Interference and resonant cavity effects explain enhanced transmission through subwavelength apertures in thin metal films.

Transmission through an opaque Au film with a single subwavelength aperture centered in a smooth cavity between linear grating structures is studied experimentally and with a finite element model. The model is in good agreement with measured results and is used to investigate local field behavior. It shows that a surface plasmon polariton (SPP) is launched along the metal surface, while interference of the SPP with the incident light along with resonant cavity effects give rise to suppression and enhancement in transmission. Based on experimental and modeling results, peak location and structure of the enhancement/suppression bands are explained analytically, confirming the primary role of SPPs in enhanced transmission through small apertures in opaque metal films.

Protecting patients' privacy. Health information networks raise new questions.

Privacy is established as both a value and a right in our society, and as healthcare moves to improve quality and efficiency through the development of health information networks, which allow the electronic exchange of financial and clinical information, there will be a growing awareness of the necessity to protect patient privacy and confidentiality in these environments. Dealing with these concerns will require that healthcare providers take steps to ensure the security of patient information through technological and physical measures, programs of orientation and education, and the careful development and implementation of clear policies and procedures.

Community health information networks. Threat or opportunity in the doctor-patient relationship?

The last half of the 20th Century has been witness to numerous changes in the delivery and financing of health care services. These changes have impacted the one-to-one doctor-patient relationship that may have existed in the past to become a complex of relationships. The contemporary physician collaborates with many other professionals to assist in the delivery, financing, and monitoring of health care services. These clinicians and other professionals require access to patient information to deliver care and secure payment. The patient understands this. Yet the patient has concerns about the widening circle of persons authorized to access his or her information. These concerns have been amplified by the development of community health information networks--(CHINs). This article focuses on CHINs, both patient concerns and the role physicians can take in developing them.

In the market for ethics. Marketing begins with values.

High-quality care and concern for the poor are among the core values that all Catholic healthcare facilities share. And marketing is a proven tool for extending those values. In times past, healthcare providers, including Catholic facilities, were concerned about whether healthcare marketing was ethical. Much of the concern focused on advertising and promotion. A number of ethical violations do appear in hospital advertising. But government and professional organizations have established guidelines for ethics in advertising. Hospitals should encourage their marketing professionals to personally adhere to these codes. To ensure marketing activities are conducted ethically, a hospital must clearly articulate its commitment to ethical marketing; ensure that marketing professionals adhere to this commitment; and monitor activity. These steps should extend to a hospital's strategic plan, particularly its mission statement. Although strategic planning has many critical elements, the heart of the plan and the process is the mission statement, the expression of an organization's distinctiveness. For a Catholic hospital, this distinctiveness is found in two tiers of value: the core Catholic values, as articulated by its religious sponsors, and the institution's specific values flowing from its history, location, and services. If a religious healthcare provider is really committed to its values, it will actively affirm them in its marketing.