bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Facilitating interprofessional learning: experiences of using a digital activity for training handover of critically ill patients between a primary health care centre and ambulance services – a qualitative study
Authors: Taloyan Marina , Helen Conte , Ninni Åkesson , Guldbrand Sofie , Lindström Veronica
Published: June 2024

Objective

To explore students’ and facilitators’ experiences of using a developed digital activity for interprofessional learning (IPL) focusing on critically ill patient handovers from a primary healthcare (PHC) centre to the ambulance service.

Design

A qualitative study design was employed, and the reporting of this study adheres to the Consolidated criteria for Reporting Qualitative research guidelines for qualitative studies.

Setting

A PHC centre and the ambulance service in Stockholm, Sweden.

Participants

A total of 31 participants were included in the study: 22 students from five different healthcare professions, seven facilitators and two observers.

Intervention

A digital IPL activity was developed to overcome geographical distances, and the scenario included the handover of a critically ill patient from personnel within the PHC centre to the ambulance service personnel for transport to an emergency department. Four digital IPL activities were conducted in 2021.

Results

The digital IPL activity eliminated the issue of geographical distance for students and facilitators, and it enabled the students to find an interprofessional model for collaboration through reasoning, by communicating and sharing knowledge with the support of a common structure. Participants perceived the digital IPL activity and scenario as authentic, feasible and facilitated IPL. Using a case with an acute and life-threatening condition was a success factor for students to experience high realism in their IPL on patient safety, handover, care and treatment.

Conclusion

The developed digital IPL activity facilitated the students’ IPL and demonstrated potential sustainability as the digital approach supported overcoming geographical distances for both students and facilitators. By using a scenario involving an authentic case focusing on handovers of a critically ill patient, IPL, feasibility and acceptability were supported. However, it is crucial to emphasise that a comprehensive evaluation, both quantitative and qualitative, over an extended period of clinical rotations and involving a larger group of students is still warranted to ensure continuous improvement and development.
Adverse effects with semaglutide: a protocol for a systematic review with meta-analysis and trial sequential analysis
Authors: Sillassen Christina Dam Bjerregaard , Kamp Caroline Barkholt , Petersen Johanne Juul , Faltermeier Pascal , Siddiqui Faiza , Grand Johannes , Dominguez Helena , Frølich Anne , Gæde Peter Haulund , Gluud Christian , Mathiesen Ole , Jakobsen Janus
Published: June 2024

Introduction

Semaglutide is increasingly used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, overweight and other conditions. It is well known that semaglutide lowers blood glucose levels and leads to significant weight loss. Still, a systematic review has yet to investigate the adverse effects with semaglutide for all patient groups.

Methods and analysis

We will conduct a systematic review and search major medical databases (Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, Embase, Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature, Science Citation Index Expanded, Conference Proceedings Citation Index—Science) and clinical trial registries from their inception and onwards to identify relevant randomised clinical trials. We expect to conduct the literature search in July 2024. Two review authors will independently extract data and perform risk-of-bias assessments. We will include randomised clinical trials comparing oral or subcutaneous semaglutide versus placebo. Primary outcomes will be all-cause mortality and serious adverse events. Secondary outcomes will be myocardial infarction, stroke, all-cause hospitalisation and non-serious adverse events. Data will be synthesised by meta-analyses and trial sequential analysis; risk of bias will be assessed with Cochrane Risk of Bias tool—version 2, an eight-step procedure will be used to assess if the thresholds for statistical and clinical significance are crossed, and the certainty of the evidence will be assessed by Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluations.

Ethics and dissemination

This protocol does not present any results. Findings of this systematic review will be published in international peer-reviewed scientific journals.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42024499511.
Perceptions of families and healthcare providers about feeding preterm infants in the neonatal intensive care unit: protocol for a qualitative systematic review
Authors: Schanz Willow R , Akhter Aunum , Richardson Georgette , Story William T , Samuelson Riley , Imdad Aamer
Published: June 2024

Introduction

The underdevelopment of preterm infants can lead to delayed progression through key early milestones. Demonstration of safe oral feeding skills, constituting proper suck-swallow reflex are requirements for discharge from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to ensure adequate nutrition acquisition. Helping an infant develop these skills can be draining and emotional for both families and healthcare staff involved in the care of preterm infants with feeding difficulties. Currently, there are no systematic reviews evaluating both family and healthcare team perspectives on aspects of oral feeding. Thus, we first aim to evaluate the current knowledge surrounding the perceptions, experiences and needs of families with preterm babies in the context of oral feeding in the NICU. Second, we aim to evaluate the current knowledge surrounding the perceptions, experiences and needs of healthcare providers (physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, dietitians, speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists) in the context of oral feeding in the NICU.

