School-Based Mental Health Telecounseling in Elementary Schools: Potential Advantages and Challenges

School-based mental health counseling interventions (SBMHCI) address youths\u27 presenting problems in diverse elementary schools. Schools with Title I status face unique challenges for face-to-face therapeutic interventions due to transportation and other issues confronting many families living in poverty (Bornheimer et al., 2018). We implemented telecounseling services with youth from three Title 1 elementary schools in response to the transition to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We anticipated that the transition from face-to-face counseling to telecounseling would increase participation as telecounseling eliminates some barriers to service delivery. However, we found a 46% decrease in the number of youths participating in our SBMHCI. Our exploratory study presents results examining differences in participation and change in an SBMHCI based on counseling children with the following modalities, (a) face-to-face therapeutic services and (b) telecounseling. Keywords: counseling children, telecounseling. school-based mental health counselin

Psychosocial Correlates of Physical Activity and Sedentary Leisure Habits in Young Adolescents: The Teens Eating for Energy and Nutrition at School Study

BACKGROUND: Low levels of physical activity (PA) and highly sedentary leisure habits (SLH) in youth may establish behavioral patterns that will predispose youth to increased chronic disease risk in adulthood. The purpose of this paper was to examine associations of demographic and psychosocial factors with self-reported PA and SLH in young adolescents. METHODS: A general linear mixed model predicted self-reported PA and SLH in the spring from demographic and psychosocial variables measured the previous fall in 3798 seventh grade students. RESULTS: PA and SLH differed by race, with Caucasian students reporting among the highest PA and lowest SLH. Perceptions of higher academic rank or expectations predicted higher PA and lower SLH. Depressive symptomatology predicted higher SLH scores but not PA. Higher self-reported value of health, appearance, and achievement predicted higher PA and lower SLH in girls. Girls who reported that their mothers had an authoritative parenting style also reported higher PA and lower SLH. CONCLUSIONS: Determinants of PA and SLH appear to differ from each other, particularly in boys. Development of effective programs to increase PA and/or decrease SLH in young adolescents should be based on a clear understanding of the determinants of these behaviors

An algorithmic and information-theoretic approach to multimetric index construction

The use of multimetric indices (MMIs), such as the widely used index of biological integrity (IBI), to measure, track, summarize and infer the overall impact of human disturbance on biological communities has been steadily growing in recent years. Initially, MMIs were developed for aquatic communities using preselected biological metrics as indicators of system integrity. As interest in these bioassessment tools has grown, so have the types of biological systems to which they are applied. For many ecosystem types the appropriate biological metrics to use as measures of biological integrity are not known a priori. As a result, a variety of ad hoc protocols for selecting metrics empirically has developed. However, the assumptions made by proposed protocols have not be explicitly described or justified, causing many investigators to call for a clear, repeatable methodology for developing empirically derived metrics and indices that can be applied to any biological system. An issue of particular importance that has not been sufficiently addressed is the way that individual metrics combine to produce an MMI that is a sensitive composite indicator of human disturbance. In this paper, we present and demonstrate an algorithm for constructing MMIs given a set of candidate metrics and a measure of human disturbance. The algorithm uses each metric to inform a candidate MMI, and then uses information-theoretic principles to select MMIs that capture the information in the multidimensional system response from among possible MMIs. Such an approach can be used to create purely empirical (data-based) MMIs or can, optionally, be influenced by expert opinion or biological theory through the use of a weighting vector to create value-weighted MMIs. We demonstrate the algorithm with simulated data to demonstrate the predictive capacity of the final MMIs and with real data from wetlands from Acadia and Rocky Mountain National Parks. For the Acadia wetland data, the algorithm identified 4 metrics that combined to produce a −0.88 correlation with the human disturbance index. When compared to other methods, we find this algorithmic approach resulted in MMIs that were more predictive and comprise fewer metrics

