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1.
Acad Psychiatry ; 48(1): 36-40, 2024 Feb.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37493958

RESUMO

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the online component of a blended curriculum for psychiatry residents on the use of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) to treat depression in older adults. METHODS: Second- and third-year general psychiatry residents completed a blended learning curriculum during their core geriatric psychiatry rotation. The curriculum consisted of didactic seminars, hands-on clinical management, and two online clinical cases focused on the management of late-life depression with ECT. Knowledge acquisition following module completion was measured using a nine-question multiple-choice test. The authors adapted the Medical E-Learning Evaluation Survey (MEES) to measure resident satisfaction, clinical relevance, and instructional design. RESULTS: A total of 37 residents completed both online modules. Of these, 35 residents completed the knowledge test and 23 completed the adapted MEES. Almost all participants (96%) agreed or strongly agreed that the modules were relevant to their clinical work, evidence-based, able to be completed in a reasonable amount of time, and a valuable learning experience. The average score on the knowledge test, after removing one outlier, was 83%. CONCLUSION: Psychiatry residents are very satisfied with the content and delivery of the online component of a blended curriculum for understanding the use of ECT for late-life depression. Future work should examine satisfaction with the remainder of the curricula as well as the impact on longer-term knowledge acquisition and patient care.


Assuntos
Eletroconvulsoterapia , Internato e Residência , Humanos , Idoso , Depressão/terapia , Currículo , Psiquiatria Geriátrica
2.
PLoS Med ; 18(9): e1003788, 2021 09.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34516565

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Social innovations in health are inclusive solutions to address the healthcare delivery gap that meet the needs of end users through a multi-stakeholder, community-engaged process. While social innovations for health have shown promise in closing the healthcare delivery gap, more research is needed to evaluate, scale up, and sustain social innovation. Research checklists can standardize and improve reporting of research findings, promote transparency, and increase replicability of study results and findings. METHODS AND FINDINGS: The research checklist was developed through a 3-step community-engaged process, including a global open call for ideas, a scoping review, and a 3-round modified Delphi process. The call for entries solicited checklists and related items and was open between November 27, 2019 and February 1, 2020. In addition to the open call submissions and scoping review findings, a 17-item Social Innovation For Health Research (SIFHR) Checklist was developed based on the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) Checklist. The checklist was then refined during 3 rounds of Delphi surveys conducted between May and June 2020. The resulting checklist will facilitate more complete and transparent reporting, increase end-user engagement, and help assess social innovation projects. A limitation of the open call was requiring internet access, which likely discouraged participation of some subgroups. CONCLUSIONS: The SIFHR Checklist will strengthen the reporting of social innovation for health research studies. More research is needed on social innovation for health.


Assuntos
Lista de Checagem , Pesquisa sobre Serviços de Saúde , Projetos de Pesquisa , Fatores Socioeconômicos , Técnica Delphi , Difusão de Inovações , Humanos , Determinantes Sociais da Saúde , Participação dos Interessados
3.
J Urol ; 205(4): 977-986, 2021 04.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33332152

RESUMO

PURPOSE: To characterize the global epidemiology of metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC), nonmetastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (nmCRPC) and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Additionally, to assess the prevalence of homologous recombination repair gene alterations (HRRm) and their prognostic impact in advanced disease setting. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic literature review of real-world evidence published from January 2009 through May 2019 was conducted to assess global epidemiology and clinical practice trends for mCSPC, nmCRPC, mCRPC and HRRm; 4,732 papers were systematically screened for inclusion. Ten conference proceedings from 2014 through 2019 were reviewed. RESULTS: Of the screened articles 22 relevant publications were identified for this paper. Six publications reported global epidemiology of advanced prostate cancer. The prevalence of nmCRPC was estimated as 1.1% to 12.3% of prostate cancer cases and for mCRPC 1.2% to 2.1% of prostate cancer cases. No mCSPC prevalence was captured. Sixteen publications investigated HRRm prevalence in advanced prostate cancer with the majority conducted in mCRPC assessed using next-generation sequencing of tissue and germline samples. In mCRPC, the highest prevalence HRRm in both germline (3.3%-6.0%) and somatic (5.0%-15.1%) was BRCA2. Five publications reported the prognostic impact of HRRm in advanced prostate cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Published real-world evidence quantifying the prevalence of advanced prostate cancer and HRRm beyond mCRPC is sparse. Published data on HRRm, specifically BRCA2, are consistent with published clinical trial data for poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitors in mCRPC. In mCRPC, real-world evidence suggests that patients with HRRm have different clinical outcomes to noncarriers. More data are needed to better understand real-world patient segmentation and clinical outcomes for biomarkers given increasing interest in profiling.


