KLF17 promotes human naïve pluripotency but is not required for its establishment.

Current knowledge of the transcriptional regulation of human pluripotency is incomplete, with lack of interspecies conservation observed. Single-cell transcriptomics analysis of human embryos previously enabled us to identify transcription factors, including the zinc-finger protein KLF17, that are enriched in the human epiblast and naïve human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Here, we show that KLF17 is expressed coincident with the known pluripotency-associated factors NANOG and SOX2 across human blastocyst development. We investigate the function of KLF17 using primed and naïve hESCs for gain- and loss-of-function analyses. We find that ectopic expression of KLF17 in primed hESCs is sufficient to induce a naïve-like transcriptome and that KLF17 can drive transgene-mediated resetting to naïve pluripotency. This implies a role for KLF17 in establishing naïve pluripotency. However, CRISPR-Cas9-mediated knockout studies reveal that KLF17 is not required for naïve pluripotency acquisition in vitro. Transcriptome analysis of naïve hESCs identifies subtle effects on metabolism and signalling pathways following KLF17 loss of function, and possible redundancy with other KLF paralogues. Overall, we show that KLF17 is sufficient, but not necessary, for naïve pluripotency under the given in vitro conditions.

Impact of Clinical Anatomy Peer Mentorship Program on Student Leaders: A Mixed-Methods Study.

INTRODUCTION: Clinical Anatomy Mentorship Program (CAMP) was developed as a student-led approach to providing hands-on surgical experience and mentorship to third-year medical students during their surgery clerkship at an academic institution. Fourth-year medical students were selected to lead these educational events, teaching underclassmen surgical curriculum and skills in a near-peer method of clinical teaching. METHODS: A focus group and survey were administered to the fourth-year medical students who served as CAMP leaders from fall 2021 to spring 2022 to assess how their leadership role impacted their personal and professional development. RESULTS: A 10-question survey was administered to 19 students, with 14 responding, for a response rate of 74%. Serving as a mentor facilitated the development of students' professional interests, including increased interest in future teaching roles (93%) and leadership positions (86%), particularly as surgical clerkship director (70%) and program director (90%). All students reported that their involvement in CAMP increased their confidence in teaching and surgical knowledge, and 86% reported improved surgical skills. A subset analysis of seven CAMP leaders via the focus group demonstrated several reported benefits to serving as a peer mentor in CAMP, including increased interaction with peers, improved sense of comradery and support, more authentic peer-mentorship connections, and increased confidence and perceived preparedness for surgical residency. CONCLUSIONS: The confidence, leadership, and improved surgical knowledge and skills obtained through the CAMP leadership role led to improved personal and professional development of student leaders.

A Hands-On Surgical Event to Improve Medical Student Operating Room Confidence.

INTRODUCTION: The negative perceptions and lack of exposure to surgery and the operating room (OR) have been known to divert students away from surgical specialties. This study describes the impact of a surgical subspecialty exposure event (OR Essentials), combined with surgical faculty and M4 mentorship on preclinical medical students' confidence at an academic medical center. METHODS: OR essentials event teaches surgical skills to preclinical medical students through hands-on skill-based workshops in a simulated OR setting. Pre and postevaluations were administered to measure program impact. RESULTS: One hundred four preclinical medical students participated. Following OR essentials, students reported a significant increase in confidence in the OR (P < 0.0001) and in basic surgical skills (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Early surgical exposure events like OR essentials provide opportunities to improve medical student confidence in the OR, which will hopefully support recruitment of future surgeons.

Fewer hospitalizations for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in communities with smoke-free public policies.

