A randomized comparison of branded sodium stibogluconate and generic sodium stibogluconate for the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis under field conditions in Sudan.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the outcome of treatment of Sudanese kala-azar patients treated under field conditions with either branded sodium stibogluconate (SSG) (Pentostam GlaxoWellcome) or generic SSG (Albert David Ltd, Calcutta, supplied by International Dispensary Association, Amsterdam). METHOD: Randomised comparison. 271 patients were treated with Pentostam and 245 with generic SSG. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences in cure rate or mortality were detected between Pentostam and generic SSG. No differences in side-effects between the two drugs were noted. The initial cure rate at the time of discharge was 93.7 and 97.6%, respectively; the death rate during treatment 5.9 and 2.4%. Six months follow up was achieved in 88.5% of the discharged patients. Two patients had died in the Pentostam group and two had died in the generic SSG group, giving a final death rate of 7.5 and 3.7%. The number of relapses in the Pentostam and generic SSG groups were 3 and 1, respectively. The final cure rates, calculated at 6 months after discharge, were 91.3% and 95.9%. CONCLUSION: No difference was observed in the performance of generic SSG compared to Pentostam for the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis in Sudan. Generic SSG can be routinely and safely used for the treatment of kala-azar. Generic SSG costs only 1/14 of the price of Pentostam. The use of generic SSG may make treatment of kala-azar affordable for national governments in Africa

Using academic notebooks to support achievement and promote positive environments in differentiated classrooms

Authors Examine How the Use of Academic Notebooks Impacts Collaborative Learning Experiences of Young Adolescent

Upper Extremity Evaluation & Intervention through the Utilization of Occupation-based Activities within the Model of Human Occupation Perspective

Title: Upper Extremity Evaluation & Intervention Through the Utilization of Occupation-based Activities within the Model of Human Occupation Perspective. Background: The importance of upper extremity rehabilitation is vital for clients to be able to reengage in their valued occupations that were affected due to a recent injury, illness, or surgery. Upper extremity fractures make up approximately 590,000 fractures annually in the USA (Napora et al., 2020). Clients with these types of conditions seek therapy to help improve their ability to gain back function within their body and daily lives. Through this process, clients are asked to perform various exercises that can assist with range of motion, strength, and endurance. However, upper extremity practitioners tend to rely on the use of rote exercises to help clients gain the skills they need to participate in daily activities (Hanson & Maudal, 2020; Robinson et al., 2016). Such reliance on biomechanical interventions is problematic as research has shown clients are more motivated when they perform activities that they find meaningful within their lives than when they perform exercises (Grice, 2015; Robinson et al., 2016; White, 2013). These exercises are often packaged in a program clients complete at home, called home exercise programs (HEPs). These programs are given to clients to perform at home so that they can work on their skills at home that are needed for safe engagement in daily activities. However, adherence to HEPs that supply rote exercises was found to be less compared to an occupationbased approach that allowed clients to engage in daily activities that also combined the targeted skill (White, 2013). The lack of time and resources can disrupt a client’s ability to practice on the skills they need, however, creating occupation-based HEPs can help assist with adherence while providing activities at home that the client can incorporate into their daily routines. Purpose: The purpose of this scholarly project was created to provide clients with occupationbased HEPs that will allow them to engage in valued activities that will assist them in gaining skills that they need. The intended audience for this product is for students currently working in their fieldwork placements and new occupational therapists to provide clients with different HEPs, while also creating their own based on the client’s interests and roles within their lives. Methodology: The product was developed following a review of literature that showed need for increased occupation-based approaches within the upper extremity rehabilitation setting. The product materials were organized based on the Model of Human Occupation (MOHO; O’Brien, 2017), biomechanical frame of reference (Grice, 2021), and the andragogical learning theory (Bastable et al., 2020). Conclusion: The results of the literature review and direct interactions with clients who had varying upper extremity conditions guided the development of the product, the Occupationbased Home Exercise Programs. This product contains occupation-based HEPs that target a variety of skills while incorporating daily activities that the client can practice at home within their daily routines. Additionally, the product includes a background on MOHO and the biomechanical frame of reference that helps justify the occupation-based approach to better assist clients with reengagement in valued activities. Instructions are provided for future students and new practitioners to create occupation-based HEP. This product assists with solving the problem of reduced adherence to HEPs by incorporating activities within a client’s routine to work on skills that are functional and valu

W&L Law Fall Scholarship Celebration 2019

On October 15, 2019, the Washington and Lee Law Library hosted the third bi-annual W&L Law Fall Scholarship Celebration. The event was co-sponsored by the Frances Lewis Law Center and took place in the Law Library\u27s main reading room from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. On display were dozens of scholarly articles, books, and chapters authored by the W&L Law faculty and student body during 2018 and 2019, with hundreds of additional works accessible online through the Scholarly Commons institutional repository. Faculty, librarians, staff, and administrators mingled with law students over hors d\u27oeuvres and wine to peruse the formidable scholarly output of the W&L Law community. Spouses, alumni, faculty from W&L\u27s undergraduate campus, and others with ties to the University were also in attendance. Brant J. Hellwig, dean of W&L Law, and Christopher B. Seaman, director of the Frances Lewis Law Center, provided welcoming remarks introduced by W&L Law Library director Alex Zhang. The event program, which includes a list of the scholarship on display, is available to download in PDF. Photos taken at the event are also available to view in the W&L Law Scholarly Commons Image Gallery

Job Satisfaction: Are Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives Beneficial And Do Different Governance Structures Matter?

The non-financial benefits of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives remain an understudied controversy in the literature.  We draw on elements of stakeholder theory to investigate the effect of multiple CSR initiatives on job satisfaction for a widespread set of medium-sized Canadian companies.  We explore this relationship further by focusing on the moderating effects of governance control structures.  Data on these variables is captured through the lens of CFO/controller perceptions because of their intimate governance gatekeeping over firms’ control structure/systems.  In this respect, we assume that CFOs are among the instrumental drivers in advancing an organization’s unfolding social consciousness.  Research findings in this study reveal the criticality of examining this linkage within the context of the performance-based versus conformance-based dimensions of an organization’s corporate governance control structure – two governance dimensions championed by the International Federation of Accountants (2009).  Results for low/high levels of performance-based control structures manifest different interaction configurations of statistically significant CSR variables that heighten job satisfaction.  However, significant interaction effects under low/high levels featuring compliance-based control structures are not forthcoming, despite the presence of significant main effects in the CSR/job satisfaction relationship.  These findings offer firms a more comprehensive practical understanding of benefits associated with investments in particular CSR strategies while grooming specific control structures, as well as offering researchers new control variables to model in the CSR domain.&nbsp