bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Special Educator Knowledge and Perspectives About Inclusive Postsecondary Education Programs
Authors: Bumble Jennifer L. , Rooney-Kron Magen , Gilson Carly B. , Sanderson Kelli A. , Regester April
Published: July 2023

Special education teachers play an integral role in preparing students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for a successful transition to their desired postsecondary pathways. As more opportunities arise for students with IDD to attend inclusive postsecondary education (IPSE) programs, there is a growing need for special educators to be well-prepared to equip their students for college. We conducted a survey of 1,086 secondary special education teachers in three states to better understand their knowledge, expectations, and perspectives regarding postsecondary options for students with IDD. We also examined the educator- and school-level factors associated with students with IDD having postsecondary goals for college in their Individualized Education Program (IEP). We describe special educator preferences for learning about college options for their students with IDD and practical implications for special educators, teacher preparation programs, and IPSE programs.
Pilot Study of a Motivational Interviewing Training on Practitioners’ Skill Set for Patient Centered Communication
Authors: Gabarda Amanda , Butterworth Susan , Liang Qingfeng , Beckjord Ellen
Published: July 2023

Purpose

Increase practitioners' Motivational Interviewing (MI) skill set to develop intrinsic motivation and behavior change competencies.

Design

Pilot comparing intervention group with waitlist-control group.

Setting

Health Plan in northeast of U.S.

Intervention

Training program including a 3 day 19 hour MI training intensive, 1.5 hour follow-up skill-building trainings, and quality assurance review using an MI assessment tool paired with strengths-based mentoring. Cohort 1 (experimental group) received the intervention for 6-months and cohort 2 for 3 months (control group).

Measures

Practitioners’ MI skill set was assessed pre- and post-intervention using Motivational Interviewing Competency Assessment (MICA). Practitioners’ MI knowledge and attitudes were assessed pre- and post-training using adapted Motivational Interviewing Knowledge and Attitudes Test (MIKAT). Active learning and confidence questionnaires were administered post-training.

Analysis

A generalized linear mixed model with repeated measures to analyze difference in MICA growth rates; paired T-test for MIKAT pre/post training analysis. Descriptive statistics for active learning and confidence.

Results

MICA scores significantly improved for both cohorts ( P < .0001). Practitioners had significant increase in knowledge and attitudes for MI ( P < .001) and confidence in using MI ( P < .01). High levels of active learning were observed (93-100%).

Conclusion

With planning, adequate resources/support, and iterative processes for adjustment, practitioners can improve their MI skill set in a short period of time with modest investment of practitioner resources.
Teaching temporal reflexivity through a vehicle: Experiential-existential time around the wood fire stove of a mobile shepherd's hut
Authors: Hanser Christian H
Published: July 2023

In this essay, I propose the use of itinerant encounter spaces as educative agents for teaching time studies experientially. My work is informed by an arts-based methodology, conducted as part of a PhD, which used a mobile shepherd's hut as host for instances of temporal reflexivity. This specific wooden caravan, a venue for shared and introspective stillness, invites participants to embrace non-linearity within formal educational environments that are generally structured by calendars, clocks and bells. By offering unaudited room and time for reflective activities such as storytelling and subjective mapping, I encouraged my research participants, student teachers in Scotland, to nurture the temporalities of self-care that may or may not be part of their personal journeys into ‘meaningful teaching’ during an Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programme. My role was to open up an extracurricular atmosphere which disrupted the temporal standardisations required by many curricular designs for modular fit in university degrees. Curating a vehicle for methodological acts of temporal dissensus offered me insights into teaching time beyond a focus on input and outcomes. The prevailing instrumental logic in formal education rarely acknowledges itinerancy as a dynamic sphere for the pedagogical encounter. My session plans were loosely structured by the provision of a ‘shelter in public’ as a gesture of hospitality and not by a fixed schedule of activities or content to be delivered. This gave research participants the chance to narrate their own intrinsically perceived student teacher trajectories. The improvisation through public pedagogy and the ‘vagueness’ of indirect pedagogy cultivated playful detours. I suggest taking steps aside from dominant curricular formats and explore further how time studies can be taught through the coexistence of movement and stillness, as temporal reflexivity on wheels.
Out of time, out of mind: Multifaceted time perceptions and mental wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic
Authors: Andersson Matthew A. , Froese Paul , Bó Boróka B.
Published: July 2023

