Relationships between Academic Success and Health and Illness in College Students

This study investigated relationships between academic success and aspects of health and illness in college students. College juniors and seniors completed a survey addressing ratings of health, measures of sleep, mental health, screen time, the frequency of illness-related absences and access of healthcare. Measures of academic performance (GPA and academic status) were gathered from university records. Significant relationships to academic performance were found for overall health, sleep, mental health, time accessing social media, and frequency of accessing healthcare and school due to illness. Collectively, health measures predicted 10% of the variance in GPA.

Kicking the habit – how can we improve the routine care for patients who are well controlled living with HIV?

The objective is to improve and standardise HIV care for people with well-controlled HIV across the region by comparing monitoring within services to UK audit standards. This was a retrospective case note review from 01.01.2018 to 31.12.2018. The standards were sourced from the British HIV Association (BHIVA), the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH), and the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FSRH). Six services took part with 228 patient records being audited. Two of the 5 national standards were met (blood pressure and medication review). From the 8 areas previously audited in 2014, 6 showed improvements (offer of STI screen, medication review, urinalysis, mental health screen and influenza vaccination documentation). Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and transmission risk had poorer documented outcomes. In addition, nearly one-third of patients were over-tested regarding their CD4 count. We recommend that letters should include a standard message about U = U (undetectable = untransmittable) and vaccinations; CVD risk and FRAX should be calculated once a year in place of a routine letter; an annual summary letter should be written in place of a letter after each clinic visit; and consistent use of a proforma, with BHIVA/BASHH/FSRH recommendations on monitoring included.

Mental Health Screening in Juvenile Justice Settings: Evaluating the Utility of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument, Version 2

Allocating limited mental health resources is a challenge for juvenile justice facilities. We evaluated the clinical utility of the Massachusetts Youth Screening Instrument, Version 2 (MAYSI-2)—an instrument designed to aid in this process—in three subsamples of justice-involved youth (ages 14-17): detained girls ( n = 69), detained boys ( n = 130), and incarcerated boys ( n = 373). For perspective, we compared its performance (in the incarcerated subsample) to that of the Youth Self-Report (YSR), a more widely-used screen. The MAYSI-2 subscales were moderately useful for detecting relevant diagnoses, and differences were observed across samples. However, as a general mental health screen, the MAYSI-2 performed well (and comparably to the YSR), correctly classifying 66% to 75% of youth. When used to differentiate youth with any and without any disorder, both instruments were effective. Given the MAYSI-2’s practical advantages over the YSR (lower cost, easier administration), it may be a better option for juvenile facilities.