An academic’s role? Supporting student wellbeing in pre-university enabling programs

© 2018, University of Wollongong. All rights reserved. Student wellbeing and mental health are increasingly a concern of universities. Most universities provide central counselling services and, in recent years, some have introduced wellbeing programs. However, an unrecognised source of support and pastoral care for students is academic staff. This pilot research project explored the experiences of academic staff in one university’s enabling programs in terms of the type of support academic staff provide (academic and/or non-academic), how equipped they perceive they are to support their students, and how this role impacts on them. The study is qualitative; interviews were conducted and a thematic analysis undertaken. It was found that academic staff viewed supporting their students as part of their role, particularly due to the diverse and complex nature of the cohort, and noted that students sought support from them for academic and non-academic issues because they had a rapport with them, trust and regular contact. A positive finding was that the academic staff had clear boundaries and lines of referral, which means they were not taking on pseudo-counselling roles. How equipped staff perceived they were and how the support role impacted on them varied depending on their teaching role. The findings in this exploratory study prompt a re-conceptualisation of the academic role. The article proposes a model of support that is holistic, student and course centred, and that integrates the centrally-located university counsellors. Furthermore, it posits that at the core of the enabling programs is a philosophy of care

Fathers as carers in UK law and policy:dominant ideologies and lived experience

This article explores how working fathers are conceptualised within the UK’s work-family law and policy framework and whether a dominant ideology of fatherhood can be discerned. The socio-legal literature on men and masculinities is considered alongside established feminist theory on families, paid work and unpaid care to provide a backdrop to the analysis of current policy provision in this area. Three ‘ideal’ type ideologies of fatherhood are identified (‘absent’, ‘involved’ and ‘active’) which are used to critically examine the current legal framework. Despite claims to the contrary, the current framework supports and reaffirms the gendering of care so that the intransigence on the part of men and women to rebalance related responsibilities is unsurprising. The authors argue for a more care-centric approach to work-family policy in place of gender-specific normative modelling. A legal framework which enabled and encouraged all care providers to participate regardless of gender and biological relationship would not only improve the workplace experiences of women, but also enable men to develop and fulfil their care-giving aspirations and potential

Estimating the proportion of Medicaid-eligible pregnant women in Louisiana who do not get abortions when Medicaid does not cover abortion.

BackgroundTo estimate the proportion of pregnant women in Louisiana who do not obtain abortions because Medicaid does not cover abortion.MethodsTwo hundred sixty nine women presenting at first prenatal visits in Southern Louisiana, 2015-2017, completed self-administered iPad surveys and structured interviews. Women reporting having considered abortion were asked whether Medicaid not paying for abortion was a reason they had not had an abortion. Using study data and published estimates of births, abortions, and Medicaid-covered births in Louisiana, we projected the proportion of Medicaid births that would instead be abortions if Medicaid covered abortion in Louisiana.Results28% considered abortion. Among women with Medicaid, 7.2% [95% CI 4.1-12.3] reported Medicaid not paying as a reason they did not have an abortion. Existing estimates suggest 10% of Louisiana pregnancies end in abortion. If Medicaid covered abortion, this would increase to 14% [95% CI 12, 16]. 29% [95% CI 19, 41] of Medicaid eligible pregnant women who would have an abortion with Medicaid coverage, instead give birth.ConclusionsFor a substantial proportion of pregnant women in Louisiana, the lack of Medicaid funding remains an insurmountable barrier to obtaining an abortion. Forty years after the Hyde Amendment was passed, lack of Medicaid funding for abortion continues to have substantial impacts on women's ability to obtain abortions

Unlocking the potential within: A preliminary study of individual and community outcomes from a university enabling program in rural Australia

© 2016, Adult Learning Australia Inc. All rights reserved. Many rural communities have a pool of mature-aged local people seeking a career change or better lifestyle, which inevitably involves reskilling or upskilling. These people have strong local ties and are committed to their community. University enabling programs provide a bridge to higher education. This longitudinal study explores the impact on rural mature-aged people of participation in a university enabling program, in terms of further study and employment outcomes. The benefits of enabling programs extend beyond individuals, to family and friends, and beyond. These broader benefits include an enhanced local skills base in key industry areas, and an increased awareness of the value of higher education within the community. Enabling programs are a powerful but under-valued tool in helping to unlock and harness the potential within rural communities, both in the medium and longer term

A gender synchronized family planning intervention for married couples in rural India: study protocol for the CHARM2 cluster randomized controlled trial evaluation.

