There Is More than Multiple Choice: Crowd-Sourced Assessment Tips for Online, Hybrid, and Face-to-Face Environments

Developing effective assessments of student learning is a challenging task for faculty and even more difficult for those in emerging disciplines that lack readily available resources and standards. With the power of technology-enhanced education and accessible digital learning platforms, instructors are also looking for assessments that work in an online format. This article will be useful for all teachers, but especially for entry-level instructors, in addition to more mature instructors who are looking to become more well versed in assessment, who seek a succinct summary of assessment types to springboard the integration of new forms of assessment of student learning into their courses. In this paper, ten assessment types, all appropriate for face-to-face, blended, and online modalities, are discussed. The assessments are mapped to a set of bioinformatics core competencies with examples of how they have been used to assess student learning. Although bioinformatics is used as the focus of the assessment types, the question types are relevant to many disciplines.

The Need for Equitable Scholarship Criteria for Part-Time Students

Current policies and interventions to enhance student success and retention are often tied to full-time enrollment, which are substantiated by studies associating part-time enrollment with lower retention and poorer academic outcomes. However, these findings are limited to studies of first-time college students and do not represent today's nontraditional undergraduate who may be transfer, online, and working adult students. To enhance retention of on-campus and hybrid online 2 + 2 transfer students in a STEM undergraduate program, need-based scholarships are awarded to students enrolled full-time as stipulated by the federal granting agency. Although the scholarship has helped >80 students to date, over 40% of eligible transfer students are excluded only because they are enrolled part-time, disproportionately affecting students in the hybrid online track who are more likely to be women and underrepresented minorities. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, this study explores enrollment behavior of transfer students (online and on-campus), its relationship with student characteristics and academic outcomes, and implications for scholarship eligibility. Full-time enrollment is a significant challenge for transfer students. While scholarship requirements are a key factor influencing full-time enrollment, online transfer students additionally cite work and family obligations as drivers of enrollment behavior. Thus, online 2 + 2 transfer students face different challenges than on-campus peers and are more likely to enroll part-time out of necessity, yet still have comparable GPA and graduation rates. These findings support a growing awareness of barriers nontraditional students face questioning the relevance of policies driven by "traditional" student outcomes, which perpetuate inequity in higher education.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10755-021-09549-7.

Competing Roles and Expectations: Preliminary Data from an Agricultural Extension Survey on COVID-19 Impacts

Agricultural Extension professionals play a critical role in outreach and translation of research to practice. Extension has not only been an audience for Agricultural Safety and Health Center work, but also an essential partner in promoting evidence-based farm health and safety in communities. This commentary stems from a collaborative effort among Center leaders across the nation who developed a set of surveys to explore the ways COVID-19 has affected Extension professionals. Preliminary data gathered from across the nation suggest that while many Extension professionals feel prepared to address challenges from the pandemic and are well supported by their State and Center's resources, over half also reported moderate to great difficulty in balancing personal and professional needs and, to a lesser extent, balancing remote work and family needs. Because Extension professionals act as connectors between Agricultural Safety and Health Centers and farmers and their families, they serve in a role similar to first-responders. COVID-19 has exacerbated the potential for anxiety, stress, and other mental health concerns among this group. With COVID-19 numbers rising at an especially fast rate among agricultural workers, it is important to attend to the wellbeing of the professionals who work with them.

Successful Integration of Face-to-Face Bootcamp Lab Courses in a Hybrid Online STEM Program

The Microbiology and Cell Science program at the University of Florida compressed two standard 16-week lab courses into five-day versions of the course, which are referred to as bootcamp labs. The bootcamp labs have the same objectives, activities, and assessments as their traditional counterparts. Development of the bootcamp labs was part of a larger effort to increase access to the major, and more broadly STEM, by offering a 2+2 hybrid online transfer program. The results of this mixed-methods study include a direct comparison between bootcamp and traditional lab format as an approach for delivery of a face-to-face lab course. The bootcamp lab cohort has a greater diversity of students, with more women and underrepresented minorities in STEM than the traditional semester-long cohorts. Students in the bootcamp labs have comparable grade outcomes and learning gains to students in traditional lab format. Regression analysis identified GPA, but not lab format, as the most significant predictor of success for students enrolled in lab courses. Qualitative results suggest that the bootcamp format may be a better way than traditional formats to teach microbiology lab. In summary, the results demonstrate that a bootcamp version of a face-to-face microbiology course is just as effective as the traditional semester-long version. This work has broader implications as it supports the bootcamp lab approach as a model in STEM education for increasing access and for overcoming a major barrier to online STEM programs: face-to-face delivery of key lab courses.

