The inside track on curbing UK prison violence | Letters

Alex South’s harrowing account of violence in prisons (Death on the inside: as a prison officer, I saw how the system perpetuates violence, 13 January) deserves more than our sympathy – it demands we recognise these murders and assaults not as symptoms of a broken system, but as a foghorn blaring warnings about fundamental failures.I work in prisoner rehabilitation. I see what South describes from the other side: men whose “scaffolding” is indeed flimsy, who have accumulated trauma before and during incarceration. But I also see what happens when that changes. Our service users work in cafes, bakeries and bike shops, not because we believe in the redemptive power of bread or bicycles, but because meaningful work and purposeful activity are the foundations of desistance

She’s just autistic Barbie – let children play | Letters

As the parent/carer of autistic children, I’m pleased that my kids have more visibility in mainstream culture with the launch of the “autistic Barbie” doll (Mattel launches its first autistic Barbie, 12 January). For the kids, they’re interested, but, given my youngest’s penchant for graffiti, “autistic Barbie” will be drawn all over and resemble “weird Barbie” in no time.I’ve found it hard to share this pleasure, having seen my academic and activist colleagues slam the doll. I completely understand their reasoning. Of course it lacks nuance to use visible accessories to represent a hidden disability

Private investigators must be trained to spot signs of domestic abuse and stalking | Letter

I was grateful to read the Guardian investigation revealing how perpetrators of abuse are using private investigators to further harm by proxy, exposing the unseen threat faced by victims and their supporters (You feel violated’: how stalkers outsource abuse to private investigators, 11 January).As the manager of a sexual and domestic abuse service, I see the impact of stalking on a monthly basis, not as an adjacent concern but as one of the clearest predictors of intimate partner homicide we have. Victim-survivors who disclose stalking and associated behaviours are rarely paranoid; they are often correctly identifying imminent danger.Extraordinary measures are taken by victim-survivors to stay safe: changing names, abandoning jobs or study, moving across the country, and fleeing into refuges or new areas to live anonymously. Yet even these steps can prove redundant if an unregulated investigator is paid to track them

Positive thinking could boost immune response to vaccines, say scientists

Positive thoughts may boost the immune system according to research that points to a connection between the mind and our body’s natural defences.Scientists have found people who used positive thinking to boost activity in the brain’s reward system responded better to vaccination, with their immune systems producing more antibodies than others after having the shot.The work does not mean being hopeful can rid people of disease, but hints at the potential for mental strategies to help the immune system fight infections and even attack tumours to keep them at bay.“It’s the first demonstration in humans, in what seems to be a causal manner, that if you learn how to recruit your reward system in the brain, the effectiveness of immunisation increases,” said Talma Hendler, a professor of psychiatry and neuroscience at Tel Aviv University.Previous work has shown that positive expectations can benefit patients with some medical problems, as seen in the placebo effect

Pepper spray use at young offender institutions in England ruled legal

An attempt to halt the use of pepper spray on children held in young offender institutions (YOIs) has failed after the high court ruled on Monday that the weapon’s rollout was lawful.The Howard League for Penal Reform challenged the Labour government’s decision to authorise the use of Pava, a synthetic form of pepper spray, in three prisons in England holding boys as young as 15.Risks such as the physical and psychological harm posed by Pava, the likely disproportionate use of the spray against disabled children and black and minority ethnic prisoners, and propensity to increase violence overall, had not been considered, the charity said.But in a judgment on Monday, Mr Justice Calver said that the then justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, had sought to ensure that its use was only as a “last resort”.“It is plain that the secretary of state was closely involved in the formation of the Pava policy and was insistent upon thorough safeguards being introduced concerning its use, as well as constant ‘live’ monitoring and oversight of the limited use of Pava which she expected to be extremely rare in view of the limitations upon its use: viz, as a last resort, and only where there is an immediate threat of life-changing or life-ending violence,” the judgment said

‘Jess’s rule’ posters remind GPs in England to re-examine patients’ symptoms

Millions of patients in England will this week be urged to ask their GP to think again if they have not had a diagnosis for their symptoms after three appointments.From Monday, GP practices across the country will use posters to promote Jess’s rule, a new system aimed at preventing serious illnesses from being missed and needless deaths. It is named after Jessica Brady, a 27-year-old who contacted her surgery 20 times before dying of cancer in 2020.Jess’s rule urges family doctors to consider a second opinion, conduct a face-to-face physical examination or order more tests if a patient has had three appointments for their symptoms but no diagnosis.Posters advertising Jess’s rule have been sent to all 6,170 GP practices in England