Methods and analysis

A literature search will be conducted in multiple electronic databases from their inception, including PubMed, CINHAL, Embase, the Cochrane Central Register for Controlled Trials and PsycINFO. No restrictions will be applied based on language or data of publication. Two authors will screen the titles and abstracts and then review the full text for the studies’ inclusion in the review. The data will be extracted into a pilot-tested data collection sheet by three independent authors. To evaluate the quality, reliability and relevance of the included studies, the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklist will be used. The overall evidence will be assessed using the Grading of Recommendation Assessment, Development and Evaluation criteria. We will report the results of the systematic review by following the Enhancing Transparency in Reporting the synthesis of Qualitative research checklist.

Ethics and dissemination

Ethical approval of this project is not required as this is a systematic review using published and publicly available data and will not involve contact with human subjects. Findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

PROSPERO registration number

CRD42023479288.
Cross-sectional analysis of pharmaceutical industry payments to authors of clinical practice guidelines for bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder in Japan
Authors: Murayama Anju , Kugo Hinari , Senoo Yuki
Published: June 2024

Objective

Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are essential for standardising patient care based on evidence-based medicine. However, the presence of financial conflicts of interest (COIs) among CPG authors can undermine their credibility. This study aimed to examine the extent and size of COIs among authors of psychiatry CPGs in Japan.

Methods

This cross-sectional analysis of disclosed payments from pharmaceutical companies assesses the prevalence and magnitude of personal payments for lecturing, consulting and writing to CPGs for bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder in Japan between 2016 and 2020.

Results

This study found that 93.3% of authors received payments over a 5-year period, with total payments exceeding US$4 million. The median payment per author was US$51 403 (IQR: US$9982–US$111 567), with a notable concentration of payments among a small number of authors, including the CPG chairperson. Despite these extensive financial relationships, only a fraction of authors disclosed their COIs in the CPGs. These large amounts of personal payments were made by pharmaceutical companies manufacturing new antidepressants and sleeping aids listed in the CPGs.

Conclusions

This study found that more than 93% of authors of CPGs for major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder in Japan received considerable amounts of personal payments from the pharmaceutical industry. The findings highlight deviations from international COI management standards and suggest a need for more stringent COI policies for psychiatry CPGs in Japan.
Understanding the dynamics of TKI-induced changes in the tumor immune microenvironment for improved therapeutic effect
Authors: Lu Conghua , Gao Ziyuan , Wu Di , Zheng Jie , Hu Chen , Huang Daijuan , He Chao , Liu Yihui , Lin Caiyu , Peng Tao , Dou Yuanyao , Zhang Yimin , Sun Fenfen , Jiang Weiling , Yin Guoqing , Han Rui , He Yong
Published: June 2024

Background

The dynamic interplay between tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and the tumor immune microenvironment (TME) plays a crucial role in the therapeutic trajectory of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Understanding the functional dynamics and resistance mechanisms of TKIs is essential for advancing the treatment of NSCLC.

Methods

This study assessed the effects of short-term and long-term TKI treatments on the TME in NSCLC, particularly targeting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) mutations. We analyzed changes in immune cell composition, cytokine profiles, and key proteins involved in immune evasion, such as laminin subunit γ−2 (LAMC2). We also explored the use of aspirin as an adjunct therapy to modulate the TME and counteract TKI resistance.

Results

Short-term TKI treatment enhanced T cell-mediated tumor clearance, reduced immunosuppressive M2 macrophage infiltration, and downregulated LAMC2 expression. Conversely, long-term TKI treatment fostered an immunosuppressive TME, contributing to drug resistance and promoting immune escape. Differential responses were observed among various oncogenic mutations, with ALK-targeted therapies eliciting a stronger antitumor immune response compared with EGFR-targeted therapies. Notably, we found that aspirin has potential in overcoming TKI resistance by modulating the TME and enhancing T cell-mediated tumor clearance.

Conclusions

These findings offer new insights into the dynamics of TKI-induced changes in the TME, improving our understanding of NSCLC challenges. The study underscores the critical role of the TME in TKI resistance and suggests that adjunct therapies, like aspirin, may provide new strategies to enhance TKI efficacy and overcome resistance.
Many-body dissipative particle dynamics with the MARTINI “Lego” approach
Authors: Carnevale Luís H. , Theodorakis Panagiotis E.
Published: June 2024

MARTINI is a popular coarse-grained (CG) force-field that is used in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. It is based on the “Lego” approach where nonbonded interactions between CG beads representing chemical units of different polarity are obtained through water–octanol partition coefficients. This enables the simulation of a wide range of molecules by only using a finite number of parametrized CG beads, similar to the Lego game, where a finite number of brick types is used to create larger structures. Moreover, the MARTINI force-field is based on the Lennard–Jones potential with the shortest possible cutoff including attractions, thus rendering it very efficient for MD simulations. However, MD simulation is in general a computationally expensive method. Here, we demonstrate that using the MARTINI “Lego” approach is suitable for many-body dissipative particle (MDPD) dynamics, a method that can simulate multi-component and multi-phase soft matter systems in a much faster time than MD. In this study, a DPPC lipid bilayer is chosen to provide evidence for the validity of this approach and various properties are compared to highlight the potential of the method, which can be further extended by introducing new CG bead types.
Effective, Platform-Independent GUI Testing via Image Embedding and Reinforcement Learning
Authors: Yu Shengcheng , Fang Chunrong , Li Xin , Ling Yuchen , Chen Zhenyu , Su Zhendong
Published: June 2024