Individuals commonly report feeling rushed in industrial societies such as the United States. However, social and economic upheavals such as disasters, recessions, and pandemics complicate perceptions of time by disrupting routines and creating experiences of trauma. In existing research, time perceptions usually are studied separately, leaving unclear how individuals in the United States might experience time in multifaceted ways while working, caring, and grieving. Moreover, previous research has not established whether multifaceted time perceptions each carry independent influences on mental wellbeing, or how they are shaped by sociodemographic background or pandemic-related stressors. Drawing on national Gallup data collected during the COVID-19 pandemic (Spring 2021), we find that Americans generally report some degree of feeling rushed, and also perceive multiple types of time disorientation involving slowness, quickness, and days and weeks blending together. Perceptions that time is moving too quickly or too slowly show an inverse relationship, as expected. Feeling rushed and that days or weeks are blending together also show relationships with both of these perceptions over a 3-month recall period. Importantly, we find that each of these time perceptions is shaped uniquely by income, work hours, age, or having children at home, and that each matters for understanding levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms and overall sense of mastery or control in life. Pandemic-related stressors, including economic strain, working from home, homeschooling a child, and severe household conflict, also show considerable relationships with these multifaceted time perceptions.
Brave spaces in nursing ethics education: Courage through pedagogy
Authors: Ford Natalie Jean , Gomes Larissa Marie , Brown Stephen BRE
Published: July 2023

Background

Nursing students must graduate prepared to bravely enact the art and science of nursing in environments infiltrated with ethical challenges. Given the necessity and moral obligation of nurses to engage in discourse within nursing ethics, nursing students must be provided a moral supportive learning space for these opportunities. Situating conversations and pedagogy within a brave space may offer a framework to engage in civil discourse while fostering moral courage for learners.

Research Objective

The aim of this research is to explore the influence of a structured self-assessment tool called the ESA “Engagement Self-Assessment” on the alignment and creation of a brave space in a nursing ethics course.

Research Design

This study used an exploratory, cross-sectional survey design.

Participants and Study Setting

Data from 39 undergraduate nursing students enrolled in a nursing healthcare ethics & law course using the ESA were recruited.

Ethical Considerations

Participation was voluntary and informed without coercion. Written consent was obtained prior to participation. Research ethics approval was obtained by the Institutional Research Ethics Board of the recruited participants (Ethics # 2022-23-03).

Findings

The ESA provided structured self-reflection on the impact of shared vulnerability within a brave space. However, commitment to a brave space was not strongly influenced by the ESA, but rather by a mutual “commitment to others.”

Conclusion

A teaching tool such as an ESA can be used to facilitate instructor expectations of civil discourse and discussion of difficult topics. Rules of engagement such as those found in brave spaces can help transform fear of vulnerability into authentic growth for learners. A morally supportive learning space can support critical opportunities for ethical development. This study provides insight into how self-assessment and the use of a brave space in nursing ethics education can facilitate a morally supportive learning space.
Recreational Therapists and the Duty of Care
Authors: Bethel Kerrie A. , Fuhrman Nick E. , Kelsey Kathleen D. , Borron Abigail
Published: July 2023

Background: A variety of residential and experiential therapeutic programs exist for youth who experience emotional, behavioral, or substance abuse problems that are not adequately responsive to traditional treatment options. While evaluations of programs are available in the literature, investigation of the experiences of professionals who undergird these programs and oversee reentry of youth back into their communities is lacking. Purpose: The research reported here aimed to explicate the experiences of recreational therapists. Methodology/Approach: Qualitative design was used to collect and analyze data. Semistructured interviews were employed, and data were analyzed by content analysis. Findings/Conclusions: Findings indicated recreational therapists were optimistic, intrinsically motivated to spend time outdoors, became personally invested in their work and experienced personal growth from their work. They required additional systems of support and guidance to effectively counter compassion fatigue and associated burnout. Measures for organizations to effectively counter compassion fatigue through enhancement of peer support systems and self-care guidance are needed. Implications: The results provided insight into the characteristics, needs, and experiences of recreational therapists who work with high-promise youth. Further, the work provided a proposed change to current models of compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue subscale interactions in this population.
Technology-Facilitated Abuse in the Context of Intimate Partner Violence: A Qualitative Study of Women Survivors in Taiwan
Authors: Kuo Shih-Ya , Zhang Luyue , Chang Kuang-Ming
Published: July 2023

We explore the emerging issue of how communications technologies can be used by male perpetrators to facilitate intimate partner violence against their female partners. We analyzed interview narratives from 18 women survivors of intimate partner violence in Taiwan, informed by Stark's theory of coercive control. Our findings indicated that the male perpetrators of intimate partner violence against the survivors utilized communications technologies to further harm, control, and intimidate their victims. We found that the perpetrators harassed, stalked/monitored, and isolated the survivors and distributed defamatory messages about the survivors to other people using telephones, e-mail, social media, the Internet, broadcast media, and recording devices.
Expectations of Transition-Age Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder Toward Postsecondary Education
Authors: Qian Xueqin , Lee Seunghee , Johnson David R. , Wu Yi-Chen
Published: July 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine factors associated with expectations regarding postsecondary education of students with autism spectrum disorder between the ages of 16 and 21 years. We conducted logistic regressions using variables at the student, family, and school levels using the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012. Logistic regression results showed that parental expectations for attending college was the only significant predictor of students’ own educational expectations. Students’ adaptive functioning, autonomy levels, demographic and family variables, parent involvement, and prior roles in Individualized Education Program/transition planning were not significant predictors. Future research needs to examine how schools can develop effective ways to increase both students’ and parents’ expectations toward postsecondary education.
Parenting stress, coping strategies and social support for mothers of preschool children with autism spectrum disorder in the Republic of Croatia
Authors: Zovko Matea , Šimleša Sanja , Olujić Tomazin Marina
Published: July 2023