OBJECTIVES: We determined the impact of smoke-free municipal public policies on hospitalizations for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). METHODS: We conducted a secondary analysis of hospital discharges with a primary diagnosis of COPD in Kentucky between July 1, 2003, and June 30, 2011 using Poisson regression. We compared the hospitalization rates of regions with and without smoke-free laws, adjusting for personal and population covariates, seasonality, secular trends over time, and geographic region. RESULTS: Controlling for covariates such as sex, age, length of stay, race/ethnicity, education, income, and urban-rural status, among others, we found that those living in a community with a comprehensive smoke-free law or regulation were 22% less likely to experience hospitalizations for COPD than those living in a community with a moderate-weak law or no law. Those living in a community with an established law were 21% less likely to be hospitalized for COPD than those with newer laws or no laws. CONCLUSIONS: Strong smoke-free public policies may provide protection against COPD hospitalizations, particularly after 12 months, with the potential to save lives and decrease health care costs.

Smoke-free homes, strength of smoke-free law, and children in the home.

INTRODUCTION: Secondhand smoke (SHS) is a leading cause of childhood illness and premature death, especially in rural areas. The study examined the relationship of having a smoke-free home, strength of smoke-free law (SFL) in the county of residence, having one or more minor children in the home, rural/urban location, and demographics. METHODS: An Internet-based panel survey was administered to Kentucky residents from 2007 to 2012. Sample size ranged from 400 to 513 per year; N = 2,653 total. Most were female, aged 35-54, had at least some college education, and lived in a smoke-free home. Almost half lived in a county with a comprehensive SFL; 14% lived in a county with a moderate or weak law. RESULTS: Multivariate logistic regression revealed that the significant predictors of a smoke-free home included having education beyond high school, being a nonsmoker, living in an urban county, and having a year of participation in the survey. Controlling for smoking status and other personal characteristics, those who responded to the survey in the last 2 years of administration were more likely to have a smoke-free home compared to the reference year of 2007. Respondents living in urban counties were nearly 2 times more likely to report a smoke-free home than rural dwellers. CONCLUSIONS: Smoke-free homes in urban areas, where SFLs may be the norm, may be more typical than in rural communities. Public awareness campaigns and education about the benefits of smoke-free homes is needed, especially in rural areas, targeting smokers, those with less education, and those with children living in the home.

Smoke-free coalition cohesiveness in rural tobacco-growing communities.

Promoting tobacco control policies in rural tobacco-growing communities presents unique challenges. The purpose of this study was to assess smoke-free coalition cohesiveness in rural communities and identify coalition members' perceived barriers or divisive issues that impede the development of smoke-free policies. A secondary aim was to evaluate differences in coalition cohesiveness between advocates in communities receiving stage-based, tailored policy advocacy assistance versus those without assistance. Tobacco control advocates from 40 rural Kentucky communities were interviewed by telephone during the final wave of a 5-year longitudinal study of community readiness for smoke-free policy. On average, five health advocates per county participated in the 45-min interview. Participants rated coalition cohesiveness as not at all cohesive, somewhat cohesive, or very cohesive, and answered one open-ended question about potentially divisive issues within their coalitions. The mean age of the 186 participants was 48.1 years (SD = 13.3). The sample was predominantly female (83.6%) and Caucasian (99.5%). Divisive concerns ranged from rights issues, member characteristics, type of law, and whether or not to allow certain exemptions. Three of the divisive concerns were significantly associated with their rankings of coalition cohesiveness: raising tobacco in the community, the belief that smoke-free would adversely affect the economy, and government control. Educating coalition members on the economics of smoke-free laws and the actual economic impact on tobacco-growing may promote smoke-free coalition cohesiveness. More resources are needed to support policy advocacy in rural tobacco-growing communities as well as efforts to reduce the divisive concerns reported in this study.

Culturally-specific smoking cessation outreach in a rural community.

