The prevalence of bulimia nervosa and bulimic behaviors among university students in Texas

This cross-sectional study examined by questionnaire the prevalence of bulimia nervosa and bulimic behaviors in a sample of 1175 undergraduate students enrolled in two state-supported universities in Texas. In one university, the student population was predominantly white; in the other, it was predominantly black. Fifty-nine percent of the respondents were female and 41% were male. Information regarding age, sex, ethnicity, college major, college year, marital status, housing arrangements, religion, socioeconomic status, height, weight, dieting behaviors, and family history of alcoholism, drug abuse, and depression was collected. Bulimia status was assessed using the Revised Bulimia Test (BULIT-R), which is based on the DSM-III-R criteria for bulimia nervosa. Only 1.3% of the females and 0.4% of the males were classified as having bulimia nervosa. The prevalence of bulimic behaviors was considerably higher; 6.4% of the females and 3.6% of the males were classified as having bulimic behaviors. Univariate analysis showed the following factors to be significantly associated with bulimic behaviors: female gender, single marital status, high BMI, a family history of alcoholism, drug abuse, or depression, and certain dieting behaviors. In the present study, ethnicity did not prove to be a significant factor associated with bulimia nervosa or bulimic behaviors. Multivariate analysis showed that, in comparison to normal/underweight individuals, the odds of having bulimic behaviors for severely overweight subjects were 2.23 (95% CI: 1.43, 3.50). Students who were dieting at the time of the study were 3.22 times (95% CI: 2.05, 5.06) as likely to have bulimic behaviors as were students who had never dieted. This study concludes there is a need to distinguish between bulimia nervosa and bulimic behaviors when estimating prevalence of a population. ^

RELATION OF TYPE OF REPORTED ILLNESSES TO PATTERN OF USE OF THE STUDENT HEALTH CENTER BY THE INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AT TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY, HOUSTON, TEXAS

The state of knowledge on the relation of stress factors, health problems and health service utilization among university students is limited. Special problems of stress exist for the international students due to their having to adjust to a new environment. It is this latter problem area that provides the focus for this study. Recognizing there are special stress factors affecting the international students, it is first necessary to see if the problems of cultural adaptation affect them to any greater degree than American students attending the same university.^ To make the comparison, the study identified a number of health problems of both American and international students and related their frequency to the use of the Student Health Center. The expectation was that there would be an association between the number of health problems and the number of life change events experienced by these students and between the number of health problems and stresses from social factors. It was also expected that the number of health problems would decline with the amount of social support.^ The population chosen were students newly enrolled in Texas Southern University, Houston, Texas in the Fall Semester of 1979. Two groups were selected at random: 126 international and 126 American students. The survey instrument was a self-administered questionnaire. The response rate was 90% (114) for the international and 94% (118) for the American students.^ Data analyses consisted of both descriptive and inferential statistics. Chi-squares and correlation coefficients were the statistics used in comparing the international students and the American students.^ There was a weak association between the number of health problems and the number of life change events, as reported by both the international and the American students. The study failed to show any statistically significant association between the number of stress from social factors and the number of health problems. It also failed to show an association between the number of health problems and the amount of social support. These findings applied to both the international and the American students.^ One unexpected finding was that certain health problems were reported by more American than international students. There were: cough, diarrhea, and trouble in sleeping. Another finding was that those students with health insurance had a higher level of utilization of the Health Center than those without health insurance. More international than American students utilized the Student Health Center.^ In comparing the women students, there was no statistical significant difference in their reported fertility related health problems.^ The investigator recommends that in follow-up studies, instead of grouping all international students together, that they be divided by major nationalities represented in the student body; that is, Iranians, Nigerians and others. ^

A multi-site pilot test study to measure safety climate in the university work setting

Next to leisure, sport, and household activities, the most common activity resulting in medically consulted injuries and poisonings in the United States is work, with an estimated 4 million workplace related episodes reported in 2008 (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009). To address the risks inherent to various occupations, risk management programs are typically put in place that include worker training, engineering controls, and personal protective equipment. Recent studies have shown that such interventions alone are insufficient to adequately manage workplace risks, and that the climate in which the workers and safety program exist (known as the "safety climate") is an equally important consideration. The organizational safety climate is so important that many studies have focused on developing means of measuring it in various work settings. While safety climate studies have been reported for several industrial settings, published studies on assessing safety climate in the university work setting are largely absent. Universities are particularly unique workplaces because of the potential exposure to a diversity of agents representing both acute and chronic risks. Universities are also unique because readily detectable health and safety outcomes are relatively rare. The ability to measure safety climate in a work setting with rarely observed systemic outcome measures could serve as a powerful means of measure for the evaluation of safety risk management programs. ^ The goal of this research study was the development of a survey tool to measure safety climate specifically in the university work setting. The use of a standardized tool also allows for comparisons among universities throughout the United States. A specific study objective was accomplished to quantitatively assess safety climate at five universities across the United States. At five universities, 971 participants completed an online questionnaire to measure the safety climate. The average safety climate score across the five universities was 3.92 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 indicating very high perceptions of safety at these universities. The two lowest overall dimensions of university safety climate were "acknowledgement of safety performance" and "department and supervisor's safety commitment". The results underscore how the perception of safety climate is significantly influenced at the local level. A second study objective regarding evaluating the reliability and validity of the safety climate questionnaire was accomplished. A third objective fulfilled was to provide executive summaries resulting from the questionnaire to the participating universities' health & safety professionals and collect feedback on usefulness, relevance and perceived accuracy. Overall, the professionals found the survey and results to be very useful, relevant and accurate. Finally, the safety climate questionnaire will be offered to other universities for benchmarking purposes at the annual meeting of a nationally recognized university health and safety organization. The ultimate goal of the project was accomplished and was the creation of a standardized tool that can be used for measuring safety climate in the university work setting and can facilitate meaningful comparisons amongst institutions.^

