Gender Stereotypes and Perceptions of Stranger Violence: Attributions of Blame and Motivation.

Violence is a harmful, complex and gendered act that impacts individuals and communities financially, physically, socially and psychologically. Many studies have investigated how and why gender impacts perceptions of intimate partner violence (IPV), but little research has investigated its effect on stranger violence, despite being publicly perceived as causing greater fear and harm. Th is study examines the effects of gender attitudes and stereotypes on perceptions of stranger violence, specifically attributions of blame, affective response, alleged motivations and attitudes regarding the acceptability of violence (in general). Data was collected from 265 United Kingdom (UK) adults using an online survey posted on Amazon's Mechanical Turk (MTurk). Results indicate that like IPV, gender affects perceptions of stranger violence. Male and female perpetrators of stranger violence are perceived differently, and gender differences are evident between male and female participants. Practical implications of the findings are discussed.

A Feasibility Study of Home-Based Palliative Care Telemedicine in Rural Nova Scotia.

It was recently estimated that only 30% of Canadians have reliable access to palliative care services. Allocating funding to improve access to skilled palliative care in rural or remote settings is challenging in an era of increasing demand and competing priorities, underscoring the need for innovative palliative care service delivery that optimizes use of low-cost readily available technology. This study evaluated the use of the FaceTime application on an Apple iPad to improve timely access to physician consultation for home-based palliative care patients living in rural Nova Scotia. Patients enrolled with the Hants Community Palliative Care Program who consented to participate (n = 15) received regular home-based visits from a palliative care nurse who used the FaceTime application to connect with the palliative care physician in Halifax. Participants were then asked to complete a questionnaire evaluating their experience. Results indicated that using FaceTime through cellular data networks is feasible in rural areas of Nova Scotia. All participants reported that both the audio and visual quality allowed them to communicate easily with the doctor, and no consultations were terminated due to network instability. Patients also found the FaceTime encounter highly acceptable with 86% reporting they were "satisfied" or "very satisfied"; 100% stated that their medical concerns were addressed and 100% were willing to use FaceTime again. The results add to the limited literature exploring the application of telehealth in palliative care and demonstrating the utility of low-cost commonly used technology to improve access to palliative care in underserviced areas.

When standard genetic testing does not solve the mystery: a rare case of preimplantation genetic diagnosis for campomelic dysplasia in the setting of parental mosaicism.

OBJECTIVE: To report a rare case of somatic mosaicism with a germline component of campomelic dysplasia in a woman undergoing in vitro fertilization with preimplantation genetic diagnosis (IVF-PGD). DESIGN: Case report. SETTING: Clinic. PATIENT(S): A 28-year old G2P0110 and her 34-year old husband had two previous pregnancies complicated by fetal campomelic dysplasia with suspected germline mosaic mutation. The couple, both phenotypically normal, underwent IVF-PGD to reduce their chances of transmission. None of the embryos could initially be determined to be disease free, because all embryos shared either a maternal or a paternal short tandem repeat haplotype with the products of conception from her last pregnancy. INTERVENTION(S): Peripheral-blood cytogenomic single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) microarray to identify the carrier of the mutation, and IVF-PGD to identify the disease-free embryo. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Disease-free embryo. RESULT(S): Only one of the five euploid embryos was identified as disease free. CONCLUSION(S): A woman with suspected germline mosaicism for campomelic dysplasia was found to be a somatic mosaic with a germline component via a peripheral blood SNP microarray test. This identified her solitary disease-free embryo, which was transferred to her uterus but did not result in a viable pregnancy.

The mountains hold things in: the use of community research review work groups to address cancer disparities in Appalachia.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To review regional findings about cancer disparities with grass roots community leaders in Appalachia and to identify perspectives about what makes the cancer experience unique in Appalachia. RESEARCH APPROACH: A community-based participatory approach that includes focus-group methodology. SETTING: Work groups gathered in well-known community locations in northeastern Tennessee and southwestern Virginia. PARTICIPANTS: 22 lay adult community members (12 in Tennessee and 10 in Virginia), all of whom had a personal and community interest in cancer and were reputed as informal community leaders. METHODOLOGIC APPROACH: Work groups engaged in a series of five sequential sessions designed to (a) review regional data about cancer disparities and identify perspectives about what makes the cancer experience unique in Appalachia, (b) promote dialogue between the work group members and healthcare providers to identify methods for improved collaboration, and (c) integrate the work group with regional efforts of the states' comprehensive cancer control plans. FINDINGS: Four major themes emerged from the focus group sessions with each work group: cancer storytelling, cancer collectivism, healthcare challenges, and cancer expectations. The community research review work groups proved to be a successful method to disseminate information about regional cancer disparities. CONCLUSIONS: Study findings provide a unique foundation so that healthcare providers and researchers can begin to address cancer disparities in the Appalachian region. INTERPRETATION: Nurses are in key positions to partner with trusted community leaders to address disparities across the cancer continuum in Appalachia.