Factorial validation of the patient assessment of chronic illness care (PACIC) and PACIC short version (PACIC-S) among cardiovascular disease patients in the Netherlands

Objective: The Chronic Care Model (CCM) has achieved widespread acceptance and reflects the core elements of patient-centred care in chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases (CVD). In the Netherlands the extent to which CVD patients receive care congruent with the CCM is unknown. The main objectives of this study were to validate the 20-item Patient Assessment of Chronic Illness Care (PACIC) and the 11-item (PACIC-S) in the Netherlands among

The Employment Act of 1946 and Inflation

There are factors in an economy which tend to be inflationary at or near full employment. When the Employment Act of 1946 was enacted, there was concern that if the government would undertake to provide conditions conducive to high level employment, severe inflation would result. The purpose of this thesis has been to determine whether or not an increasing degree of inflation has accompanied the economic policies of the government aimed at maintaining high level employment. In order to provide a background for the problem, one chapter is devoted to the Employment Act of 1946-- the forerunners of the act; the history, goals, and provisions of the act; and the philosophies of the Presidents Councils. Another chapter which is devoted to the problems of inflation and full employment includes a consideration of why full employment tends to be inflationary, why inflationary trends are likely to continue, anti-inflationary forces in the economy, the problem of cost-push inflation, how various groups are affected by inflation, and the case against continued inflation. Finally, although economics is not an exact science and the contributions of the Employment Act of 1946 toward stability of prices with high level employment goals cannot be measured exactly, there are indications that the Employment Act has made very real contributions to stability. The Employment Act is a stated policy of the responsibility of the government to promote economic stability and growth. As a result of this statement of policy, there has been increasing confidence among businessmen, who manage their business affairs in such a manner as to promote stability. The Employment Act of 1946 has provided the means for coordinated, effective government action in economic matters. While there has been an overall upward trend in prices since 1900, the record indicates that the rate of increase in the price level has been getting progressively smaller throughout the years, including the years following the enactment of the Employment Act of 1946

Short and long term improvements in quality of chronic care delivery predict program sustainability

Empirical evidence on sustainability of programs that improve the quality of care delivery over time is lacking. Therefore, this study aims to identify the predictive role of short and long term improvements in quality of chronic care delivery on program sustainability. In this longitudinal study, professionals [2010 (T0): n ¼ 218, 55% response rate; 2011 (T1): n ¼ 300, 68% response rate; 2012 (T2): n ¼ 265, 63% response rate] from 22 Dutch disease-management programs completed surveys assessing quality of care and program sustainability. Our study findings indicated that quality of chronic care delivery improved significantly in the first 2 years after implementation of th

So, so, Rock-a-by, so!

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P20. The Intersection of Medical Assistance in Dying and Social Work Practice

In June 2016, Parliament amended the Criminal Code to create exemptions from the offences of culpable homicide, aiding suicide, and administering a noxious thing, in order to permit medical practitioners and nurse practitioners to provide medical assistance in dying (“MAiD”). The amendment permits social workers to assist in the process. However, the role of the social worker in this context remains unclear and has left many professional social workers uncertain as to how their practice may be affected by the new MAiD law. The objectives of this research are to identify the role of social workers within the context of MAiD services and to clarify professional boundaries and responsibilities when practicing within MAiD. A liability assessment will be conducted once the professional responsibilities of social workers are identified. A doctrinal research methodology will be used to understand the eligibility requirements and safeguards of the MAiD legislation and assess how this interacts with the professional responsibilities of registered social workers. Front line social workers will need guidance and support on developing and following best practices while working within the MAiD context. They will also require advice on the possible liability arising from practicing within the context of MAiD. The intersection between law and social work practice cannot be minimized. Healthcare institutions and community healthcare programs are currently developing ways to facilitate MAiD. This research will assist administrators and direct service providers in understanding the role of the social worker as well as the potential liability arising from practicing within this context

Sparrows\u27 Twitter : The Trill

https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mmb-ps/1219/thumbnail.jp

Solutions to the Chinese Postman Problem

Considering the Chinese Postman Problem, in which a mailman must deliver mail to houses in a neighborhood. The mailman must cover each side of the street that has houses, at least once. The focus of this paper is our attempt to discover the optimal path, or the least number of times each street is walked. The integration of algorithms from graph theory and operations research form the method used to explain solutions to the Chinese Postman Problem

Differences in the association of subjective wellbeing measures with health, socioeconomic status, and social conditions among residents of an eastern cape township

Objective: The use of variably self-reported measures of wellbeing may produce differing outcomes. This study examined the differences in association with health, socioeconomic status, and social conditions (marital status, social capital) of two widely used cognitive subjective wellbeing measurements: Cantril’s ladder and Diener’s five-item Satisfaction with Life Scale.Methods: A stratified sampling design was used to collect data from representative households in the 20 neighborhoods of Rhini, a deprived suburb of Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Correlation and stepwise multiple regression analyses investigated differences in the associations between wellbeing and health, demographics, socioeconomic status, and social conditions determined by the three measurements. Results: We found that the multiple-item satisfaction with life scale elicited more discriminating responses that took into account a broader range of life domains. This scale reported more significant relationships between subjective wellbeing and health, socioeconomic status, and social conditions. Cantril’s ladder produced a narrower range of career-like comparisons. The direction of association between measures of wellbeing and socioeconomic characteristics never changes according to the measures used.Conclusions: Policy-makers, researchers, and practitioners using these instruments should be aware of the differences between single- and multiple-item wellbeing measures, and recognize that the choice of instrument will affect the life domains found to be associated with wellbeing

High-quality chronic care delivery improves experiences of chronically ill patients receiving care

__Abstract__ Objective. Investigate whether high-quality chronic care delivery improved the experiences of patients. Design. This study had a longitudinal design. Setting and Participants. We surveyed professionals and patients in 17 disease management programs targeting patients with cardiovascular diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure, stroke, comorbidity and eatin

Structural and magneto-transport characterization of Co_2Cr_xFe_(1-x)Al Heusler alloy films

We investigate the structure and magneto-transport properties of thin films of the Co_2Cr_xFe_(1-x)Al full-Heusler compound, which is predicted to be a half-metal by first-principles theoretical calculations. Thin films are deposited by magnetron sputtering at room temperature on various substrates in order to tune the growth from polycrystalline on thermally oxidized Si substrates to highly textured and even epitaxial on MgO(001) substrates, respectively. Our Heusler films are magnetically very soft and ferromagnetic with Curie temperatures up to 630 K. The total magnetic moment is reduced compared to the theoretical bulk value, but still comparable to values reported for films grown at elevated temperature. Polycrystalline Heusler films combined with MgO barriers are incorporated into magnetic tunnel junctions and yield 37% magnetoresistance at room temperature