Relevancy=QSEN + Complete Baccalaureate Curriculum Redesign

Faculty in the WSON opted to consider a complete curriculum redesign of the baccalaureate nursing program to assure relevancy to practice. A quality improvement process was used to accomplish the curriculum redesign

Identity: Lesbian Lawyers in South Florida an Oral History

Individual identity is a key concept in legal classifications. However, the concept of identity has an identity crisis of sorts. Some theorists embrace identity—feminist theorists—and other groups eschew it— queer theorists. Identity inhabits realms beyond the theoretical—its spectrum continues all the way to the individual. Identity can be construed as biological, personal, public, legal, political, historical, and fluid among many other sometimes complementary, but often conflicting classifications. Therefore, identities are more complex than mere singular categories. Kimberle Crenshaw was the first to specifically discuss the ideas of intersectionality and identity in a discussion of violence against women, noting, “experiences of women of color are frequently the product of intersecting patterns of racism and sexism, and how these experiences tend not to be represented within the discourses of either feminism or antiracism.”

The Crime of Sedition: At the Crossroads of Reform and Resurgence

The offense of “sedition” — often characterized as criminalizing the incitement of rebellion against the government — is an archaic crime that is frequently used to target political speech. Introduced in the sixteenth century in England specifically to suppress dissent, sedition laws spread through the British colonies. These laws still persist in some legal systems, and while there are reforms underway in some of those jurisdictions, in a few outliers, the offense continues to be prosecuted — and in some there has been a resurgence in cases. Sedition laws have been criticized by the United Nations (“U.N.”), human rights experts, courts, legislatures, advocates, and others for being a weapon used by governments to violate the right to freedom of expression. Moreover, the significant criminal penalties that usually accompany sedition laws have a chilling effect on political debate and can undermine democratic processes. This report examines the movement to repeal or reform sedition laws, the reasons for these efforts, and abuses that take place where the charge of sedition continues to be used. It proceeds in three parts: first, a brief overview of sedition laws and the criticisms they have faced at the international and regional levels; second, an update on the substantial progress Commonwealth States have made to reform these laws; and third, an overview of several examples of States where prosecutors have weaponized sedition laws to stifle dissent, including examples arising from TrialWatch’s monitoring experience

The Importance of University Traditions And Rituals in Building Alumni Brand Communities and Loyalty

The purpose of this study is to expand the literature and determine factors that impact alumni giving and loyalty at institutions of higher education. Specifically, this research aims to identify a relationship between university traditions and rituals, the relationships of an alumni brand community, and loyalty toward an institution of higher education. This research proposes that a university, as a branded institution, constitutes a brand community, and that traditions and rituals, an important component of brand communities, can serve as a means by which students engage on campus and participate in a university’s brand community and, in turn, become active and giving alumni of a university. We propose that the greater the perception of alumni that a university has valued, well-established traditions and rituals, the greater their brand community relationships and intended behaviors associated with loyalty. The research was conducted in the context of the “University,” a regional, comprehensive state university in the Midwest. A survey was conducted with alumni of the University to test a series of six hypotheses. Statistical analyses of MANOVA, ANOVA, and independent t-tests found support for all hypotheses; the mean scores for all four brand community relationships, overall brand community integration, and for four loyalty measures were all significantly different. Alumni who perceive that the University has valued, well established traditions and rituals perceive stronger alumni-product, alumni-brand, alumni institution, and alumni-alumni relationships, perceive a stronger overall integration within the alumni brand community, and exhibit stronger behaviors associated with loyalty than alumni who do not perceive that the University has valued, well-established traditions and rituals. The results from this analysis provide theoretical and practical implications. Theoretically, the contribution of the research reported here is considering the importance of traditions and rituals in alumni brand communities and loyalty, a concept not addressed in previous research. Research has demonstrated that brand community integration is an influential contributor to desired marketing outcomes of institutions of higher education, both large and small. So, university initiatives that enhance and strengthen alumni brand community relationships are vital. Further, given the economic climate in higher education today, it is also vital that universities foster active and dedicated alumni as to garner financial support. Future research may incorporate the role and impact of additional constructs, such as nostalgia, on university traditions and rituals and alumni brand community relationships, expand the study beyond the University studied here, and expand the conceptualization and measurement of the four alumni brand community relationships. Practically, suggestions for universities’ marketing strategies and tactics are provided. Alumni associations, in particular, should be viewed as strategic, vital assets of universities and serve as keepers of traditions and rituals by supporting active student alumni groups and promoting the importance of traditions and rituals. Further, alumni associations should create new, cultivate existing, and revitalize old traditions and rituals. Finally, universities should develop and nurture brand communities with online students as well, create and foster traditions and rituals in which they may participate, and instill a sense that the university has valued, well-established traditions and rituals