Assuntos
Biomarcadores Tumorais/genética , Neoplasias de Próstata Resistentes à Castração/epidemiologia , Neoplasias de Próstata Resistentes à Castração/genética , Reparo de DNA por Recombinação , DNA Tumoral Circulante/genética , Análise Mutacional de DNA , Progressão da Doença , Predisposição Genética para Doença , Mutação em Linhagem Germinativa , Humanos , Masculino , Metástase Neoplásica , Prevalência , Prognóstico , Antígeno Prostático Específico/sangue , Neoplasias de Próstata Resistentes à Castração/patologia
4.
Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol ; 55(7): 953-964, 2020 Jul.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32016512

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Individuals with severe mental health problems are at risk of social exclusion, which may complicate their recovery. Mental health and social care staff have, until now, had no valid or reliable way of assessing their clients' social inclusion. The Social Inclusion Questionnaire User Experience (SInQUE) was developed to address this. It assesses five domains: social integration; productivity; consumption; access to services; and political engagement, in the year prior to first psychiatric admission (T1) and the year prior to interview (T2) from which a total score at each time point can be calculated. AIMS: To establish the validity, reliability, and acceptability of the SInQUE in individuals with a broad range of psychiatric diagnoses receiving care from community mental health services and its utility for mental health staff. METHOD: Participants were 192 mental health service users with psychosis, personality disorder, or common mental disorder (e.g., depression, anxiety) who completed the SInQUE alongside other validated outcome measures. Test-retest reliability was assessed in a sub-sample of 30 participants and inter-rater reliability was assessed in 11 participants. SInQUE ratings of 28 participants were compared with those of a sibling with no experience of mental illness to account for shared socio-cultural factors. Acceptability and utility of the tool were assessed using completion rates and focus groups with staff. RESULTS: The SInQUE demonstrated acceptable convergent validity. The total score and the Social Integration domain score were strongly correlated with quality of life, both in the full sample and in the three diagnostic groups. Discriminant validity and test-retest reliability were established across all domains, although the test-retest reliability on scores for the Service Access and Political Engagement domains prior to first admission to hospital (T1) was lower than other domains. Inter-rater reliability was excellent for all domains at T1 and T2. CONCLUSIONS: The component of the SInQUE that assesses current social inclusion has good psychometric properties and can be recommended for use by mental health staff.


Assuntos
Serviços Comunitários de Saúde Mental/normas , Transtornos Mentais/psicologia , Pessoas Mentalmente Doentes/psicologia , Isolamento Social/psicologia , Inquéritos e Questionários/normas , Adolescente , Adulto , Feminino , Humanos , Masculino , Saúde Mental , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Psicometria , Qualidade de Vida/psicologia , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Adulto Jovem
5.
Matern Child Nutr ; 13(1)2017 01.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-27010760

