A Model for Setting Performance Objectives for Salmonella in the Broiler Supply Chain

A stochastic model for setting performance objectives for Salmonella in the broiler supply chain was developed. The goal of this study was to develop a model by which performance objectives for Salmonella prevalence at various points in the production chain can be determined, based on a preset final performance objective at the end of the processing line. The transmission of Salmonella through the broiler production chain was modeled. The prevalence at flock level was calculated from the measured prevalence at sample level. The transmission model is based on data on the occurrence of Salmonella collected in the Dutch broiler production chain during several years. The developed model can be used by policymakers and industry to determine economically and politically acceptable performance objectives for various points of the production chain and to draw conclusions about which interventions are most appropriate.     

The Development of Parenting Efficacy Among New Mothers and Fathers

Predictors of prenatal and postnatal parenting efficacy were examined in a sample of 115 primiparous mothers and 73 fathers in an effort to examine the association between preexisting parental characteristics and prenatal efficacy and the association between prenatal characteristics and postnatal efficacy when aspects of the current parenting context are taken into account. The most robust predictors of maternal postnatal efficacy included both prenatal efficacy, which significantly predicted postnatal efficacy independent of all other predictors including the current parenting context, and perceived infant temperamental reactivity as both a main effect and as buffered by social support. This was not the case for fathers, whose postnatal efficacy was primarily a function of their amount of involvement in parenting tasks and social support. The differential predictors of mother and father efficacy as well as their implications for future research are discussed.     

Improving the accuracy of migration age detail in multiple-area population forecasts

Population projections are often required for many geographical areas, and must be prepared with maximal computer and minimal analytical effort. At the same time, realistic age detail forecasts require a flexible means of treating age-specific net migration. This report presents a migration projection technique compatible with these constraints. A simplified version of Pittenger's model is used, where future migration patterns are automatically assigned from characteristics of historical patterns. A comparative test of age pattern accuracy for 1970–1980 indicates that this technique is superior to the commonly used plus-minus adjustment to historical rates.     

Clinical social work education in palliative and end-of-life care: relational approaches for advanced practitioners

This paper describes the first post-Master's program in the US in end-of-life care for social workers. Developed at the Smith College School for Social Work, this program used innovative relational methods in student recruitment, curricular design, supervision, and leadership development, based upon input from the faculty, students, and field supervisors. Collaborations emerged with funders, agencies, and programs nationally. The program was based on a pedagogical stance that clinical work with dying people requires the capacity to be fully present- in individual, group, and family work; in interdisciplinary meetings; and in advocating for quality and equity of care-while attending to diverse and at-risk populations. Students deepened their clinical skills and took leadership in the field of end-of-life care.     

Insight into Informant Discrepancies Regarding Psychosexual Functioning of Adolescents with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder

The private nature of psychosexual functioning leads adolescents and their parents to have different perspectives, which highlights studying parent–child informant discrepancies in this domain. We investigated informant discrepancy in psychosexual functioning, using the self‐report and parent report versions of the Teen Transition Inventory (TTI), of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; 136 parent–child dyads) compared to adolescents from the general population (GP; 70 parent–child dyads). Significantly larger informant discrepancies exist in ASD dyads than GP dyads in most domains of psychosexual functioning, except for Body image, Sexual behavior, and Confidence in the future. It is important to use and pay attention to both informants, as discrepancies are relevant for both research and clinical practice regarding psychosexual functioning.