Family Medicine Residency Site: Abbotsford-Mission

Dr Bibbins-Domingo: Let’s talk now about what AI is going to do for patients. We have our computers that we carry around with us in our phones and in our watches, and if we’re interested in more information about our health, those sensors are collecting data about us all the time. I’m a primary care clinician. My patients are bringing me that data all the time and they’re asking me to help make sense of that. So tell us what’s on the horizon and how might we think about these really wonderful ways in which these incredible sensors and other data collection tools will become better integrated into clinical care.

Dr Kheterpal: I think the most important thing that the modern sensors and wearables offer us is really understanding the patient’s daily lived experience. I think we can all agree that even the most conscientious clinician struggles to truly understand in that 15-minute primary care visit, where you see the patient every 6 months, when they say, “I’m feeling tired,” what does that actually mean? These symptoms that are coming to us in episodic moments, and we have episodic assessments of them, but they’re lived throughout the day and throughout the 6-month or 1-year period. And the beauty of the sensors we now have is that there’s potentially an objective way to get a sense of how that patient’s doing.

Read more on Tapping AI’s Strengths—From Operating Room Safety to Wearable Device Interpretation via JAMA.

“I’m struggling to stay in this world, because everything just touches me so deeply. I’m not doing this for attention. I’m doing this to be an inspiration and to show that I can be strong. I did things to myself to make pain go away, because I’d rather hurt myself then someone else. Haters are haters but please don’t hate, although I’m sure I’ll get them. I hope I can show you guys that everyone has a story, and everyone’s future will be bright one day, you just gotta pull through. I’m still here aren’t I ?” ~ Amanda Todd

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to understand the needs of youth and young adults, current gaps around safeguarding social media, and factors affecting adoption of data-driven auto-detection or software tools.

Methods: This qualitative study is the first step of a larger initiative that aims to use participatory action research and co-design principles to develop a digital tool that targets cyberbullying. Youth and young adults aged 16–21 years were recruited to participate in semistructured focus groups between March 2020 and November 2021. Thematic analysis was used to develop themes, with a member-checking process to validate the findings.

Results: Six focus groups were completed with 39 participants and five themes were generated from the analysis. Participants described the mental health impacts of cyberbullying on young people, the stigma associated with it, and the need for more mental health resources. They felt that additional efforts are needed to improve the school environment, school-based interventions, and training protocols to ensure that youth feel safe reporting cyberbullying. Most participants were open to using a digital solution but raised concerns around the trustworthiness of artificial intelligence and wanted it to be co-designed with young people, integrated across platforms, informed by data-driven decisions, and transparent with users.

Discussion: Youth and young adults are accepting of a low-risk digital cyberbullying solution as current interventions are not meeting their needs.

Read more on Digital Disconnection: A Qualitative Study of Youth and Young Adult Perspectives on Cyberbullying and the Adoption of Auto-Detection or Software Tools via Journal of Adolescent Health.

More on the Amanda Todd Legacy Story.

Guarding Our Well-Being: The Emotional Impact of Cyberbullying and Identity Theft via The University of British Columbia Information Technology.

Purpose

Healthy sleep is essential for the physical, cognitive, and social development of children. Several studies have reported the increase in digital media use in preschool children and its association with impaired sleep. However, there is relatively little evidence on the effects of book reading as a potentially safe alternative. The objective of this study, therefore, was to investigate whether sleep in children could benefit from book reading, and whether the negative effects of media use on sleep can be mitigated by substituting book reading for screen time.

Participants and Methods

We used longitudinal data from three consecutive waves of the SPATZ Health study, including children at the ages of 4 (n=581), 5 (n=508), and 6 (n=426) years. All data were collected by self-administered questionnaires. Parent-reported child sleep was assessed by the Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire.

Results

Across the three waves, screen-based media use increased and was associated with lower sleep quality. In contrast, the time spent with book reading decreased; however, book reading appeared to be beneficial for children’s sleep. Substitution models revealed that the theoretical substitution of an equal amount of book reading for 50% of the time spent with screen-based media benefits several domains of preschoolers’ sleep health, including parasomnias, sleep anxiety, daytime sleepiness, and sleep onset delay.

