The If Men Project – The Design and Implementation of a Healthy Masculinity Curriculum for Young Men

This paper examines the creation of the If Men Project, a healthy masculinity training curriculum aimed at young men. The If Men Projectseeks to create a better world by helping young men find a stronger sense of their own identity in a way that creates positive relationships with everyone around them. In short, it helps young men be good men. The paper will track the creation process from my own social justice journey, through the conception of the project, the design of the training, multiple implementations of it, and finally to the reflections and learnings that came from this capstone project. Ideally this paper will serve multiple purposes for the reader. First, it will show the personal journey of one social justice trainer, including the challenges, successes, and learnings along the way. Second, it will offer an example of a social justice training that seeks to create change by targeting members of a privileged group early on, in a way that seeks to enlist them as allies and proponents of equity. As I believe this type of training to be uncommon, having this example and a consideration of its applications will be a valuable addition to our collective pool of knowledge. Third, it will provide insight for other trainers and social justice workers into ways that they can adapt their own work to better serve different target populations, and when this might be valuable to do. Finally, it is my sincere hope that this paper will, through reflections on my own learnings, give all readers some ideas that they can bring into their own lives and relationships to help on their own journey of personal growth

What Difference Does Tuition Make? An Analysis of Ethnic Differences in Persistence

During the past two decades tuition charges have climbed faster than inflation while the federal investment in student grants has declined. There is reason to question whether this new financial environment is more problematic for African Americans as compared to European Americans. This study examines the effects of tuition and student aid on persistence by European American and African American college students. We found that differences in student price response to tuition helps explain differences in persistence rates for African Americans compared to European Americans

Updated meta-review of evidence on support for carers

Abstract Background Policy and research interest in carers continues to grow. A previous meta-review, published in 2010, by Parker et al. (Parker G, Arksey H, Harden M. Meta-review of International Evidence on Interventions to Support Carers. York: Social Policy Research Unit, University of York; 2010) found little compelling evidence of effectiveness about specific interventions and costs. Objective To update what is known about effective interventions to support carers of ill, disabled or older adults. Design Rapid meta-review. Setting Any relevant to the UK health and social care system. Participants Carers (who provide support on an unpaid basis) of adults who are ill, disabled or older. Interventions Any intervention primarily aimed at carers. Main outcome measures Any direct outcome for carers. Data sources Database searches (including Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, MEDLINE, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts and Social Care Online) for systematic reviews published from January 2009 to 2016. Review methods We used EndNote X7.4 (Thomson Reuters, CA, USA) to screen titles and abstracts. Final decisions on the inclusion of papers were made by two reviewers independently, using a Microsoft Excel® 2013 spreadsheet (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, USA). We carried out a narrative synthesis structured by patient condition and by seven outcomes of interest. We assessed the quality of the included systematic reviews using established criteria. We invited a user group of carers to give their views on the overall findings of our review. Results Sixty-one systematic reviews were included (27 of high quality, 25 of medium quality and nine of low quality). Patterns in the literature were similar to those in earlier work. The quality of reviews had improved, but primary studies remained limited in quality and quantity. Of the high-quality reviews, 14 focused on carers of people with dementia, four focused on carers of those with cancer, four focused on carers of people with stroke, three focused on carers of those at the end of life with various conditions and two focused on carers of people with mental health problems. Multicomponent interventions featured prominently, emphasising psychosocial or psychoeducational content, education and training. Multiple outcomes were explored, primarily in mental health, burden and stress, and well-being or quality of life. Negative effects following respite care were unsupported by our user group. As with earlier work, we found little evidence on intervention cost-effectiveness. No differences in review topics were found across high-, medium- and low-quality reviews. Limitations The nature of meta-reviews precludes definitive conclusions about intervention effectiveness, for whom and why. Many of the included reviews were small in size and authors generally relied on small numbers of studies to underpin their conclusions. The meta-review was restricted to English-language publications. Short timescales prevented any investigation of the overlap of primary studies, and growth in the evidence base since the original meta-review meant that post-protocol decisions were necessary. Conclusions There is no ‘one size fits all’ intervention to support carers. Potential exists for effective support in specific groups of carers. This includes shared learning, cognitive reframing, meditation and computer-delivered psychosocial support for carers of people with dementia, and psychosocial interventions, art therapy and counselling for carers of people with cancer. Counselling may also help carers of people with stroke. The effectiveness of respite care remains a paradox, given the apparent conflict between the empirical evidence and the views of carers. Future work More good-quality, theory-based, primary research is warranted. Evidence is needed on the differential impact of interventions for various types of carers (including young carers and carers from minority groups), and on the effectiveness of constituent parts in multicomponent programmes. Further research triangulating qualitative and quantitative evidence on respite care is urgently required. The overlap of primary studies was not formally investigated in our review, and this warrants future evaluation. Study registration This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42016033367. Funding The National Institute for Health Research Health Services and Delivery Research programme

