The Durban University of Technology Faculty of Health Sciences Decentralized Clinical Training Project: Protocol for an Implementation Study in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

BACKGROUND: The Durban University of Technology (DUT) Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, is embarking on a project to implement a Decentralized Clinical Training Program (DCTP). The DUT FHS DCTP project is being conducted in response to the growing demands of students requiring clinical service placements as part of work-integrated learning. The project is also geared toward responding to existing gaps in current practices related to the implementation of a DCTP, which has mainly been through traditional universities providing training to medical, optometry, occupational therapy, and physiotherapy students. In South Africa, a DCTP is yet to be implemented within the context of a university of technology; it is yet to be implemented within health science faculties that offer undergraduate health science programs in mainstream biomedicine and alternative and complementary disciplines. OBJECTIVE: We aim to design, pilot, and establish an effective DCTP at the DUT FHS in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. METHODS: Participatory action research comprising various designs-namely, appreciative inquiry, qualitative case study design, phenomenography, and descriptive qualitative study design-will be used to conduct the study. Data will be collected using individual interviews, focus group discussions, nominal group technique, consensus methodology, and narrative inquiry. Study participants will include various internal and external stakeholders of the DUT, namely, academic staff; students; key informants from universities currently using successfully established DCTPs; academic support staff; staff working in human resources, finance, procurement, and accounting; and experts in other disciplines such as engineering and information systems. Overall, 4 undergraduate health science programs-namely, Radiography, Medical Orthotics and Prosthetics, Clinical Technology, and Emergency Medical Care and Rescue-will be part of the project's pilot phase. Findings from the project's pilot phase will be used to inform scale-up in the other undergraduate programs in the DUT FHS. The project is being implemented as part of the university's strategic objective of devising innovative curricula and pedagogical practices to improve the mastery, skill set, and competence of health science graduates. RESULTS: The study has currently commenced with the situational analysis, consisting of engagement with external stakeholders implementing DCTPs. The data to be generated from the completion of the situational analysis are anticipated to be published in 2024. CONCLUSIONS: This project is envisioned to facilitate collaboration among the universities of technology, traditional universities, Ministry of Health, and private sector for clinical placement of undergraduate health science students in health establishments that are away from the university, thereby exposing them to real-life experiences related to health care. This will facilitate authentic learning experiences that will contribute to improved competencies of graduates in relation to the health needs of society and the multiple realities of the South African health system. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/52243.

The impact of critical thinking skills on student pharmacist GPA at a historically Black university.

INTRODUCTION: Limited information is available regarding whether malleable factors such as critical thinking skills are associated with academic performance among underrepresented minority pharmacy students. This study assessed the relationship between critical thinking skills and grade point average (GPA) among pharmacy students attending a Historically Black College. METHODS: A cross sectional study design was utilized to evaluate the association between student's GPA and critical thinking skills. Demographic data and GPA were abstracted from student records. The health sciences reasoning test with numeracy was administered to pharmacy students at Howard University during the 2017 to 2018 academic year. Critical thinking scores were classified as weak, moderate, or strong/superior. A one way analysis of variance was conducted to ascertain if the average GPA differed based on critical thinking skills category. A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to determine whether student's critical thinking skill category was associated with the cumulative GPA after accounting for other factors. RESULTS: Among 217 students, the mean GPA among students with a weak critical thinking skills score (3.22 ± 0.40) was lower compared to students with a strong/superior score (3.39 ± 0.33) with a p-value of 0.029. After adjusting for other factors, a strong/superior critical thinking skills score was associated with a higher GPA (p-value = 0.024) in comparison to weak critical thinking skills. CONCLUSION: Stronger critical thinking skills scores are associated with better academic performance among underrepresented minority pharmacy students.

Differences Among Types of Sexual Misconduct Incidents Reported to Title IX Coordinators and Institutional Stability in Incidents Over Time.

Sexual misconduct incidents reported to Title IX coordinators and stability in incident characteristics within institutions of higher education (IHEs) over time were examined. Data included two waves of reported incidents in 2016-2018 (n = 2,598) and 2018-2020 (n = 2,778) across Maryland IHEs (N = 40). Findings showed most reported incidents were for Other Sexual Misconduct (e.g., sexual harassment) versus Sexual Assault I (i.e., rape) or Sexual Assault II (e.g., unwanted sexual touching). Types of sexual misconduct differed regarding reporting by responsible employees, nonstudent perpetrators, and the range of accommodations accessed; institutional-level profiles of sexual misconduct were stable across waves. Implications and future research are discussed.

