Going Green in Ophthalmic Practice

The healthcare sector has had a relatively late implementation of environmental thinking in its setup. “Green electronic technologies and go green healthcare system” has recently evolved to address the biodegradability and biocompatibility issues faced by inorganic electronics and non-biodegradable materials. Green healthcare has the capability to promote global health both directly and indirectly. With the rise in environmental degradation, utilizing innovative ‘Go Green’ strategies in ophthalmology is of utmost importance. It has been structured to imbibe environmentalism into healthcare. In this chapter, we have emphasized a few simple patient point of care (POC) innovations in the field of ophthalmology that could transform the future of disease management toward a much more sustainable model by reducing resource and energy consumption. We have discussed how we innovated the novel coronicle (corona + cubicle) during the COVID-19 era, which housed all the essential ophthalmic gadgets and was interconnected using the local area network (LAN) for data access in patient care. Turning to patient counseling, we have highlighted how our innovative and cost-effective 3D augmented reality, and 4D holographic diagnostics and counseling platforms are effective in replacing the conventional paper-based system

Beyond the Cost of Price Adjustment: Investments in Pricing Capital

Abstract The literature on costs of price adjustment has long argued that changing prices is a complex and costly process. In fact, some authors have suggested that we should think of firms' price-setting activities as "producing" prices, similar to the way firms use production processes to produce goods and services. In this paper we explore one natural extension of this view, that besides observing costs of price adjustment, we should also expect to see firm-level investments in capital expenditures into these "pricing" production processes. We coin the term "pricing capital" for these investments, and suggest that they can improve the efficiency of the "pricing production" activities by both reducing the costs of adjusting prices, and improving the effectiveness of price adjustments in future periods. Using two types of data sources, we find compelling evidence of the existence as well as the importance of pricing capital in firms. The existence of firm-level "pricing capital" has the potential of fundamentally altering the way we think about pricing and price adjustment in many areas of economics. It suggests looking toward the "pricing capital" to decipher the likely degree and causes of price rigidity and its variation across price setters, markets, and industries. Moreover, "pricing capital" introduces a new, higher-level, pricing decision made by individual firms. Decisions to invest in pricing capital compete with traditional capital investment decisions that have long been studied in economics, such as capital investments in plant, equipment, and R&D. Furthermore, since pricing capital is a choice variable, it implies that costs of price adjustment often used in models of price rigidity are endogenous. As such, pricing capital offers new insights into the micro-foundations of the costs of price adjustment. The most provocative implication of the new theory of pricing, however, is that the allocative efficiency of the price system itself may be determined endogenously by individual price setters who choose whether and how much to invest in pricing capital.

Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis-like Granulomatous Lung Disease with Nontuberculous Mycobacteria from Exposure to Hot Water Aerosols

OBJECTIVE: Human activities associated with aerosol-generating hot water sources are increasingly popular. Recently, a hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP)-like granulomatous lung disease, with non-tuberculous mycobacteria from exposure to hot water aerosols from hot tubs/spas, showers, and indoor swimming pools, has been described in immunocompetent individuals (also called “hot tub lung”). Our objective in this study was to examine four additional cases of hot tub lung and compare these cases with others reported in the English print literature on this disease. DATA SOURCES AND EXTRACTION: We retrospectively reviewed all cases (n = 4) of presumptively diagnosed hot tub lung in immunocompetent individuals at the various physician practices in Springfield, Illinois, during 2001–2005. In addition, we searched MEDLINE for cases of hot tub lung described in the literature. DATA SYNTHESIS: We summarized the clinical presentation and investigations of four presumptive cases and reviewed previously reported cases of hot tub lung. CONCLUSIONS: There is a debate in the literature whether hot tub lung is an HP or a direct infection of the lung by nontuberculous mycobacteria. Primary prevention of this disease relies on ventilation and good use practices. Secondary prevention of this disease requires education of both the general public and clinicians to allow for the early diagnosis of this disease