BackgroundPrior research from India demonstrates a need for family planning counseling that engages both women and men, offers complete family planning method mix, and focuses on gender equity and reduces marital sexual violence (MSV) to promote modern contraceptive use. Effectiveness of the three-session (two male-only sessions and one couple session) Counseling Husbands to Achieve Reproductive Health and Marital Equity (CHARM) intervention, which used male health providers to engage and counsel husbands on gender equity and family planning (GE + FP), was demonstrated by increased pill and condom use and a reduction in MSV. However, the intervention had limited reach to women and was therefore unable to expand access to highly effective long acting reversible contraceptives such as the intrauterine device (IUD). We developed a second iteration of the intervention, CHARM2, which retains the three sessions from the original CHARM but adds female provider- delivered counseling to women and offers a broader array of contraceptives including IUDs. This protocol describes the evaluation of CHARM2 in rural Maharashtra.MethodsA two-arm cluster randomized controlled trial will evaluate CHARM2, a gender synchronized GE + FP intervention. Eligible married couples (n = 1200) will be enrolled across 20 clusters in rural Maharashtra, India. Health providers will be gender-matched to deliver two GE + FP sessions to the married couples in parallel, and then a final session will be delivered to the couple together. We will conduct surveys on demographics as well as GE and FP indicators at baseline, 9-month, and 18-month follow-ups with both men and women, and pregnancy tests at each time point from women. In-depth interviews will be conducted with a subsample of couples (n = 50) and providers (n = 20). We will conduct several implementation and monitoring activities for purposes of assuring fidelity to intervention design and quality of implementation, including recruitment and tracking logs, provider evaluation forms, session observation forms, and participant satisfaction surveys.DiscussionWe will complete the recruitment of participants and collection of baseline data by July 2019. Findings from this work will offer important insight for the expansion of the national family planning program and improving quality of care for India and family planning interventions globally.Trial registrationClinicalTrial.gov, NCT03514914

The associations of everyday and major discrimination exposure with violence and poor mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Research on discrimination and risks for violence and mental health issues under the pandemic is notably absent. We examined the relative effects of perceived everyday discrimination (e.g., poorer service, disrespectful treatment in a typical week) and major experiences of race-based discrimination (e.g., racial/ethnic discrimination in housing or employment at any point in the lifetime) on experiences of violence and the PHQ-4 assessment of symptoms of depression and anxiety under the pandemic. We analyzed state-representative cross-sectional survey data from California adults (N = 2114) collected in March 2021. We conducted multivariate regression models adjusting for age, race/ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, income, and disability. One in four Californians (26.1%) experienced everyday discrimination in public spaces, due most often to race/ethnicity and gender. We found that everyday discrimination was significantly associated with past year physical violence (single form Adjusted Odds Ratio [AOR] 5.0, 95% CI 2.5–10.3; multiple forms AOR 2.6, 95% CI 1.1–5.8), past year sexual violence (multiple forms AOR 2.5, 95% CI 1.4–4.4), and mental health symptoms (e.g., severe symptoms, multiple forms AOR 3.3, 95% CI 1.6–6.7). Major experiences of race-based discrimination (reported by 10.0% of Californians) were associated with past year sexual violence (AOR 2.0, 95% CI 1.1–3.8) and severe mental health symptoms (AOR 2.7, 95% CI 1.2–6.2). Non-race-based major discrimination (reported by 23.9% of Californians) was also associated with violence and mental health outcomes Everyday discrimination, more than major experiences of discrimination, was associated with higher risk for violence and poor mental health outcomes during the pandemic. Non-race-based forms of major discrimination independently were also associated with these negative outcomes. Findings indicate that efforts to reduce and ultimately eliminate discrimination should be a focus of public health and COVID-19 rebuilding efforts

