The Year in Basic Thyroid Cancer Research.

Background: Every year, the American Thyroid Association (ATA) Annual Meeting opening session features presentations covering the most recent advances in the three major areas of thyroidology: basic, clinical, and surgical. As the ATA did not have an annual meeting in 2020, because of the COVID19 pandemic, the 2021 meeting opened with a special "Two Years in Thyroidology" session. Methods: A PubMed electronic search was conducted to identify original basic science research studies on thyroid cancer published between October 2019 and September 2021. Methodologically rigorous studies that were deemed most likely to influence the field of basic science research in thyroid cancer were grouped into three thematic units: Genetics and Genomics, Molecular Biology and Signaling, and Preclinical and Translational Science. Four publications for each category were chosen for discussion. Results: Selected studies covered topics ranging from the genetics of thyroid cancer predisposition to the genomics of anaplastic thyroid cancer evolution, from novel molecular pathways involved in thyroid cancer pathogenesis to potentially game-changing imaging and therapeutic innovations. Conclusions: The past two years, in the face of unique COVID19 pandemic-associated hurdles, have witnessed a large number of important developments in basic and translational thyroid cancer research. These studies not only have shed novel light on a number of long-standing scientific questions but have also highlighted the major challenges and open questions that still remain to be addressed in the coming years.

Barbarigenesis and the collapse of complex societies: Rome and after.

"Barbarism" is perhaps best understood as a recurring syndrome among peripheral societies in response to the threats and opportunities presented by more developed neighbors. This article develops a mathematical model of barbarigenesis-the formation of "barbarian" societies adjacent to more complex societies-and its consequences, and applies the model to the case of Europe in the first millennium CE. A starting point is a game (developed by Hirshleifer) in which two players allocate their resources either to producing wealth or to fighting over wealth. The paradoxical result is that a richer and potentially more powerful player may lose out to a poorer player, because the opportunity cost of fighting is greater for the former. In a more elaborate spatial model with many players, the outcome is a wealth-power mismatch: central regions have comparatively more wealth than power, peripheral regions have comparatively more power than wealth. In a model of historical dynamics, a wealth-power mismatch generates a long-lasting decline in social complexity, sweeping from more to less developed regions, until wealth and power come to be more closely aligned. This article reviews how well this model fits the historical record of late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages in Europe both quantitatively and qualitatively. The article also considers some of the history left out of the model, and why the model doesn't apply to the modern world.

A thematic study: impact of COVID-19 pandemic on rare disease organisations and patients across ten jurisdictions in the Asia Pacific region.

BACKGROUND: This study assesses the areas and extent of impact of the Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on rare disease (RD) organisations in the Asia Pacific region. There is no existing literature that focuses on such impact on RD organisations in any jurisdictions, nor RD populations across multiple jurisdictions in the Asia Pacific region. A cross-sectional survey was distributed to RD organisations between April and May 2020. Quantitative and qualitative data on the impact of COVID-19 on RD organisations and patients were collected from the organisation representative's perspective. Qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis. A follow-up focus group meeting was conducted in August 2020 to validate the survey findings and to discuss specific needs, support and recommendations for sustainable healthcare systems during the pandemic. RESULTS: A total of 80 RD organisations from Australia, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, India, Japan, mainland China, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan participated in the study. Of all, 89% were concerned about the impact of pandemic on their organisations. Results indicate that 63% of the organisations functioned at a reduced capacity and 42% stated a decrease in funding as their biggest challenge. Overall, 95% believed their patients were impacted, particularly in healthcare access, social lives, physical health, psychological health and financial impact. Specifically, 43% identified the reduced healthcare access as their top impact, followed by 26% about the impact on daily living and social life. Focus group meeting discussed differential impact across jurisdictions and point towards telemedicine and digitalisation as potential solutions. CONCLUSIONS: This serves as the first study to assess the impact of COVID-19 on RD patients and organisations across multiple jurisdictions in the Asia Pacific region, identifying major themes on the impact on both RD patients and organisations. By including 80 organisations from ten jurisdictions, our study presents the most comprehensive assessment of the pandemic's impact to date. It highlights the need for mental health support and sheds light on moving towards telemedicine and digitalisation of organisation operation, which constitutes a sustainable model in times of pandemics and beyond.

Patient associations and clinical oncology research: how much does a patient's voice really matter?