OBJECTIVE: Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death, resulting in 443,000 US deaths per year. Rural adults have higher smoking prevalence and less access to tobacco dependence treatment than their urban counterparts. This study examined exposure to a culturally specific smoking cessation outreach intervention, assessing whether exposure was associated with cessation behaviors. DESIGN AND SAMPLE: Post-test only quasi-experimental study. Targeted adult smokers (N = 251) living in a rural, economically distressed southeastern US county for at least 6 months. MEASUREMENTS: Five outreach elements (brochures/pushcards, posters, print and radio advertisements, quilt made by local artisans) based on themes from focus groups with current and former smokers and paired with brief tobacco cessation counseling, and were delivered over 6 months in 2009-2010. Exposure and cessation behavior indicators were collected via cross-sectional random-digit dial survey. The total intervention exposure score was 4.8 (SD = 4.3, range 0-19). RESULTS: Intervention exposure was associated with having talked to a health care provider about quitting smoking in the past 6 months and planning to quit smoking in the next 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: Culturally specific outreach materials based on personal narratives are a promising population-based intervention to motivate rural smokers to consider cessation.

Dual home screening and tailored environmental feedback to reduce radon and secondhand smoke: an exploratory study.

Combined exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) and radon increases lung cancer risk 10-fold. The authors assessed the feasibility and impact of a brief home screening and environmental feedback intervention to reduce radon and SHS (Freedom from Radon and Smoking in the Home [FRESH]) and measured perceived risk of lung cancer and synergistic risk perception (SHS x radon). Participants (N = 50) received home radon and SHS kits and completed baseline surveys. Test results were shared using an intervention guided by the Teachable Moment Model. Half of the participants completed online surveys two months later. Most (76%) returned the radon test kits; 48% returned SHS kits. Of the returned radon test kits, 26% were >4.0 pCi/L. Of the returned SHS kits, 38% had nicotine > .1 microg/m3. Of those with high radon, more than half had contacted a mitigation specialist or planned contact. Of those with positive air nicotine, 75% had adopted smoke-free homes. A significant increase occurred in perceived risk for lung cancer and synergistic risk perception after FRESH.

Unifying Public Health Surveillance: A Scoping Review of Global Use of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey.

PURPOSE: The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is a well-established surveillance tool designed to document the health risk behaviors of youth. However, there is limited insight into the use of the survey outside of the United States. The aim of this scoping review was to assess the global presence and utilization of the YRBS. METHODS: A structured electronic search of all publication years (through February 2020) was conducted to identify articles in PubMed and EBSCOhost. The search identified 128 articles that used the YRBS beyond the United States. RESULTS: More than one-third of all countries, territories, and dependencies were represented in the articles, with the greatest use among upper-middle and high-income economies and those in the East Asia and Pacific geographic region. Priority health-risk behaviors identified were alcohol and other drug use (51%), tobacco use (48%), and unintentional and intentional injuries (44%). The articles predominantly suggested that the survey data be used to influence programs, policies, and practices (57%). DISCUSSION: The development and proliferation of surveillance systems has allowed for important contributions to public health. Extensive use of the YRBS is notable; however, greater efforts are needed to support more systematic and collaborative approaches for evaluating youth behaviors around the world.

Non-STEM majors COVID-19 vaccine impressions improve, and misconceptions resolve, after podcast assignment.

Misinformation regarding vaccine science decreased the receptiveness to COVID-19 vaccines, exacerbating the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on society. To mitigate the negative societal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, impactful and creative science communication was needed, yet little research has explored how to encourage COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and address misconceptions held by non-Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics majors (referred to as non-majors). We have previously demonstrated that including expert guest lectures in the vaccine module in the non-major introductory biology course helps combat students' vaccine hesitancy. In the present study, we further address how learning about vaccines impacts student knowledge and impressions of the COVID-19 vaccines through a podcast assignment. As a part of this assignment, non-majors created podcasts to address COVID-19 vaccine misconceptions of their choice. We coded pre and post, open-ended essay reflections (n = 40) to assess non-majors' knowledge and impressions of the COVID-19 vaccines. Non-majors' impressions of the vaccines improved following the podcast assignment with more than three times as many students reporting a positive view of the assignment than negative views. Notably, eight of the nine interviewed students still ended the course with misconceptions about the COVID-19 vaccines, such as the vaccines being unnecessary or causing fertility issues. In a post semi-structured interview following this assignment, students (n = 7) discussed the impact of looking into the specific misconceptions related to COVID-19 vaccines themselves, including improved science communication skills and understanding of different perspectives. Thus, podcasts can provide opportunities for students to improve engagement in valuable societal topics like vaccine literacy in the non-majors classroom.

