Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Int J Lang Commun Disord 2021 Apr 12. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

Discipline of Speech Pathology, School of Allied Health, College of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.

Background: Due to COVID-19, many educators and allied health practitioners are facing the challenge of rapidly transitioning to telepractice delivery of instructional reading and spelling procedures without being fully informed of the evidence.

Aims: A rapid review was conducted to provide educators, allied health practitioners and policymakers with a synthesis of valid, relevant and actionable evidence relating to telepractice delivery of instructional reading and spelling procedures. The aim was to investigate the nature and outcomes of studies examining instructional reading and spelling procedures delivered via telepractice to school-aged students. Read More

J Nurs Manag 2021 Apr 12. Epub 2021 Apr 12.

Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman.

Aim: To appraise and synthesize studies examining resilience, coping behaviours, and social support among healthcare workers during the coronavirus pandemic.

Background: A wide range of evidence has shown that healthcare workers, currently on the frontlines in the fight against COVID-19, are not spared from the psychological and mental health-related consequences of the pandemic. Studies synthesizing the role of coping behaviours, resilience, and social support in safeguarding the mental health of healthcare workers during the pandemic is largely unknown. Read More

Soc Work Public Health 2021 Apr 9:1-12. Epub 2021 Apr 9.

Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.

Many individuals who are vulnerable to HIV infection and People Living with HIV (PLWH) experience fragmented prevention and care. Prevention and care service integration, pivotal for the HIV care continuum, depends on relationships among service providers and agencies offering HIV services. Case managers, counselors, and peer educators often work together to provide integrated services through interprofessional collaboration (IPC) in HIV prevention and care. Read More

Ann Vasc Surg 2021 Apr 4. Epub 2021 Apr 4.

Department of Surgery, Division of Vascular and Endovascular Services, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY; Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, University of Connecticut (UConn Health), Farmington, CT. Electronic address:

Objectives: Lack of autonomy in the operating room (OR) during general surgery residency is a major contributing factor to low confidence operating independently after graduation. Although attempts to address decreased autonomy and development of entrustment in the OR are being made in general surgery programs, this issue has not been examined thoroughly in vascular surgery. We sought to determine barriers and opportunities for developing operative autonomy during vascular surgery training by surveying program directors (PDs) and trainees (integrated residents and fellows) in U. Read More

Health Res Policy Syst 2021 Apr 6;19(1):59. Epub 2021 Apr 6.

United Nations University International Institute for Global Health (UNU-IIGH), UNU-IIGH Building, UKM Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latif, 5600, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Background: Implementation research (IR) can play a critical role in the delivery of disease control interventions, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The growing demand for IR training has led to the development of a range of training programmes and university courses, the majority of which can not be accessed by learners in LMICs. This article reports on the evaluation of the massive open online course (MOOC) developed by the Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases hosted by WHO on the topic of IR with a focus on infectious diseases of poverty. Read More

J Appl Behav Anal 2021 Apr 5. Epub 2021 Apr 5.

Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge.

Descriptive assessments are necessary to identify social norms and establish a foundation for experimental analysis. Much of the social skills intervention literature involves goals that have been selected through interviews and direct observation of behavior without a reference to desired outcomes. The purpose of the current study was to extend research on descriptive assessments of conversations by including additional measures and examining conversational behavior across contexts. Read More

Stress 2021 Apr 2:1-11. Epub 2021 Apr 2.

Department of Psychology, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA.

Masculine and feminine gender roles influence stressor appraisals and coping in everyday life, but their effect on stress response systems like the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis is unclear. Accordingly, the present study tested the association between gender roles and cortisol responses to repeated stress as part of secondary analyses of data from a randomized controlled trial examining the effects of stress management interventions on cortisol habituation. Participants (N = 86; 72% female) completed a baseline survey assessing gender role endorsement using the Bem Sex Role Inventory, from which 4 groups were derived: masculine ( = 20), feminine ( = 20), androgynous (high masculinity, high femininity;  = 22), and undifferentiated (low masculinity, low femininity;  = 24). Read More

Front Psychol 2021 11;12:578764. Epub 2021 Mar 11.

Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

The home learning environment includes what parents do to stimulate children's literacy and numeracy skills at home and their overall beliefs and attitudes about children's learning. The home literacy and numeracy environments are two of the most widely discussed aspects of the home learning environment, and past studies have identified how socioeconomic status and parents' own abilities and interest in these domains also play a part in shaping children's learning experiences. However, these studies are mostly from the West, and there has been little focus on the situation of homes in Asia, which captures a large geographical area and a wide diversity of social, ethnic, and linguistic groups. Read More

Acad Med 2021 Apr 6. Epub 2021 Apr 6.

E.C.A. Lane is a recent graduate of Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, Portland, Oregon; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7323-6549. A.A. Tran is a third-year medical student, Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, Portland, Oregon; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1252-7518. C.J. Graulty is a recent graduate of Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, Portland, Oregon; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8688-872X. T. Bumsted is professor of pediatrics and associate dean, Undergraduate Medical Education, Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, Portland, Oregon; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1229-9164.

Problem: In March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic spread rapidly within the United States and began overwhelming the health care system. To conserve PPE, reduce the spread of the virus, and keep student learners safe, leaders of medical schools across the country made the difficult decision to suspend in-person clinical experiences. As medical students were sent home and hospital systems ramped up their response to the virus, many essential health care workers (HCWs) faced an immediate challenge. Read More

J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol 2021 Mar 31:1-9. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Department of Psychology, Louisiana State University.

: The purpose of this Brief Report is to synthesize the current evidence base examining moderators of psychosocial intervention response for children and adolescents with conduct problems (CP). We also provide directions for future research. We focused on four categories of psychosocial interventions for the prevention and/or treatment of CP: (1) parent management training (PMT) for children, (2) other family-based interventions for adolescents, (3) youth skills training, and (4) multicomponent interventions (i. Read More

J Child Lang 2021 Mar 31:1-17. Epub 2021 Mar 31.

Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. E-mail:

Recent studies have found correlations between sentence-level tests and reading comprehension. However, the task demands of sentence-level tests are not well understood. The present study investigated syntactic knowledge as a construct by examining the convergent and discriminant validity of two sentence-level tasks, sentence comprehension and sentence repetition, designed to test syntactic knowledge and their relation with reading comprehension. Read More

Front Psychol 2021 12;12:518369. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

Department of Psychology, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.

Over the last decades, various predictors have proven relevant for job performance [e.g., general mental ability (GMA), broad personality traits, such as the Big Five]. Read More

Occup Ther Int 2021 9;2021:6628482. Epub 2021 Mar 9.

School of Health & Sport Sciences, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore, QLD 4558, Australia.

Background: Social circus is a branch of circus that primarily focuses on personal and community development, rather than an elite level of professional artistry required of traditional circus. Social circus engages participants in circus activities such as juggling and acrobatics with therapeutic aims such as building confidence or developing life skills. While there is a growing body of literature around social circus, there is currently limited literature exploring the interface between social circus and occupational therapy theory. Read More

Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract 2021 Mar 26. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Department of Nursing, University of South Dakota School of Health Sciences, 414 E. Clark Street, Lee Medicine and Science Hall 303, Vermillion, SD, 57069, USA.

Increased importance has been placed on noncognitive skills in professional development and by accrediting bodies of health professions programs in recent years. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to conduct a comprehensive systematic review of evidence examining effects of academic resilience, grit, perceived stress, locus of control, and Big Five Personality Traits on academic performance of health professions students. A literature search of peer-reviewed, English-language articles describing select noncognitive factors was performed using seven databases. Read More

Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2021 Mar 26. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA.

This study investigated patterns of response to intervention in children with co-occurring attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and reading difficulties (RD), who participated in a randomized clinical trial examining the efficacy of reading intervention, ADHD treatment, or combined treatments. Growth Mixture Modeling (GMM) was used to investigate trajectories of parent and teacher academic impairment ratings and child oral reading fluency, and whether trajectories were predicted by pre-treatment covariates (ADHD severity, reading achievement, phonemic awareness, rapid letter naming, anxiety, oppositional defiant disorder), for 216 children with ADHD/RD in 2-5 grade (61.1% male; 72. Read More

J Pain Symptom Manage 2021 Mar 20. Epub 2021 Mar 20.

