The Role of Reusable Learning Objects in Occupational Therapy Entry-Level Education

Out of early research, Cisco Systems (1999) have built an impressive foundation that advocates for reusable learning objects (RLOs). As the need for online methods for delivering both formal and informal educational content has increased, the prospect of greater influence through carefully constructed RLOs has grown. RLOs are any digital resource that can be used and reused to enhance online learning. RLOs typically are small, discrete, self-contained digital objects that may be sequenced, combined, and used within a variety of instructional activities. RLOs have been implemented in nursing, pharmacy, and physician assistant programs. However, there is a lack of literature regarding RLOs in occupational therapy education. An attitudinal survey was administered to occupational therapy students after they had used an RLO focused on goal writing. Student preferences toward RLO content, instructional design, and eLearning were generally positive. Nearly three-quarters of the students who responded to the survey indicated that the RLO presented was beneficial. All respondents noted that they would use the RLO for future occupational therapy courses. It is argued that incorporating RLOs offers a cost-effective, efficient learning tool, and also adds credibility to the given curriculum program as being innovative with instructing occupational-therapy related concepts

Pathways for Healing: An Online Therapeutic Support Group Program

Pathways for Healing: An Online Therapeutic Support Group Program (OTSG) is for women, ages 18 to 65 years old, diagnosed with chronic pelvic floor dysfunction (PFD). The program focuses on women living in Texas rural communities with limited access to mental health providers. The aim for this study is to determine if an OTSG program, utilizing narrative therapy (NT) within a biopsychosocial-spiritual lens (BPS-S) will improve overall health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Support groups are provided in English and Spanish, over the course of 12 weeks, facilitated by a licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT) and licensed pelvic floor physical therapist (PFPT). Administering pre and post-tests (before 1st session, after the 6th and 12th session, and 3- and 6-months post group participation), data is collected utilizing: 1) The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy Measurement System (FACIT-SP), 2) Pelvic Floor Impact Questionnaire-Short Form 7 (PFIQ), 3) Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory- Short Form 20 (PFDI-20), 4) Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), 5) RAND 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36), 6) Check-In, Check-Out Oral Report (CICO), and 7) Survey for Participants. Data will determine if the OTSG program decreases anxiety and depression, improves overall HRQOL, and decreases chronic PFD symptoms. Keywords: pelvic floor dysfunction, online therapeutic support group, health-related quality of life, medical family therapy, Texas rural communities and therapy, integrative therapy, biopsychosocial-spiritual, narrative therapy

Detection of Tick-borne Pathogens in Lab Reared Tick Colonies and Wild Populations

Oklahoma State University has a Tick Rearing Facility that sells ticks worldwide. Ticks carry many pathogens that cause disease in animals. PCR protocols were developed in order to set up routine screening of the tick colonies for tick-borne pathogens commonly carried by ticks in Oklahoma. Of the six species reared, three were tested, Amblyomma americanum, Ixodes scapularis, and Dermacentor variabilis. A few wild populations were screened as well. They were screened for five pathogens, Ehrlichia chaffeensis, Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Rickettsia rickettsii and Francisella tularensis. A method for DNA extraction was also developed using DNAzol� Direct (Molecular Research Center, Inc., Cincinnati, OH) and a beadbeater with zirconium/silica microbeads. Most screenings were negative with one positive for Ehrlichia chaffeensis in a wild tick. Positives for Rickettsia amblyommii and Rickettsia montanensis were found in Amblyomma americanum and Dermacentor variabilis. These initial results showed that the colony ticks are free of the five pathogens of interest, but contain related species which may have a symbiotic role with the ticks.Entomology & Plant Pathology (MS

Overview of Instructional Technology Used in the Education of Occupational Therapy Students: A Survey Study

The purpose of this study was to explore the type of instructional technology (IT) master’s degree level occupational therapy educational programs routinely use as a part of their lecture- and laboratory-based instruction. Surveying the administrators of 121 graduate occupational therapy programs in the United States, we found that the majority of the respondents identified their program as using IT in some form for lecture-based courses, with less inclusion of IT for laboratory-based courses. Hybrid instruction, with the majority of the content being delivered face-to-face and the remainder via online, were the trends among the respondents. The findings also indicated that the respondents’ programs avoid certain IT, including synchronous online chat rooms or instant messaging, digital image collections, blogs or online journaling, Wikis, and audio/video podcasting. Few of the respondents said their programs had made a significant leap into implementing a larger online presence with instructional technology

Northeast Conference on Andean Archaeology and Ethnohistory (NCAAE) Statement on Sexual harassment and Community Values

This is a statement on sexual harassment and community values signed by eight members of the Northeast Conference on Andean Archaeology and Ethnohistory (NCAAE)https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/andean_past_special/1008/thumbnail.jp

Prevalencia de los patrones electroforéticos de hemoglobina analizados en el CIHATA durante el período 2011-2013.

