Does Implementation Matter? Associations Between Implementation of Maine's Anti- Bullying Law and Bullying Victimization Among High School Youth.

PURPOSE: To characterize the relationship between implementation of an antibullying law and bullying rates among high school youth. METHODS: School staff (administrators, counselors, and teachers) from public high schools in Maine completed a survey assessing: (1) the frequency with which they implemented 17 components of their district's antibullying policy as mandated by state law; and (2) confidence in implementing the law. Their responses were linked to data on bullying victimization among high school respondents to the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey, which created a population-based dataset of 84 high schools with 29,818 student responses. RESULTS: Students in schools where administrators (adjusted odds ratio = 0.93; 95% CI: 0.89, 0.97) and counselors (adjusted odds ratio = 0.86; 95% CI: 0.81, 0.92) reported implementing more mandated components of the law experienced notable reductions in the odds of bullying, controlling for student-level characteristics (sex, race, grade) and for school-level bullying rates assessed prior to the passage of the law. With respect to specific implementation components, bullying was most consistently reduced in schools where staff reported increased referrals for counseling and other supports for targets of bullying and in schools where counselors and teachers were interviewed as part of bullying investigations. Students in schools where teachers reported increased confidence in implementing the antibullying law also had reduced odds of bullying. DISCUSSION: These data provide some of the first evidence that the efficacy of a state's antibullying law depends in part on the extent to which school personnel implement the law.

Impacts of COVID-19 on Stress in Middle School Teachers and Staff in Minnesota: An Exploratory Study Using Random Forest Analysis.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted many occupations, teachers and school staff have faced unique challenges related to remote and hybrid teaching, less contact with students, and general uncertainty. This study aimed to measure the associations between specific impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and stress levels in Minnesota educators. A total of 296 teachers and staff members from eight middle schools completed online surveys between May and July of 2020. The Epidemic Pandemic Impacts Inventory (EPII) measured the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic according to nine domains (i.e., Economic, Home Life). The Kessler-6 scale measured non-specific stress (range: 0-24), with higher scores indicating greater levels of stress. Random forest analysis determined which items of the EPII were predictive of stress. The average Kessler-6 score was 6.8, indicating moderate stress. Three EPII items explained the largest amount of variation in the Kessler-6 score: increase in mental health problems or symptoms, hard time making the transition to working from home, and increase in sleep problems or poor sleep quality. These findings indicate potential areas for intervention to reduce employee stress in the event of future disruptions to in-person teaching or other major transitions during dynamic times.

Link for Equity, a community-engaged waitlist randomized controlled trial of a culturally responsive trauma-informed care program for BIPOC students: Design features and characteristics of baseline sample.

BACKGROUND: Link for Equity is a multi-tiered, school-based program of trauma-informed care and cultural humility designed to reduce the impact of Adverse Child Experiences among Black Indigenous and other children of color (BIPOC). This report describes the program, its trial design, and the study participants' baseline characteristics. METHODS: We designed a nested waitlist-controlled trial to evaluate Link for Equity's effectiveness in reducing school violence among BIPOC students. Three pairs of school districts, matched on suspension rates and enrollment of Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, and American Indian/Alaska Native children, were randomized into either an intervention or delayed intervention (waitlist control) group. A community-engaged approach guided the development of protocols. Within intervention sites, BIPOC students who screened positive for ACEs or posttraumatic stress were also randomized into an immediate and waitlist control group to receive additional one-on-one support from trained school staff. RESULTS: The trial was implemented from 2019 to 2021, which overlapped with the pandemic and civil unrest in Minnesota. At baseline, 444 staff and 188 students enrolled in the study. Over a quarter of American Indian/Alaska Native students, 18% of multiple race, 12% of Black/African American, 14% of Hispanic/Latinx students reported 4+ ACEs. Between 44 and 53% of all the BIPOC students in the study were symptomatic for PTSD. Of the enrolled students, 78.7% qualified for one-on-one Link support. CONCLUSION: We implemented a multilevel waitlist-controlled trial of Link for Equity using community-engaged methods. Despite school closures during the pandemic, the study persisted with its methods now being employed in an expanded cohort of middle schools. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04026477, NCT04026490).

Validating Four Hmong Word Recognition Tests With Normal-Hearing Bilingual Hmong Individuals.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to validate four digitally recorded and phonetically balanced 50-word recognition lists in the White Hmong dialect with normal-hearing bilingual Hmong adults. METHOD: Using a randomized, incomplete-block design, each participant listened to and repeated four unique Hmong lists delivered by a female and a male talker. Participants were also tested with an English word list-List 1A of the Northwestern University Auditory Test No. 6. Participants' correct pronunciation of each word was scored. A nonparametric Mann-Whitney U Location Difference Test for Equivalence using two one-sided tests equivalence hypothesis: -0.02 < [(List_1) - (List_2)] < 0.02 was conducted to assess equivalence among all four Hmong and the English lists. RESULTS: Seventy Hmong speakers participated in this study (35 women, 35 men; M age = 29.5 years, SD = 7.1). In all four Hmong lists, 93.5% (187/200) words met the validation criteria for ≥ 92% correct pronunciation. The 13 difficult words were deemed adequate by a Hmong panel and, therefore, were included to maintain four unique, balanced word lists. The test revealed that the Hmong and English word lists were considered equivalent at the 2% bound. CONCLUSION: The four Hmong word lists were validated to ensure an equal range of word difficulty across the lists.

