Do consultants do what they say they do? Observational study of the extent to which clinicians involve their patients in the decision-making process

ObjectivesTo assess whether consultants do what they say they do in reaching decisions with their patients.DesignCross-sectional analysis of hospital outpatient encounters, comparing consultants’ self-reported usual decision-making style to their actual observed decision-making behaviour in video-recorded encounters.SettingLarge secondary care teaching hospital in the Netherlands.Participants41 consultants from 18 disciplines and 781 patients.Primary and secondary outcome measureWith the Control Preference Scale, the self-reported usual decision-making style was assessed (paternalistic, informative or shared decision making). Two independent raters assessed decision-making behaviour for each decision using the Observing Patient Involvement (OPTION)5 instrument ranging from 0 (no shared decision making (SDM)) to 100 (optimal SDM).ResultsConsultants reported their usual decision-making style as informative (n=11), shared (n=16) and paternalistic (n=14). Overall, patient involvement was low, with mean (SD) OPTION5 scores of 16.8 (17.1). In an unadjusted multilevel analysis, the reported usual decision-making style was not related to the OPTION5 score (p>0.156). After adjusting for patient, consultant and consultation characteristics, higher OPTION5 scores were only significantly related to the category of decisions (treatment vs the other categories) and to longer consultation duration (p<0.001).ConclusionsThe limited patient involvement that we observed was not associated with the consultants’ self-reported usual decision-making style. Consultants appear to be unconsciously incompetent in shared decision making. This can hinder the transfer of this crucial communication skill to students and junior doctors.

Adaptation and Validation of Short Test of Music Preference Scale for Students With Music and Non-Music Majors

Music is a universal phenomenon however, despite its unified properties, the taste and preference of music may still vary as a function of ethnicity and culture. So, the present study aimed to adapt and validate the short test of music preference scale for music and non-music Pakistani students. In Phase I, the cultural adaption of the scale was carried out while the content validity index (Lawshe, 1975) was also established. However, in phase II, the Short test of Music Scale (STOMP) was validated, yielding confirmatory factor analysis. For the empirical evaluation, a sample of 561 students, including both 286 music and 275 non-music students of undergraduate level with the age range of 18-26 years were recruited. The psychometric evolution of STOMP turned into excellent validity and reliability estimates for first-order constructs. Moreover, strict measurement invariance was established for STOMP across music and non-music students. The validation of this scale would be a little effort to pave the way for music psychology to make research available to measure the construct indigenously.

AMPing Up the Search: A Structural and Functional Repository of Antimicrobial Peptides for Biofilm Studies, and a Case Study of Its Application to Corynebacterium striatum, an Emerging Pathogen

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been recognized for their ability to target processes important for biofilm formation. Given the vast array of AMPs, identifying potential anti-biofilm candidates remains a significant challenge, and prompts the need for preliminary in silico investigations prior to extensive in vitro and in vivo studies. We have developed Biofilm-AMP (B-AMP), a curated 3D structural and functional repository of AMPs relevant to biofilm studies. In its current version, B-AMP contains predicted 3D structural models of 5544 AMPs (from the DRAMP database) developed using a suite of molecular modeling tools. The repository supports a user-friendly search, using source, name, DRAMP ID, and PepID (unique to B-AMP). Further, AMPs are annotated to existing biofilm literature, consisting of a vast library of over 10,000 articles, enhancing the functional capabilities of B-AMP. To provide an example of the usability of B-AMP, we use the sortase C biofilm target of the emerging pathogen Corynebacterium striatum as a case study. For this, 100 structural AMP models from B-AMP were subject to in silico protein-peptide molecular docking against the catalytic site residues of the C. striatum sortase C protein. Based on docking scores and interacting residues, we suggest a preference scale using which candidate AMPs could be taken up for further in silico, in vitro and in vivo testing. The 3D protein-peptide interaction models and preference scale are available in B-AMP. B-AMP is a comprehensive structural and functional repository of AMPs, and will serve as a starting point for future studies exploring AMPs for biofilm studies. B-AMP is freely available to the community at https://b-amp.karishmakaushiklab.com and will be regularly updated with AMP structures, interaction models with potential biofilm targets, and annotations to biofilm literature.