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) report experiencing more parenting stress than parents of children with typical development or other developmental disorders. Eighty mothers of preschool children with ASD completed questionnaires with the purpose of exploring the extent and characteristics of parenting stress and the possibility of predicting parenting stress based on the mother’s coping strategies, perceived social and professional support, the severity of the child’s symptoms, and certain sociodemographic characteristics. The results show that 19% of the mothers had clinically significant parental stress. Most of the mothers experienced increased stress levels related to the following: poor interactions with their children (34%), the child’s demandingness (27%), and their personal ability to cope with parental distress (20%). The predictors significantly explained 42.8% of the variance in total parental stress, with support from friends and severity of the child’s symptoms being significant unique contributors.
Sick building syndrome and its impacts on health, well-being and productivity: A systematic literature review
Authors: Niza Iasmin Lourenço , de Souza Midhiã Pequena , da Luz Inaiele Mendes , Broday Evandro Eduardo
Published: July 2023

People’s well-being, health and productivity in indoor environments are crucial areas of investigation, particularly concerning sick building syndrome (SBS). Sick building syndrome encompasses symptoms resulting from exposure to harmful factors associated with building use. Headaches, fatigue, malaise and nausea are amongst the complaints associated with SBS. A literature review was conducted, examining studies from Scopus and Web of Science to identify the major impacts of SBS on health, well-being and productivity. Out of 3601 initially identified articles, 134 were analyzed after applying predefined criteria. Three research questions (RQs) were formulated, leading to the following findings: (i) most studies focused on offices (35.48%), highlighting common respiratory symptoms that range from mild to severe based on individual sensitivity, indoor conditions and predictive factors; (ii) indoor air quality (IAQ) emerged as the primary factor influencing SBS, especially within the post-pandemic context. Increasing air circulation and ventilation are viable alternatives to enhance IAQ. (iii) Understanding SBS proves complex, with indications of potentially higher symptom frequencies in women due to historical factors, social roles, lower cold tolerance, limited understanding of female physiology and multiple chemical sensitivity.
From Imperial Persecution to Colonial Situation: Alternatives to Persecution Theories in Revelation Studies
Authors: Mata Roberto
Published: July 2023

For centuries the idea that John wrote the Book of Revelation to comfort Christians suffering Roman imperial persecution dominated the interpretation of the text's social setting. Due to the lack of archaeological and literary evidence, scholars have abandoned such a view and offered alternatives ranging from prophetic rivalries to Christian complacency to account for the Revelation's crisis rhetoric. However, these depoliticizing views assume that an absence of persecution amounts to a lack of systemic oppression and reflect the limitations and strengths of competing interpretation paradigms in biblical studies as well as the guild's Eurocentric ethos. Framing Revelation's rhetorical situation as a colonial situation, new approaches explore how John and his interlocutors turned idol food into a site for negotiating power, identity, and wealth.
Engaging Adolescent Heart Transplant Recipients Through In-App Messaging During Mobile Health Intervention
Authors: Killian Michael O. , Schelbe Lisa , Lustria Mia Liza A. , Watkivs Madison , Gupta Dipankar
Published: July 2023

Introduction: Adolescents heart transplant recipients experience difficulty with adherence to immunosuppressive medication leading to increased risk of organ rejection, hospitalization, and mortality. Few interventions have been successful to promote medication adherence in adolescent heart transplant patients as most fail to engage the patient in the behavioral change process and support patient–provider communication. The purpose of this study was to explore the nature and degree of in-app communication between adolescent heart transplant recipients and nursing staff during an asynchronous mobile video directly observed therapy intervention. Methods: A content analysis of 894 in-app messages exchanged between 10 adolescent patients and nurses during a 12-week mobile-based intervention was conducted. Two authors used an inductive, iterative process to guide a thematic analysis of the asynchronous in-app messages with high interrater reliability ranging from 81.5% to 100%. Findings: In-app messages fell under 3 broad content categories: (1) interpersonal support and rapport-building, (2) medically related questions and information, or (3) functional information about the intervention and the mHealth app. Results demonstrated the degree to which interpersonal engagement occurred during the intervention, the nature of these exchanges, and their relationship to medication adherence. Conclusions: The study provided insights into the feasibility and benefits of 2-way communication features of the directly observed therapy intervention in promoting engagement and in improving medication adherence among adolescent heart transplant patients. Continued research and clinical focus on patient engagement and impactful aspects of interpersonal communication could aid in the translation of this intervention into standard clinical care at pediatric transplant centers.
Emotional Cues and the Demand for Televised Sports: Evidence from the UEFA Champions League
Authors: Richardson Travis , Nalbantis Georgios , Pawlowski Tim
Published: July 2023

