Compassionate care intervention for hospital nursing teams caring for older people: a pilot cluster randomised controlled trial.

Objective: Compassionate care continues to be a focus for national and international attention, but the existing evidence base lacks the experimental methodology necessary to guide the selection of effective interventions for practice. This study aimed to evaluate the Creating Learning Environments for Compassionate Care (CLECC) intervention in improving compassionate care.

Setting: Ward nursing teams (clusters) in two English National Health Service hospitals randomised to intervention (n=4) or control (n=2).

Caregivers' Priorities and Observed Outcomes of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Medication for Their Children.

Objective: To document variability among caregivers' priorities when considering medication to treat their Children's attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and explore associations between these priorities and medication-related improvements.

Methods: Caregivers of children, ages 4 to 14 years, diagnosed with ADHD were recruited from outpatient clinics and support groups across Maryland. A survey gathered data on caregiver-reported concerns when considering ADHD medication, demographic characteristics, and observed and desired improvements in their child's ADHD.

A patient and community-centered approach selecting endpoints for a randomized trial of a novel advance care planning tool.

Background: Despite a movement toward patient-centered outcomes, best practices on how to gather and refine patients' perspectives on research endpoints are limited. Advanced care planning (ACP) is inherently patient centered and would benefit from patient prioritization of endpoints for ACP-related tools and studies.

Objective: This investigation sought to prioritize patient-centered endpoints for the content and evaluation of an ACP video being developed for patients undergoing major surgery.

Project Transform: engaging patient advocates to share their perspectives on improving research, treatment and policy.

Objective: Incorporating the patient perspective into lung cancer research, policy and treatment is becoming increasingly recognized as important. This project sought to create an engagement partnership with lung cancer patient advocates and to explore their views on transforming lung cancer healthcare systems, treatment and policy to be more patient centered.

Methods: A patient action committee (PAC) of patient advocates living with lung cancer was engaged through group meetings, in-person and phone interviews, and email correspondence.

Quantifying the treatment goals of people recently diagnosed with schizophrenia using best-worst scaling.

Objective: This study seeks to quantify the treatment goals of people recently diagnosed with schizophrenia and explore their impact on treatment plan.

Methods: People aged 18-35 years with a confirmed diagnosis of schizophrenia within the past 5 years were surveyed in the UK, Germany, and Italy. Treatment goals were assessed via a validated best-worst scaling instrument, where participants evaluated subsets of 13 possible treatment goals identified using a balanced incomplete block design.

Medium-Term Outcome and CT Assessment of Lateral Foraminotomy at the Lumbosacral Junction in Dogs with Degenerative Lumbosacral Stenosis.

Objective:  This article aims to report the medium-term clinical outcome and assess persistence of enlargement of the lumbosacral lateral intervertebral neurovascular foramen using computed tomography (CT) volumetric analysis in dogs following lateral foraminotomy.

Materials:  Six dogs that underwent lumbosacral lateral foraminotomy on one or both sides were evaluated with CT prior to, immediately postoperatively ( = 2) and at 12 to 44 months of follow-up. Five out of six dogs had successful clinical outcomes with alleviation of pain and increased levels of activity, according to subjective assessment.

Fifteen-Year Trends in Pediatric Liver Transplants: Split, Whole Deceased, and Living Donor Grafts.

Objective: To evaluate changes in patient and graft survival for pediatric liver transplant recipients since 2002, and to determine if these outcomes vary by graft type (whole liver transplant, split liver transplant [SLT], and living donor liver transplant [LDLT]).

Study Design: We evaluated patient and graft survival among pediatric liver-only transplant recipients the PELD/MELD system was implemented using the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients.

Results: From 2002-2009 to 2010-2015, survival for SLT at 30 days improved (94% vs 98%; P < .

Conducting a Discrete-Choice Experiment Study Following Recommendations for Good Research Practices: An Application for Eliciting Patient Preferences for Diabetes Treatments.

Objectives: To consolidate and illustrate good research practices in health care to the application and reporting of a study measuring patient preferences for type 2 diabetes mellitus medications, given recent methodological advances in stated-preference methods.

Methods: The International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research good research practices and other recommendations were used to conduct a discrete-choice experiment. Members of a US online panel with type 2 diabetes mellitus completed a Web-enabled, self-administered survey that elicited choices between treatment pairs with six attributes at three possible levels each.

The Relationship Between Approval of Violence and Intimate Partner Violence in College Students.

Dating violence is a significant problem among college students. Using a sample of 248 male and 304 female college students, we explored whether or not male and female college students differed in their approval rates of male-to-female intimate partner violence (IPV) and female-to-male IPV. We also examined how approval of violence related to reports of physical, psychological, and sexual IPV perpetration and victimization.

Live, Learn, Pass It on: A Patient Advocacy Engagement Project on the Lived Experience of Lung Cancer Survivors.

Introduction: The objective of this project was to engage survivor-advocates by describing their experiences living with lung cancer in an era of increasing treatment options.

Methods: This was a qualitative engagement project with participants from a lung cancer advocacy organization's survivor advisory board. Interviews were conducted, transcribed, and analyzed for stages and associated experiences using interpretive phenomenological analysis and elements of narrative analysis, in partnership with the patient advocacy organization.

