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1 – 10 of over 1000The purpose of this paper is to explore the consequences for older people’s mental wellbeing of understandings relating to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). The MCA seeks to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the consequences for older people’s mental wellbeing of understandings relating to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). The MCA seeks to maximise people’s abilities to make decisions and provides a framework for decisions to be made in a person’s best interests should they lack the mental capacity to do so themselves (Graham and Cowley, 2015). Practice varies widely amongst health and social care practitioners and little is known about the nature of interventions under the MCA or the outcomes for service users’ lives and health, especially their mental health and emotional wellbeing.
Design/methodology/approach
By reflecting upon existing evidence this position paper offers a narrative of how practice in applying the principles of the MCA may impact upon the mental wellbeing of older people. Drawing upon court of protection judgements and existing research the author analyses the way the MCA is understood and applied and how institutional mechanisms might hinder good practice.
Findings
There are tensions between policy imperatives and examples of practice linked to the MCA, the spirit of the MCA and tenets of good practice. Despite efforts on promoting choice, control and rights there is growing paradoxical evidence that the MCA is used as a safeguarding tool with the consequences that it constrains older people’s rights and that it may encourage risk averse practice. The consequences of this for older people are considerable and include lack of choice, autonomy and self-determination. This discussion suggests that anxiety in relation to the application of the MCA stills exists in practice and that maximising older people’s capacity and supporting decision making is central in promoting mental health and wellbeing.
Practical implications
This position paper will identify how the MCA might be interpreted in action through consideration of existing evidence. This paper may lead to future research on how understandings of the MCA are constructed and what values underpin its application from conception to outcomes in relation to understandings of risk, risk aversion, decision making and the potential and need for emancipatory practice. Essentially, the paper will discuss how the MCA actually seeks to enhance the mental health and emotional wellbeing of older adults by offering a rather radical approach to understanding people’s wishes and feelings, but how attitudes may lead to misunderstandings and negative outcomes for the individual.
Originality/value
In a climate of serious case reviews identifying concerns and abuses in care it is imperative that understanding of the MCA inform good practice. However, what constitutes good practice requires unravelling and the agendas, requirements and attitudes of interventions need considering from an epistemological perspective as well as to project how the outcomes of decision-making impact upon the mental health of older adults. This paper will discursively add value to the narrative around how the MCA is applied in practice and how chosen practice often constructs the mental wellbeing of older adults.
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Graham Matthews and Stella Thebridge
The authors address the training needs of archivists, librarians and museum staff involved in preserving the national heritage and consider how these domains’ needs might be met…
Abstract
The authors address the training needs of archivists, librarians and museum staff involved in preserving the national heritage and consider how these domains’ needs might be met in a co‐ordinated and collaborative manner across the cultural heritage sector, and within the context of educational provision. The paper draws on a recent Library and Information Commission funded research project, “Review of current preservation management training in the UK and abroad”, and the 1999 National Preservation Office seminar on the subject. It relates this to work of the National Preservation Office, Resource, and other professional initiatives, and suggests how sector‐wide training and education might be developed. It poses questions for the consideration of LIS educators. Recommendations encourage the development of existing links and training initiatives, widening involvement and collaboration within and without the sector, and co‐ordination of preservation management training nationally.
James Lappin, Tom Jackson, Graham Matthews and Ejovwoke Onojeharho
Two rival approaches to email have emerged from information governance thought: the defensible deletion approach, in which emails are routinely deleted from email accounts after a…
Abstract
Purpose
Two rival approaches to email have emerged from information governance thought: the defensible deletion approach, in which emails are routinely deleted from email accounts after a set period of time; and the Capstone approach, in which the email accounts of important government officials are selected for permanent preservation. This paper aims to assess the extent to which the defensible deletion approach, when used in conjunction with efforts to move important emails into corporate records systems, will meet the needs of originating government departments and of wider society.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper forms the first stage of a realist evaluation of policy towards UK government email.
Findings
The explanation advanced in this paper predicts that the routine deletion of email from email accounts will work for government departments even where business email is inconsistently or haphazardly captured into records systems, provided officials have access to their own emails for a long enough period to satisfy their individual operational requirements. However the routine deletion of email from email accounts will work for wider society only if and when business email is consistently captured into other systems.
