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This study examined the incidence of reading impairments, the reading profiles, and the outcomes of a reading intervention for youth involved in a comprehensive crime prevention program. Rates of reading impairments were between 55% and 61%. Reading profiles for participants with reading comprehension impairments showed deficits in phonological decoding and word reading similar to a comparison group without behavioral risks. A subset of the prevention program participants and an age- and reading level-matched comparison group received a phonology- and word-focused reading intervention. Following the intervention, both groups showed reliable and academically meaningful improvements on word- and text-level reading outcomes. The comparison group tended to have higher scores on reading comprehension; however, both groups made significant gains in this area. The reading profiles and positive outcomes in this study suggest that word-focused reading remediation will be effective for youth at imminent risk for antisocial conduct and involvement with the criminal justice system.

An emerging area of research has focused on understanding how the group dynamics of a sport team influence positive youth development (PYD). The identities that youth form through their membership in sport teams (i.e., social identities) have been found to influence teammate behavior and team performance. Yet, minimal work exists on social identity and PYD in youth sport. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between social identity and PYD in sport. Method: Youth engaged in recreational sport (N = 219; M[subscript age] = 11.61 years, SD = 1.39 years) completed measures of social identity and PYD in sport. The social identity measure assessed 3 dimensions including ingroup ties (IGT; perceptions of similarity, bonding, belongingness), cognitive centrality (importance of being a team member), and ingroup affect (IGA; feelings associated with group membership). A regression analysis was performed separately for 4 PYD outcomes (personal and social skills, goal setting, initiative, negative experiences) with the 3 dimensions of social identity entered as predictors. Results: Regression analyses revealed that IGT and IGA were positively associated with personal and social skills (R[superscript 2] Adj. = 0.29). Further, IGT predicted initiative (R[superscript 2] Adj. = 0.16), whereas IGA was positively associated with goal setting (R[superscript 2] Adj. = 0.17) and negatively associated with negative experiences (R[superscript 2] Adj. = 0.08). Conclusion: The findings extend previous research highlighting the benefits of social identity on teammate behavior and team performance and demonstrate how social identity may contribute to PYD through sport.

In civil and criminal proceedings, there are factors inherent in the role of a treating physician such as advocacy and other duties owed the patient, in contrast to expert opinion provided by an independent assessor which is required to be objective. Misunderstanding or unawareness of the differences in treating versus expert physicians can lead to decision-makers relying on potentially biased information. Recent decisions in Canada have allowed for opinion evidence by treatment providers (Westerhoff v. Gee Estate), which seem to ignore the potential bias of the treatment provider. The lack of clarity by which decision-makers perceive the role of physician witnesses poses a significant issue for physicians, who must balance competing interests, equivocal processes and concerns regarding bias and conflict of interest when providing medical information to a decision-maker. This paper attempts to clarify the essential differences between information provided by a treating physician as opposed to an expert opinion provided by an independent consultant in Canada. Discussion around privacy legislation will be used to highlight some differences. It is hoped that a clearer understanding of the information the decision-makers are receiving will promote an improved understanding of that information and, subsequently, an improved decision-making process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents the results of a 182 day implementation of a model predictive controller (MPC) in a test house in Ottawa, Canada. The MPC controls the timing of hydronic floor heating and cooling within the highly glazed house (13.5% south-facing window-to-floor ratio). The objectives of the MPC are to optimally control the on/off times of active heating and cooling to minimize energy use while also minimizing air temperature violations outside of a prescribed range. It was found that 71% of the days in the experimental period saw successful operation of the MPC towards these goals. Days that experienced overheating were found to be concentrated in January–February and days that experienced overcooling were found to be concentrated in March–May. Problematic decision making by the MPC was found to be rooted in 4 main issues: (1) global horizontal irradiance (GHI) is a bad indicator of passive solar on its own; (2) weather forecasting (specifically GHI forecasting) is critical to MPC success in highly glazed buildings; (3) the GHI history regressor used in the prediction model regularly influenced predictions illogically; and (4) the MPC lacked decision-making logic on the timing of hydronic floor cooling. • A model predictive controller was implemented in a highly glazed, full-scale, test house. • Performance of the model predictive controller was evaluated over 7 months. • The design of the MPC is simple and practical for implementation in a real building. • A recommendation is made on what a model predictive controller could look like for a highly glazed house. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parks and protected areas are a global ecological, social and health resource visited by over 8 billion people annually. Their use can yield substantial benefits, but only if a balance between ecological integrity and sustainable visitation is struck. This research explores the potential influence of climate-driven environmental change on visitation to North America's most popular glacier, the Athabasca Glacier in Jasper National Park, Canada. Photorealistic environmental visualizations were used to gauge visitors’ perceptions of environmental change and potential impacts on consumer behaviour. Results suggest that impacts could substantially diminish the site's pull as a tourism destination. Rather than improving visitation prospects, expert-proposed adaptations underestimated the importance of perceived naturalness and contributed to further potential decline. Findings are relevant to protected areas planning and management. They suggest that a natural path to climate change adaptation is the best way to support both ecological integrity and the long-term tourism pull of protected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Dental Hygiene is the property of Canadian Dental Hygienists Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The article discusses the web-based palliative care services provided by the Canadian Virtual Hospice. It was the first web-based platform to provide the public with direct online access to a clinical team composed of palliative care experts including clinical nurse specialists (CNSs), physicians, and social workers. Through a section called Ask a Professional section, Canadians can pose a question and receive response within three business days. INSET: How long can someone live without food or water?.