Teamwork and Collaboration: Integration of Interprofessional Education across Pharmacy and Nursing Curricula

In this 30 minute presentation, presenters articulated the evidence and need for interprofessional education supporting teamwork and collaboration. Strategies for integrating Interprofessional Education in curricula were discussed. Finally, challenges and lessons learned in implementing IPE across the curricula were described by presenting faculty

Healthcare Workers and COVID-19-Related Moral Injury: An Interpersonally-Focused Approach Informed by PTSD

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a still-unfolding series of novel, potentially traumatic moral and ethical challenges that place many healthcare workers at risk of developing moral injury. Moral injury is a type of psychological response that may arise when one transgresses or witnesses another transgress deeply held moral values, or when one feels that an individual or institution that has a duty to provide care has failed to do so. Despite knowledge of this widespread exposure, to date, empirical data are scarce as to how to prevent and, where necessary, treat COVID-19-related moral injury in healthcare workers. Given the relation between moral injury and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), we point here to social and interpersonal factors as critical moderators of PTSD symptomology and consider how this knowledge may translate to interventions for COVID-19-related moral injury. Specifically, we first review alterations in social cognitive functioning observed among individuals with PTSD that may give rise to interpersonal difficulties. Drawing on Nietlisbach and Maercker\u27s 2009 work on interpersonal factors relevant to survivors of trauma with PTSD, we then review the role of perceived social support, social acknowledgment and social exclusion in relation to potential areas of targeted intervention for COVID-19-related moral injury in healthcare workers. Finally, building on existing literature (e.g., Phoenix Australia—Centre for Posttraumatic Mental Health and the Canadian Centre of Excellence—PTSD, 2020) we conclude with individual and organizational considerations to bolster against the development of moral injury in healthcare workers during the pandemic

The Affective Impact of Financial Skewness on Neural Activity and Choice

Few finance theories consider the influence of “skewness” (or large and asymmetric but unlikely outcomes) on financial choice. We investigated the impact of skewed gambles on subjects' neural activity, self-reported affective responses, and subsequent preferences using functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI). Neurally, skewed gambles elicited more anterior insula activation than symmetric gambles equated for expected value and variance, and positively skewed gambles also specifically elicited more nucleus accumbens (NAcc) activation than negatively skewed gambles. Affectively, positively skewed gambles elicited more positive arousal and negatively skewed gambles elicited more negative arousal than symmetric gambles equated for expected value and variance. Subjects also preferred positively skewed gambles more, but negatively skewed gambles less than symmetric gambles of equal expected value. Individual differences in both NAcc activity and positive arousal predicted preferences for positively skewed gambles. These findings support an anticipatory affect account in which statistical properties of gambles—including skewness—can influence neural activity, affective responses, and ultimately, choice

Language and communication functioning in children and adolescents with agenesis of the corpus callosum

The corpus callosum, the largest white matter inter-hemispheric pathway, is involved in language and communication. In a cohort of 15 children and adolescents (8-15 years) with developmental absence of the corpus callosum (AgCC), this study aimed to describe language and everyday communication functioning, and explored the role of anatomical factors, social risk, and non-verbal IQ in these outcomes. Standardised measures of language and everyday communication functioning, intellectual ability and social risk were used. AgCC classification and anterior commissure volume, a potential alternative pathway, were extracted from T1-weighted images. Participants with AgCC showed reduced receptive and expressive language compared with test norms, and high rates of language and communication impairments. Complete AgCC, higher social risk and lower non-verbal IQ were associated with communication difficulties. Anterior commissure volume was not associated with language and communication. Recognising heterogeneity in language and communication functioning enhances our understanding and suggests specific focuses for potential interventions. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.