Leadership Development of Students through an Integrated Student Organization Structure in a College of Pharmacy

Pharmacy is a profession that requires those who practice to be very well educated within their specialty. However, it is equally important for pharmacists to conduct themselves as professionals in all that they do so they can retain the trust of the public and the professionals with whom they deal on a daily basis. In addition, pharmacists are frequently called on to serve in leadership roles in several forums – professional associations, civic clubs, health-related voluntary organizations and a wide variety of other community or religious organizations

Multiple Bosses: Challenges and suggestions to improve organizational environments in academic settings.

Practice faculty members are often supervised by more than one individual, creating a reporting structure that mirrors a matrix organization. They are tasked with balancing administrative and teaching responsibilities established by the school with expectations of maintaining a pharmacy practice site. A matrix reporting structure offers opportunities for enhanced development, but risks of additional stress from the organizational complexity must be mitigated to reduce job dissatisfaction. Frequent and consistent communication, mutual agreement and alignment of expectations and priorities, and the ability to manage conflict and adapt to change will aid pharmacy practice faculty in managing the relationship between their primary employer (the school) and the contracted entity. Conflict of Interest We declare no conflicts of interest or financial interests that the authors or members of their immediate families have in any product or service discussed in the manuscript, including grants (pending or received), employment, gifts, stock holdings or options, honoraria, consultancies, expert testimony, patents and royalties.   Type: Original Researc

Current status and best practices of shared governance in US pharmacy programs

© 2020, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. All rights reserved. Objective. To characterize shared governance in US schools and colleges of pharmacy and recom-mend best practices to promote faculty engagement and satisfaction. Findings. The literature review revealed only one study on governance in a pharmacy school and some data from an AACP Faculty Survey. Of the 926 faculty members who responded to the survey, the majority were satisfied or very satisfied with faculty governance (64%) and the level of input into faculty governance (63%) at their school. Faculty members in administrative positions and those at public institutions were more satisfied with governance. The forum resulted in the development of five themes: establish a clear vision of governance in all areas; ensure that faculty members are aware of their roles and responsibilities within the governance structure; ensure faculty members are able to join committees of interest; recognize and reward faculty contributions to governance; and involve all full-time faculty members in governance, regardless of their tenure status. Summary. Establishing shared governance within a school or college of pharmacy impacts overall faculty satisfaction and potentially faculty retention

Plasmodium falciparum transmission and aridity: a Kenyan experience from the dry lands of Baringo and its implications for Anopheles arabiensis control

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The ecology of malaria vectors particularly in semi-arid areas of Africa is poorly understood. Accurate knowledge on this subject will boost current efforts to reduce the burden of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa. The objective of this study was to describe the dynamics of malaria transmission in two model semi-arid sites (Kamarimar and Tirion) in Baringo in Kenya.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Adult mosquitoes were collected indoors by pyrethrum spray collections (PSC) and outdoors by Centers for Disease Control (CDC) light traps and identified to species by morphological characteristics. Sibling species of <it>Anopheles gambiae </it>complex were further characterized by rDNA. PCR and enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assays (ELISA) were used to test for <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>circumsporozoite proteins and host blood meal sources respectively.</p> <p>Results</p> <p><it>Anopheles arabiensis </it>was not only the most dominant mosquito species in both study sites but also the only sibling species of <it>An. gambiae s.l. </it>present in the area. Other species identified in the study area were <it>Anopheles funestus</it>, <it>Anopheles pharoensis </it>and <it>Anopheles coustani</it>. For Kamarimar but not Tirion, the human blood index (HBI) for light trap samples was significantly higher than for PSC samples (Kamarimar, 0.63 and 0.11, Tirion, 0.48 and 0.43). The HBI for light trap samples was significantly higher in Kamarimar than in Tirion while that of PSC samples was significantly higher in Tirion than in Kamarimar. Entomological inoculation rates (EIR) were only detected for one month in Kamarimar and 3 months in Tirion. The number of houses in a homestead, number of people sleeping in the house, quality of the house, presence or absence of domestic animals, and distance to the animal shelter and the nearest larval habitat were significant predictors of <it>An. arabiensis </it>occurrence.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Malaria transmission in the study area is seasonal with <it>An. arabiensis </it>as the dominant vector. The fact this species feeds readily on humans and domestic animals suggest that zooprophylaxis may be a plausible malaria control strategy in semi-arid areas of Africa. The results also suggest that certain household characteristics may increase the risk of malaria transmission.</p

