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Background: Mental health (MH) disorders are major causes of disability in Guatemala. Unfortunately, limited academic training and funding resources make MH care inaccessible to most people in rural Guatemala. These disparities leave many indigenous populations without care. Project ECHO™ is an educational model used globally to deliver virtual training for providers in rural/ underserved communities. The aim of this project was to implement and evaluate a Project ECHO™ program bridging MH training gaps for providers who serve rural communities in Guatemala. Methods: The Project ECHO™ curriculum was implemented through a partnership between educational and nonprofit institutions in Guatemala City and the United States. Participants were primary care physicians and nurses working in rural Guatemala as well as medical/nursing/psychology students. Evaluation of its implementation was guided by a RE-AIM framework. Reach, effectiveness, adoption, fidelity, sustainability, acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness were evaluated using a mixed-methods approach, using a pre-post survey and semi-structured focus groups. Results: Forty unique participants attended the five sessions. Attitudes about mental health did not change quantitatively but self-efficacy improved in four of five modules. High quality fidelity scores were noted in two of five sessions. Sustainability scores across multiple domains were highly rated. Scores on instruments measuring acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness were high. Focus groups showed two main themes: the curriculum filled a gap in education and further adaptation of the model might help improve the experience. Conclusion: Implementation of the Project ECHO™ educational model appeared to have good reach/adoption, showed improvements in self-efficacy, illuminated facilitators and barriers to sustainability, and was felt to be acceptable, feasible, and appropriate. Qualitative analysis supported these conclusions. Future directions would include ongoing evaluation and monitoring of further Project ECHO™ curricular experiences through this partnership and adaptation of this project to other learners and settings in Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: United States (U.S.) census data from 2017 indicates that the percentage of persons born outside of the U.S. is increasing. However, no studies describe the amount of class time focused on immigrant and refugee health during medical school in the U.S. nor on incoming residents' confidence in providing culturally sensitive care. The objective of this study is to characterize final-year medical students' exposure to immigrant and refugee health and their confidence in caring for these populations. Methods: A voluntary, cross-sectional survey was sent electronically to fourth-year medical students at twelve U.S. medical schools in 2020, with 707 respondents (46% response rate). Questions addressed respondents' curricular exposure to immigrant and refugee health care during medical school and their confidence in providing culturally sensitive care. Chi-square tests were used to assess relationships between categorical variables, and odds ratios were calculated for dichotomized variables. Results: Most students (70.6%) described insufficient class time dedicated to culturally sensitive care, and many (64.5%) reported insufficient clinical exposure in caring for immigrants/refugees. The odds that incoming residents felt 'usually' or 'always' confident in their ability to provide culturally sensitive care to immigrants and refugees were higher in those with more class time on culturally sensitive care (OR 5.2 [3.6-7.4]), those with more clinical opportunities to care for immigrants and refugees (OR 7.2 [5.1-10.2]), and those who participated in a domestic low-resource or international elective (OR 1.4 [1.02-1.9]). More than half (55.3%) of respondents reported feeling 'not at all' or only 'sometimes' confident in their ability to provide culturally sensitive care to immigrants/refugees. Conclusions: Most fourth-year U.S. medical students entering residency feel unprepared to deliver culturally sensitive care to immigrants and refugees. This may be mediated by increased exposure to didactic curricula class time and/or experiential clinical activities, as those factors are associated with improved student confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than a decade ago, two faculty met at a conference. Each talked about how they were charged with leading global health education efforts at their institutions and longed to have an opportunity to share resources and learn from each other. After reaching out to a few other Midwestern colleagues and finding a date, the first Midwest Consortium of Global Child Health Educators meeting was held in Madison, WI. Now, after a dozen annual meetings, more than 30 articles, chapters, abstracts, and workshops, as well as the creating, piloting, and sharing of several widely used curricula in global health education, the founding consortium members share the practical steps for faculty looking to form similar regional consortia around shared interests. In this article, the authors provide a recipe for the successful formation of an academic consortium based on the lessons learned from their experience. [Pediatr Ann. 2023;52(9):e351–e356.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: An increasing number of medical trainees across specialties desire and expect Global Health (GH) experiences during training. It is useful for residency programs to know the impact that offering GH opportunities has on resident recruitment. The study objectives were to explore the importance of GH opportunities in residency selection among fourth-year medical students, examine the relationship between interest in GH and career plans, and describe students' perspectives on prior GH experiences. Methods: The authors administered an electronic survey to all fourth-year medical students attending 12 different US institutions in February 2020. Data from the ten schools who were able to comply with the survey distribution methodology and with response rates above 25% were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson's correlation. Results: A total of 707 fourth-year medical students from the included schools completed the survey out of 1554 possible students (46% response rate). One third of respondents ranked the presence of GH experiences in residency as moderately or very important and 26% felt that the presence of a formal GH curriculum was at least moderately important, with variation noted among specialties. After training, 65% of