Evaluation of sugar maple dieback in the Upper Great Lakes region and development of a forest health youth education program

Acer saccharum Marsh., is one of the most valuable trees in the northern hardwood forests. Severe dieback was recently reported by area foresters in the western Upper Great Lakes Region. Sugar Maple has had a history of dieback over the last 100 years throughout its range and different variables have been identified as being the predisposing and inciting factors in different regions at different times. Some of the most common factors attributed to previous maple dieback episodes were insect defoliation outbreaks, inadequate precipitation, poor soils, atmospheric deposition, fungal pathogens, poor management, or a combination of these. The current sugar maple dieback was evaluated to determine the etiology, severity, and change in dieback on both industry and public lands. A network of 120 sugar maple health evaluation plots was established in the Upper Peninsula, Michigan, northern Wisconsin, and eastern Minnesota and evaluated annually from 2009-2012. Mean sugar maple crown dieback between 2009-2012 was 12.4% (ranging from 0.8-75.5%) across the region. Overall, during the sampling period, mean dieback decreased by 5% but individual plots and trees continued to decline. Relationships were examined between sugar maple dieback and growth, habitat conditions, ownership, climate, soil, foliage nutrients, and the maple pathogen sapstreak. The only statistically significant factor was found to be a high level of forest floor impacts due to exotic earthworm activity. Sugar maple on soils with lower pH had less earthworm impacts, less dieback, and higher growth rates than those on soils more favorable to earthworms. Nutritional status of foliage and soil was correlated with dieback and growth suggesting perturbation of nutrient cycling may be predisposing or contributing to dieback. The previous winter's snowfall totals, length of stay on the ground, and number of days with freezing temperatures had a significant positive relationship to sugar maple growth rates. Sapstreak disease, Ceratocystis virescens, may be contributing to dieback in some stands but was not related to the amount of dieback in the region. The ultimate goal of this research is to help forest managers in the Great Lakes Region prevent, anticipate, reduce, and/or salvage stands with dieback and loss in the future. An improved understanding of the complex etiology associated with sugar maple dieback in the Upper Great Lakes Region is necessary to make appropriate silvicultural decisions. Forest Health education helps increase awareness and proactive forest management in the face of changing forest ecosystems. Lessons are included to assist educators in incorporating forest health into standard biological disciplines at the secondary school curricula.

Occupational therapy articles in serial publications: an analysis of sources.

This study was designed to locate and document serial literature on occupational therapy published since 1900. Emphasis is placed on finding articles on occupational therapy or by occupational therapists from sources other than those normally associated with the professional journals. Multiple sources were used including print indexes, online databases, occupational therapy bibliographies, and tables of contents or yearly indexes. Almost 7,000 articles were identified, not including those published in foreign journals. Occupational therapy publications have increased steadily since 1900, with the most rapid increase during the 1970s and 1980s when five new occupational therapy journals were initiated. Suggestions for formulating search strategies are included.

Feasibility study of a single-blind randomised controlled trial of an occupational therapy intervention.

BACKGROUND Several factors facilitate or hinder efficacy research in occupational therapy. Strategies are needed, therefore, to support the successful implementation of trials. AIM To assess the feasibility of conducting a randomised controlled trial (RCT). The main feasibility objectives of this study were to assess the process, resources, management, and scientific basis of a trial RCT. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 10 occupational therapists, between the ages of 30 and 55 (M 43.4; SD 8.3) with seven to 26 years' (M 14.3; SD 6.1) experience, participated in this study. Qualitative data collected included minutes of meetings, reports, and field notes. The data were analysed based on the principles of content analysis, using feasibility objectives as the main categories. RESULTS Data analysis revealed strengths in relation to retention and inclusion criteria of participants, the study protocol, study organisation, and the competence of researchers. Weaknesses were found related to recruitment, randomisation, data collection, time for training and communication, commitment, and design. CONCLUSION The findings indicated that there are several factors which had a considerable impact on the implementation of an RCT in practice. However, it was useful to assess methods and procedures of the trial RCT as a basis to refine research plans.

The association of nonfatal occupational injuries with non -work -related morbidity

A case-referent study of occupational injuries sustained by 474 workers employed in the heavy equipment machinery industry over a two year period, 1985-1986, was undertaken to examine the association of occupational injuries with non-work-related morbidity. Its specific aim was to evaluate whether employees who experienced a work-related injury had an increased prevalence of non-work-related morbidity, specifically for injuries, cardiovascular disease, mental disorders, all other disease outcomes and total morbidity, compared to employees who did not experience a work-related injury. In order to determine the direction of the relationship, the use of the previous calendar year was employed to assess non-work-related morbidity. A secondary objective of the study was the evaluation of the utility of two existing data sources, workers' compensation and group health insurance claims, and the feasibility of conducting studies based on these data.^ The association of non-work-related non-back injuries and subsequent occupational injury was statistically significant (OR = 1.31, 95% CI 1.02-1.67) for all WC claims. The strength of the association was supported by the elevated odds ratio for non-work-related injuries when severity of occupational injury was assessed by WC claim costs of $100 and greater (OR = 1.47, 1.09--1.97), and by lost workdays (OR = 1.37). Factors that predispose an individual to a non-back injury, such as personal attributes and lifestyle characteristics, also influence that individual's risk of subsequent occupational injury. These factors may be reflected in an employee's reaction to life stressors which influence susceptibility to injury. The role of employee assistance programs as a component of injury prevention strategies is suggested.^ An increased but nonsignificant prevalence of non-work-related injuries, cardiovascular disease, mental disorders, and other morbidity conditions was noted among cases. These findings do not provide support of a causal factor in the etiology of occupational injuries. In contrast to non-back injuries, these conditions are chronic in nature and their influence on risk of occupational injuries uncertain.^ In general, cases tended to file more group health insurance claims for other morbidity than did referents. The association with increased total morbidity was consistent whether worker compensation claims were analyzed by total number of claims, claims with costs of $100 and greater, or by lost workdays. Whether persons who sustained an occupational injury were in fact in poor general health than referents, warrant further investigation. ^

