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Elementary school students in today's urban classrooms face many life circumstances at home and in their communities that contribute to stress and coping needs. These stressors are often brought into the classroom, which impact learning, behaviors, and overall academic performance. Mindfulness has been used in classroom settings, particularly with older children and adolescents to help with behavioral and academic outcomes in school. The purpose of this pilot study was to test a 10-week Mindfulness program that was integrated daily at the morning homeroom check-in with a classroom of 4th graders, and compared to a matched comparison classroom. Teachers provided pre-intervention and post-intervention data on student behavior and academic performance; students gave qualitative feedback about the program. While there were no significant differences on the Mindfulness measures, teachers reported significant differences in prosocial behaviors, emotional regulation, and academic performance within group and across comparison groups. Students also reported high satisfaction with the curriculum and gave examples of how they used Mindfulness for emotional regulation and in classroom. Findings support the use of Mindfulness in urban classroom settings as a feasible option for students to help with personal stress and coping, as well as emotional and behavior regulation in schools and at home.

Elementary school students in today's urban classrooms face many life circumstances at home and in their communities that contribute to stress and coping needs. These stressors are often brought into the classroom, which impact learning, behaviors, and overall academic performance. Mindfulness has been used in classroom settings, particularly with older children and adolescents to help with behavioral and academic outcomes in school. The purpose of this pilot study was to test a 10-week Mindfulness program that was integrated daily at the morning homeroom check-in with a classroom of 4th graders, and compared to a matched comparison classroom. Teachers provided pre-intervention and post-intervention data on student behavior and academic performance; students gave qualitative feedback about the program. While there were no significant differences on the Mindfulness measures, teachers reported significant differences in prosocial behaviors, emotional regulation, and academic performance within group and across comparison groups. Students also reported high satisfaction with the curriculum and gave examples of how they used Mindfulness for emotional regulation and in classroom. Findings support the use of Mindfulness in urban classroom settings as a feasible option for students to help with personal stress and coping, as well as emotional and behavior regulation in schools and at home., Students sitting in urban U.S. elementary school classrooms are faced with myriad competing factors vying for their attention in the learning environment. Urban students must not only attend to the [...]