Division of Palliative Care, Department of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada; Bruyere Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Electronic address:

Context: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease, associated with impaired quality of life for patients and caregivers. As treatment is largely supportive, early involvement of palliative care (PC) is recommended as standard of care. Despite this, literature surrounding PC information needs is limited. Read More

Mol Autism 2021 03 23;12(1):25. Epub 2021 Mar 23.

Mouse Imaging Centre (MICe), Hospital for Sick Children, 25 Orde Street, Toronto, ON, M5T 3H7, Canada.

Background: One of the causal mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) is chromatin modification and the genes that regulate chromatin. AT-rich interactive domain 1B (ARID1B), a chromatin modifier, has been linked to autism spectrum disorder and to affect rare and inherited genetic variation in a broad set of NDDs.

Methods: A novel preclinical mouse model of Arid1b deficiency was created and validated to characterize and define neuroanatomical, behavioral and transcriptional phenotypes. Read More

Heliyon 2021 Mar 12;7(3):e06403. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.

Food insecurity caused by climate change has become one of the main issues on the global agenda. Worldwide, the importance of digital tools as a means to enhance adaptive capacity and resilience of smallholder farmers (SHFs) in the face of climate variability has long been recognised. Technology-based systems in agriculture frequently neglect to consider the actual context of use and adoption by SHFs in rural and developing contexts. Read More

Front Psychol 2021 4;12:631203. Epub 2021 Mar 4.

Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.

Philosophers, psychologists, and educators all acknowledge the need to support individuals to develop argument skills. Less clear is to do so. Here, we examine a particular program, the "Argue with Me" dialogue-based pedagogical approach, having this objective. Read More

Pediatr Blood Cancer 2021 Mar 19:e29013. Epub 2021 Mar 19.

Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care, and Pain Medicine and Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Background: Integration of nonpharmacological therapies, such as cognitive and behavioral pain management strategies, is recommended to support comprehensive disease and pain management among children and adolescents with sickle cell disease (SCD). The Comfort Ability Program for Sickle Cell Pain (CAP for SCP) introduces psychological and biobehavioral pain management strategies to children and adolescents with SCD. This study aimed to pilot the implementation of the CAP for SCP in a group setting to children and adolescents hospitalized for SCD pain examining feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness on improving pain knowledge and coping efficacy. Read More

BMC Pediatr 2021 Mar 19;21(1):135. Epub 2021 Mar 19.

Samsung Equestrian Team, Bugok dong, Gunposi, Gyeonggido, Republic of Korea.

Background: Attention problems and decreased quality of life are frequently accompanied in Cerebral Palsy (CP), which can negatively affect rehabilitation of physical disability. However, the majority of affected children remain untreated in the aspects of attention or psychosocial factors. Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies (EAAT) use horse as a therapeutic modality including grooming as well as mounted riding activities in which patients exercise and experience mounted stimulation. Read More

Aust Crit Care 2021 Mar 15. Epub 2021 Mar 15.

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Edith Cowan University, 270 Joondalup Drive, Joondalup, WA, 6027, Australia; Maternal and Child Nursing Department, School of Nursing, The University of Jordan, Amman, 11942, Jordan.

Aim: The aim of the study was to identify the enablers and/or barriers to children visiting their ill parent/carer in intensive care units by examining the visiting policies as practiced or perceived by nurses and experienced or perceived by parents and caregivers.

Review Method: This is a scoping review following Joanna Briggs Institute Protocol Guidelines.

Data Sources: An extensive literature search of Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online, PsychINFO, PubMed, and Excerpta Medica dataBASE databases, using key terms, was conducted between May 2019 and July 2020; studies published between 1990 and 2020 were considered for inclusion. Read More

Demogr Res 2020 Jul-Dec;43(7):169-182. Epub 2020 Jul 24.

Rural Education Action Program, Stanford University.