Effects of Separate and Direct Bee Sting Punctures at Acupoints on ESR and RF in Rheumatoid Arthritis / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To investigate the effects of separate and direct bee sting punctures at acupoints on ESR and RF in rheumatoid arthritis. Method Seventy-two patients with rheumatoid arthritis were randomized to observation and control groups, 36 cases each. The observation group received separate bee sting puncture at acupoints and the control group, direct bee sting puncture at acupoints. In both groups, treatment was given once every other day, three times a week, one week as a course, for two courses. ESR and RF were measured in the two groups before treatment and at one and two weeks after. Result ESR and RF changed significantly in both groups after treatment compared with before (P<0.05). The effects of the two treatments on rheumatoid arthritis-related ESR and RF were equal and there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusion Both separate and direct bee sting punctures at acupoints can reduce ESR and RF in rheumatoid arthritis. Separate bee sting puncture at acupoints is easy for the patients to accept.

Clinical Observation of Ling Gui Ba Fa Time-based Points Selection in Treating Diarrhea-predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy betweenLing Gui Ba Fa (eight magic turtle techniques) time-based points selection method and ordinary acupuncture in treating diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) due to spleen-stomach deficiency.Method Sixty patients were randomized intoLing Gui Ba Fa group and ordinary acupuncture group, 30 cases each. InLing Gui Ba Fa group, Gongsun (SP4) was selected as the host point, Neiguan (PC6) as the guest point, and Dachangshu (BL25), Tianshu (ST25), Shangjuxu (ST37), Sanyinjiao (SP6), Pishu (BL20) and Zusanli (ST36) as the adjunctive points; in the ordinary acupuncture group, Gongsun and Neiguan were selected as the major points, and Dachangshu, Tianshu, Shangjuxu, Sanyinjiao, Pishu and Zusanli were selected as the adjunctive points. The acupuncture treatments were conducted 3 times a week (the practitioner would make appointment with patient at a convenient time if Gongsun had multiple activation time points according toLing Gui Ba Fa), 10 sessions as a course of treatment. Before and after the intervention, the two groups of patients were evaluated by using the traditional Chinese medicine symptoms and syndromes scale and irritable bowel syndrome quality of life questionnaire (IBS-QOL), and clinical efficacy was also observed.Result The control rate was 86.7% inLing Gui Ba Fa group versus 73.3% in the ordinary acupuncture group, and the therapeutic efficacy ofLing Gui Ba Fa group was significantly better than that of the ordinary acupuncture group (P<0.01); after the treatment, the scores in rating symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal bloating and abdominal pain were significantly lower than those before the treatment in both groups (P<0.01), and the declines of scores inLing Gui Ba Fa group were more significant than those in the ordinary acupuncture group (P<0.01).ConclusionLing Gui Ba Fa time-based points selection method can produce a more significant efficacy than ordinary acupuncture in treating irritable bowel syndrome.

Clinical Observation of Ling Gui Ba Fa Time-based Points Selection in Treating Diarrhea-predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome / 上海针灸杂志

Objective To compare the clinical efficacy betweenLing Gui Ba Fa (eight magic turtle techniques) time-based points selection method and ordinary acupuncture in treating diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) due to spleen-stomach deficiency.Method Sixty patients were randomized intoLing Gui Ba Fa group and ordinary acupuncture group, 30 cases each. InLing Gui Ba Fa group, Gongsun (SP4) was selected as the host point, Neiguan (PC6) as the guest point, and Dachangshu (BL25), Tianshu (ST25), Shangjuxu (ST37), Sanyinjiao (SP6), Pishu (BL20) and Zusanli (ST36) as the adjunctive points; in the ordinary acupuncture group, Gongsun and Neiguan were selected as the major points, and Dachangshu, Tianshu, Shangjuxu, Sanyinjiao, Pishu and Zusanli were selected as the adjunctive points. The acupuncture treatments were conducted 3 times a week (the practitioner would make appointment with patient at a convenient time if Gongsun had multiple activation time points according toLing Gui Ba Fa), 10 sessions as a course of treatment. Before and after the intervention, the two groups of patients were evaluated by using the traditional Chinese medicine symptoms and syndromes scale and irritable bowel syndrome quality of life questionnaire (IBS-QOL), and clinical efficacy was also observed.Result The control rate was 86.7% inLing Gui Ba Fa group versus 73.3% in the ordinary acupuncture group, and the therapeutic efficacy ofLing Gui Ba Fa group was significantly better than that of the ordinary acupuncture group (P<0.01); after the treatment, the scores in rating symptoms such as diarrhea, abdominal bloating and abdominal pain were significantly lower than those before the treatment in both groups (P<0.01), and the declines of scores inLing Gui Ba Fa group were more significant than those in the ordinary acupuncture group (P<0.01).ConclusionLing Gui Ba Fa time-based points selection method can produce a more significant efficacy than ordinary acupuncture in treating irritable bowel syndrome.