This study provides first evidence on how belief dynamics are driving entertainment utility and consequently the demand for sports across markets by analyzing minute-by-minute audience data of UEFA Champions League (UCL) games televised in the UK and the Spanish market during a full (pre-COVID) cycle of broadcasting rights. Overall, we find that suspense and surprise are the main drivers of demand in both markets while shock only has marginal effects in the Spanish market. Interestingly, we find a combined impact of suspense and surprise in the UK market that is of similar magnitude as reported in a previous study for English Premier League matches in the UK. In the Spanish market, however, the combined impact is considerably larger.
De-/Re-Whitening Russianness: A Liminal Space of White Privileges Represented in Non-Summit
Authors: Kim Seonah
Published: July 2023

This study investigates the representations of white ethnic identities in Non-Summit, a Korean television show, to disaggregate the generalized perception of homogenous whiteness and argue for a dialectical construction of white power and domination in Korea. Specifically, it focuses on representations of Russianness in Non-Summit in relation to the US Americanness, contextualized within post-Cold War and globalized cultural politics prevalent in Korea. Employing critical textual analysis, this study analyzes verbal and visual discourses constructing Russianness and US Americanness in Non-Summit. The findings suggest, in Non-Summit, Russianness is represented as ideologically and culturally deprived, and it appears as a dispossessed white identity that does not earn hegemony like US Americanness. At times, the marginal representations of Russianness seem to weaken the power of whiteness operating in and through the show. However, an encompassing global white supremacy remains intact when Russianness is fit into the category of whiteness through a re-whitening process.
Babies Having Babies: Incarcerated Adolescent Parents and Their Emotional Well-Being
Authors: Young Brae , Diamond Brie
Published: July 2023

Adolescent parents have been the subject of scrutiny for decades, with a great deal of research focused on how these young parents adjust to their new roles. There is one group of adolescent parents about which we know next to nothing, though: incarcerated adolescent parents. To fill this gap, the current study examines whether parental status affects the emotional well-being (e.g., mental health diagnoses and suicidal tendencies) of incarcerated adolescent parents. We also consider whether these effects are gendered. Results suggest that adolescent parents, especially young mothers, have worsened mental health during incarceration. This effect was most pronounced for suicidal tendencies. These results underscore the importance of providing additional supports for young parents within juvenile facilities. Doing so could not only improve the safety and security of these confinement facilities but improve the long-term outcomes of these young parents and their offspring.
Lay Misperceptions of Culture as “Biological” and Suggestions for Reducing Them
Authors: Lo Ronda F. , Sasaki Joni Y.
Published: July 2023

Culture is typically studied as socialized and learned. Yet lay intuitions may hold that culture is associated with biology via perceptions of race, presenting a problem for those who study culture: There may be a mismatch between how psychologists study culture and how their research is interpreted by lay audiences. This article is a call to researchers to recognize this mismatch as a problem and to critically evaluate the way we study culture. We first describe evidence that laypeople tend to associate culture with notions of folk biology. Next, we propose three suggestions for researchers: explicitly address whether biological processes are, or are not, relevant for studying culture in their work; consider using multiple methods because different methods for studying culture may come with assumptions about culture as more tied to socialization or biology; and represent all people as cultural by studying multiple forms of culture and by contextualizing all psychological research. Last, we provide an example for how researchers can implement these suggestions to encourage more accurate interpretations of findings.
Protected from harm, harmed by protection: ethical consequences of the exclusion of pregnant participants from clinical trials
Authors: Zur Rebecca L
Published: July 2023

Pregnancy is a frequently applied exclusion criteria for many forms of research. Common justifications for this exclusion include the potential for teratogenicity, as well as the potential for physiologic changes in pregnancy to impact the research itself. The systematic exclusion of pregnant persons from clinical studies has created a significant gap in knowledge regarding medication safety and efficacy in pregnancy, which continues to cause significant harm to pregnant persons in need of medical therapy. To produce meaningful data and facilitate effective knowledge translation to the clinical setting, special consideration to the pharmacology of pregnancy, as well as to outcomes of concern for this population is essential. The exclusion of pregnant participants from research is not ethically justifiable, as it violates the principles of autonomy, justice and nonmaleficence. While the inclusion of pregnant patients in research presents it’s own challenges, with appropriate methodological, ethical, and clinical considerations, we may be able to narrow the knowledge gap and improve drug availability and safety for pregnant patients and their children.
COVID-19 in patients with liver disease and liver transplant: clinical implications, prevention, and management
Authors: Perreault Gabriel , Ching Charlotte , Nobel Yael R.
Published: July 2023

