Social media and young people’s involvement in social work education

While service-user involvement in social work education generally is increasing, young people’s involvement has, to date, been limited, and as such their voice is missing. Social media potentially offers mechanisms for addressing this, widening young people’s participation. This article presents the findings of research, conducted in partnership with young people, exploring different types of social media currently available that may have the potential to be used in social work education to provide young people with a voice. Using methods developed from systematic review processes, the research set out to find, synthesise and collate these different resources. The findings suggest social media could provide an appropriate mechanism for enabling young people to share experiences relevant to social care. However, whilst some resources do exist, there are fewer than expected. A need is identified to develop new sustainable ways of enabling young people to have a voice. Current approaches were found to replicate barriers associated with service provision being compartmentalised, service led, and framed by eligibility criteria. Recommendations are made for a united response from social work education institutions supporting approaches that give ownership to young people themselves whilst promoting sustainability and continuity

Patient involvement in medical decision-making and pain among elders: physician or patient-driven?

BACKGROUND: Pain is highly prevalent among older adults, but little is known about how patient involvement in medical decision-making may play a role in limiting its occurrence or severity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether physician-driven and patient-driven participation in decision-making were associated with the odds of frequent and severe pain. METHODS: A cross-sectional population-based survey of 3,135 persons age 65 and older was conducted in the 108-county region comprising West Texas. The survey included self-reports of frequent pain and, among those with frequent pain, the severity of pain. RESULTS: Findings from multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that higher patient-driven participation in decision-making was associated with lower odds (OR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.75–0.89) of frequent pain, but was not significantly associated with severe pain. Physician-driven participation was not significantly associated with frequent or severe pain. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that patients may need to initiate involvement in medical decision-making to reduce their chances of experiencing frequent pain. Changes to other modifiable health care characteristics, including access to a personal doctor and health insurance coverage, may be more conducive to limiting the risk of severe pain

Safety Evaluation of Buffer-Separated High-Occupancy Vehicle Lanes in Texas

In Texas, high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes are an integral part of urban mobility. Although an extensive system of permanent HOV lanes is planned for the Dallas–Fort Worth area, the Texas Department of Transportation and Dallas Area Rapid Transit have implemented interim HOV lanes by retrofitting them into existing freeways. Safety is examined for Dallas’s buffer-separated concurrent-flow HOV lanes, which were implemented by lane widths being reduced and by the inside shoulder being converted to an HOV lane on I-35 East and I-635. Injury crash data from each corridor were analyzed on the basis of crash rates, frequency trends, and manually reviewing police reports. The analysis considered the impact of design elements, including buffer width, shoulder presence, and lane width. Operationally, the analysis considered the impact of speed differential between the HOV and general purpose lanes. This evaluation resulted in three key findings: (a) both corridors had an increase in crash rates after implementation of the HOV lane, (b) the increase in crashes is primarily focused on the HOV lane and the first adjacent general purpose lane, and (c) the increase in crashes is primarily attributed to the speed differential between the HOV and the general purpose lanes and the reduced HOV cross section. The recommendation, based on these findings, is to provide greater width for the total HOV cross section (inside shoulder + HOV lane + painted buffer) than that provided in the two interim corridors. An absolute minimum of 18 ft between the freeway barrier and the general purpose lanes may mitigate many types of crashes that occur because of the speed differential, with full inside shoulders being the desirable cross section

Technical report (Texas Transportation Institute)

Report regarding the development of geometric and signal design guidelines for triple left-turn lanes and dual right-turn lanes and then evaluatues the safety of such sites in Texas

C-A1-01: Changes in Physical Activity and Nutrition in a Behavioral Intervention Pilot Study - Passport to Brain Wellness

Background/Aims: Increasing concerns about cognitive decline and dementia in the aging populations of most westernized countries suggests the need for interventions that can preserve cognitive function, are cost-effective, and feasibly implemented on a large scale. Empirical evidence is accumulating that points to the potential beneficial effects of cardiovascular fitness, healthy diet, social integration and participation in cognitively stimulating activities in the maintenance of cognitive function. We have developed and pilot tested “Passport,” a multi-component, cognitive-behavioral, phone and mail based intervention to promote such lifestyle changes in older adults