Active learning in head and neck trauma: outcomes after an innovative educational course

Excellence in teaching and learning is fundamental to the provision of quality training for doctors and for this a sound knowledge of the principles of adult learning theory is important. We present an educational course in head and neck trauma skills for emergency medicine (EM) registrars, using the pedagogical principle of active learning. Our aim was to provide trainees with skills in the evaluation and management of hard and soft tissue injuries to the head, neck, and mouth. Active learning has been shown to provide a superior experience in classrooms, creating a ‘deep’ understanding of the material. To maximise learning, we used these principles to develop small group seminars led by a diverse range of teachers that allowed trainees to acquire hands-on skills. Questionnaires that were completed before and after the course showed an appreciable educational impact. We conclude that innovative teaching methods facilitate the sharing of knowledge that will benefit patient care.     

协同式早期运动干预在腹腔镜结直肠癌手术患者中的应用

目的 探讨协同式早期运动干预在腹腔镜结直肠癌手术患者中的应用效果。方法 使用随机数字表法将2020年5月-2021年5月于笔者所在医院进行腹腔镜结直肠癌手术的84例患者分为对照组和干预组,各42例。对照组术后采用常规运动干预,干预组术后采用协同式早期运动干预。比较2组术后恢复情况、身体状况、术后并发症发生情况。结果 干预组首次下床活动时间、术后排气时间、术后排便时间均早于对照组(χ²=11.823,P=0.001;χ²=4.687,P=0.001;χ²=7.611,P=0.001),术后7d干预组的多维度疲劳量表评分低于对照组(t=2.000,P=0.049),杜克活动指数高于对照组(t=2.256,P=0.027),2组术后并发症发生率比较,差异无统计学意义(χ²=0.343,P=0.558)。结论 协同式早期运动干预能够促进腹腔镜结直肠癌手术患者术后恢复,改善身体状况,值得推广应用。     

Metrics of Survival: Post-Abortion Care and Reproductive Rights in Senegal

ABSTRACT

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Senegal between 2010 and 2011, I demonstrate how health professionals have deployed indicators such as number of women and abortion type treated in government hospitals to demonstrate commitment to global mandates on reproductive rights. These indicators obscure discrimination against women suspected of illegal abortion as health workers negotiate obstetric treatment with the abortion law. By measuring hospitals’ capacity to keep women with abortion complications alive, post-abortion care (PAC) indicators have normalized survival as a state of reproductive well-being.     

Ethics as ritual: smoothing over moments of dislocation in biomedicine

Applications of biomedical R&D currently imply substantial societal concerns. This paper explores, based on semi‐structured interviews with scientists in Norway, how biomedical researchers experience and tackle such concerns in their daily work. It shows how ritualised routine responses to dislocatory moments help maintain order in the daily work of the interviewed scientists; they do not address directly but instead smooth over concerns by a ritualised way of using ethics. This may foreclose substantive reflection and function as a stabiliser for ‘business as usual’. Overall, the current way of responding to concerns as described by the interviewees may contribute to a depoliticisation of important issues. The paper contributes to sociological work on ethics by linking it to recent discussions on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) and by the empirical research presented. The insights can also help improve science policies such as RRI.     

Error rates in proficiency testing in Australia

ABSTRACT

Recent criticism of forensic science has focused on the fundamental aspects of the science, including the lack of supporting empirical studies, validation, accreditation, limitations and error rates. Proficiency tests are an essential component of accreditation and can be used to evaluate laboratory performance and identify systematic issues within components of the service provision. In 2016 we reported on the results of an analysis of 3176 CTS proficiency tests undertaken between 2005 and 2015 by Australian government service providers. The data analysed represented 43 unique CTS test types and covered 21 disciplines. Here we present further data from 2016 to 2017 and compare these results with those obtained from the previous study. These combined results further demonstrate that errors exist even though practitioners know they are examining proficiency tests and the tests undergo a review process. This study illustrates the need to continue to monitor trends in proficiency test results and also further highlights the need for well-designed, relevant, blind error rate studies to determine the approximate error rates for casework.     

More than just a seat at the table: the power of youth voice in ending youth homelessness in the United States

ABSTRACT

Each year, over 600 youth under the age of 25 experience literal homelessness in Austin, Texas. Of these youth, 76% have a history of involvement with foster care or the juvenile justice system—far exceeding the rates of system involvement observed among homeless youth in other large communities in the United States (approximately 54%; Voices of Youth Count, 2017). Recently, Austin was selected by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development as one of ten communities nationwide to participate in the Youth Homelessness Demonstration Program (YHDP), a federal initiative designed to effectively end youth homelessness by 2020. Youth with lived experience are central players in the development and implementation of Austin's response to the youth homelessness crisis. A group of twelve of these youth (the “Austin Youth Collective to End Youth Homelessness,” or AYC) serve as key decision-making partners within the Austin YHDP team. Representatives of the AYC are deeply involved at every level of the community planning process, from the development of youth-centric housing options to system redesign efforts to ensure that youth do not exit the foster care or juvenile justice systems to homelessness. The article provides an overview of the development and contributions of the AYC—including their programmatic recommendations and advocacy work—as well as key recommendations for communities looking to leverage youth voice at the systems level.