The World Federation of ADHD International Consensus Statement:208 Evidence-based conclusions about the disorder

Background: Misconceptions about ADHD stigmatize affected people, reduce credibility of providers, and prevent/delay treatment. To challenge misconceptions, we curated findings with strong evidence base. Methods: We reviewed studies with more than 2000 participants or meta-analyses from five or more studies or 2000 or more participants. We excluded meta-analyses that did not assess publication bias, except for meta-analyses of prevalence. For network meta-analyses we required comparison adjusted funnel plots. We excluded treatment studies with waiting-list or treatment as usual controls. From this literature, we extracted evidence-based assertions about the disorder. Results: We generated 208 empirically supported statements about ADHD. The status of the included statements as empirically supported is approved by 80 authors from 27 countries and 6 continents. The contents of the manuscript are endorsed by 366 people who have read this document and agree with its contents. Conclusions: Many findings in ADHD are supported by meta-analysis. These allow for firm statements about the nature, course, outcome causes, and treatments for disorders that are useful for reducing misconceptions and stigma.</p

Do agile managed information systems projects fail due to a lack of emotional intelligence?

YesAgile development methodologies (ADM) have become a widely implemented project management approach in Information Systems (IS). Yet, along with its growing popularity, the amount of concerns raised in regard to human related challenges caused by applyingADMare rapidly increasing. Nevertheless, the extant scholarly literature has neglected to identify the primary origins and reasons of these challenges. The purpose of this study is therefore to examine if these human related challenges are related to a lack of Emotional Intelligence (EI) by means of a quantitative approach. Froma sample of 194 agile practitioners, EI was found to be significantly correlated to human related challenges in agile teams in terms of anxiety, motivation, mutual trust and communication competence. Hence, these findings offer important new knowledge for IS-scholars, project managers and human resource practitioners, about the vital role of EI for staffing and training of agile managed IS-projects

Penicillin skin testing in methicillin-sensitive staphylococcus aureus bacteremia: A cost-effectiveness analysis.

BackgroundBeta-lactams are the mainstay for treating methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) infections complicated by bacteremia due to superior outcomes compared with vancomycin. With approximately 11% of inpatients reporting a penicillin (PCN) allergy, many patients receive suboptimal treatment for MSSA bacteremia.ObjectiveEvaluate the cost-effectiveness of penicillin skin testing (PST) in adult patients with self-reported PCN allergy in an inpatient setting undergoing treatment for MSSA bacteremia.MethodsA decision analytic model was developed comparing an acute care PST intervention to a scenario with no confirmatory allergy testing. The primary outcome was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) from the health-sector perspective over a 1-year time horizon using quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) as the measure for effectiveness. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess the uncertainty of the ICER estimation.ResultsOver a 1-year time horizon, PST services applied to all MSSA bacteremia patients reporting a PCN-allergy would result in a cost per patient of $12,559 and 0.73 QALYs while no PST services would have a higher cost per patient of$13,219 and 0.66 QALYs per patient. This resulted in a cost-effectiveness estimate of -$9,429 per QALY gained. Varying the cost of implementing PST services determined a break-even point of$959.98 where any PST cost less than this amount would actually be cost saving.ConclusionsPatients reporting a PCN allergy on admission may receive sub-optimal alternative therapies to beta-lactams, such as vancomycin, for MSSA bacteremia. This economic analysis demonstrates that inpatient PST services confirming PCN allergy are cost-effective for patients with MSSA bacteremia

Current Status and Best Practices of Shared Governance in US Pharmacy Programs

© 2020, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. All rights reserved. Objective. To characterize shared governance in US schools and colleges of pharmacy and recom-mend best practices to promote faculty engagement and satisfaction. Findings. The literature review revealed only one study on governance in a pharmacy school and some data from an AACP Faculty Survey. Of the 926 faculty members who responded to the survey, the majority were satisfied or very satisfied with faculty governance (64%) and the level of input into faculty governance (63%) at their school. Faculty members in administrative positions and those at public institutions were more satisfied with governance. The forum resulted in the development of five themes: establish a clear vision of governance in all areas; ensure that faculty members are aware of their roles and responsibilities within the governance structure; ensure faculty members are able to join committees of interest; recognize and reward faculty contributions to governance; and involve all full-time faculty members in governance, regardless of their tenure status. Summary. Establishing shared governance within a school or college of pharmacy impacts overall faculty satisfaction and potentially faculty retention