Aim: To analyze the concept of systems of communication in school nurse‐led care coordination to develop an operational definition that will inform intervention development. Background: Communication has been identified as an essential attribute in care coordination. However, previous concept analyses of care coordination did not clearly define systems of communication or consider the context of school‐based care coordination. Defining and conceptualizing systems of communication has important implications for improving school nurse‐led care coordination. Methods: Concept analysis was conducted using Walker and Avant's eight‐step concept analysis method. The literature was searched to identify supporting literature that was analyzed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses checklist. Results: Systems of communication in school nurse‐led care coordination can be defined as systems wherein care team members, led by the school nurse, collaborate by communicating information and knowledge through an individualized healthcare plan that is student/family‐centered and shared through information systems. Attributes require developing an individual health plan that incorporates care coordination needs, information sharing with student/family consent, and a clear delineation of team member roles. Consequences include student/family outcomes, team member knowledge, and efficiency and accuracy of information. Conclusions: Concept clarification and a synthesized definition allow for more effective measurement development for effective communication in school nurse‐led care coordination. Students with healthcare needs in the school environment require systems of communication that efficiently work toward school nurse‐led care coordination that addresses the student's health and academic outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States, the vast majority of Hispanic high school students do not meet physical activity recommendations. This prospective, observational study tested the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to predict physical activity in a convenience sample of 232 high school students from a predominantly Hispanic, rural-fringe, lower-income community in Southwestern United States. Mindfulness was tested as a moderator of the intention–physical activity relationship. Data were collected via self-report questionnaires. Statistical analysis included structural equation modeling (SEM) and moderation analysis. The model explained 60% and 43% of the variance in intention and physical activity, respectively. Attitude (β = 0.49, p < 0.001) and subjective norm (β = 0.44, p < 0.001) predicted intention. Intention (β = 0.58, p < 0.001) and perceived behavioral control (β = 0.13, p < 0.027) predicted physical activity. Mindfulness did not moderate the intention–physical activity relationship. The results support using the TPB to predict physical activity in this population and may inspire ideas for targeted interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As of January 1, 2017, eight states have approved laws for recreationalmarijuana use. While the social impacts of these changes remain under debate, the influence on adolescent marijuana use is a key policy and health issue across the U.S. Objective: To examine changes in adolescent marijuanause behaviors in the first year after recreational marijuana implementation in Colorado, and to analyze the effect of retail marijuana store proximity on youth use and perceptions. Method: Secondary analysis of Healthy Kids Colorado Survey data from 40 schools surveyed before and after recreational marijuana sales were implemented (2013 student n = 12,240; 2014 student n = 11,931). Self-reported marijuana use, ease of access, and perceived harms were compared between years and by proximity of recreational marijuana stores to surveyed schools. Results: Adolescent marijuana use behaviors, wrongness of use, and perceptions of risk of harm were unchanged from baseline to one-year follow-up. Perceived ease of access to marijuana increased (from 46% to 52%). Proximity of recreational marijuana stores was not significantly associated with perceived ease of access to marijuana. Conclusions/Importance: In the first study of adolescent marijuana use and perceptions after state retail implementation of recreational marijuana, there was little change in adolescent marijuana use but a significant change in perception of ease of access. Public health workers and policymakers should continue to monitor these changes as essential for evaluating the impact of liberalization of marijuana policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social networking site use has exploded among youth in the last few years and is being adapted as an important tool for healthcare interventions and serving as a platform for adolescents to gain access to health information. The aim of this study was to examine the strengths, weaknesses, and best practices of utilizing Facebook in adolescent health promotion and research via pragmatic literature review. We also examine how sites can facilitate ethically sound healthcare for adolescents, particularly at-risk youth. We conducted a literature review of health and social sciences literature from the past 5 years related to adolescent health and social network site use. Publications were grouped by shared content then categorized by themes. Five themes emerged: access to healthcare information, peer support and networking, risk and benefits of social network site use in care delivery, overcoming technological barriers, and social network site interventions. More research is needed to better understand how such Web sites can be better utilized to provide access to adolescents seeking healthcare. Given the broad reach of social network sites, all health information must be closely monitored for accurate, safe distribution. Finally, consent and privacy issues are omnipresent in social network sites, which calls for standards of ethical use.

Objectives: This study examined the abuse prevalence and characteristics, and risk and protective factors, among both runaway and non-runaway adolescents evaluated at a Child Advocacy Center (CAC) in Minnesota, which had implemented a referral program to assess runaways for potential sexual assault or sexual exploitation., Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of self-report and chart data for the 489 adolescent girls who were evaluated between 2008 and 2010. Chi-square and t-tests by runaway status compared abuse experiences, trauma responses, health issues, and potential protective assets associated with resilience between runaways and non-runaways. Bivariate logistic regressions explored the relationship of these risk and protective factors to self-harm, suicide attempts, and problem substance use, separately for runaways and non-runaways who had experienced sexual abuse., Results: Runaways were significantly more likely than non-runaways to have experienced severe sexual abuse, to have used alcohol and drugs, and reported problem substance use behavior, higher levels of emotional distress, more sexual partners, and they were more likely to have a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Runaways had lower levels on average of social supports associated with resilience, such as connectedness to school, family or other adults. Yet higher levels of these assets were linked to lower odds of self-harm, suicide attempt and problem substance use for both groups., Conclusions and Implications: CACs should encourage referrals of runaway adolescents for routine assessment of sexual assault, and incorporate screening for protective factors in addition to trauma responses in their assessments of all adolescents evaluated for possible sexual abuse, to guide interventions.