Linkages between Primary Care Providers and Mental Health Specialists

No abstract available

Auditory Temporal Processing in Children with Specific Language Impairment Compared to Same-Age Controls

It has been proposed that impaired language development in children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI) originates from immature auditory temporal integration (ATI), but results are inconsistent. We compared electroencephalographic data from 25 children with SLI aged 6-11 years to 25 typically developing peers. Participants’ neural responses to a 50ms tone presented alone were compared to their responses to two tones separated by silent gaps of 100, 200, 300 or 400ms. Amplitude and latency of P1 and N2 responses to single tones and tone pairs were compared across groups and gap conditions. The groups did not differ in the amplitude or latency of their responses to the second tone in any gap condition. Both groups showed attenuated, but present, responses to the second tone even in the shortest gap condition. Although results did not provide evidence for ATI impairments in SLI, further research using smaller gaps is required

Mental Health and Acculturation in Korean American Caregivers

No abstract available

Asthma Prevalence in the Philadelphia Public Schools

No abstract available

Italian Health Care Reform: Jefferson Researchers Participate in Evaluation Efforts

No abstract available

Social differentiation and age-friendly characteristics : a case study in Tuen Mun

Hong Kong is one of Asia’s more demographically-aged cities, with 14% of population aged 65+ in 2012, projected to be 23% by 2025. Facilities and transport are generally good by world standards although the urban environment may not consistently be particularly ‘age-friendly’. Drawing on a range of urban sub-areas, this research investigated the ‘age-friendliness’ of Tuen Mun, a ‘new town’ of half a million population in Hong Kong. This study was also interested in socio-cultural variables and age-friendly cities (AFC) characteristics in its predominantly Chinese population, and relationships with psychological well-being (PWB). A total of 503 participants aged 50 years or above were interviewed in a face-to-face questionnaire survey in Tuen Mun. Two focus groups were held afterwards as a post facto evaluation to ascertain and explain the findings of the survey. Among the WHO’s original eight AFC domains, in this study ‘Social participation’ scored the highest AFC rating. ‘Housing’, ‘Civic participation and employment’, and ‘Community support and health services’ perhaps surprisingly scored the lowest. Interestingly, the ‘higher social group’ (i.e. respondents from private housing, with a higher education attainment and household income) tended to be less satisfied with the AFC domains than the lower social group. An important contribution of this study is therefore to show the importance of considering social variations in attitudes to AFC characteristics, as perceptions/expectations of AFC might vary across different social groups. This study also addressed the potential role of AFC characteristics in influencing older persons’ PWB. AFC, especially the ‘software’ aspects related to social support, were found to have the strongest positive correlations with PWB. A newly-proposed ‘Food and shopping’ dimension appeared to be a salient factor affecting PWB, showing such ‘lifestyle’ items should be included in AFC in Asian settings. The policy implications and the value of the AFC concept in cities such as Hong Kong are discussed

Communicative participation outcomes of preschool speech-language services: Opportunities, challenges, and solutions

It has been estimated that speech and language disorders impact as many as 15-22% of preschoolers. In Ontario, Canada, families who are concerned about their children’s speech, language, or communication skills can access publicly funded services through Ontario’s Preschool Speech and Language Program. In this program, speech-language pathologists provide assessments and early interventions to improve children’s communication skills and lessen the negative effect of communication delays on development. Since 2012, the Program mandated the use of an outcome measure, the Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six® (FOCUS), but there has been inconsistent uptake among speech-language pathologists. Using a practice-based research approach, this dissertation explores issues related to outcome measurement within the Preschool Speech and Language Program in Ontario through several studies. Study 1 explored the potential uses of the FOCUS data collected within a real-world clinic. Study 2 engaged speech-language pathologists across Ontario to investigate the facilitators and barriers related to the implementation of the FOCUS. Study 3 engaged relevant stakeholders (speech-language pathologists, policy makers, researchers who developed the FOCUS tool) to identify practical ways to resolve the implementation challenges. Results of these studies indicate that the collected outcomes data offer a way to demonstrate intervention effectiveness and to understand predictors of children’s outcomes. Barriers within practice, however, are currently impeding speech-language pathologists’ capacity and motivation to fully implement the FOCUS into routine practice. Practical implementation strategies that balance the perspectives of relevant stakeholders were selected to resolve the practice barriers. The methodologies and findings of this dissertation inform outcome measurement improvement across all health and rehabilitation disciplines

An Innovative Interprofessional Course: Cultural Humility and Competence

As we tackle the disproportionate burden of chronic illness and access to quality health care of an increasingly diverse population, it is critical to infuse cultural and linguistic competence in all sectors of health care training. To reach the Healthy People 2020 goal of eliminating health disparities, health and human services education must provide the knowledge and experience to understand the root causes of health disparities, as well as strategies to advance ongoing cultural and linguistic competence

Health Care Financing Reforms in Italy: Projects of Jefferson\u27s Center for Research in Medical Education and Health Care

No abstract available