Chinese American college graduates in the Great Recession : an exploratory study

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the ways in which the Great Recession has affected Chinese American, recent college graduates in their career development. The person-in-environment perspective of clinical social work was the foundation for this study: it was expected that the negative economic effects of the Great Recession have changed the occupational landscape for Chinese American recent college graduates, which has had an effect on their mental health and personal relationships. Participants were recruited through snowball sampling, and 12 individuals were interviewed regarding their career-related experiences after graduation. All participants identified as Chinese American and graduated with an undergraduate bachelor\u27s level degree (B.A., B.S., etc) from a U.S. college or university in 2010, 2011, 2012, or 2013. The findings of this research showed that respondents faced numerous obstacles to employment and graduate school admission, including long periods of unemployment and highly competitive graduate school pools. They coped with discouragement and frustration by accessing family and peer support. Results indicated that the collectivist orientation was significant among the respondents. Furthermore, the underuse of mental health resources was common. Implications of this study include the need for further exploration of the collectivist orientation among Chinese American young adults and the ongoing need to address the underutilization of mental health resources among Chinese Americans

Sunday Friends: The Working Alternative to Charity

Sunday Friends is a non-profit organization in San José, California, that provides multiple activities for families who are in need of financial support. Given the particular location of the program, most families are Latino and bilingual. Participants and program volunteers form a community at an elementary school on a couple of scheduled Sundays each month. When family members participate in activities designed to educate, improve skills, and to give back to the larger community, they earn tickets that they can redeem for items that they need and want from the Sunday Friends store. Activities include healthy cooking projects, “Thank You Letter” writing, English-as-a-Second-Language programs, crafts, and education in nutrition and financial literacy. The program’s central focus is to empower families to break out of poverty. A specific guiding principal is the developmental assets approach promoted by the Search Institute in Minneapolis (http://www.search-institute.org/). This approach encourages individuals and organizations to work together toward a common goal of supporting the healthy development of all children and youth. Healthy development is conceptualized as consisting of the development of external assets (i.e., support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations, constructive activities) and internal assets (i.e., commitment to learning, positive values, social competencies, and positive identity). The 2009 evaluation’s primary focus was on whether Sunday Friends was succeeding at fostering developmental assets for children. Other relevant indicators of success were perceptions of program effectiveness, regard for program activities, and nutrition and healthy eating habits. Data were gathered from family members (adults and minors) during program activities using written surveys administered by volunteers to the research team (most of whom were bilingual). The families were recruited in person by program staff onsite. The questionnaires were written in English and Spanish (with the choice made by respondents). Sunday Friends volunteers were recruited to the study via email by Sunday Friends staff. They completed questionnaires through an online survey platform. In all, 74 parents or guardians, 67 children or youth, and 45 volunteers participated in the data collection. Across the three sets of surveys (parents or guardians, children or youth, and volunteers), there are fairly consistent results. The families and volunteers in the Sunday Friends program believe that Sunday Friends is effectively engaging them and meeting its goals. Overall, children and youth report positive experiences at Sunday Friends. On every dimension of psychological well-being, connectedness with others, and self-efficacy, the answers provided by children and youth indicate that Sunday Friends is promoting developmental assets. In addition, parents and guardians report that Sunday Friends has positive influences on their lives. The majority of measures, whether questions about self-efficacy, the effect of Sunday Friends on their children, or improved nutrition for their family, indicate that Sunday Friends is meeting its goals. Finally, volunteers agree that the program makes an important contribution to the lives of both children and adults. They also feel that Sunday Friends enhances their awareness of the community and contributes to making their personal lives more meaningful. The survey results presented here should be interpreted with caution because all persons surveyed were continuing participants in the program, and the cross-sectional data could not detect changes over time. Despite this caution, each group’s data and triangulation across family and volunteer surveys reveal that milestones are accomplished at Sunday Friends. It is safe to conclude that Sunday Friends’ community-based approach to empowering parents and youths is achieving its goals

Effect of PAR-2 Deficiency in Mice on KC Expression after Intratracheal LPS Administration

Protease activated receptors (PAR) have been shown to play a role in inflammation. PAR-2 is expressed by numerous cells in the lung and has either proinflammatory, anti-inflammatory, or no effect depending on the model. Here, we examined the role of PAR-2 in a model of LPS-induced lung inflammation. We found that PAR-2-deficient mice had significantly less KC expression in bronchial lavage fluid compared with wild-type mice but there was no difference in MIP-2 or TNF-α expression. We also found that isolated alveolar and resident peritoneal macrophages lacking PAR-2 showed a similar deficit in KC after LPS stimulation without differences in MIP-2 or TNF-α. Infiltration of neutrophils and macrophages into the lung following LPS administration was not affected by an absence of PAR-2. Our results support the notion that PAR-2 plays a role in LPS activation of TLR4 signaling in macrophages

An ANGPTL4-ceramide-protein kinase Cζ axis mediates chronic glucocorticoid exposure-induced hepatic steatosis and hypertriglyceridemia in mice.

