Positive Effects of Science and Technology Summer Camps on Confidence, Values and Future Intentions

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of science and technology summer camps on the confidence, values, and future intentions of female and male campers. The week-long camps were administered by Actua, a national organization with a mandate to increase awareness of science and technology among Canadian youth. Campers completed a survey both pre- and post-camp. Camps were perceived to be a very positive experience by 83% of campers. Significant positive changes were reported in confidence, values, and future intentions. Results provide some of the first quantitative evidence, at a national level, for the effectiveness of science and technology summer camps that use a hands-on, interactive approach.Le but de cette étude est d'évaluer les effets des camps d'été en sciences et en technologie sur la confiance, les valeurs et les ambitions futures des participant(e)s âgées entre 10 et 14 ans. Les camps, d'une durée d'une semaine, ont été administrés par Actua, une organisation nationale dont le mandat est d'augmenter les connaissances en sciences et en technologie parmi les jeunes Canadiens et Canadiennes. Les jeunes ont rempli des questionnaires d'enquête avant et après leur participation aux camps, et 83% des jeunes étudiés ont perçu ces camps comme une expérience très positive. Notamment, des changements positifs ont été notés par rapport à la confiance, les valeurs et les ambitions futures des participant(e)s. Ces résultats sont parmi les premières données quantitatives, à l'échelon national, appuyant l'efficacité des camps d'été en sciences et en technologie qui utilisent une approche interactive et pratique

Recall of Pharmaceutical Pictograms by Older Adults

ABSTRACTBackground: Low health literacy and high medication burden in the older adult population are contributing factors to the misunderstanding of medication instructions, leading to an increased risk of poor adherence and adverse events in this group of patients. Objective: To evaluate the ability of older adults to recall the meaning of 13 pharmaceutical pictograms 4 weeks after receipt of feedback on pictogram meaning.Methods: Older adults (aged 65 or older) were recruited from one community pharmacy in Canada. One-on-one structured interviews were conducted to assess the comprehensibility of 13 pharmaceutical pictograms from the International Pharmaceutical Federation’s database of pictograms. Each participant was then told the meaning of each pictogram. Recall was assessed 4 weeks later. Results: A total of 58 participants met the inclusion criteria and agreed to participate. The number of pictograms meeting the ISO threshold for comprehensibility of symbols increased from 10 at the initial comprehensibility assessment to 13 at the recall assessment. Analysis of demographic data showed no associations between initial comprehensibility of the pictograms and age, sex, education level, or number of medications taken.Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that after being informed of the meaning of pharmaceutical pictograms, older adults were able to recall the pictogram meanings for at least 4 weeks.RÉSUMÉContexte : Les faibles connaissances en matière de santé des personnes âgées et le lourd fardeau des médicaments qui pèse sur elles sont des facteurs qui contribuent à l’incompréhension des instructions relatives à l’administration des médicaments, ce qui entraîne un risque plus élevé de mauvaise adhésion au traitement et d’événements indésirables dans ce groupe de patients. Objectif : Évaluer la capacité des adultes plus âgés à se souvenir du sens des 13 pictogrammes pharmaceutiques, quatre semaines après avoir été informés de leur sens.Méthodes : Les adultes plus âgés (65 ans et au-delà) ont été recrutés dans une pharmacie communautaire du Canada. Des entrevues structurées en tête-à-tête ont été menées pour évaluer l’intelligibilité de 13 pictogrammes pharmaceutiques extraits de la base de données de la Fédération internationale pharmaceutique. Le sens de chaque pictogramme a ensuite été communiqué à chaque participant et, quatre semaines plus tard, leur capacité à s’en souvenir a été évaluée.Résultats : Cinquante-huit participants répondaient au critère d’inclusion et ont accepté de participer à l’étude. Le nombre de pictogrammes répondant au seuil ISO d’intelligibilité des symboles est passé de 10 (au moment de l’évaluation d’intelligibilité initiale) à 13 (au moment de l’évaluation du rappel). L’analyse des données démographiques n’a indiqué aucune association entre l’intelligibilité initiale des pictogrammes et l’âge, le sexe, le niveau de formation ou le nombre de médicaments que prenaient ces personnes.Conclusions : Les résultats de cette étude indiquent qu’après avoir été informés du sens des pictogrammes pharmaceutiques, les aînés étaient en mesure de s’en souvenir pendant au moins quatre semaines

Correction: Characterization of IGF-II Isoforms in Binge Eating Disorder and Its Group Psychological Treatment

Binge eating disorder (BED) affects 3.5% of the population and is characterized by binge eating for at least 2 days a week for 6 months. Treatment options include cognitive behavioral therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, and pharmacotherapy which are associated with varied success. Little is known about the biology of BED. Since there is evidence that the insulin like growth factor system is implicated in regulation of body weight, insulin sensitivity and feeding behavior, we speculated it may be involved in BED.A cross-sectional comparison was made between three groups of women: overweight with BED, overweight without BED and normal weight without BED. Women were assigned to Group Psychodynamic Interpersonal Psychotherapy. Blood was collected before therapy, at completion and at 6 months follow up for evaluation of IGF-II using Western blot.97 overweight women with BED contributed to the cross-sectional comparison. The two control groups comprised 53 overweight women without BED, and 50 age matched normal weight women without BED. Obese women had significantly lower Big IGF-II than normal weight women, p = .028; Overweight women with BED had higher Mature IGF-II than normal weight women, p<.05. Big IGF-II showed a significant decreasing slope from pre- to post- to six months post-group psychological treatment, unrelated to changes in BMI (p = .008).Levels of IGF-II isoforms differed significantly between overweight and normal weight women. Overweight women with BED display abnormal levels of circulating IGF-II isoforms. BED is characterized by elevated mature IGF-II, an isoform shown to carry significant bioactivity. This finding is not related to BMI or to changes in body weight. The results also provide preliminary evidence that BIG IGF-II is sensitive to change due to group psychological treatment. We suggest that abnormalities in IGF-II processing may be involved in the neurobiology of BED

Demographic data on the three samples.

<p>Note: BED = binge eating disorder. <i>SD</i> = standard deviation. Family income in Canadian dollars in which $1 Canadian =$0.99 US.</p

Means, standard deviations (<i>SD</i>), univariate p-values, and Tukey's post-hoc paired comparisons results for each IGF-II variable by group.

<p>BED = overweight binge eating disorder; OW = overweight group; NW = normal weight group.</p

Means and standard deviations (SD) of each IGF-II variable across three group psychological treatment assessment periods for women with binge eating disorder.

<p>Means and standard deviations (SD) of each IGF-II variable across three group psychological treatment assessment periods for women with binge eating disorder.</p