Conclusion

Besides implications for population-wide and individual prevention, book reading may also be incorporated as a useful intervention to improve sleep quality in children who are already affected by sleep problems. Given that book reading is perceived as a safe alternative, the presented evidence may suffice to support recommendations in this direction.

Read more on Substituting Book Reading for Screen Time Benefits Preschoolers’ Sleep Health: Results from the Ulm SPATZ Health Study via Nature and Science of Sleep.

Another round of the Lancet picture quiz! 🙂

“What is…?”

Cue the beat!

Click here to answer.

“A newly installed holographic display in Crescent Regional Hospital in Lancaster, Texas, is allowing doctors to meet with patients in real-time and helping them reduce travel time.” CNN affiliate WFAA has more.

“In a new study published in Cancer Research, researchers from the University of Oxford and Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida introduce a novel framework that applies deep reinforcement learning, DRL, (a form of AI) to create adaptive therapy schedules for individual prostate cancer patients. The results indicate that the new adaptive approach could potentially double the time to relapse compared to MTD or non-personalised treatment breaks.”

Read more on Study demonstrates how AI can develop more personalised cancer treatment strategies via University of Oxford.

“This article addresses the critical issue of violence against children, defined as a violation of their rights across interpersonal, community, societal, and global settings, encompassing both physical and psychological actions targeting them or their parents. Globally, WHO estimates that an unacceptably large number of children aged 2–17 years, experience physical, sexual, or emotional violence or neglect yearly. War stands out as a major contributor to the infringement of children’s fundamental human rights. Those in conflict zones undergo traumatic experiences, including the loss of family members, disruptions to social networks, displacement, and the denial of basic needs. The severe deprivation of essential resources and opportunities, coupled with the stress of warfare, poses a grave threat to the emotional and cognitive development of children, increasing the risk of physical and mental illnesses, disabilities, social problems, and intergenerational consequences. The article aims to draw attention to this issue and advocates for the development of appropriate academic and post-academic educational courses and training programs. This will better equip pediatricians and healthcare professionals to effectively combat violence against children in any context.”

Read more on War inflicts severe violations on the fundamental human rights of children via Global Pediatrics.

Get Cyber Safe is a national public awareness campaign created to inform Canadians about cyber security and the simple steps they can take to protect themselves online. Learn how to secure your accounts, devices, and connections.

Start by taking the Get Cyber Safe Checkup here!

“The Data Science and Health (DASH) Cluster is building a system to link health research data in BC by enhancing the availability and use of health data to improve diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, and enable computational tools that speed discovery of new knowledge, optimizing health outcomes for all BC residents.

The UBC Micro-certificate in Health Data Analytics: Opportunities and Applications is a new program developed by the UBC DASH Cluster and the Data Science Institute for health care professionals and researchers in the health sector with exposure to health data, either clinical or operational. Designed by industry and academic experts, the micro-certificate consists of three four-week online courses, combining self-paced independent study with weekly live online sessions.

In this information session, get an overview of the program, the curriculum, learning outcomes, and what to expect. Meet the program instructors to learn about how you can apply your learning to benefit your organization or your personal endeavours. There will be plenty of time for your questions!”

Learn more via DASH.

“The R21/Matrix-M™ malaria vaccine represents the start of a global effort to eradicate malaria with the addition of vaccine to other measures and highlights Oxford’s commitment to addressing global health challenges in regions heavily affected by the disease.

R21 is the second malaria vaccine to be recommended by WHO for children living in endemic areas. Along with the earlier WHO recommendation of the RTS,S vaccine, there is now many-fold greater  vaccine supply for Africa where the disease kills nearly half a million children annually. The rollout of both vaccines is funded by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

Integrating these vaccines into national malaria control plans, along with other interventions, aims to drastically reduce childhood mortality and strengthen the fight against malaria.”

Read more on Shipment of R21 malaria vaccine to Central African Republic marks latest milestone for child survival via University of Oxford.