Laura Dunne

The Effect of Breastfeeding and Stimulation in the Home on Cognitive Development in One-year-old Infants

Research on the effects of breastfeeding on child cognitive development has produced conflicting results, and many studies do not account for infant stimulation in the home. The aim of this study is to determine whether breastfeeding predicts enhanced cognitive development in one-year-old infants after controlling for the main socio-economic and environmental factors, including stimulation in the home. This cross-sectional observational study involved 137 infants and their mothers. Information on maternal socio-demographic factors and breastfeeding practices was obtained through semi-structured interview. Stimulation in the home was measured using the HOME Inventory. Cognitive development was assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Mean cognitive scores were significantly higher in breast-fed infants (110) compared with formula-fed infants (105). Breastfeeding duration had a positive linear association with cognitive scores at one year. In linear regression, the adjusted standardised beta for breastfeeding was 0.285, which remained significant after adjusting for confounding variables. Our data suggest that breastfeeding for more than a month may have a beneficial effect on cognitive development, and that there is a dose–response relationship between breastfeeding duration and cognitive development. These relationships are independent of the main confounding variables, including stimulation in the home.

The perceived impact of interprofessional information sharing on young people about their sexual healthcare

ABSTRACT This article presents the results from an analysis of data from service providers and young adults who were formerly in state care about how information about the sexual health of young people in state care is managed. In particular, the analysis focuses on the perceived impact of information sharing between professionals on young people. Twenty-two service providers from a range of professions including social work, nursing and psychology, and 19 young people aged 18–22 years who were formerly in state care participated in the study. A qualitative approach was employed in which participants were interviewed in depth and data were analysed using modified analytical induction (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007). Findings suggest that within the care system in which service provider participants worked it was standard practice that sensitive information about a young person’s sexual health would be shared across team members, even where there appeared to be no child protection issues. However, the accounts of the young people indicated that they experienced the sharing of information in this way as an invasion of their privacy. An unintended outcome of a high level of information sharing within teams is that the privacy of the young person in care is compromised in a way that is not likely to arise in the case of young people who are not in care. This may deter young people from availing themselves of the sexual health services.

Growth, Learning and Development Study: summary of research, findings and recommendations.

The Growth, Learning and Development (GLAD) study aimed to examine how a broad range of factors influence child weight during the first year of life. Assessments were undertaken within a multidisciplinary team framework. The sample was drawn from the community and data collection was undertaken in the four Greater Belfast Trusts. Twohundred and thirty-four families took part, each receiving a total of five home visits during which physical growth, oral-motor skills and development were assessed. Psychosocial evaluation examined parent-child interaction, feeding and other parental and child characteristics using quantitative and observational techniques. This paper outlines the main findings and recommendations from the GLAD study.

Doing relationships and sexuality education with young people in state care

Background: Existing literature indicates that young people in state care have particular sexual health needs that include addressing their social and emotional well-being, yet little has been published as to how these components of sex education are actually delivered by service-providers. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyse the processes involved in delivering relationship and sexuality education to young people in state care from the perspectives of a sample of service-providers with a role in sexual health-care delivery. Design: Qualitative methodological strategy. Setting: Service-delivery sites at urban and rural locations in Ireland. Method: A total of 22 service-providers were interviewed in depth, and data were analysed using a qualitative analytical strategy resembling modified analytical induction. Findings: Participants proffered their perceptions and examples of their practices of sex education in relation to the following themes: (1) acknowledging the multi-dimensional nature of sexual health in the case of young people in care; (2) personal and emotional development education to address poor self-esteem, emotional disconnectedness and an inability to recognise and express emotions; (3) social skills’ education as part of a repertoire of competencies needed to negotiate relationships and safer sex; (4) the application of positive social skills embedded in everyday social situations; and (5) factual sexuality education. Conclusion: Insights into service-providers’ perceptions of the multi-dimensional nature of the sexual health needs of young people in state care, and the ways in which these service-providers justified their practice make visible the complex character of sex education and the degree of skill required to deliver it to those in state care.

Young people’s views on the impact of care experiences on their ability to form positive intimate relationships.

Existing literature tells us that one of the factors important to the sexual health and intimate relationships of adolescents is the extent to which teenagers feel emotionally connected and supported by their families. In this article, we analyse the experiences of disconnectedness from their families and transience during childhood reported by a sample of young adults formerly in care, and the influence they believed this had on their sense of security and later intimate relationships. The sample comprised 19 young adults aged 18–22 years who were interviewed about experiences associated both directly and indirectly with sexual health, during which childhood experiences of transience emerged as an issue. Findings indicated that disconnectedness and transience were experienced as distressing for participants, generating feelings of rejection and compromising their sense of trust in others. Feelings of insecurity and mistrust were reported by some to influence their adult relationships. We conclude that while not always possible, social care professionals should endeavour to support enduring relationships with trusted adults and continuity of carer among young people in care.

Collecting sensitive information for a sexual health trial with young people: experiences of using electronic data collection and traditional paper methods

Electronic data collection for randomised trials is attractive as it can, in theory, provide great financial advantages by reducing fieldwork costs and data inputting time, as well as increasing the accuracy of responses over and above paper based methods. For trials involving young people, electronic methods provide other advantages such as the ability to adapt questions to meet the needs of young people of differing ages and abilities. Researchers have also suggested that young people prefer electronic methods over traditional ones and have found equal validity across both methods. This presentation will discuss issues relating to the collection of sensitive information from young people in Northern Ireland, using electronic and paper formats. We will draw on experience gained across several research studies that have collected data on sexual risks and behaviours, particularly in school-based research; including a recent trial on adolescent pregnancy. We will examine the feasibility, reliability and validity of data collected along with an evaluation of the cost implications and ease of using both methods (including the merging of the resulting datasets if both methods are offered). The views of the researchers and participants will also be reflected upon.