The Correlation Between Perceptions of Safety and Perceived Stress Among Residents of the Somerset Neighborhood of Kensington, Philadelphia

Background: The Somerset neighborhood of Kensington, Philadelphia is affected by economic, environmental, and social issues that come with disinvestment. The average median income for Somerset is $26,015 per year which is much lower than Philadelphia’s city-wide income of$36, 957. This study evaluated the connection between perceptions of safety and perceived stress among residents of the Somerset neighborhood. Methods: This study was a secondary data analysis from a cross-sectional study in the Somerset neighborhood. The data included self-reported surveys from Somerset residents that were completed at their homes. The surveys were completed using an electronic (tablet) format which took approximately 20 to 30 minutes to complete. Trained members of the neighborhood collected the data from July to December 2017. We used SPSS to quantify relationships between perceptions of safety and perceived stress using Spearman’s Rank Order Correlation for each of our 12 perceptions of safety variables and stress. Our final model was created using a multivariable linear regression model. Results: We had 328 adults with an average age of 48 years old in our study sample. We found that most of the residents were female, 35.3% were Latino, predominantly single, and mainly employed full-time. Additionally, over half of the residents owned their home and 16 years was the average amount of time lived in the neighborhood. We found that the average score on the stress scale was a 5.18 (range 0-16). In our final model, we found 4 variables to be statistically significant (α= .10) age, years lived in the community, police should spend more time working with community members and groups to solve problems, and members of my community are interested in crime prevention activities. Discussion: Overall, the mean stress levels were lower than we expected. We found associations between demographics and perceptions of safety variables specifically, as age increased, stress decreased and as the years lived in the community increased, stress increased. Our results also indicated as police spent more time working with community members and as crime prevention activities increased in the community, stress decreased. The strongest predictor of stress was the variable: “police should spend more time working with community members and groups to solve problems.” Collaborations between police officers and community members have the potential to improve health and may also help residents feel safer and less stressed in the neighborhood

Understanding Differences in Medical Versus Surgical Patients Alerted by the Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) at Jefferson Hospital

An Early Warning Score (EWS) is a risk-management tool to identify patients experiencing clinical deterioration early, therefore allowing timely treatment to occur. Although EWS scores are recommended for all in-patients, more data is available for patients under general medical services compared to surgical services. This study aims to understand differences between medical versus surgical in-patients who receive a red alert from the Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) at Jefferson hospital. Patients who received a red MEWS alert during admission and discharged between June 2017 to March 2018 (N=812) were categorized as medical or surgical patients. Patient characteristics were compared using an independent samples t-test (age, alert count) or chi-square test (sex, race, admission source, insurance). Patient outcomes were compared using a binary logistic regression (in-hospital mortality, RRT, sepsis diagnosis, ICU transfer, intubation, discharge to hospice) or a Cox regression model (length of stay), controlling for age, sex, and race. Compared to medical patients, surgical patients were younger by 2.7 years (p=0.026) and more likely to have a Commercial and/or Medicare category of insurance (OR=1.568, p=0.005). Surgical patients were more likely to have ICU transfer (OR=1.487, p=0.013) and intubation post-alert (OR=2.470, p=0.006), while less likely to be discharged early (HR=0.675,

The Association Between Opioid-Related Industry Payments and Opioid Prescribing at the Individual and Ecological Level in Pennsylvania

Objective: to understand how industry payments related to opioid products are associated with opioid prescribing in Pennsylvania. Methods: we merged the Open Payments data, Medicare Part D public use file, and Dartmouth Hospital Atlas of Health Care Hospital Service Areas from 2015 to analyze relationships between opioid related payments and opioid prescribing. We used a binomial regression model to investigate individual-level trends and a log-linear model to investigate Hospital Service Area-level trends. We mapped the distribution of opioid-related payments in Pennsylvania using GIS software. Results: One additional payment to a physician was associated with 4.2% higher opioid-prescribing rate (OR = 1.0418, 95% CI 1.0416-1.0420, Chi-Square(1) = 122678, p Conclusions: We found a positive association between opioid-related payments to physicians and opioid prescribing. Policy makers and administrators should consider revising rules related to pharmaceutical company marketing tactics and promote judicious opioid prescribing

The Progesterone Receptor - To Be or Not to Be: The Anti-inflammatory Effects of Progesterone in RAW 264.7 Cells

In addition to its reproductive role, progesterone (P4) also has anti-inflammatory effects. While the precise mechanisms have never been clearly elucidated in RAW 246.7 cells, it seems logical to assume that this response is a consequence of the activation of the progesterone receptor (P4-R). However, it has been shown that in a rat model this anti-inflammatory effect is independent of the progesterone receptor. In this project, the aim was to characterize this response by assaying nitric oxide production from lipopolysaccharide-challenged RAW cells. To determine the involvement of the P4-R, cells were incubated in the presence and absence of RU-486 – a potent P4-R antagonist. Our results indicate that the anti-inflammatory response of progesterone was through activation of the P4-R as cells incubated in the antagonist show a reversal of this inhibitory effect of P4 as was seen in cells incubated in the absence of this ligand