Originality/value
The paper looks at the policy of The National Archives (TNA) towards UK government email and maps it against the approaches present in records management and information governance thought. It argues that TNA’s policy is best characterised as a defensible deletion approach. The paper proposes a realist explanation as to how defensible deletion policies towards email work in a government context.
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Japhet Otike and Graham Matthews
Reports the results of a case study undertaken as part of a doctoral research programme carried out to investigate the information needs of, and provision to, the legal community…
Abstract
Reports the results of a case study undertaken as part of a doctoral research programme carried out to investigate the information needs of, and provision to, the legal community in Kenya. The case study, is based on data collected from a one‐man law firm in Kisumu, Kenya. Data were collected by interviews and observation. Although essentially a case study, the results reflect the kind of experiences and problems that lawyers in Kenya, working in single law firms, experience in accessing legal information. Concludes that the only practicable way lawyers can maximise the availability of legal information in the country is by setting up their own law library on a co‐operative basis. Reliance on court libraries is futile as the libraries are already over‐stretched by the needs of the Bench.
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April Edwards and Graham Matthews
Reports on a Library and Information Commission‐funded research project, Developing a National Strategy for Preservation Surrogates, commissioned by the National Preservation…
Abstract
Reports on a Library and Information Commission‐funded research project, Developing a National Strategy for Preservation Surrogates, commissioned by the National Preservation Office based at the British Library, and carried out at the Centre for Information Research, University of Central England in Birmingham. The project aimed to develop a national strategy for preservation surrogates in the UK. Presents findings regarding collections suitable for preservation surrogacy and discusses the significance of the definition of “collection”. Examines the project alongside other relevant research and discusses it in the context of these other collection‐based initiatives; in particular, digitisation and access improvement. An outline of the “Draft Preservation Surrogacy Selection Criteria Checklist” developed in the project is provided, and the difficulties associated with recommending preservation surrogacy options for types of collections are considered. Presents recommendations for moving forward the development of a national preservation surrogacy strategy in line with other collection‐based initiatives.
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Paul Eden, Nancy Bell, Naomi Dungworth and Graham Matthews
Describes the development and testing of a standard assessment method for the preservation needs of paper‐based and photographic materials (including microforms) in libraries…
Abstract
Describes the development and testing of a standard assessment method for the preservation needs of paper‐based and photographic materials (including microforms) in libraries, which will facilitate an assessment of national preservation needs and priorities. After outlining how the research was carried out, it briefly describes the assessment method which was finally developed; explains why a sample‐based approach was adopted and how libraries should choose their samples; discusses the core preservation management issues identified during the earlier part of the research and shows how a set of questions relating to these issues was developed for inclusion in the method.
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– The purpose of this paper is to describe the experience of being a peer support worker by drawing reflections from a working day.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the experience of being a peer support worker by drawing reflections from a working day.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a reflexive account of a person experience written from the peer support worker’s own perspective.
Findings
Reflections focus on the “non-directive” element of peer support and the danger of making assumptions when supporting others and working with staff.
Originality/value
While the research evidence for peer support continues to grow, there are few first person accounts of the experience of peer support working.
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This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/01435129610112743. When citing the…
Abstract
This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/01435129610112743. When citing the article, please cite: Paul Eden, Graham Matthews, (1996), “Disaster management in libraries”, Library Management, Vol. 17 Iss: 3, pp. 5 - 12.
This article reviews recent preservationactivity in Britain, considers the place ofpreservation in library management andlooks to its future development. The manyand broad aspects…
Abstract
This article reviews recent preservation activity in Britain, considers the place of preservation in library management and looks to its future development. The many and broad aspects of preservation which impinge on library management are indicated. Much progress has been made in recent years, but there remain those who need persuading to reassess their attitude towards it. If the current preservation impetus is to be maintained and extended, then the question of funding, in particular, must be successfully addressed. Co‐operative programmes and integration of preservation into overall library management and policy will be significant in achieving this.
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