Lessons Learned from Implementing Unconscious Bias Training at an Academic Medical Center

Introduction. In 2018, our Midwestern university medical center began offering unconscious bias training. Each session concluded with a standard evaluation. We analyzed two years of data that focused on three areas: 1) whether demographic differences or amount of prior knowledge on the topic influenced the training experience; 2) what participants liked best about the training; and 3) whether participants’ stated intentions to apply their learning at the end of the training aligned with institutional goals of the training. Methods. Participants attended sessions open to the campus community pre-scheduled by the Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and posted on its website. Chi-square tests were utilized to test associations between outcomes and questionnaire responses. Outcome measures included race/ethnicity, prior knowledge level, and overall rating of the training. Thematic analysis was used to code comments and establish themes from two open-ended survey questions. Results. Significant differences were found by race and ethnicity for all questionnaire responses; each were p < 0.001. Those who reported they had advanced/expert knowledge on the topic were less likely to report the training increased their knowledge, and those who reported their race as White/Caucasian tended to give the training the highest overall rating, as did heterosexuals. Through thematic analysis, participants valued the interactive nature of the training sessions, the use of storytelling, and the safety of the learning environment. Participants’ intention to apply their learning indicated they had gained general awareness of bias and settings where it might influence their work. Conclusions. In an effort to foster a better working and learning environment for those who are underrepresented in the health professions, training was provide that may not have met the expectations of all participants. At the same time, participants who identified as White clearly increased their awareness of bias. Therefore, it is recommended to move away from one-size-fits-all unconscious bias training and develop a robust training continuum to provide ongoing advancement for diverse audiences

Performance results of a digital test signal generator

Performance results of a digital test signal-generator hardware-demonstration unit are reported. Capabilities available include baseband and intermediate frequency (IF) spectrum generation, for which test results are provided. Repeatability in the setting of a given signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) when a baseband or an IF spectrum is being generated ranges from 0.01 dB at high SNR's or high data rates to 0.3 dB at low data rates or low SNR's. Baseband symbol SNR and carrier SNR (Pc/No) accuracies of 0.1 dB were verified with the built-in statistics circuitry. At low SNR's that accuracy remains to be fully verified. These results were confirmed with measurements from a demodulator synchronizer assembly for the baseband spectrum generation, and with a digital receiver (Pioneer 10 receiver) for the IF spectrum generation

Gadir/Gades, hinge among two worlds: Maritime trade dynamics between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean

Durante los siglos IV y III a.C. la ciudad de Gadir experimentó una fase de transición desde un modelo económico expansivo y floreciente hacia otro más regional, limitado y “de vocación atlántica”, que obligó a reorientar a las élites locales sus alianzas, su modo de vida y su papel frente a Cartago y sus aliados, y a otras ciudades del sur de Iberia y del ámbito del Estrecho. Sin embargo, las fuentes literarias del período tardorrepublicano subrayan la prosperidad de la ciudad de la época. Gades se presentaba, en efecto, como uno de los puertos más importante de esa época, gracias a la actividad de su rica élite de comerciantes y armadores en particular. En las dos últimas décadas nuevos descubrimientos arqueológicos han permitido caracterizar y entender cómo la ciudad púnica (y sus estructuras económicas) transitaron hacia la de nuevo floreciente bahía tardorrepublicana, que fue capaz de albergar algunas de las mayores fortunas del período augusteo. Nuestra contribución tiene como objetivo ofrecer una reflexión panorámica y una actualización de la interpretación del papel de la bahía gaditana como intermediario imprescindible en el diálogo económico y cultural establecido entre el mundo mediterráneo y la región atlántica entre el final del periodo púnico y la fase tardorrepublicana. Centrándonos en diversos casos de estudio y en el examen de las dinámicas del comercio marítimo, analizamos cómo la posición geoestratégica de la ciudad, en un punto bisagra entre dos dominios marítimos y dos continentes, fue determinante para consolidar su papel de potencia regional entre los siglos IV-III a.C. y cómo se hizo aún más importante en el contexto de la expansión romana, un proceso que las antiguas élites fenicias supieron canalizar y aprovechar en su beneficio.During the 4th and 3rd centuries BC the city of Gadir underwent a time of transition from an expansive and flourishing economic model to a more regional, limited and “Atlantic-oriented” one, which forced the local elites to reorganize their alliances, their lifestyle and their role facing Carthage and its allies, and other cities in the south of Iberia and in the Straits of Gibraltar area. However, the literary sources of the late Republican period emphasize the prosperity of the city at that time. Gades was indeed one of the most important ports of that period, in particular due to the activity of its wealthy elite of merchants and ship-owners. In the last two decades new archaeological discoveries have allowed a better understanding of how the Punic city (and its economic structures) transited towards the once again flourishing late-Republican bay, which was able to produce some of the greatest fortunes of the Augustan period. Our contribution aims to offer a panoramic view and an update of the interpretation of the role of the Bay of Cadiz as an essential intermediary in the economic and cultural dialogue established between the Mediterranean world and the Atlantic region between the late Punic and late Republican periods. Focusing on various case studies and the examination of the maritime trade dynamics, the paper analyses how the geostrategic position of the city, at a crossroad between two maritime realms and two continents, was decisive in consolidating its role as a regional power between the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. and how it became even more important in the context of the Roman expansion, a process that the ancient Phoenician elites were able to guide and exploit to their advantage

