Digital Commons Network^™

What Is The Prevalence, And What Are The Clinical Correlates, Of Insulin Resistance In Young People Presenting For Mental Health Care? A Cross-Sectional Study, Elizabeth M. Scott, Joanne S. Carpenter, Frank Iorfino, Shane P.M Cross, Daniel F. Hermens, Jeanne Gehue, Chloe Wilson, Django White, Sharon L. Naismith, Adam J. Guastella, Ian B. Hickie

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Objectives: To report the distribution and predictors of insulin resistance (IR) in young people presenting to primary care-based mental health services.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Headspace-linked clinics operated by the Brain and Mind Centre of the University of Sydney.

Participants: 768 young people (66% female, mean age 19.7±3.5, range 12–30 years).

Main outcome measures: IR was estimated using the updated homeostatic model assessment (HOMA2-IR). Height and weight were collected from direct measurement or self-report for body mass index (BMI).

Results: For BMI, 20.6% of the cohort were overweight and 10.2% were obese. However,6.9 mmol/L). By contrast, 9.9% had a HOMA2-IR score …

Attitudes And Factors Involved In Decision-Making Around Complementary And Alternative Medicines (Cams) By Older Australians: A Qualitative Study, Gisselle Gallego, Saira Gugnani, Mike Armour, Caroline A. Smith, Esther Chang

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Introduction: Recent evidence has indicated that older Australians are increasingly turning to complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) to address a variety of health issues. This qualitative study aimed to explore the attitudes and factors involved in decision-making around CAMs by older Australians upon the completion of a CAM educational intervention.

Methods: Men and women aged over 65 years living in New South Wales, Australia were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews after taking part in a randomised control trial. Interviews were analysed using the framework approach.

Results: A total of 20 participants aged over 65 years were interviewed. Themes captured …

Transnational Parent-Child Separation And Reunion During Early Childhood In Chinese Migrant Families: An Australian Snapshot, Yat Man Louise Hui, Julie Stevenson, Gisselle Gallego

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Limited international research exists on reasons for transnational child care, or developmental consequences of separations and reunions on young Chinese children. This descriptive study portrays a sample of children from Chinese migrant families residing in western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, whose parents temporarily relinquished their care to grandparents in China. Data were collected via retrospective health record audits. The majority of parents were first-time parents and the majority of children were first-borns sent back to China during infancy. The average duration of transnational parent–child separation was 20 months. Results showed that male child subjects who experienced multiple transnational separations …

Where's My What? A Survey Of Anatomical Knowledge In A Community In Western Melbourne, Morgan Jones, Catherine Krejany, Moyez Jiwa

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Background and Aims: This study aimed to explore if members of the public could identify the location of major body organs as well as pain associated with major organ pathologies.

Method: A survey of 100 participants was conducted in Melbourne, Australia. Participants were invited to mark the location of two internal organs and the site of pain for two pathologies on a manikin. Five anatomical questions and four clinical scenario questions were randomised prior to data collection. Photographs of participant responses were compared to responses of a doctor, and if a site within the same area was identified the participant …

Turning Conceptual Systems Maps Into Dynamic Simulation Models: An Australian Case Study For Diabetes In Pregnancy, Louise Freebairn, Jo-An Atkinson, Nathaniel D. Osgood, Paul M. Kelly, Geoff Mcdonnell, Lucie Rychetnik

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Background: System science approaches are increasingly used to explore complex public health problems. Quantitative methods, such as participatory dynamic simulation modelling, can mobilise knowledge to inform health policy decisions. However, the analytic and practical steps required to turn collaboratively developed, qualitative system maps into rigorous and policy relevant quantified dynamic simulation models are not well described. This paper reports on the processes, interactions and decisions that occurred at the interface between modellers and end-user participants in an applied health sector case study focusing on diabetes in pregnancy.

Methods: An analysis was conducted using qualitative data from a participatory dynamic simulation …

Adrenal Crisis, R Louise Rushworth, David J. Torpy, Henrik Falhammar

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Glucocorticoid replacement therapy, available since the 1950s, has prolonged the survival of patients with adrenal insufficiency. However, adrenal crises, which are life-threatening medical emergencies, still develop in many affected patients. Adrenal crisis appears to be increasing in frequency, despite the availability of effective preventive strategies. This review examines the definitions, pathophysiology, epidemiology, and treatment of adrenal crises.