RESUMO

To investigate the contributions of overall breastfeeding duration and exclusive breastfeeding in reducing the risk of hospitalisation for infectious causes, we analysed data from a three-stage survey on infant feeding practices and health outcomes in over 10 000 UK women in 2010-2011. The main outcome measures were risk of overnight hospital admission in the first 8-10 months of infancy. A graded beneficial effect was found between longer duration of any breastfeeding and hospital admission for infectious causes and for respiratory tract infections, with a significantly lower risk in infants breastfed for at least 3 months compared with those never breastfed. The effects were stronger in the subgroup who was also exclusively breastfed. For example, among infants breastfed for 3-6 months, the reduction in risk for infectious causes for those who were also exclusively breastfed for at least 6 weeks was 0.42 (95% CI: 0.22-0.81) and for those not exclusively breastfed for 6 weeks 0.79 (95% CI: 0.49-1.26). Likewise, among infants breastfed for 6 months or more, the odds ratio for those who were also exclusively breastfed for at least 6 weeks was 0.48 (95% CI: 0.32-0.72) and for those not exclusively breastfed for 6 weeks 0.72 (95% CI: 0.48-1.08). The apparent protective effect of any breastfeeding for a long duration may in part be driven by a prolonged period of exclusive breastfeeding. Exclusive breastfeeding in the initial weeks after childbirth and continuing to breastfeed (either exclusively or partially) for at least 3 months, preferably 6 months, may reduce morbidity due to infectious illness in infants.


Assuntos
Aleitamento Materno , Hospitalização , Adulto , Feminino , Gastroenterite/prevenção & controle , Humanos , Incidência , Lactente , Morbidade , Infecções Respiratórias/prevenção & controle , Fatores de Risco , Inquéritos e Questionários , Fatores de Tempo , Reino Unido/epidemiologia , Organização Mundial da Saúde , Adulto Jovem
6.
Public Health Nutr ; 19(6): 988-97, 2016 Apr.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-26156809

RESUMO

OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to measure the prevalence of different types of health and nutrition claims on foods and non-alcoholic beverages in a UK sample and to assess the nutritional quality of such products carrying health or nutrition claims. DESIGN: A survey of health and nutrition claims on food packaging using a newly defined taxonomy of claims and internationally agreed definitions of claim types. SETTING: A national UK food retailer: Tesco. SUBJECTS: Three hundred and eighty-two products randomly sampled from those available through the retailer's website. RESULTS: Of the products, 32 % (95 % CI 28, 37 %) carried either a health or nutrition claim; 15 % (95 % CI 11, 18 %) of products carried at least one health claim and 29 % (95 % CI 25, 34 %) carried at least one nutrition claim. When adjusted for product category, products carrying health claims tended to be lower in total fat and saturated fat than those that did not, but there was no significant difference in sugar or sodium levels. Products carrying health claims had slightly higher fibre levels than products without. Results were similar for comparisons between products that carry nutrition claims and those that do not. CONCLUSIONS: Health and nutrition claims appear frequently on food and beverage products in the UK. The nutrient profile of products carrying claims is marginally healthier than for similar products without claims, suggesting that claims may have some but limited informational value. The implication of these findings for guiding policy is unclear; future research should investigate the 'clinical relevance' of these differences in nutritional quality.


Assuntos
Rotulagem de Alimentos , Valor Nutritivo , Ácidos Graxos/análise , Análise de Alimentos , Embalagem de Alimentos , Sódio na Dieta/análise , Inquéritos e Questionários , Reino Unido
7.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-26061205

RESUMO

Water quality parameters affecting sodium silicate performance in partial lead service line replacements were examined using a fractional factorial experimental design and static pipe systems. An external copper wire was used to create a galvanic connection between a former lead service line and a new copper pipe. The pipe systems were filled with lab prepared water made to mimic real water quality. Water was changed on a three times per week basis. A 2(4-1) fractional factorial design was used to evaluate the impact of alkalinity (15 mg L(-1) or 250 mg L(-1) as CaCO3), nitrate (1 mg L(-1) or 7 mg L(-1) as N), natural organic matter (1 mg L(-1) or 7 mg L(-1) as dissolved organic carbon), and disinfectant type (1 mg L(-1) chlorine or 3 mg L(-1) monochloramine), resulting in eight treatment conditions. Fractional factorial analysis revealed that alkalinity, natural organic matter and monochloramine had a significant positive effect on galvanic current. Natural organic matter and monochloramine also had a significant positive effect with respect to both total and dissolved lead release. For the treatment conditions examined, 67-98% of the lead released through galvanic currents was stored as corrosion scales and predominantly comprised of particulate lead (96.1-99.9%) for all eight treatments. The use of monochloramine and the presence of natural organic matter (7 mg L(-1)) were not favourable for corrosion control in sodium silicate-treated partial lead service line replacements, although further studies would be required to characterize optimal water quality parameters for specific water quality types. For utilities operating with sodium silicate as a corrosion inhibitor, this work offers further evidence regarding the consideration of chlorine as a secondary disinfectant instead of monochloramine, as well as the value of controlling natural organic matter in distributed water.