Background: New trends are emerging in clinical research, such as patient empowerment and an active role in influencing health and research ethics. Patients' involvement is considered pivotal by stakeholders and institutions because they can channel the voice of those they represent, empowering their starring role in the different research activities.Objectives: To obtain an overview of the real involvement of Italian patient associations in clinical research.Methods: In January 2019, the Working Group 'Clinical Research Coordinators' of the Italian Association of Medical Oncology spread an online questionnaire consisting of 16 questions on the active involvement of patient associations in clinical research.Results: The involvement in clinical research working groups, in the organization and implementation of specific activities and training initiatives is very limited (21.7% in both cases), as well as the active involvement in the conduct and/or definition of clinical trials (0.3%). Moreover, few associations (15.2%) have joined projects on patient involvement in clinical research in collaboration with other associations.Discussion: Although the current involvement of the associations may have been somewhat underestimated, there is no doubt that much more can be done in terms of training and identification of common objectives between patients and professionals.

Conversaciones con Nightingale: pensamientos de una de sus discípulas / Conversations with Nightingale: Thoughts by One of her Disciples

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Student organization prevalence and structures in US schools of pharmacy.

INTRODUCTION: Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Standards 2016 emphasize co-curricular programming to complement formal curriculums. Programming engagement through student pharmacist organizations is foundational to many schools' co-curriculum. Adequate funding, membership engagement, and governance structures are vital factors that, in turn, help these groups thrive over time. However, minimal literature exists depicting financial support, governance, and membership engagement for benchmarking purposes. The current study's objective was to examine these parameters at a national level among schools of pharmacy. METHODS: Student affairs personnel identified through the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Student Services Special Interest Group received a link to an anonymous Qualtrics survey. Survey data comparing programs were analyzed descriptively and via t-test (continuous data) and Fisher's exact test (nominal data) using Graph Pad Prism 8. RESULTS: Seventy-three schools completed the survey. The majority (53%) were public institutions. Limiting the number of organizations allowed on campus occurred at 39.7% of schools. Regarding formation/funding policies, 75% published policies for organization formation, and 53% published policies for financial support. Use of an "umbrella" format for governance was present in 36% of responding schools. The average number of organizations per school was 11, conducting an average of 10.4 chapter meetings/month. The percent of enrolled students on average belonging to a given organization ranged from 2.2% to over 40%. Ninety-three percent reported that organizations assist in the inculcation of professionalism among student pharmacists. CONCLUSIONS: Pharmacy schools are inconsistent in their approach to student organization formation, funding policies, and governance.

Successful societies: Decision-making and the quality of attentiveness.

Combining moral philosophy with sociological theory to build on themes introduced in Hall and Lamont's Successful Societies (2009), the paper outlines a distinctive perspective. It holds that a necessary condition of successful societies is that decision-makers base their decisions on a high level of attentiveness (concern and comprehension) towards subjectively valued and morally legitimate forms of life. Late modern societies consist of a plurality of forms of life, each providing grounds for what Alasdair MacIntyre has called internal goods-valued and morally valuable practices. The status of such goods is examined, and distinctions are drawn between their manifest and latent, and transposable and situationally specific, characteristics. We integrate this refined idea of internal goods into a developed conception of habitus that is both morally informed and situationally embedded. The sociological approach of strong structuration theory (SST) is employed to demonstrate how this conception of habitus can guide the critique of decision-making that damages internal goods. We identify the most pervasive and invidious forms of damaging decision-making in contemporary societies as those involving excessive forms of instrumental reasoning. We argue that our developed conception of habitus, anchored in the collectively valued practices of specific worlds, can be a powerful focus for resistance. Accounts of scholarship in higher education and of the white working class in America illustrate the specificities of singular, particular, social worlds and illuminate critical challenges raised by the perspective we advocate.

Factors influencing nurse practitioners' decisions to join nurse practitioner associations.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The benefits of professional association membership to individual health care providers are well established. However, not all nurse practitioners (NPs) are members of professional associations. Research is available on factors that influence registered nurses' decisions to join professional associations, but little is known regarding factors influencing the decisions of NPs. The purpose of this study was to identify factors affecting NPs' decisions to join NP associations. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of NPs (N = 537) was conducted electronically in accordance with the Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys guidelines. The Professional Association Membership Questionnaire was used to develop the survey. Three hundred twenty-eight respondents (61.1%) had a current membership in a professional association and 209 (38.9%) were nonmembers. Although both members and nonmembers expressed a desire for professional programs, improvement in the profession, and personal development, current members scored significantly higher in each of these factors (p < .001 to p = .015). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that factors influencing NPs' decisions to join professional associations include the desire for professional programs, improvement of the profession, and personal development. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Professional associations seeking to improve health outcomes by creating more competent, safe NPs and keeping the public's trust should consider focusing on efforts that foster education, professional networking and new ideas, and self-improvement.