A pilot study of an intergenerational program for people in residential aged care with cognitive impairment and children from a co-located early learning centre during COVID-19.

Intergenerational programs in residential aged care may improve well-being and combat loneliness and social isolation in older people with cognitive impairment. This pilot study investigated the effects of a semi-structured intergenerational group, including children from a co-located early learning centre and people living in residential aged care with cognitive impairment. This 9-week study used a mixed methods pre- and post-program design. Sessions were designed and delivered once per week by Occupational Therapists and took into account residents' interests and children's developmental needs and interests, identified in pre-program interviews. Nine older people with cognitive impairment and 13 children participated. The program was well attended despite disruptions and complications caused by COVID-19 and weather conditions. Older people valued the opportunity to engage with the children. Children were observed to gain confidence in communicating and forming friendships with older people with different levels of ability. There did not appear to be any change in loneliness or neuropsychiatric symptoms. The intergenerational program benefited participants and received strong support from family members and staff of the early learning centre and aged care home.

Using Automated Vehicle Technologies With Older Adults: A Mixed-Methods Study.

When older adults' driving abilities decline, automated driving technologies may improve community mobility, engagement, and independence. Most previous research has focused on older persons' attitudes rather than their use of automated driving technologies. This study examined older Australians' perceptions and experience of automated vehicle technologies before, during, and after a real-life driving experience, focusing on ease of use, usefulness, safety, acceptance, trust, and confidence. This mixed-methods study included observation of a 6-km test drive using a partially automated vehicle, pre- and post-drive questionnaires, and a post-drive semi-structured interview. Most participants reported positive perceptions and experiences before, during, and after the test drive. Visual analysis of pre/postresponses revealed divergent reactions to the test drive, consistent with the heterogeneity of the older population. Automated driving technologies have potential to contribute to mobility at older ages. Larger-scale studies including actual driving experiences are recommended.

Pharmacists' Perspectives on the Use of My Health Record.

(1) Background: My Health Record (MHR) is a relatively new nationwide Australian digital health record system accessible by patients and a range of healthcare professionals. Pharmacists will be key contributors and users of the MHR system, yet little is known about the perceived barriers and benefits of use. (2) Objective: To explore pharmacists' perspectives related to potential benefits and barriers associated with use of MHR. (3) Methods: An online survey was developed and face-validated. The survey was advertised to Australian pharmacists on pharmacy professional bodies' websites. This was a cross-sectional study using an anonymous questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the distribution of the data. Chi-square, Kendall's tau coefficient (tau-c) and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to examine the relationships where appropriate. (4) Results: A total of 63 pharmacists completed the survey. The majority of respondents worked in a metropolitan area (74%), and the most common workplace setting was community pharmacy (65%). Perceived benefits identified by responders include that the use of MHR would help with continuity of care (90%), and that it would improve the safety (71%) and quality (75%) of care they provided. Importantly, more than half of pharmacists surveyed agreed that MHR could reduce medication errors during dispensing (57%) and could improve professional relationships with patients (57%) and general practitioners (59%). Potential barriers identified by pharmacists included patients' concerns about privacy (81%), pharmacists' own concern about privacy (46%), lack of training, access to and confidence in using the system. Sixty six percent of respondents had concerns about the accuracy of information contained within MHR, particularly among hospital and general practice pharmacists (p = 0.016) and almost half (44%) had concerns about the security of information in the system, mainly pharmacists working at general practice and providing medication review services (p = 0.007). Overall satisfaction with MHR varied, with 48% satisfied, 33% neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, and 19% dissatisfied, with a higher satisfaction rate among younger pharmacists (p = 0.032). (5) Conclusions: Pharmacists considered that the MHR offered key potential benefits, notably improving the safety and quality of care provided. To optimize the use of MHR, there is a need to improve privacy and data security measures, and to ensure adequate provision of user support and education surrounding the ability to integrate use of MHR with existing workflows and software.

Student perceptions of an experiential education clinic within a pharmacy school.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Pharmacy schools would benefit from new models of experiential education. The University of Saskatchewan (Canada) recently opened a patient care clinic called the Medication Assessment Centre (MAC) as new experiential education model. The purpose of this paper is to describe the structure and function of the MAC and to report program evaluation data. EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING: The MAC is a unique application of an existing experiential education model in that it is an pharmacist-run ambulatory clinic (which is common) that is physically located on campus amongst the classrooms and supervised by pharmacy faculty (which is unique). Students are all required to participate in the clinic on a regular basis, in between lectures, throughout the four years of the pharmacy program. FINDINGS: Students were invited to participate in one of five focus groups to assess the value of the experience. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis, and the results identified strong satisfaction amongst students. The overall themes fell into three categories: (1) aspects that students liked, (2) aspects that students found challenging, and (3) positive impact on student learning. Previously published studies have found strong support for the MAC amongst patients and physicians. SUMMARY: Students felt that a faculty supervised experiential education clinic that is physically located within their pharmacy school was a valuable learning experience. This paper provides a description of how the MAC has been integrated into an existing pharmacy curriculum, which may be valuable to schools contemplating a similar addition to existing experiential learning.

Variation in symptoms of depression and anxiety in midlife women by menopausal status.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between menopausal status and the risk of symptoms of depression and anxiety in a community-based sample of Australian midlife women. STUDY DESIGN: Female participants (mean age 50.6±1.5) who were premenopausal (n=237), perimenopausal (n=249) or naturally postmenopausal (n=225) were drawn from the Personality and Total Health (PATH) Through Life Project, a longitudinal study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Symptoms of depression and anxiety were measured using the Goldberg Depression Scale and Goldberg Anxiety Scale. Generalised linear regression models with a negative binomial log link were used. RESULTS: Relative to premenopause and after adjusting for all relevant covariates, being perimenopausal was associated with increased risk of greater symptoms of depression (incidence rate ratio [IRR]=1.29, p=0.001), while being postmenopausal was associated with increased risk of greater symptoms of anxiety (IRR=1.15, p=0.041). Being perimenopausal or postmenopausal was associated with an increased risk of greater symptoms of depression (IRR=1.35, p=0.008; IRR=1.31, p=0.029) and anxiety (IRR=1.22, p=0.030; IRR=1.32, p=0.006) in women without a history of probable major depressive disorder or generalised anxiety disorder. Risk of symptoms did not differ with menopausal status in women with this history. CONCLUSIONS: Menopausal status is associated with the risk of symptoms of depression and anxiety. There is a greater likelihood of increased symptoms of depression during perimenopause and symptoms of anxiety during postmenopause. In women without a history of depression or anxiety, the perimenopause and postmenopausal stages are associated with increased risk of greater symptoms of anxiety and depression relative to premenopause.