Reduced Bone Loss Is Associated With Reduced Mortality Risk In Subjects Exposed To Nitrogen Bisphosphonates: A Mediation Analysis, Dana Bliuc, Thach Tran, Tineke Van Geel, Jonathan D. Adachi, Claudie Berger, Joop Van Den Bergh, John A. Eisman, Piet Geusens, David Golzman, David A. Hanley, Robert Josse, Stephanie Kaiser, Christopher S. Kovacs, Lisa Langsetmo, Jerilynn C. Prior, Tuan V. Nguyen, Jaqueline R. Center, For The Camos Research Group

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Bisphosphonates, potent anti-resorptive agents, have been found to be associated with mortality reduction. Accelerated bone loss is, in itself, an independent predictor of mortality risk, but the relationship between bisphosphonates, bone loss, and mortality is unknown. This study aimed to determine whether the association between bisphosphonates and mortality is mediated by a reduction in the rate of bone loss. Participants from the population‐based Canadian Multicentre Osteoporosis Study were followed prospectively between1996 and 2011. Comorbidities and lifestyle factors were collected at baseline and bone mineral density (BMD) at baseline and at years 3 (for those aged 40 to 60 years), 5, …

Using Participatory Design Methodologies To Co-Design And Culturally Adapt The Spanish Version Of The Mental Health Eclinic: Qualitative Study, Laura Ospina-Pinillos, Tracey Davenport, Antonio Mendoza Diaz, Alvaro Navarro-Mancilla, Elizabeth M. Scott, Ian B. Hickie

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Background: The Mental Health eClinic (MHeC) aims to deliver best-practice clinical services to young people experiencing mental health problems by making clinical care accessible, affordable, and available to young people whenever and wherever they need it most. The original MHeC consists of home page with a visible triage system for those requiring urgent help; a online physical and mental health self-report assessment; a results dashboard; a booking and videoconferencing system; and the generation of a personalized well-being plan. Populations who do not speak English and reside in English-speaking countries are less likely to receive mental health care. In Australia, international …

Prevalence Of Sexual Harassment Of Nurses And Nursing Students In China: A Meta-Analysis Of Observational Studies, Liang-Nan Zeng, Qian-Qian Zong, Ji-Wen Zhang, Li Lu, Feng-Rong An, Chee H. Ng, Gabor S. Ungvari, Fang-Yu Yang, Teris Cheung, Ligang Chen, Yu-Tao Xiang

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Sexual harassment experienced by nurses and nursing students is common and significantly associated with negative consequences. This study is a meta-analysis of the pooled prevalence of sexual harassment of nurses and nursing students in China. Electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Web of Science and Ovid, China National Knowledge Internet, WanFang, SinoMed and Chinese VIP Information) were independently and systematically searched by two reviewers from their commencement date to 12 March 2018. Forty-one studies that reported the prevalence of sexual harassment were analyzed using the random-effects model. The pooled prevalence of sexual harassment was 7.5% (95% CI: 5.5%-10.1%), with 7.5% (5.5%-10.2%) …

Impulse Control Disorders In Dopamine Agonist-Treated Hyperprolactinemia: Prevalence And Risk Factors, Sunita M.C De Sousa, John Baranoff, R Louise Rushworth, Jessica Butler, Jane Sorbello, Juanita Vorster, Tanya Thompson, Ann I. Mccormack, Warrick J. Inder, David J. Torpy

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Context: There are growing reports of dopamine agonist (DA)-induced impulse control disorders (ICDs) in hyperprolactinemic patients. However, the magnitude of this risk and predictive factors remain uncertain.

Objective: To determine ICD prevalence and risk factors in DA-treated hyperprolactinemic patients compared to community controls.

Design, Setting and Participants: Multicenter cross-sectional analysis of 113 patients and 99 healthy controls.

Main Outcome Measures: Participants completed a neuropsychological questionnaire consisting of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS21), Questionnaire for Impulsive-Compulsive Disorders in Parkinson’s disease (QUIP-S), Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI), Hypersexual Behavior Consequences Scale and Social Desirability Response Set Scale. Demographic and clinical data were …

'Through The Eyes Of The Dying' - Identifying Who May Benefit From Bereavement Follow-Up: A Qualitative Study, Jane L. Phillips, Elizabeth A. Lobb, Francis Bellemore, Terrence Hays, David C. Currow

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Introduction: Bereavement support is an integral element of palliative care. Emerging evidence stipulates that bereavement support should be reserved for those most at risk of poor outcomes. While this evidence makes identifying those at risk of experiencing a complex bereavement a necessary first step, it has been difficult to arrive at a consensus as to whom that should be.