Family caregiving for adults with schizophrenia and diabetes mellitus.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is common among those with schizophrenia, but little is known about family members' roles in the care of relatives who have both schizophrenia and DM. The purpose of this descriptive correlational study was to examine DM knowledge and caregiver burden among 27 family caregivers of people with schizophrenia and DM. Findings indicate that DM knowledge was low. Objective caregiver burden was highest for providing assistance with daily living activities. Subjective burden was highest for preventing the care recipient from keeping people awake at night and dealing with the care recipient's non-adherence to DM care. Family caregivers are in need of education and support in the caregiving role.

Organizational fidelity to a medication management evidence-based practice in the treatment of schizophrenia.

Organizational support is essential for successful implementation of evidence-based practice (EBP) in clinical settings. This 3-year study used a mixed qualitative and quantitative design to implement a medication management EBP in the treatment of schizophrenia in six community mental health clinics in a south-central state of the United States. Findings from organizational fidelity assessments indicate that support for EBP implementation was moderate. Organizational support was highest for prescriber access to relevant patient information at each medication visit, scheduling flexibility for patients' urgent problems, and availability of medication guidelines. Organizational support was lowest for medication availability and identification of treatment refractory patients. Findings suggest that leadership is essential to support successful implementation. Nurse educators can incorporate implementation research and leadership training into graduate nursing programs to facilitate successful EBP implementation in practice settings.

Correlations Between Department and Training Program Online Presence and Women in Orthopedic Surgery Training.

Background: Orthopedic residency programs increasingly use websites and social media to reach students. This accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as away rotations became limited. Women remain a minority of orthopedic residents, and there are no data that indicate the correlation between department/program website content or social media presence on the gender diversity of residency classes. Methods: Orthopedic department websites were assessed between June 2021 and January 2022 to identify program director's gender, as well as the gender composition of the faculty and residents. Instagram presence for the department and/or program was also identified. Results: There was no correlation found between the residency program director's gender and the gender diversity of residents in a given program. The percentage of women faculty identified on a department website was significantly correlated with the percentage of women residents in the program, regardless of the program director's gender. While there was an increase in the percentage of women residents among programs with Instagram accounts for the class that started in 2021, this was negated when the percentage of women faculty was taken into account. Conclusion: Efforts on multiple fronts will be needed to increase the number and percentage of women applying for and training in orthopedic surgery. Given the increasing use of digital media, we need a better understanding of what information, including faculty gender diversity, can be conveyed through this format that is useful for women medical students interested in orthopedic surgery to address their concerns about the field.

Building Approachable Surgical Experiences (BASE) in High School Populations.

OBJECTIVE: Pipeline programs are often set up to bring more diverse candidates to medical schools with the goal of diversifying the physician workforce in the years to come. All too often, these programs begin in college, long after many students of diverse backgrounds have been left behind through a myriad of barriers that exist between entering high school and matriculating to medical school. The Building Approachable Surgical Experiences (BASE) outreach program was designed to showcase healthcare careers, with an emphasis on surgical subspecialties, to historically underserved high school students. This pilot program's goal was to increase high school students' interest and confidence in pursuing future medical and surgical careers and provide a platform to initiate mentorship. DESIGN: Local high school students from underrepresented in medicine (URiM) populations or medically underserved communities were invited to spend the day at an academic medical school campus. These students engaged in hands-on clinical and basic operative skill workshops led by third- and fourth-year medical students. They also engaged in small group conversations centered on mentorship with surgical residents and faculty. SETTING: Program implementation took place at an academic medical center school of medicine in an urban city. PARTICIPANTS: Forty high school students, 16 medical students, and 2 surgery faculty participated in this pilot program. CONCLUSIONS: This event allowed early exposure for high school students to surgical and medical specialties, clinical techniques, and surgical mentorship. From the connections made, students have developed mentorship relationships and have felt comfortable reaching out with questions regarding the steps required to seek entrance to medical school. Mentors are currently resident or attending physicians, which provides students from underrepresented populations an opportunity for direct insight and guidance to and through the path to becoming a physician. Based on qualitative feedback from students, their high school teachers, and administrators, this pilot program succeeded in providing a window into healthcare, using a format that was encouraging to students long beyond their time on the school of medicine campus.