Software applications (apps) have been playing an increasingly important role in various aspects of society. In particular, mobile apps and web apps are the most prevalent among all applications and are widely used in various industries as well as in people’s daily lives. To help ensure mobile and web app quality, many approaches have been introduced to improve app GUI testing via automated exploration, including random testing, model-based testing, learning-based testing, and so on. Despite the extensive effort, existing approaches are still limited in reaching high code coverage, constructing high-quality models, and being generally applicable. Reinforcement learning-based approaches, as a group of representative and advanced approaches for automated GUI exploration testing, are faced with difficult challenges, including effective app state abstraction, reward function design, and so on. Moreover, they heavily depend on the specific execution platforms (i.e., Android or Web), thus leading to poor generalizability and being unable to adapt to different platforms.

This work specifically tackles these challenges based on the high-level observation that apps from distinct platforms share commonalities in GUI design. Indeed, we propose
PIRLTest
, an effective platform-independent approach for app testing. Specifically,
PIRLTest
utilizes computer vision and reinforcement learning techniques in a novel, synergistic manner for automated testing. It extracts the GUI widgets from GUI pages and characterizes the corresponding GUI layouts, embedding the GUI pages as states. The app GUI state combines the macroscopic perspective (app GUI layout) and the microscopic perspective (app GUI widget) and attaches the critical semantic information from GUI images. This enables
PIRLTest
to be platform-independent and makes the testing approach generally applicable on different platforms.
PIRLTest
explores apps with the guidance of a curiosity-driven strategy, which uses a Q-network to estimate the values of specific state-action pairs to encourage more exploration in uncovered pages without platform dependency. The exploration will be assigned with rewards for all actions, which are designed considering both the app GUI states and the concrete widgets, to help the framework explore more uncovered pages. We conduct an empirical study on 20 mobile apps and 5 web apps, and the results show that
PIRLTest
is zero-cost when being adapted to different platforms, and can perform better than the baselines, covering 6.3–41.4% more code on mobile apps and 1.5–51.1% more code on web apps.
PIRLTest
is capable of detecting 128 unique bugs on mobile and web apps, including 100 bugs that cannot be detected by the baselines.
Feasibility of the Anchor‐Free Deep Learning Method in Coronary Stenosis Automatic Detection
Authors: Yue Hanlin , Yu Wei , Dong Ji , Lai Yunfei , Wu You , Zhao Haixia , Song Yiwei , Zhao Li , Wang Hui , Zhang Jing , Xu Xinping , Yao Binwei , Zhao Jianghao , Wang Kexian , Sun Yue , Wang Haoyu , Peng Ruiyun
Published: June 2024

Background. Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a type of cardiovascular disease which is one of the leading causes of death around the world. The presence of coronary stenosis is considered a pivotal indicator in the diagnosis of various CADs. The main purpose of this paper was to investigate the feasibility of an anchor‐free deep learning (DL) method, fully convolutional one‐stage object detection (FCOS), in coronary artery stenosis automatic detection. Methods. First, 2786 invasive coronary angiography (ICA) images from 130 patients were randomly divided into training, validation, and testing datasets using the 10‐fold cross‐validation approach. Then, FCOS was compared with other three widely used anchor‐based DL models: single shot multibox detector (SSD), faster region‐based convolutional network (Faster R‐CNN), and you only look once (YOLOv3), in terms of precision, recall, F1 score, average precision (AP), and average recall (AR). Finally, the performances of different models in the detection of stenosis were compared in either single or multiple lesion scenarios using statistical tests. Results. FCOS achieved significantly superior precision (96.14% ± 0.53%), recall (94.36% ± 0.79%), F1 score (95.22% ± 0.56%), AP0.50 (93.36% ± 0.93%), AR0.50:0.95 (64.73% ± 1.46%), APsmall (55.04 ± 0.96%), APmedium (59.97 ± 1.13%), and APlarge (68.09 ± 5.18%) compared to Faster R‐CNN and YOLOv3. Moreover, FCOS demonstrated significantly higher AR0.50:0.95 and APsmall compared to SSD. Regardless of the presence of single or multiple coronary stenoses in ICA images, FCOS also outperformed Faster R‐CNN and YOLOv3. Furthermore, it showed significantly higher AR0.50:0.95 compared to SSD when in the multiple stenosis scenario. Conclusions. It is feasible to use the anchor‐free DL model FCOS in detecting coronary stenosis based on ICA images.
Optimization Design of Phononic Crystals Based on BPNN‐MPA in Applied Mathematical Analysis
Authors: Ge Peiyun
Published: June 2024