Detection of a glitch in the pulsar J1709-4429

We report the detection of a glitch event in the pulsar J1709$-$4429 (also known as B1706$-$44) during regular monitoring observations with the Molonglo Observatory Synthesis Telescope (UTMOST). The glitch was found during timing operations, in which we regularly observe over 400 pulsars with up to daily cadence, while commensally searching for Rotating Radio Transients, pulsars, and FRBs. With a fractional size of $\Delta\nu/\nu \approx 52.4 \times10^{-9}$, the glitch reported here is by far the smallest known for this pulsar, attesting to the efficacy of glitch searches with high cadence using UTMOST.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figur

Mapping the H2 resistance effective against Globodera pallida pathotype Pa1 in tetraploid potato

This work was supported by the Rural & Environment Science & Analytical Services Division of the Scottish Government, the BBSRC, through the joint projects CRF/2009/SCRI/SOP 0929, BB/L008025/1 and BB/K018299/1. Additional funding was obtained through the James Hutton Institute SEEDCORN initiative, AHDB Potato, the Perry Foundation and The Felix Cobbold Trust. Amanpreet Kaur was supported by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission through a Commonwealth split-site Ph.D. grant.Key message: The nematode resistance gene H2 was mapped to the distal end of chromosome 5 in tetraploid potato. The H2 resistance gene, introduced into cultivated potatoes from the wild diploid species Solanum multidissectum, confers a high level of resistance to the Pa1 pathotype of the potato cyst nematode Globodera pallida. A cross between tetraploid H2-containing breeding clone P55/7 and susceptible potato variety Picasso yielded an F1 population that segregated approximately 1:1 for the resistance phenotype, which is consistent with a single dominant gene in a simplex configuration. Using genome reduction methodologies RenSeq and GenSeq, the segregating F1 population enabled the genetic characterisation of the resistance through a bulked segregant analysis. A diagnostic RenSeq analysis of the parents confirmed that the resistance in P55/7 cannot be explained by previously characterised resistance genes. Only the variety Picasso contained functionally characterised disease resistance genes Rpi-R1, Rpi-R3a, Rpi-R3b variant, Gpa2 and Rx, which was independently confirmed through effector vacuum infiltration assays. RenSeq and GenSeq independently identified sequence polymorphisms linked to the H2 resistance on the top end of potato chromosome 5. Allele-specific KASP markers further defined the locus containing the H2 gene to a 4.7 Mb interval on the distal short arm of potato chromosome 5 and to positions that correspond to 1.4 MB and 6.1 MB in the potato reference genome.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Addressing cancer survivors\u27 cardiovascular health using the Automated Heart Health Assessment (AH-HA) EHR tool: Initial protocol and modifications to address COVID-19 challenges

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this paper is to describe the Automated Heart-Health Assessment (AH-HA) study protocol, which demonstrates an agile approach to cancer care delivery research. This study aims to assess the effect of a clinical decision support tool for cancer survivors on cardiovascular health (CVH) discussions, referrals, completed visits with primary care providers and cardiologists, and control of modifiable CVH factors and behaviors. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused widespread disruption to clinical trial accrual and operations. Studies conducted with potentially vulnerable populations, including cancer survivors, must shift towards virtual consent, data collection, and study visits to reduce risk for participants and study staff. Studies examining cancer care delivery innovations may also need to accommodate the increased use of virtual visits. METHODS/DESIGN: This group-randomized, mixed methods study will recruit 600 cancer survivors from 12 National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) practices. Survivors at intervention sites will use the AH-HA tool with their oncology provider; survivors at usual care sites will complete routine survivorship visits. Outcomes will be measured immediately after the study visit, with follow-up at 6 and 12 months. The study was amended during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow for virtual consent, data collection, and intervention options, with the goal of minimizing participant-staff in-person contact and accommodating virtual survivorship visits. CONCLUSIONS: Changes to the study protocol and procedures allow important cancer care delivery research to continue safely during the COVID-19 pandemic and give sites and survivors flexibility to conduct study activities in-person or remotely