Assuntos
Chumbo/análise , Silicatos/química , Poluentes Químicos da Água/análise , Purificação da Água/métodos , Abastecimento de Água , Corrosão , Chumbo/química , Ontário , Qualidade da Água
8.
Water Res ; 253: 121207, 2024 Apr 01.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38401469

RESUMO

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is an emerging, practical surveillance tool for monitoring community levels of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, SC2). However, a paucity of data exists regarding SARS-CoV-2 and viral biomarker behaviour in aqueous and wastewater environments. Therefore, there is a pressing need to develop efficient and robust methods that both improve method sensitivity and reduce time and cost. We present a novel method for SARS-CoV-2, Human Coronavirus 229E (229E), and Pepper Mild Mottle Virus (PMMoV) recovery utilizing surface charge-based attraction via the branched cationic polymer, polyethylenimine (PEI). Initially, dose-optimization experiments demonstrated that low concentrations of PEI (0.001% w/v) proved most effective at flocculating suspended viruses and viral material, including additional unbound SC2 viral fragments and/or RNA from raw wastewater. A design-of-experiments (DOE) approach was used to optimize virus and/or viral material aggregation behaviour and recovery across varying aqueous conditions, revealing pH as a major influence on recoverability in this system, combinatorially due to both a reduction in viral material surface charge and increased protonation of PEI-bound amine groups. Overall, this method has shown great promise in significantly improving quantitative viral recovery, providing a straightforward and effective augmentation to standard centrifugation techniques.


Assuntos
COVID-19 , RNA Viral , Humanos , SARS-CoV-2 , Polietilenoimina , Águas Residuárias
9.
Ochsner J ; 24(1): 62-66, 2024.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38510230

RESUMO

Background: Arrhythmogenic left ventricular cardiomyopathy is an increasingly recognized cause of recurrent myocarditis, a mimicker of acute coronary syndrome, and an important cause of malignant ventricular arrythmias and heart failure. Desmoplakin is a protein that is critical to maintaining the structural integrity of the myocardium. Disruption of desmoplakin leads to fibrofatty infiltration of the myocardium which leads to congestive heart failure, cardiac arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death. However, desmoplakin cardiomyopathy is often misdiagnosed, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. We report 2 contrasting cases illustrating the natural history-hot and cold phases-of arrhythmogenic left ventricular cardiomyopathy. Case Series: The first case demonstrates a common phenotypic presentation of desmoplakin cardiomyopathy manifested as recurrent myocarditis and myocardial injury representing the hot phase. The second case is an undulating course of chronic systolic heart failure and ventricular arrhythmias representing the cold phase. Conclusion: Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy manifests as a spectrum of disease processes that involve the right, left, or both ventricles. Mutations in the desmoplakin gene are often associated with a left dominant ventricular cardiomyopathy. Diagnosis remains difficult as the condition has no signature clinical presentation, and imaging findings are variable.

