Quality assurance and quality improvement using supportive supervision in a large-scale STI intervention with sex workers, men who have sex with men/transgenders and injecting-drug users in India

Background: Documentation of the long-term impact of supportive supervision using a monitoring tool in STI intervention with sex workers, men who have sex with men and injection-drug users is limited. The authors report methods and results of continued quality monitoring in a large-scale STI services provided as a part of a broader HIV-prevention package in six Indian states under Avahan, the India AIDS Initiative. Methodology: Guidelines and standards for STI services, and a supportive supervisory tool to monitor the quality were developed for providing technical support to STI component of large-scale HIV-prevention intervention through 372 project-supported STI clinics. The tool contained 80 questions to track the quality of STI services provided on a five-point scoring scale in five performance areas: coverage, quality of clinic and services, referral networks, community involvement and technical support. Results: The tool was applied to different STI clinics during supportive supervision visits conducted once in every 3 months to assess quality, give immediate feedback and develop a quality score. A total of 292 clinics managed by seven lead implementing partners in six Indian states were covered in 15 quarters over 45 months. Overall quality indicators for the five performance areas showed a three- to sevenfold improvement over the period. Conclusion: It was possible to improve quality over the long-term in STI interventions for sex workers, men who have sex with men and injection-drug users using an interactive and comprehensive supportive supervision tool which gives on-the-spot feedback. However, such an effort is time-consuming and resource-intensive, and needs a structured approach

Transient Stability Test Systems for Direct Stability Methods

A standard set of power system data with benchmark results are presented against which direct stability techniques to assess transient stability can be compared and tested. The test systems have been selected to display a wide range of dynamic characteristics to provide a robust test of the efficacy and accuracy of the various analytical techniques to analyze transient stability. Transient stability test system data and benchmark results obtained from two commercially available time-domain stability analysis packages are presente

Transient Stability Test Systems for Direct Stability Methods

A standard set of power system data with benchmark results are presented against which direct stability techniques to assess transient stability can be compared and tested. The test systems have been selected to display a wide range of dynamic characteristics to provide a robust test of the efficacy and accuracy of the various analytical techniques to analyze transient stability. Transient stability test system data and benchmark results obtained from two commercially available time-domain stability analysis packages are presente

Carbon-Centered Free Radicals in Particulate Matter Emissions from Wood and Coal Combustion

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy was used to measure the free radicals in the particulate matter (PM) emissions from wood and coal combustion. The intensity of radicals in PM dropped linearly within two months of sample storage and stabilized after that. This factor of storage time was adjusted when comparing radical intensities among different PM samples. An inverse relationship between coal rank and free radical intensities in PM emissions was observed, which was in contrast with the pattern of radical intensities in the source coals. The strong correlation between intensities of free radical and elemental carbon in PM emissions suggests that the radical species may be carbon-centered. The increased g-factors, 2.0029−2.0039, over that of purely carbon-centered radicals may indicate the presence of vicinal oxygen heteroatom. The redox and biology activities of these carbon-centered radicals are worthy of evaluation

Effects of non-health-targeted policies on migrant health: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Government policies can strongly influence migrants' health. Using a Health in All Policies approach, we systematically reviewed evidence on the impact of public policies outside of the health-care system on migrant health. Methods: We searched the PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases from Jan 1, 2000, to Sept 1, 2017, for quantitative studies comparing the health effects of non-health-targeted public policies on migrants with those on a relevant comparison population. We searched for articles written in English, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, French, Spanish, or Portuguese. Qualitative studies and grey literature were excluded. We evaluated policy effects by migration stage (entry, integration, and exit) and by health outcome using narrative synthesis (all included studies) and random-effects meta-analysis (all studies whose results were amenable to statistical pooling). We summarised meta-analysis outcomes as standardised mean difference (SMD, 95% CI) or odds ratio (OR, 95% CI). To assess certainty, we created tables containing a summary of the findings according to the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation. Our study was registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42017076104. Findings: We identified 43 243 potentially eligible records. 46 articles were narratively synthesised and 19 contributed to the meta-analysis. All studies were published in high-income countries and examined policies of entry (nine articles) and integration (37 articles). Restrictive entry policies (eg, temporary visa status, detention) were associated with poor mental health (SMD 0·44, 95% CI 0·13–0·75; I2=92·1%). In the integration phase, restrictive policies in general, and specifically regarding welfare eligibility and documentation requirements, were found to increase odds of poor self-rated health (OR 1·67, 95% CI 1·35–1·98; I2=82·0%) and mortality (1·38, 1·10–1·65; I2=98·9%). Restricted eligibility for welfare support decreased the odds of general health-care service use (0·92, 0·85–0·98; I2=0·0%), but did not reduce public health insurance coverage (0·89, 0·71–1·07; I2=99·4%), nor markedly affect proportions of people without health insurance (1·06, 0·90–1·21; I2=54·9%). Interpretation: Restrictive entry and integration policies are linked to poor migrant health outcomes in high-income countries. Efforts to improve the health of migrants would benefit from adopting a Health in All Policies perspective

