Background: For many years research and practice have noted the impact of the heterogeneous nature of Developmental Language Disorder (also known as language impairment or specific language impairment) on diagnosis and assessment. Recent research suggests the disorder is not restricted to the language domain and against this background, the challenge for the practitioner is to provide accurate assessment and effective therapy. The speech and language therapist aims to support the child and their carers to achieve the best outcomes. However, little is known about the experiences of the speech and language therapist in the assessment process, in contrast to other childhood disorders, yet their expertise is central in the assessment and diagnosis of children with language disorder. Aims: This study aimed to gain an in-depth understanding of the experiences of speech and language therapists involved in the assessment and diagnosis of children with Developmental Language Disorder including the linguistic and non-linguistic aspects of the disorder. Methods and procedures: The qualitative study included three focus groups to provide a credible and rich description of the experiences of speech and language therapists involved in the assessment of Developmental Language Disorder. The speech and language therapists who participated in the study were recruited from different types of institution in three NHS trusts across the UK and all were directly involved in the assessment and diagnosis procedures. The lengths of speech and language therapist experience ranged from 2 years to 38 years. The data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis within a phenomenological approach. Outcomes and results: The analysis of the data showed three main themes relating to the speech and language therapists' experience in assessment and diagnosis of Developmental Language Disorder. These themes were the participants' experiences of the barriers to early referral (subthemes-parents' misunderstanding and misconceptions of Developmental Language Disorder, bilingualism can mask Developmental Language Disorder and public lack of knowledge of support services), factors in assessment (subthemes-individual nature of impairments, choosing appropriate assessments, key indicators and identifying non-language difficulties) and the concerns over continued future support (subthemes-disadvantages with academic curriculum, disadvantages for employment, impact of Developmental Language Disorder on general life chances). Conclusions and implications: This study provides first-hand evidence from speech and language therapists in the assessment of children with Developmental Language Disorder, drawing together experiences from speech and language therapists from different regions. The implications are that support for early referral and improved assessment tools are needed together with greater public awareness of Developmental Language Disorder. The implications are discussed in relation to the provision of early and effective assessment and the use of...

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This paper summarizes the outcomes of a retreat designed to cultivate interactions between trainees at various training levels and provide them opportunities to share their training perspectives and expectations. Retreat outcomes are used to support the development of better science, technology, engineering, and mathematics training practices by informing the trainers’ perspective.

Background: Lack of adherence with prescribed medications among the asthma populations exacerbates health outcomes and increases social and economic costs. Objectives: The proposed study aims to model patient-centric structural determinants of adherence rates among asthma patients and explore the potential of mobile health apps such as the TRUSTR platform to improve adherence using its power of monetary and non-monetary chatbotting and non-monetary nudges. Following specific hypotheses are tested: (1) Patient attributes, such as their age and medical condition, have significant effect on their adherence with the prescribed treatment plans. (2) Behavioral nudging with rewards and engagement via mobile health apps will increase adherence rates. Methods: The patient population (N= 37 359) consists of commercially insured patients with asthma who have been identified from administrative claims in the HealthCore Integrated Research Database (HIRD) between April 1, 2018 and March 31, 2019. Two Structural Equation Models (SEMs) are estimated to quantify direct, indirect and total effect sizes of age and medical condition on proportion of days covered (PDC) and medical possession ratio (MPR), mediated by patient medical and pharmacy visits. Fourteen additional SEMs were estimated to lateralize TRUSTR findings and conduct sensitivity analysis. Results: HIRD data reveal mean adherence rate of 59% (standard deviation (SD) 29%) for PDC and 58% for MPR (SD 36%). Key structural findings from SEMs derived from the HIRD dataset indicate that each additional year in the age of the patient has a positive total effect on the adherence rate. Patients with poor medical condition are likely to have lower adherence rate, but this direct effect is countered by mediating variables. Further, each additional reward and higher engagement with a mobile app is likely to have a positive total effect on increasing the adherence rate. Conclusions: HIRD data reveal mean adherence rate of 59% (SD 29%), providing the evidence for the opportunity to increase adherence rate by around 40%. Statistical modeling results reveal structural determinants, such as the opportunity to nudge, are higher among younger patients, as they have higher probability of being non-adherent. Methodologically, lateralization approach demonstrates the potential to capture real-world evidence beyond clinical data and merge it with clinical data.

Studies show women are underrepresented in higher education leadership. Nonetheless, women leaders achieve success when they receive strong institutional support. Mentors and coaches, both men and women, have the most impact on women's success, while other institutional aids include financial assistance, leadership support, and open institutional culture. Women who advance in their careers tend to remain at their institution. At the same time, lack of institutional support, family and work conflicts, and limited career advancement opportunities continue to pose barriers as women seek positions in the upper echelons of academic administration. Thus, there is a need for strong, consistent institutional support to improve and accelerate women's progress. Institutions that implement change in an inclusive, adaptable, and flexible manner can build a supportive infrastructure that benefits everyone. Women who prepare academically and professionally and contribute to the scholarly literature will help shape the future of higher education.