Core Group Updates


BAPEN Medical Update EMMA GREIG, CHAIR – BAPEN MEDICAL


We have been busy planning our two teaching days and hope that many of you will be able to attend. We are running one day on 16th September, which will be held in conjunction with BSPGHAN and cover those areas where Adult and Paediatric Nutrition specialists can learn from each others practice. As you will see from the advert (see page 14) in this ‘In Touch’, the programme looks very interesting and we are hoping for a wide audience. Our other teaching day will be held on the day before BAPEN


Conference; this has proved to be a popular event over the last three years (see page 7). This year we plan to cover cancer and nutrition and look at the effects of cancer and its various treatments on nutritional status and what we can do to assist. You can book for both of these events via the BAPEN website (www.bapen.org.uk). Finally, we have launched the Powell-Tuck prize for any budding trainee-grade medical researchers.


Committee Group Updates


Research and Science Committee Report DR JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, CHAIR – RESEARCH AND SCIENCE COMMITTEE STRUGGLING WITH STATISTICS??


BAPEN Research and Science Committee are keen to support early phase researchers who are developing research studies in hospital or community based nutritional settings.


One area of difficulty frequently encountered is a lack of expert statistical support and advice. We have identified that this is mainly a problem for non-medical NHS staff, especially those


working outside Teaching Hospital Centres or University environments.


The Committee has therefore secured generous support from BAPEN Council to fund professional statistical assistance for a limited number of selected projects. These should closely align with the mission of BAPEN and of the Research Committee. Work that may lead to


future Grant or Fellowship applications is particularly encouraged.


Applications should be on one side of A4 and addressed to the Chair of the committee via e-mail (john.mclaughlin@manchester.ac.uk). Enquiries are welcome. Applications will be considered at the next Committee meeting, and selected for support on merit and future promise.


Malnutrition Action Group (MAG) AND Nutrition Screening Week (NSW): Update on current activities


MARINOS ELIA, CHAIR – MAG & CHRISTINE A RUSSELL,CHAIR – NSW


The Malnutrition Action Group (MAG) and Nutrition Screening Week (NSW) groups of BAPEN work closely together on several common issues and some of the current activities and planned future activities are outlined below.


NUTRITION SCREENING WEEK (NSW)


The third Nutrition Screening Week (NSW10) took place in January this year and over 400 centres registered to take part including about 60 centres from the Republic of Ireland. The NSW initiative was one of the key activities of the Nutrition Action Plan Implementation Board and the Department of Health (DH) considered the NSW initiative important enough to advertise it on its website.


This year additional questions about standards regarding weighing scales, type of nutrition screening tool used and training provided have been included. The data are


11 BAPEN In Touch No.58 August 2010


currently being entered ready for analysis and the results of the survey will be presented at the BAPEN Conference, in Harrogate, on Wednesday 3rd November. As in previous years we have been disappointed with the number of Mental Health Units that have participated in NSW. The final survey will take place between 6th-8th April 2011 and we aim to make a determined effort to encourage those who work in Mental Health to take part. Following NSW11 we will pool all the data from all four surveys and aim to publish the combined results in 2012.


We would like to express our thanks to everybody who participated in NSW10 and also to the staff at the BAPEN Office for co-ordinating the registration, Claire Oldale for her invaluable


assistance in producing the documentation and responding to queries, and to Marianne Vennegoor, Wendy Milligan and Andrew Morris who are helping to enter the data.


Impact of NSW


The results of the NSW have already had a wide impact. They have been used by the Department of Health e.g. the website of National Patient Safety Agency and a range of organisations such as the British Dietetic Association (BDA), the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), and of course BAPEN to promote their policies on nutritional care in different settings and in various publications. Local trusts have also used the results as a means of promoting the use of screening, and industry


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