scholarly journals Social Capital and Sustainable Social Development—How Are Changes in Neighbourhood Social Capital Associated with Neighbourhood Sociodemographic and Socioeconomic Characteristics?

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (23) ◽  
pp. 13161
Author(s):  
Malin Eriksson ◽  
Ailiana Santosa ◽  
Liv Zetterberg ◽  
Ichiro Kawachi ◽  
Nawi Ng

The development of social capital is acknowledged as key for sustainable social development. Little is known about how social capital changes over time and how it correlates with sociodemographic and socioeconomic factors. This study was conducted in 46 neighbourhoods in Umeå Municipality, northern Sweden. The aim was to examine neighbourhood-level characteristics associated with changes in neighbourhood social capital and to discuss implications for local policies for sustainable social development. We designed an ecological study linking survey data to registry data in 2006 and 2020. Over 14 years, social capital increased in 9 and decreased in 15 neighbourhoods. Higher levels of social capital were associated with specific sociodemographic factors, but these differed in urban and rural areas. Urban neighbourhoods with a higher proportion of older pensioners (OR = 1.49, CI: 1.16–1.92), children under 12 (OR= 2.13, CI: 1.31–3.47), or a lower proportion of foreign-born members (OR= 0.32, CI: 0.19–0.55) had higher odds for higher social capital levels. In rural neighbourhoods, a higher proportion of single-parent households was associated with higher levels of social capital (OR = 1.44, 95% CI = 1.04–1.98). Neighbourhood socioeconomic factors such as income or educational level did not influence neighbourhood social capital. Using repeated measures of social capital, this study gives insights into how social capital changes over time in local areas and the factors influencing its development. Local policies to promote social capital for sustainable social development should strive to integrate diverse demographic groups within neighbourhoods and should increase opportunities for inter-ethnic interactions.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Barizien ◽  
Morgan Le Guen ◽  
Stéphanie Russel ◽  
Pauline Touche ◽  
Florent Huang ◽  
...  

AbstractIncreasing numbers of COVID-19 patients, continue to experience symptoms months after recovering from mild cases of COVID-19. Amongst these symptoms, several are related to neurological manifestations, including fatigue, anosmia, hypogeusia, headaches and hypoxia. However, the involvement of the autonomic nervous system, expressed by a dysautonomia, which can aggregate all these neurological symptoms has not been prominently reported. Here, we hypothesize that dysautonomia, could occur in secondary COVID-19 infection, also referred to as “long COVID” infection. 39 participants were included from December 2020 to January 2021 for assessment by the Department of physical medicine to enhance their physical capabilities: 12 participants with COVID-19 diagnosis and fatigue, 15 participants with COVID-19 diagnosis without fatigue and 12 control participants without COVID-19 diagnosis and without fatigue. Heart rate variability (HRV) during a change in position is commonly measured to diagnose autonomic dysregulation. In this cohort, to reflect HRV, parasympathetic/sympathetic balance was estimated using the NOL index, a multiparameter artificial intelligence-driven index calculated from extracted physiological signals by the PMD-200 pain monitoring system. Repeated-measures mixed-models testing group effect were performed to analyze NOL index changes over time between groups. A significant NOL index dissociation over time between long COVID-19 participants with fatigue and control participants was observed (p = 0.046). A trend towards significant NOL index dissociation over time was observed between long COVID-19 participants without fatigue and control participants (p = 0.109). No difference over time was observed between the two groups of long COVID-19 participants (p = 0.904). Long COVID-19 participants with fatigue may exhibit a dysautonomia characterized by dysregulation of the HRV, that is reflected by the NOL index measurements, compared to control participants. Dysautonomia may explain the persistent symptoms observed in long COVID-19 patients, such as fatigue and hypoxia. Trial registration: The study was approved by the Foch IRB: IRB00012437 (Approval Number: 20-12-02) on December 16, 2020.