A short online community readiness survey for smoke-free policy.

INTRODUCTION: Rural residents in the United States are more likely to use tobacco, have less access to tobacco control resources and efforts, and are more highly exposed to secondhand smoke than their urban counterparts. The purpose was to design and pilot test a shortened, self-administered online survey (Community Readiness Survey-Short form [CRS-S]) to assess community readiness for smoke-free policy in rural communities. The Community Readiness Survey-Long form (CRS-L) is a 30- to 90-min telephone-administered survey. The Community Readiness Model can guide the design of programs and policy interventions to reduce health risks. METHODS: 160 key informants from Wave 3 of a 5-year community-based randomized controlled trial set in Kentucky completed the CRS-L; 61 of approximately 140-284 items were significantly related to the relevant readiness dimension subscores and selected for inclusion. The online CRS-S was created with these items using Qualtrics software; 43 smoke-free advocates who had completed the CRS-L during Wave 4 were invited to participate. Correlations between the CRS-S and the CRS-L on overall readiness and the dimension scores were calculated. Readiness scores were correlated with existence of public policy and voluntary smoke-free policies to assess convergent validity. RESULTS: The correlation between the overall CRS-S and CRS-L scores was relatively strong (.82), and there is evidence to support convergent validity. Most respondents completed the CRS-S in less than 15 min and preferred this format. CONCLUSIONS: The CRS-S is a valid and less time- and resource-intensive method to assess readiness for smoke-free policy in rural communities.

Urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin predicts mortality and identifies acute kidney injury in cirrhosis.

BACKGROUND: Kidney failure predicts mortality in patients with cirrhosis. Identification of kidney failure etiology and recognition of those at the highest mortality risk remains a challenge. AIMS: We hypothesized that urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (uNGAL) predicts mortality and identifies hepatorenal syndrome (HRS) in patients with cirrhosis. METHODS: Prospectively enrolled patients with cirrhosis were investigated by uNGAL immunoblot upon hospital admission. Kidney failure type was determined blinded to NGAL measurements. RESULTS: One hundred eighteen patients were enrolled. Fifty-two (44 %) patients had normal kidney function, 14 (12 %) stable chronic kidney disease, 17 (14 %) prerenal azotemia, 20 (17 %) HRS, and 15 (13 %) intrinsic acute kidney injury (iAKI). Patients with HRS had uNGAL levels intermediate between prerenal azotemia [median (IQR) 105 (27.5-387.5) vs. 20 (15-45) ng/mL, p = 0.004] and iAKI [325 (100-700), p < 0.001]. Fifteen (13 %) patients died. In unadjusted analysis, uNGAL predicted inpatient mortality (OR 2.00, 95 % CI 1.36-2.94) and mortality or liver transplantation (OR 2.01, 95 % CI 1.42-2.85). In multiple regression models, uNGAL > 110 ng/mL (OR 6.05, 95 % CI 1.35-27.2) and HRS (OR 6.71, 95 % CI 1.76-25.5) independently predicted mortality, adjusting for age and serum creatinine >1.5 mg/dL. CONCLUSIONS: uNGAL strongly predicts short-term inpatient mortality in both unadjusted and adjusted models. Patients with HRS may have uNGAL levels intermediate between those with prerenal azotemia and iAKI. Further studies are needed to determine if uNGAL can improve discrimination of HRS from other types of acute kidney injury and predict short- and long-term cirrhosis outcomes.

