Just-In-Time/Just-In-Case Inventory Management as an Influence on Supply Chain Disruption in Medical Systems Based in the Southeastern United States During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The purpose of this quantitative study was to gain a deeper understanding on the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the global supply chain, particularly in the southeastern region of the United States. The study involved a population comprised of professionals employed in medical systems who possessed a working knowledge of supply chain management. The researcher distributed online surveys via an online survey platform to a list of medical systems professionals in both the public and private sectors. The sample size was 396 professionals, and the number of respondents was 201, once the prospective research participants were properly vetted. The data were analyzed using an array of statistical techniques, including Spearman’s rho technique and Pearson’s r. The dependent variable PPE and the corresponding independent variables were just-in-time and just-in-case inventory management approaches. The researcher conducted a power analysis to determine the strength of the association between the dependent variable PPE and the independent variables JIT and JIC, as well as the mediating variable COVID-19. The two-sided test was performed based on Fisher\u27s z-transformation, with a typical approximation inclusive of a bias adjustment. Recommendations for further research include developing an enhanced supply chain management system. Four points worth considering for further research include a) research participants; (b) geographic location; (c) selection of medical commodities; and (d) timing of the study

Simultanagnosia: When a Rose Is Not Red

Information regarding object identity (‘‘what’’) and spatial location (‘‘where/how to’’) is largely segregated in visual processing. Under most circumstances, however, object identity and location are linked. We report data from a simultanagnosic patient (K.E.) with bilateral posterior parietal infarcts who was unable to ‘‘see’’ more than one object in an array despite relatively preserved object processing and normal preattentive processing. K.E. also demonstrated a finding that has not, to our knowledge, been reported: He was unable to report more than one attribute of a single object. For example, he was unable to name the color of the ink in which words were written despite naming the word correctly. Several experiments demonstrated, however, that perceptual attributes that he was unable to report influenced his performance. We suggest that binding of object identity and location is a limited-capacity operation that is essential for conscious awareness for which the posterior parietal lobe is crucial

Increasing Distance Instruction Through Electronic Newsletters

This poster details the new outreach method we utilized to increase our bibliographic instruction sessions with the distributed Brandman campuses served by the Chapman Leatherby Libraries. The use of our new electronic newsletter increased the amount of bibliographic instruction sessions that we performed during the 2017-18 year

Dissociable Neural Systems for Timing: Evidence from Subjects with Basal Ganglia Lesions

Background: The neural basis of timing remains poorly understood. Although controversy persists, many lines of evidence, including studies in animals, functional imaging studies in humans and lesion studies in humans and animals suggest that the basal ganglia are important for temporal processing [1]. Methodology/Principal Findings: We report data from a wide range of timing tasks from two subjects with disabling neurologic deficits caused by bilateral lesions of the basal ganglia. Both subjects perform well on tasks assessing time estimation, reproduction and production tasks. Additionally, one subject performed normally on psychophysical tasks requiring the comparison of time intervals ranging from milliseconds to seconds; the second subject performed abnormally on the psychophysical task with a 300ms standard but did well with 600ms, 2000ms and 8000ms standards. Both subjects performed poorly on an isochronous rhythm production task on which they are required to maintain rhythmic tapping. Conclusions/Significance: As studies of subjects with brain lesions permit strong inferences regarding the necessity of brain structures, these data demonstrate that the basal ganglia are not crucial for many sub- or supra-second timing operations in humans but are needed for the timing procedures that underlie the production of movements. This dissociation suggests that distinct and dissociable processes may be employed to measure time intervals. Inconsistencies in findings regarding the neural basis of timing may reflect the availability of multiple temporal processing routines that are flexibly implemente

Power in Voxel-based Lesion–Symptom Mapping

Lesion analysis in brain-injured populations complements what can be learned from functional neuroimaging. Voxelbased approaches to mapping lesion–behavior correlations in brain-injured populations are increasingly popular, and have the potential to leverage image analysis methods drawn from functional magnetic resonance imaging. However, power is a major concern for these studies, and is likely to vary regionally due to the distribution of lesion locations. Here, we outline general considerations for voxel-based methods, characterize the use of a nonparametric permutation test adapted from functional neuroimaging, and present methods for regional power analysis in lesion studies

