prevalence of PTSD in Belgian police officers at 7.4%, significantly higher than in the general population. An effective organisational strategy to manage posttraumatic stress is essential. Objective: We aimed to develop a novel organisational approach regarding traumatic stress for Belgian police, combining evidence-based strategies for the prevention and treatment of posttraumatic stress in a stepped care intervention model. Method: In a broad development process, we combined scientific literature, case studies of best practices from other police organisations with insights gathered from a number of expert panels, thematic working groups and feedback groups. Results: A comprehensive stepped care intervention model was developed, consisting of evidence-based interventions for the prevention and treatment of posttraumatic stress. Conclusions: The intervention model is a promising organisational strategy for the management of posttraumatic stress in police organisations based on evidence-based interventions. Its effectiveness will be studied in the coming years.

The FIRE-IN project: Tsunami-risk related practitioner challenges and 3rd cycle overall results

This article summarizes the methodology for the identification of practitioners’ challenges, in the context of the H2020 funded project FIRE-IN (Fire and Rescue Innovation Network) activities. The project consisted of five thematic areas or “Thematic Working Groups”, as they are called, i.e., Search and Rescue Emergency Response, Structure Fires, Landscape Fires Crisis Mitigation, Natural Hazard Mitigation and Chemical Biological Radiological Nuclear and Explosives, and three iterations, each one including the identification of capability challenges, the screening for solutions, that can potentially address these challenges, and the request for ideas regarding future innovations that will complement already existing ones and will assist in covering capability gaps. This article focuses on the natural hazard mitigation working group and tsunamis in the Mediterranean region as a case study for the 3rd and last iteration of the project. The scenario of a tsunami occurrence in the Mediterranean is the basis for the FIRE-IN 3rd cycle workshop, as an indicative example of a high impact – low probability event, which aims to identify practitioners’ Future Common Capability Challenges in Europe. The current status of the tsunami hazard in Europe, national and international tsunami risk mitigation measures and procedures and operational experience from recent events are also discussed. Focus is provided on the natural hazard mitigation and tsunami related practitioners’ challenges, while results from the FIRE-IN request for ideas process and the interaction between practitioners, researchers and industry are also discussed. The aim is to present practitioners’ current and future capability challenges , one of the main outcomes of the FIRE-IN project, and to provide further guidelines to stakeholders of disaster management towards a safer Europe, mainly, through preparedness and adaptation for stronger and resilient societies.

CREATING THE EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE FOR TEACHER EDUCATION: EVOLVING DYNAMICS

The study is devoted to the analysis of Europeanization policy in the area of teacher education in the 21st century and the characterization of mechanisms and instruments for the formation of the European Teacher Education Area. The authosr emphasize the effective roles and influences on the integration processes of European professional organizations: European Association for Teacher Education, European Association of Educational Researchers. The contribution of thematic networks to the Europeanization of teacher education, in particular, the European Policy on Teacher Education, the Thematic Network for Teacher Education in Europe, and others, is highlighted. Attention is drawn to the potential of European research projects under the auspices of the European Commission, and the experience of developing and implementing the European Doctorate in Teaching is analyzed. The political dimension of the processes of Europeanisation of teacher education is analysed through the analysis of the EC’s landmark documents on rethinking education; European principles on teacher competencies and qualifications; improving the quality of teacher education with a forecast of the development of the European teaching profession as 1) highly qualified; 2) requiring lifelong learning; 3) mobile); 4) based on partnership. A number of documents developed by the thematic working group, which directly deals with the development of national policies on education and training of teachers/lecturers throughout their professional careers and the analysis of strategies to support teacher development at the European and national levels, have been introduced into the national scientific circulation. At the level of theoretical positions, it is proved that the focus of modern European research in the field of teacher education is on the narratives of professional identity, professional learning and professional development of teachers in the context of new professionalism with a European perspective.