IAP Display: A Simple Method to Identify Mouse Strain Specific IAP Insertions

Intracisternal A-type particle (IAP) elements are high copy number long terminal repeat (LTR) rodent retrotransposons. Some IAP elements can transpose, and are responsible for ~12% of spontaneous mouse mutations. Inbred mouse strains show variation in genomic IAP distribution, contributing to inter-strain genetic variability. Additionally IAP elements can influence the transcriptional regulation of neighbouring genes through their strong LTR promoter, effecting phenotypic variation. This genetic and phenotypic variability can translate into experimental variability between mouse strains. For example, it has been demonstrated that strain-specific genetic/epigenetic factors can interact to yield variable responses to drugs. Therefore, in experimental contexts it is essential to unequivocally identify mouse strains. Recently it was estimated that any two inbred strains share only ~40% of their IAP insertions. Of the remaining 60%, some insertions will be strain specific, fixed during inbreeding. These fixed insertions can be exploited as genetic markers to identify inbred strains, if they can be identified simply and efficiently. Here, we report the development of a PCR-based system allowing direct acquisition of strain-specific IAP insertions. In a pilot study, we identified 21 IAP loci, genotyped IAP insertions at 9 loci, and discovered two strain-specific insertions that could reliably identify these strains

The United States COVID-19 Forecast Hub dataset

Academic researchers, government agencies, industry groups, and individuals have produced forecasts at an unprecedented scale during the COVID-19 pandemic. To leverage these forecasts, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) partnered with an academic research lab at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to create the US COVID-19 Forecast Hub. Launched in April 2020, the Forecast Hub is a dataset with point and probabilistic forecasts of incident cases, incident hospitalizations, incident deaths, and cumulative deaths due to COVID-19 at county, state, and national, levels in the United States. Included forecasts represent a variety of modeling approaches, data sources, and assumptions regarding the spread of COVID-19. The goal of this dataset is to establish a standardized and comparable set of short-term forecasts from modeling teams. These data can be used to develop ensemble models, communicate forecasts to the public, create visualizations, compare models, and inform policies regarding COVID-19 mitigation. These open-source data are available via download from GitHub, through an online API, and through R packages

Global disparities in surgeons’ workloads, academic engagement and rest periods: the on-calL shIft fOr geNEral SurgeonS (LIONESS) study

: The workload of general surgeons is multifaceted, encompassing not only surgical procedures but also a myriad of other responsibilities. From April to May 2023, we conducted a CHERRIES-compliant internet-based survey analyzing clinical practice, academic engagement, and post-on-call rest. The questionnaire featured six sections with 35 questions. Statistical analysis used Chi-square tests, ANOVA, and logistic regression (SPSS® v. 28). The survey received a total of 1.046 responses (65.4%). Over 78.0% of responders came from Europe, 65.1% came from a general surgery unit; 92.8% of European and 87.5% of North American respondents were involved in research, compared to 71.7% in Africa. Europe led in publishing research studies (6.6 ± 8.6 yearly). Teaching involvement was high in North America (100%) and Africa (91.7%). Surgeons reported an average of 6.7 ± 4.9 on-call shifts per month, with European and North American surgeons experiencing 6.5 ± 4.9 and 7.8 ± 4.1 on-calls monthly, respectively. African surgeons had the highest on-call frequency (8.7 ± 6.1). Post-on-call, only 35.1% of respondents received a day off. Europeans were most likely (40%) to have a day off, while African surgeons were least likely (6.7%). On the adjusted multivariable analysis HDI (Human Development Index) (aOR 1.993) hospital capacity > 400 beds (aOR 2.423), working in a specialty surgery unit (aOR 2.087), and making the on-call in-house (aOR 5.446), significantly predicted the likelihood of having a day off after an on-call shift. Our study revealed critical insights into the disparities in workload, access to research, and professional opportunities for surgeons across different continents, underscored by the HDI