2008 ◽  
pp. 1829-1853
Author(s):  
Anil Shaligram

For social development to take place in rural areas it is necessary to involve the people and assist them in becoming technology-enabled and knowledge-enabled because knowledge is always held collectively (Hayek, 1945). It is said that the growing digital divide has added one more dimension to the already skewed process of development-underdevelopment (Castells, 2000). In reality however it has more to do with the deprivation of information and knowledge than the non-availability of hardware and connectivity. To overcome this, it is necessary to look from a fresh perspective and introduce a new socio-organizational model that builds on the principles of Information Society (Castells, 2000), Economics of Knowledge (Machlup, 1962; Arthur, 1985; Romer, 1990) and Social Capital (Coleman, 1988; Putnam, 1995) to ensure better development of human and social capital.


2020 ◽  
Vol 185 (9-10) ◽  
pp. e1420-e1427
Author(s):  
Sean Wilkes ◽  
Celia Ona ◽  
Michael Yang ◽  
Pingyang Liu ◽  
Amber Benton ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) as a treatment for depression has been studied for over two decades. Repetitive TMS was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2008 for the treatment of depression after at least one failed trial of an antidepressant medication of adequate dose and duration. This study evaluated whether rTMS treatments may be associated with measurable improvements in depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms for treated military beneficiaries in Hawaii suffering from depression. It also examined the number of failed medication trials that patients underwent before rTMS treatment. Materials and Methods A retrospective chart review of 77 rTMS patients who received and completed treatment between January 1, 2010 and October 31, 2016 was performed. Under a typical treatment regimen, patients receive rTMS for 6 weeks as well as weekly psychiatric assessments, which included completion of Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI) and PTSD Checklist (PCL). A mixed model repeated measures analysis was done assuming an autoregressive order one covariance structure to evaluate changes over time. Adjusted analyses were done to assess whether changes over time differed by age, prior diagnosis of PTSD, active duty status, and gender. Results The majority of patients were from the army (74%) and 56% were on active duty. Just over half (53%) were male. Most patients (52%) had completed trials of three or more different antidepressant medications before initiation of treatment with rTMS. The mean number of antidepressant trials was 2.7. BDI and PCL scores were significantly lower at end of treatment on average compared to the pretreatment baseline scores. Mean differences for BDI and PCL were significant with P < 0.001 15, 30, and 45 days after TMS treatment was initiated. Overall, 44% of patients experienced a reduction ≥10 points on BDI, and 38% experienced a reduction ≥10 points on PCL. Additionally, scores fell similarly regardless of whether or not patients had a comorbid diagnosis of PTSD. Conclusions Our research suggests that rTMS treatments may produce a reduction in symptoms of both depression and PTSD in patients with refractory depression and comorbid PTSD. It may be a useful alternative to antidepressants in the treatment of depression in the military population, including those with comorbid PTSD. Broader implementation of this treatment modality may prove beneficial for the purposes of military readiness, given current policies and restrictions on service members who are initiated on antidepressant medications.