Traditional finite element analysis methods have the problem of expensive and unstable band structure diagram calculation when generating phononic crystals. Therefore, this study combines back propagation neural networks with ocean predator algorithms to optimize the geometric structure of phononic crystals. The results show that the coefficient of determination for the predicted bandgap width and lower bound of Model 3 is 1.00, which is better than the comparison model. However, Models 2 and 5 have poor predictive performance for bandgap width due to overfitting during actual training. Therefore, after using the ocean predator algorithm for hyperparameter adjustment, it is found that the maximum number of failures in the validation set of Model 5 is 30, the number of hidden layer nodes is 30, and after 500 experiments, the average error of the bandgap width is 5.26%, and the average error of the lower bound of the bandgap is 1.33%. The average error of the bandgap width after hyperparameter adjustment is 4.89%, and the average error of the lower bound of the bandgap is 1.21%, both of which are effectively reduced and better than the comparison model. Overall, the combination model has high computational efficiency and stability in phononic crystal optimization and can be practically applied in the design and optimization of phononic crystal geometric structures.
The Solvability of Fourth‐Order Differential Equations under Almost Hardy–Rogers (ψ, ϕ)‐Type Multivalued Contractions in M℘‐Metric Space
Authors: Mudhesh Mustafa , Arshad Muhammad , Hussain Aftab , Albargi Amer Hassan , Ameer Eskandar
Published: June 2024

This paper aims to introduce a novel variation of almost Hardy–Rogers (ψ, ϕ)‐type multivalued contraction and ϑ‐type contraction mappings. The main focus is on proving new fixed point (FP) results in M℘‐metric space (M℘‐MS). Additionally, several consequences are derived from our main findings. To elucidate the recency of our outcomes, various examples are provided. Finally, we utilize the obtained results to scrutinize the existence of solutions for nonlinear fourth‐order differential equations (NFODEs).
Blocking M2-Like Macrophage Polarization Using Decoy Oligodeoxynucleotide-Based Gene Therapy Prevents Immune Evasion for Pancreatic Cancer Treatment
Authors: Chen Chang-Jung , Wang Hao-Chen , Hou Ya-Chin , Wu Yi-Ying , Shieh Chi-Chang , Shan Yan-Shen
Published: June 2024

M2-like macrophages exhibit immunosuppressive activity and promote pancreatic cancer progression. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) affect macrophage polarization; however, the mechanism remains unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the underlying molecular basis and design a gene therapy to inhibit M2-like polarization. Microarray analysis and immunofluorescence staining were performed in M1-like and M2-like macrophages to ascertain the expression of CYBB, a major intracellular ROS source. Coculture assay and syngeneic orthotopic pancreatic cancer mice models were used to study the mechanism of M2-like skewing. Decoy oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) were designed to manipulate CYBB transcription to inhibit M2-like polarization and control tumor growth. Lipopolysaccharide treatment polarized U937 cells to M1-like macrophages in which CYBB expression was increased. In contrast, coculture with PANC-1 cells induced M2-like polarization in U937 cells with CYBB downregulation. High CD204 M2-like expression in combination with low CYBB expression was associated with the worst prognosis in patients with pancreatic cancer. STAT6 and HDAC2 in U937 cells were activated by cancer cell–derived IL4 after coculture and then bound to the CYBB promoter to repress CYBB expression, resulting in M2-like polarization. Diphenyleneiodonium, 8λ³-iodatricyclo[7.4.0.02,⁷]trideca-1(13),2,4,6,9,11-hexaen-8-ylium chloride that inhibits ROS production could block this action. Knockdown of STAT6 and HDAC2 also inhibited M2-like polarization and maintained the M1-like phenotype of U937 cells after coculture. Decoy ODNs interrupting the binding of STAT6 to the CYBB promoter counteracted M2-like polarization and tumor growth and triggered antitumor immunity in vivo. Gene therapy using STAT6-CYBB decoy ODNs can inhibit M2-like polarization, representing a potential therapeutic tool for pancreatic cancer.
Experimental Evidence of the Impact of Re-Enrollment Campaigns on Long-Term Academic Outcomes
Authors: Ortagus Justin C. , Allchin Hope , Skinner Benjamin , Tanner Melvin , McFarlin Isaac
Published: June 2024

