Varicella zoster antibodies in healthcare workers from two neonatal units in São Paulo, Brazil - assessment of a staff varicella policy

Although frequently reported in the literature, a staff varicella policy is not standard in many hospitals even in developed countries. in the present study, we assessed varicella zoster immunity in staff from two neonatal units from hospitals in São Paulo, Brazil. Ninety-seven percent of all staff working in both units agreed to participate. A simple and cost-effective varicella policy was subsequently set up, based on costs and data from serology and a history of previous varicella infection. Our results confirm that a varicella vaccination programme can be implemented in a healthcare facility, even in developing countries. (C) 2003 the Hospital Infection Society. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Paediat, BR-04039032 São Paulo, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Hosp Infect Control Committee, BR-04039032 São Paulo, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Dept Paediat, BR-04039032 São Paulo, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Hosp Infect Control Committee, BR-04039032 São Paulo, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc

The Variable Response of Agricultural Supply to World Price Instability in Developing Countries

This paper analyses the effect of world price instability on the agricultural supply from developing countries and determines to what extent this effect is dependent upon the macroeconomic environment. Producers from agricultural commodity-exporting countries are particularly vulnerable to the fluctuations of world prices: they are widely exposed to price shocks and have little ability to cope with them. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of risk-coping strategies is conditioned by the influence of macroeconomic factors (infrastructure, inflation and financial deepening). Thus country-specific price indices are established, and the response of production indices to price instability indices is estimated by using a panel model including macroeconomic variables which interact with price instability. Such analysis is based on a sample of 25 countries between 1961 and 2002. The results highlight a significant negative effect of the world price instability on supply, and further show that high inflation, weak infrastructure and a poorly developed financial system exacerbate this effect. Copyright 2007 The Author. Journal compilation 2007 The Agricultural Economics Society.