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Domestic abuse (DA) and suicidal ideation (SI) are prevalent and often co-occur. Numerous practical and psychosocial barriers inhibit help-seeking, including accessibility and confidentiality concerns. Early intervention and referral are essential for both DA and SI. Pharmacies are accessible and may be perceived as a discreet venue for a DA and SI response service. There is a growing body of literature about the role of community pharmacy teams in suicide prevention and assisting domestic abuse victims globally. Whilst there have been some interventions in UK pharmacies to support domestic abuse victims and encouragement of staff training in suicide prevention, there is currently no commissioned service for DA and/or SI in pharmacies in the UK. To assess public acceptability of a novel response service in community pharmacy for people in danger from domestic abuse and/or suicidal ideation. Data collection consisted of an online public survey running for 6 weeks and qualitative interviews with pharmacy customers. Descriptive statistics were used to present the survey results and interviews were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and then analysed using the Framework Analysis method and NVivo 11. The majority of 501 survey respondents and all 12 customer interview participants were supportive of offering a response service for DA and/or SI in community pharmacy. Participants emphasised the need for appropriate staff training and support. They considered it an ethical and accessible approach and the majority said that they would recommend such a service to family or friends, and use it themselves if needed. However, awareness of the service was low and marketing materials were considered insufficiently clear. There is strong public support and acceptability for a response service covering both suicidal ideation and domestic abuse in community pharmacies. Further research is required to develop appropriate marketing materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Obesity, a cause of subclinical inflammation, is a risk factor for the development of postmenopausal breast cancer and is associated with poorer cancer outcomes. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid, possesses anti-inflammatory properties. We hypothesized that treatment with DHA would reduce the expression of proinflammatory genes and aromatase, the rate-limiting enzyme for estrogen biosynthesis, in benign breast tissue of overweight/obese women. A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind phase II study of DHA given for 12 weeks to overweight/obese women with a history of stage I-III breast cancer, DCIS/LCIS, Paget's disease, or proliferative benign breast disease was carried out. In this placebo controlled trial, the primary objective was to determine whether DHA (1,000 mg by mouth twice daily) reduced breast tissue levels of TNFα. Secondary objectives included evaluation of the effect of DHA on breast tissue levels of COX-2, IL1β, aromatase, white adipose tissue inflammation, and gene expression by RNA-seq. Red blood cell fatty acid levels were measured to assess compliance. From July 2013 to November 2015, 64 participants were randomized and treated on trial (32 women per arm). Increased levels of omega-3 fatty acids in red blood cells were detected following treatment with DHA (P < 0.001) but not placebo. Treatment with DHA did not alter levels of TNFα (P = 0.71), or other biomarkers including the transcriptome in breast samples. Treatment with DHA was overall well-tolerated. Although compliance was confirmed, we did not observe changes in the levels of prespecified biomarkers in the breast after treatment with DHA when compared with placebo. Cancer Prev Res; 11(4); 203-14. ©2018 AACRSee related editorial by Fabian and Kimler, p. 187.

Objectives: The authors examined prospective associations of making a virginity pledge on sexual behaviors among male college students. Participants: A sample of 795 males was followed for 4 years (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011), with response rates ranging from 72% to 82% across the follow-up years. Methods: Males were surveyed at the end of each of their 4 years in college about sexual behavior activities and other risky behaviors. Results: Multivariate regression analyses indicated that males who made private virginity pledges were significantly more likely to remain abstinent across all 4 years of college and have fewer sexual partners at the end of their third and fourth years of college, even after controlling for age, race, high-risk drinking, impulsivity, and religiosity. Making a pledge was not related to condom use. Conclusion: Findings suggest that abstinence-based messages alone are not sufficient yet should be included as part of comprehensive sex education programs. (Contains 1 table.)

