Casts for Creating Success: An Activity Manual for Pediatric Modified Constraint-Induced Movement Therapy

Unilateral paralysis or paresis of an upper extremity can cause gross and fine motor functional impairments. These impairments can severely impact bilateral function of the upper extremities, thereby affecting a child’s participation in daily activities. Modified constraint-induced movement therapy (mCIMT) is an emerging and potentially effective treatment for children with unilateral upper extremity impairment that can profoundly improve their functional ability. Thus, the purpose of this project was to create an activity manual for occupational therapists to conduct a mCIMT program for children with unilateral upper extremity impairment through Children’s Therapy Unit at Good Samaritan Hospital in collaboration with the University of Puget Sound. This manual includes progressively graded gross and fine motor activities that promote active functional use of the involved upper extremity for unilateral and bilateral tasks. The manual was designed to provide ease of access for therapists to set-up, conduct, and grade the mCIMT activities up or down depending on the child’s motor function

Recurrence of Ganglion Cysts Following Re-excision

Previous studies have examined the recurrence of ganglion cysts after surgical excision at a rate of 4 to 40%. However, recurrence after revision surgical excision is unknown. The purpose of this study was to define the incidence of recurrent ganglion cysts in patients who underwent a 2nd excisional procedure.https://jdc.jefferson.edu/cwicposters/1032/thumbnail.jp

Impact of ambient oxygen on the surface structure of α-Cr2O3(0001)

Surface x-ray diffraction has been employed to quantitatively assess the surface structure of α-Cr2O3(0001) as a function of oxygen partial pressure at room temperature. In ultrahigh vacuum, the surface is found to exhibit a partially occupied double layer of chromium atoms. At an oxygen partial pressure of 1×10−2 mbar, the surface is determined to be terminated by chromyl species (CrO), clearly demonstrating that the presence of oxygen can significantly influence the structure of α-Cr2O3(0001)

Predicted structures of agonist and antagonist bound complexes of adenosine A_3 receptor

We used the GEnSeMBLE Monte Carlo method to predict ensemble of the 20 best packings (helix rotations and tilts) based on the neutral total energy (E) from a vast number (10 trillion) of potential packings for each of the four subtypes of the adenosine G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), which are involved in many cytoprotective functions. We then used the DarwinDock Monte Carlo methods to predict the binding pose for the human A_3 adenosine receptor (hAA_3R) for subtype selective agonists and antagonists. We found that all four A_3 agonists stabilize the 15th lowest conformation of apo-hAA_3R while also binding strongly to the 1st and 3rd. In contrast the four A_3 antagonists stabilize the 2nd or 3rd lowest conformation. These results show that different ligands can stabilize different GPCR conformations, which will likely affect function, complicating the design of functionally unique ligands. Interestingly all agonists lead to a trans χ1 angle for W6.48 that experiments on other GPCRs associate with G-protein activation while all 20 apo-AA_3R conformations have a W6.48 gauche+ χ1 angle associated experimentally with inactive GPCRs for other systems. Thus docking calculations have identified critical ligand-GPCR structures involved with activation. We found that the predicted binding site for selective agonist Cl-IB-MECA to the predicted structure of hAA_3R shows favorable interactions to three subtype variable residues, I253^(6.58), V169^(EL2), and Q167^(EL2), while the predicted structure for hAA_(2A)R shows weakened to the corresponding amino acids: T256^(6.58), E169^(EL2), and L167^(EL2), explaining the observed subtype selectivity

Culturally Responsive Teaching: Teacher Candidates Identify What’s Important

Honorable Mention Winner Teacher preparation programs prepare teacher candidates (TC) with clinically rich field experiences. These programs prepare teachers to teach groups of students that are culturally, racially, and linguistically diverse. The TCs that participated in this study were in the first semester of the elementary program and were concerned with an experience that would be remote. COVID-19 impacted the experiences of the TCs by removing the field component during the Fall 2020 semester. The candidates were not provided access in the elementary schools to complete the practical experiences due to the districts’ pandemic guidelines. Due to the lack of exposure to diverse elementary students, the researchers wondered what the TCs would be interested in learning during a remote semester. This study was framed around culturally responsive teaching (CRT) and Geneva Gay’s five CRT essential elements. The TCs completed a survey in which they identified five items from the Culturally Responsive Teaching Self-Efficacy Scale (CRTSE) that they were most interested in learning during a pandemic semester. There was inconsistency in what culturally responsive teaching items the TCs were most interested to learn. Implications for the study were discussed

Domestic Workers and Collective Bargaining: A Proposal for Immediate Inclusion of Domestic Workers in the New York State Labor Relations Act