Under a recent partnership between the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS) and Amazon, the company's voice-activated assistant is standing by to answer citizens' health questions. Alexa can answer that, too, with Amazon's algorithm accessing information from the NHS website to provide medical advice to UK residents. The AHS claims to be "the first public health care organization in Canada to offer health care information on the Google and Amazon devices". [Extracted from the article]

The article offers information on the Healthcare Leadership and Improvement Conference in Toronto, Ontario regarding the role of compassion and efficiency of physicians in health care industry. Topics discussed include presentation of Stephen Trzeciak, the chief of medicine at Cooper University Health Care; the study by scientist according to which compassion, has the power to transform medicine.

The article offers information on views of doctor Rick Glazier, who will be scientific director of the Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR) at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), on healthcare industry. The topics addressed include Rick's focus on mental health and addiction, access to specialty care, transitions in care, and policy developments around the Medicare system.

Introduction: Goal setting is an integral part of the rehabilitation process and assists occupational therapists to target therapy towards achieving meaningful outcomes. People with mild cognitive impairment or dementia may experience barriers participating in goal setting due to preconceptions that the person cannot participate owing to changes in both cognitive and communicative abilities. The aim of this review was to identify goal setting approaches, common goals identified, and enablers and barriers to goal setting for people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia participating in specific rehabilitation programmes., Methods: Four electronic databases were searched in April 2020 for English language articles that described goal setting processes during a rehabilitation programme for people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Studies of all designs were included. Two authors screened citations and full text articles. Data were extracted, synthesised, and presented narratively., Results: Twenty-seven studies met the eligibility criteria. Both structured and nonstructured goal setting methods were used with common tools including the Canadian Occupational Performance Measure, the Bangor Goal Setting Interview and Goal Attainment Scaling. The nature of goals tended to depend on the scope of the rehabilitation programme in which the person was involved. Goal setting was more difficult for people with more advanced symptoms of dementia and when staff lacked skills and experience working with people with dementia. Use of a structured approach to goal setting, establishment of therapeutic rapport, individualisation of goals, and family involvement were reported to be beneficial., Conclusion: Collaborative goal setting is a foundation of rehabilitation for people with dementia and should not be avoided due to preconceptions that the person cannot participate. Results suggests that occupational therapists can use a number of strategies to maximise participation and engagement and play a pivotal role in upskilling staff to enable effective goal setting for people with mild cognitive impairment or dementia., (© 2021 Occupational Therapy Australia.)

Domestic dogs have been central to life in the North American Arctic for millennia. The ancestors of the Inuit were the first to introduce the widespread usage of dog sledge transportation technology to the Americas, but whether the Inuit adopted local Palaeo-Inuit dogs or introduced a new dog population to the region remains unknown. To test these hypotheses, we generated mitochondrial DNA and geometric morphometric data of skull and dental elements from a total of 922 North American Arctic dogs and wolves spanning over 4500 years. Our analyses revealed that dogs from Inuit sites dating from 2000 BP possess morphological and genetic signatures that distinguish them from earlier Palaeo-Inuit dogs, and identified a novel mitochondrial clade in eastern Siberia and Alaska. The genetic legacy of these Inuit dogs survives today in modern Arctic sledge dogs despite phenotypic differences between archaeological and modern Arctic dogs. Together, our data reveal that Inuit dogs derive from a secondary pre-contact migration of dogs distinct from Palaeo-Inuit dogs, and probably aided the Inuit expansion across the North American Arctic beginning around 1000 BP.

This study determined the prevalence of side rail use in chronic care units and the reduction of side rail use following education. An audit conducted in 2005 and repeated in 2007 looked at the number of side rails that were used and the reasons for this use. An educational presentation titled "Death by Side Rail" was provided for nurses and healthcare aides. Side rail use decreased by 60% from a prevalence of 90% of the population with side rails up on their beds. The primary reason for side rail use by nurses was determined to be "habit." Nurses no longer put up side rails out of habit, and they now assess the situation prior to the consideration of side rail use.