The impact of neighborhoods and friendships on interracial anxiety among medical students and residents: A report from the medical student CHANGES study

Objective

To examine the experience of interracial anxiety among health professionals and how it may affect the quality of their interactions with patients from racially marginalized populations. We explored the influence of prior interracial exposure—specifically through childhood neighborhoods, college student bodies, and friend groups—on interracial anxiety among medical students and residents. We also examined whether levels of interracial anxiety change from medical school through residency.

Data Source

Web-based longitudinal survey data from the Medical Student Cognitive Habits and Growth Evaluation Study.

Study Design

We used a retrospective longitudinal design with four observations for each trainee. The study population consisted of non-Black US medical trainees surveyed in their 1st and 4th years of medical school and 2nd and 3rd years of residency. Mixed effects longitudinal models were used to assess predictors of interracial anxiety and assess changes in interracial anxiety scores over time.

Principal Findings

In total, 3155 non-Black medical trainees were followed for 7 years. Seventy-eight percent grew up in predominantly White neighborhoods. Living in predominantly White neighborhoods and having less racially diverse friends were associated with higher levels of interracial anxiety among medical trainees. Trainees' interracial anxiety scores did not substantially change over time; interracial anxiety was highest in the 1st year of medical school, lowest in the 4th year, and increased slightly during residency.

Conclusions

Neighborhood and friend group composition had independent effects on interracial anxiety, indicating that premedical racial socialization may affect medical trainees' preparedness to interact effectively with diverse patient populations. Additionally, the lack of substantial change in interracial anxiety throughout medical training suggests the importance of providing curricular tools and structure (e.g., instituting interracial cooperative learning activities) to foster the development of healthy interracial relationships.     

农村居民医疗服务潜在需求量及影响因素分析

目的 了解农村居民医疗服务的潜在需求及其影响因素。方法 采用分层多阶段整群抽样方法，对湖北省宜昌地区5县1839名农村居民进行问卷调查。结果 该地区治病未就诊率为13．21％，男女性未就诊率分别为12．01％，15．56％，采用Logistic回归分析方法，筛选出影响患病未就治的主要因素为性别、健康状况、对健康的重视程度、婚姻状况以及不同县等。结论 在农村要完善合作医疗保障制度，对医疗机构建设应以提高服务质量、降低成本、遏制费用增长为主要目的，并能提供更多的医疗服务，使患能及时利用医疗服务。     

The evolution of today's hospital emergency departments —Current problems and challenges

The announcement of the National Heart Attack Alert Program by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute in June of 1991 prompted leaders of the Florida Chapter of the American College of Cardiology to develop a statewide program to reduce the morbidity and mortality from acute myocardial infarctions within Florida. It became apparent that the success of such a program would require the prompt institution of thrombolytic agents or other revascular-ization procedures in appropriate patients. No longer could the decision regarding institution of therapy await discussion by telephone and/or the arrival at the emergency department (ED) of the patient's primary care physician or cardiologist. Efforts to establish appropriate protocols for therapy revealed that many of the 25,000 or more physicians currently staffing the 5,600 or so EDs in this country were moonlighting residents or practitioners from a variety of specialties or subspe-cialties with limited or no formal EM training. Furthermore, it was learned that there were in the entire country only about 800 postgraduate, year-one Council for Graduate Medical Education accredited training positions. There were only 21 such training positions in the entire state of Florida. The reasons for these deficiencies are discussed and a challenge to correct this person power crisis is issued, not principally to the leadership of EM, but to the entire medical profession.     

微观社会资本对农转非居民主客观健康认知一致性的影响研究

目的探讨微观社会资本对农转非居民自评健康与客观健康认知一致性的影响。方法两层logistic回归模型分析微观社会资本和人口学因素对健康认知一致性的影响。结果自评健康和客观健康的一致率为63.89%,个体社会资本和年龄对主客观健康一致性产生影响。结论使用自评健康作为健康指标时,应考虑个体社会资本的影响,提高自评健康的预测准确性。     

Perceptions,professional responsibility and management experiences of patients with alcohol,tobacco and opioid use disorder by residents in general practice and teaching general practitioners

