Measures of social connectedness in adult populations: a systematic review.

Background: Poor social connectedness has been identified as a risk factor for poor mental health but there is a lack of standardisation in how it is measured. This systematic review aimed to identify suitable measures of social connectedness for use in UK adult general populations.

Methods: Searches were undertaken in two stages to identify: (1) measures of social connectedness from review articles and grey literature and (2) studies reporting on the psychometric properties of the identified measures.

The Impact of Different Types of Social Media Use on the Mental Health of UK Adults: Longitudinal Observational Study.

Background: Previous studies have explored the association between social media use and mental health among adolescents. However, few studies using nationally representative longitudinal data have explored this relationship for adults and how the effect might change depending on how people use social media.

Objective: This study investigated the longitudinal relationship between the frequency of viewing and posting on social media and mental health problems among UK adults.

The Impact of Social Media Use Interventions on Mental Well-Being: Systematic Review.

Background: There is some evidence that more social media use is related to poorer mental well-being and that social media use can become problematic when it starts to interfere with a person's daily life and mental well-being. To address this issue and improve users' mental well-being, social media use interventions (eg, abstinence from social media) have been developed and evaluated. However, there is limited understanding of the effectiveness of these interventions in improving mental well-being.

Correction: The Longitudinal Impact of Social Media Use on UK Adolescents' Mental Health: Longitudinal Observational Study.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.2196/43213.].

The Longitudinal Impact of Social Media Use on UK Adolescents' Mental Health: Longitudinal Observational Study.

Background: Cross-sectional studies have found a relationship between social media use and depression and anxiety in young people. However, few longitudinal studies using representative data and mediation analysis have been conducted to understand the causal pathways of this relationship.

Objective: This study aims to examine the longitudinal relationship between social media use and young people's mental health and the role of self-esteem and social connectedness as potential mediators.

Adolescent Experiences of the COVID-19 Pandemic and School Closures and Implications for Mental Health, Peer Relationships and Learning: A Qualitative Study in South-West England.

The COVID-19 'lockdown' and multiple school closures disrupted the daily lives and routines of the entire UK population. However, adolescents were likely particularly impacted by such measures due to this time being key for social and educational development. This qualitative study explored young people's experiences of lockdowns and school closures.

Impact of School and Peer Connectedness on Adolescent Mental Health and Well-Being Outcomes during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Panel Survey.

School closures and social distancing measures during the pandemic have disrupted young people's daily routines and social relationships. We explored patterns of change in adolescent mental health and tested the relationship between pre-pandemic levels of school and peer connectedness and changes in mental health and well-being between the first lockdown and the return to school. This is a secondary analysis of a longitudinal 3-wave panel survey.

The effectiveness of using virtual patient educational tools to improve medical students' clinical reasoning skills: a systematic review.

Background: Use of virtual patient educational tools could fill the current gap in the teaching of clinical reasoning skills. However, there is a limited understanding of their effectiveness. The aim of this study was to synthesise the evidence to understand the effectiveness of virtual patient tools aimed at improving undergraduate medical students' clinical reasoning skills.

Physician associate/assistant contributions to cancer diagnosis in primary care: a rapid systematic review.

Background: Symptom recognition and timely referral in primary care are crucial for the early diagnosis of cancer. Physician assistants or associates (PAs) have been introduced in 18 healthcare systems across the world, with numbers increasing in some cases to address primary care physician shortages. Little is known about their impact on suspected cancer recognition and referral.

Using Virtual Patients to Explore the Clinical Reasoning Skills of Medical Students: Mixed Methods Study.

Background: Improving clinical reasoning skills-the thought processes used by clinicians to formulate appropriate questions and diagnoses-is essential for reducing missed diagnostic opportunities. The electronic Clinical Reasoning Educational Simulation Tool (eCREST) was developed to improve the clinical reasoning of future physicians. A feasibility trial demonstrated acceptability and potential impacts; however, the processes by which students gathered data were unknown.

Use of Social Media to Promote Cancer Screening and Early Diagnosis: Scoping Review.

Background: Social media is commonly used in public health interventions to promote cancer screening and early diagnosis, as it can rapidly deliver targeted public health messages to large numbers of people. However, there is currently little understanding of the breadth of social media interventions and evaluations, whether they are effective, and how they might improve outcomes.

Objective: This scoping review aimed to map the evidence for social media interventions to improve cancer screening and early diagnosis, including their impact on behavior change and how they facilitate behavior change.

Online patient simulation training to improve clinical reasoning: a feasibility randomised controlled trial.

Background: Online patient simulations (OPS) are a novel method for teaching clinical reasoning skills to students and could contribute to reducing diagnostic errors. However, little is known about how best to implement and evaluate OPS in medical curricula. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility, acceptability and potential effects of eCREST - the electronic Clinical Reasoning Educational Simulation Tool.

Professionals' views on the use of smartphone technology to support children and adolescents with memory impairment due to acquired brain injury.

Purpose To identify from a health-care professionals' perspective whether smartphones are used by children and adolescents with acquired brain injury as memory aids; what factors predict smartphone use and what barriers prevent the use of smartphones as memory aids by children and adolescents. Method A cross-sectional online survey was undertaken with 88 health-care professionals working with children and adolescents with brain injury. Results Children and adolescents with brain injury were reported to use smartphones as memory aids by 75% of professionals.