Addressing health workforce inequities in the Mindanao regions of the Philippines: tracer study of graduates from a socially-accountable, community-engaged medical school and graduates from a conventional medical school

Developing and retaining a high-quality medical workforce in low-resource countries is a worldwide challenge. The Filipino Ateneo de Zamboanga University–School of Medicine (ADZU-SOM) has adopted a strong focus on socially accountable health professional education (SAHPE) in order to address the shortage of physicians across rural and urban communities in the Western Mindanao region. A cross-sectional survey of graduates from two Philippines medical schools: ADZU-SOM in the Mindanao region and a medical school with a more conventional curriculum, found ADZU-SOM graduates were more likely to have joined the medical profession due to a desire to help others (p=0.002), came from lower socioeconomic strata (p¼0.001) and had significantly (p<0.05) more positive attitudes to community service. ADZU graduates were also more likely to currently work in Government Rural Health Units (p<0.001) or be generalist Medical Officers (p<0.001) or Rural/Municipal Health Officers (p=0.003). ADZU graduates were also less likely to work in private or specialist Government hospitals (p=0.033 and p=0.040, respectively) and be surgical or medical specialists (p=0.010 and p<0.001, respectively). The findings suggest ADZU-SOM’s SAHPE philosophy manifests in the practice choices of its graduates and that the ADZUSOM can meet the rural and urban health workforce needs of the Western Mindanao region

SCFAs Induce Mouse Neutrophil Chemotaxis through the GPR43 Receptor

Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) have recently attracted attention as potential mediators of the effects of gut microbiota on intestinal inflammation. Some of these effects have been suggested to occur through the direct actions of SCFAs on the GPR43 receptor in neutrophils, though the precise role of this receptor in neutrophil activation is still unclear. We show that mouse bone marrow derived neutrophils (BMNs) can chemotax effectively through polycarbonate filters towards a source of acetate, propionate or butyrate. Moreover, we show that BMNs move with good speed and directionality towards a source of propionate in an EZ-Taxiscan chamber coated with fibrinogen. These effects of SCFAs were mimicked by low concentrations of the synthetic GPR43 agonist phenylacetamide-1 and were abolished in GPR43−/− BMNs. SCFAs and phenylacetamide-1 also elicited GPR43-dependent activation of PKB, p38 and ERK and these responses were sensitive to pertussis toxin, indicating a role for Gi proteins. Phenylacetamide-1 also elicited rapid and transient activation of Rac1/2 GTPases and phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6. Genetic and pharmacological intervention identified important roles for PI3Kγ, Rac2, p38 and ERK, but not mTOR, in GPR43-dependent chemotaxis. These results identify GPR43 as a bona fide chemotactic receptor for neutrophils in vitro and start to define important elements in its signal transduction pathways

Insights into Improving Risk and Safety Communication through Environmental Health Literacy

Messages and materials developed to communicate risk to the public are often misunder-stood because the public misperceives risk, science information is too complex, leading to audience misunderstandings, and an overarching focus on the details of the problem without supplying solutions or actions to keep the public safe. This article describes the creation of a communication model to improve risk communication that includes safety information. The authors describe essential components of Risk and Safety Communication based on features of Environmental Health Literacy (EHL), which informed the creation of a protocol for developing risk communication messages and materials. An online training module was developed to aid communicators in creating information to enable the public to protect themselves, their family, and their community, leading to improved comprehension of how the environment impacts health. These principles were developed in a series of focus groups, identifying how the public perceives risk, how they prefer to receive communication, and how participants respond to materials developed using the principles. Important topics discussed are understanding the literacy levels of the target audience, applying that understanding to developing messages, how risk perception leads to misperceptions and how to address those misperceptions by using plain language when developing focused messages and materials. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.Open access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

EVALUATING ALTERNATIVE AGRICULTURAL ENTERPRISES IN A FLUE CURED TOBACCO-PRODUCING REGION OF VIRGINIA: A CASE STUDY

Crop Production/Industries,

Bantayog ng mga Bayani Foundation: A culture and arts communication event

For many years, Bantayog ng Mga Bayani Foundation has made efforts in contributing to the country\u27s awareness and knowledge of the lives and sacrifices made by martyrs of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos\u27 Martial Law. The researchers, after conducting a series of communication audits, conducted this thesis in a form of a communication event, in order to address BBF\u27s difficultlies with communicating to a younger target audience, after years of using communication materials that no longer appeal to said audience. The event featured theme-relevant performances like live art, music, dance, and spoken word poetry. The messages intended to be delivered to the target audiences are (1) Never Again (2) Protecting the country\u27s Democracy and (3) Honoring the lives of the Martial Law martyrs. The audits conducted were based on Peattie and Peattie\u27s Marketing Mix, where traditional marketing elements are translated into the context of social change. The event, on the other hand, was created based on Goldblatt\u27s Model of Global Event Management, where the event\u27s main messages were incorporated with every element of the event, from research and design, to planning, coordination, and evaluation. The two events were held in De La salle University-Manila, and Ateneo de Manila University, both schools where BFF struggles most in reaching out to and communicating with. The thesis resulted in achieving positive feedback from the students in attendance, given that most responses claimed that they understood the proposition the event tried to deliver, and that most were moved by the stories shared and by the artists performing in the event. These were measured by evaluation forms distributed after the event had finished

FPGA-based built-in self test for a 4-bit BCD adder

In this paper, an FPGA-based built in self-test program for a 4-bit BCD adder is presented. The program can detect stuck at faults and bridging faults. The main components of the program include: circuit under test, main controller, test pattern generator, scan chain and the output response analyzer. For the stuck at fault, the main controller controls the test pattern generator which in turn sends out test patterns to the 4-bit BCD adder. In order to test the 4-bit BCD adder, the scan chain is inserted at each stage. The scan chain allows the test patterns to test each node of the BCD adder. The corresponding test output of the system is displayed in the LED’s found within the FPGA board. For the bridging fault, it cannot be implemented within the FPGA because it is a design rule violation of the FPGA itself, hence an external 2-bit adder circuit is instead constructed. The external circuit is connected to the FPGA, which contains the test pattern for this type of fault. Basically, the VHDL code used to test the stuck-at-faults is also used to test the bridging fault. The stuck-at-fault system detects the errors per node and it can detect varying faults from all nodes simultaneously. All stuck-at-one and stuck-at-zero faults were detected. The bridging fault can detect errors at the input level but detect only one error at a time