Tabernacles of the Spirit

In the classic tradition of the exploratory essay, George Gammack examines the theme of community in this paper. He details varied aspects of the creation of community among those who are retired, taking as its focus the Men’s Sheds movement. The paper explores the relationship between persons and community in later years, looking in particular at how those with a lifetime’s worth of skills and knowledge can continue to contribute to the life of a community. Along the way we are introduced to the work of authors such as Charles Taylor, Richard Niebuhr, Primo Levi, Seamus Heaney and Richard Sennett on the subject of work and what comes after it.Publisher PD

Determinants and effects of medical students’ core self-evaluation tendencies on clinical competence and workplace well-being in clerkship

<div><p>Core self-evaluation (CSE) is a personality trait that involves a person’s evaluation of his or her own worth, competence, and capability. The objective of this study was to determine whether medical students’ CSEs exert beneficial effects on their adaptation to their clerkship in terms of their clinical competence and workplace well-being and whether their preclinical academic performance can be a trait-relevant situation that enhances their CSE expression. In total, 127 medical students from 2 cohorts were included as participants in this study. We analyzed complete measures of personal background, objective and subjective preclinical academic performance (course evaluation grades and self-reported efficacy), CSE tendencies, and clinical competence (as objective structured clinical examination scores) and workplace well-being (as compassion satisfaction and burnout) during their 2-year clerkship. Mixed linear models for repeated measures and multiple regressions were employed. Participants’ CSE tendencies had positive effects on their workplace compassion satisfaction and burnout but not on their clinical competence during their clerkship. Additionally, using the objective and subjective preclinical academic performance of the medical students as indicators, we observed that neither could be trait-relevant situations to enhance their CSE expression. CSE personality tendencies might be key to medical students’ ability to noncognitively adapt to clinical training during their clerkships. These tendencies should be identified earlier so that mentors can provide prompt care and support to mentees (medical students) during clerkships.</p></div

Flow chart for study subject selection.

<p>Flow chart for study subject selection.</p

Logistic regression analysis of protective factors associated with the risk of gingival disease.

<p>Logistic regression analysis of protective factors associated with the risk of gingival disease.</p

Risk of Atrial Fibrillation or Flutter Associated with Periodontitis: A Nationwide, Population-Based, Cohort Study

<div><p>Objective</p><p>To investigate the risk of atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter in patients with periodontitis (PD) in comparison with individuals without PD.</p><p>Methods</p><p>We used the 1999–2010 Taiwanese National Health Insurance Research Database to identify cases of PD in the year 2000 matching (1:1) with persons without PD during 1999–2000 according to sex and individual age as the control group. Using Cox proportional regression analysis adjusting for potential confounders, including age, sex, and comorbidities at baseline, and average annual number of ambulatory visits and dental scaling frequency during the follow-up period, we estimated hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to examine the risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter in PD patients in comparison with the control group. Subgroup analyses according to age, gender, or comorbidities were conducted to study the robustness of the association and investigate possible interaction effects.</p><p>Results</p><p>We enrolled 393,745 patients with PD and 393,745 non-PD individuals. The incidence rates of atrial fibrillation or flutter were 200 per 10⁵ years among the PD group and 181 per 10⁵ years in the non-PD group (incidence rate ratio, 1.10; 95% CI, 1.06–1.14). After adjusting for potential confounders, we found an increased risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter in the PD group compared with the non-PD group (HR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.25–1.36). The greater risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter in the PD group remained significant across all disease subgroups except hyperthyroidism and sleep apnea.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>The present study results indicate an increased risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter in patients with PD. Lack of individual information about alcohol consumption, obesity, and tobacco use was a major limitation.</p></div

Descriptive statistics of medical students’ demographics and core self-evaluation properties, preclinical academic performance, and clinical competence and well-being.

<p>Descriptive statistics of medical students’ demographics and core self-evaluation properties, preclinical academic performance, and clinical competence and well-being.</p

Effects of medical students’ core self-evaluations on their clerkship competence and well-being: Linear mixed-models.

<p>Effects of medical students’ core self-evaluations on their clerkship competence and well-being: Linear mixed-models.</p

Timeline for data collection in this study.

<p>Timeline for data collection in this study.</p

Incidence rates of atrial fibrillation and flutter according to periodontitis status.

<p>Incidence rates of atrial fibrillation and flutter according to periodontitis status.</p

Univariate and multivariate analyses of the risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter associated with each variable shown as hazard ratio with 95% confidence intervals.

<p>Univariate and multivariate analyses of the risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter associated with each variable shown as hazard ratio with 95% confidence intervals.</p