Aim: To explore whether palliative care in-patients with advanced disease are concerned about the bereavement needs of others and, if so, is it their next-of-kin.

Design: A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews, and thematic analysis using a constant comparative method.

Setting/participants: …

Combining Unassisted And Robot-Guided Practice Benefits Motor Learning For A Golf Putting Task, Stephen R. Bested, Gerome A. Manson, Luc Tremblay

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Robotic guidance has been employed with limited effectiveness in neurologically intact and patient populations. For example, our lab has effectively used robotic guidance to acutely improve movement smoothness of a discrete trajectory without influencing movement endpoint distributions. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the efficacy of combining robotic guidance and unassisted trials in the learning of a golf putting task. Participants completed a pre-test, an acquisition phase, and an immediate and delayed (24-hour) post-test. During the pre-test, kinematic data from the putter was converted into highly accurate, consistent, and smooth trajectories delivered by a robot arm. During …

Familial Hypercholesterolaemia In 2020: A Leading Tier 1 Genomic Application, Jing Pang, David R. Sullivan, Tom Brett, Karam M. Kostner, David L. Hare, Gerald F. Watts

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is caused by a major genetic defect in the low-density lipoprotein (LDL) clearance pathway. Characterised by LDL-cholesterol elevation from birth, FH confers a significant risk for premature coronary artery disease (CAD) if overlooked and untreated. With risk exposure beginning at birth, early detection and intervention is crucial for the prevention of CAD. Lowering LDL-cholesterol with lifestyle and statin therapy can reduce the risk of CAD. However, most individuals with FH will not reach guideline recommended LDL-cholesterol targets. FH has an estimated prevalence of approximately 1:250 in the community. Multiple strategies are required for screening, diagnosing and treating …

Managing Anxiety Disorders In Adults, Gregory Wilkins, Gavin Andrews, Caroline Bell, Philip Boyce, Christopher Gale, Ronald Rapee, Lisa Lampe

Medical Papers and Journal Articles

The GP has a key role in identifying patients presenting with anxiety symptoms and ensuring appropriate acute and long-term management. There are two key messages for GPs to follow: once you have made a diagnosis of an anxiety disorder, tell the patient you have a treatment for it. Second, do not let your anxiety lead you to prescribe inappropriately or overinvestigate for all possible differential diagnoses.

Career Sponsorship: An Effective Way For Developing Women Leaders, Jovina Ang

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Other than an effective career progression strategy, this research, which comprised of an autoethnography and an in-depth qualitative case study research showed that career sponsorship could be an effective strategy for developing women leaders. In the sponsor relationship, sponsors invest considerable time, effort and resources in developing sponsees, thus, preparing them for the top jobs. In addition to developing the skills on the leadership strataplex, career sponsorship has been shown to be an enabler for developing confidence, which is one of the necessary ingredients for developing executive presence. Career sponsorship also fills the gap and addresses the shortcomings that arise …

Does Having A Bad Boss Make You More Likely To Be One Yourself?, Shannon G. Taylor, Robert Folger, Abhijeet K. Vadera, Matthew D. Griffith, Chaim R. Letwin

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Toxic bosses harm employees in countless ways — for instance, by lowering morale, diminishing well-being, and increasing work-family conflict. Estimates suggest abusive supervision costs organizations millions in lost productivity, employee turnover, and litigation each year. Although prior research has found that leader behaviors can “trickle down” to affect the actions of employees at lower organizational levels, surely not all abused supervisors abuse their own subordinates. So when do supervisors perpetuate abuse in organizations, when don’t they, and why?

Third Party Employment Branding: What Are Its Signaling Dimensions, Mechanisms, And Sources?, Brian R. Dineen, Greet Van Hoye, Filip Lievens, Lindsay Mechem Rosokha

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Massive shifts in the recruitment landscape, the continually changing nature of work and workers, and extraordinary technological progress have combined to enable unparalleled advances in how current and prospective employees receive and process information about organizations. Once the domain of internal organizational public relations and human resources (HR) teams, most employment branding has moved beyond organizations’ control. This chapter provides a conceptual framework pertaining to third party employment branding, defined as communications, claims, or status-based classifications generated by parties outside of direct company control that shape, enhance, and differentiate organizations’ images as favorable or unfavorable employers. Specifically, the authors first …

