867 research outputs found
Public Transportation Use and Cognitive Function in Older Age: A Quasiexperimental Evaluation of the Free Bus Pass Policy in the United Kingdom
In this quasiexperimental study, we examined whether the introduction of an age-friendly transportation policy- free bus passes for older adults-increased public transport use and in turn affected cognitive function among older people in England. Data came from 7 waves (2002-2014) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (n = 17,953), which measured total cognitive function, memory, executive function, and processing speed before and after the bus pass was introduced in 2006. The analytical strategy was an instrumental-variable approach with fixed effects, which made use of the age-eligibility criteria for free bus passes and addressed bias due to reverse causality, measurement error, and time-invariant confounding. Eligibility for the bus pass was associated with a 7% increase in public transport use. The increase in public transportation use was associated with a 0.346 (95% confidence interval: 0.017, 0.674) increase in the total cognitive function z score and with a 0.546 (95% confidence interval: 0.111, 0.982) increase in memory z score. Free bus passes were associated with an increase in public transport use and, in turn, benefits to cognitive function in older age. Public transport use might promote cognitive health through encouraging intellectually, socially, and physically active lifestyles. Transport policies could serve as public health tools to promote cognitive health in aging populations
From "retailers" to health care providers: Transforming the role of community pharmacists in chronic disease management
© 2015. Community pharmacists are the third largest healthcare professional group in the world after physicians and nurses. Despite their considerable training, community pharmacists are the only health professionals who are not primarily rewarded for delivering health care and hence are under-utilized as public health professionals. An emerging consensus among academics, professional organizations, and policymakers is that community pharmacists, who work outside of hospital settings, should adopt an expanded role in order to contribute to the safe, effective, and efficient use of drugs-particularly when caring for people with multiple chronic conditions. Community pharmacists could help to improve health by reducing drug-related adverse events and promoting better medication adherence, which in turn may help in reducing unnecessary provider visits, hospitalizations, and readmissions while strengthening integrated primary care delivery across the health system. This paper reviews recent strategies to expand the role of community pharmacists in Australia, Canada, England, the Netherlands, Scotland, and the United States. The developments achieved or under way in these countries carry lessons for policymakers world-wide, where progress thus far in expanding the role of community pharmacists has been more limited. Future policies should focus on effectively integrating community pharmacists into primary care; developing a shared vision for different levels of pharmacist services; and devising new incentive mechanisms for improving quality and outcomes
: The impact of war on the evolution of sleeping sickness in west-central Cote d'Ivoire
International audienceTo evaluate the situation of sleeping sickness in west-central Cote d'Ivoire from 2000 to 2003, in view of the war which broke out in September 2002. Active surveys by medical teams and passive case detection. Between 2000 and 2003, 250 patients were diagnosed with sleeping sickness. At first it appeared that sleeping sickness prevalence had fallen since the beginning of political troubles. But this apparent drop was due to poor population coverage. Participation in medical surveys differed according to ethnic group, reflecting land use conflicts between ethnic communities. Such conflicts are common in this area, but have been exacerbated by the war. In war, assessing the importance of sleeping sickness by medical surveys only is very difficult. But detection of sleeping sickness cases by passive surveillance increased.Evaluer la situation de la maladie du sommeil dans le centre-ouest de la Cote d'Ivoire de 2000 a 2003, en tenant compte des evenements survenus depuis en septembre 2002. Enquete active realisee par des equipes medicales et detection passive des cas. Entre 2000 et 2003, 250 patients ont ete diagnostiques pour la maladie du sommeil. De prime abord la prevalence de la maladie du sommeil semblait avoir baisse depuis le debut de la guerre. Mais cette baisse apparente etait due a une faible couverture de la population. La participation dans l'enquete medicale etait differente selon le groupe ethnique, refletant les conflits entre les differentes communautes pour les terres. De tels conflits sont courants dans la zone mais ont ete exacerbes par la guerre. L'evaluation de l'importance de la maladie du sommeil durant la guerre par enquete medicale seule est tres difficile. Mais la detection de la maladie du sommeil par surveillance passive a augmente
Towards understanding the presence/absence of human african trypanosomosis in a focus of CĂ´te d'Ivoire : a spatial anlysis of the pathogenic system
Crack tip fields in elastic-plastic and mixed mode I+II+III conditions, finite elements simulations and modeling
This paper is devoted to the analysis of the load path effect on I+II+III mixed mode fatigue crack propagation in a 316L stainless steel. Experiments were conducted in mode I+II and in mode I+II+III. The same maximum, minimum and mean values of the stress intensity factors were used for each loading path in the experiments. The main result of this set of experiments is that very different crack growth rates and crack paths are observed for load paths that are however considered as equivalent in most fatigue criteria. The experiments conducted in mode I+II and in mode I+II+III, also allowed to show that the addition of mode III loading steps to a mode I+II loading sequence is increasing the fatigue crack growth rate, even when the crack path is not significantly modified
Large Deformation Effects in the N = Z 44Ti Compound Nucleus
The N = Z 44Ti* nucleus has been populated in Fusion Evaporation process at