Academic medical centers: A framework for strategic repositioning

This study sought to understand the elements affecting the success or failure of strategic repositioning efforts by academic medical centers (AMC). The research question was: What specific elements in the process appear to be most important in determining the success or failure of an AMC.s strategic repositioning? Where success is based on the longterm sustainability of the new position.^ "An organization's strategic position is its perceptual location relative to others" (Gershon, 2003). Hence, strategic repositioning represents a shift from one strategic position within an environment to another (H. Mintzberg, 1987a). A deteriorating value proposition coupled with an unsustainable national health care financing system is forcing AMCs to change their strategic position. Where the value proposition is defined as the health outcome per dollar spent. ^ AMCs are of foundational importance to our health care system. They educate our new physicians, generate significant scientific breakthroughs, and care for our most difficult patients. Yet, their strategic, financial and business acumen leaves them particularly vulnerable in a changing environment. ^ After a literature review revealed limited writing on this subject, the research question was addressed using three separate but parallel exploratory case study inquiries of AMCs that recently underwent a strategic repositioning. Participating in the case studies were the Baylor College of Medicine, the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, and the University of Texas Medical Branch.^ Each case study consisted of two major research segments; a thorough documentation review followed by semi-structured interviews of selected members of their governance board, executive and faculty leadership teams. While each case study.s circumstances varied, their response to the research question, as extracted through thematic coding and analysis of the interviews, had a high degree of commonality.^ The results identified managing the strategic risk surrounding the repositioning and leadership accountability as the two foundational elements of success or failure. Metrics and communication were important process elements. They both play a major role in managing the strategic repositioning risk communication loop. Sustainability, the final element, was the outcome sought.^ Factors leading to strategic repositioning included both internal and external pressures and were primarily financial or mission based. Timing was an important consideration as was the selection of the strategic repositioning endpoint.^ In conclusion, a framework for the strategic repositioning of AMCs was offered that integrates the findings of this study; the elements of success, the factors leading to strategic repositioning, and the risk communication loop. ^

Point of decision signs and stair use in a university worksite setting: General versus specific messages

Point-of-decision signs to promote stair use have been found to be effective in various environments. However, these signs have been more consistently successful in public access settings that use escalators, such as shopping centers and transportation stations, compared to worksite settings, which are more likely to contain elevators that are not directly adjacent to the stairs. Therefore, this study tested the effectiveness of two point-of-decision sign prompts to increase stair use in a university worksite setting. Also, this study investigated the importance of the message content of the signs. One sign displayed a general health promotion message, while the other sign presented more specific information. Overall, this project examined whether the presence of the point-of-decision signs increases stair use. In addition, this research determined whether the general or specific sign promotes greater stair use. ^ Inconspicuous observers measured stair use both before the signs were present and while they were posted. The study setting was the University of Texas School of Nursing, and the target population was anyone who entered the building, including employees, students, and visitors. The study was conducted over six weeks and included two weeks of baseline measurement, two weeks with the general sign posted, and two weeks with the specific sign posted. Each sign was displayed on a stand in the decision point area near the stairs and the elevator. Logistic regression was used to analyze the data. ^ After adjustment for covariates, the odds of stair use were significantly greater during the intervention period than the baseline period. Furthermore, the specific sign period showed significantly greater odds of stair use than the general sign period. These results indicate that a point-of-decision sign intervention can be effective at promoting stair use in a university worksite setting and that a sign with a specific health information message may be more effective at promoting stair use than a sign with a general health promotion message. These findings can be considered when planning future worksite and university based stair promotion interventions.^

Texas Medical Center --- Its Origins

This document details the people and institutions who were instrumental in the establishment and development of the Texas Medical Center (TMC). Biographical information about the founders, role the M. D. Anderson Foundation, and opening of the main institutions in the early 1950s is detailed. A copy of a speech given in 1958 by W. B. Bates, one of the trustees of the M. D. Anderson Foundation, on the history and development of the TMC is significant because he was one of the founders of the TMC. This document was commissioned by the Houston Chamber of Commerce in 1971 as the Texas Medical Center began a new phase of expansion with the pending addition of The University of Texas Medical School at Houston. It includes information about each of the 21 institutions which comprised the TMC at that time.