Comprehensive evaluation of majors offered by universities based on combination weighting.

This paper proposes a combination weighting calculation method to evaluate the performance of majors. Because of the varying emphasis of each weighting method, a combination of the Criteria Importance Through the Intercriteria Correlation (CRITIC) method, entropy method, and mean-variance analysis is proposed. Based on the evaluation index system for engineering majors offered at universities, the research of index weight determination and major evaluation is carried out after investigating the data of various indices of engineering majors in recent years. Compared with the majors in engineering education accreditation, the results reveal that the major comprehensive performance ranking is valid, thereby not only providing a new program for universities to establish an evaluation mechanism but also implementing normalized and dynamic major evaluation.

Relação entre o perfil de adesão e as barreiras para a permanência no programa de extensão "yoga: awaken one" / Relationship between the membership profile and the barriers to stay in the "yoga: awaken one" extension program

Objetivo: Investigar a relação entre o perfil de adesão e barreiras percebidas por estudantes universitários para permanência no Programa de Extensão "Yoga: Awaken ONE". Métodos: Foram realizados dois cortes transversais com universitários da Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia. O primeiro foi composto por 16 indivíduos e investigou o perfil demográfico, socioeconômico, antropométrico, da aptidão física e da qualidade de vida dos universitários que ingressaram no Programa de Extensão. O segundo visou identificar as barreiras para permanência de 13 estudantes (dentre os 16 iniciais) que haviam se afastado do Programa após quatro meses do início. Resultados: Houve predominância de indivíduos do sexo feminino, dos cursos de graduação em Educação Física e Pedagogia e da classe socioeconômica C. A maioria dos participantes estava com indicadores adequados de gordura corporal. Observou-se grande proporção de indivíduos com indicadores baixos de flexibilidade e força muscular. Para a qualidade de vida, a menor mediana foi observada para o domínio meio ambiente e a maior para o domínio relações sociais. As principais barreiras percebidas para a prática de yoga pelos universitários foram "jornada de estudos extensa" e "jornada de trabalho extensa". Observou-se correlação do perfil sociodemográfico, indicadores de obesidade, variáveis hemodinâmicas, flexibilidade, força muscular e qualidade de vida com barreiras percebidas para permanência no Programa de Extensão universitária "Yoga: Awaken ONE". Conclusões: Estes achados sugerem que o perfil do público universitário pode ser determinante para a permanência ou evasão de programas de promoção de exercícios físicos e precisa ser considerado em propostas de programas de extensão universitária.

Objective: Investigate the relationship between the member adherence profile and barriers perceived by university students to remain in the "Yoga: Awaken ONE" Extension Program. Methods: Two cross-sections were carried out with university students from the Federal University of Recôncavo da Bahia. The first was composed of 16 individuals and investigated the demographic, socioeconomic, anthropometric, physical fitness, and quality of life profile of university students joining the Extension Program. The second aimed at identifying the barriers to remain in the program faced by 13 students (out of the initial 16) who had withdrawn from the Program four months after the beginning. Results: There was a predominance of female individuals, from undergraduate courses in Physical Education and Pedagogy, and from the C socioeconomic class. Most participants had adequate body fat indexes. There was a large proportion of individuals with low flexibility and muscle strength. For quality of life, the lowest median was observed for the environment domain, while the highest could be noted for the social relationship domain. The main barriers perceived for the practice of yoga by university students were "long study hours" and "long work hours". There was a correlation between sociodemographic profile, obesity indicators, hemodynamic variables, flexibility, muscle strength, and QOL with the perceived barriers to stay in the "Yoga: Awaken ONE" university extension program. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the profile of the university audience can be a determinant for the permanence or dropout of programs that promote physical exercise and therefore, it should be taken into consideration in proposals for university extension programs.

Psychosocial and environmental determinants of physical activity in a Brazilian public university employees - ELDAF: A prospective cohort study protocol.

BACKGROUND: Increased physical activity levels and their determinations are essential issues worldwide. The Longitudinal Study of Physical Activity Determinants (ELDAF) aims to understand the roles of psychosocial and environmental factors in workers' physical activity levels. METHODS: A prospective cohort study of non-faculty civil servants from a public university (approximately 1,200 individuals) will start in 2022 (baseline). The primary measurements will be accelerometer- and questionnaire-based physical activity, social support, social network, socioeconomic status, bereavement, job stress, body image, common mental disorders, depression, and neighborhood satisfaction. Additional measurements will include necessary sociodemographic, physical morbidity, lifestyle and anthropometric information. Participants' places of residence will be geocoded using complete addresses. All participants will furnish written, informed consent before the beginning of the study. Pilot studies were performed to identify and correct potential problems in the data collection instruments and procedures. ELDAF will be the first cohort study conducted in Latin America to investigate physical activity and its determinants.

