scholarly journals A complex-systems paradigm can lead to evidence-based policymaking and impactful action in substance misuse prevention-a rejoinder to Purshouse et al . (2018)

Addiction ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 113 (6) ◽  
pp. 1155-1156
Author(s):  
Yorghos Apostolopoulos ◽  
Kristen Hassmiller Lich ◽  
Michael K. Lemke ◽  
Adam E. Barry
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
Evidence Based

Substance misuse and older people: a question of values

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilana Crome
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Older People ◽  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Evidence Based Treatment ◽  
Treatment Regimes ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Physical Disorders

Key points• Substances are drugs that alter mental state and are potentially addictive.• Substance abuse is not confined to the younger population; it is also prevalent in older people—alcohol and prescription drugs are the most commonly misused in this population.• The possibility of substance misuse should not be dismissed because of the patient’s age.• Recommended alcohol limits are likely to be lower than for younger adults.• Risk factors differ for older people, e.g. bereavement, retirement, loneliness, boredom.• Substance misuse is often accompanied by other mental and physical disorders.• Older people can improve with treatment so should be comprehensively assessed and offered evidence-based treatment regimes that are adjusted to take their special needs into account.

scholarly journals Care pathways are complex interventions in complex systems: New European Pathway Association framework

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Seys ◽  
M Panella ◽  
R VanZelm ◽  
W Sermeus ◽  
D Aeyels ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Complex Intervention ◽  
Care Pathway ◽  
Complex Interventions ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Care Pathways ◽  
Intervention Fidelity ◽  
Effectiveness Of Care ◽  
Internal Context ◽  
New Evidence

Care pathway implementation is characterised by a dual complexity. A care pathway itself represents a complex intervention with multiple interacting and interdependent intervention components and outcomes. The organisations in which care pathways are being implemented represent complex systems that need to be directed at change through an in-depth understanding of their external and internal context in which they are functioning in. This study sets out a new evidence-based and pragmatic framework that unpacks how intervention mechanisms, intervention fidelity and care context are converge and represent interacting processes that determine success or failure of the care pathway. We recommend researchers looking to increase the effectiveness of care pathway implementation and accelerate improvement of desired outcomes to adopt this framework from inception to implementation of the intervention.

scholarly journals Substance use problem in Sudan: elephant in the room

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 89-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed El Mahi
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Substance Misuse ◽  
Preventive Measures ◽  
Specific Treatment ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Treatment Interventions ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Past ◽  
Other Substances ◽  
Aid Policy

Alcohol and cannabis were the two main substances of misuse among certain groups in Sudan, especially young adults. Over the past decade, there has been a surge in the use of other substances, including prescribed drugs, among young people and university students in particular. There are two major shortcomings: first, in the absence of reliable data, the extent of the problem is unknown; second, the preventive and treatment interventions so far being adopted are meagre. To describe the possible causes behind the escalation of this problem and to discuss applicable measures that need to be implemented to control this rapidly growing problem. The paper will highlight the current situation of substance use in Sudan, as well as suggesting preventive measures that need to be taken to curb this problem. Research and evidence-based preventive approaches are desperately needed to aid policy makers in controlling this problem. Culture-specific treatment interventions are also necessary. The implementation of a national substance misuse control strategy is of paramount importance.

scholarly journals Complexity, Complexity Reduction, and ‘Methodological Borrowing’ in Educational Inquiry

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Noel Gough
Keyword(s):  
Complex Systems ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Medical Science ◽  
Complexity Reduction ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Educational Processes ◽  
Educational Inquiry ◽  
Simple Systems ◽  
And Control

Complex systems are open, recursive, organic, nonlinear and emergent. Reconceptualizing curriculum, teaching and learning in complexivist terms foregrounds the unpredictable and generative qualities of educational processes, and invites educators to value that which is unexpected and/or beyond their control. Nevertheless, concepts associated with simple systems persist in contemporary discourses of educational inquiry, and continue to inform practices of complexity reduction through which researchers and other practitioners seek predictability and control. In this essay, I examine a number of theoretical, practical and historical dimensions of complexity reduction in education and their implications for inquiry and action. I focus in particular on the ways in which some education researchers have reduced the complexity of the objects of their inquiries through ‘methodological borrowings’ from other research endeavors, such as borrowing a version of ‘evidence-based’ research from medical science, and borrowing the ‘triangulation’ metaphor from surveying.

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