2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S303-S304
Author(s):  
Francesc Estrada ◽  
Josep Maria Crosas ◽  
Maribel Ahuir ◽  
Sara Pérez ◽  
Wanda Zabala ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Cognitive deficits are a common cause of functional disability in people with psychotic disorders. Cognitive remediation produces moderate improvements in cognitive performance in people with schizophrenia, although there is variability in the responses between patients. As previous longitudinal studies suggest that free thyroxin (FT4) levels influence attention cognitive tasks in patients with early psychosis, we aimed to conduct a pilot study to explore whether thyroid hormones might predict the response to cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) in patients with first-episode psychosis. Methods 27 patients (8 women; 19 men) with first-episode psychosis aged between 18 and 35 years old were randomized to receive a computerized CRT for three months (2 sessions/week) (N=14) or treatment as usual (TAU) (N=13). A full cognitive battery (CANTAB Schizophrenia) was administered at baseline and follow-up (3 months later, after the CRT/TAU period). Plasma levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and FT4 were measured. Data were analyzed on an intention-to-treat basis. Correlation analyses were conducted to explore the association between TSH and FT4 levels and cognitive changes over time. An ANOVA for repeated measures was used to compare longitudinal changes over time by the experimental group while adjusting for TSH and FT4 levels. Significance was defined as p<0.05. Results TSH concentrations were not associated with cognitive changes over time. FT4 concentrations were associated with cognitive worsening over time in cognitive tasks dealing with reaction time (simple median movement time [r= 0.60, p= 0.003]; simple median reaction time [r= 0.44, p= 0.039]), sustained attention (signal detection for the rapid visual processing task [r= -0.46, p= 0.028]) and verbal memory (immediate recognition [r= -0.54, p= 0.008]; delayed recognition [r= -0.48, p= 0.019]). The ANOVA for repeated measures did not show time by group effects although a time by FT4 significant effect was found for cognitive tasks dealing with these cognitive domains (p<0.05 for all). Discussion Although a direct effect of the CRT on cognitive improvement was not found, baseline FT4 concentrations appeared to predict the response to CRT in people with early psychosis. Significant associations were found for cognitive domains dealing with attention processes, which are in accordance with previous studies exploring the association between thyroid function and cognitive functioning in early psychotic patients. Our preliminary findings suggest that the determination of thyroid function status might be important for establishing which patients could show cognitive improvements over time. If these results are replicated in larger studies, the determination of thyroid status might help identify those individuals more prone for showing cognitive improvements, and allowing the implementation of a personalized medicine approach in the field of cognitive rehabilitation in psychosis.


Author(s):  
Anil Shaligram

For social development to take place in rural areas it is necessary to involve the people and assist them in becoming technology-enabled and knowledge-enabled because knowledge is always held collectively (Hayek, 1945). It is said that the growing digital divide has added one more dimension to the already skewed process of development-underdevelopment (Castells, 2000). In reality however it has more to do with the deprivation of information and knowledge than the non-availability of hardware and connectivity. To overcome this, it is necessary to look from a fresh perspective and introduce a new socio-organizational model that builds on the principles of Information Society (Castells, 2000), Economics of Knowledge (Machlup, 1962; Arthur, 1985; Romer, 1990) and Social Capital (Coleman, 1988; Putnam, 1995) to ensure better development of human and social capital.


2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 276-276
Author(s):  
Morgan B Pyles ◽  
Susan Hayes ◽  
Andrea Crum ◽  
Elizabeth Radomski ◽  
Miranda Kunes ◽  
...  

Abstract Glutamine plays an important role in neonatal health. This amino acid serves as a nitrogen and amine carrier between tissues, as a major energy source and as a precursor for nucleic acids and proteins in rapidly proliferating intestinal cells. This study aimed to evaluate changes over time in free Gln and Glu concentrations in mare milk in early lactation and their relationship with foal gut health. Thirteen Thoroughbred mare and foal pairs were studied. Milk samples were collected at 12 h, 3, 5, 7, 10, 14, and 21 d after parturition and daily milk yield was estimated at 7 and 14 d postpartum. Milk samples were centrifuged (10 min, 3500 x g, 4 °C) to remove fat, then centrifuged twice (5 min, 10,000 x g, 22 °C) to remove protein. Free Glu and Gln were analyzed in triplicate using a membrane-based glutaminase and glutamate oxidase method (YSI 2700 Analyzer, YSI Life Sciences, OH). Daily fecal scores were recorded to monitor foal diarrhea and body weights were recorded weekly. Mixed model ANOVA with repeated measures (SAS 9.4) were used to evaluate changes over time in free Gln and Glu. Relationships between variables were assessed using regression analyses and Pearson’s correlation coefficient. Free Gln and Glu changed over time (P < 0.0001). Glutamine increased from 12 h to 5 d, (0.24±0.11 mmol/L and 1.09±.11 mmol/L, respectively; P < 0.05) then decreased to 0.90±0.11 mmol/L by 21 d postpartum. In contrast, free Gln was the lowest at 12 h (0.36±0.04 mmol/L) and continued increasing through 21 d postpartum (0.80±0.04 mmol/L; P < 0.05). Bouts of diarrhea were negatively related to milk Gln (P < 0.05) and foal ADG was positively related to milk Glu (P < 0.05). These results suggest that Gln may have a role in foal gut health while Glu may influence foal growth.


