Integrating basic research with prevention/intervention to reduce risky substance use among college students

Too often basic research on etiological processes that contribute to substance use outcomes is disconnected from efforts to develop prevention and intervention programming. Substance use on college campuses is an area of concern where translational efforts that bring together basic scientists and prevention/intervention practitioners have potential for high impact. We describe an effort at a large, public, urban university in the United States to bring together researchers across the campus with expertise in college behavioral health with university administration and health/wellness practitioners to address college student substance use and mental health. The project “Spit for Science” examines how genetic and environmental influences contribute to behavioral health outcomes across the college years. We argue that findings coming out of basic research can be used to develop more tailored prevention and intervention programming that incorporates both biologically and psychosocially influenced risk factors. Examples of personalized programming suggest this may be a fruitful way to advance the field and reduce risky substance use

Behavioral, computational, and neuroimaging studies of acquired apraxia of speech

A critical examination of speech motor control depends on an in-depth understanding of network connectivity associated with Brodmann areas 44 and 45 and surrounding cortices. Damage to these areas has been associated with two conditions-the speech motor programming disorder apraxia of speech (AOS) and the linguistic/grammatical disorder of Broca's aphasia. Here we focus on AOS, which is most commonly associated with damage to posterior Broca's area (BA) and adjacent cortex. We provide an overview of our own studies into the nature of AOS, including behavioral and neuroimaging methods, to explore components of the speech motor network that are associated with normal and disordered speech motor programming in AOS. Behavioral, neuroimaging, and computational modeling studies are indicating that AOS is associated with impairment in learning feedforward models and/or implementing feedback mechanisms and with the functional contribution of BA6. While functional connectivity methods are not yet routinely applied to the study of AOS, we highlight the need for focusing on the functional impact of localized lesions throughout the speech network, as well as larger scale comparative studies to distinguish the unique behavioral and neurological signature of AOS. By coupling these methods with neural network models, we have a powerful set of tools to improve our understanding of the neural mechanisms that underlie AOS, and speech production generally

Farmland Control Decisions under Different Intertemporal Risk Behavioral Constructs

Simulation-optimization techniques are employed to analyze changes in farmland control arrangements as a result of using different constructs of intertemporal risk behavior. Risk behavior based on constant absolute risk aversion (CARA) and constant relative risk aversion (CRRA) mean-standard deviation functions are used to achieve this objective. Specfically, a multi-period programming framework for a representative grain farm is developed to explore farmland control decisions under these two behavioral assumptions. Our results suggest that the use of a CRRA behavioral construct in analyzing farmland control decisions produce predictions that are more consistent with observed farm behavior.Farm Management,

Combatting Opioid-Related Deaths in Rural Vermont Through Community Partnership

Substance abuse continues to be a public health crisis. With legislative changes and creation of MAT programming in Vermont, access to behavioral health services for substance abuse treatment has shifted community response and perceptions. As Little Rivers Health Care houses both a MAT program and is a naloxone distribution site, a community event was organized to help train community leaders on how to administer naloxone and provide an avenue to form community partnerships.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/fmclerk/1398/thumbnail.jp

eveloping a Suitability Assessment Criteria for Software Developers: Behavioral Assessment Using Psychometric Test

A suitability assessment instrument for software developers was created using a psychometric criteria that identify the impact of behavior on the performance of software engineers. The instrument uses a questionnaire to help both individuals and IT recruiters to identify the psychological factors that affect the working performance of software engineers. Our study identifies the relationship between the behavioral drivers and the programming abilities of the subjects. In order to evaluate the instrument, a total of 100 respondents were compared on the basis of their programming skills and nine behavioral drivers. It was concluded that there is a direct relationship between certain human qualities, such as “Attention to Detail,” and the programming style of the students, while the “Locus of Control” factor was observed to have a negative correlation with performance in programming