P669Frequency of venous thromboembolic risk evaluation and adequate in-hospital thromboprophylaxis administration

Introduction

The most common in-hospital complication is venous thromboembolism (VTE). High risk patients have an incidence of VTE as higher as 18.3%. Padua and Caprini Scores allow to identify the thromboembolic risk for each type of patients. Thromboprophylaxis administration reduces VTE risk, but as low as 16–33% of medical patients and 25–44% of surgical patients receive this intervention during hospitalization.

Purpose

This study aims to identify basal adherence to evidence-based recommendations for thromboprophylaxis in hospitalized patients (annual evaluation) and its variation following monthly thromboprophylaxis risk evaluation.

Methods

A prospective, descriptive and observational study that included data from annual VTE risk evaluation (Padua/Caprini scores) and thromboprophylaxis administration (from 2015 to july 2018) followed by monthly risk assessments and thromboprophylaxis administration (August to November/2018) in 2.140 medical/surgical hospitalized patients.

Results

A total of 1290 patients (54,15%) had high risk for VTE: 787medical patients (Padua Score) and 503 surgical patients (Caprini score) and therefore they required thromboprophylaxis administration. In total population, adequate thromboprophylaxis administration inceased from 55% (annual evaluation) to 81,4% (monthly evaluation). In medical patients, adequate thromboprophylaxis increased from 59% (Annual evaluation) to 81,3% (monthly evaluation). In surgical patients, adequate thromboprophylaxis increased from 49% during annual evaluation to 81.5% during monthly evaluation (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Correct thromboprophylaxis (2018)

Conclusions

Annual thromboprophylaxis risk evaluation and thromboprophylaxis administration can be improved in medical patients when performed on a monthly basis. This difference does not apply to surgical patients, where monthly evaluations and interventions remains stable. Besides that, more aggressive risk evaluation should be implemented in order to reach thromboprophylaxis administration rates higher than 90%, and this can be done with weekly or daily measurement and intervention.

Acknowledgement/Funding

None

High Prevalence of Cefotaxime Resistant Bacteria in Grazing Beef Cattle: A Cross Sectional Study

Although the over-use of antibiotics during food animal production is a potential driver of antimicrobial resistant microorganisms (ARMs), a high prevalence of cefotaxime resistant bacteria (CRB) has been observed in grazing animals raised without antibiotic supplementation. In this cross-sectional study, the prevalence and concentration of CRB in beef cattle on grazing farms were investigated. Fecal samples from the recto-anal junction of cattle (n = 840) and environmental samples (n = 258) were collected from 17 farms in North and Central Florida in the United States, and a survey of farm characteristics, animal husbandry practices, and antibiotic usage was conducted. CRB were detected in fecal samples from 47.4% of all cattle, with the prevalence ranging from 21.1 to 87.5% on farms, and significantly higher (P < 0.001) in calves compared to adult cows (54.1 vs. 41.8%). Environmental samples had a higher prevalence than fecal samples (P < 0.001), with CRB detected in 88.6% of water, 98.7% of soil, and 95.7% of forage samples. Compared to the concentration (log CFU/g) of CRB in fecal samples (2.95, 95% CI: 2.89, 3.02), the concentration of CRB was higher (P < 0.001) in soil and forage samples (5.37, 95% CI: 5.16, 5.57) and lower (P < 0.001) in water samples (1.08, 95% CI: 0.82, 1.36). Soil microbiota from farms with high prevalence of CRB clustered closer together and the proportion of Phylum Proteobacteria was higher on farms with high prevalence of CRB resistance. Large farming operations were associated with a 58% higher likelihood of CRB detection in fecal samples. Regular cleaning of drinking troughs and the addition of ionophores to feed were associated with CRB reduction in fecal samples. Taken together, the widespread of CRB into both cattle seldom treated with cephalosporin antibiotics and the surrounding environment suggests the environment is a natural source of antimicrobial resistance in beef cattle.