Most students who begin at a community college do not complete their desired credential. Many students fail to graduate due to various barriers other than their academic performance. To encourage previously successful non-completers to re-enroll and eventually graduate, a growing number of community colleges have implemented re-enrollment campaigns focused on former students who have already made substantial progress toward graduation. In this study, we randomly assigned over 27,000 former community college students to a control group, “information-only” treatment group, or “information and one-course waiver” treatment group to examine whether re-enrollment campaigns can improve their likelihood of long-term persistence and credential completion. Although we showed in earlier work that the “information and one-course waiver” treatment had a positive impact on former students’ likelihood of re-enrollment, our findings reveal the re-enrollment intervention has no effect on students’ likelihood of long-term persistence or credential completion for the pooled sample or any subgroup of interest, including low-income students, racially minoritized students, or adult students. Simply put, this particular re-enrollment intervention including one-time, one-course tuition waivers increased former students’ likelihood of re-enrollment but was not an effective lever to increase long-term academic outcomes among previously successful community college students who departed without earning a credential.
Attitudes toward psychedelics and psychedelic-assisted therapy among potential mental health service users and the general population in Australia
Authors: Nadeem Zohaib , Parker Stephen , McGovern Hugh , Oestreich Lena KL
Published: June 2024

Objective:

Despite rapid advances in psychedelic sciences and the increasing number of countries legalizing psychedelics for the treatment of mental illnesses, the attitudes, knowledge and readiness of both mental health consumers and the general population remain largely unknown.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey was conducted among Australians, targeting individuals with mental illness as potential mental health service users. A sub-sample of individuals free of mental illness was also surveyed to assess attitudes in the general population. Participants completed the Attitudes on Psychedelics Questionnaire, the Basic Knowledge of Psychedelics Test and a questionnaire by Corrigan et al. to capture attitudes toward psychedelic therapy by mental health service users.

Results:

Of the 502 respondents, 64.5% self-identified as having a mental illness. A significant proportion favored legalizing psychedelics for medical use (43%) and were open to their use (52.4%), yet fewer viewed their effects positively (24%) or considered them safe (33%). Most participants reported to be psychedelic naive (61%). Participants with mental illness had significantly more experience with psychedelics than participant free of mental illness (44.1% vs 29.7%). Experience, perceived knowledge and actual knowledge significantly predicted attitudes toward legalization, effects, risks and openness to psychedelics.

Conclusions:

While a large proportion of Australians are in favor of legalizing psychedelics for medical purposes, concerns about safety remain. People with self-identified mental illness, those with previous recreational psychedelic experience and those with greater knowledge of psychedelics were more likely to have positive attitudes toward psychedelics and psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Bolt-bearing behavior of hybrid CFRP-steel laminates at low temperature
Authors: Koord Josef , Hühne Christian
Published: June 2024

Hybrdization of CFRP with steel sheets enhances bolt-bearing performance. At room temperature, bearing strength is reported to increase while minimum edge and width distances decrease. To assess if this advantage persists under low temperature conditions, bolt-bearing tests following AITM 1-0009 are conducted at 23°C and −55°C. Various monolithic and hybrid configurations with different metal content and joint geometries are examined. Furthermore, ultrasound scanning and optical microscopy of the fracture plane is conducted. Hybridizing composites notably improves bearing capacity. However, the reinforcement effect is less pronounced at low temperatures compared to room temperature. The reduction in minimum edge and width distances with metal hybridization largely depends on the composite ply stacking, challenging general literature recommendations. Regarding damage mechanisms in the joints, fractography indicates that introduction of steel sheets relieves composite plies, isolates damage, and enhances load-bearing capacity through additional bending stiffness and significant plastic deformation of the metal.
From Classroom to Community: A Commentary on Preparing Educators for Family and Community Engagement
Authors: Caspe Margaret , Hernandez Reyna
Published: June 2024

Preparing educators to engage families and communities is one of the most promising ways to improve student learning and build equitable schools. In this commentary, authors from the National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement explore the landscape of educator preparation for family and community engagement and describe a framework created to reimagine how educators are prepared for this important work. The commentary also highlights outcomes and promising practices from nine collaboratives of educator preparation programs and family, school, and community partners redesigning coursework, clinical experiences, programs, and systems to bring families and communities to the center of the educator preparation process.
Practicing belonging, vicarious spirituality, and gendered fetishism: The transformation of the non-religious/religious in contemporary Japanese youth culture
Authors: Fujiwara Satoko , Miura Hiroki
Published: June 2024

This article discusses the transformation of religious and non-religious practices in contemporary Japanese youth culture. The article employs both western analysis of ‘nones’ and Japanese theories to explain this transformation. Three concepts characterize (non-)religiousness in Japanese youth culture: ‘practicing belonging’, ‘vicarious spirituality’, and ‘gendered fetishism’. These concepts are first exemplified in a culture surrounding the concept of ‘tulpa’ (created paranormal beings, derived from Tibetan Buddhism) in Japan. Other examples reflecting each of these concepts are presented, along with a discussion of why Japanese youth culture came to manifest such characteristics. In so doing, we will refrain from drawing a rigid line between religious and non-religious settings, acknowledging that what may appear religious to Japanese scholars may not be viewed as such by western scholars. The factors behind the transformation of religiousness in Japan affect not only religious and spiritual but also non-religious or secular settings, resulting in parallel phenomena.
2030, Apocalypse today and the role of the sociology of religions
Authors: BLANCARTE Roberto
Published: June 2024

