Innovative Virtual Wellness Interventions at an Academic Medical Center: A Pilot feasibility Study

Introduction: There is generally a concerning likelihood of burnout in healthcare workers. Given the impact of COVID-19 on healthcare workers, our institution identified the need for wellness interventions to foster adaptive functioning and mitigate burnout. The purpose of this pilot project was to assess the feasibility of virtual holistic interventions like meditation, art, laughter therapy and dance and their impact on overall well-being of physicians and advanced practice providers (APPs). Methods: A series of 12 virtual sessions (art therapy, dance therapy, mindfulness-based practices/meditation and laughter therapy) were offered to providers over a 6-month period. Participants completed an online survey reporting stress levels on Likert scale 0-10 after each session. These sessions followed an open group format. Data obtained were analyzed using mixed methods. Results: A total of 72 participants attended the sessions (mean: 6, range 2-12), and 40% (29) completed the surveys. Most respondents were white (62%), female (90%) and physicians (69%, with 31% APPs). More than half worked in specialty services (66%), with the rest in primary care (34%). 41% were above the age of 60. Approximately 93% reported statically significant reduction in stress level following the intervention period (pre mean score: 6.3 versus post mean score 2.4, p \u3c .0001). Comments indicated post-intervention stress reduction and relaxation. Subjects appreciated the program and enjoyed the sessions. Some participants felt a sense of accomplishment and connectedness. Conclusion: This virtual program was well received by the providers, who demonstrated significant, immediate stress reduction and reported feeling relaxed after the sessions. These preliminary data are encouraging and point toward the feasibility of holistic approaches to support overall provider well-being. Larger, multi-centered comparative studies should evaluate the impact of different well-being activities, with attention to improving engagement

Sustainability and the Architectural History

In this paper, I will address the challenges of incorporating the discourse of Sustainability into the architectural history curriculum and how Sustainability in the survey can be related to the Sustainability education the design studio. I argue that the inclusion of Sustainability into the architectural survey will necessitate the production of revisionist architectural histories that are written through an environmental paradigm and are able to establish a dialogue with Sustainability education in the design studio. These revisionist histories will occupy the disciplinary territory that is produced at the intersection of architectural and environmental historie

Therapeutic applications of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth: a review

Dental stem cells have been found to have the ability to differentiate into nerve cells, adipose cells, chondrocytes, osteoblasts, myocytes, hepatocytes, and odontoblasts. They can be derived from permanent teeth or deciduous teeth. Stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) have a higher proliferation rate and higher osteogenic and neurogenic potential than dental pulp stem cells (DPSC). Therefore, SHEDs are an attractive cell source for tissue regeneration. A large plethora of in vitro and animal studies have been conducted in the last few decades that has demonstrated the potential uses of these cells for the treatment of oral and non-oral diseases. The aim of this article was to review the potential therapeutic applications of stem cells derived from human exfoliated deciduous teeth. A Medline search was done, including international literature, published in English between 2003 and 2020. In this area, further research is needed to ensure the applicability of SHED in the treatment of diseases in humans

The finite element method simulation of active optimal vibration attenuation in structures

The Finite Element Method (FEM) based computational mechanics is applied to simulate the optimal attenuation of vibrations in actively controlled structures. The simulation results provide the forces to be generated by actuators, as well as the structures response. Vibrations can be attenuated by applying either open loop or closed loop control strategies. In open loop control, the control forces for a given initial (or disturbed) configuration of the structure are determined in terms of time, and can be preprogrammed in advance. On the other hand, the control forces in closed loop control depend only on the current state of the system, which should be continuously monitored. Optimal attenuation is obtained by solving the optimality equations for the problem derived from the Pontryagin’s principle. These equations together with the initial and final boundary conditions constitute the two-point-boundary-value (TPBV) problem. Here the optimal solutions are obtained by applying an analogy (referred to as the beam analogy) between the optimality equation and the equation for a certain problem of static beams in bending. The problem of analogous beams is solved by the standard FEM in the spatial domain, and then the results are converted into the solution of the optimal vibration control problem in the time domain. The concept of the independent-modal-space-control (IMSC) is adopted, in which the number of independent actuators control the same number of vibrations modes. The steps of the analogy are programmed into an algorithm referred to as the Beam Analogy Algorithm (BAA). As an illustration of the approach, the BAA is used to simulate the open loop vibration control of a structure with several sets of actuators. Some details, such as an efficient meshing of the analogous beams and effective solving of the target condition are discussed. Next, the BAA is modified to handle closed loop vibration control problems. The algorithm determines the optimal feedback gain matrix, which is then used to calculate the actuator forces required at any current state of the system. The method’s accuracy is also analyzed

Weighted spaces of holomorphic functions on Banach spaces and the approximation property

In this paper, we study the linearization theorem for the weighted space H_ω(U; F) of holomorphic functions de_ned on an open subset U of a Banach space E with values in a Banach space F. After having introduced a locally convex topology T_M on the space H_w (U; F), we show that (H_w (U; F);T_M) is topologically isomorphic to (L(G_ω (U); F), T_c ) where G_w (U)is the predual of H_w(U) consisting of all linear functionals whose restrictions to the closed unit ball of H_w(U) are continuous for the compact open topology T_0. Finally, these results have been used in characterizing the approximation property for the space H_w(U) and its predual for a suitably restricted weight w.The second author acknowledges the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research INDIA for a Research FellowshippeerReviewe