10.
BMJ Qual Saf ; 33(4): 223-231, 2024 Mar 25.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37734956

RESUMO

INTRODUCTION: The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) is a communication tool that improves teamwork and patient outcomes. SSC effectiveness is dependent on implementation fidelity. Administrative audits fail to capture most aspects of SSC implementation fidelity (ie, team communication and engagement). Existing research tools assess behaviours during checklist performance, but were not designed for routine quality assurance and improvement. We aimed to create a simple tool to assess SSC implementation fidelity, and to test its reliability using video simulations, and usability in clinical practice. METHODS: The Checklist Performance Observation for Improvement (CheckPOINT) tool underwent two rounds of face validity testing with surgical safety experts, clinicians and quality improvement specialists. Four categories were developed: checklist adherence, communication effectiveness, attitude and engagement. We created a 90 min training programme, and four trained raters independently scored 37 video simulations using the tool. We calculated intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) to assess inter-rater reliability (ICC>0.75 indicating excellent reliability). We then trained two observers, who tested the tool in the operating room. We interviewed the observers to determine tool usability. RESULTS: The CheckPOINT tool had excellent inter-rater reliability across SSC phases. The ICC was 0.83 (95% CI 0.67 to 0.98) for the sign-in, 0.77 (95% CI 0.63 to 0.92) for the time-out and 0.79 (95% CI 0.59 to 0.99) for the sign-out. During field testing, observers reported CheckPOINT was easy to use. In 98 operating room observations, the total median (IQR) score was 25 (23-28), checklist adherence was 7 (6-7), communication effectiveness was 6 (6-7), attitude was 6 (6-7) and engagement was 6 (5-7). CONCLUSIONS: CheckPOINT is a simple and reliable tool to assess SSC implementation fidelity and identify areas of focus for improvement efforts. Although CheckPOINT would benefit from further testing, it offers a low-resource alternative to existing research tools and captures elements of adherence and team behaviours.


Assuntos
Lista de Checagem , Salas Cirúrgicas , Humanos , Reprodutibilidade dos Testes , Comunicação , Segurança do Paciente
11.
Sci Data ; 11(1): 656, 2024 Jun 21.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38906875

RESUMO

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Province of Ontario, Canada, launched a wastewater surveillance program to monitor SARS-CoV-2, inspired by the early work and successful forecasts of COVID-19 waves in the city of Ottawa, Ontario. This manuscript presents a dataset from January 1, 2021, to March 31, 2023, with RT-qPCR results for SARS-CoV-2 genes and PMMoV from 107 sites across all 34 public health units in Ontario, covering 72% of the province's and 26.2% of Canada's population. Sampling occurred 2-7 times weekly, including geographical coordinates, serviced populations, physico-chemical water characteristics, and flowrates. In doing so, this manuscript ensures data availability and metadata preservation to support future research and epidemic preparedness through detailed analyses and modeling. The dataset has been crucial for public health in tracking disease locally, especially with the rise of the Omicron variant and the decline in clinical testing, highlighting wastewater-based surveillance's role in estimating disease incidence in Ontario.


Assuntos
COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 , Águas Residuárias , Ontário/epidemiologia , COVID-19/epidemiologia , Águas Residuárias/virologia , Humanos , Pandemias , Carga Viral
12.
Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act ; 10: 136, 2013 Dec 16.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-24341402

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: In line with WHO guidelines, the UK government currently recommends that school-aged children participate in at least 60 minutes, and up to several hours, of at least moderate physical activity on a daily basis. A recent health survey indicates that the amount of reported physical activity varies by age, gender and socioeconomic status. The objective of this study is to identify what types of activity contribute most towards overall physical activity in children who achieve the UK physical activity recommendations; and how this varies according to age, gender and socioeconomic status. METHODS: Self-reported physical activity was captured through the Health Survey for England 2008, a nationally representative, cross-sectional survey. We analysed data from 1,110 children aged 5-15 years who reported meeting the UK physical activity recommendations. The proportions of total physical activity achieved in various domains of activity were calculated and associations with age, gender and socioeconomic status were examined. RESULTS: Active play was the largest contributor to overall physical activity (boys = 48%, girls = 53%), followed by walking (boys = 17%, girls = 23%). Active school travel contributed only a small proportion (6% for boys and girls). With increasing age, the contribution from active play decreased (rho = -0.417; p < 0.001) and the contribution of walking (rho = 0.257; p < 0.001) and formal sport (rho = 0.219; p < 0.001) increased. At all ages, sport contributed more among boys than girls. Sport contributed proportionately less with increasing deprivation (rho = -0.191; p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The contributors to overall physical activity among active children varies with age, socioeconomic status and gender. This knowledge can be used to target interventions appropriately to increase physical activity in children at a population level.