Alveolar injury and regeneration following deletion of ABCA3.

Adaptation to air breathing after birth is dependent upon the synthesis and secretion of pulmonary surfactant by alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells. Surfactant, a complex mixture of phospholipids and proteins, is secreted into the alveolus, where it reduces collapsing forces at the air-liquid interface to maintain lung volumes during the ventilatory cycle. ABCA3, an ATP-dependent Walker domain containing transport protein, is required for surfactant synthesis and lung function at birth.

A prospective study of breed differences in the thermal pain sensitivity of dogs.

Objective: To compare the thermal nociceptive thresholds (TNTs) of dogs from three working/sport breeds.

Study Design: Experimental prospective study.

Animals: Thirty healthy adult dogs of mixed age, sex and reproductive status, 10 of each of three breeds: Harrier Hound, Greyhound and New Zealand Huntaway.

Plasma NT-proBNP and Cell-Free DNA Concentrations after Prolonged Strenuous Exercise in Working Farm Dogs.

Background: Plasma N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) concentration is increased in dogs with myocardial dysfunction, and cell-free DNA (cfDNA) increases in numerous disease states. In humans, both of these biomarkers can be altered after endurance exercise.

Objective: To investigate the effect of prolonged strenuous exercise on circulating NT-proBNP and cfDNA concentrations in working farm dogs.

Identification of the Beagle 2 lander on Mars.

The 2003 Beagle 2 Mars lander has been identified in Isidis Planitia at 90.43° E, 11.53° N, close to the predicted target of 90.

Education and patient preferences for treating type 2 diabetes: a stratified discrete-choice experiment.

Purpose: Diabetes is a chronic condition that is more prevalent among people with lower educational attainment. This study assessed the treatment preferences of patients with type 2 diabetes by educational attainment.

Methods: Patients with type 2 diabetes were recruited from a national online panel in the US.

Improving the quality of discrete-choice experiments in health: how can we assess validity and reliability?

The recent endorsement of discrete-choice experiments (DCEs) and other stated-preference methods by regulatory and health technology assessment (HTA) agencies has placed a greater focus on demonstrating the validity and reliability of preference results. Areas covered: We present a practical overview of tests of validity and reliability that have been applied in the health DCE literature and explore other study qualities of DCEs. From the published literature, we identify a variety of methods to assess the validity and reliability of DCEs.

Expansion of EPOR-negative macrophages besides erythroblasts by elevated EPOR signaling in erythrocytosis mouse models.

Activated erythropoietin (EPO) receptor (EPOR) signaling causes erythrocytosis. The important role of macrophages for the erythroid expansion and differentiation process has been reported, both in baseline and stress erythropoiesis. However, the significance of EPOR signaling for regulation of macrophages contributing to erythropoiesis has not been fully understood.

Impact of Race and Ethnicity on Outcomes for Children Waitlisted for Pediatric Liver Transplantation.

Objective: African Americans and other minorities are known to face barriers to health care influencing their access to organ transplantation but it is not known whether these barriers exist among pediatric liver transplant waitlist candidates. We sought to determine whether outcomes on the waitlist (ie, mortality, deceased donor liver transplantation [DDLT], and living-donor liver transplantation [LDLT]) varied by race/ethnicity.

Methods: National registry data were studied to estimate the race/ethnicity-specific risk of waitlist mortality, DDLT and LDLT in children (<18 years) waitlisted between March 2002 and March 2015.

Framework for the quantitative weight-of-evidence analysis of 'omics data for regulatory purposes.

A framework for the quantitative weight-of-evidence (QWoE) analysis of 'omics data for regulatory purposes is presented. The QWoE framework encompasses seven steps to evaluate 'omics data (also together with non-'omics data): (1) Hypothesis formulation, identification and weighting of lines of evidence (LoEs). LoEs conjoin different (types of) studies that are used to critically test the hypothesis.

Using best-worst scaling to rank factors affecting vaccination demand in northern Nigeria.

Background: Understanding and ranking the reasons for low vaccination uptake among parents in northern Nigeria is critical to implement effective policies to save lives and prevent illnesses. This study applies best-worst scaling (BWS) to rank various factors affecting parents' demand for routine childhood immunization.

Methods: We conducted a household survey in Nahuche, Zamfara State in northern Nigeria.

Using Latent Class Analysis to Model Preference Heterogeneity in Health: A Systematic Review.

Background: Latent class analysis (LCA) has been increasingly used to explore preference heterogeneity, but the literature has not been systematically explored and hence best practices are not understood.

Objective: We sought to document all applications of LCA in the stated-preference literature in health and to inform future studies by identifying current norms in published applications.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review of the MEDLINE, EMBASE, EconLit, Web of Science, and PsycINFO databases.

Development of a stated-preference instrument to prioritize treatment goals in recent onset schizophrenia.

Objective: This study sought to evaluate a new stated-preference instrument to prioritize multiple treatment goals among people with recent onset schizophrenia.

Methods: A draft survey instrument was developed to assess preferences for 13 key treatment goals that were identified based on the literature. The survey incorporates best-worst scaling (BWS), which shows repeated subsets comprising 4 of the 13 goals, and respondents identify which is most important and which is least important to them.