students envision practicing internationally in some capacity. A desire to care for underserved patients in their careers was significantly correlated with an interest in GH experiences during residency. Conclusions: The opportunity to be involved in GH experiences during training can be an important factor for many medical students when considering residency choice, and the availability of these opportunities may be a valuable recruitment tool. Students valuing GH opportunities during residency are more interested in working with underserved populations in their future careers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are new treatment options for certain cancers, especially those in advanced states with limited treatment options. Their unique design provides targeted therapy with toxins that otherwise would not be available, but they manifest toxicities that require risk minimization interventions to optimize their tolerability. We summarize selected toxicities for ADCs that have been approved through the end of 2020 and three investigational ADCs, which include both payload and linker, as described in the US Prescribing Information, the European Summary of Product Characteristics, and study protocols. These toxicities include peripheral neuropathy; pulmonary, skin, hepatic, and ocular toxicities; hyperglycemia; left ventricular dysfunction; and fluid-related events. We also review the risk minimization approaches to managing these toxicities as described in the product labels and study protocols. Our general observation suggests that the selected toxicities of the approved ADCs are primarily associated with off-target effects of the drug payloads. We also observed that the risk minimization approaches used to manage the selected toxicities are similar across product labels and study protocols. ADCs provide a unique treatment approach that is currently focused on advanced or refractory cancers. The risk minimization approaches for the selected toxicities for the approved ADCs per product label, or the study protocol for those in clinical investigation, are similar to those of standard chemotherapy agents and other pharmaceutical agents for the treatment of advanced malignancies. These risk minimization measures align with standard medical practice and are likely familiar to and feasible for physicians who prescribe for, and to other healthcare practitioners who care for, patients treated with ADCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There are scarce data on outcomes of in-hospital paediatric cardiac arrest (CA) in resource-poor settings and none for World Bank-defined low-income countries. Aim: To report the outcomes of in-hospital paediatric CA from a university-affiliated referral hospital in Malawi. Methods: Data were collected prospectively on patients aged 30 days to 13 years who experienced CA and underwent cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) at Kamuzu Central Hospital in Lilongwe, Malawi from January through June 2017. Utstein-style reporting guidelines for CAs were used to define outcomes; the primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge. A data collection form was used to record patient, arrest and resuscitation characteristics. Results: A total of 135 patients fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in the study. Resuscitation outcomes are presented in Figure 1 using a modified Utstein template. In-hospital CA was associated with 100% mortality. Return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) was obtained in 6% of patients and sustained ROSC in 4%; 24-h survival was zero. The most common admission diagnosis was malaria (51%). Most arrests occurred on the paediatric ward (90%) rather than critical care units. Most resuscitations were led by trainees and mid-level providers (58%) rather than paediatricians (23%). Conclusion: Survival following in-hospital paediatric CA was zero, suggesting that CPR may have no benefit in this tertiary hospital. Future efforts to improve outcomes should focus on advocating better pre-arrest care and research interventions aimed to identify and treat children at risk of CA within the resource constraints of this setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is growing interest in global health among medical trainees. Medical schools and residencies are responding to this trend by offering global health opportunities within their programs. Among United States (US) graduating pediatric residents, 40% choose to subspecialize after residency training. There is limited data, however, regarding global health opportunities within traditional post-residency, subspecialty fellowship training programs. The objectives of this study were to explore the availability and type of global health opportunities within Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited pediatric subspecialty fellowship training programs, as noted by their online report, and to document change in these opportunities over time. Methods: The authors performed a systematic online review of ACGME-accredited fellowship training programs within a convenience sample of six US pediatric subspecialties. Utilizing two data sources, the American Medical Association-Fellowship and Residency Electronic Interactive Database Access (AMA-FREIDA) and individual program websites, all programs were coded for global health opportunities and opportunity types were stratified into predefined categories. Comparisons were made between 2008 and 2011 using Fisher exact test. All analyses were conducted using SAS Software v. 9.3 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). Results: Of the 355 and 360 programs reviewed in 2008 and 2011 respectively, there was an increase in total number of programs listing global health opportunities on AMA-FREIDA (16% to 23%, p=0.02) and on individual program websites (8% to 16%, p=0.004). Nearly all subspecialties had an increased percentage of programs offering global health opportunities on both data sources; although only critical care experienced a significant increase (p=0.04, AMA-FREIDA). The types of opportunities differed across all subspecialties. Conclusions: Global health opportunities among ACGME-accredited pediatric subspecialty fellowship programs are limited, but increasing as noted by their online report. The availability and types of these opportunities differ by pediatric subspecialty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses a U.S. study which aims to describe the development and pilot implementation of a direct observation tool to assess the history and physical examination skills of interns in a pediatric emergency department section, and explains the study's methods, results and conclusion.