Chronic or excess glucocorticoid exposure causes lipid disorders such as hypertriglyceridemia and hepatic steatosis. Angptl4 (angiopoietin-like 4), a primary target gene of the glucocorticoid receptor in hepatocytes and adipocytes, is required for hypertriglyceridemia and hepatic steatosis induced by the synthetic glucocorticoid dexamethasone. Angptl4 has also been shown to be required for dexamethasone-induced hepatic ceramide production. Here, we further examined the role of ceramide-mediated signaling in hepatic dyslipidemia caused by chronic glucocorticoid exposure. Using a stable isotope-labeling technique, we found that dexamethasone treatment induced the rate of hepatic de novo lipogenesis and triglyceride synthesis. These dexamethasone responses were compromised in Angptl4-null mice (Angptl4-/-). Treating mice with myriocin, an inhibitor of the rate-controlling enzyme of de novo ceramide synthesis, serine palmitoyltransferase long-chain base subunit 1 (SPTLC1)/SPTLC2, decreased dexamethasone-induced plasma and liver triglyceride levels in WT but not Angptl4-/- mice. We noted similar results in mice infected with adeno-associated virus-expressing small hairpin RNAs targeting Sptlc2. Protein phosphatase 2 phosphatase activator (PP2A) and protein kinase Cζ (PKCζ) are two known downstream effectors of ceramides. We found here that mice treated with an inhibitor of PKCζ, 2-acetyl-1,3-cyclopentanedione (ACPD), had lower levels of dexamethasone-induced triglyceride accumulation in plasma and liver. However, small hairpin RNA-mediated targeting of the catalytic PP2A subunit (Ppp2ca) had no effect on dexamethasone responses on plasma and liver triglyceride levels. Overall, our results indicate that chronic dexamethasone treatment induces an ANGPTL4-ceramide-PKCζ axis that activates hepatic de novo lipogenesis and triglyceride synthesis, resulting in lipid disorders

Understanding System-Level Intervention Points to Support School Food and Nutrition Policy Implementation in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Supporting the implementation of school food and nutrition policies (SFNPs) is an international priority to encourage healthier eating among children and youth. Such policies can improve equitable access, resources, and supports for healthy eating. However, despite the potential impact of SFNPs, several implementation barriers have been reported. This study sought to examine the system-level intervention points within a school food system using a complex systems framework. We conducted semi-structured interviews with various stakeholders working to influence the school food system in Nova Scotia, Canada. We sought to understand their roles and experiences with the SFNP by applying the Intervention Level Framework (ILF), a novel, solutions-oriented approach to better understand how complex systems function. Participants (n = 33) included teachers, parents, cafeteria workers, public health staff and non-profit organizations. Interview transcripts were first coded, then themed and finally analyzed using the ILF, resulting in three intervention points within the school food system. These were defined as: (1) Actors and Elements, (2) System Regulation and Interconnections and (3) Purpose and Values. We concluded that understanding the interactions between these system levels and stakeholder roles can help to inform the development of relevant policy strategies that better support healthier school food environments in this jurisdiction

Risk of radiogenic second cancers following volumetric modulated arc therapy and proton arc therapy for prostate cancer

Prostate cancer patients who undergo radiotherapy are at an increased risk to develop a radiogenic second cancer. Proton therapy has been shown to reduce the predicted risk of second cancer when compared to intensity modulated radiotherapy. However, it is unknown if this is also true for the rotational therapies proton arc therapy and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT). The objective of this study was to compare the predicted risk of cancer following proton arc therapy and VMAT for prostate cancer. Proton arc therapy and VMAT plans were created for three patients. Various risk models were combined with the dosimetric data (therapeutic and stray dose) to predict the excess relative risk (ERR) of cancer in the bladder and rectum. Ratios of ERR values (RRR) from proton arc therapy and VMAT were calculated. RRR values ranged from 0.74 to 0.99, and all RRR values were shown to be statistically less than 1, except for the value calculated with the linear-non-threshold risk model. We conclude that the predicted risk of cancer in the bladder or rectum following proton arc therapy for prostate cancer is either less than or approximately equal to the risk following VMAT, depending on which risk model is applied. © 2012 Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine

Newcomer families' experiences with programs and services to support early childhood development in Canada: A scoping review

It can be difficult for families with young children to navigate early childhood development supports. In particular, newcomer families often encounter additional barriers and require resources, programs, and services that are tailored to their unique assets, experiences, and needs. We conducted a scoping review of the literature published between 2000 and 2019 to explore what is known about newcomer families’ experiences with programs and services to support early childhood development in Canada. We searched 12 databases, screened 2390 articles, and included 34 articles for synthesis and analysis. Three common and connected themes were identified: 1) effective intercultural understanding, responsiveness, and communication are critical to ensuring full access to meaningful programs and services; 2) some newcomer families face systemic barriers exacerbated by their immigration status, and; 3) feelings and perceptions of families and service providers, as well as social supports, networks, and relationships influence how programs and services are accessed and experienced. Our review identifies the requirement for additional, participatory research that centres the voices and perspectives of newcomer children and their families and the need to expand that research to less populated and rural areas of the country to inform meaningful and culturally relevant policies, programs, and services for newcomer families to support their children’s well-being

Planting the Seed : Perceived Benefits of and Strategies for Discussing Long-Term Prognosis with Older Adults

OBJECTIVES: To characterize the goals and approaches of clinicians with experience discussing long-term prognostic information with older adults. DESIGN: We used a semistructured interview guide containing 2 domains of perceived benefits and strategies to explore why and how clinicians choose to discuss long-term prognosis, defined as life expectancy on the scale of years, with patients. SETTING: Clinicians from home-based primary care practices, community-based clinics, and academic medical centers across San Francisco. PARTICIPANTS: Fourteen physicians, including 11 geriatricians and 1 geriatric nurse practitioner, with a mean age of 40 and a mean 9 years in practice. MEASUREMENTS: Clinician responses were analyzed qualitatively using the constant comparisons approach. RESULTS: Perceived benefits of discussing long-term prognosis included establishing realistic expectations for patients, encouraging conversations about future planning, and promoting shared decision-making through understanding of patient goals of care. Communication strategies included adapting discussions to individual patient preferences and engaging in multiple conversations over time. Clinicians preferred to communicate prognosis in words and with a visual aid, although most did not know of a suitable visual aid. CONCLUSION: Engaging in customized longitudinal discussions of long-term prognosis aids clinicians in anchoring conversations about future planning and preparing patients for the end of life