Jamie E. Bloss

Many agricultural producers live and work in rural areas that have been left behind in broadband internet expansion. A lack of digital inclusion of agricultural communities can stymie agricultural producers’ participation in e-commerce and marketing, use of precision agriculture, and access to infor­mation. To better understand how farm owners and managers access the internet and their digital skills, we conducted a mixed-methods research project using focus groups (N = 4) with partici­pants (n = 26) living in four North Carolina (NC) counties in 2023. We used thematic analysis to qualitatively analyze the focus group data. To quan­titatively assess emerging themes, we then con­ducted a survey of farmers (n = 113) at a statewide farm show in NC in 2024. We calculated descrip­tive statistics for the survey data, including demographics (gender, race, crops or livestock pro­duced, acreage farmed) and experience with de­vices, social media, and troubleshooting. We identi­fied three overarching themes: (1) experiences with internet and digital technologies; (2) impacts of internet access and digital technology, including farmers’ reflections on the critical need for internet connectivity for farm operations and perceptions of negative consequences of not having adequate connectivity; and (3) sentiments toward internet, specifically farmers’ frustration with the current state of connectivity options and opinions on initi­atives to improve connectivity. Findings reveal an imperative for better digital inclusion of farms and agricultural communities across NC.

In most western countries, older adults depend on private cars for transportation and do not proactively plan for driving cessation. The objective of this review was to examine current research studies outlining effective interventions and strategies to assist older adults during their transition from driver to driving retirement or cessation. A search was completed across 9 databases using key words and MeSH terms for drivers, cessation of driving, and older adult drivers. Eligibility screening of 9,807 titles and abstracts, followed by a detailed screening of 206 papers, was completed using the Covidence platform. Twelve papers were selected for full-text screen and data extraction, comprising 3 papers with evidence-based intervention programs and 9 papers with evidence-informed strategies. Three papers met the research criteria of a controlled study for programs that support and facilitate driving cessation for older adults. Nine additional studies were exploratory or descriptive, which outlined strategies that could support older drivers, their families, and/or healthcare professionals during this transition. Driving retirement programs/toolkits are also presented. The driver retirement programs had promising results, but there were methodological weaknesses within the studies. Strategies extracted contributed to 6 themes: Reluctance and avoidance of the topic, multiple stakeholder involvement is important, taking proactive approach is critical, refocus the process away from assessment to proactive planning, collaborative approach to enable “ownership” of the decision is needed, and engage in planning alternative transportation should be the end result. Meeting the transportation needs of older adults will be essential to support aging in place, out-of-home mobility, and participation, particularly in developed countries where there is such a high dependency on private motor vehicles.

Introduction: The PRISMA guidelines were published in 2009 to address inadequate reporting of key methodological details in systematic reviews and meta-analyses (SRs/MAs). This study sought to assess the impact of PRISMA on the quality of reporting in the full text of dental medicine journals. Methods: This study assessed the impact of PRISMA (2009) on thirteen methodological details in SRs/MAs published in the highest-impact dental medicine journals between 1993–2009 (n = 211) and 2012–2018 (n = 618). The study further examined the rate of described use of PRISMA in the abstract or full text of included studies published post- PRISMA and the impact of described use of PRISMA on level of reporting. This study also examined potential effects of inclusion of PRISMA in Instructions for Authors, along with study team characteristics. Results: The number of items reported in SRs/MAs increased following the publication of PRISMA (pre-PRISMA: M = 7.83, SD = 3.267; post-PRISMA: M = 10.55, SD = 1.4). Post-PRISMA, authors rarely mention PRISMA in abstracts (8.9%) and describe the use of PRISMA in the full text in 59.87% of SRs/MAs. The described use of PRISMA within the full text indicates that its intent (guidance for reporting) is not well understood, with over a third of SRs/MAs (35.6%) describing PRISMA as guiding the conduct of the review. However, any described use of PRISMA was associated with improved reporting. Among author team characteristics examined, only author team size had a positive relationship with improved reporting. Conclusion: Following the 2009 publication of PRISMA, the level of reporting of key methodological details improved for systematic reviews/meta-analyses published in the highest-impact dental medicine journals. The positive relationship between reference to PRISMA in the full text and level of reporting provides further evidence of the impact of PRISMA on improving transparent reporting in dental medicine SRs/MAs.

Objective: Health sciences librarians frequently engage in scholarly publication, both with other librarians undertaking intradisciplinary scholarship, and increasingly as members of research teams centered in other disciplines. We sought to assess the emotional and institutional context of authorship among health sciences librarians, including emotions experienced during authorship negotiation, the frequency with which authorship is denied, and the correlation of perceived support from supervisors and the research community with the number of publications produced. Methods: 342 medical and health sciences librarians took an online survey of 47 questions regarding emotions experienced when asking for authorship, denial of authorship, if they have been given authorship without asking, and the extent to which they felt supported to conduct research in their current job. Results: Authorship negotiation creates varied and complex emotions among librarians. The emotions reported differed when negotiating authorship with librarian colleagues and when negotiating authorship with professionals in another field. Negative emotions were reported when asking either type of colleague for authorship. Respondents reported feeling mostly supported and encouraged by their supervisors, research communities, and workplaces. Nearly one quarter (24.4%) of respondents reported being denied authorship by colleagues outside of their departments. Perceived research appreciation and support by the research community is correlated with the total number of articles or publications produced by librarians. Conclusions: Authorship negotiation among health sciences librarians involves complex and frequently negative emotions. Denial of authorship is frequently reported. Institutional and professional support appear to be critical to publication among health sciences librarians.