Low current performance of the Bern medical cyclotron down to the pA range

A medical cyclotron accelerating H- ions to 18 MeV is in operation at the Bern University Hospital (Inselspital). It is the commercial IBA 18/18 cyclotron equipped with a specifically conceived 6 m long external beam line ending in a separate bunker. This feature is unique for a hospital-based facility and makes it possible to conduct routine radioisotope production for PET diagnostics in parallel with multidisciplinary research activities, among which are novel particle detectors, radiation biophysics, radioprotection, radiochemistry and radiopharmacy developments. Several of these activities, such as radiobiology experiments for example, require low current beams down to the pA range, while medical cyclotrons are designed for high current operation above 10 μA. In this paper, we present the first results on the low current performance of a PET medical cyclotron obtained by ion source, radio-frequency and main coil tuning. With this method, stable beam currents down to (1.5+/- 0.5 ) pA were obtained and measured with a high-sensitivity Faraday cup located at the end of the beam transport line.

Moving from medical to health systems classifications of deaths : extending verbal autopsy to collect information on the circumstances of mortality

Funding A Health Systems Research Initiative Development Grant from the UK Department for International Development (DFID), Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Medical Research Council (MRC (and the Wellcome Trust (MR/N005597/1) funds the research presented in this paper. Support for the Agincourt HDSS including verbal autopsies was provided by The Wellcome Trust, UK (grants 058893/Z/99/A; 069683/Z/02/Z; 085477/Z/08/Z; 085477/B/08/Z), and the University of the Witwatersrand and Medical Research Council, South Africa.

Circulation of core collection monographs in an academic medical library

Academic medical librarians responsible for monograph acquisition face a challenging task. From the plethora of medical monographs published each year, academic medical librarians must select those most useful to their patrons. Unfortunately, none of the selection tools available to medical librarians are specifically intended to assist academic librarians with medical monograph selection. The few short core collection lists that are available are intended for use in the small hospital or internal medicine department library. As these are the only selection tools available, however, many academic medical librarians spend considerable time reviewing these collection lists and place heavy emphasis on the acquisition of listed books. The study reported here was initiated to determine whether the circulation of listed books in an academic library justified the emphasis placed on the acquisition of these books. Circulation statistics for “listed” and “nonlisted” books in the hematology (WH) section of Indiana University School of Medicine's Ruth Lilly Medical Library were studied. The average circulation figures for listed books were nearly two times as high as the corresponding figures for the WH books in general. These data support the policies of those academic medical libraries that place a high priority on collection of listed books.

A two-year experience teaching computer literacy to first-year medical students using skill-based cohorts

Because it is widely accepted that providing information online will play a major role in both the teaching and practice of medicine in the near future, a short formal course of instruction in computer skills was proposed for the incoming class of students entering medical school at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The syllabus was developed on the basis of a set of expected outcomes, which was accepted by the dean of medicine and the curriculum committee for classes beginning in the fall of 1997. Prior to their arrival, students were asked to complete a self-assessment survey designed to elucidate their initial skill base; the returned surveys showed students to have computer skills ranging from complete novice to that of a systems engineer. The classes were taught during the first three weeks of the semester to groups of students separated on the basis of their knowledge of and comfort with computers. Areas covered included computer basics, e-mail management, MEDLINE, and Internet search tools. Each student received seven hours of hands-on training followed by a test. The syllabus and emphasis of the classes were tailored to the initial skill base but the final test was given at the same level to all students. Student participation, test scores, and course evaluations indicated that this noncredit program was successful in achieving an acceptable level of comfort in using a computer for almost all of the student body.

Injury incidence in judokas at the Spanish National University Championship

Background and Study Aim: Understanding injury incidence rates will be a great help with regards to preventing potential future damages. It is for this reason that this study suggests studying a large number of variables. The purpose of research is the relationship of events (empirical variables) that are usually taken into account in developing injury prevention programs during the battles and training in judo tournament. Material and methods: In this research project, 57 male judokas taking part in the Spanish National University Championship in 2009 were asked to complete a retrospective questionnaire. We analysed the following events: the most commonly injured body regions, the medical diagnosis, how and when the injury happened, the type of injury, the side of the body and the type of medical attention received. For the statistical analysis, we used the SPSS statistics programme to apply the Chi-square test in order to determine the significance levels for non-parametric tests from p<.05. Results: Significant differences were found in the most commonly injured body region, the shoulder/clavicle (p<.05), and in the most common diagnosis, the sprain (p<.05). Impact injuries (p<.05) are the most common and training (p<.05) is the most dangerous time. About the type of injury, 78.38% are new injuries (p<.05) and 69.05% affect the right hand side of the body (p<.05). Doctors are the most consulted specialists, but the physiotherapists obtained the best marks. Have been out due to injury for over 21 days 36.36% of the participants, but not for the entire season. Conclusions: The most common diagnosis in university student judokas coincides with those of elite judokas, with the sprain being the most common. University student judokas have a higher rate of shoulder/clavicle injuries, while professional judokas are prone to a higher rate of knee injuries. Training is the most common moment in which injuries occur, both in university student judokas and professional judokas. New injuries are the most common types of injuries in university student judokas and, while doctors are the most consulted specialists, the physiotherapists obtained the best marks.

University of Kansas publications, Museum of Natural History.

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