Interpersonal Relationships as Sources of Medical Student Stress

Introduction The issue of physician impairment, that is , decreased ability or quality of functioning due to intemperate use of drugs or alcohol, emotional or psychiatric dysfunction, has recently received attention (1,5) . Studies have indicated the risks physicians face of substance abuse problems(6,7), marital discord(8,9), suicide (lO,ll), and psychiatric problems (l2-14). studies have also addressed the difficulties faced by medical students (15-20). A group of medical students at the University of North Carolina came together to investigate the subject of medical student impairment . A survey was constructed in order to ascertain the sources of stress in medical school. The results were used to develop a second survey instrument that was distributed to all students in the medical school and is presently being analyzed. A portion of the results are presented in this paper because of their unique focus on interpersonal relationships as sources of stress

Personal Stories

Ms. Jones and Mr. Lane joined as plaintiffs in Tennessee v. Lane. Ms. Jones, who uses a wheelchair, is a certified court reporter. She was compelled to decline employment because of her inability to gain access to several courtrooms and related facilities in at least 24 Tennessee counties. Mr. Lane, also a wheelchair user, was charged with a traffic violation in Polk County. The courtroom in which he was required to appear on the appointed morning was located on the second floor of a courthouse that was not equipped with an elevator. Mr. Lane crawled up two flights of stairs in order to reach the courtroom, only to have the case postponed until the afternoon session. Having returned to the first floor, he refused to crawl up the stairs a second time and, as a result, was jailed for contempt of court

Community-based Education: Health Promotion for Farmers at the Country Market

This article describes a unique approach used by baccalaureate nursing students, enrolled in a two-semester community health course, to address the priority of health concerns of agricultural workers in their own rural communities

A Comparative Study of Knots of Star Formation in Interacting vs. Spiral Galaxies

Interacting galaxies are known to have higher global rates of star formation on average than normal galaxies, relative to their stellar masses. Using UV and IR photometry combined with new and published H-alpha images, we have compared the star formation rates of ~700 star forming complexes in 46 nearby interacting galaxy pairs with those of regions in 39 normal spiral galaxies. The interacting galaxies have proportionally more regions with high star formation rates than the spirals. The most extreme regions in the interacting systems lie at the intersections of spiral/tidal structures, where gas is expected to pile up and trigger star formation. Published Hubble Telescope images show unusually large and luminous star clusters in the highest luminosity regions. The star formation rates of the clumps correlate with measures of the dust attenuation, consistent with the idea that regions with more interstellar gas have more star formation. For the clumps with the highest star formation rates, the apparent dust attenuation is consistent with the Calzetti starburst dust attenuation law. This suggests that the high luminosity regions are dominated by a central group of young stars surrounded by a shell of clumpy interstellar gas. In contrast, the lower luminosity clumps are bright in the UV relative to H-alpha, suggesting either a high differential attenuation between the ionized gas and the stars, or a post-starburst population bright in the UV but faded in H-alpha. The fraction of the global light of the galaxies in the clumps is higher on average for the interacting galaxies than for the spirals. Thus the star forming regions in interacting galaxies are more luminous, dustier, or younger on average.Comment: Astronomical Journal, in pres

Eye-Tracking in the Study of Visual Expertise: Methodology and Approaches in Medicine

Eye-tracking is the measurement of eye motions and point of gaze of a viewer. Advances in this technology have been essential to our understanding of many forms of visual learning, including the development of visual expertise. In recent years, these studies have been extended to the medical professions, where eye-tracking technology has helped us to understand acquired visual expertise, as well as the importance of visual training in various medical specialties. Medical decision-making involves a complex interplay between knowledge and sensory information, and the study of eye-movements can reveal the mechanisms involved in acquiring the visual component of these skills. Eye-tracking studies have even been extended to develop computational models of procedures for “expert” skill assessment, and to eliminate potential sources of error in image-based diagnostics. This review will examine the current eye-tracking frontier for the study of visual expertise, with specific application to medical professions

Nurse Beliefs And Other Influencing Variables On Nurses\u27 Intentions And Decisions Regarding

Despite decades of compelling evidence regarding patient and family interest to be with loved ones or the lack of detrimental effects from being together, some nurses are not convinced of the merits of family presence (FP). Implementation of family presence in adult ICUs remains controversial for nurses. The feelings of many nurses, who are gate keepers related to patient visitation, continue to influence restrictions and/or inconsistent visiting practices for patients and families. Some hospitals have begun to permit relatives to be present during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) of adult loved ones, yet the availability of unrestricted access beyond official ICU visiting hours for families continues to vary from one institution to another, one department to another within the same institution and even from one nurse to another within the same patient care unit. Because nurses are the epicenter of much of what goes on with patient care throughout the hospital in general and in particular, in intensive care units, it is important to understand how nurse beliefs and attitudes influence associated behaviors. This study examined relations between underlying beliefs and background factors through investigation and statistical analyses of the impact of nurse beliefs and influencing variables on unrestricted FP decisions that are made by ICU nurses. Guided by the TPB, findings revealed that beliefs are instrumental to attitudes and background factors are influential. Most importantly the study identified nurse perceptions regarding the impact of FP related to quality of care and patient safety

Minority College Women’s Views on Condom Negotiation

This study utilized quantitative and qualitative methods to (1) investigate the relationship between frequency of condom use and negotiation strategies and (2) evaluate experiences with condom negotiations among sexually active, heterosexual, African American college women. One hundred female students from a Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) completed a questionnaire that included the Condom Influence Strategies Scale (CIS) and participated in a focus group. An ANOVA was conducted to compare differences between never, inconsistent, and consistent condom users. Consistent condom users scored higher than never users on the “withholding sex” subscale of the CIS (4.88 vs. 3.55; p \u3c 0.001) as well as endorsed items more strongly on the “direct request” subscale of the CIS (4.63 vs. 3.82, p \u3c 0.05) than never users. A thematic analysis of open discussions identified overarching themes. Similarly, refusing sex and/or having direct communications with partner emerged as primary strategies. Threats to negotiation included deciding the “right timing” of discussion and having a previous history of sexual intercourse without a condom with their partner. Other key concepts that contribute to condom negotiation are the views that condoms are a male’s responsibility and stigma of women who carry condoms