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had enormous implications for the care of patients with chronic liver disease (CLD), cirrhosis, and liver transplant (LT). Clinical outcomes of COVID-19 vary in patients with CLD and cirrhosis compared to healthy controls, and in patients with LT compared to patients without LT. Several special considerations apply to the approach to vaccination and treatment in patients with CLD and LT. The practice of liver transplantation has also been heavily impacted by the pandemic, including persistent reductions in living donor LT and increases in LT for an indication of alcohol-related liver disease. Recent medical society guidelines strive to standardize severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 testing in donors and recipients and the approach to transplantation after recovered from COVID-19 infection, but certain controversies remain.
Bilateral insufficiency fracture of coracoid process: A rare case report
Authors: Luo Hai-En , Yu Wen-Qi , Su Xin-Ping , He Can-Yu , Lu Zhen-Xiang , Zhang Dao-Wei , Tan Xu-Yi
Published: July 2023

A 69-year-old man was admitted to the hospital for a left femoral neck fracture. A preliminary chest computed tomography scan showed no coracoid process fracture. The patient had no history of trauma during his hospitalization. However, subsequent in-hospital computed tomography scan revealed bilateral coracoid process fracture. The patient underwent hip replacement surgery for femoral neck fracture, while conservative treatment was administered for the bilateral coracoid process fracture. After 1-year follow-up, the patient was diagnosed with bilateral insufficiency fracture of coracoid process after ruling out other types of fractures. The fractures did not heal while functions in both shoulders were adequate. Insufficiency fracture should be considered when fractures occur without trauma, especially in the presence of associated risk factors such as chronic renal failure and osteoporosis. For bilateral insufficiency fracture of coracoid process, conservative treatment is acceptable.
Linguistic potential of COVID-19 neologisms in the metaphoric language of socio-political discourse
Authors: Ivanov Andrey , Nikonova Zhanna , Frolova Natalia , Muratbayeva Indira
Published: July 2023

The purpose of the study is to investigate the features of the vocabulary of COVID-19 in English, which is an international language of borrowings. The secondary objective is to obtain new data on the emergence of a new vocabulary during the global problem of the COVID-19 pandemic. The method of lexical semantics analysis was used; 77 lexical units within the framework of the socio-political discourse have been considered in the course of the discursive text analysis. The most relevant categories of neologisms associated with COVID-19 were identified, and their word-formation models were analyzed. The active borrowing of COVID-19 vocabulary began from the English language. Based on the changes in the lifestyle, daily routine, and statuses of citizens, five categories and four groups of neologisms have been identified. The results of this study can be used for further analysis of the vocabulary of the COVID-19 period as new lexical units constantly appear and require their consideration within the framework of the linguistic potential and vocabulary of the languages found in the world. The study is important for replenishing the theoretical and practical base in the field of lexicology (processes of neologization, lexical borrowings, semantic features of new lexical units and their functions), media linguistics, journalism, and sociology as it takes into account socio-political factors.
Perspective of Speech and Language Therapists in Turkey on Primary Progressive Aphasia
Authors: YAŞA İbrahim Can
Published: July 2023

Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the insidious and progressive loss of speech and language skills. However, there is no standardized intervention method applied in patients with PPA. It was conducted a virtual survey of SLTs across Turkey, to collect information about the assessment, intervention and management of patients with PPA. A total of 285 SLTs participated the survey; 76.8% ( n = 219) of the respondents were female, 58.9% ( n = 168) were 1 to 2 years post graduation, 62.8% ( n = 179) of them were master’s degree, and 46% ( n = 131) were working in a rehabilitation center. All 285 participants included in the study stated that they did not create a therapy process for their clients with PPA and they performed the therapy processes applied in the classical aphasia treatment. Two hundred sixty-eight participants stated that they had more than six sessions with their clients, and 280 respondents. It is very important for all participants to plan functional interventions that require joint participation with the patient and their family/caregiver or friends, which will support communication and language and communication-oriented intervention. However, there is a need to develop specific evidence-based care pathways for people with PPA so that more efficient interventions can be made. Raising awareness among SLTs and other clinical service providers that rehabilitation is effective can increase the accessibility of interventions for individuals with PPA and lead to a more robust support system for individuals affected by PPA.
Online Self-Triage of Ear or Hearing Concerns in a Patient Portal: Comparison of Subsequent Diagnoses and Hospitalizations to National Emergency Department and National Ambulatory Ear or Hearing Visits
Authors: North Frederick , Jensen Teresa B , Pecina Jennifer , Miller Nathaniel E , Duvall Michelle , Nelson Elissa M , Thompson Matthew C , Johnson Brenda J , Crum Brian A , Stroebel Robert
Published: July 2023

Background

Although online self-triage is easily accessible, little is known about the patients who use self-triage or their subsequent diagnoses. We compared ear/hearing self-triage subsequent diagnoses to ear/hearing visit diagnoses in emergency departments (ED) and ambulatory clinics across the United States.

