Special Issue Migration and Health

In an era of an increasingly diverse national population, researchers have had to turn to expanded models of public health promotion.  In 2009, the University of California established the UC Global Health Institute with three Centers of Expertise. The Center of Expertise on Migration and Health (COEMH) formed with the multidisciplinary mission of to better understand coupled migration and health issues. This special issue represents the work of four scholars who participated in the 2013 COEM..

Special Issue Migration and Health

In an era of an increasingly diverse national population, researchers have had to turn to expanded models of public health promotion.  In 2009, the University of California established the UC Global Health Institute with three Centers of Expertise. The Center of Expertise on Migration and Health (COEMH) formed with the multidisciplinary mission of to better understand coupled migration and health issues. This special issue represents the work of four scholars who participated in the 2013 COEM..

Mixed methods in land change research: towards integration

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/89580/1/j.1475-5661.2011.00482.x.pd

Analysis of tensile behavior of recycled aggregate concrete using acoustic emission technique

Recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) was processed from reinforced concrete edge beams sourced from a demolished bridge in Sweden. This material replaced different ratios of coarse aggregate in a benchmark concrete. The tensile behavior of the developed concrete mixes was characterized via monotonic and cyclic uniaxial tensile tests performed on notched cylinders. Such tensile tests allow for the quantification of the fracture energy and softening behavior of the concrete. Moreover, acoustic emission (AE) measurements were conducted in conjunction with the cyclic tests to characterize e.g. micro‐crack initiation and development, as well as crack localization. The tensile behavior of the various materials was found to be similar with minimal variation in the results. However, the softening behavior suggests that the RCA materials are slightly more brittle compared to both the mother and benchmark materials, which could be indicative of differences in the interface transition zones. The corresponding AE measurements also indicated similarities between the micro‐crack initiation and development for these mixes. It can be constituted that if the concrete used to produce RCA is of high quality and from one source, the resulting RAC will have adequate tensile properties with minimal variation, despite the aggregate replacement ratio

Healthcare Provider Utilization and Patient Outcomes: The Call for Enhanced Coordinated Care for Medicare Beneficiaries

Background: The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and other non-physician health care providers (dentists, optometrists, etc.) has steadily increased in the United States; however, the associated outcomes reported in the Medicare population is limited. Objective: To evaluate the utilization of different healthcare providers by Medicare beneficiaries and assess resultant patient outcomes. Methods: Fourteen outreach events targeting Medicare beneficiaries were conducted throughout Northern/Central California during the 2014 open enrollment period. Trained student pharmacists (working under licensed pharmacist supervision) provided beneficiaries with comprehensive medication therapy management (MTM) services. During each intervention, demographic, quality-of-life, health behavior, and health provider/service utilization data were collected. Results: Of 620 respondents, 525 (84%) and 84 (14%) reported using at least one non-physician healthcare professional or CAM provider, respectively. Beneficiaries who reported using non-physician healthcare providers were significantly (p\u3c0.05) more likely to indicate being ‘very confident’ in managing their chronic health conditions. The number of providers seen with prescriptive authority was correlated with the number of prescription medications taken (rs=0.342, p\u3c0.001). The total number of providers seen was correlated with the number of drug related issues identified (rs= 0.179, p\u3c0.001). Beneficiaries using acupuncturists were significantly (p\u3c0.05) less likely to report having chronic pain. Conclusion: Many beneficiaries have multiple chronic conditions and increasingly utilize a variety of healthcare professionals. As such, bridging the communication chasm between these professionals can improve humanistic outcomes and minimize medication related issues of Medicare beneficiaries. Coordinated care, a key strategy for improving healthcare delivery under the Affordable Care Act, is a step in the right direction

Trading and investing in volatility products

Since the banking crisis the market for volatility exchange-traded products has developed rapidly as it opens to clients beyond the large institutional investor pool. Speculation is driven by increasingly complex leveraged and inverse exposures including those that attempt to trade on significant roll costs in volatility futures curves. Longer-term investors use these products for the purposes of equity diversification, driven by fears of an ongoing Eurozone crisis. We survey the burgeoning academic literature in this area and present a comprehensive and up-to-date comparison of the market and statistical characteristics of European and US exchange-traded volatility products