Assuntos
Exercício Físico , Adolescente , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Estudos Transversais , Inglaterra , Feminino , Inquéritos Epidemiológicos , Humanos , Masculino , Instituições Acadêmicas , Fatores Socioeconômicos , Esportes , Caminhada
13.
Clin Med (Lond) ; 13(1): 50-6, 2013 Feb.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-23472496

RESUMO

The impact of cancer on healthcare is increasing. Therefore, it is key that all doctors receive oncology training. This study surveyed UK undergraduate medical schools to determine the extent of oncology training provided by their curricula. Data on foundation year (FY) and core medical training (CMT) programmes were obtained and analysed for the proportion of oncology posts. Of the responding medical schools, five (36%) had a defined period dedicated to oncology (mean 2 weeks). Four foundation schools were in London, with 10,094 FY posts in 1699 programmes. Of these, 1.5% of post and 8.7% of programmes were in oncology. For CMT offered by the London deanery specialty schools, 11% of CMT post and 48% of programmes included oncology. Oncology was included in 11% posts and 48% programmes offered by the London Deanery specialty schools. Our results show that < 50% of junior doctors receive dedicated undergraduate or postgraduate oncology training. An increase in oncology training is therefore urgently required.


Assuntos
Educação Médica/estatística & dados numéricos , Oncologia/educação , Neoplasias/epidemiologia , Especialização/tendências , Ensino/normas , Avaliação Educacional , Humanos , Neoplasias/prevenção & controle , Ensino/tendências , Reino Unido
14.
J Acoust Soc Am ; 134(4): 2739-47, 2013 Oct.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-24116412

RESUMO

This paper is an outcome of a workshop that addressed the question how soundscape research can improve its impact on the local level. It addresses a number of topics by complementing existing approaches and practices with possible future approaches and practices. The paper starts with an analysis of the role of sound annoyance and suboptimal soundscapes on the lives of individuals and concludes that a good soundscape, or more generally a good sensescape, is at the same time pleasant as well as conducive for the adoption of healthy habits. To maintain or improve sensescape quality, urban planning needs improved design tools that allow for a more holistic optimization and an active role of the local stakeholders. Associated with this is a gradual development from government to governance in which optimization of the soundscape at a local (administrative or geographic) level is directly influenced by the users of spaces. The paper concludes that soundscape research can have a greater impact by helping urban planners design for health and pleasant experiences as well as developing tools for improved citizen involvement in local optimization.


Assuntos
Acústica , Percepção Auditiva , Planejamento de Cidades/métodos , Planejamento Ambiental , Arquitetura de Instituições de Saúde/métodos , Humor Irritável , Ruído/efeitos adversos , Estimulação Acústica , Limiar Auditivo , Planejamento de Cidades/legislação & jurisprudência , Cognição , Planejamento Ambiental/legislação & jurisprudência , Arquitetura de Instituições de Saúde/legislação & jurisprudência , Hábitos , Humanos , Percepção Sonora , Ruído/prevenção & controle , Satisfação Pessoal , Saúde Pública , Qualidade de Vida , Saúde da População Urbana
15.
Ecology ; 104(4): e3998, 2023 04.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36799124