Adoption of IFRS Sustainability Standards (IFRS-S) In Brazil: Contributions to The Development of Climate-Related Disclosure Indicators

Objective: The main objective of this article is to develop climate-related disclosure indicators that are applicable to the Brazilian business context. Method: The Delphi method was used to achieve this objective, involving several experts representing various user groups that influence the formulation of accounting standards in Brazil. The Delphi method is a decision-making tool that establishes an effective communication process, facilitating the resolution of complex problems. Result and Conclution: As a result, 40 climate-related disclosure indicators were mapped based on the results of two Delphi rounds. Overall, 52.5% (21/40) of climate-related disclosure indicators were identified as highly applicable. Among these highly relevant indicators, there were 10% (2/21) of Governance, 24% (5/21) of Strategy, 42% (9/21) of Risk Management and 24% (5/21) of Quality Indicators. Metrics and Goals. Furthermore, around 20% (8/40) of climate-related disclosure indicators received 100% approval from experts. Research implications: Os resultados deste estudo fornecem contribuições práticas para os órgãos de normatização nacionais, visando a criação de normas de divulgação relacionadas ao clima mais eficientes e menos onerosas para as empresas brasileiras. Esta melhoria enfatiza a relevância dos resultados do estudo para a elaboração de normas de divulgação relacionadas ao clima no contexto brasileiro. Originality/value: Brazil is currently in the process of preparing the bases for adopting sustainability standards issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). Before this new standard is implemented effectively, the Federal Accounting Council (CFC) and the Brazilian Sustainability Pronouncements Committee (CBPS) recognized the importance of harmonizing the main disclosure indicators of this standard with Brazilian regulations and business characteristics. . In this case, the contribution of several thematic working groups may be necessary, especially with regard to the mechanism that allows entities with varying capabilities and levels of preparation to apply this new standard. This study made an academic contribution by demonstrating the use of the Delphi method as a corroboration tool for defining an accounting standard.

The experience of diagnosis announcement in rare endocrine diseases: A survey of the French FIRENDO network

ContextDiagnosis announcement of a chronic disease is a crucial moment for patients as well as for their families and an important step in the management of severe conditions such as rare endocrine diseases. Little is known of how diagnosis is communicated to patients and families. The FIRENDO network was created by the third French Plan for Rare Diseases, to promote autonomy, care and research on rare endocrine diseases. ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to characterize, for the first time, the experience and needs of patients and/or their parents around the announcement of diagnosis to ensure optimal quality of care. MethodsA quantitative self-administered survey on diagnosis announcement procedures in rare endocrine diseases was launched in April 2017 by the ad hoc FIRENDO thematic working group in collaboration with its 11 partnering patient associations and support groups. The questionnaire was designed and revised by patient support group representatives, adult and pediatric endocrinologists, psychologists and biologists, all expert in rare endocrine diseases. It was made available on the FIRENDO network website and distributed mainly by email with electronic links on their respective websites to members of all affiliated patient support groups. ResultsQuestionnaires were filled out by 391 patients and 223 parents (median age of patients: 39 years). The following conditions were associated with at least 30 answers: Addison's disease, classical forms of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), Russell-Silver syndrome, Cushing's syndrome, acromegaly and craniopharyngioma. Overall, some announcement modalities were judged favorably by patients: physician's empathy, availability and use of clear terms, and presence of family at the time of announcement. However, a lack of psychological care and information documents was reported, as well as some inadequate procedures such as postal mail announcements. ConclusionThis work suggests that better knowledge of the patient's experience is useful for improving the diagnosis announcement of rare endocrine disorders. The main recommendations derived from the survey were the need for several announcement visits, information on patient support groups and reference centers, imperatively avoiding impersonal announcement, and the usefulness of a written accompanying document.

Protocol for the development of a multidisciplinary clinical practice guideline for the care of patients with chronic subdural haematoma.