[Reversal of acenocoumarol anticoagulation with activated factor VII in massive hemorrhage following rupture of a splenic artery pseudoaneurysm]

A 66-year-old man with a metallic valve and under treatment with acenocoumarol developed hypovolemic shock after rupture of a splenic artery pseudoaneurysm. We managed to reverse anticoagulation within 60 minutes by administering 20 mg of vitamin K and 4.8 mg of activated recombinant factor VII. No thromboembolic adverse events were observed. We discuss the pharmacologic effects of coumarin derivatives and their antagonists, as well as the use of activated factor VII in the reversal of anticoagulation by these drugs.

Regional and temporal progression of reactive astrocytosis in the brain of the myelin mutant taiep rat

Reactive astrocytosis in taiep rats was shown by glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity measured by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and indirect immunofluorescence. Increased GFAP immunoreactivity was first observed in the brainstem of 15-day-old taiep rats and was widespread throughout all brain regions at 6 months of age. Characteristically, astrocytes were hypertrophic and displayed strong GFAP fluorescence. The pattern of these reactive cells may correlate with the process of dysmyelination in the taiep rat.

Perioperative management of glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. A review of the literature

Glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) deficiency is the most frequent cause of hemolytic anemias due to enzyme abnormality. Perioperative management must be careful to avoid the onset of hemolytic crisis. We present a complete review of the literature on this illness and describe the perioperative management of an adult with known G6PD deficiency and the pathogenesis and clinical manifestations of the disorder and its possible anesthetic implications are discussed. A 49-year-old patient had undergone varum osteotomy in her left knee due to genu valgum. She had been diagnosed as having G6PDH deficiency sixteen years earlier provoked by ingesting beans. The perioperative circumstances capable of causing autohemolysis are described and discussed. In spite of the fact that the pattern is self-limited, it provokes the onset of jaundice and anemia which can complicate the recovery. Simple elimination of those elements which precipitate with oxyhemoglobin will allow an uneventful anesthetic procedure.

Anaesthetic implications of Cornelia de Lange syndrome

Cornelia de Lange syndrome is a congenital disease characterized basically by psychomotor retardation associated with a series of malformations (mainly skeletal craniofacial deformities together with gastrointestinal and cardiac malformations). We present the case of a patient who underwent trauma surgery, discuss the anaesthetic problems involved and their relationship to the malformations that constitute this syndrome.

Pseudoaneurysm of the femoral artery following percutaneous puncture and cannulation for invasive monitoring

The risk of damage to the femoral artery after its cannulation is low; it coincides with a series of risk factors that include the use of relatively large-diameter introductor sheaths. We present a case in which pseudoaneurysm of the femoral artery developed after the introduction of a 16-gauge catheter (Abbocath, Abbott Laboratories, Chicago, Illinois, USA) into this vessel for the invasive monitoring of the arterial pressure in a patient who was admitted to the Postsurgical Intensive Care Unit during the postoperative course because of hemodynamic instability secondary to septic shock. We also discuss the prophylactic and therapeutic measures that can prevent or alleviate, respectively, that complication.

Anterior cervical myelopathy in the early postoperative period

PURPOSE

The onset of anterior cervical myelopathy in the early postoperative period is an unusual complication after cardiac surgery without extracorporeal circulation in which haemodynamic stability was maintained. We report a patient who developed anterior cervical myelopathy after cardiac surgery.

CLINICAL FEATURES

A 53-yr-old man with no serious associated medical problems underwent cardiac surgery without extracorporeal circulation to repair a ruptured left ventricle. Haemodynamic stability was maintained throughout the procedure but the patient developed flaccid paraparesis and dissociated sensory loss, three hours later. Early recognition of the clinical picture and prompt initiation of steroid treatment facilitated a successful outcome. The definitive diagnosis was based on magnetic resonance findings days after surgery.

CONCLUSION

The onset or aggravation of neurological symptoms in the postoperative period may be avoided by thorough search for medullary pathology in the patient's background and by using particular care when performing manoeuvres during the perioperative period, not only to ensure haemodynamic stability, thus preserving medullary perfusion, but also to avoid mechanical compression of a spinal segment.

