Publications by authors named "R Dedrick"

Introduction: In over 50 years since the genetic counseling (GC) profession began, a systematic study of GC communication skills and patient-reported outcomes in actual sessions across multiple clinical specialties has never been conducted. To optimize GC quality and improve efficiency of care, the field must first be able to comprehensively measure GC skills and determine which skills are most critical to achieving positive patient experiences and outcomes. This study aims to characterise GC communication skills using a novel and pragmatic measure and link variations in communication skills to patient-reported outcomes, across clinical specialties and with patients from diverse backgrounds in the USA.

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Background: The co-occurrence of physical inactivity and poor mental health in the college student population can lead to chronic health issues that have negative short-term effects (e.g., academic success).

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Genetic counseling (GC) relies on communication to help people understand and adapt to genetic contributions of disease, and there is need for a practical and reliable method of comprehensively documenting GC communication skills without intensive coding. To this end, we created a novel process measure called the Genetic Counseling Skills Checklist (GCSC), utilizing previously validated measures, communication/counseling frameworks, and prior research findings. A multistage iterative process was used to develop, evaluate, and modify the GCSC to improve its clarity, usability, and content validity.

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Objectives: Mycobacterium abscessus complex is responsible for 2.6-13.0% of all non-tuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary infections and these are notoriously difficult to treat due to the complex regimens required, drug resistance and adverse effects.

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Article Synopsis
  • Mycobacterium abscessus infections often occur in cystic fibrosis patients and are difficult to treat due to their resistance to antibiotics.
  • Bacteriophage therapy shows promise but faces challenges, such as varying susceptibility among different strains and the need for personalized treatments.
  • New research on M. abscessus isolates reveals unusual prophage patterns and limited phage infections, highlighting the need for better understanding to improve phage therapy for non-tuberculous mycobacterial infections.
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