Introduction: A common neurosurgical condition, chronic subdural haematoma (cSDH) typically affects older people with other underlying health conditions. The care of this potentially vulnerable cohort is often, however, fragmented and suboptimal. In other complex conditions, multidisciplinary guidelines have transformed patient experience and outcomes, but no such framework exists for cSDH. This paper outlines a protocol to develop the first comprehensive multidisciplinary guideline from diagnosis to long-term recovery with cSDH. Methods: The project will be guided by a steering group of key stakeholders and professional organisations and will feature patient and public involvement. Multidisciplinary thematic working groups will examine key aspects of care to formulate appropriate, patient-centered research questions, targeted with evidence review using the GRADE framework. The working groups will then formulate draft clinical recommendations to be used in a modified Delphi process to build consensus on guideline contents. Conclusions: We present a protocol for the development of a multidisciplinary guideline to inform the care of patients with a cSDH, developed by cross-disciplinary working groups and arrived at through a consensus-building process, including a modified online Delphi.

Defining Collective Priorities: Research and Learning Agendas for Family Planning Across 6 Countries.

Evidence should be the foundation for a well-designed family planning (FP) program, but existing evidence is rarely aligned with and/or synthesized to speak directly to FP programmatic needs. Based on our experience cocreating FP research and learning agendas (FP RLAs) in Côte d'Ivoire, Malawi, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, and Uganda, we argue that FP RLAs can drive the production of coordinated research that aligns with national priorities.To cocreate FP RLAs, stakeholders across 6 countries conducted desk reviews of 349 documents and 106 key informant interviews, organized consultation meetings in each country to prioritize evidence gaps and generate research and learning questions, and, ultimately, formed 6 FP RLAs comprising 190 unique questions. We outline the process for consensus-driven development of FP RLAs and communicate the results of an analysis of the questions in each FP RLA across 4 technical areas: self-care, equity, high impact practices, and youth. Each question was categorized as a learning versus research question, the former indicating an opportunity to synthesize existing evidence and the latter to conduct new research to answer the question. Themes emerging from the data shed light on shared evidence gaps across the 6 countries. We argue that similarities and differences in the questions in each FP RLA reflect the unique implementation experience and context, as well as each country's placement on the FP S-curve. Early uses of the FP RLAs include informing the development of FP costed implementation plans and FP2030 commitments. FP RLAs have also been discussed in multiple thematic working groups. For FP stakeholders, these FP RLAs represent a consensus-based agenda that can guide the generation and synthesis of evidence to answer each country's most pressing questions, ultimately driving progress toward increasingly evidence-based programming and policy.

Resoconto sul Convegno Nazionale SIRD 2023: «La SIRD tra passato, presente e futuro. Il ruolo della ricerca educativa ai tempi del COVID, della terza guerra mondiale, della globalizzazione e della crisi ecologica»

The National Conference «SIRD between past, present and future. The role of educational research in the times of COVID, world war III, globalization and the ecological crisis» was organized by the Italian Society of Educational Research (SIRD). The conference was organized on the occasion of SIRD’s 30th anniversary and aimed to foster active discussions on the key challenges that educational research has encountered in recent years. The event started with a plenary session that retraced the significant milestones that characterized the founding of SIRD, featuring speeches from past presidents of the society. Following, the conference delved into thematic working groups, which focused on relevant research topics including Teaching Learning Centers, PNRR and guidance, career access and progression, university teaching, research and teacher training, internationalization, 11/D2 coordination, doctoral training, quality of publications, and internationalization of journals. This paper provides a summary of the conference’s primary discussions, highlighting their relevance within the context of contemporary educational research.

