Teachers\u27 and Leaders\u27 Perceptions of an Induction Program\u27s Influence on Teacher Retention in a Title I School with a High Population of English Language Learners

ABSTRACT Issues related to teacher attrition and retention have plagued our educational systems for decades; particularly in urban schools serving low income, low achieving, and culturally and linguistically diverse students. A review of the literature revealed that urban schools are often staffed with novice teachers (teachers with less than three years’ experience) who feel unprepared to meet the language acquisition and pedagogical needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students. In recent years, teacher induction programs have been implemented to circumvent attrition in hopes of retaining novice teachers. These programs often pair novice teachers with veteran teachers. This qualitative study investigated teachers’ and leaders’ perceptions of the effectiveness of their induction program\u27s influence in retaining teachers. The theoretical framework of organizational climate and culture structured this study. The concepts of school climate and culture were used to investigate the interconnected experiences that participants had with the organizational practices in place at the school site. This study was conducted in a Title I school with a high enrollment of English Language Learners (ELLs) in a large urban school district, considered to be high performing by its district’s internal ranking system. The ten participants included the principal, assistant principal, three novice teachers, two veteran teachers, and three mentors. The major components of the comprehensive induction program included (a) administrative support, (b) mentoring, and (c) collaborative support from colleagues. The data were collected from individual interviews with the 10 participants, documents and artifacts from the induction program, and observational field notes recorded during on-site visits to the school. The key themes that emerged after the triangulation of the data were (a) instructional leadership practices, (b) a collaborative school climate and culture, and (c) a comprehensive induction program. The findings aligned with current and historical research that a collaborative school climate and culture, instructional leadership practices, and a comprehensive induction program increase teacher retention

Systematic liquidity and leverage

Does trader leverage exacerbate the liquidity comovement that we observe during crises? Using a regression discontinuity design, we exploit threshold rules governing margin eligibility in India to analyze the impact of trader leverage on systematic liquidity. We find that trader leverage causes sharp increases in comovement during severe market downturns, explaining about one third of the increase in liquidity commonality during these periods. Consistent with downward price pressure due to deleveraging, we also find that trader leverage causes stocks to exhibit large increases in return comovement during these periods of market stress.that leverage causes stocks to exhibit large increases in return comovement during crises

Related Securities and Equity Market Quality: The Case of CDS

AbstractWe document that equity markets become less liquid and equity prices become less efficient when markets for single-name credit default swap (CDS) contracts emerge. This finding is robust across a variety of market quality measures. We analyze the potential mechanisms driving this result and find evidence consistent with negative trader-driven information spillovers that result from the introduction of CDS. These spillovers greatly outweigh the potentially positive effects associated with completing markets (e.g., CDS markets increase hedging opportunities) when firms and their equity markets are in “bad” states. In “good” states, we find some evidence that CDS markets can be beneficial.</jats:p

Harm reduction for the treatment of patients with severe injection-related infections: description of the Jackson SIRI Team

Introduction: Hospitalizations for severe injection-related infections (SIRI), such as endocarditis, osteomyelitis, and skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI) are increasingly common. People who inject drugs (PWID) experiencing SIRIs often receive inadequate substance use disorder (SUD) treatment and lack of access to harm reduction services. This translates into lengthy hospitalizations with high rates of patient-directed discharge, readmissions, and post-hospitalization mortality. The purpose of this study was to describe the development of an integrated “SIRI Team” and its initial barriers and facilitators to success. Materials and methods: The Jackson SIRI Team was developed to improve both hospital and patient-level outcomes for individuals hospitalized with SIRIs at Jackson Memorial Hospital, a 1550-bed public hospital in Miami, Florida, United States. The SIRI Team provides integrated infectious disease and SUD treatment across the healthcare system starting from the inpatient setting and continuing for 90-days post-hospital discharge. The team uses a harm reduction approach, provides care coordination, focuses on access to medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), and utilizes a variety of infection and addiction treatment modalities to suit each individual patient. Results: Over the initial 8-months of the SIRI Team, 21 patients were treated with 20 surviving until discharge. Infections included osteomyelitis, endocarditis, bacteraemia/fungemia, SSTIs, and septic arthritis. All patients had OUD and 95% used stimulants. All patients were discharged on MOUD and 95% completed their prescribed antibiotic course. At 90-days post-discharge, 25% had been readmitted and 70% reported taking MOUD. Conclusions: A model of integrated infectious disease and SUD care for the treatment of SIRIs has the potential to improve infection and addiction outcomes. Providing attentive, patient-centered care, using a harm reduction approach can facilitate engagement of this marginalized population with the healthcare system.KEY MESSAGES Integrated infectious disease and addiction treatment is a novel approach to treating severe injection-related infections. Harm reduction should be applied to treating patients with severe injection-related infections with a goal of facilitating antibiotic completion, remission from substance use disorder, and reducing hospital readmissions