Las hemoglobinopatías son alteraciones de las cadenas de globina que componen la hemoglobina, dentro de las alteraciones más comunes destacan las talasemias y la drepanocitosis. En el CIHATA se realizó un estudio retrospectivo de las muestras analizadas por electroforesis de hemoglobina durante el período 2011-2013, en donde se obtuvo un total de 2345 muestras analizadas, de las cuáles el patrón electroforético más frecuente fue el de Hb AA2, con un valor de A2 promedio de (4.8±0.8)%, compatible con el diagnóstico de β talasemia menor; seguido por el patrón asociado a portadores de Hb S. En menor cantidad se observaron resultados de Hb AC, AF, AA2F, entre otros. Los patrones se distribuyeron a lo largo del país pero localizados mayormente en la región central (sesgo relacionado a mayor área de atracción). Es importante la detección de los patrones anormales, pues aunque no se asocien con un cuadro clínico, en condiciones de hipoxia o estrés fisiológico si se pueden presentar complicaciones graves y sobre todo para brindar consejo genético. Esta actualización brinda un panorama de la frecuencia de hemoglobinopatías circulantes en Costa Rica durante los últimos años. Se debe procurar la recopilación de información clínica, y demográfica completa de todos los pacientes, con el fin de hacer reportes de caso completos que puedan ayudar en el óptimo abordaje diagnóstico de los pacientes y familiares

Analysis of STAT1 Activation by Six FGFR3 Mutants Associated with Skeletal Dysplasia Undermines Dominant Role of STAT1 in FGFR3 Signaling in Cartilage

Activating mutations in FGFR3 tyrosine kinase cause several forms of human skeletal dysplasia. Although the mechanisms of FGFR3 action in cartilage are not completely understood, it is believed that the STAT1 transcription factor plays a central role in pathogenic FGFR3 signaling. Here, we analyzed STAT1 activation by the N540K, G380R, R248C, Y373C, K650M and K650E-FGFR3 mutants associated with skeletal dysplasias. In a cell-free kinase assay, only K650M and K650E-FGFR3 caused activatory STAT1(Y701) phosphorylation. Similarly, in RCS chondrocytes, HeLa, and 293T cellular environments, only K650M and K650E-FGFR3 caused strong STAT1 activation. Other FGFR3 mutants caused weak (HeLa) or no activation (293T and RCS). This contrasted with ERK MAP kinase activation, which was strongly induced by all six mutants and correlated with the inhibition of proliferation in RCS chondrocytes. Thus the ability to activate STAT1 appears restricted to the K650M and K650E-FGFR3 mutants, which however account for only a small minority of the FGFR3-related skeletal dysplasia cases. Other pathways such as ERK should therefore be considered as central to pathological FGFR3 signaling in cartilage

Inhaled corticosteroid use is associated with increased circulating tregulatory cells in children with asthma

BACKGROUND: T regulatory (Treg) cells are important in balancing immune responses and dysregulation of Treg cells has been implicated in the pathogenesis of multiple disease states including asthma. In this study, our primary aim was to determine Treg cell frequency in the peripheral blood of children with and without asthma. The secondary aim was to explore the association between Treg cell frequency with allergen sensitization, disease severity and medication use. METHODS: Peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy control subjects (N = 93) and asthmatic children of varying disease severity (N = 66) were characterized by multi-parameter flow cytometry. RESULTS: Our findings demonstrate that children with asthma had a significantly increased frequency of Treg cells compared to children without asthma. Using a multivariate model, increased Treg cell frequency in children with asthma was most directly associated with inhaled corticosteroid use, and not asthma severity, allergic sensitization, or atopic status of the asthma. CONCLUSION: We conclude that low dose, local airway administration of corticosteroids is sufficient to impact the frequency of Treg cells in the peripheral blood. These data highlight the importance of considering medication exposure when studying Treg cells and suggest inhaled corticosteroid use in asthmatics may improve disease control through increased Treg cell frequency

History of Periodontitis Diagnosis and Edentulism as Predictors of Cardiovascular Disease, Stroke, and Mortality in Postmenopausal Women

BACKGROUND: Few studies have reported associations between periodontitis and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in older women, which is the objective of the present investigation. METHODS AND RESULTS: Participants were 57 001 postmenopausal women ages 55 to 89 years (mean 68 years; \u3e 85% 60 and older) who were enrolled (1993-1998) in the Women\u27s Health Initiative Observational Study, and were without known CVD when history of periodontitis and edentulism was assessed by questionnaire at study Year-5 (1998-2003). There were 3589 incident CVD events and 3816 total deaths during a mean follow-up of 6.7 years. In multivariable analysis, periodontitis was not associated with CVD events, but was associated with higher total mortality (hazard ratio (HR)=1.12, 95% CI: 1.05-1.21). Edentulism was associated with higher age- and smoking-adjusted risks of CVD (HR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.27-1.59) and mortality (HR=1.47, 95% CI: 1.32-1.63). Further adjustment eliminated the association with CVD, but mortality remained significantly increased (HR=1.17, 95% CI: 1.02-1.33). Stratification on age, race-ethnicity, smoking, and diabetes mellitus yielded comparable results; however, edentulism was more strongly associated with CVD in women reporting \u3e /=1 dental visit (HR=1.57) compared with (HR 1.03, interaction P=0.004) annually. CONCLUSIONS: In community-dwelling older women, edentulism was associated with increased risks of CVD and total mortality, and presence of periodontitis, which is more prevalent than edentulism, was associated with 17% higher mortality rate. These findings suggest that improving periodontal condition of the general population could reduce overall mortality