Health promotion and disease prevention registries in the EU: a cross country comparison

BackgroundHealth promotion and disease prevention programme registries (HPPRs), also called ‘best practice portals’, serve as entry points and practical repositories that provide decision-makers with easy access to (evidence-based) practices. However, there is limited knowledge of differences or overlaps of howe current national HPPRs in Europe function, the context and circumstances in which these HPPRs were developed, and the mechanisms utilised by each HPPR for the assessment, classification and quality improvement of the included practices. This study prepared an overview of different approaches in several national HPPRs and the EU Best Practice Portal (EU BPP) as well as identified commonalities and differences among the core characteristics of the HPPRs.MethodsWe conducted a descriptive comparison – that focused on six European countries with existing or recently developed/implemented national HPPR and the EU BPP –to create a comparative overview. We used coding mechanisms to identify commonalities and differences; we performed data management, collection and building consensus during EuroHealthNet Thematic Working Group meetings.ResultsAll HPPRs offer a broad range of health promotion and disease-prevention practices and serve to support practitioners, policymakers and researchers in selecting practices. Almost all HPPRs have an assessment process in place or planned, requiring the application of assessment criteria that differ among the HPPRs. While all HPPRs collect and share recommendable practices, others have implemented further measures to improve the quality of the submitted practices. Different dissemination tools and strategies are employed to promote the use of the HPPRs, including social media, newsletters and publications as well as capacity building workshops for practice owners or technical options to connect citizens/patients with local practices.ConclusionsCollaboration between HPPRs (at national and EU level) is appreciated, especially regarding the use consistent terminology to avoid misinterpretation, facilitate cross-country comparison and enable discussions on the adaption of assessment criteria by national HPPRs. Greater efforts are needed to promote the actual implementation and transfer of practices at the national level to address public health challenges with proven and effective practices.

EDUCATION POLICY OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AND CHALLENGES FOR CANDIDATE AND POTENTIAL CANDIDATE COUNTRIES

For any society that strives for growth and development, focus on quality education is of particular importance. With the adoption of the Lisbon strategy in 2000, the European Union (EU) started an upward trajectory towards the most competitive economy in the world. Cooperation in education has become an important instrument for mutual understanding and sharing of European values. This cooperation is supported with numerous relevant policy strategies, action plans, available statistical data, evaluation reports, road maps, thematic working groups and programmes, special network structures and idea exchange platforms within the EU. Key relevant strategies, plans and respective indicators are analyzed in this paper. Special attention is given to progress in candidate and potential candidate countries with regards to recommendations and goals of EU. It is concluded that more effort of the educational authorities is needed in all countries and one of the areas that needs to be further developed is evidence based policy making in education.

National Ecosystem Services Assessment in Hungary: Framework, Process and Conceptual Questions

Mapping and assessing ecosystem services (ES) projects at the national level have been implemented recently in the European Union in order to comply with the targets set out in the EU’s Biodiversity Strategy for 2020 and later in the Strategy for 2030. In Hungary this work has just been accomplished in a large-scale six-year project. The Hungarian assessment was structured along the ES cascade with each level described by a set of indicators. We present the selected and quantified indicators for 12 ES. For the assessment of cascade level 4, human well-being, a set of relevant well-being dimensions were selected. The whole process was supported by several forms of involvement, interviews, consultations and workshops and in thematic working groups performing the ES quantifications, followed by building scenarios and synthesizing maps and results. Here we give an overview of the main steps and results of the assessment, discuss related conceptual issues and recommend solutions that may be of international relevance. We refine some definitions of the cascade levels and suggest theoretical extensions to the cascade model. By finding a common basis for ES assessments and especially for national ones, we can ensure better comparability of results and better adoption in decision making.

Impacts and Lessons Learned of the First Three COVID-19 Waves on Cross-Border Collaboration in the Field of Emergency Medical Services and Interhospital Transports in the Euregio-Meuse-Rhine: A Qualitative Review of Expert Opinions.