RESUMO

Janus is the Roman god of transitions. In many environments, state transitions are an important part of our understanding of ecological change. These transitions are controlled by the interactions between exogenous forcing factors and stabilizing endogenous feedbacks. Forcing factors and feedbacks are typically considered to consist of different processes. We argue that during extreme events, a process that usually forms part of a stabilizing feedback can behave as a forcing factor. And thus, like Janus, a single process can have two faces. The case explored here pertains to state change in drylands where interactions between wind erosion and vegetation form an important feedback that encourages grass-to-shrub state transitions. Wind concentrates soil resources in shrub-centered fertile islands, removes resources through loss of fines to favor deep-rooted shrubs, and abrades grasses' photosynthetic tissue, thus further favoring the shrub state that, in turn, experiences greater aeolian transport. This feedback is well documented but the potential of wind to act also as a forcing has yet to be examined. Extreme wind events have the potential to act like other drivers of state change, such as drought and grazing, to directly reduce grass cover. This study examines the responses of a grass-shrub community after two extreme wind events in 2019 caused severe deflation. We measured grass cover and root exposure due to deflation, in addition to shrub height, grass patch size, and grass greenness along 50-m transects across a wide range of grass cover. Root exposure was concentrated in the direction of erosive winds during the storms and sites with low grass cover were associated with increased root exposure and reduced greenness. We argue that differences between extreme, rare wind events and frequent, small wind events are significant enough to be differences in kind rather than differences in degree allowing extreme winds to behave as endogenous forcings and common winds to participate in an endogenous stabilizing feedback. Several types of state change in other ecological systems in are contextualized within this framework.


Assuntos
Ecossistema , Vento , Retroalimentação , Poaceae/fisiologia , Solo
16.
Emerg Nurse ; 20(5): 32-7, 2012 Sep.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-23256353

RESUMO

Many patients with minor burns present at emergency departments and urgent care centres, where their management is often undertaken by experienced nurses rather than experts in treating burns. This article describes a small study of the clinical decision making that underpins nurses' management of minor burns in these non-specialist settings. The results suggest that, due to a lack of relevant research, nurses base their decisions on previous experience or expert colleagues' opinions and advice rather than on the evidence.


Assuntos
Vesícula/terapia , Queimaduras/terapia , Enfermagem em Emergência/métodos , Doença Aguda , Assistência Ambulatorial/métodos , Instituições de Assistência Ambulatorial , Vesícula/etiologia , Queimaduras/complicações , Competência Clínica , Serviços Médicos de Emergência/métodos , Humanos , Entrevistas como Assunto , Encaminhamento e Consulta
17.
J Alzheimers Dis ; 86(4): 1643-1654, 2022.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35213374

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Many patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) miss out on the best standards of care and psychosocial support due to diagnostic delays or inaccuracies following symptom onset. OBJECTIVE: This study seeks to identify baseline characteristics in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) that correlate with eventual conversion to DLB or Alzheimer's disease (AD). METHODS: Baseline neuropsychological and neuropsychiatric data were analyzed in National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center participants who completed the Uniform Data Set between 2006 and 2020 and subsequently converted from MCI to DLB or AD (n = 1632). RESULTS: Only 6% of participants with MCI converted to DLB. Among those who converted to DLB, multidomain amnestic MCI (aMCI) was the most common subtype at study entry. As part of logistic regression analyses, odds ratios (ORs) were estimated for conversion to DLB versus AD based on study-entry characteristics, adjusting for age, sex, education, and years to diagnosis. The strongest predictors of conversion to DLB (p≤0.0001) were nonamnestic MCI versus aMCI (OR 8.2, CI [5.0, 14]), multidomain MCI versus single-domain MCI (OR 2.7, CI [1.7. 4.2]), male sex (OR 4.2, CI [2.5, 7.1]), and presence of nighttime behaviors (OR 4.4 CI [2.8, 6.9]). CONCLUSION: A diagnosis of prodromal DLB should be considered in individuals with MCI who present with prominent executive/visuospatial deficits, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and less memory impairment. Early diagnosis of DLB may guide treatment planning, including the avoidance of antipsychotic medications in patients who develop psychotic symptoms, caregiver support, and initiation of early treatment(s) once medications become available.