The globalization of pediatric graduate medical education is ongoing; thus, this study was conducted to begin to explore the nature of resident interest in global health (GH) training and to further identify potentially modifiable factors influencing participation in away rotations. The authors surveyed all residents at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to identify factors influencing participation in education efforts and away rotations. With a participation rate of 79.4% (n = 143), 5 key factors emerged as most significant in the decision-making process amid all participants. Among residents who had previous experience, 82.1% were interested in participating in an away elective compared with 58.3% of those without experience (P = .002). Residents with previous experience abroad were also more likely to plan to integrate GH into their careers (61.7% vs 26.7%, P < .0001). This article describes specific obstacles to resident participation in GH education and documents the association between previous experience and significant interest in long-term involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Objective: To examine the relationship between the use and type of primary care and visits to the emergency department (ED) in early infancy by healthy infants who are Medicaid recipients. Design: A population-based cohort study using a database linking birth certificate data to Medicaid claims. Participants: A total of 151 464 full-term infants born in Ohio to mothers receiving Medicaid from July 1, 1991, through June 30, 1998. Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome of interest was the occurrence of an ED visit within 91 days of the neonate's birth. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the effect of early linkage with primary care (within 21 days of birth) on ED use in early infancy. Results: Only 53% of the infants had a documented primary care visit within 21 days of birth. Twenty-eight percent of infants had at least 1 ED visit within 91 days of birth and 9% had more than 1 visit. The mean age of the neonate at the first ED visit was 39.7 days. Fifteen percent of primary care visits within 21 days of birth occurred at a hospital-based primary care clinic. After adjusting for maternal, infant, and residency characteristics and temporal differences, early primary care linkage was associated with a 16% increase in the likelihood of ED use. When the primary care visit occurred in a hospital-based primary care clinic, it was associated with a 27% increase in the likelihood of ED use. Conclusion: Contrary to our expectations, early primary care linkage did not result in a decreased risk of ED use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Compares the content of after-hours medical triage and advice calls regarding private practice patients versus nonprivate practice patients. Assessment of caregivers' compliance with advice resulting from the calls; Background on pediatric telephone triage and advice system; Reasons for calls. INSET: Patients and methods..

Examines the immunization beliefs and practices of physicians. Community physicians on the staff of Children's Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio as respondents; Need for greater efforts to convince physicians that using ill visits to immunize children will not interfere with routine well care.

Residency is a high-risk period for physician burnout. We aimed to determine the short-term stability of factors associated with burnout, application of these data to previous conceptual models, and the relationship of these factors over 3 months. Physician wellness questionnaire results were analyzed at 2 time points 3 months apart. Associations among variables within and across time points were analyzed. Logistic regression was used to predict burnout and compassionate care. A total of 74% of residents completed surveys. Over 3 months, burnout (P = .005) and empathy (P = .04) worsened. The most significant cross-sectional relationship was between stress and emotional exhaustion (time 1 r = 0.61, time 2 r = 0.68). Resilience was predictive of increased compassionate care and decreased burnout (P < .05). Mindfulness was predictive of decreased burnout (P < .05). Mitigating stress and fostering mindfulness and resilience longitudinally may be key areas of focus for improved wellness in pediatric residents. Larger studies are needed to better develop targeted wellness interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]