Method and Apparatus for Remote Delivery and Manipulation of a Miniature Tool Adjacent a Work Piece in a Restricted Space

An apparatus for remote delivery and manipulation of a miniature tool adjacent a work piece in a restricted space, includes a tool camer, a camage for manipulating the tool carrier relative to the work piece, a first actuator for operating the carnage, and an optional remote secondary operating actuator for operating the first actuator

A Preliminary Investigation of Job Satisfaction of Compliance Officers at NCAA Division II Institutions

https://kent-islandora.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/node/9967/8859-thumbnail.jpgIdentifying what job characteristics influence employee satisfaction requires the ability to effectively study the environment that influences the sense of belonging and a fulfillment of social needs. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate aspects of employment that influence job satisfaction of NCAA Division II compliance officers. Job satisfaction was measured by the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS), which consisted of nine subscale measures that relate to employee job satisfaction and strongly examines perceptual and attitudinal variables (Spector, 1997).&nbsp;Participants for this study consisted of 206 NCAA Division II compliance officers. Descriptive analysis was conducted to determine to what degree NCAA Division II compliance officers express their job satisfaction. Results suggested that supervision, co-workers, and nature of work were the three highest-ranking measures of job satisfaction. The compliance officers appeared satisfied when given autonomy over their job, played a greater role in organizing the environment of intercollegiate athletics and had productive work relationships with athletic staff.</p

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Data Collection in Oncology Practice: Findings of an ASCO Survey

PURPOSE: Lack of collection of sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) data in oncology practices limits assessment of sexual and gender minority (SGM) cancer patients\u27 experiences and restricts opportunities to improve health outcomes of SGM patients. Despite national calls for routine SOGI data collection, individual-level and institutional barriers hinder progress. This study aimed to identify these barriers in oncology. METHODS: An online survey of ASCO members and others assessed SOGI data collection in oncology practices, institutional characteristics related to SOGI data collection, respondents\u27 attitudes about SOGI data and SGM patients, and respondent demographics. Logistic regression calculated adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% CIs for factors associated with sexual orientation (SO) and gender identity (GI) data collection. RESULTS: Less than half of 257 respondents reported institutional SO and GI data collection (40% and 46%, respectively), whereas over a third reported no institutional data collection (34% and 32%, respectively) and the remainder were unsure (21% and 17%, respectively). Most respondents felt that knowing both SO and GI was important for quality care (77% and 85%, respectively). Collection of SO and GI was significantly associated in separate models with leadership support (ORs = 8.01 and 6.02, respectively), having resources for SOGI data collection (ORs = 10.6 and 18.7, respectively), and respondents\u27 belief that knowing patient SO and GI is important (ORs = 4.28 and 2.76, respectively). Themes from qualitative comments mirrored the key factors identified in our quantitative analysis. CONCLUSION: Three self-reinforcing factors emerged as critical drivers for collecting SOGI data: leadership support, dedicated resources, and individual respondents\u27 attitudes. Policy mandates, implementation science, and clinical reimbursement are strategies to advance meaningful data collection and use in clinical practice