• What is the primary question addressed by this study? The primary question addressed was whether adding a pro-cognitive medication (vortioxetine) to cognitive training would alter the association of aging with changes in resting state brain networks across a 6-month trial period. • What is the main finding of this study? Vortioxetine added to computerized cognitive training produced significantly greater changes in older adult brain network organization than cognitive training alone over 6 months. Discrete intervention group effects were most evident in the interactions of aging with longitudinal changes in whole brain network segregation and with cingulo-opercular network strength. • What is the meaning of the finding? For older adults experiencing age-related cognitive decline, adding vortioxetine to intensive cognitive training has a potentially beneficial effect on the correspondence between aging and functional brain network organization. Age-related cognitive decline is common and potentially modifiable with cognitive training. Combining cognitive training with pro-cognitive medication offers an opportunity to modify brain networks to mitigate age-related cognitive decline. We tested the hypothesis that the efficacy of cognitive training could be amplified by combining it with vortioxetine, a pro-cognitive and pro-neuroplastic multimodal antidepressant. We evaluated the effects of 6 months of computerized cognitive training plus vortioxetine (versus placebo) on resting state functional connectivity in older adults (age 65+) with age-related cognitive decline. We first evaluated the association of functional connectivity with age and cognitive performance (N = 66). Then we compared the effects of vortioxetine plus cognitive training versus placebo plus cognitive training on connectivity changes over the training period (n = 20). At baseline, greater age was significantly associated with lower within-network strength and network segregation, and poorer cognitive function. Cognitive training plus vortioxetine over 6 months positively impacted the relationship between age to mean network segregation. These effects were not observed in the placebo group. In contrast, vortioxetine did not modify the relationship of age to change in mean within-network strength. Exploratory analyses identified the cingulo-opercular network as the network most affected by cognitive training plus vortioxetine. This preliminary study provides evidence that combining cognitive training with pro-cognitive medication may modulate the effects of aging on functional brain networks. Results indicate that for older adults experiencing age-related cognitive decline, vortioxetine has a potentially beneficial effect on the correspondence between aging and functional brain network segregation. These results await replication in a larger sample. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black/women of colour occupying academic positions is still a novel phenomenon in many academic institutions, in South Africa and elsewhere. We explored our academic identities as early-career black/women of colour through the novel application of collage-making as a tool in collaborative autoethnography (CAE). Through collaborative collage-making, we generated personal reflections on our experiences as academics. The content of the collages and the group reflections they generated were subjected to thematic analysis. Our results revealed socially cohesive and professionally inhibiting experiences that have shaped our academic identities. We shed light on issues related to academic mobility, the need to perform and the social interactions that help or hinder our academic identity-making processes as women of colour at a historically white institution. Sharing and reflecting on our collages also offered an unexpected benefit: we were able to reframe aspects of our thinking and beliefs about our academic identity and identify potential pathways for change. In this way, we established and participated in a professional caring community that facilitated sharing of tips of the trade – a practice that relates to Joan Tronto's idea of caring 'with'. Our shared insights add to the existing body of knowledge on women's experiences in academia more broadly, as well as feminist decoloniality as an applied theory of caring. We argue that CAE is a powerful and empowering methodological approach that aligns with an ethic of care. We found that the agency emanating from the process positioned us to promote a more inclusive university environment where women of colour can thrive and experience a sense of belonging and accomplishment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BackgroundHomeless and unstably housed (H/UH) youth are disproportionately affected by sexual health issues, including human immunodeficiency virus/sexually transmitted diseases, teen pregnancy, and dating violence, and are at a higher risk for poor mental health and underutilization of services. Research suggests that linking health care to H/UH adolescents might help improve their continuity of care, with most preferring to access health care information via the Internet. YTH StreetConnect is a dual-purpose mobile app that helps H/UH youth access health and vital services in Santa Clara County, CA, USA. We developed YTH StreetConnect PRO in parallel with the youth app as a companion tablet app for providers who serve H/UH youth. ObjectiveThe objective of our study was to develop a mobile app to support H/UH youth and their providers in accessing health and vital resources, and to conduct usability and feasibility testing of the app among H/UH youth and technical consultants with local expertise in serving H/UH youth. MethodsFormative research included a literature review on H/UH youths’ mobile phone and Internet usage. In January 2015, we conducted interviews with medical and service providers of H/UH youth. Usability and feasibility testing were done with target audiences. Additionally, we conducted focus groups with youth regarding the app’s youth friendliness, accessibility, and usefulness. ResultsH/UH youth and their providers noted the app’s functionality, youth friendliness, and resources. Usability testing proposed improvements to the app, including visual updates to the user interface, map icons, new underrepresented resource categories, and the addition of a peer rating system. Limitations included a small sample size among H/UH youth and providers and a single site for the study (Santa Clara County, CA), making the findings ungeneralizable to the US population. ConclusionsYTH StreetConnect is a promising way to increase service utilization, provide referral access, and share resources among H/UH youth and providers. Input from H/UH youth and providers offers insights on how to improve future models of YTH StreetConnect and similar programs that assist H/UH youth.

Conducted a formative research study designed to elicit preferences for sexually transmitted disease (STD)/HIV prevention programs from clients at a midwestern STD clinic. Responses of 126 participants show preferences for mixed group or individual meetings with counselors, with extensive intervention less favored than single sessions. Discusses implications for program design. (SLD)

In an ambitious study, Kate Gibson provides the first examination of the illegitimate individual across their life courses and across the social scale from the Restoration to the Poor Law Amendment Act. Gibson includes a few individuals of mixed-race Indian (Cust family) or African descent (Lewthwaite family) and finds that illegitimacy (and poverty) were more important determinants than race. Illegitimacy: Family and Stigma in England, 1660-1834: by Kate Gibson, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2022, 299 pp., £70 (hardback), ISBN 9780192867247. [Extracted from the article]

The working-age poor were the section of the poor who most preoccupied the Poor Law Commissioners and for whom the deterrent aspects of the union workhouses were designed. However, relatively little has been written about this group in the workhouse. This study analyses a sample of 3,390 workhouses, accommodating 752,272 inmates, for the censuses 1851-1861 and 1881-1911 (from the Integrated Census Microdata (I-CeM) database), representing up to three-quarters of the total population living in workhouses. It analyses the data by age, sex and geographical location. It finds that the proportion of the working-age poor who were in workhouses increased moderately, that there was a shift from a 'feminised' population to a more equal one, and that inmates were predominantly single and widowed. The 'crusade against out-relief' resulted in a shift from younger to older women. Likewise, the proportion of older middle-aged men increased, suggesting that work schemes and outdoor relief were insufficient to keep them all out of the workhouse. Problems securing work in domestic service, other 'domestic' work, and field work propelled women into workhouses in Cornwall, London and parts of Wales, and East Anglia. Although there were important social reforms in the early twentieth century, the workhouse remained an important site, as well as a symbol, of the state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]