Terapia ocupacional e a educação para a interprofissionalidade em residências multiprofissionais em saúde

A formação em serviço realizada pelo programa de Residência Multiprofissional em Saúde (RMS) é uma estratégia educativa que visa a mudança do perfil dos profissionais da saúde para atuação no Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Dentre as profissões que compõem as residências, a terapia ocupacional foi eleita como foco deste estudo com o objetivo de conhecer e refletir sobre os desafios e tendências do processo de educação profissional e interprofissional na perspectiva de tutores, preceptores e residentes terapeutas ocupacionais. A metodologia eleita foi a abordagem qualitativa com realização de entrevistas e análise de conteúdo para a elaboração dos resultados e discussão. Foram realizadas 17 entrevistas em três programas de RMS de diferentes municípios do estado de São Paulo com cenários educativos realizados na atenção hospitalar e na atenção básica. Duas categorias empíricas foram identificadas nos resultados: (i) \"Residência multiprofissional de saúde como dispositivo de mudança\" dividida em duas subcategorias: \"Trabalho em equipe\" e \"Trabalho na perspectiva do SUS\" e (ii) \"Singularidades na formação do terapeuta ocupacional em RMS\" agrupada nas subcategorias: \"Particularidades da inserção profissional do terapeuta ocupacional nos cenários educativos\", \"Produção de identidades e a fragmentação da atuação do terapeuta ocupacional nas RMS\" e \"Terapia ocupacional e as práticas colaborativas e interprofissionais no SUS\". A pesquisa permitiu conhecer o potencial de mudanças dos programas de RMS em relação à formação dos residentes e à disseminação de práticas em saúde, colaborativas em equipe e sob a perspectiva do SUS. Os resultados apontaram a singularidade do processo formativo de terapeutas ocupacionais nas RMS que sofrem impactos pela insuficiente contratação de profissionais nos serviços, pelo desconhecimento do papel profissional do terapeuta ocupacional e pela fragmentação da atuação profissional nos cenários de prática; experiências que geram insegurança de residentes e profissionais quanto aos limites da atuação profissional e interprofissional no trabalho em equipe. O foco da terapia ocupacional nas atividades e cotidianos das pessoas no processo do cuidado em saúde e a mediação do cuidado de pessoas com deficiência e transtornos mentais foram identificados como contribuições da terapia ocupacional para as práticas colaborativas e interprofissionais no SUS. Conclui-se que o potencial de mudanças dos programas para a atuação dos residentes como futuros profissionais está diretamente relacionado com as estratégias pedagógicas desenvolvidas nos cenários educativos. A formação de terapeutas ocupacionais nas RMS depende das características dos cenários educativos, no que se refere a sua organização e interação interprofissional pré-existente, à suficiência do número de preceptores, à consolidação de fluxos assistenciais e ao (re)conhecimento da Terapia Ocupacional pelos demais profissionais dos serviços. Por fim, os participantes afirmaram a importância da RMS para a aprendizagem de saberes e práticas - próprios da profissão, comuns aos profissionais de saúde e construídos em equipe de forma colaborativa - com o propósito da qualificação do cuidado em saúde

Our troubled youth: education against delinquency.

Mode of access: Internet.

Medicare certified rehabilitation programs : outpatient physical therapy, speech pathology, occupational therapy, comprehensive outpatient rehabilitation facility /

A directory of Medicare certified rehabilitation service providers in Illinois.

Craft techniques in occupational therapy.

Cover title.

Technical appendix to a Nationwide survey of the occupational safety and health work force /

"Contract Number 210-76-0192."

Occupational therapy and evidence-based practice in mental health

Evidence-based practice (EBP) represents a paradigm shift in health care. This review has two aims. The first is to consider the merits of EBP,especially in respect of its use in mental health settings. The second is both to identify psychosocial interventions that have an established evidence base for effectiveness and to provide an analysis of the quality of this evidence and its implications for occupational therapy. Supported employment, family psychoeducation, assertive case management and integrated substance use treatment are examined in detail. It is proposed that occupational therapists working in mental health give priority to psychosocial interventions that are based on evidence and incorporate these into their practice. It is further proposed that, in implementing EBP,practitioners take an active evaluating position in relation to published evidence, paying particular attention to the evidence of effectiveness in equivalent clinical environments.