BackgroundIn the Euregio-Meuse-Rhine (EMR), cross-border collaboration is essential for resource-saving and needs-based patient care within the emergency medical service (EMS) systems and interhospital transport (IHT). However, at the onset of the novel coronavirus SARS-COV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, differing national measures highlighted the fragmentation within the European Union (EU) in its various approaches to combating the pandemic. To assess the consequences of the pandemic in the EMR border area, the aim of this study was to analyze the effects and “lessons learned” regarding cross-border collaboration in EMS and IHT.MethodA qualitative study with 22 semi-structured interviews was carried out. Experts from across the EMR area, including the City of Aachen, the City region of Aachen, the District of Heinsberg (Germany), South Limburg (The Netherlands), and the Province of Limburg, as well as Liège (Belgium), took part. The interviews were coded and analyzed according to changes in cross-border collaboration before and during the pandemic, as well as lessons learned and recommendations.ResultsEach EU member country within the EMR area, addressed the pandemic individually with national measures. Cross-border collaboration between regional actors was hardly or not at all addressed at the national level during political decision- or policymaking. Previous direct communication at the personal level was replaced by national procedures, which made regular cross-border collaboration significantly more difficult. The cross-border transfer regulations of patients with COVID-19 proved to be complex and led, among other things, to patients being transported to hospitals far outside the border region. Collaboration continues to be seen as valuable and Euregional emergency services including hospitals work well together, albeit to different degrees. The information and data exchange should, however, be more transparent to use resources more efficiently.ConclusionEffective Euregional collaboration of emergency services is imperative for public safety in a multi-border region with strong economic, cultural, and social cross-border links. Our findings indicate that existing (pre-pandemic) structures which included regular meetings of senior managerial staff in the region and a number of thematic working groups were helpful to deal with and to compensate for the disruptions during the crisis. Regional cross-border agreements that are currently based on mutual but more or less informal arrangements need to be formalized and better promoted and recognized also at the national and EU level to increase resilience. The continuous determination of synergies and good and best practices are further approaches to support cross-border collaboration especially in preparation for future crises.

Campo, habitus e illusio - a tríade conceitual de Pierre Bourdieu no exercício de investigar a constituição de um subcampo acadêmico (das mídias e tecnologias) na Educação Física brasileira

ABSTRACT This article presents a research characterized as a historical sociology of the subfield of media and technologies (M&T) within the field of Brazilian Physical Education (PE), with the Bourdieusian concepts of field,habitusandillusio, seeking to inventory and analyze the constitution and consolidation of this movement in PE. Methodologically, it was configured as a qualitative research, of the case study type, seeking to understand this field and its conditions of possibilities. We presented and analyzed the interviews with nine agents of the aforementioned social space, who occupied/occupy structures of power within the subfield, coordinating the Communication and Media Thematic Working Group of the Brazilian School of Sport Sciences. It was possible to organize five interpretative axes, strongly related to the three concepts that epistemologically supported the research: (1) The subfield of M&T in the field of Brazilian PE: origin, conflicts, contemporaneity; (2) The social and academic legitimacy of PE; (3) Cultural formation and interdisciplinary aspects: thehabitusand the implications in the university and in school; (4) Cultural sociodynamics and implications in the university and school; (5) Affect as a disinterested interest: decodingillusio’s mechanisms. We conclude that every effort to capitalize on this “scientific game” carried out by the agents (as a network of sociability) is giving prominence to the subfield, as a strategy and collective effort to intensely pursue the objective of increasing the academic, scientific and social legitimacy of Brazilian PE, now with contributions from the social sciences and humanities.

Manifesto for an ECNP Neuromodulation Thematic Working Group (TWG): Non-invasive brain stimulation as a new Super-subspecialty

Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation (NIBS) techniques and in particular, repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS), are developing beyond mere clinical application. Although originally purposed for the treatment of resistant neuropsychiatric disorders, NIBS is also contributing to a deeper understanding of psychiatric disorders.rTMS is also changing the model of the disorder itself, from “mental” to one of neural connectivity. TMS allows the assessment of brain circuit excitability and eventually, of plastic changes affecting these circuits. While a clinical translational approach is, at the present time, the most adequate to meet the dimensional-circuit base model of the disorder, it refines the standard categorical classification of psychiatric disorders.The discovery of the fundamental importance of the balance between neuroplasticity and inflammation is also now explored through neuro-modulation findings consistently with the evidence of anti-inflammatory actions of the magnetic pulses.rTMS may activate, inhibit, or otherwise interfere with the activity of neuronal cortical networks, depending on stimulus frequency and intensity of brain-induced electric field. Of particular interest, yet still unclear, is how the relatively unspecific nature of TMS stimulation may lead to specific neuronal reorganization, as well as a definition of the TMS-triggered reorganization of functional brain modules, raising attention on the importance of the active participation of the patient to the treatment..Configuration and state of consciousness of the subject have made subjective experience under treatment regain importance in the neuro-scientific Psychiatry based on the requirement of United States National Institute of Health (NIH) and the substantial importance of the consciousness state in the efficacy of the TMS treatment. By focusing on the subjective experience, a renaissance of the phenomenology offers Psychiatry an opportunity to become proficient and to distinguish itself from other disciplines.For all these reasons, TMS should be included in the cluster of the sub-specialties as a new “Super-Specialty” and an appropriate training course has to be inaugurated. Psychiatrists are nowadays multi-specialists, moving from a specialty to another, vs super-specialist. The cultivation of a properly trained cohort of TMS psychiatrists will better meet the challenges of treatment-resistant psychiatric conditions (disorders of connectivity), through appropriate and ethical practice, meanwhile facilitating an informed development and integration of additional emerging neuro-modulation techniques. The aim of this consensus paper is to underline the interdisciplinary nature of NIBS, that also encompasses the subjective experience and to point out the necessity of a neuroscience-applied approach to NIBS in the context of the European College of Neuro-psychopharmacology (ECNP).

ERME column

ERME Thematic Working Groups. The European Society for Research in Mathematics Education (ERME) holds a biennial conference (CERME), in which research is presented and discussed in Thematic Working Groups (TWG). We continue the initiative of introducing the working groups, which we began in the September 2017 issue, focusing on ways in which European research in the field of mathematics education could be interesting or relevant for research mathematicians. Our aim is to extend the ERME community to new participants, who may benefit from hearing about research methods and findings and contribute to future CERMEs.

Implementation Studies in Mathematics Education: What Theoretical Resources?

Abstract This article is devoted to the theoretical resources likely to support implementation studies. After the introductory section, we focus on the potential offered by resources internal to the field of mathematics education, especially those offered by design-based research, by the systemic and ecological perspective underlying the anthropological theory of the didactic, and by the documentational approach to didactics regarding the teachers’ relationship with educational resources. We then examine particular examples of implementation studies, paying specific attention to the way they combine internal and external resources. For that purpose we consider on the one hand, European projects aiming at the large-scale implementation of inquiry-based learning and teaching in STEM education, especially the PRIMAS project, and on the other hand, the contributions to the thematic working group devoted to implementation and replication studies at CERME 10 and CERME 11. We conclude with more general reflections.

Harmonizing neuropsychological assessment for mild neurocognitive disorders in Europe.

Harmonized neuropsychological assessment for neurocognitive disorders, an international priority for valid and reliable diagnostic procedures, has been achieved only in specific countries or research contexts. To harmonize the assessment of mild cognitive impairment in Europe, a workshop (Geneva, May 2018) convened stakeholders, methodologists, academic, and non-academic clinicians and experts from European, US, and Australian harmonization initiatives. With formal presentations and thematic working-groups we defined a standard battery consistent with the U.S. Uniform DataSet, version 3, and homogeneous methodology to obtain consistent normative data across tests and languages. Adaptations consist of including two tests specific to typical Alzheimer's disease and behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia. The methodology for harmonized normative data includes consensus definition of cognitively normal controls, classification of confounding factors (age, sex, and education), and calculation of minimum sample sizes. This expert consensus allows harmonizing the diagnosis of neurocognitive disorders across European countries and possibly beyond.

