Cystic fibrosis mental health research priorities: Qualitative content analysis of cystic fibrosis community and provider survey

Background: Mental health is among the top three research priorities of the CF community [1]. In 2020-21, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Mental Health Research Prioritization Working Group met to designate areas of focus for CF mental health research [2]. To elicit broad input to inform this work, a mixed-methods study was conducted. In June 2020, a 22-item survey was sent via email and social media to CF health care providers, people with CF, family caregivers, and other CF community members. We aimed to analyze qualitative content to add depth to quantitative findings. Method(s): Three hundred fifty-two providers and 693 community members completed the survey, which included three open-ended questions: Q1) When thinking about research topics specific to mental health, where are the current gaps in knowledge that should be prioritized for future research? Q2) Is there anything else regarding mental health and the needs of the community you would like to share? Q3) Considering the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, are there additional mental health topics that are (Figure Presented) Figure 1.: Cystic fibrosis (CF) mental health research priorities of all respondents according to frequency. Overarching top-line categories and general codes for open-ended survey responses of CF health care providers, people with CF, family caregivers, and other CF community members not covered by the survey questions? Reponses containing more than one main idea were subdivided into topic-specific codable items. For Q1 and Q2, a codebook guided hierarchical placement of each item into an overarching top-line category with corresponding general code and, if applicable, one or more specific codes and populations or settings. A simplified process designated only one major theme per item for Q3. Three teams of one CF researcher and two CF community members coded the first 20% of their assigned items by consensus and then worked in pairs to independently double code the remaining 80%. Two-sided t-tests were adjusted with the Bonferroni correction using a significance level of less than 0.1. Result(s): One thousand three hundred ninety-one provider items and 1638 community items were coded for Q1 and Q2, and 565 provider and 323 community items were coded for Q3. Strong inter-rater agreement was obtained across coding dyads (71-90%). For Q1 and Q2, the most common top-line priorities were mental health conditions;living with CF;screening, assessment, and intervention;systems-level barriers and facilitators;and effects of modulators (Figure 1). Strong agreement was found in the ranking of top priorities by community members and providers, although providers were significantly more likely to mention effects of modulators;screening, assessment, and intervention;and substance misuse, and community members were significantly more likely to mention stress and trauma. Respondents also noted concerns captured by a wide range of specific codes (e.g., access to mental health care, role and life changes, family relationships), populations (e.g., children), and settings (e.g., inpatient). For Q3, isolation and anxiety emerged as the top COVID-19 concerns, with isolation more salient forcommunity members and anxiety for providers. Conclusion(s): Qualitative analysis of a large survey of multiple stakeholders provided input on top research priorities for CF mental health. This information facilitated consideration of diverse perspectives to identify gaps and select areas of focus for future researchCopyright © 2022, European Cystic Fibrosis Society. All rights reserved

Same Old New Normal: The Ableist Fallacy of "Post-Pandemic” Work

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has catalyzed long-needed changes in accessibility and flexibility for work tasks. Disabled and chronically ill people have often experienced unprecedented inclusion during this time. As someone who is both disabled and chronically ill, I have experienced this firsthand. My work as a medical educator, public health program evaluator, and community advocate has been more accessible in recent months than at any prior time. As the pandemic escalated in early 2020, people readily embraced a "new normal” that would allow them to sustain their own livelihoods while staying as safe as possible. Yet even as Covid-19 cases increase sharply both locally and nationally with the spread of new virus variants, many abled people from both my institution and others increasingly demand a return to pre-pandemic practices. The "normal” state for which abled individuals ardently long violates the basic human rights of disabled and chronically ill people. This desire for "normalcy” is fueled by false notions of the pandemic being over. It remains preferred by many for the sake of their own comfort—even though sustaining the inclusive approaches to collaboration introduced during the pandemic often requires little effort and offers advantages for abled people as well. This experiential piece describes ableist implications of seeking "post-pandemic” work environments—and how these constitute "generic processes” in the reproduction of ableism—using both oral history from the author and emerging literature from fellow scholars. In response, it recommends inclusive strategies for anti-ableist work collaboration that achieve justice in accessibility while fostering a welcome sense of normalcy for all. © 2023 by the author(s);licensee Cogitatio (Lisbon, Portugal).

Control of COVID-19 transmission dynamics, a game theoretical approach

We analyze a mathematical model of COVID-19 transmission control, which includes the interactions among different groups of the population: vaccinated, susceptible, exposed, infectious, super-spreaders, hospitalized and fatality, based on a system of ordinary differential equations, which describes compartment model of a disease and its treatment. The aim of the model is to predict the development disease under different types of treatment during some fixed time period. We develop a game theoretic approach and a dual dynamic programming method to formulate optimal conditions of the treatment for an administration of a vaccine. Next, we calculate numerically an optimal treatment. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.

Mapping a conservation research network to the Sustainable Development Goals

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a global blueprint to end extreme poverty, reduce inequality, and protect the planet. Progress toward these goals is falling short. Achieving the SDGs requires coordination among government, private industry, and nongovernmental organizations to align the actions of multiple sectors with SDG targets. Adapting an approach used by industry sectors, we mapped the Smithsonian Institution Working Land and Seascapes network to the SDGs. The network of programs aims to foster healthy and productive ecosystems through collaborations with diverse stakeholders. Across the network, we identified clear and measurable contributions to 16 of the 17 SDGs and specifically mapped past and current activities to 76 of the 169 targets, thereby demonstrating how conservation actions can contribute to achieving the SDGs, beyond SDGs 14 and 15. We also identified the need for clear results chain and greater capacity to achieve the SDGs and then provide examples of how different sectors can increase complementarity of their actions. By mapping activities to the SDGs, different sectors can increase alignment and strengthen collective contributions towards common global goals.