Music Preference Dimensions and Personality Traits Among University Students

The present study explored the relationship between music reference dimensions and personality trait. This study comprised of three stages. In Stage-I, adaptation of Short Test of Music Preference Scale (STOMP; Rentfrow & Gosling, 2003) was done. In Stage-II the psychometric properties of adapted STOMP Scale and NEO-PI-R (Costa & McCrea, 1992) were determined on a sample of 60 students (20-25 years). Stage-III involved measuring the relationship between music preference dimensions and personality traits on sample of 250 students age range of 20-25 years. Results revealed that extraversion, openness to experience, and agreeableness showed positive association with intense and rebellious music, upbeat and conventional music, and reflective and complex music. Whereas extraversion and openness to experience was negatively associated with energetic and rhythmic music. Additionally, neuroticism was negatively related with reflective and complex music, and agreeableness has negative relation with intense and rebellious music. Conscientiousness has negative relationship with reflective and complex, intense and rebellious, and upbeat and conventional; while exhibited positive relationship with energetic and rhythmic music. Future implications of the study were also discussed.

A proposed scenario for amending the secondary education system in Palestine; In light of the standardization of the occupational preference scale: تصور مقترح لتعديل نظام التعليم الثانويّ في فلسطين في ضوء تقنين مقياس الميول المهْنيّة

The study aimed to present a proposed concept for amending the secondary education system in Palestine, in light of standardization the scale of vocational inclinations, according to the variables of gender and the level of academic achievement, on a sample of (1478) students, chosen in a cluster manner, and then stratified from all the class students. The results indicated the achievement of the global construction of the occupational inclinometer, with good indications of validity and good reliability, through the validity of the hypothetical composition, internal consistency, discriminatory validity, alpha reliability, reapplication, and exploratory factor analysis. That showed the presence of eight factors that accounted for 76% of the total variance. The division of secondary education into three tracks: the scientific track: it includes: (the health, industrial, agricultural, and technological branch). The literary track includes: (Branch of Humanities, Sharia, Entrepreneurship and Business). The applied path includes: (the hotel branch, the beauty, the fashion branch and the customization of clothes). This division will contribute to modifying the inferior view of vocational education on the one hand, increasing the demand for professional branches on the other hand, and reducing dropout rates, as well as reducing the suffering and anxiety of parents. The study recommended the issuance of the second Education Law; to include an amendment of the secondary education system, and the approval of the results of the vocational inclinometer as a criterion besides academic achievement; to distribute students to the tenth grade (scientific, literary, and applied) branches as a prelude to distributing them to high school branches.

Development and validation of the Therapy Preference Scale to understand patients´ systemic cancer treatment preferences

We incorporated questions related to safety, effectiveness and other characteristics of systemic cancer treatment into a self-report questionnaire – the Therapy Preference Scale – that captures patients´ preferences. The authors asked 20 experts to assess content validity and an additional 20 experts, patients and community members to examine face validity and guide revisions. Key revisions included shortening the length, clarifying constructs and providing details to explain the context and trade-offs necessary to balance the risks and benefits of cancer treatment. The content validity index for the final questionnaire was 1.0, indicating that all questions were relevant. Reviewers expressed that the questionnaire would serve an important purpose. Experts, patients and community members guided revisions of the questionnaire and documented its value.

Analysis of Dermatoglyphic Features: Comparison of the Ink, Lipstick and Improvise Digital Methods

The aim of the study was to compare the Ink, Lipstick and the Improvise Digital Methods by quantitatively and quantitatively analyzing some dermatologlyphic features of the digit and palm. Twenty one Biomedical Technology students were recruited for the study. The prints of the digits and palms of all participants were taken using the ink, lipstick and Improvise digital methods. In addition all participants were also trained to take the prints using all the methods and analyzed dermatoglyphic features. Dermaltoglyphic parameters evaluated were digit patterns, total finger ridge count (TFRC) and ATD angles. In addition direct one-on-one interview method to measure participants’ response to each of the methods was done. Chi-square test and paired t-test was used to analyze the results. There was no significant difference (P> .05) in the qualitative results for digit patterns obtained by the Improvise digital method with either of the other two methods. But qualitative evaluation of ATD angle and TFRC showed a statistical difference (P = 0.00 and P = 0.01). The Improvise digital method was rated 94.74% on participants’ preference scale, 91.22% on ease of method and 94.74%.on convenience. All the methods have their comparative advantages but the Improvise digital method was most preferred by participants.