[Postoperative cognitive dysfunction]

Although postoperative behavioral anomalies were first reported more than one hundred years ago, only in the past ten years has the profile for postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) been defined. POCD is reversible and it has been suggested that the disorder has implications for increased mortality and morbidity if it is not diagnosed and treated early. At present the clinical presentation of POCD is thought to be variable and fluctuating, ranging from slight disorientation to coma. POCD can develop soon after surgery or appear several days later and its incidence is unknown as a result of the methodological difficulties involved in studying this entity. Of the various etiological factors that have been named, many can be modified during the period surrounding surgery. Once symptoms have developed,whether in the recovery unit or later, it is important to eliminate organic factors and begin treating the cause. The most important drugs for treatment are neuroleptics and benzodiazepines. We review the definition, epidemiology, etiology, pathophysiology and treatment of POCD and include a list of diseases and drugs associated with its development, as well as a description of psychological tests used for diagnosis.

Rat brain glucose and energy metabolites: effect of +Gz (head-to-foot inertial load) exposure in a small animal centrifuge

A unique small animal centrifuge with on-line physiological monitoring and brain tissue collection (in < 1 s) capability was used to investigate the effect of increasing +Gz levels, exposure duration, number of exposures, and time course of metabolic changes in the rat brain. To determine the +Gz tolerance, rats were exposed to +7.5 to 25 Gz (30 s each) and EEG was monitored. G-induced loss of consciousness (G-LOC) defined as isoelectric EEG (I-EEG) occurred only at +22.5 and 25 Gz within 14.5 +/- 3 s. To study the effect of increasing +Gz levels on metabolism, rats were exposed to either 0.5 (control) or +7.5 to 25 Gz (30 s each), and brains were collected 1 min postcentrifugation by freeze fixation. A significant increase in lactate (> or = +7.5 Gz) and a decrease in glucose, creatine phosphate (Cr-P), and ATP levels were observed at +15 Gz and higher. The effect of exposure duration was investigated by exposing the rats to +22.5 Gz for 15-60 s. Brain lactate levels increased six-fold while glucose decreased (75%) following the 60-s exposure. The level of Cr-P and ATP decreased significantly after the 15- and 30-s exposures with no further changes at longer +Gz exposures. For time course studies, brains were collected both during (5-35 s) and after (1-15 min) a +25 Gz exposure. A significant decrease in Cr-P occurred within 5 s, but changes in glucose, ATP, and lactate required 15 s. All metabolites returned to control levels within 3 min, except lactate and adenosine, which required 15 min.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

EPR signal enhancement of alanine irradiated with thermal neutrons

A method to enhance the electron paramagnetic resonance signal amplitude response of alanine to thermal neutrons is presented. The method is based on the production of additional free radicals caused by alpha-particle and 7Li interactions on the alanine. These particles emerge from the neutron capture 10(5)B (n, alpha) 7(3)Li reaction. For this purpose, alanine and boric acid are intimately mixed. Mixture intimacy is critical for optimum enhancement. A way to achieve good mixture intimacy is suggested. A signal enhancement up to 2200% is obtained.

Use of alanine-silicone pellets for electron paramagnetic resonance gamma dosimetry

Silicone is proposed as an alternative binding substance in the production of D-L alanine pellets used in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) dosimetry of gamma rays. The dosimeters are manufactured at room temperature, making the production simple. Examination by EPR silicone-alanine pellets irradiated with 60Co gamma rays in the dose range 10 to 10(6) Gy shows that the proposed silicone binder does not affect typical alanine dose-response curves. Thermal stability of the pellets below 40 degrees C is good, but their pre-dose EPR signal amplitude is slightly higher than for nonirradiated alanine.

The paucity of breast-feeding in an urban clinic population

The lack of breast-feeding among mother-infant dyads utilizing public sector clinics in Los Angeles is presented in this brief study. Whereas the middle and educated classes have begun a resurgence of breast-feeding, this renaissance is missing among the poor. Awareness, health education (by peer advocates), early intervention and reassurance by all levels of health providers is suggested to prevent the dissolution of the lactation bond among the population least apt to breast-feed.