We live in an Apocalyptic Era, in frustrated disappointed and enraged societies that have lost the future. Eternity has become an outcast and salvation in the afterlife is no longer a leading quest. In short, we live the end of the centrality of the concept of theodicy. The conjunction of the crisis in religious socialization mechanisms and those of secular socialization is what largely generates this widespread disappointment. The idea of Apocalypse, historically related to condemnations and Manichean visions, has returned with force to our contemporary societies through new forms of exclusion and discrimination in populist regimes relating to popular religiosity. The role of sociology of religions is to assess the current social disappointment and demystification of the future and at the same time distinguish and warn about the political processes of reproduction and representation of contemporary apocalypses.
COVID-19 and mental health treatment in primary care: Impact of a global pandemic on a psychopharmacological collaborative care management program
Authors: Zuschlag Zachary D , Lord Benjamin , Smith Teagan , Lengerich Alexander , Leonard Kaitlin , Guereca Yvette , Kumar Ambuj , Milsom Vanessa A
Published: June 2024

Objective

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on individuals with mental health (MH) disorders and on the delivery of MH services. Few studies have examined treatment models not requiring substantial changes to the delivery of services during pandemic restrictions, such as collaborative care management (CoCM) programs. Therefore, a longitudinal retrospective cohort analysis was conducted to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on a psychopharmacological CoCM program.

Method

Data were collected on all U.S. Veterans enrolled in a CoCM program at a large VA during the first 10 months of the COVID-19 pandemic and compared to a matched control group one-year prior to that date. Treatment in the program pre-COVID vs. treatment during the pandemic was compared in relation to baseline symptomatology, improvements in MH symptoms, and program adherence.

Results

A total of 462 Veterans were referred during the control period, compared to 351 during the same time period during the pandemic. Veterans enrolled during the first four months of each study arm, to allow for a minimum of 6 months of follow up data, had no differences in baseline symptoms of depression or anxiety between groups. Veterans receiving care during the pandemic had higher rates of program completion than pre-pandemic controls. COVID-era Veterans also had higher rates of depression response compared to controls, but no differences were observed between groups on depression remission, anxiety response, or anxiety remission.

Conclusions

Psychopharmacological CoCM treatment models can successfully manage depression and anxiety with no observed decrease in the effectiveness of this intervention even during periods of unprecedented disruptions to MH services.
Sayings and Doings in Practices: Enhancing practice-driven institutionalism with insights from the philosophy of embodiment
Authors: Goldenstein Jan , Walgenbach Peter
Published: June 2024

The practice-driven perspective in organizational institutionalism has proposed that what actors say and do is decisive for the enactment of practices in everyday situations. However, this perspective has predominantly considered the role of doings and has disregarded the distinct role of sayings used in everyday situations. Our theoretical argument proposes the co-constitutive coexistence of sayings and doings in the enactment of practices that explains why and when doings inform specific sayings and why and when sayings prefigure specific doings. Theorizing this coexistence reveals when it is that sayings bolster the reproduction and stabilization of doings, when they contribute to change, and when sayings cannot coordinate doings because actors literally cannot understand one another. We argue that the consideration of the coexistence of sayings and doings is relevant for practice-driven institutionalism, as it enables the differentiation of the situated impact of doings and sayings on the development of practices. To develop this argument, we build on insights from the embodiment perspective within the philosophy of mind (i.e. philosophy of embodiment), which suggests that the body and its sensorimotor states in practices play an instrumental role in cognition and language use.
Circular Migrant Workers and Housing in Indian Cities: A View from Ahmedabad
Authors: Desai Renu
Published: June 2024

The paper examines the living spaces and related experiences of circular labour migrants in the construction sector in Ahmedabad; and interrogates the urban policy, planning and governance regimes as well as labour legislation and governance regimes shaping these. The paper also pays attention to migrants’ agency in shaping their housing in the city in the context of these regimes and their own multilocal lives. Their housing question is also situated in the context of the broader housing question of the urban poor which consists of a diversity of groups facing shared and differentiated exclusions and vulnerabilities in the city.
Is there evidence for using ketamine among individuals with dementia?
Authors: Kapoor Arushi , Peguero Estevez Tanya , Chan Carol , Yamagata Natsuko , Doumlele Kyra , Tampi Rajesh
Published: June 2024

The aim of this short narrative review was to evaluate the existing literature regarding the clinical use of ketamine among individuals with dementia, especially those with behavioral disturbances. PubMed, Cochrane, and Ovid (Embase, APA PsycINFO, and MEDLINE) databases were searched for abstracts using the search terms “ketamine” AND “dementia.” Only articles describing the use of ketamine in individuals with dementia were included. Articles that did not include individuals with dementia, did not use ketamine, were published in a non-English language, primarily described animal studies, or were reviews were excluded. Three case reports met the inclusion criteria. One described the use of subcutaneous ketamine for depression, one described the use of intramuscular ketamine for acute agitation, and one described the use of S-ketamine as anesthesia during electroconvulsive therapy for depression and catatonia. No significant adverse effects were reported in any of the cases. Although the use of ketamine in the treatment of depression and agitation associated with dementia has potential, the current evidence remains limited. High-quality prospective studies are needed to confirm the observations of these case reports before ketamine can be used to treat behavioral disturbances in individuals with dementia.
Operating in environments affected by uncertainty: Supply chain finance, timely information sharing using advanced technology, and financial performance in Supply Chain Management 4.0
Authors: Khan Muhammad Naveed , Akhtar Pervaiz , Zhang Linda L. , Khan Zaheer
Published: June 2024

