A Smarter Way to Make Early and Mid-Career Decisions

Libraries set themselves apart as safe spaces for people of all ages to learn, explore, and share new ideas. That being said, how comfortable are you talking to your colleagues about making a career move? Do you have reliable information to help you make decisions

Naturalistic Examination of a Training Clinic: Is There a Relationship Between Therapist Perception and Client Self-Report of Treatment Outcomes?

Numerous psychometrically sound measures of psychotherapy outcome have been developed; however, few clinicians administer such tools, and when they do so, they rarely utilize these results to inform treatment. Moreover, studies have reported a discrepancy between therapists’ judgment and clients’ self-report of treatment outcome. The current study aimed to further investigate the relationship between therapists’ judgment and clients’ self-report of treatment outcome in a psychological training clinic, using the criteria of reliable change (RC) and clinically significant change (CSC). One hundred and forty-four clients receiving therapy at a psychological training clinic in the Pacific Northwest were administered the Outcome Questionnaire 45.2 (OQ) at the beginning and end of treatment. Study participants were primarily Caucasian (88%) and female (56%), with a mean age of 32 years. Changes in outcome scores were compared to therapist judgments regarding treatment effectiveness. Results indicated a significant relationship between therapists’ judgment of treatment outcome and whether clients achieved RC or CSC. A large effect size (Φ = .56) was found between CSC and therapist judgment whereas a medium effect size (Φ = .32) was found between RC and therapist judgment. These results suggest that there is lack of agreement between the RC and CSC criteria, and that outcome measure alone cannot account for therapist judgment about treatment outcomes. Suggestions are made for maximizing the accuracy and practicality of client outcome assessment

Muscle-related traits in cattle: The role of the myostatin gene in the South Devon breed

In this paper, we examined the effects of an 11-bp mutation within the GDF-8 gene, originally identified in Belgian Blue cattle, in the South Devon breed. The mutation was found at moderate frequency (0.37) in the South Devon population. We quantified the effects of this mutation on growth, body composition and calving traits in South Devon cattle. We found that the mutation significantly increased muscle score and calving difficulty and decreased fat depth. The mutation did not significantly affect weight at 200 and 400 days or muscle depth. Its effect on muscle score and fat depth was additive while its effect on calving difficulty was recessive. The mutation accounted for a significant proportion of the phenotypic variance in muscle score and calving difficulty. There was an economic benefit of the mutation for this data set, however, calculations were sensitive to changes in the parameter values. Additional data would be required to refine these calculations

The effects of inspiratory muscle training on inspiratory muscle strength, lung function and quality of life in adults with spinal cord injuries: A systematic review and Meta-analysis

Purpose: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of inspiratory muscle training (IMT) on respiratory muscle strength, lung function and quality of life (QOL) in adults with spinal cord injuries (SCI). Methods: Databases were searched up to June 2022; CENTRAL, CINAHL, MEDLINE, PEDRo, and PubMed. Following PRISMA reporting guidelines, two independent reviewers selected studies and extracted data. Study quality and levels of evidence were assessed. Results: Following selection from 624 initial search results, six randomised controlled trials were identified, comprising 124 participants. Quality of Evidence was very low to moderate. Meta-analysis showed that post intervention, IMT significantly improved maximal inspiratory pressure (MD 15.72 cmH2O, 95% CI 5.02, 26.41, p ¼ 0.004) when compared with a control intervention. There was no significant benefit for physical QOL (SMD 0.12, 95% CI 1.01, 1.25, p ¼ 0.84), mental QOL (SMD 0.2, 95% CI 1.72, 1.33, p ¼ 0.80), maximal expiratory pressure (MD 5.19 cmH2O, 95% CI 4.16, 14.55, p ¼ 0.80), or FEV1 (MD 0.26 L, 95% CI 0.19, 0.7, p ¼ 0.26). Sensitivity analyses found larger effects for studies with 8 week interventions (MD 17.5 cmH2O (95% CI 3.36 to 31.66)) and spring loaded devices alone (MD 21.18 cmH2O, 95% CI 9.65 to 32.72). Conclusion: Moderate quality evidence suggests IMT improves respiratory strength in adults with an SCI. The mental and physical QOL outcomes provided very low quality of evidence, with considerable heterogeneity between study results, leading to inconsistency. Further research is warranted to investigate medium and long-term impact of robust IMT protocols, accounting for patient motivation and adherence t

Developing a model of the restorative approaches veteran family service

The negative impact of mental health illness on families is well known. Although the high incidence of mental health problems, especially PTSD, amongst military Veterans is recognised there is little systematic support for their families. TGP are a Welsh Charity which supports vulnerable and marginalised children, young people and families in Wales. TGP are closely associated with use of a Restorative Approach: a philosophy and practice drawn from Restorative Justice that is based on the shared set of democratic values such as honesty, trust, fairness, inclusion and collaboration. A Restorative Approach has been adopted in varied service settings including education and welfare, with encouraging signs of improved relationships and reduction in problems such as aggression and bullying. Recent research exploring use of a Restorative Approach in family support systems has found signs of better, more effective service provision and higher levels of family communication and reduced family conflict. TGP are seeking to provide a family support service for the families of Veterans with PTSD. To do so they are working with Veterans NHS Wales, a NHS service providing support for Welsh veterans with PTSD. The ‘Restorative Approach for Veteran Families Service’ seeks to work with families and Veterans alongside the VNHSW service with the intent of improving family relationships and dynamics and so benefitting the mental health of all family members including the Veteran. This research is evaluating the project over the first three years of development and implementation with the aim of identifying and addressing project facilitators and barriers and thereby producing the best model of service implementation