Methods

We compared International Classification of Diseases version 10 (ICD10) coded diagnoses following online self-triage for ear/hearing concerns with those from national ED and ambulatory clinic samples. We used data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS) and National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) for comparison. Using matched ear/hearing diagnostic categories for those aged 1 and over, we compared self-triage diagnosis frequencies with national ED and ambulatory diagnosis frequencies.

Results

Following ear/hearing self-triage, there were 1092 subsequent office visits with a primary diagnosis code. For five frequently diagnosed ear/hearing conditions (i.e., suppurative and nonsuppurative otitis media [OM], otalgia, otitis externa, and cerumen impaction), there was a strong correlation between diagnosis counts made following self-triage and estimated counts of national ED visit diagnoses (r = 0.94; CI 95% [0.37 to 0.99]; p = .016, adjusted r2 = 0.85). Seven diagnoses were available to compare with the national ambulatory sample; correlation was r = 0.79; CI 95% [0.08 to 0.97]; p = .037, adjusted r2 = 0.54. For ages 1 and over, estimated hospital admissions from the national ED visits for ear/hearing were 0.76%, CI 95% [0.28-2.1%]; estimated total national ear/hearing ED visits were 7.5 million (for 4 years, 2016 through 2019).

Conclusion

The strong correlation of ear-related self-triage diagnoses with national ED diagnoses and the low hospitalization risk for these diagnoses suggests that there is an opportunity for self-triage of ear/hearing concerns to decrease ED visits for these symptoms.
Risk of ischemic stroke in patients recovered from COVID-19 infection: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Authors: Zuin Marco , Mazzitelli Maria , Rigatelli Gianluca , Bilato Claudio , Cattelan Anna Maria
Published: July 2023

Background:

Data regarding the risk of ischemic stroke within 1 year after the post-acute phase of COVID-19 remain scant. We assess the risk of ischemic stroke in COVID-19 survivors after SARS-CoV-2 infection by performing a systematic review and meta-analysis of the available data.

Methods:

Following the PRISMA guidelines, we searched Medline and Scopus to locate all articles published up to February 11, 2023, reporting the risk of incident ischemic stroke in adult patients recovered from COVID-19 infection compared to non-infected patients (controls) defined as those who did not experience the infection over the same follow-up period. Ischemic stroke risk was evaluated using the Mantel–Haenszel random effects models with adjusted Hazard ratio (HR) as the effect measure with 95% confidence interval (CI) while heterogeneity was assessed using Higgins I2 statistic.

Results:

Overall, 23,559,428 patients (mean age 56, 1 year, 54.3% males), of whom 1,595,984 had COVID-19, were included. Over a mean follow-up of 9.2 months, ischemic stroke occurred in 4.40 [95% CI: 4.36–4.43] out of 1000 patients survived to COVID-19 compared to 3.25 [95% CI:3.21–3.29] out of 1000 controls. Recovered COVID-19 patients presented a higher risk of ischemic stroke ((HR: 2.06, 95% CI: 1.75–2.41, p < 0.0001, I2 = 63.7%) compared to people who did not have COVID-19. COVID-19 patients hospitalized at the time of the infection have a subsequent higher risk of stroke during the follow-up compared to those non-hospitalized.

Conclusions:

Recovered COVID-19 patients have a higher risk of ischemic stroke compared to subjects from the general population within 9 months from the index infection.
Be(y)on(d) the map: Collaboratively activating Geographies of (De)CO2loniality/H2Ope in the Ecuadorian Chocó borderlands
Authors: Hazlewood Julianne A
Published: July 2023