Temporal Discrimination of Sub- and Suprasecond Time Intervals: A Voxel-Based Lesion Mapping Analysis

We used voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) to determine which brain areas are necessary for discriminating time intervals above and below 1 s. VLSM compares behavioral scores of patients that have damage to a given voxel to those that do not on a voxel-by-voxel basis to determine which voxels are critical for the given behavior. Forty-seven subjects with unilateral hemispheric lesions performed a temporal discrimination task in which a standard stimulus was compared on each trial to a test stimulus. In different blocks of trials, standard stimuli were either 600 or 2000 ms. Behavioral measures included the point of subjective equality, a measure of accuracy, and the coefficient of variation, a measure of variability. Lesions of the right middle and inferior frontal gyri were associated with decrements in performance on both durations. In addition, lesions of the left temporal lobe and right precentral gyrus were associated exclusively with impaired performance for subsecond stimuli. In line with results from other studies, these data suggest that different circuits are necessary for timing intervals in these ranges, and that right frontal areas are particularly important to timing

Fast Forward: Supramarginal Gyrus Stimulation Alters Time Measurement

The neural basis of temporal processing is unclear. We addressed this important issue by performing two experiments in which repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) was administered in different sessions to the left or right supramarginal gyrus (SMG) or vertex; in both tasks, two visual stimuli were presented serially and subjects were asked to judge if the second stimulus was longer than the first (standard) stimulus. rTMS was presented on 50% of trials. Consistent with a previous literature demonstrating the effect of auditory clicks on temporal judgment, rTMS was associated with a tendency to perceive the paired visual stimulus as longer in all conditions. Crucially, rTMS to the right SMG was associated with a significantly greater subjective prolongation of the associated visual stimulus in both experiments. These findings demonstrate that the right SMG is an important element of the neural system underlying temporal processing and, as discussed, have implications for neural and cognitive models of temporal perception and attention

The effects of graded motor imagery and its components on chronic pain: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This is the post-print version of the final paper published in The Journal of Pain. The published article is available from the link below. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. Copyright @ 2013 The American Pain Society.Graded motor imagery (GMI) is becoming increasingly used in the treatment of chronic pain conditions. The objective of this systematic review was to synthesize all evidence concerning the effects of GMI and its constituent components on chronic pain. Systematic searches were conducted in 10 electronic databases. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of GMI, left/right judgment training, motor imagery, and mirror therapy used as a treatment for chronic pain were included. Methodological quality was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. Six RCTs met our inclusion criteria, and the methodological quality was generally low. No effect was seen for left/right judgment training, and conflicting results were found for motor imagery used as stand-alone techniques, but positive effects were observed for both mirror therapy and GMI. A meta-analysis of GMI versus usual physiotherapy care favored GMI in reducing pain (2 studies, n = 63; effect size, 1.06 [95% confidence interval, .41, 1.71]; heterogeneity, I2 = 15%). Our results suggest that GMI and mirror therapy alone may be effective, although this conclusion is based on limited evidence. Further rigorous studies are needed to investigate the effects of GMI and its components on a wider chronic pain population.NHMR

Improved Proper Name Recall in Aging after Electrical Stimulation of the Anterior Temporal Lobes

Evidence from neuroimaging and neuropsychology suggests that portions of the anterior temporal lobes (ATLs) play a critical role in proper name retrieval. We previously found that anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the ATLs improved retrieval of proper names in young adults (Ross et al., 2010). Here we extend that finding to older adults who tend to experience greater proper-naming deficits than young adults. The task was to look at pictures of famous faces or landmarks and verbally recall the associated proper name. Our results show a numerical improvement in face naming after left or right ATL stimulation, but a statistically significant effect only after left-lateralized stimulation. The magnitude of the enhancing effect was similar in older and younger adults but the lateralization of the effect differed depending on age. The implications of these findings for the use of tDCS as tool for rehabilitation of age-related loss of name recall are discussed