Nuevas aportaciones a la corología de la flora vascular del noroeste ibérico

Se incluye un catálogo de 27 taxones de plantas vasculares, en su mayor parte correspondientes a la cuenca alta del río Tea (Pontevedra). En cada taxon se indica el interés de la cita de acuerdo con las referencias de Flora iberica, www. programanthos. org y de la bibliografía consultada, que amplían su distribución en España. Cinco de las referencias corresponden a otras localidades de Galicia o de León, tales como, Pteris incompleta Cav. (Pontevedra), Sambucus ebulus L. (Pontevedra), Polygala exilis DC. (León), Coleostephus clausonis Pomel (Coruña), Hieracium boreale Fries (Coruña), correspondientes a herborizaciones puntuales

Dos nuevas subespecies del género Jasione L. (Campanulaceae) en el Noroeste de la Peninsula Iberica

Se propone la división de Jasione montana L. en dos subespecies: subsp. montana y subsp. paivae (nova) en base al diferente número cromosómico encontrado y a las diferencias morfológicas detectadas. También se propone la división de Jasione maritima (Duby) Merino en tres subespecies: subsp. maritima, subsp. sabularia y subsp. finisterrae (nova), división basada en la cantidad de DNA y las diferencias encontradas en los caracteres morfológicos estudiados

Diazepam or midazolam i.v. to control anxiety in TMJ arthrocentesis

In this study we evaluated an anaesthesia technique utilized for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) arthrocentesis. More specifically, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of oral premedication with chlordemethyldiazepam (CDDZ) followed by diazepam or midazolam i.v. administration for anxiety control. 20 patients scheduled for TMJ arthrocentesis were studied. Surgical tratment provided the introduction of hyaluronic acid into the TMJ and was repeated once to five consecutive times in the same patient. Anxiety management was performed by means of 2 mg oral CDDZ, followed by diazepam or midazolam i.v. titration

Learning to assess from pair-wise comparisons

In this paper we present an algorithm for learning a function able to assess objects. We assume that our teachers can provide a collection of pairwise comparisons but encounter certain difficulties in assigning a number to the qualities of the objects considered. This is a typical situation when dealing with food products, where it is very interesting to have repeatable, reliable mechanisms that are as objective as possible to evaluate quality in order to provide markets with products of a uniform quality. The same problem arises when we are trying to learn user preferences in an information retrieval system or in configuring a complex device. The algorithm is implemented using a growing variant of Kohonen’s Self-Organizing Maps (growing neural gas), and is tested with a variety of data sets to demonstrate the capabilities of our approac

Evaluation of COX-2, EGFR, and p53 as biomarkers of non-dysplastic oral leukoplakias

[Abstract] Objective. Identify candidate SEBs (surrogate endpoint biomarkers) for premalignant trends in head and neck mucosa. Study design. Study, by qPCR (quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction), the expression of COX-2, EGFR and p53 in 24 biopsies of non-dysplastic oral leukoplakia and contra-lateral normal-appearing mucosa. Results. COX-2 was up-regulated in leukoplakia (79.2%); whereas EGFR and p53 were up-regulated (p > 0.05) in oral contra-lateral normal-appearing mucosa (60% and 46% respectively). Also, p53 expression was correlated with tobacco smoke habits and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient showed a positive linear correlation between p53 and EGFR mRNA expression levels. Conclusions. COX-2 would serve as SEB of oral leukoplakia. The results suggest that p53 appears to be one of the molecular targets of tobacco-related carcinogens in leukoplakia and that the co-expression of p53 and EGFR may play a role in this kind of oral pre-cancerous lesion. More detailed studies of EGFR and p53 should be continued in the future

Comportamiento de combinaciones portainjerto–cultivar de plantas jóvenes de manzanos de bajo requerimiento de horas de frío en San Luis del Palmar (Corrientes – Argentina).

Desde el año 2001 se cultivan en San Luis del Palmar (Corrientes) manzanos de bajo requerimiento de horas de frío. Pocos son los antecedentes de este cultivo en el Nordeste Argentino y si bien los hay en Cerro Azul (Misiones), de donde provienen los cultivares y combinaciones, las características agro ecológicas de ambas localidades son sustancialmente diferentes. Con el objetivo de evaluar el comportamiento de combinaciones portainjerto–cultivar de manzanos de bajos requerimientos de horas de frio en San Luis del Palmar (Corrientes), se realizaron determinaciones vegetativas y productivas del cultivo durante las campañas 2003/2004; 2004/2005 y 2005/2006. Se estudiaron tres cultivares: “Anna”, “Eva” y “Caricia” combinados con tres portainjertos: “EM9”, “MM111” y “Pie Correntino (PC)”. De las combinaciones evaluadas la que presentó mayor eficiencia de cultivo fue Anna/EM9 (eficiencia promedio de las tres campañas 279 g cm-2 ) y la de menor eficiencia Eva/MM111 (eficiencia promedio de las tres campañas 117.83 g cm-2). El cultivo de manzanos de bajos requerimientos de horas de frío es factible en las condiciones agroecológicas de San Luis del Palmar – Corrientes y la combinación más eficiente fue Anna/EM9

Dietary patterns and risk of ductal carcinoma of the breast: A factor analysis in Uruguay

Breast cancer (BC) shows very high incidence rates in Uruguayan women. The present factor analysis of ductal carcinoma of the breast, the most frequent histological type of this malignancy both in Uruguay and in the World, was conducted at a prepaid hospital of Montevideo, Uruguay. We identified 111 cases with ductal BC and 222 controls with normal mammograms. A factor analysis was conducted using 39 food groups, allowing retention of six factors analyzed through logistic regression in order to obtain odds ratios (OR) associated with ductal BC. The low fat and non-alcoholic beverage patterns were inversely associated (OR=0.30 and OR=0.45, respectively) with risk. Conversely, the fatty cheese pattern was positively associated (OR=4.17) as well as the fried white meat (OR=2.28) and Western patterns (OR 2.13). Ductal BC shared similar dietary risk patterns as those identified by studies not discriminating between histologic type of breast cancer