Digitally enabled supply chains, particularly operating in uncertain environments, have been offering emerging domains for research. The effects of Timely Information Sharing (TIS) on Financial Performance (FP) in the context of Supply Chain Finance (SCF) have been hitherto neglected, especially in the context of environments affected by uncertainty. The study contributes to the related literature by developing an integrated framework interlinked with Information Processing and Contingency theories and it facilitates the understanding of the relationships that exist among SCF, TIS using advanced technology, and FP in the context of the environments affected by uncertainty caused by unpredictable events like terrorist attacks and pandemics. To corroborate the relationships and validate the relative framework, we applied Structural Equation Modelling to the data collected from 261 firms. Our findings show that SCF significantly influences FP and that TIS plays a mediating role in enhancing FP interlinked with modern technology. The study also provides the implications of SCF and TIS in strengthening Supply Chain Management 4.0 operations affected by unprecedented circumstances that hinder FP and its viability within the supply chains’ context.
Problems and prospects of portmanteau titles and other neologisms for interface disciplines in the Earth and life sciences
Authors: Huggett Richard , Lee Raymond M
Published: June 2024

The Earth and life sciences are replete with portmanteau (blended) words and neologisms. Researchers at the interfaces between the traditional disciplines within the Earth and life sciences have coined dual titles for ‘new’ disciplines, such as geobiology/biogeology and ecohydrology/hydroecology. An upsurge in such coinage over the last few decades reflects a healthy willingness of many researchers to cross traditional disciplinary boundaries and to include the human sphere within their domains. However, some of the titles cause confusion because their meanings are not self-evident; rather, they sometimes demand extra research to reveal their meanings, thus rendering science less ‘open’ at a time when Open Science is being vigorously encouraged. After discussing the question of disciplinary neologisms, the paper probes the interchangeability of 15 dual ‘new’ discipline titles and concludes that six are more-or-less synonymous, three are nonsynonymous, and six are indeterminate for varying reasons. We question the usefulness of some, but by no means all, disciplinary neologisms, given that their meanings are not immediately apparent. Looking beyond portmanteau titles and other neologisms, the paper discusses the rise of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research, as seen in the concepts of the Critical Zone, multifunctional landscapes, and Earth System Science, the last of which supports a conceptual model of the planet as an interdependent set of spheres from global to local scales that has the advantages of combining the biotic, abiotic, and human spheres.
Challenges and Strategies in Working with Latine Adolescents in a Math Enrichment Afterschool Activity
Authors: Soto-Lara Stephanie , Yu Mark Vincent B. , Pantano Alessandra , Simpkins Sandra D.
Published: June 2024

Afterschool staff are critical to youth’s experiences in activities and shape what youth garner from activities. This study focuses on undergraduate students’ experiences working with adolescents in an afterschool activity through a community-university partnership in an effort to understand the challenges afterschool staff face and the strategies that helped them address those challenges. Undergraduate students, who are referred to as mentors in the activity, ( n = 15; 11 female; 8 Latine, 7 non-Latine) are the staff for a math enrichment afterschool activity serving largely Latine youth. The undergraduate students were interviewed to understand (a) the challenges they encountered when working with adolescents, (b) the strategies they leveraged to respond to these challenges, and (c) the extent to which the themes varied by racial/ethnic cultural backgrounds. Undergraduate students felt they experienced challenges with promoting motivation, teaching math content, navigating group instruction, building connections with adolescents, and establishing authority or respect. To respond to these challenges, they sought help from experienced undergraduate students, attended trainings, facilitated collaborative learning, integrated real-world examples, engaged in structured non-math related conversations, and leveraged students’ sociocultural assets. Results provide key stakeholders with insights on how to design trainings to better support undergraduate students who work with diverse youth.
The Role of Defendant Gender and PTSD Diagnosis in a Battered Spouse Case
Authors: Adair-Russell Rebekah , Reed Krystia , Torres Maria F.
Published: June 2024