Assessing Meaningful Within-Person Variability In Likert-Scale Rated Personality Descriptions: An Irt Tree Approach, Jonas W. B. Lang, Filip Lievens, Filip De Fruyt, Ingo Zettler, Jennifer L. Tackett

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Personality researchers and clinical psychologists have long been interested in withinperson variability in a given personality trait. Two critical methodological challenges that stymie current research on within-person variability are separating meaningful within-person variability from 1) true differences in trait level and 2) careless responding (or person unreliability). To partly avoid these issues, personality researchers commonly only study within-person variability in personality states over time using the standard deviation (SD) across repeated measurements of the same items (typically across days)—a relatively resource-intensive approach. In this article, we detail an approach that allows researchers to measure another type of within-person variability. The …

In Their Own Words: A Qualitative Study Exploring Influences On The Food Choices Of University Students, Michelle Lambert, Paola Chivers, Fiona Farringdon

Health Sciences Papers and Journal Articles

Issue addressed: University students generally make independent decisions regarding food choices. Current research about knowledge of Australian Dietary Guidelines (ADG), sources of nutrition information and influences on food choices for this group is scarce.

Methods: Qualitative data were collected from gender‐separated focus groups comprising four female (n = 31) and four male (n = 18) to identify: knowledge of ADG; sources of nutrition information; factors that influence food choices; perceived relevant nutrition messages and how best to deliver them.

Results: Gaps in knowledge were identified particularly regarding number of serves and serving size for food groups. Social media was the …

Role Of Organizational Culture In Psychological Needs Satisfaction And Work Engagement, Quddsia Sadaf, Mudassar Aziz, Gulnaz Anjum

Business Review

This paper explores the role of organizational culture in the satisfaction of basic psychological needs and yielding work engagement among public and private sector managers. Results reveal that organizational culture confers employees with a sense of relatedness which promotes work engagement. Additionally, the study suggests that female managers have a higher need for relatedness, the satisfaction of all basic psychological needs is significantly higher among private sector employees and work satisfaction increases with increasing job level. This study can be used for the development of organizational culture to improve relatedness among employees with respect to gender and the type of …

The Wild Beasts, Peter Cochrane

Theses and Dissertations

The Wild Beasts springs from my desire to thank my ever-expanding queer chosen family and mentors for their strength. Working through the often violent and othering aspects of the lens and photographic histories I create floral portraits responding to each person’s being and our relationship. Using the 19th century, 8x10 large format view camera—the same used by colonialists and ethnographers to “capture” the divinity of Nature—I erect each as a traditional still life studio setup at the threshold between the natural world and that constructed by humans. These environments speak both to the character of each friend and also to …

Variable- And Person-Centered Approaches To Examining Construct-Relevant Multidimensionality In Writing Self-Efficacy, Morgan Debusk-Lane

Theses and Dissertations

Writing self-efficacy is a vital component to a students’ motivation and will to succeed towards writing. The measurement of writing self-efficacy over the past 40 years, despite its development, continues to largely be represented by Confirmatory Factor Analysis models that are limited due to their restricted item to factor constraints. These constraints, given prior literature and the theoretical understanding of self-efficacy, do not adequately model construct- relevant psychometric multidimensionality as a product of conceptual overlap or a hierarchical or general factor. Given this, the present study’s purpose was to examine the adapted Self-efficacy for Writing Scale (SEWS) for the presence …

Young Adults With Disabilities Financial Skills And Goals: A Mixed Methods Strengths And Needs Assessment, Allison D'Aguilar

Theses and Dissertations

Young adults with disabilities face barriers that affect their financial capability and financial inclusion in the marketplace. Barriers include a lack of autonomy, skills, and opportunities. This mixed method strengths and needs assessment aimed to explain and explore the financial skills and goals of young adults with disabilities. A standardized scale captured young adults with disabilities financial skills, photovoice participatory action research documented their valued financial skills and goals, and semi-structured interviews notated parents financial aspirations and goals for their daughters and sons. The mixed methods analysis suggested young adults with disabilities underlying financial skills fell 25 percent below the …

Longitudinal Patterns Of Depression Symptoms Among Emerging Adults, Sarah W. Clark

Theses and Dissertations

Research has suggested that depression symptoms generally decrease after late adolescence; however, there is increasing attention paid to depression symptoms among college students given the stressors unique to this time period and negative outcomes associated with depression. This study examined latent trajectories of depression symptom severity among college students. Participants were 9,889 college students who participated in the Spit for Science project (Dick et al., 2011). Growth Mixture Modeling was used to identify the presence of four subgroups of individuals with similar patterns of initial level and change in depression severity over four years of college, including Low/Minimal (55.9%), Decreasing …