Assessing the impact of CHARM2, a family planning program on gender attitudes, intimate partner violence, reproductive coercion, and marital quality in India

Using a two-armed cluster randomised controlled trial, CHARM2 (Counselling Husbands to Achieve Reproductive health and Marital equity), a 5-session gender equity and family planning intervention for couples in rural India, showed an impact on family planning outcomes in primary trial analyses. This study examines its effects on gender-equitable attitudes, intimate partner violence, reproductive coercion, and marital quality. We used multilevel mixed-effects models to assess the intervention impact on each outcome. Both male (aIRR at 9 months: 0.64, C.I.: 0.45,0.90; aIRR at 18 months: 0.25, C.I.: 0.18,0.39) and female (aIRR at 9 months: 0.57, C.I.: 0.46,0.71; aIRR at 18 months: 0.38, C.I.: 0.23,0.61) intervention participants were less likely than corresponding control participants to endorse attitudes accepting physical IPV at 9- and 18-month follow-ups. Men in the intervention, compared to those in the control condition, reported more gender-equitable attitudes at 9- and 18 months (ß at 9 months: 0.13, C.I.: 0.06,0.20; ß at 18 months: 0.26, C.I.: 0.19,0.34) and higher marital quality at the 18-month follow-up (ß: 0.03, C.I.: 0.01,0.05). However, we found no effects on women’s experiences of IPV, reproductive coercion, or marital quality. CHARM2 shows promise in improving men’s and women’s attitudes towards gender equality and male perceptions of marital quality. Still, IPV and reproductive coercion reductions may require more intensive programming than that provided within this 5-session model focused on family planning

An investigation into the sample preparation procedure and analysis of cyanoacrylate adhesives using capillary electrophoresis

In this study, the trace acid profile of cyanoacrylate adhesives was studied using capillary electrophoresis. Liquid–liquid extraction was employed as the sample preparation step before separation by capillary electrophoresis. The solubility of the adhesives was investigated using various organic solvents, e.g. hexane and dichloromethane, and chloroform was determined to be the optimum solvent as it enabled the full dissolution of the adhesive. A comprehensive stability study was performed over a 3-year period and results indicate that the adhesives were stable for 2 years after which their stability and performance degraded

What Is Regenerative Agriculture? A Review of Scholar and Practitioner Definitions Based on Processes and Outcomes

Regenerative agriculture is an alternative means of producing food that, its advocates claim, may have lower&mdash;or even net positive&mdash;environmental and/or social impacts. Regenerative agriculture has recently received significant attention from producers, retailers, researchers, and consumers, as well as politicians and the mainstream media. Despite widespread interest in regenerative agriculture, no legal or regulatory definition of the term &ldquo;regenerative agriculture&rdquo; exists nor has a widely accepted definition emerged in common usage. This paper answers the research question: How have different scholars and practitioners defined regenerative agriculture? We reviewed 229 journal articles and 25 practitioner websites to characterize the term &ldquo;regenerative agriculture.&rdquo; Our review revealed that there were many definitions and descriptions of regenerative agriculture in usage. These were variously based on processes (e.g., use of cover crops, the integration of livestock, and reducing or eliminating tillage), outcomes (e.g., to improve soil health, to sequester carbon, and to increase biodiversity), or combinations of the two. Process-based definitions may imply that advocates or users of such definitions are open-minded about the possible outcomes of these processes. Similarly, outcome-based definitions may imply that users of such definitions are open-minded about the processes that may lead to those outcomes. We discuss the implications of these different forms of definition for policy, including for certification programs and for payments for carbon sequestration programs. More generally, wide variance in the definitions used may lead to uncertainty about what different actors mean when they talk about regenerative agriculture. We suggest that it may be helpful for individual users of the term &ldquo;regenerative agriculture&rdquo; to define it comprehensively for their own purpose and context.</p