A quarter of women and 11% of men report being survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) during their lifetimes in the United States. Despite being victims themselves, people who kill their IPV abuser can still be subject to criminal proceedings. Given this complexity, the law has employed battered spouse syndrome (BSS) as a tool used in some jurisdictions to support a claim that an IPV survivor killed in self-defense. A defendant who is attempting to claim self-defense using BSS may introduce testimony of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, a diagnosis of PTSD can pose problems in admission during litigation as the occurrence of a traumatic event is often what is being decided. The present study examined how college students, living on the U.S.-México border, perceive survivors-turned-defendants in a BSS mock trial. Specifically, we had each participant read a written trial transcript of a mock trial where gender of the defendant and clinical diagnosis of PTSD were manipulated. The current study hypothesized that jurors would be more lenient toward female defendants than male defendants ( Hypothesis 1), jurors would be influenced by a PTSD diagnosis of the defendant ( Hypothesis 2a–b), and female jurors would be more lenient than male jurors ( Hypothesis 3). We also wanted to examine the impact of victim blaming, sexism, stigma of PTSD, and prior exposure to IPV on decision-making ( Hypothesis 4a–d). Findings showed jurors were more lenient with female defendants than male defendants, however there was no effect of clinical diagnosis except on difficulty of decision. Implications of the role defendant gender has in decision-making is discussed.
Misaligned Supports: Differences in Reported Health Care Worker Well-being Supports Provided and Needed During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Authors: Qureshi Nabeel , Huilgol Shreya S. , Timmins George , Meredith Lisa S. , Gidengil Courtney A.
Published: June 2024

Purpose

To describe the well-being supports provided to health care workers (HCWs) during the COVID-19 pandemic in health centers and hospitals.

Design

Cross-sectional qualitative interviews before and after implementation of a peer-based support intervention.

Setting

Purposively sampled hospitals and health centers across the US.

Participants

28 site leaders and 56 HCWs sampled from 16 hospitals and 12 health centers.

Method

Site leaders and HCWs were asked to describe supports available to HCWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thematic and content coding and analysis of interview responses were conducted using Dedoose.

Results

Both site leaders and HCWs identified a range of support resources available. Communication resources were the most frequently cited in both groups. Health care workers reported bi-directional communication, while one-way communication was emphasized by site leaders. Hospitals highlighted counseling support, particularly Employee Assistance Programs (EAP), while health centers prioritized community support. Wellness activities were more prevalent in hospital settings, while health centers offered specific workplace-provided training for HCWs. Health care workers encountered barriers when accessing support, including limited time, fear of stigma, and disruptions to their existing support networks attributable to the pandemic.

Conclusion

While there are resources for HCWs, the available supports may not align with their needs and barriers to access may limit the effectiveness of these supports. Continued engagement between leaders and HCWs could help better align resources with needs.
Alpha2 Agonist Use in Critically Ill Adults: A Focus on Sedation and Withdrawal Prevention
Authors: Schuler Ashley , Yoon Connie H. , Caffarini Erica , Heine Alexander , Meester Alyssa , Murray Danielle , Harding Angela
Published: June 2024

The management of sedation in critically ill adults poses a unique challenge to clinicians. Dexmedetomidine, an α2 agonist, has a unique mechanism and favorable pharmacokinetics, making it an attractive intravenous option for sedation and delirium in the intensive care unit. However, patients may be at risk for withdrawal with prolonged use, adding to the complexity of sedation and agitation management in this patient population. Enteral α2 agents have the benefit of cost savings and ease of administration, thus playing a role in the ability to decrease intravenous sedative use and prevent dexmedetomidine withdrawal. Clonidine and guanfacine are the two most common enteral α2 agents utilized for this purpose, however, there is a paucity of evidence regarding the comparative benefit between the two agents. The decision to use one vs the other agent should be determined based on their differing pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and side effect profile. The most effective dosing strategy for these agents is also unknown. Ultimately, more robust literature is required to determine enteral α2 agonists place in therapy. This narrative review evaluates the currently available literature on the use of α2 agonists in critically ill adults with an emphasis on sedation, delirium, and withdrawal.
Effect of injector on flow characteristic and hydraulic performance in aero-fuel centrifugal pump
Authors: Li Jia , Liu Bo , Zhou Wen , Xie Jian , Chen Xuan
Published: June 2024

In the fuel system of an aircraft engine, aero-fuel centrifugal pumps are widely utilized as boost pumps. In this research, we propose the integration of an inlet injector with an aero-fuel centrifugal pump to optimize its flow characteristics and enhance performance. The key geometric parameters of the impeller, volute, and injector are meticulously designed. The effectiveness of our approach is validated through a combination of experimental and numerical analysis, which involves comparing simulation results with experimental data. The findings demonstrate that the presence of the injector significantly impacts the flow characteristics and hydraulic performance of the pump. Specifically, it effectively reduces flow losses in the specific channels of the impeller and volute. Furthermore, the injector enhances the regulation of the inlet flow fields by adjusting the inlet pressure and controlling the suction flow direction. Consequently, the pump’s efficiency is enhanced when equipped with the injector compared to its performance without it. Therefore, incorporating an injector in an aero-fuel centrifugal pump has a positive effect on regulating flow characteristics and improving hydraulic efficiency.