Thrive: Success Strategies for the Modern-Day Faculty Member

The THRIVE collection is intended to help faculty thrive in their roles as educators, scholars, researchers, and clinicians. Each section contains a variety of thought-provoking topics that are designed to be easily digested, guide personal reflection, and put into action. Please use the THRIVE collection to help: Individuals study topics on their own, whenever and wherever they want Peer-mentoring or other learning communities study topics in small groups Leaders and planners strategically insert faculty development into existing meetings Faculty identify campus experts for additional learning, grand rounds, etc. If you have questions or want additional information on a topic, simply contact the article author or email [email protected]://digitalcommons.unmc.edu/facdev_books/1000/thumbnail.jp

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

Using EMA and Physiological Data to Explore the Relationship between Day-to-Day Occupational Stress, Musculoskeletal Pain and Mental Health among University Staff: A Study Protocol

Exposure to work-related stressors is associated with poor physical and mental health outcomes for workers. The role of chronic stressors on health outcomes has been explored, but less is known about the potential role of exposure to day-to-day stressors on health. This paper describes the protocol for a study that aims to collect and analyze day-to-day data on work-related stressors and health outcomes. Participants will be workers engaged in predominantly sedentary work at a university. Self-report data on work-related stressors, musculoskeletal pain, and mental health will be collected three times per day for 10 work days through ecological momentary assessment via online questionnaires. These data will be combined with physiological data collected continuously via a wristband throughout the working day. The feasibility and acceptability of the protocol will be assessed via semi-structured interviews with participants and adherence to the study protocol. These data will inform the feasibility of using the protocol in a larger study to investigate the relationship between exposure to work-related stressors and health outcomes

“They take the fear out of failing”: Children’s and parents’ experiences of the Risky Kids program in Australia

Risky Kids is an Australian community-based program that seeks to build resilience in children and adolescents by teaching ‘risk intelligence’ through parkour, ninja, and free-running skills, underpinned by psychological approaches. The aim of this study was to explore children’s and parents’ experiences of the Risky Kids program. We interviewed 18 children aged 6-13 years and held three focus groups with 15 parents and caregivers across three sites (two metropolitan, one regional). Guided by phenomenological design, template analysis was used to generate codes, categories, and themes. We identified four overarching themes: (1) Learning to Navigate Risk; (2) Risky Kids is Different; (3) Coaches Facilitating Growth and Change, and (4) Stronger Minds and Bodies. Findings suggest that a facilitated risky play program can offer a supportive, safe space for children to develop confidence and resilience, and may particularly benefit children who prefer non-competitive group activities that nurture individual strengths and accommodates all abilities. Families reported that the program offered valuable opportunities to enhance children’s mental wellbeing, including social, emotional, and behavioural regulation. Large-scale quantitative evidence is required to examine children’s outcomes, including mechanisms of change

Tablet-based adaptation and administration of the Castles and Coltheart Reading Test 2 for a large longitudinal study.

Tablet-adapted measures provide an efficient, accurate method of data collection for large-scale studies. The Castles and Coltheart Reading Test 2 (CC2) is a standardized paper-and-pencil measure of children's reading ability. In the current study, the CC2 was administered to 603 children aged 7-8 years via iPad using electronic data capture software. Results indicate the tablet-adapted measure could be reliably administered by non-clinical staff and showed quantitative equivalence, i.e., comparable score distributions, to CC2 normative data. Internal consistency was good for regular and non-word lists. Findings suggest that the tablet-adapted CC2 is a viable tool for large research studies

Selective attrition in longitudinal studies:Effective processes for Facebook tracing

Participant attrition is a significant challenge for longitudinal studies, particularly those involving disadvantaged populations. We attempted to re-engage n = 990 families in a five-year follow-up of a randomised controlled trial of an early childhood parenting intervention. Tracing was attempted for n = 90/990 (9.1%) uncontactable participants. Evidence for the identification of a matching Facebook profile was classified as strong, moderate or weak. A private message was sent to those with strong evidence (n = 63/90, 70.0%), of which 32 responded, 22 agreed to participate and 19 provided data. Compared to participants engaged using traditional methods, those re-engaged through Facebook were more likely at initial recruitment to have a younger child (p =.02), to be a single parent (p =.04), less educated (p <.001), lower income (p =.01) and in an unemployed household (p <.001). Findings suggest that social media can be an effective engagement tool, helping to minimise overall and selective attrition in longitudinal studies, particularly for hard-to-reach populations.</p

Home-based step training using videogame technology in people with Parkinson’s disease: a single-blinded randomised controlled trial

Objectives: To determine whether 12-week home-based exergame step training can improve stepping performance, gait and complementary physical and neuropsychological measures associated with falls in Parkinson’s disease. Design: A single-blinded randomised controlled trial Setting: Community (experimental intervention), university laboratory (outcome measures). Subjects: Sixty community-dwelling people with Parkinson’s disease. Interventions: Home-based step training using videogame technology Main measures: The primary outcomes were the choice stepping reaction time test and Functional Gait Assessment. Secondary outcomes included physical and neuropsychological measures associated with falls in Parkinson’s disease, number of falls over sixmonths and self-reported mobility and balance. Results: Post intervention, there were no differences between the intervention (n=28) and control (n=25) groups in the primary or secondary outcomes except for the Timed Up and Go test, where there was a significant difference in favour of the control group (P=0.02). Intervention participants reported mobility improvement, whereas control participants reported mobility deterioration—between-group difference on an 11-point scale=0.9 (95% confidence interval: −1.8 to −0.1, P=0.03). Interaction effects between intervention and disease severity on physical function measures were observed (P=0.01 to P=0.08) with seemingly positive effects for the low-severity group and potentially negative effects for the high-severity group. Conclusion: Overall, home-based exergame step training was not effective in improving the outcomes assessed. However, the improved physical function in the lower disease severity intervention participants as well as the self-reported improved mobility in the intervention group suggest home-based exergame step training may have benefits for some people with Parkinson’s disease