Assuntos
Doença de Alzheimer , Disfunção Cognitiva , Doença por Corpos de Lewy , Doença de Alzheimer/diagnóstico , Disfunção Cognitiva/diagnóstico , Disfunção Cognitiva/psicologia , Progressão da Doença , Humanos , Corpos de Lewy , Doença por Corpos de Lewy/diagnóstico , Doença por Corpos de Lewy/psicologia , Masculino
18.
Int J Soc Psychiatry ; 68(2): 420-428, 2022 Mar.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33730906

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Social inclusion is an important indicator of recovery in individuals with severe mental illness. The Social Inclusion Questionnaire User Experience (SInQUE) is a new measure of social inclusion for mental health service users which assesses five domains (consumption, production, access to services, social integration and civil engagement). It has good psychometric properties and is acceptable to service users and mental health professionals. It is not clear whether individuals with different diagnostic conditions experience a similar reduction in social inclusion. AIMS: (1) Investigate whether current social inclusion differs between diagnostic groups (people with schizophrenia/other psychotic disorders, common mental disorder or personality disorder); (2) Identify factors associated with lower social inclusion; (3) Examine associations between social inclusion and stigma, quality of life and loneliness. METHOD: Mental health service users with psychotic disorder, personality disorder or common mental disorder, living in the community, completed the SInQUE, alongside other validated outcome measures. Multiple regression investigated associations. RESULTS: About 192 service users (55% with psychotic disorder; 26% with common mental disorder; 19% with personality disorder). Current social inclusion did not vary according to diagnosis, except for the sub-domain of productivity, where individuals with personality disorder were more socially included than the other two groups. Lower social inclusion was associated with older age (p = .008), lack of higher education (p < .001), more previous admissions (p = .005), severity of current symptoms and greater experienced stigma (p = .006) and anticipated stigma (p = .035). Greater social inclusion was associated with better quality of life (p < .001) and less loneliness (p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Barriers to social inclusion in individuals with severe mental health problems include factors related to the illness, such as symptom severity and external factors, such as stigma and discrimination. Social inclusion is a recovery goal and should be routinely assessed. Increasing people's social inclusion benefits service users in terms of improved mental health, better quality of life and reduced loneliness.


Assuntos
Transtornos Mentais , Transtornos Psicóticos , Humanos , Transtornos Mentais/psicologia , Saúde Mental , Qualidade de Vida/psicologia , Isolamento Social/psicologia , Estigma Social
19.
Proc (Bayl Univ Med Cent) ; 35(6): 794-797, 2022.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36304604

RESUMO

Press Ganey patient engagement survey scores are used among health care facilities throughout the US to evaluate patients' perception of the quality of care provided. The relation of Press Ganey score to primary quality metrics has not been reported before; thus, we studied it in a cohort of Baylor Scott and White Health primary care physicians. Using simple linear regression, we evaluated Press Ganey scores and compared them with primary care quality metrics associated with improved patient outcomes, including cancer screening, depression screening, blood pressure, and glucose control, in addition to well-child visits. We found that overall quality had a very low linear correlation with Press Ganey survey items, and high-quality performance and increased number of practice years had an overall positive correlation with high survey ratings. We also found that social media presence or total website activity was not an important feature in predicting the top 25 quality performers within the health care system.

20.
RSC Adv ; 12(51): 33440-33448, 2022 Nov 15.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36425202

RESUMO

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the inaccessibility of quick and affordable clinical diagnostics. This led to increased interest in creating low-cost portable electrochemical (EC) devices for environmental monitoring and clinical diagnostics. One important perspective is to develop new fabrication methods for functional and low-cost electrode chips. Techniques, such as electron beam and photolithography, allow precise and high-resolution electrode fabrication; however, they are costly and can be time-consuming. More recently, fused deposition modeling three-dimensional (3-D) printing is being used as an alternative fabrication technique due to the low-cost of the printer and rapid prototyping capability. In this study, we explore enhancing the conductivity of 3-D printed working electrodes with EC gold deposition. Two commercial conductive filament brands were used and investigated to fabricate electrode chips. Furthermore, strategies to apply epoxy glue and conductive silver paint were investigated to control the electrode surface area and ensure good electrical connection. This device enables detection at drinking water concentration thresholds. The practical application of the fabricated electrodes is demonstrated by detecting Cu2+ using anodic stripping voltammetry.

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