PDG44 Recommendations from the RET-a Think TANK for the Management and Implementation of Advanced Therapies in Spain

The CAR-T cells therapy represents a therapeutic revolution for patients with some types of cancer, but it also poses healthcare, regulatory and economic challenges to the system. The objective of the RET-A think tank was to develop a strategic reflection on the short, medium and long-term challenges of managing CAR-T in Spain, and to propose improvement opportunities. More than forty experts participated in this multidisciplinary reflection. The CORE group was responsible for the design and overall approach. Four thematic working groups agreed on relevant aspects related to the strategic starting point, the integrated care pathway, the innovative Health Technology Assessment and funding models, and future projections. The three main challenges identified were to increase the number of qualified centers for the management of CAR-T, going from 10 to 17 in the short term, and to 32 in the medium term; to simplify the processes in order to reduce the average time of access to the therapy; and to advocate for therapeutic individualization with a multidisciplinary approach. In the economic sphere, some of the proposals were to develop alternative value-based payment models, considering the individual benefit of each indication, conditioned to real world evidence; to establish explicit and differential cost-utility thresholds; to consider the creation of a potential specific fund for emerging therapies; to establish an explicit expenditure ceiling; to apply a more long-term decision-making vision; and to monitor the results obtained through the use of adequate information systems. Moreover, there is a need to improve the training of all the involved stakeholders, and to increase public-private collaboration. CAR-T represents an opportunity to redefine the management of the whole healthcare system, but additional efforts are needed to ensure access and sustainability.

The experience of the Italian Global Burden of Disease Initiative

Abstract In 2007, two groups of Italian researchers started collaborating with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) to contribute to the generation of the first GBD 2010 estimates, published in 2012 in The Lancet. Early 2016, the Italian GBD collaborators, 12 at that time, decided to work together, to strengthen the exchange with IHME and gain ownership on the Italian estimates. The group aimed to: 1) exchange experiences, and coordinate activities related to the production and revision of Italian GBD estimates and for specific areas of expertise; 2) disseminate GBD estimates at national and regional level, and foster the active participation of health planners; 3) intensify the sharing of data and information with IHME and reach an agreement for the production of sub-national estimates; and 4) elaborate joint research projects to cover data gaps. In October 2018, IHME agreed to generate sub-national estimates for Italy, which are now being reviewed and will be officially published in May 2021. A thorough analysis of the epidemiological situation in Italy, using GBD 2017, was published in November 2019 in The Lancet Public Health. Other articles are currently being submitted. Researchers are structured in thematic working groups (Core Groups) while Regional Health Authorities are gradually becoming involved, gaining confidence in the use of GBD metrics and contributing to the sub-national revisions. The Italian GBD Initiative held a two-day meeting in Rome in January 2020, to discuss preliminary sub-national estimates. The Core Groups revised the estimates and identified data sources that could further improve the estimates. The results were then discussed with IHME in March 2020. The Italian group can now count on 75 collaborators from 30 research institutes. The Italian bottom-up approach, involving researchers and research institutes without a national political mandate, has shown both positive and negative aspects, as will be discussed during the workshop.

National osteoarthritis strategy brief report: Advanced care.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common chronic joint diseases and aleading cause of pain and disability inAustralia. A National Osteoarthritis Strategy (the Strategy) was developed to outline a national plan to achieve optimal health outcomes for people at risk of, or with, OA. This article focuses on the theme of advanced care of patients with OA withinthe Strategy. The Strategy was developed in consultation with a leadership group, thematic working groups, an implementation advisory committee, multisectoral stakeholders and the public. This Strategy identified three priorities in advanced care for osteoarthritis. In brief, these include surgical decision making, referral for evidence-informed non-surgical alternatives and surgical services. A set of goals within these priority areas and strategies was also proposed by the working group in consultation with stakeholders nationwide. Peak arthritis bodies and major healthcare professional associations currently endorse the Strategy.