Kathyrn Dalton’s presentation of her research surrounding substance use was selected as the top presentation during the 3rd annual Snappy Synopsis event held Monday at Memorial University’s school of pharmacy as part of Pharmacy Research Day.
Her presentation, One Size Does Not Fit All: Substance Use in Young Adults, was celebrated as part of the day that draws focus on advancements in health care collaboration, drug discovery and delivery, health outcomes, and teaching and learning research in pharmacy.
Her research will help determine the most effective treatment options for young adults, ages 18-25, with substance use disorders.
Dalton said the brain works on a reward system that is involved in identifying the things we enjoy. It is this system that identifies the things we use that lead to addictions.
“There is a part of the brain that isn’t fully developed until after the age of 25,” she said.
“After it is fully developed, we are more able to make informed decisions.”
Matthew Lamont’s presentation, Binge Drinking: A Risky Idea and Research Agrees, finished in second place.
Lamont’s study looked at subjects in various age categories and what constitutes binge drinking in adolescents and the cause of it.
This activity can lead to serious health issues, including potential issues with memory, balance and co-ordination and anxiety, even after a moderate period of adolescent binge drinking.
His research has shown that binge drinking cause additional proteins to form in the brain. Memory issues can occur due to this, in addition to anxiety issues and lack of inhibitions.
Full day of events
Activities throughout the day included a poster competition, a guest speaker and, for the third year, Snappy Synopsis — a speed round of graduate research, where students present their work in language that engages non-researchers and in five minutes or less.
Research being conducted by six graduate pharmacy students was outlined as part of the program, and those presenters and their topics included:
• One Size Does Not Fit All: Substance Use in Young Adults, Kathryn Dalton;
• Binge Drinking: A Risky Idea and Research Agrees, Matthew Lamont;
• “Cod” Guard Thee: How B12 and Codfish Prevents Stroke, Viet Tram Duong;
• Choice Architecture: Structuring Decisions to Support Patient Preferences, Jennifer Donnan;
• Musical Mental Health, Brittany Howell;
• Brain Blueberries: A Prescription for Neurogenerative Disease, Erin Kelly.
Snappy Synopsis allowed each contestant five minutes to show how their work will make a difference to people by using props, actors, slides or other tools they feel will help illustrate their point.
The presentations promote the diverse research in the school and aims to recruit new graduate students. The program has expanded by about 30 per cent in the last three years and the goal is to continue the event’s growth.
The judging panel determined how accurately the information was conveyed and how clearly the information is to non-researchers.
The school of pharmacy judges represent two of the three strategic research focus areas in the school, and included Kayla Collins, Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information; Dr. Laurie Twells, school of pharmacy researcher, health outcomes; and Dr. Lili Wang, school of pharmacy researcher, drug discovery and delivery, in addition to patients Kimberly Steel and Dorothy Senior.
The keynote address was given by Dr. Brendan Barrett, a professor in Memorial’s faculty of medicine, on the topic of An Evidence-based Approach to Appropriate Care.