Relationship between impulsivity, uncontrolled eating and body mass index: a hierarchical model.

BACKGROUND: Impulsivity increases the risk for obesity and weight gain. However, the precise role of impulsivity in the aetiology of overeating behavior and obesity is currently unknown. Here we examined the relationships between personality-related measures of impulsivity, Uncontrolled Eating, body mass index (BMI), and longitudinal weight changes. In addition, we analyzed the associations between general impulsivity domains and cortical thickness to elucidate brain vulnerability factors related to weight gain. METHODS: Students (N = 2318) in their first year of university-a risky period for weight gain-completed questionnaire measures of impulsivity and eating behavior at the beginning of the school year. We also collected their weight at the end of the term (N = 1177). Impulsivity was divided into three factors: stress reactivity, reward sensitivity and lack of self-control. Using structural equation models, we tested a hierarchical relationship, in which impulsivity traits were associated with Uncontrolled Eating, which in turn predicted BMI and weight change. Seventy-one participants underwent T1-weighted MRI to investigate the correlation between impulsivity and cortical thickness. RESULTS: Impulsivity traits showed positive correlations with Uncontrolled Eating. Higher scores in Uncontrolled Eating were in turn associated with higher BMI. None of the impulsivity-related measurements nor Uncontrolled Eating were correlated with longitudinal weight gain. Higher stress sensitivity was associated with increased cortical thickness in the superior temporal gyrus. Lack of self-control was positively associated with increased thickness in the superior medial frontal gyrus. Finally, higher reward sensitivity was associated with lower thickness in the inferior frontal gyrus. CONCLUSION: The present study provides a comprehensive characterization of the relationships between different facets of impulsivity and obesity. We show that differences in impulsivity domains might be associated with BMI via Uncontrolled Eating. Our results might inform future clinical strategies aimed at fostering self-control abilities to prevent and/or treat unhealthy weight gain.

Prevalence of negative self-rated health in university students and its relationship with the co-occurrence of risk behaviors / Prevalência da autoavaliação de saúde negativa em universitários e sua relação com a concorrência de comportamentos de risco

ABSTRACT The present study estimate the prevalence of negative self-rated health and to analyze its association with simultaneous risk behaviors (insufficient levels of physical activity, greater exposure to sedentary time and inappropriate sleep time) in students at a public university in the state from Minas Gerais, Brazil. It consists of cross-sectional study, with data collected through a questionnaire. The outcome variable was negative self-rated health. The independent variables were estimated by the questions related to the time spent on physical activity, sitting and sleep time, and these three behaviors were considered according to the risk criteria (none, one, two and three risk behaviors). The association was estimated by the Prevalence Ratios (PR), via Poisson regression. 1,110 students participated in the study. The prevalence of negative self-rated health among university students was 47.3%, and the prevalence of two risk behaviors and three risk behaviors were 41.3% and 11.3%, respectively. The simultaneous occurrence of three risk behaviors was associated with negative self-rated health in university students. The information in this study makes it possible to characterize the need for actions to promote health in the university environment.

RESUMO O presente estudo estimou a prevalência da autoavaliação de saúde negativa e analisou a sua associação com comportamentos de risco simultâneos (níveis insuficientes de atividade física, maior exposição ao tempo sedentário e tempo de sono não apropriado) em estudantes de uma universidade pública do ensino superior do estado de Minas Gerais, Brasil. Consiste de um estudo transversal, com informações mensuradas via questionário e a variável desfecho foi a autoavaliação de saúde negativa. As variáveis independentes foram estimadas pelas perguntas referentes ao tempo despendido em: atividade física, tempo sentado e tempo de sono, e esses três comportamentos foram somados conforme os critérios de risco (nenhum, um, dois e três fatores de risco). A associação foi estimada pelas Razões de Prevalências (RP), via regressão de Poisson. Participaram do estudo 1.110 estudantes. A prevalência da autoavaliação de saúde negativa entre os universitários foi de 47,3%, e as prevalências de dois fatores de risco e de três fatores de risco foram de 41,3% e 11,3%, respectivamente. A ocorrência de forma simultânea de três fatores de risco mostrou-se associada com a autoavaliação de saúde negativa em universitários. As informações deste estudo possibilitam caracterizar a necessidade de ações na promoção de saúde no ambiente universitário.