Opioids exacerbate inflammation in people with well-controlled HIV

IntroductionPeople with HIV (PWH) are known to have underlying inflammation and immune activation despite virologic control. Substance use including opioid dependence is common in this population and is associated with increased morbidity and reduced lifespan. The primary objective of the present study termed opioid immunity study (OPIS), was to investigate the impact of chronic opioids in PWH.MethodsThe study recruited people with and without HIV who had opioid use disorder (OUD). Study participants (n=221) were categorized into four groups: HIV+OP+, n=34; HIV-OP+, n=66; HIV+OP-, n=55 and HIV-OP-, n=62 as controls. PWH were virally suppressed on ART and those with OUD were followed in a syringe exchange program with confirmation of OP use by urine drug screening. A composite cytokine score was developed for 20 plasma cytokines that are linked to inflammation. Cellular markers of immune activation (IA), exhaustion, and senescence were determined in CD4 and CD8 T cells. Regression models were constructed to examine the relationships of HIV status and opioid use, controlling for other confounding factors.ResultsHIV+OP+ participants exhibited highest inflammatory cytokines and cellular IA, followed by HIV-OP+ for inflammation and HIV+OP- for IA. Inflammation was found to be driven more by opioid use than HIV positivity while IA was driven more by HIV than opioid use. In people with OUD, expression of CD38 on CD28-CD57+ senescent-like T cells was elevated and correlated positively with inflammation.DiscussionGiven the association of inflammation with a multitude of adverse health outcomes, our findings merit further investigations to understand the mechanistic pathways involved

Drawing attention to a neglected injecting-related harm: A systematic review of AA-amyloidosis among people who inject drugs.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Chronic skin and soft tissue infections (SSTI) among people who inject drugs (PWID) can lead to AA-amyloidosis: a serious, yet neglected, multi-organ disease. We aim to synthesise findings on the epidemiology, risk factors, clinical outcomes, screening recommendations, and challenges to treatment for AA-amyloidosis among PWID. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). We searched the following bibliographic databases in July 2017: CINAHL Plus, Embase, Global Health, MEDLINE, PsycEXTRA, PsycINFO, and SCOPUS. Studies were included if they investigated AA-amyloidosis in PWID. Studies were not restricted to location, study type, year, or language of publication. Study heterogeneity precluded meta-analysis (I2: 86%); we present a narrative review of the literature. RESULTS: Thirty-seven papers from eight countries met inclusion criteria. A total of 781 PWID are reported on, of whom 177 had AA-amyloidosis. Where disease causality is established, it is attributed to chronic inflammation caused by injecting-related SSTIs. Most (88.7%) PWID with AA-amyloidosis had SSTIs. Proportions of PWID with AA amyloidosis at post-mortem range from 1.6% (Germany) to 22.5% (Serbia). Biopsy studies report from 5.26% (Portugal) to 50% (Germany) of AA-amyloidosis in PWID with suspected or known kidney disease. Following diagnosis, the typical trajectory for PWID with AA-amyloidosis was rapid deterioration of renal function requiring haemodialysis (32.8%). Treatment difficulties, end-stage renal failure (40%), and premature death from sepsis (33%) were observed. Good outcomes, including reversibility of AA-amyloidosis are attributed to rapid treatment of the underlining inflammation and injecting cessation. Notably, given the population in question, no studies were published in addiction or harm reduction journals; most (92%) appear in specialist nephrology and medical journals. CONCLUSION: There is strong evidence of an association between skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) and AA-amyloidosis. Among people who inject drugs, injecting-related SSTIs are a significant cause of morbidity and premature mortality and there is evidence of increasing SSTI prevalence. Limitations in the literature make it difficult to estimate AA-amyloidosis prevalence among people who inject drugs

Food Consumption When Travelling Abroad: Young Chinese Sojourners’ Food Consumption in the UK

This qualitative study investigates the everyday food choices of 21 Chinese sojourners living in two different localities in the UK. Findings from a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews reveal how participants adopt a food consumption pattern, negotiating between ordinary and extraordinary food choices, including home-made Chinese food, Chinese restaurant food, global brands, British food, to “foods of the world”. Their zooming in and out of different food consumption choices reflects the transformative identity of the sojourners, between their student role during the week and becoming tourists at the weekends, meshing work and tourism during their sojourning in the UK. Theoretically this paper extends the limited understanding of sojourners, showing how their complex food choices reflect their swift transformative identity. Findings also illustrate how consumption patterns adopted by sojourners living in rural areas differ from the ones living in an urban setting

The University of Miami Infectious Disease Elimination Act Syringe Services Program: A Blueprint for Student Advocacy, Education, and Innovation

After the closure of pill mills and implementation of Florida's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program in 2010, high demand for opioids was met with counterfeit pills, heroin, and fentanyl. In response, medical students at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine embarked on a journey to bring syringe services programs (SSPs) to Florida through an innovative grassroots approach. Working with the Florida Medical Association, students learned patient advocacy, legislation writing, and negotiation within a complex political climate. Advocacy over 4 legislative sessions (2013-2016) included committee testimony and legislative visit days, resulting in the authorization of a 5-year SSP pilot. The University of Miami's Infectious Disease Elimination Act (IDEA) SSP opened on December 1, 2016. Students identified an urgent need for expanded health care for program participants and founded a weekly free clinic at the SSP. Students who rotate through the clinic learn medicine and harm reduction through the lens of social justice, with exposure to people who use drugs, sex workers, individuals experiencing homelessness, and other vulnerable populations. The earliest success of the IDEA SSP was the distribution of over 2,000 boxes of nasal naloxone, which the authors believe positively contributed to a decrease in the number of opioid-related deaths in Miami-Dade County for the first time since 2013. The second was the early identification of a cluster of acute human immunodeficiency virus infections among program participants. Inspired by these successes, students from across the state joined University of Miami students and met with legislators in their home districts, wrote op-eds, participated in media interviews, and traveled to the State Capitol to advocate for decisive action to mitigate the opioid crisis. The 2019 legislature passed legislation authorizing SSPs statewide. In states late to adopt SSPs, medical schools have a unique opportunity to address the opioid crisis using this evidence-based approach

The State of the Fleet: Georgia’s Fishermen

Invited presentation for Contexts, Issues, and Crime: Examining the Dynamics of Rural Life Speaker Series, funded by the Campus Life Enrichment Committee (CLEC