This article is positioned within the Chocó borderlands of Ecuador and Colombia. I delve into the historical and contemporary everyday struggles of two communities within the Santiago-Cayapas Watershed—the Afro-descendant community of La Chiquita and the Awá Indigenous community of Guadualito. Yet, I also discuss the methodological aspects of “us-formation”: the multi-dimensional trials and tribulations of a collective quest for justice. The goal: to situate their largely invisibilized 20+ years of legal struggles against two oil palm companies ‘on the map' and demand reparations. The oil palm companies violate Human Rights and Nature's Rights by contaminating rivers and destroying the sustenance of ancestral communities’ lives. Through honing into the entanglements of collaboratively activating five dimensions of Geographies of Hope-in-Praxis—place, alliances, the (un)thinkable, perseverance/resilience, and the (im)possible—the paper traverses a multi-dimensional journey-destination of interdependent processes: 1) (De)CO 2 loniality: decolonizing research, “official” versions of history, and now, “climate change mitigation development”, that attempt to silence and choke out Indigenous and ancestral peoples and territories; and 2) H 2 Ope: carving out new relational spaces bound together by establishing networks to revindicate human/ancestral rights to water and the rights of La Chiquita River. Geographizing hope reveals that the route toward hope-with-justice is a nonlinear, constantly shifting, unpredictable pluriverse of possibilities ripe for action.
Development of minimum reporting sets of patient characteristics in epidemiological research: A methodological systematic review
Authors: Vuong My Luong , Tu Pham Hien Trang , Duong Khanh Linh , Vo Tat-Thang
Published: July 2023

Background

Core patient characteristic sets (CPCSs) are increasingly developed to identify variables that should be reported to describe the target population of epidemiological studies in the same medical area, while keeping the additional burden on the data collection acceptable.

Methods

We conduct a systematic review of primary studies and protocols that aim to develop a CPCS, using the PubMed database. We extract information on the study design and the characteristics of the proposed CPCS. The quality of Delphi studies is assessed by a tool proposed in the literature. All results are reported descriptively.

Results

Among 23 eligible studies, Delphi survey is the most frequently used technique to obtain consensus in CPCS development (69.6%, n = 16). Most studies do not include patients as stakeholders. The final CPCS rarely includes socioeconomic factors (26.1%, n = 6). Besides, 60.9% ( n = 14) and 26.1% ( n = 6) of the studies provide definitions and measurement methods for items in the CPCS, respectively.

Conclusion

This review identifies considerable variation and suboptimality in many methodological aspects of CPCS studies. To improve these shortcomings, guidance on the conduct and reporting of CPCS studies should be established in the future.
Looking Beyond the Lamp Post: Health Inequality in the Times of COVID-19
Authors: Yadavendu Vijay Kumar
Published: July 2023

In times of a pandemic, the world lives in the throes of colossal economic and public health crises. The world seems unprepared and ill-equipped to cater to the catastrophic pandemic of COVID-19. The apocalyptic infectious diseases keep revisiting to expose the global widening economic and health inequalities. This review in its different sections argues that with the “financialization of everything,” a new consciousness comprising a more general heightened sense of awareness and interest in personal health and well-being pervades whereby citizens become customers. This effectively forefends the dynamics of interaction between the individual and her/his environment with its consequent impact on health and promotes an individuated risk and responsibility. Even in times of a pandemic, draconian state surveillance, lockdown, behavior modification, self-help, and self-care have emerged as guiding principles of public health. There is an urgent need for a radical reordering of the world order beyond the hegemonic, neoliberal, capitalistic ethos of rabid consumerism and unconstrained private profit.
Assessing the Stability of Market Segment – A fuzzy Clustering Approach
Authors: Sezhiyan D.M.
Published: July 2023

Market segmentation is the process of grouping potential consumers of like-minded decision makers for rendering the company’s market offerings. Most of the market segmentation research results portraits, only the profile of the segments and the market size. The size of the market is always a question mark for its consistency, because the consumers’ decision to prefer a brand is fuzzy in nature. This paper addresses the limitation of crisp cluster over fuzzy segmentation and moreover emphasizes the method to measure the level of stability of the resulted segments. To empirically investigate, a study was conducted on the preferences of motor bikes among college going boys in southern part of Tamilnadu. The result of the research reveals that the segmented market was fuzzy in nature which reflects the real market situation. The resulted fuzzy segments were labelled as ‘economic class’, ‘elation class’ and ‘robust class’ and later it was compared with the crisp clusters to assess the stability of each segment. Marketing managers can chosse the segment based on its stability and this research paper adds value to literature by providing a formula for arriving a stability score for each segment.
Strengthening Supply Chain Relationships for Enterprise Growth: The Case of Micro and Small Enterprises in Kenya
Authors: Mwirigi Fred Mugambi
Published: July 2023

