Analysis of shared cognitive tasks in the application of non-invasive ventilation to patients with COPD exacerbation.

Interprofessional teamwork plays a key role in the uptake of evidence-based interventions, such as noninvasive ventilation (NIV) for patients with exacerbated Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). We aimed to identify the shared cognitive tasks in interprofessional teams using NIV for patients with COPD exacerbation. We used a cognitive task analysis approach (CTA) to engage nurses, rapid response team members, respiratory therapists, and physicians involved in the use of NIV to treat patients with COPD exacerbation. Clinicians participated in a semi-structured interview (n = 21) that elicited cognitions needed to treat COPD exacerbation. Three shared cognitive tasks were identified: Complete a thorough assessment, Formulate a care plan, and Continuously monitor patient status. Findings attest to the importance of having access to up-to-date information and expertise necessary to make accurate clinical inferences for patient assessment. Shared understanding of the formulated care plan among all members of the care team was important to its execution. Continuous monitoring was crucial; however, this cognitive task relied on patient assessment skills and ongoing collaboration within the clinical care team. Application of NIV for patients with COPD exacerbation may require enhancing collaboration through nontechnical skills and interprofessional training.

A pilot survey of students' menstrual attitudes, experiences, and needs on an urban university campus.

BACKGROUND: In the United States, many menstruators face barriers to period management, such as period poverty, or the lack of access to relevant knowledge and affordable menstrual products. Our current understanding of the social, emotional, and physical impacts of period poverty on students in post-secondary institutions is largely limited. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this pilot study is to assess period poverty, period-related class disruption, and avoidance of menstrual hygiene management on campus among students and to identify recommendations for action at the University of Illinois Chicago and other urban universities. DESIGN: An online cross-sectional study from February to May 2023. METHODS: Enrolled students who were at least 18 years old completed an anonymous, self-administered online survey. Through descriptive statistics and chi-square tests in SAS version 9.4, we analyzed the sociodemographic, academic, and menstrual characteristics of those who had a period in the past 12 months. We also performed a thematic analysis of students' open-ended responses regarding their menstrual experiences on campus. RESULTS: Of our sample (N = 106), 17.1% of students have faced period poverty, 55.8% experienced period-related class disruption, and 47.5% avoided changing their menstrual products on campus. The relationships between the three menstrual experiences were statistically significant. In the open responses, students reported that their personal experiences with menstruation were largely painful and disruptive. We identified the following themes: (1) inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities; (2) understocked, empty, or non-existent menstrual product dispensers; (3) a desire for additional resources for menstruation; and (4) the unpredictability of menstruation. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that students continue to face obstacles to menstruation management due to inadequate support related to menstrual infrastructure, products, and pain. We outline several recommendations for university/college institutions to prioritize a more inclusive and supportive educational environment for all students.

Students' experiences of menstrual periods while on an urban university campusIn the United States, many girls, women, and other menstruators encounter challenges while managing their menstrual periods. Such barriers include period poverty, or the inability to afford resources and menstrual products such as tampons or pads. In this study, we explored how period poverty impacts college/university students. We shared an online survey with 106 students who were older than 18 years, had a period in the last 12 months, and attended the University of Illinois Chicago. We asked them about their menstrual, social, and academic experiences. We found that approximately one in six students could not afford menstrual products at some point in their lives, over half missed all or portions of class due to their period, and about one in two students avoided changing their menstrual products on campus. The relationships between these three menstrual experiences were statistically significant. Many students also reported that periods were largely painful, disruptive, and unpredictable and that their campus had few physical resources and more obstacles to managing menstruation. From our findings, we identified several steps that universities and colleges can take to prioritize a more inclusive and supportive educational environment for all students.

Meditation and Yoga can Modulate Brain Mechanisms that affect Behavior and Anxiety-A Modern Scientific Perspective.

Meditation and Yoga techniques are receiving increased attention throughout the world, due to the accumulation of evidence based research that proves the direct and indirect benefits of such practices. Based on studies conducted so far, it has been found that the practice of meditation triggers neurotransmitters that modulate psychological disorders such as anxiety. This paper will review the psychological effects of the practice of meditation, the role of neurotransmitters, and studies using EEG and fMRI.

"I Feel Contaminated in My Fake Hand": Obsessive-Compulsive-Disorder like Disgust Sensations Arise from Dummy during Rubber Hand Illusion.

Despite its theoretical and clinical interest, there are no experimental studies exploring obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)-like disgust sensations through using somatosensory illusions. Such illusions provide important clues to the nature and limits of multisensory integration and how the brain constructs body image; and may potentially inform novel therapies. One such effect is the rubber hand illusion (RHI) in which tactile sensations are referred to a rubber hand; if the experimenter simultaneously strokes a subject's occluded hand together with a visible fake hand, the subject starts experiencing the touch sensations as arising from the dummy. In this study, we explore whether OCD-like disgust may result from contamination of a dummy hand during the RHI; suggesting a possible integration of somatosensory and limbic inputs in the construction of body image. We predicted that participants would experience sensations of disgust, when placing a disgust stimulus (fake feces, vomit or blood) on the dummy hand after establishing the RHI. We found that 9 out of 11 participants experienced greater disgust during the synchronous condition (real hidden hand and fake hand are stroked in synchrony) compared to the asynchronous control condition (real hidden hand and fake hand are stroked in asynchrony); and on average such disgust was significantly greater during the synchronous condition compared to the asynchronous control condition, Z = 2.7, p = .008. These results argue against a strictly hierarchical modular approach to brain function and suggest that a four-way multisensory interaction occurs between vision, touch, proprioception on the one hand and primal emotions like disgust on the other. These findings may inform novel clinical approaches for OCD; that is, contaminating a dummy during the RHI could possibly be used as part of an in-vivo exposure-intervention for OCD.