Smoke-free policy and alcohol use among undergraduate college students.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess attitudes and behaviors related to smoke-free policy among undergraduate student alcohol drinkers on a campus in a community with smoke-free bars. DESIGN AND SAMPLE: This was a secondary data analysis of a study in which participants completed mailed surveys assessing demographic characteristics, attitudes and behaviors related to alcohol and tobacco use and smoke-free policy (n = 337). Opinion and behavior items were summarized descriptively; associations were examined using Kruskal Wallis tests and chi-square tests of association. Logistic regression tested for predictors of importance of smoke-free policy. RESULTS: Respondents were predominantly female and Caucasian; mean age 20.3 years. One fourth were current smokers. Seventy-nine percent said the community smoke-free law had no effect on frequency of visiting bars. Eighty-seven percent said smoke-free policy in campus buildings was "somewhat" or "very important." Predictors of perceived importance of smoke-free policy included gender and smoking status. CONCLUSIONS: Most smokers in this sample did not experience a change in their motivation to quit smoking or in number of cigarettes smoked daily. Implementation of a community smoke-free law did not reduce the likelihood of visiting bars. Women and nonsmokers were more likely to rate smoke-free campus policy as very important.

Rural print media portrayal of secondhand smoke and smoke-free policy.

The purpose of this article is to describe how the print media portrays secondhand smoke and smoke-free policy in rural communities. Baseline print media clips from an ongoing 5-year study of smoke-free policy development in 40 rural communities were analyzed. The authors hypothesized that community population size would be positively associated with media favorability toward smoke-free policy. Conversely, pounds of tobacco produced and adult smoking prevalence would be negatively associated with media favorability. There was a positive correlation between population size and percentage of articles favorable toward smoke-free policy. The authors did not find a correlation between adult smoking or tobacco produced and media favorability toward smoke-free policy, but we did find a positive relationship between tobacco produced and percentage of pro-tobacco articles and a negative relationship between adult smoking prevalence and percentage of articles about health/comfort. Implications for targeting pro-health media in rural communities as well as policy-based initiatives for tobacco control are discussed.

Political climate and smoke-free laws in rural Kentucky communities.

The purpose was to determine factors associated with rural communities' political readiness to enact smoke-free laws. Data from baseline assessment of a longitudinal intervention study to promote smoke-free policy in rural Kentucky communities; key informants (n = 144) and elected officials (n = 83) from 29 counties participated in cross-sectional telephone interviews. Controlling for population size and county-level smoking rate, the following factors predicted elected officials' perception of the likelihood of a local smoke-free law passing in the next 12 months: (1) support from the local board of health; (2) support from local leaders; and (3) smoke-free hospitals. Communities with lower adult smoking prevalence were more ready for smoke-free laws. Rural health advocates can increase political readiness for smoke-free laws by educating and engaging Board of Health members and local leaders, promoting the voluntary adoption of smoke-free policies in rural hospitals, and investing in effective population-based approaches to evidence-based tobacco treatment in rural communities.

Do smoke-free laws in rural, distressed counties encourage cessation?

The authors examined the association between smoke-free laws and smoking/cessation behaviors and secondhand smoke exposure among current and former smokers in rural, distressed counties. A quasi-experimental, two-group design compared outcomes between participants from a county with a longstanding smoke-free law (n = 252) and those living in four demographically similar counties without smoke-free laws ( n = 250). Participants were recruited using random digit dialing. Controlling for demographic factors, those in the treatment group reported greater nicotine dependence, were more likely to have smoke-free workplaces, and less likely to have smoke-free homes. There were no differences in smoking status, past-year quit attempts, intent to quit in 5 years, cigarettes per day, or time since last cigarette. Smokers in the treatment group were just as likely to attempt to quit, despite greater nicotine dependence. Findings showed that making nonsmoking the social norm through policy change may be more difficult in rural, distressed areas.