Introduction: Female cancer patients subjected to pelvic radiation often present post-treatment with genitourinary symptoms. Anal cancer is more common in women, and the mainstays of treatment are radiation and chemotherapy. There is minimal focus in the current literature on the sexual pathophysiology that specifically affects female anal cancer patients as a result of radiation therapy. Assessing the data from existing female anal cancer studies may elucidate the impact of pelvic radiation on female sexual dysfunction (FSD). Objective: To evaluate the current literature on FSD in anal cancer patients who received pelvic radiation without surgical intervention. Methods: A search strategy with concept groups inclusive of female pelvic cancers, FSD, and radiation or radiotherapy was iteratively developed by two librarians, and peer reviewed by a third. We conducted a search of the databases MEDLINE via Pubmed, Embase, Scopus, CINAHL Complete, PsycINFO, and Cochrane CENTRAL. After deduplication, 5,142 citations were assessed by two independent screeners during the initial title and abstract screening. 4,488 were deemed to not fit the inclusion/exclusion criteria. Exclusion criteria included: animal studies, feasability studies, secondary research studies, populations that were entirely male or did not separate results by sex, who underwent surgical intervention, or consisted entirely of HIV/AIDS patients. Of the 654 items selected for full-text review we filtered for the word “anal” which resulted in 76 articles to screen at the full-text level. Results: Our search identified 76 papers of which 10 met inclusion criteria, 23 are not yet categorized. Of the included studies, 6 were cross sectional, 3 were prospective longitudinal, and 1 consisted of qualitative interviews. Studies were published from 1996-2021, with the majority (n=8) being published after 2013. While total population of anal cancer patients in each study was small, with 9 out of 10 study populations ≤100 subjects, females comprised the majority of patients without exception. The EORTC QLQ CR38/CR29 was employed in 3 studies while the remaining 7 relied on independent questionnaires or interviews, often utilizing CTCAE grading scale. These 7 studies focused on similar symptoms of FSD after radiotherapy. The most common were dyspareunia, impacting 0.037%-35% of patients (3 studies), vaginal/vulvar pain impacting 10-53% of patients (2 studies), vaginal dryness impacting 7-45% of patients (3 studies), and vaginitis impacting 17-33.3% of patients (3 studies). A major limitation to several studies was the proportion of women who were not sexually active after radiation therapy. Conclusions: Assessing the association between pelvic radiation and FSD in anal cancer patients is challenging due to the lack of detailed, validated sexual function questionnaire data, such as the FSFI. With few studies available on this topic and variability of FSD symptoms between the existing studies, additional research is required to more accurately predict adverse outcomes of anal cancer treatment related to FSD. Disclosure: Any of the authors act as a consultant, employee or shareholder of an industry for: GenesisCare

Background: Community health workers (CHWs) bridge the gap in health and social services delivery for marginalized communities, providing critical health information to those with limited access to health resources.Objectives: The purpose of our study was to understand CHWs' approaches to identifying salient and credible health information for migrant and seasonal farmworkers in rural North Carolina (NC).Methods: Two focus group discussions were held with CHWs in eastern NC and one in western NC in February 2020.Results: CHWs seek health information on chronic health conditions disproportionately experienced by farmworkers such as diabetes and high blood pressure. They search for information from existing resources in their possession, via the internet, and through consultation with health professionals. CHWs also verify the information and transform the content into resources that are accessible to farmworkers.Discussion: Our findings suggest that CHWs possess a strong set of information literacy skills that could be enhanced through additional training in crediting sources, creating new materials, and organization and storage.Conclusion: This study adds to the very limited body of knowledge about how CHWs seek and transmit information to their communities and sheds light on their information need and literacy abilities.

The following funding disclosure was left out of the manuscript during the submission and production process. The original manuscript has been updated to include this statement. Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number G08LM013198. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Background: Farmworker-serving community health workers have limited access to farmworker health research findings, training, and education resources. With funding from the National Library of Medicine, we are working to improve the health information literacy of both community health workers and farmworkers. We conducted focus group discussions with community health workers to explore their experiences providing health education and information to farmworkers, their information-seeking behaviors, and their technology and information needs. Data from the focus groups provided insights into the main areas in which community health workers would like to receive professional development. Case Presentation: Our team, which includes health sciences librarians, developed a resource list of educational materials for farmworker health, videos to increase community health workers’ skills finding health information online, and webinars to introduce these resources to community health workers. Videos, available in Spanish and English, included instruction on finding and evaluating online health information, accessing reputable online consumer health information sources, and advanced searching tips for Google and PubMed. Through three webinars, we introduced the resource list, videos, and design software for creating handouts and infographics to community health workers. Conclusions: Community health workers have a critical role in providing health education and information to farmworkers, and our efforts represent a first step in addressing community health workers’ limited access to professional development. Health sciences librarians are well positioned to partner with interdisciplinary teams working to reduce health disparities and provide resources and training to community health workers, farmworkers, and other underserved communities.