BackgroundSubstance use disorders (SUDs) are based on pathophysiological mechanisms common to all psychoactive substances. However, general practitioners (GPs) hold different views depending on the substance in question.ObjectivesTo determine whether the perceptions that teaching GPs and final-year residents in general practice have of patients with a SUD vary according to the substance involved and explore their professional responsibility and management experiences.MethodsA cross-sectional observational study was carried out by asking residents and teaching GPs from eight faculties of medicine about their perceptions, professional responsibility and management experience of patients with tobacco, alcohol and opioid use disorders, using an online questionnaire between June and September 2017.ResultsThe responses of 238 teaching GPs (mean age 50 years SD 3.5; 58% men) and 327 residents (mean age 28 years SD 9.9; 67% women) were analysed (response rates: 9 and 15% respectively). Tobacco smokers were considered to be more responsible for their acts than the other users. Teaching GPs and residents considered that it was their responsibility to discuss substance use. They did not feel able to manage alcohol and opioid use disorders. Tobacco cessation was mainly managed alone (78%). The results were quite similar among teaching GPs and residents.ConclusionThe majority of practitioners had no difficulty managing smoking cessation. During the management of alcohol and particularly opioid use disorders, practitioners did not feel competent. The gap between their perceived responsibility and competencies should be addressed by training and promoting collaborative care.     

Nursing Home Residents’ Functional Trajectories and Mortality After a Transfer to the Emergency Department

ObjectiveTo describe nursing home residents’ (NHRs) functional trajectories and mortality after a transfer to the emergency department (ED).DesignCase-control observational multicenter study.Setting and ParticipantsIn total, 1037 NHRs presenting to 17 EDs in France over 4 nonconsecutive weeks in 2016.MethodsFinite mixture models were fitted to longitudinal data on activities of daily living (ADL) scores before transfer (time 1), during hospitalization (time 2), and within 1 week after discharge (time 3) to identify groups of NHRs following similar functional evolution. Factors associated with mortality were investigated by Cox regressions.ResultsTrajectory modeling identified 4 distinct trajectories of ADL. The first showed a high and stable (across time 1, time 2, and time 3) functional capacity around 5.2/6 ADL points, with breathlessness as the main condition leading to transfer. The second displayed an initial 37.8% decrease in baseline ADL performance (between time 1 and time 2), followed by a 12.5% recovery of baseline ADL performance (time 2?time 3), with fractures as the main condition. The third displayed a similar initial decrease, followed by a 6.7% recovery. The fourth displayed an initial 70.1% decrease, followed by an 8.5% recover, with more complex geriatric polypathology situations. Functional decline was more likely after being transferred for a cerebrovascular condition or for a fracture, after being discharged from ED to a surgery department, and with a heavier burden of distressing symptoms during transfer. Mortality after ED transfer was more likely in older NHRs, those in a more severe condition, those who were hospitalized more frequently in the past month, and those transferred for cerebrovascular conditions or breathlessness.Conclusions and ImplicationsIdentified trajectories and factors associated with functional decline and mortality should help clinicians decide whether to transfer NHRs to ED. NHRs with high functional ability seem to benefit from ED transfers whereas on-site alternatives should be sought for those with poor functional ability.     

Younger Nursing Home Residents: A Scoping Review of Their Lived Experiences,Needs, and Quality of Life

ObjectivesThe percentage of younger nursing home (NH) residents (ages 18–64 years) in some countries such as the United States and Canada has been increasing over the years. In fact, it is generally held that younger NH residents are considerably different from the older residents (age ≥65 years). There is a need to understand who they are, why they resided in NHs, and their quality of life (QoL). The aims of the study were to describe the experiences, needs, and QoL among younger residents living in NHs.DesignScoping review.Settings and Participants(Younger) Residents of NHs.MethodsFive databases (PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Scopus) and Google Scholar were used to search for relevant studies. PRISMA diagram was used to guide this scoping review.ResultsThe key findings of the study cover 5 themes: (1) Confinement, (2) Lack of socialization, (3) Lack of privacy, (4) Lack of appropriate settings, and (5) Loss of identity, as well as results of QoL were generated.Conclusions and ImplicationsThis scoping review provides a deeper understanding of the lived experiences, needs, and QoL among younger NH residents. The results provide suggestions for future studies regarding new interventions to optimize the QoL of NH residents.