Role of Physicians in Addressing Food Insecurity in Vermont Seniors

Introduction: This study investigated Vermont physicians’ awareness of - and engagement in – addressing food insecurity experienced by their elderly patients. This information is needed to better understand the role physicians play in solving this problem and to know how education and access to services could ensure that the needs of elders are met in a culturally sensitive manner. Many elders must choose between paying bills, buying medication or buying food. Some elders are unaware that they qualify for food assistance, or would feel stigmatized using it. Nationally, 56% of physicians reported that they were not knowledgeable about food insecurity. Food insecurity can be screened for by using Hunger Free Vermont’s Two Question Screen. Screening, followed by a multidisciplinary team approach with contributions from dietitians, geriatricians, social workers and psychologists may be the most effective way of assessing at-risk patients.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1214/thumbnail.jp

Learning styles of Myers-Briggs Type Indicators

This research study illustrated that personlaity type influences learning type.The study compared the personalities expressed in Myers-Briggs Type Indicator(MBTI)to Felder and Silverman's(1998)Index of Learning Styles(ILS).Phase one was a combined MBTI and ILS assessment that was administered to 105 participants.To further define learning style,phase two was a follw-up questionnaire administered to 37 participants and was based on Goley's(1982)Learning Pattern(LP)assessment.The research did indicate a correlation between specific dichotomies of MBTI,ILS and LP.The Extravert and Introvert dichotomy in MTBI appeared to correlate with the Active and Reflective dichotomy in ILS.Furthermore,a relationship emerged for MBTI Sensing and the ILS Sensory dichotomy,although no connection appeared in MBTI and the ILS Intuitive dichotomies.Moreover,participants who preferred MBTI Sensing dichotomy generally preferred Sequential learning.Participants with Intuitive personality in MBTI appeared to be either Sequential or Global learners.Finally,it was interesting to note that 68% of the participants scored as Visual as opposed to Verbal learners.The findings indicated personality does affect leaning styles.Curriculum designers and corporate trainers should consider personality in their training.Although the number of participants was small,the findings were significant enough to indicate that further research could improve training effectiveness and should be conducted.Juanita Jane Cohen.Gilberti, AnthonyCrowder,CynthiaYaw, Dorothy CaroleMaster of ScienceDepartment of Technology ManagementCunningham Memorial library, Terre Haute,Indiana State UniversityILL-ETD-023MastersTitle from document title page. Document formatted into pages: contains 67 p.: ill. Includes abstract and appendix

Accurate PCR detection of influenza A/B and respiratory syncytial viruses by use of Cepheid Xpert Flu+RSV Xpress Assay in point-of-care settings: Comparison to Prodesse ProFlu+

ABSTRACT The Xpert Flu+RSV Xpress Assay is a fast, automated in vitro diagnostic test for qualitative detection and differentiation of influenza A and B viruses and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) performed on the Cepheid GeneXpert Xpress System. The objective of this study was to establish performance characteristics of the Xpert Flu+RSV Xpress Assay compared to those of the Prodesse ProFlu+ real-time reverse transcription-PCR (RT-PCR) assay (ProFlu+) for the detection of influenza A and B viruses as well as RSV in a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA)-waived (CW) setting. Overall, the assay, using fresh and frozen nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs, demonstrated high concordance with results of the ProFlu+ assay in the combined CW and non-CW settings with positive percent agreements (PPA) (100%, 100%, and 97.1%) and negative percent agreements (NPA) (95.2%, 99.5%, and 99.6%) for influenza A and B viruses and RSV, respectively. In conclusion, this multicenter study using the Cepheid Xpert Flu+RSV Xpress Assay demonstrated high sensitivities and specificities for influenza A and B viruses and RSV in ∼60 min for use at the point-of-care in the CW setting. </jats:p

The alignment of the polarization of HAe/Be stars with the interstellar magnetic field

We present a study of the correlation between the direction of the symmetry axis of the circumstellar material around intermediate mass young stellar objects and that of the interstellar magnetic field. We use CCD polarimetric data on 100 Herbig Ae/Be stars. A large number of them shows intrinsic polarization, which indicates that their circumstellar envelopes are not spherical. The interstellar magnetic field direction is estimated from the polarization of field stars. There is an alignment between the position angle of the Herbig Ae/Be star polarization and that of the field stars for the most polarized objects. This may be an evidence that the ambient interstellar magnetic field plays a role in shaping the circumstellar material around young stars of intermediate mass and/or in defining their angular momentum axis.Comment: ApJ accepte

The Experiences of Mid-career and Seasoned Orchestral Musicians in the UK During the First COVID-19 Lockdown

The introduction of social distancing, as part of efforts to try and curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, has brought about drastic disruption to the world of the performing arts. In the UK the majority of professional orchestral musicians are freelance and therefore self-employed. These players, previously engaged in enjoyable, busy, successful, portfolio careers, are currently unable to earn a living carrying out their everyday work of performing music, and their future working lives are surrounded by great uncertainty. The aim of the present study was to examine how established professional musicians are experiencing this period, and to look for similarities and differences between the experiences of musicians in the middle of their performing careers (aged 35–45), with those of older players (aged 53 and over). Single semi-structured interviews were carried out over Zoom with 24 freelance, self-employed orchestral musicians; 12 mid-career musicians aged 35–45, and 12 seasoned musicians aged 53 and over. Thematic analysis identified themes common to both groups: the loss of a much-loved performing career, missing music making and colleagues, and anxiety about the future of the music profession. It also identified differences between the two groups: challenges to their identity as a musician, the extent of their anxiety about finances, the extent of their emotional distress, attitudes toward practicing and engaging in collaborative music making, and confusion over future career plans. Findings are discussed with reference to lifespan models of musicians' career development, the PERMA model of wellbeing, and the concept of resilience