You are not in the army now! A field study on the impact of a Preparation for Civilian Life program on young soldiers

Recent years have seen the implementation of educational programs aimed at developing future orientation and better employability skills, mostly for people new to or returning to the job market. In a field study, we investigated the impact of a 5-day program on reintegration to civilian life on young Israeli combat soldiers' time preferences, gratitude, patriotism, and perceptions of their combat experience. Questionnaires administered before and after the program revealed a positive effect on future orientation but a negative effect on gratitude and perceptions of the combat experience. Although the positive effect on future orientation is in line with the program design, the negative effects found should be taken into consideration when planning or improving similar educational programs.     

Synapsin III gene silencing redeems alpha-synuclein transgenic mice from Parkinson's disease-like phenotype

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Prognosis and prognostic factors of running-related injuries in novice runners: A prospective cohort study

Objectives

To investigate the prognosis and possible prognostic factors of running-related injuries (RRIs) in novice runners.

Efficacy of the cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance with Brazilian children with developmental coordination disorder

Background: Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) have difficulties performing daily activities which reflects negatively on participation, impacting their lives.

Objectives: To examine the effects of the cognitive orientation to daily occupational performance Approach (CO-OP Approach) protocol on occupational performance and satisfaction of Brazilian children who have DCD; to examine whether children could transfer strategies and skills learned during CO-OP to untrained goals.

Methods: A pre-post group comparison design with eight boys aged 6–10 years old. Children participated in 12 CO-OP sessions with their parents twice a week, with an extra session added to the protocol for parents´ orientation. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure and the Performance Quality Rating Scale were used as outcome measures. The study was registered by the United States Institutes of Health at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03112746).

Results: Intervention resulted in higher, clinically and statistically significant, occupational performance measures according to parents, children’s, and external evaluators’ perspectives. All children improved occupational performance on their selected goals and five children could transfer the ability to use cognitive strategies to tasks not addressed in therapy.

Conclusions: This study provides initial directions for future research to investigate the applicability and to implement CO-OP approach on pediatric settings in Brazil.     

How to master endoscopic submucosal dissection in the USA

Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is an established technique for the endoscopic therapy of dysplastic and early cancerous lesions throughout the gastrointestinal tract. The procedure requires both a sophisticated knowledge for lesion characterization and high‐level endoscopic skills. As a result, the learning curve is very steep and, in Japan, it takes years to gain proficiency under the traditional Master‐Apprentice teaching model. At present, as a result of multiple limitations, this training model is not applicable to the USA. Nevertheless, a unique, multipronged, stepwise approach has emerged as a viable pathway to train US endoscopists in ESD. Although this approach deserves refinement, it has already led to the expansion of ESD in the USA, has contributed to the widening of the indications for ESD, and has further developed ESD techniques. Multiple challenges remain, but they can be overcome by active collaboration between Japanese and US endoscopists and professional societies. The robust interest in ESD in the USA has drawn industry attention with a few innovations already coming to fruition and many more in development.     

Impact of an education program on the performance of nurses in providing oral care for mechanically ventilated children

BackgroundMechanically ventilated children are prone to pneumonia due to immobilization and lack of laryngeal (cough) reflex and swallowing. Nurses are directly responsible for many clinical approaches used to prevent ventilator-associated pneumonia.ObjectiveThe research objective is to determine the effectiveness of the nurse education program on the performance of nurses in providing oral care for mechanically ventilated children.MethodsThis quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was conducted on 100 nurses (50 in each of the control and intervention groups) in pediatric intensive care units (PICU) in Tehran, 2015. The research tools included a demographic form and three checklists for evaluation of performance according to the clinical practice guidelines for the oral health status of children in PICU. Before intervention, the performance of nurses in both groups was observed at three stages and three different shifts, using an observational checklist. After one month, their performance was observed again with the same checklist at three stages and three different shifts in the PICU. The training was done in four 40-50 minute sessions in a workshop with a 4-week follow-up. The Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, paired t-test, independent t-test, and regression analysis comprised the tools used to analyze the data.FindingsThe mean performance scores of nurses before the education program in the intervention and control groups were 42.8 (±18.5) and 48.7 (±15.7), respectively. These scores improved to 68.6 (±31.4) and 48.6 (±15.4) four weeks after the intervention (p < 0.001).ConclusionThe performance of nurses in providing oral care for mechanically ventilated children improved after the intervention. It is recommended to implement this program for all nurses, regardless of their ward or specialty, based on the clinical practice guidelines. The periodic refreshing in-service training program should be provided to nurses in PICU in order to enhance their performance in providing oral care.