Differences in all-cause hospitalisation by ethnic group: a data linkage cohort study of 4.62 million people in Scotland, 2001–2013

Background: Immigration into Europe has raised contrasting concerns about increased pressure on health services and equitable provision of healthcare to immigrants /ethnic minorities. We assessed hospital use by ethnic group in Scotland. Methods: We anonymously linked Scotland?s Census 2001 records for 4.62 million people, including their ethnic group, to National Health Service general hospitalisation records for 2001-2013. We used Poisson regression to calculate hospitalisation rate ratios (RRs) in 14 ethnic groups, presented as percentages of the White Scottish reference group (RR=100), for males and females separately. We adjusted for age and socio-economic status and compared those born in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland (UK/RoI) with elsewhere. We calculated mean lengths of hospital stay. Results: 9,789,975 hospital admissions were analysed. Compared to the White Scottish, unadjusted RRs for both males and females in most groups were about 50-90, e.g. Chinese males 49 (95% CI 45-53) and Indian females 76 (71-81). The exceptions were White Irish males, 120 (117-124) and females 115 (112-119) and Caribbean females, 103 (85-126). Adjusting for age increased the RRs for most groups towards or above the reference. Socio-economic status had little effect. In many groups, those born outside the UK/RoI had lower admission rates. Unadjusted mean lengths of stay were substantially lower in most ethnic minorities. Conclusions: Use of hospital beds in Scotland by most ethnic minorities was lower than by the White Scottish majority, largely explained by their younger average age. Other countries should use similar methods to assess their own experiences

Morbidity and mortality in homeless individuals, prisoners, sex workers, and individuals with substance use disorders in high-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Inclusion health focuses on people in extremely poor health due to poverty, marginalisation, and multimorbidity. We aimed to review morbidity and mortality data on four overlapping populations who experience considerable social exclusion: homeless populations, individuals with substance use disorders, sex workers, and imprisoned individuals. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for studies published between Jan 1, 2005, and Oct 1, 2015. We included only systematic reviews, meta-analyses, interventional studies, and observational studies that had morbidity and mortality outcomes, were published in English, from high-income countries, and were done in populations with a history of homelessness, imprisonment, sex work, or substance use disorder (excluding cannabis and alcohol use). Studies with only perinatal outcomes and studies of individuals with a specific health condition or those recruited from intensive care or high dependency hospital units were excluded. We screened studies using systematic review software and extracted data from published reports. Primary outcomes were measures of morbidity (prevalence or incidence) and mortality (standardised mortality ratios [SMRs] and mortality rates). Summary estimates were calculated using a random effects model. FINDINGS: Our search identified 7946 articles, of which 337 studies were included for analysis. All-cause standardised mortality ratios were significantly increased in 91 (99%) of 92 extracted datapoints and were 11·86 (95% CI 10·42-13·30; I2=94·1%) in female individuals and 7·88 (7·03-8·74; I2=99·1%) in men. Summary SMR estimates for the International Classification of Diseases disease categories with two or more included datapoints were highest for deaths due to injury, poisoning, and other external causes, in both men (7·89; 95% CI 6·40-9·37; I2=98·1%) and women (18·72; 13·73-23·71; I2=91·5%). Disease prevalence was consistently raised across the following categories: infections (eg, highest reported was 90% for hepatitis C, 67 [65%] of 103 individuals for hepatitis B, and 133 [51%] of 263 individuals for latent tuberculosis infection), mental health (eg, highest reported was 9 [4%] of 227 individuals for schizophrenia), cardiovascular conditions (eg, highest reported was 32 [13%] of 247 individuals for coronary heart disease), and respiratory conditions (eg, highest reported was 9 [26%] of 35 individuals for asthma). INTERPRETATION: Our study shows that homeless populations, individuals with substance use disorders, sex workers, and imprisoned individuals experience extreme health inequities across a wide range of health conditions, with the relative effect of exclusion being greater in female individuals than male individuals. The high heterogeneity between studies should be explored further using improved data collection in population subgroups. The extreme health inequity identified demands intensive cross-sectoral policy and service action to prevent exclusion and improve health outcomes in individuals who are already marginalised. FUNDING: Wellcome Trust, National Institute for Health Research, NHS England, NHS Research Scotland Scottish Senior Clinical Fellowship, Medical Research Council, Chief Scientist Office, and the Central and North West London NHS Trust