Implementing brief interventions in health care: lessons learned from the Swedish Risk Drinking Project

The Risk Drinking Project was a national implementation endeavour in Sweden, carried out from 2004 to 2010, based on a government initiative to give alcohol issues a more prominent place in routine primary, child, maternity and occupational health care. The article describes and analyses the project. Critical factors that were important for the results are identified. The magnitude of the project contributed to its reach and impact in terms of providers’ awareness of the project goals and key messages. The timing of the project was appropriate. The increase in alcohol consumption in Sweden and diminished opportunities for primary prevention strategies since entry to the European Union in 1995 have led to increased expectations for health care providers to become more actively involved in alcohol prevention. This awareness provided favourable conditions for this project. A multifaceted approach was used in the project. Most educational courses were held in workshops and seminars to encourage learning-by-doing. Motivational interviewing was an integral aspect. The concept of risk drinking was promoted in all the activities. Subprojects were tailored to the specific conditions of each respective setting, building on the skills the providers already had to modify existing work practices. Nurses were afforded a key role in the project

Receiving an Alcohol Enquiry from a Physician in Routine Health Care in Sweden: A Population-Based Study of Gender Differences and Predictors

Research has shown that the provision of brief interventions in the health care system is effective for reducing hazardous drinking. Using a telephone-administered questionnaire, this study provides a population-based investigation on the extent to which physicians address patients’ alcohol habits in the Swedish health care system, whether there are gender differences in the extent to which patients receive questions about alcohol, and predictors for receiving such questions. Data were obtained from monthly telephone surveys with around 72,000 people in 2006–2009. Having received an alcohol enquiry was defined as having been asked about one’s drinking habits by a physician in any health care visit in the last 12 months. Fourteen percent of the total population had received an alcohol enquiry, but there were considerable gender differences: for hazardous drinkers, 13% of the women and 17% of the men had received an alcohol enquiry; among those with sensible alcohol consumption, 10% of women and 15% of men had received an alcohol enquiry. Patients were more likely to have received an alcohol enquiry if they had self-reported alcohol-related problems, were hazardous drinkers and/or daily smokers. Some of the alcohol enquiry predictors differed by gender; social class was an important predictor for women but not for men

Alcohol assessment and feedback by email for university students: main findings from a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Brief interventions can be efficacious in changing alcohol consumption and increasingly take advantage of the internet to reach high-risk populations such as students. AIMS: To evaluate the effectiveness of a brief online intervention, controlling for the possible effects of the research process. METHOD: A three-arm parallel groups design was used to explore the magnitude of the feedback and assessment component effects. The three groups were: alcohol assessment and feedback (group 1); alcohol assessment only without feedback (group 2); and no contact, and thus neither assessment nor feedback (group 3). Outcomes were evaluated after 3 months via an invitation to participate in a brief cross-sectional lifestyle survey. The study was undertaken in two universities randomising the email addresses of all 14 910 students (the AMADEUS-1 study, trial registration: ISRCTN28328154). RESULTS: Overall, 52% (n = 7809) of students completed follow-up, with small differences in attrition between the three groups. For each of the two primary outcomes, there was one statistically significant difference between groups, with group 1 having 3.7% fewer risky drinkers at follow-up than group 3 (P = 0.006) and group 2 scoring 0.16 points lower than group 3 on the three alcohol consumption questions from the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT-C) (P = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides some evidence of population-level benefit attained through intervening with individual students

Stability of glycoprotein gene sequences of herpes simplex virus type 2 from primary to recurrent human infection, and diversity of the sequences among patients attending an STD clinic