The Progesterone Receptor – To Be or Not to Be: The Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Progesterone in RAW 264.7 Cells

It has been widely established that, in addition to its role in reproduction, progesterone (P4) also has potent anti-inflammatory effects. While the precise mechanisms have never been clearly elucidated in RAW 246.7 cells, it seems logical to assume that this response is – at least in part - a consequence of activation of and signaling through the progesterone receptor (P4-R). However, it has recently been shown that in a rat model, this anti-inflammatory effect is – in fact - independent of the progesterone receptor. In this project, the aim was to characterize this response by assaying nitric oxide production from lipopolysaccharide-challenged RAW 264.7 cells and ascertain the involvement of the P4-R. To determine the contribution of the receptor, RAW cells were incubated in the presence and absence of RU-486 – a potent P4-R antagonist. Our results indicate that the anti-inflammatory response of progesterone was in fact through the activation of the P4-R as cells incubated in RU-486 show an approximate 60% reversal of the inhibitory effect of P4 as compared to cells incubated in the absence of the antagonist. However, because we did not observe a complete reversal, suggests that perhaps other receptors come into play which will be addressed in future studies

Driver Assessment and Training in the 1980s and 1990s: An Analysis of the Most Cited-Publications

This study analyzed the most-cited publications in the area of driverassessment and training. The citation counts were obtained from both the ScienceCitation and Social Science Citation databases, which at the time of the analysiscontained a total of over 27 million items. The search was restricted to items thatwere published during the 20-year period from 1980 through 1999. The focus ofthe search was on the assessment and training of driving-related skills. Inaddition to documenting the most influential publications, the results are alsopresented in terms of changes over time by topic and by publication outlets

Hierarchy Without a Head: Observations on Changes in the Social Organization of Some Afroamerican Religions in the United States, 1959-1999 With Special Reference to Santeria

Cet article s’intéresse à l’organisation sociale de la santeria et autres religions afro-américaines apparentées, présentes sur la côte Est des États-Unis. L’auteur identifie différents contextes et niveaux d’analyses, deux décennies d’enquête de terrain lui permettant d’avoir une vision de l’organisation sociale du mouvement tant aux niveaux local, régional, national et international que sur la durée. Il en ressort que la santeria se présente comme un réseau dont les ramifications débordent parfois ses propres limites et se confondent avec l’organisation d’autres groupes religieux. Très hiérarchisée au plan local, la santeria apparaît en revanche décentralisée et inclusive aux autres niveaux. Les données présentées ici permettent de comprendre pourquoi une telle structure est importante pour la constitution et la perpétuation de ce système religieux ; comment cette structure a évolué et s’est développée avec le temps. Elles nous permettent d’entrevoir aussi la direction des évolutions à venir, des évolutions sujettes à variations, elles-mêmes dépendant des changements susceptibles d’intervenir au sein des activités des mouvements frères.This paper is concerned with the social organization of Santeria, as well as some related Afro-American religions observed on the eastern coast of the United States. The author specifies several levels of context and analysis and, as the result of two decades of fieldwork, is able to provide a description of Santeria social organization at the local, regional, national, and international levels as well as over the course of time. The author finds that the social organization of Santeria is best understood as a reticulate network that overlaps at times with the social organizations of some other religious groups. Paradoxically, Santeria is strongly hierarchical at the local level, yet largely acephalous at higher more inclusive levels than the local. The data presented here indicate how and why such a structure is significant in the constitution and maintenance of this religious system; how the structure has changed and grown over time; and the direction in which it seems to be evolving, and evolution marked by variability, and differing rates of change and involvement in movement-like activities.Este artículo se interesa en la organización social de la santería yotras religiones afro-americanas emparentadas, presentes en la costa este de los Estados Unidos. El autor identifica diferentes contextos y niveles de análisis: dos décadas de trabajo de campo le permiten acceder a una visión de la organización social del movimiento, tanto en el nivel local, regional, nacional e internacional como en su duración en el tiempo. Surge de aquí la presentación de la santería como una red cuyas ramificaciones desbordan a veces sus propios límites, y se confunden con la organización de otros grupos religiosos. Muy jerarquizada en el plano local, la santería aparece en cambio descentralizada e inclusiva en los otros niveles. Los datos presentados aquí permiten comprender porqué una estructura similar es importante para la constitución y la perpetuación de este sistema religioso, y la manera en que esta estructura ha evolucionado y se ha desarrollado con el tiempo. Nos permiten también entrever la dirección de las evoluciones futuras, evoluciones sujetas a variaciones, ellas mismas dependientes de los cambios susceptibles de intervenir en el seno de las actividades de los movimientos hermanos

Pet Food Protector

food consumption while keeping each pet separate from the others. The device will detect a certain pet, using a transmitter and receiver that would be on the collar of the pet and in the device itself, and enable them to access their specific food by way of an opening and closing lid. If the pet leaves the area, the food is no longer accessible. The device will also track the amount of food consumed and regulate how much food should be consumed in a given amount of time. This will allow owners to feed their pets without worrying about overeating or a pet consuming the wrong food