2016 ◽  
Vol 31 (S1) ◽  
pp. S18-S29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa A. Bentley ◽  
Abigail Shoben ◽  
Roger Levine

AbstractObjectivesThe objectives of this study were to assess longitudinal and cross-sectional changes in Emergency Medical Technician (EMT)-Basics and Paramedics: (1) demographics, (2) employment characteristics, and (3) initial Emergency Medical Services (EMS) education.MethodsThese data were collected between 1999 and 2008 employing survey techniques aimed at collecting valid data. A random, stratified sample was utilized to allow results to be generalizable to the nationally certified EMS population. Survey weights that were adjusted for each stratum’s response were estimated. Weighted percentages, averages for continuous variables, and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Significant changes over time were noted when the CIs did not overlap.ResultsIn all 10 years of data collection, the proportion of EMT-Paramedics who were male was greater than the proportion of EMT-Basics who were male. A substantial proportion of respondents performed EMS services for more than one agency: between 39.8% and 43.5% of EMT-Paramedics and 18.4% and 22.4% of EMT-Basic respondents reported this. The most common type of employer for both EMT-Basics and EMT-Paramedics was fire-based organizations. About one-third of EMT-Basics (32.3%-40.1%) and almost one-half of EMT-Paramedics (43.1%-45.3%) reported that these organizations were their main EMS employer. Rural areas (<25,000 residents) were the most common practice settings for EMT-Basics (52.1%-63.7%), while more EMT-Paramedics worked in urban settings (65.2%-77.7%).ConclusionsThis analysis serves as a useful baseline to measure future changes in the EMS profession. This study described the demographic and work-life characteristics of a cohort of nationally certified EMT-Basics and Paramedics over a 10-year period. This analysis also summarized initial EMS education changes over time.BentleyMA, ShobenA, LevineR. The demographics and education of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) professionals: a national longitudinal investigation. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2016;31(Suppl. 1):s18–s29.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcus Strömgren ◽  
Andrea Eriksson ◽  
Linda Ahlstrom ◽  
David Kristofer Bergman ◽  
Lotta Dellve

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relation between leadership and social capital and what qualities of leadership are important for social capital among employees in hospital settings over time. Design/methodology/approach A cohort of employees in hospitals answered a questionnaire at three occasions. Five small (approx. 100-bed) or mid-sized (approx. 500-bed) hospitals were included. The response rate was 54 percent at baseline (n=865), 59 percent at one-year follow-up (n=908) and 67 percent at two-year follow-up (n=632). Findings Repeated measures over time showed differences between groups in levels of social capital with respect to levels of leadership quality. Relation-oriented leadership had the strongest association with social capital. There was evidence that leadership was associated with social capital over time and that different kinds of leadership qualities were associated with social capital. Research limitations/implications This study conducted and analyzed quantitative data, and therefore, there is no knowledge of managers’ or employees’ own perceptions in this study. However, it would be interesting to compare managers’ decreased and increased leadership quality and how such differences affect social capital over time. Practical implications The findings feature the possibility for healthcare leaders to build high quality leadership as an important resource for social capital, by using different leadership orientations under different circumstances. Originality/value The paper showed that leadership was an important factor for building social capital and that different leadership qualities have different importance with respect to certain circumstances.


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