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Background: Health sciences education prepares students for social‐ and healthcare by developing evidence‐based nursing, leadership and working life skills, including collaboration. Due to the changes caused by the global pandemic, health sciences education has shifted more to online and hybrid contexts, which can challenge students' competence development. Students' competence development and interaction in collaborative hybrid learning is a little researched area. Objectives: To observe and evaluate health sciences students' competence development in a collaborative hybrid learning context. Methods: This quasi‐experimental mixed‐method study was implemented by providing educational intervention. First‐year Bachelor's degree health sciences students (n = 18) of a Finnish university completed an educational intervention with synchronous online and face‐to‐face learning. Students' collaborative hybrid learning and interaction were video observed, while self‐evaluation of competence development was made with a questionnaire. Results: In the collaborative interactions, the students showed analytical thinking, problem‐ solving and communication and technology skills. Extensive knowledge of health sciences and ethics skills was not strongly visible in interaction. The students effectively used collaborative work time to perform tasks. Cognitive interaction (monitoring and evaluating learning) was observed in 85% and socio‐emotional interaction (expressions of emotions and motivation) in 53% of the data. Related to the students' learning results, the students' ability to communicate and interact with culturally different people improved after the educational intervention. Conclusion: Collaborative learning methods in hybrid learning can create opportunities for students to construct their competence in interaction. Attention should be paid to different areas of competence and the role of socio‐emotional interaction. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Health sciences education prepares students for social and healthcare by developing working life skills, including collaboration.Hybrid learning brings benefits but challenges the equity of students with different attention modes.Collaborative learning is widely used but has not been studied much in hybrid context.Students' competence development and interaction in collaborative hybrid learning is a little researched area. What this paper adds: The purpose was to observe and evaluate health sciences students' competence development in a collaborative hybrid learning context.Hybrid collaborative interaction encourages students to construct knowledge in health sciences.The students utilised the collaborative time appropriately.Socioemotional interactions were very visible in collaborative learning. Implications for practice: This study helps educational organisations to design hybrid model education.The design requires pedagogical and technical competence and should include collaborative methods.Attention should be paid to different areas of competence in collaborative learning.The role of socio‐emotional interaction needs more focus in hybrid learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As pregnancy may trigger overweight in women, new means for its prevention are being sought. The aim here was to investigate the effect of individual dietary counselling during and after pregnancy on post‐partum weight and waist circumference up to 4 years post‐partum. A cohort of women (n = 256) were randomized to receive repeated individual dietary counselling by a nutritionist during and after pregnancy, or as controls not receiving dietary counselling, from the first trimester of pregnancy until 6 months after delivery. Counselling aimed to bring dietary intake into line with recommendations, with particular focus on the increase in the intake of unsaturated fatty acids instead of saturated. Pre‐pregnancy weight was taken from welfare clinic records. Weight and waist circumference were measured at 4 years after delivery. The proportion of overweight women increased from 26% prior to pregnancy to 30% at 4 years after delivery among women receiving dietary counselling, as against considerably more, from 32% to 57%, among controls. The prevalence of central adiposity was 31% in women receiving dietary counselling, 64% in controls. Likewise, both the risk of overweight (odds ratio: 0.23, 0.08–0.63, P = 0.005) and central adiposity (odds ratio: 0.18, 0.06–0.52, P = 0.002) were lower in women receiving dietary counselling compared with controls. Repeated dietary counselling initiated in early pregnancy can be beneficial in long‐term weight control after delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Patient preference for the choice of treatment modality for prostate cancer has increasingly gained attention. Objective To assess the impact of client-oriented decision on long-term mortality, disease progression and biochemical failure compared with standard treatment protocol ( TP). Methods With data from a Finnish multicentre, randomized controlled trial with two arms [104 in the enhanced patient participation ( EPP) arm and 106 in the TP arm], disease-specific and disease-free survival, biochemical failure with elevated prostate-specific antigen ( PSA) level and disease progression were compared between the two arms using Wilcoxon test and also Cox proportional hazards regression model. Results Patients in the EPP arm had a higher risk of death by 37% [ HR, 1.37 (0.87-2.17)] compared with those in the TP arm. Patients in the EPP arm were at increased risk of having biochemical failure by 14% [ HR, 1.14 (0.72-1.79)] and for having disease progression by 2% [ HR, 1.02 (0.61-1.70)] compared with those in the TP arm. All the differences were non-significant. Conclusions Patients actively involved in the choice of treatment had higher risk of prostate cancer death but only slightly increased risk of biochemical failure and clinical disease progression. These findings would provide a good reference when patient autonomy for the choice of treatment modality is addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In randomized controlled trials ( RCTs), with customized structured physical exercise activity ( SPEA) interventions, the dose of leisure-time physical activity ( LTPA) should exceed the LTPA dose of the nonexercising control ( C) group. This increase is required to substantiate health improvements achievable by exercise. We aimed to compare the dose of SPEA, LTPA, and total LTPA ( SPEA + LTPA) between a randomized Nordic walking ( NW) group, a power-type resistance training ( RT) group, and a C group during a 12-week exercise intervention in obese middle-aged men ( n = 144) with impaired glucose regulation. The dose of physical activity was measured with diaries using metabolic equivalents. No significant difference ( P > 0.107) between the groups was found in volume of total LTPA. The volume of LTPA was, however, significantly higher ( P < 0.050) in the C group than in the NW group, but not compared with the RT group. These results indicate that structured exercise does not automatically increase the total LTPA level, possibly, as a result of compensation of LTPA with structured exercise or spontaneous activation of the C group. Thus, the dose of total LTPA and the possible changes in spontaneous LTPA should be taken into account when implementing a RCT design with exercise intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims To assess the efficacy of methylphenidate as a substitution therapy for amphetamine/methamphetamine dependence in Finland and New Zealand. Design Parallel-group, double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled trial. Setting Out-patient care. Participants Amphetamine-/methamphetamine-dependent, aged 16-65 years. Measurements The primary outcome measure was presence/absence of amphetamine/methamphetamine in urine samples collected twice weekly. Secondary measures included treatment adherence, alterations in craving scores and self-reported use. Primary analysis was by intention-to-treat ( ITT). The study drug, methylphenidate (as Concerta®), was up-titrated over 2 weeks to a maximum dose of 54 mg daily and continued for a further 20 weeks. Doses were given under daily supervision at the clinics. Findings Seventy-nine participants were randomized (40 methylphenidate; 39 placebo); 76 received allocated treatment and 27 completed the trial. ITT analysis ( n = 78) showed no statistically significant difference in the percentage of positive urines between the methylphenidate and placebo arms (odds ratio: 0.95, 95% confidence interval: 0.83-1.08). However, there was a significant difference ( P < 0.05) between the active and placebo arms in retention, the placebo arm displaying a significantly lower retention from 6 weeks that persisted until the end of the trial. Conclusions The trial failed to replicate earlier findings suggesting that methylphenidate was superior to placebo. The low retention rate confounded the ability to draw firm conclusions about efficacy. The higher retention rate was observed in the methylphenidate arm. Any replication of this work would need to consider alternatives to the rigid clinic attendance criteria, and consider an increased dose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]