LAMP: Prompt Layer 7 Attack Mitigation with Programmable Data Planes

While there are various methods to detect application layer attacks or intrusion attempts on an individual end host, it is not efficient to provide all end hosts in the network with heavy-duty defense systems or software firewalls. In this work, we leverage a new concept of programmable data planes, to directly react on alerts raised by a victim and prevent further attacks on the whole network by blocking the attack at the network edge. We call our design LAMP, Layer 7 Attack Mitigation with Programmable data planes. We implemented LAMP using the P4 data plane programming language and evaluated its effectiveness and efficiency in the Behavioral Model (bmv2) environment

AudExpCreator: A GUI-based Matlab tool for designing and creating auditory experiments with the Psychophysics Toolbox

We present AudExpCreator, a GUI-based Matlab tool for designing and creating auditory experiments. AudExpCreator allows users to generate auditory experiments that run on Matlab's Psychophysics Toolbox without having to write any code; rather, users simply follow instructions in GUIs to specify desired design parameters. The software comprises five auditory study types, including behavioral studies and integration with EEG and physiological response collection systems. Advanced features permit more complicated experimental designs as well as maintenance and update of previously created experiments. AudExpCreator alleviates programming barriers while providing a free, open-source alternative to commercial experimental design software.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figure

Integrating Behavioral Health & Primary Care in New Hampshire: A Path Forward to Sustainable Practice & Payment Transformation

New Hampshire residents face challenges with behavioral and physical health conditions and the interplay between them. National studies show the costs and the burden of illness from behavioral health conditions and co-occurring chronic health conditions that are not adequately treated in either primary care or behavioral health settings. Bringing primary health and behavioral health care together in integrated care settings can improve outcomes for both behavioral and physical health conditions. Primary care integrated behavioral health works in conjunction with specialty behavioral health providers, expanding capacity, improving access, and jointly managing the care of patients with higher levels of acuity In its work to improve the health of NH residents and create effective and cost-effective systems of care, the NH Citizens Health Initiative (Initiative) created the NH Behavioral Health Integration Learning Collaborative (BHI Learning Collaborative) in November of 2015, as a project of its Accountable Care Learning Network (NHACLN). Bringing together more than 60 organizations, including providers of all types and sizes, all of the state’s community mental health centers, all of the major private and public insurers, and government and other stakeholders, the BHI Learning Collaborative built on earlier work of a NHACLN Workgroup focused on improving care for depression and co-occurring chronic illness. The BHI Learning Collaborative design is based on the core NHACLN philosophy of “shared data and shared learning” and the importance of transparency and open conversation across all stakeholder groups. The first year of the BHI Learning Collaborative programming included shared learning on evidence-based practice for integrated behavioral health in primary care, shared data from the NH Comprehensive Healthcare Information System (NHCHIS), and work to develop sustainable payment models to replace inadequate Fee-for-Service (FFS) revenues. Provider members joined either a Project Implementation Track working on quality improvement projects to improve their levels of integration or a Listen and Learn Track for those just learning about Behavioral Health Integration (BHI). Providers in the Project Implementation Track completed a self-assessment of levels of BHI in their practice settings and committed to submit EHR-based clinical process and outcomes data to track performance on specified measures. All providers received access to unblinded NHACLN Primary Care and Behavioral Health attributed claims data from the NHCHIS for provider organizations in the NH BHI Learning Collaborative. Following up on prior work focused on developing a sustainable model for integrating care for depression and co-occurring chronic illness in primary care settings, the BHI Learning Collaborative engaged consulting experts and participants in understanding challenges in Health Information Technology and Exchange (HIT/HIE), privacy and confidentiality, and workforce adequacy. The BHI Learning Collaborative identified a sustainable payment model for integrated care of depression in primary care. In the process of vetting the payment model, the BHI Learning Collaborative also identified and explored challenges in payment for Substance Use Disorder Screening, Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT). New Hampshire’s residents will benefit from a health care system where primary care and behavioral health are integrated to support the care of the whole person. New Hampshire’s current opiate epidemic accentuates the need for better screening for behavioral health issues, prevention, and treatment referral integrated into primary care. New Hampshire providers and payers are poised to move towards greater integration of behavioral health and primary care and the Initiative looks forward to continuing to support progress in supporting a path to sustainable integrated behavioral and primary care