very high excitation energies and angular momenta using two entrance channels
with different mass-asymmetry. The deformation effects in the rapidly rotating
nuclei have been investigated through the energy distribution of the
alpha-particle combined to statistical-model calculations. In the case of
low-multiplicity events, the ratio between first particle emitted has been
measured and shows significant disagreement with the predictions of the
statistical-model. This may explain The large discrepancies observed in proton
energy spectra measured in previous experiments performed in the same mass
region.Comment: Proceeding of the 10th International Conference on Nuclear Reaction
Mechanisms, Varenna Italy, June 9-13 2003. 10 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl
Formation of Galaxy Clusters
In this review, we describe our current understanding of cluster formation:
from the general picture of collapse from initial density fluctuations in an
expanding Universe to detailed simulations of cluster formation including the
effects of galaxy formation. We outline both the areas in which highly accurate
predictions of theoretical models can be obtained and areas where predictions
are uncertain due to uncertain physics of galaxy formation and feedback. The
former includes the description of the structural properties of the dark matter
halos hosting cluster, their mass function and clustering properties. Their
study provides a foundation for cosmological applications of clusters and for
testing the fundamental assumptions of the standard model of structure
formation. The latter includes the description of the total gas and stellar
fractions, the thermodynamical and non-thermal processes in the intracluster
plasma. Their study serves as a testing ground for galaxy formation models and
plasma physics. In this context, we identify a suitable radial range where the
observed thermal properties of the intra-cluster plasma exhibit the most
regular behavior and thus can be used to define robust observational proxies
for the total cluster mass. We put particular emphasis on examining assumptions
and limitations of the widely used self-similar model of clusters. Finally, we
discuss the formation of clusters in non-standard cosmological models, such as
non-Gaussian models for the initial density field and models with modified
gravity, along with prospects for testing these alternative scenarios with
large cluster surveys in the near future.Comment: 66 pages, 17 figures, review to be published in 2012 Annual Reviews
of Astronomy & Astrophysic
Baited-boats : an innovative way to control riverine tsetse, vectors of sleeping sickness in West Africa
Background: Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) is an important neglected tropical disease caused by Trypanosoma spp. parasites transmitted by species of tsetse fly (Glossina spp). The most important vectors of HAT are riverine tsetse and these can be controlled by attracting them to stationary baits such as insecticide-impregnated traps or targets deployed along the banks of rivers. However, the geographical nature of some riverine habitats, particularly mangroves but also extensive lake and river networks, makes deployment of baits difficult and limits their efficacy. It is known that tsetse are attracted by the movement of their hosts. Our hypothesis was that mounting a target on canoes typically used in Africa ('pirogues') would produce an effective means of attracting-and-killing riverine tsetse in extensive wetland habitats. Methods: In Folonzo, southern Burkina Faso, studies were made of the numbers of tsetse attracted to a target (75 x 50 cm) of blue cloth and netting mounted on a pirogue moving along a river, versus the same target placed on the riverbank. The targets were covered with a sticky film which caught tsetse as they contacted the target. Results: The pirogue-mounted target caught twice as many G. tachinoides and G. p. gambiensis, and 8 times more G. morsitans submorsitans than the stationary one (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Pirogues are common vehicle for navigating the rivers, lakes and swamps of West Africa. The demonstration that tsetse can be attracted to targets mounted on such boats suggests that pirogues might provide a cost-effective and convenient platform for deploying targets to control tsetse in the mangrove systems of West Africa where HAT persists. Further studies to assess the impact of pirogue-mounted targets on tsetse populations in HAT foci and the protective value of targets for pirogue passengers are recommended
Deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr using beta-decay studies
A novel method of deducing the deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr is
presented. It is based on the comparison of the experimental Gamow-Teller
strength distribution B(GT) from its beta decay with the results of QRPA
calculations. This method confirms previous indications of the strong prolate
deformation of this nucleus in a totally independent way. The measurement has
been carried out with a large Total Absorption gamma Spectrometer, "Lucrecia",
newly installed at CERN-ISOLDE.Comment: Accepted in Phys. Rev. Letter
Oscillations above the barrier in the fusion of 28Si + 28Si
Fusion cross sections of 28Si + 28Si have been measured in a range above the
barrier with a very small energy step (DeltaElab = 0.5 MeV). Regular
oscillations have been observed, best evidenced in the first derivative of the
energy-weighted excitation function. For the first time, quite different
behaviors (the appearance of oscillations and the trend of sub-barrier cross
sections) have been reproduced within the same theoretical frame, i.e., the
coupled-channel model using the shallow M3Y+repulsion potential. The
calculations suggest that channel couplings play an important role in the
appearance of the oscillations, and that the simple relation between a peak in
the derivative of the energy-weighted cross section and the height of a
centrifugal barrier is lost, and so is the interpretation of the second
derivative of the excitation function as a barrier distribution for this
system, at energies above the Coulomb barrier.Comment: submitted to Physics Letters
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