Since 2000, Domestic Workers United (DWU), a community-based organization of 4000 nannies, housekeepers, and elder caregivers, has organized for power and fair labor standards, building a movement for change. This summer, DWU's efforts culminated in a historic victory: New York became the first state in the nation to pass a Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. In accordance with this new law, the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) is to prepare a report by November 1, 2010 on the feasibility of collective bargaining in the domestic-work industry. As domestic workers are currently excluded from collective-bargaining laws, DWU has begun to study what inclusion would mean and which models of collective bargaining would function best in this industry. Based on DWU's research and as an appropriate next step after the passage of the Bill of Rights, DWU recommends that the New York State Legislature amend Section 701(3) of the State Labor Relations Act (SLRA) by December 31, 2010 to eliminate the exclusion of domestic workers. The DOL and the Legislature should also ensure that the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB), the SLRA's governing body, has the flexibility and authority necessary to determine bargaining structures for this sector. This report documents the inconsistent, informal, and uncertain nature of domestic employment and concludes that domestic workers need the right to collectively bargain. Inclusion under the SLRA would represent more than a symbolic gesture: the law's important protections would allow New York State's domestic workforce to lead the way in exploring collective bargaining

Additional Powers of Search and Seizure at and near the Border

In normal practice, the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution requires individualized suspicion together with procurement of a warrant prior to a government search and/or seizure. Federal courts have recognized some exceptions, however, with the most common one pertaining at the nation’s borders, where most stops and searches are exempt from the usual requirements. That exception is justified by the understanding that a sovereign nation has the power to control who and what comes within its borders. This article describes practices related to searches and seizures at and near the border. A lengthy discussion of U.S. practices is followed by a brief discussion of Canadian practices

Preventing respiratory viral transmission in long-term care: Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of healthcare personnel

OBJECTIVETo examine knowledge and attitudes about influenza vaccination and infection prevention practices among healthcare personnel (HCP) in a long-term-care (LTC) setting.DESIGNKnowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) survey.SETTINGAn LTC facility in St Louis, Missouri.PARTICIPANTSAll HCP working at the LTC facility were eligible to participate, regardless of department or position. Of 170 full- and part-time HCP working at the facility, 73 completed the survey, a 42.9% response rate.RESULTSMost HCP agreed that respiratory viral infections were serious and that hand hygiene and face mask use were protective. However, only 46% could describe the correct transmission-based precautions for an influenza patient. Correctly answering infection prevention knowledge questions did not vary by years of experience but did vary for HCP with more direct patient contact versus less patient contact. Furthermore, 42% of respondents reported working while sick, and 56% reported that their coworkers did. In addition, 54% reported that facility policies made staying home while ill difficult. Some respondents expressed concerns about the safety (22%) and effectiveness (27%) of the influenza vaccine, and 28% of respondents stated that they would not get the influenza vaccine if it was not required.CONCLUSIONSThis survey of staff in an LTC facility identified several areas for policy improvement, particularly sick leave, as well as potential targets for interventions to improve infection prevention knowledge and to address HCP concerns about influenza vaccination to improve HCP vaccination rates in LTCs.Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2017;38:1449–1456</jats:sec

The Impact Of Merit Pay On Teaching And Research Outcomes Of Accounting Programs

Basing the compensation of accounting professors on merit pay in order to encourage better teaching, research and service is controversial. This study uses data from a survey of the 852 accounting programs in the United States to empirically examine the influence of merit-based salary plans. Findings indicate a strong positive association between the presence of a merit plan at a school and the quality of the school’s research outcomes. However, no association was found between the presence of a merit program at a school and the school’s teaching outcomes

A Mental Health Workforce Crisis: Roadmap for Enhancing Recruitment & Retention in Minnesota, Iowa & Wisconsin

Building and maintaining an adequate mental health workforce requires successful recruitment and retention of qualified workers. Identifying recruitment and retention factors specific to behavioral health providers is essential in determining strategies for increasing the rural health behavioral workforce. The World Health Organization estimates there are 1.18 million additional mental health workers needed to end the mental health treatment gap between patients and providers worldwide. In the U.S., there has been a nationwide shortage of mental health professionals, and this shortage is more pronounced in rural communities,with twenty percent of rural areas lacking mental health services, compared to five percent of metropolitan areas. In 2013, there were 45,580 psychiatrists practicing in the United States. About fifty-nine percent of psychiatrists are 55 years old or older, and many are soon to retire, creating even more of a nationwide shortage of experts in prescribing psychotropic medications. By 2025, approximately 20,470 new psychiatrists will enter the workforce, but around the same number are likely to leave the workforce due to retirement in the Baby Boomer generation. Projections indicate there will be approximately 370 less psychiatrists nationwide by 2025 than are currently practicing, increasing the shortage of psychiatrists to approximately 6,080, despite projections for overall mental health patient population growth. By 2025, shortages of mental health professions are projected as follows: 8,220 psychologists, 16,940 mental health and substance abuse social workers, 3,740 school counselors, and 2,440 marriage and family therapists nationwide. The shortage of psychiatrists in the U.S. is driven in part by a growing need for behavioral health services. Table 1 below demonstrates why it is “imperative to consider the availability of psychiatric services, particularly because the entire subject of mental illness has for so long been avoided by both policy makers and the public.