The core goal of any enterprise is to grow both in assets and profitability. Such growth is critical to the wellbeing of individual firms and the economy in general. Sound supply chains that offer strong reliable relationships have been found to play a critical role in the growth and sustainability of firms. Studies show that enterprises that exploit the benefits of supply chain management improve performance by up to 80 percent depending on the extent of adherence to key supply chain requirements. However, Small firms have largely remained far removed as far as structured growth and development of supply chain relationships is concerned. Although significant levels of success has been reported among larger firms with regard to supply chain relationships, such success has not been widely replicated among smaller firms. It is largely appreciated that competition is no longer based on just the bare company-versus-company business models but also on the extended virtual enterprise of supply chain-versus-supply chain. This underpins the importance of optimizing an enterprise’s performance within the wider context of strong inter-firm and firm-market relationships. Many studies have been conducted to try and understand the supply chain scenario. Most of these studies have concentrated on European and American firms. However, the social, economic, cultural and other fundamentals that influence the success of supply chains for small firms in developed economies are largely different from those in developing countries and on this account these studies, although important as reference points for further study, may not be representative of the scenario in developing economies.There is, therefore, need to examine the supply chain relationship gaps that characterize small firms in developing economies. This would help develop recommendations that can be used to strengthen these relationships and so improve business performance among small firms in these economies.
Impact of cytogenetic abnormalities on the risk of disease progression in solitary bone plasmacytomas
Authors: Yadav Udit , Kumar Shaji K. , Baughn Linda B. , Dispenzieri Angela , Greipp Patricia , Ketterling Rhett , Jevremovic Dragan , Buadi Francis K. , Dingli David , Lacy Martha Q. , Fonseca Rafael , Bergsagel P. Leif , Ailawadhi Sikander , Roy Vivek , Parrondo Ricardo , Sher Taimur , Hayman Suzanne R. , Kapoor Prashant , Leung Nelson , Cook Joselle , Binder Moritz , Muchtar Eli , Warsame Rahma , Kourelis Taxiarchis V. , Go Ronald S. , Lin Yi , Seth Abhishek , Lester Scott C. , Breen William G. , Kyle Robert A. , Gertz Morie A. , Rajkumar S. Vincent , Gonsalves Wilson I.
Published: July 2023

Most patients with solitary bone plasmacytomas (SBP) progress to multiple myeloma (MM) after definitive radiation therapy as their primary treatment. Whether the presence of high-risk (HR) cytogenetic abnormalities by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in the clonal plasma cells, obtained either directly from the diagnostic SBP tissue or the corresponding bone marrow examination at the time of diagnosis, is associated with a shorter time to progression (TTP) to MM is unknown. This study evaluated all patients diagnosed with SBP at the Mayo Clinic from January 2012 to July 2022. The presence of del(17p), t(14;16), t(4;14), or +1q (gain or amplification) by FISH in clonal plasma cells was defined as HR. A total of 114 patients were included in this cohort, and baseline FISH was available for 55 patients (48%), of which 22 were classified as HR (40%). The median TTP to MM for patients with SBP and HR FISH was 8 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 6.3-26) compared with 42 months (95% CI, 25-not reached [NR]) in patients with SBP without HR FISH (P < .001). In a multivariate analysis, only HR FISH was a significant predictor for shorter TTP to MM, independent of minimal marrow involvement and an abnormal serum free light chain ratio at diagnosis. Deletion (17p) and gain 1q abnormalities were the most common FISH abnormalities responsible for the short TTP to MM. Thus, assessing for HR FISH abnormalities in clonal plasma cells derived from either the diagnostic SBP tissue or the staging bone marrow examination of patients with newly diagnosed SBP is feasible and prognostic for a shorter TTP to MM.
Rising trends in the burden of migraine and tension-type headache among adolescents and young adults globally, 1990 to 2019
Authors: Yang Ying , Cao Yu
Published: July 2023

Background

Headache disorders are major contributors to disability in adolescents and young adults worldwide. We aimed to analyze global trends in the burden of migraine and tension-type headache in 10 to 24-year-olds from 1990 to 2019.

Methods

Data were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) 2019 to examine trends in incidence, prevalence, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for migraine and tension-type headache in adolescents and young adults by location, age, sex and sociodemographic index (SDI). Joinpoint regression analyzed trends and identified years of significant change.

Results

Globally, migraine and tension-type headache incidence, prevalence, and DALYs increased from 1990 to 2019, though with some fluctuations. The highest growth in migraine incidence occurred in males and individuals aged 10-14, while for tension-type headache incidence, it was observed in males and individuals aged 20-24. Prevalence and DALYs were highest for both disorders in females and those aged 20–24 years. Incidence increased fastest in East Asia for migraine and tension-type headache. For migraine, Tropical Latin America had the fastest increase in prevalence and DALYs. East Asia had the fastest increase in prevalence of tension-type headache, while North Africa and the Middle East had the highest growth in DALYs. Some high-income countries such as Singapore, Norway, and Iran (Islamic Republic of) demonstrated fast increases, while a few countries including Qatar, Thailand and Ethiopia decreased.

Conclusions

The incidence, prevalence and disability from migraine and tension-type headache are rising in adolescents and young adults, especially in males, older youth and middle SDI populations. The increasing trends highlight the need for targeted interventions focused on prevention and control in priority populations. Continued monitoring of trends can help identify strategies to promote headache health and reduce the life-course impacts of headache disorders globally.