Background: While the Chinese education system has seen massive improvements over the past few decades, there still exists large academic achievement gaps between rural and urban areas, which threaten China's long-term development. Additionally, recent literature has underscored the importance of early childhood development (ECD) in later-life human capital development.

Objectives: We analyze the lifecycle of cognitive development and learning outcomes in rural Chinese children by first examining if ECD outcomes affect cognition levels, then seeing if cognitive delays persist as children grow, and finally exploring connections between cognition and education outcomes. Read More

Pilot Feasibility Stud 2021 Mar 17;7(1):71. Epub 2021 Mar 17.

Institute of Higher Education and Research in Healthcare, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Background: Discharge teaching by nurses during hospitalization is essential to provide multimorbid inpatients with the knowledge and skills to self-manage their health conditions. However, available disease-specific teaching guidelines do not address the cumulative complexity of multiple chronic diseases that occur with greater frequency in older adults. Therefore, there is a need for a discharge teaching intervention which uses concepts that specifically address the needs of these patients, such as considering their level of activation (i. Read More

BMC Med Educ 2021 Mar 17;21(1):162. Epub 2021 Mar 17.

Department of Clinical Academic Sciences, College of Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713, Doha, Qatar.

Background: Though common practice in Europe, few studies have described the efficacy of early clinical exposure (ECE) in the Middle East. The barriers to clinical learning experienced by these novice medical students have not been reported. This evaluation reports on introducing ECE in primary care, supported by Experiential Review (ER) debriefing sessions. Read More

Elife 2021 Mar 16;10. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, United States.

Despite the rising prevalence of methadone treatment in pregnant women with opioid use disorder, the effects of methadone on neurobehavioral development remain unclear. We developed a translational mouse model of prenatal methadone exposure (PME) that resembles the typical pattern of opioid use by pregnant women who first use oxycodone then switch to methadone maintenance pharmacotherapy, and subsequently become pregnant while maintained on methadone. We investigated the effects of PME on physical development, sensorimotor behavior, and motor neuron properties using a multidisciplinary approach of physical, biochemical, and behavioral assessments along with brain slice electrophysiology and in vivo magnetic resonance imaging. Read More

Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2021 03 16;3:CD012823. Epub 2021 Mar 16.

Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

Background: Parental substance use is a substantial public health and safeguarding concern. There have been a number of trials of interventions relating to substance-using parents that have sought to address this risk factor, with potential outcomes for parent and child.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions in reducing parental substance use (alcohol and/or illicit drugs, excluding tobacco). Read More

Cureus 2021 Feb 8;13(2):e13220. Epub 2021 Feb 8.

Neurology, University of Miami, Miami, USA.

Background Anxiety and sleep disturbances are prevalent in Parkinson's disease (PD). Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are commonly used to treat these symptoms; however, they are associated with unfavorable side effects such as falls and cognitive slowing in the general non-PD population. Examining the effects of BZDs in PD is imperative as these medications could pose an increased risk to PD patients who are already vulnerable to falls and cognitive deficits. Read More

Indian Heart J 2021 Jan-Feb;73(1):7-13. Epub 2020 Sep 23.

Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.

One of the most critical and challenging skills is the distinction of wide complex tachycardias into ventricular tachycardia or supraventricular wide complex tachycardia. Prompt and accurate differentiation of wide complex tachycardias naturally influences short- and long-term management decisions and may directly affect patient outcomes. Currently, there are many useful electrocardiographic criteria and algorithms designed to distinguish ventricular tachycardia and supraventricular wide complex tachycardia accurately; however, no single approach guarantees diagnostic certainty. Read More

BMC Med Educ 2021 Mar 12;21(1):156. Epub 2021 Mar 12.

Medical Simulation Education Centre, University of Pécs, Medical School, Pécs, Hungary.

Background: Near-peer teaching (NPT) is a special way of teaching where the tutor is one or more academic years ahead of the person being tutored. The literature agrees on the benefits of the method, but there are only a few publications examining its effectiveness using objective methods. The aim of our study was to examine the effectiveness of NPT in the training of basic surgical skills. Read More