Decolonising the film curriculum through South–North collaborative online international learning (COIL) initiatives

Collaborative online international learning (COIL), also known as ‘telecollaboration’ or ‘virtual exchange’ among other terms, has been employed as a strategy for internationalisation of the curriculum in various disciplines for several years, but the COVID-19 pandemic has provided renewed impetus. This article argues that it can offer an effective means to decolonise approaches to teaching film studies through South–North collaborations. In brief, COIL is a pedagogical approach that holds that ‘learning takes place through a distributed network of connections to other people and their resources, and formal and informal educational assets in the public domain’ (Reo and Russell, 2015: 64). In this article, we argue that a COIL approach with a South–North focus, partnering with a higher education institution in Latin America, would provide unique opportunities to decolonise the film curriculum, given the features of COIL. In 2020, two universities in Mexico, one in Brazil and one in Colombia founded the Latin American Network for COIL. To date, it comprises 135 institutional members, some of which have students from Indigenous backgrounds and are already actively engaged in decolonising the curriculum. Our article proposes ways to take this forward

A Paramedic's Story: An Autoethnography of Chaos and Quest

This research study represents a personalized account of my experiences as a San Antonio Fire Department (SAFD) paramedic. In this study I bring the reader closer to the subculture of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) through the research methodology of autoethnography. This qualitative method allows me to be researcher, subject, and narrator of the study. Autoethnography requires considerable attention to reflection, introspection, and self-analysis through the use of the narrative. Written in first person voice, I am positioned in the narrative in a manner that allows me to communicate directly with the audience. Through an insider’s perspective, I have traced the time I spent in EMS by reflecting, interpreting, and analyzing a collection of epochal events that significantly impacted my life both personally and professionally. There are five themes that I have identified as salient to the meaning-making process of the study: (a) death and dying, (b) faith and spirituality, (c) job burnout, (d) dealing and coping with job-related stress, and (e) alcohol abuse. The events that I have selected for this study may be read and interpreted as a prelude to what is a much broader narrative of my tenure in EMS and of other emergency responders’ experiences as well. The study explores how my life was impacted beyond the immediate experience and how the story continues to evolve to the present day. The study establishes a foundation for designing training programs to be used by public safety educators. Three theoretical elements of adult learning that help inform professional education strategies for emergency responders have been identified: (a) experiential, (b) narrative, and (c) transformative learning. The study also sensitizes the general public to the physical, social, and psychological demands that are placed on paramedics. It is important for the reader to know that these public servants are ordinary human beings doing extraordinary work in one of the most stressful and hazardous professions in the world

Dental conditions in rheumatic diseases.

Objectives. Review oral manifestations of rheumatic diseases since these can be a diagnostic challenge.Procedures. We performed a PubMed search using terms of rheumatic diseases, autoimmune disease and oral manifestations and also reviewed related guidelines and classifications.Results. We describe the clinical presentations of rheumatic diseases, such as scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjögren's syndrome, Systemic lupus erythematosus and others that present specific oral manifestations. We also review the association between periodontal disease and autoimmunity that has been recently described in the literature.Conclusions. The oral manifestations of rheumatic diseases are diverse and can represent a challenge for medical and dental professionals

“CLUPS”: A New Culture Medium for the Axenic Growth of Entamoeba histolytica

Amebiasis remains a major health problem in Mexico. Terefore, the search for better culture media and low-cost diagnostic and therapeutic tools is fundamental. We present a new culture medium for Entamoeba histolytica which allows the microbe to preserve its virulence factors and ability to induce hepatic abscesses in animal models. Te novel CLUPS medium is an improved version of the PEHPS medium, previously designed in our laboratory. Te main diference is the substitution of raw beef liver in PEHPS by raw beef lung in the CLUPS medium. To compare the performance of three-culture media (traditional TYI-S-33, PEHPS, and CLUPS), E. histolytica trophozoites were cultured in quintuplicate, followed by the evaluation of phospholipase activity and the induction of liver abscesses in golden hamsters. E. histolytica trophozoites grew signifcantly better in CLUPS medium than in TYIS-33. Likewise, CLUPS-cultured trophozoites produced signifcantly more phospholipases than TYI-S-33-cultured trophozoites. Finally, trophozoites grown in any of the three tested media had similar potential to induce liver abscesse

An innovative model using Promotores or Community Health Workers for home based dementia care

Background: Health disparities and issues with trust building and relationship building are prominent in Hispanic and underserved populations in south Texas. Community health workers can play a bridging role with underserved communities and may be essential in improving the quality and value of health care. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission certifies the training Community Health Workers under the label of “promotores”. Method: Community health workers were integrated into the primary health care team to serve as a bridge between patient/caregiver dyads and the health care team. Result: Community health workers (CHWs) connected patients to social determinants of health resources such as transportation, food pantries and/or social benefits, Medicaid services, and home care provider services. Caregiver education and resources for respite care, caregiver support in person and virtually. Additionally, CHW\u27s provided education on dementia care resources, caregiver support, recruiting and engaging Hispanic underserve participants in research. Our team was able to increase home visits by 229% to homebound patients throughout several underserved zip codes in Bexar County. This is a success as our team was able to increase health care access to persons with dementia that are homebound that may have not been seen by a healthcare provider until they required emergency care. In fact, we saw roughly 11% decrease of inpatient admissions between 2021 and 2022. Conclusion: Trust and familiarity allows the promotores to easily communicate interventions with cultural sensitivity and experiential knowledge of community values, leading to foster rapport with patients and families. The rapport and trust developed with the patients also helped to engage, and recruit Hispanic and underserved participants for research in dementia