Background: Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is sexually transmitted, leading to blisters and ulcers in the genito-anal region. After primary infection the virus is present in a latent state in neurons in sensory ganglia. Reactivation and production of new viral particles can cause asymptomatic viral shedding or new lesions. Establishment of latency, maintenance and reactivation involve silencing of genes, continuous suppression of gene activities and finally gene activation and synthesis of viral DNA. The purpose of the present work was to study the genetic stability of the virus during these events. Methods: HSV-2 was collected from 5 patients with true primary and recurrent infections, and the genes encoding glycoproteins B,G,E and I were sequenced. Results: No nucleotide substitution was observed in any patient, indicating genetic stability. However, since the total number of nucleotides in these genes is only a small part of the total genome, we cannot rule out variation in other regions. Conclusions: Although infections of cell cultures and animal models are useful for studies of herpes simplex virus, it is important to know how the virus behaves in the natural host. We observed that several glycoprotein gene sequences are stable from primary to recurrent infection. However, the virus isolates from the different patients were genetically different

Improving Adult Learning

Three institutions for adult teaching, Kaunas Region Educational Centre, Lithuania, EURO Training, vocational Center, Greece, and Nesna University College, Norway have since 2002 been working together on the project “The Modules for Improving Professional and Social Competence for Adults” - IMPROCOMAS for short. Socrates, Grundvig, has founded the project. The aims of the project have been the preparation of two modules: 1. Guides in the professional career of adults; 2. The methods and methodology in adult education. The target groups for the modules are teachers of adults, educational staff, and professionals responsible for in-service teacher training. There is a special emphasis on the educators of adult learners in suburban and periphery areas. This publication is the result of the work on Module 2, and the content of this anthology is “methods and methodology in adult education”. The aims are to introduce teachers to the specifics of adult education, and to present the main teaching and studying methods and their applications, and to be able to help adult educators to prepare themselves in theory and practice to apply the modules in adult education

High-Intensity Training Reduces CVD Risk Factors among Rotating Shift Workers: An Eight-Week Intervention in Industry

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Влияние параметров угловой фрезы на ее напряженно-деформированное состояние

Материалы XII Междунар. науч. конф. студентов, магистрантов, аспирантов и молодых ученых, Гомель, 16–17 мая 2019 г

Prosjektering av autonom USV for 1. Minerydderskvadron

Gjennom denne oppgaven har vi prosjektert et autonomt modulbasert fartøy som skal kunne løse flere oppgaver knyttet til fremtidens konsept for minemottiltaks operasjoner. Metoden vi har brukt i denne oppgaven baseres på en forenklet utgave av PRINSIX, som er forsvarets prosjektsstyringsmodell. Vi har lagt hovedvekt på Konsept- og Definisjonsfase, basert på en innledende idefase. Vi har gjennom konseptfasen kartlagt hvilke behov vi har for å sikre oss mot minetrusler og oppsummert hvilke kapabiliteter nestegenerasjons minemottiltaks struktur må kunne håndtere. Basert på dette viser vi hvordan bruken av autonome plattformer vil gi en operativ fordel. Gjennom definisjonsfasen har vi drøftet hvordan ulik teknologi kommer til anvendelse om bord og hvilke løsninger som vil være best egnet til dette formålet. Resultatet av dette har ført til utarbeidelse av ikke funksjonelle krav som er basert på vår drøfting av anbefalte tekniske løsninger. Resultatet av oppgaven har vist at dette prosjektet er realiserbart og tilfredsstiller de nødvendige kravene til systemkapabiliteter. Vi tror at utviklingen av et slik konsept innen minemottiltaks segment vil være med på å danne grunnlaget for kompetanse om teknologi som også kan benyttes innen andre formål i Sjøforsvaret på en modifisert måte

Maternal body composition in relation to twinning

Monozygotic (MZ) twinning is considered to be a random event whereas spontaneous dizygotic (DZ) twinning is influenced by several factors. Thus, secular changes in twinning rates are usually explained by changes in DZ twinning alone. Maternal body mass index (BMI) before pregnancy and maternal height are believed to be significant drivers of twinning. Our aim in this study was to explore to what degree maternal body composition influences twinning. Data on births and maternal height and BMI from the Medical Birth Registry Norway (MBRN) was analyzed applying multivariate logistic regression analysis. The results showed that increasing maternal BMI and height has a positive association with twinning. There is an increased risk of DZ twinning for a maternal BMI > 25, OR 1.31-1.43 and for maternal height ≥ 173 cm, OR 1.28. In explaining secul