Structure-Activity Relationship Studies Of Synthetic Cathinones And Related Agents, Rachel A. Davies

Theses and Dissertations

Synthetic cathinones and related agents represent an international drug abuse problem, and at the same time an important class of clinically useful compounds. Structure-activity relationship studies are needed to elucidate molecular features underlying the pharmacology of these agents. Illicit methcathinone (i.e., MCAT), the prototype of the synthetic cathinone class, exists as a racemic mixture. Though the differences in potency and target selectivity between the positional and optical isomers of synthetic cathinones and related agents have been demonstrated to have important implications for abuse and therapeutic potential, the two MCAT isomers have never been directly compared at their molecular targets: the …

Training Future Mental Health Professionals In An Evidence-Informed System Of Care, Julia R. Cox

Theses and Dissertations

High quality mental health services do not reach the youth who need them, leading to efforts to implement effective treatments more broadly. One focus of these efforts concerns training the mental health workforce, of which master’s-level social workers represent a large proportion. However, the curricula of master’s in social work (MSW) programs do not often emphasize evidence-based approaches. One possible solution is Managing and Adapting Practice (MAP; PracticeWise, LLC), a system that allows clinicians to (1) identify clinically indicated evidence-based programs by searching a growing evidence-base of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and (2) build individualized evidence-informed treatment plans by focusing …

From Sunrise To Sunset: A Lifespan Approach To Understanding The Mental Health Of A Subset Of American Farmers, Janna L. Imel

Theses and Dissertations

Prior research has indicated higher risk of suicide for farmers and identified depression and anxiety as mental health concerns, though the majority of research was conducted in the 1980s-1990s. In today’s economic, social, and political climate, farmers are exposed to situations and stressors reminiscent of the 1980s Farm Crisis. An added risk is the aging workforce of farmers, as age-related conditions can make farming even riskier. This study investigated the mental health of a subset of American farmers by exploring farm-related stressors, coping mechanisms, and mental health outcomes. Dispositional mindfulness was explored as a specific coping mechanism. Participants (N …

Do Sluggish Cognitive Tempo Symptoms Improve With School-Based Adhd Interventions? Outcomes And Predictors Of Change., Zoe Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) is a construct that includes symptoms of slowness, mental confusion, excessive daydreaming, low motivation, and drowsiness/sleepiness. SCT is often co-morbid with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and SCT symptoms are associated with significant academic and interpersonal impairment above and beyond the influence of ADHD symptoms. Despite the overlap between ADHD and SCT and associated impairments, no studies have evaluated how evidence-based psychosocial interventions for adolescents with ADHD impact symptoms of SCT. This study examined whether SCT symptoms improved in a sample of 274 young adolescents with ADHD who received either an organizational skills or a homework completion intervention. …

An Adaptation And Psychometric Evaluation Of The Teacher Attribution Measure For Early Elementary (Tam-Ee), Shannon L. Nemer

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the reliability and validity of the Teacher Attribution Measure for Early Elementary (TAM-EE), a measure adapted from the Preschool Teaching Attributions (PTA) measure, to assess the challenging behavior attributions of early elementary teachers. Like the PTA, the TAM-EE uses a series of student-specific behavior scenarios as prompts for teachers who then rate statements aligned with dimensions of attribution theory on a 6-point scale. A sample of 41 teachers completed the TAM-EE on 79 students in grades K-3 screened for risk of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Teachers also completed reports of student behavior, self-efficacy, and perceptions of …

Investigating Daily Writing Emotions, Attention Regulation, And Productivity: An Intensive Longitudinal Study, Eric Ekholm

Theses and Dissertations

Emotions pervade academic situations and influence the ways that learners think, behave, and achieve (Pekrun, 2006; Schutz & Lanehart, 2002). Writing may be a particularly emotion-laden activity, and especially so for students concentrating in fields that value writing production. However, very few studies have quantitatively investigated writers’ emotional experiences. The goal of the current study was to examine the writing-related emotions of graduate students enrolled in writing-intensive disciplines as well as how these emotions related to writers’ daily productivity and attention-regulation behaviors. To do so, the study employed a daily diary design (Gunthert & Wenze, 2012) in which participants completed …