1,855 research outputs found
The morphology and exine ornamentation of fresh pollen from four dipterocarp species in Sabah
Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Scientists must act on our own warnings to humanity
We face interconnected planetary emergencies threatening our climate and ecosystems. Charlie J. Gardner and Claire F. R. Wordley argue that scientists should join civil disobedience movements to fight these unprecedented crises
The foot-health of people with diabetes in regional and rural Australia:Baseline results from an observational cohort study
Background: There is limited Australian epidemiological research that reports on the foot-health characteristics ofpeople with diabetes, especially within rural and regional settings. The objective of this study was to explore theassociations between demographic, socio-economic and diabetes-related variables with diabetes-related footmorbidity in people residing in regional and rural Australia.Methods: Adults with diabetes were recruited from non-metropolitan Australian publicly-funded podiatry services. Theprimary variable of interest was the University of Texas diabetic foot risk classification designated to each participant atbaseline. Independent risk factors for diabetes-related foot morbidity were identified using multivariable analysis.Results: Eight-hundred and ninety-nine participants enrolled, 443 (49.3%) in Tasmania and 456 (50.7%) in Victoria.Mean age was 67 years (SD 12.7), 9.2% had type 1 diabetes, 506 (56.3%) were male, 498 (55.4%) had diabetes for longerthan 10 years and 550 (61.2%) either did not know the ideal HbA1c target or reported that it was â„7.0. A majority hadperipheral neuropathy or worse foot morbidity (61.0%). Foot morbidity was associated with male sex (OR 2.42, 95% CI1.82â3.22), duration of diabetes > 20 years (OR 3.25, 95% CI 2.22â4.75), and Tasmanian residence (OR 3.38, 95% CI 2.35â4.86).Conclusions: A high proportion of the regional Australian clinical population with diabetes seen by the publiclyfunded podiatric services in this study were at high risk of future limb threatening foot morbidity, and participantsresiding in Northern Tasmania are more likely to have worse diabetes-related foot morbidity than those from regionalVictoria. Service models should be reviewed to ensure that diabetes-related foot services are appropriately developedand resourced to deliver interdisciplinary evidence-based care
Large-scale inference and graph theoretical analysis of gene-regulatory networks in B. stubtilis
We present the methods and results of a two-stage modeling process that
generates candidate gene-regulatory networks of the bacterium B. subtilis from
experimentally obtained, yet mathematically underdetermined microchip array
data. By employing a computational, linear correlative procedure to generate
these networks, and by analyzing the networks from a graph theoretical
perspective, we are able to verify the biological viability of our inferred
networks, and we demonstrate that our networks' graph theoretical properties
are remarkably similar to those of other biological systems. In addition, by
comparing our inferred networks to those of a previous, noisier implementation
of the linear inference process [17], we are able to identify trends in graph
theoretical behavior that occur both in our networks as well as in their
perturbed counterparts. These commonalities in behavior at multiple levels of
complexity allow us to ascertain the level of complexity to which our process
is robust to noise.Comment: 22 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Physica A (2006
Personal Portable Computers and the Curriculum
First paragraph: Portable computers are, to all intents and purposes, smaller versions of the common âdesktop' machine. Depending on their configuration, they can be as powerful as desktop machines but they have one major additional attribute. Instead of taking the work to the computer, the lightness and design of portables enables them to be carried to the place of work - to the school desk, to the library, on the field trip... Portable computers, therefore, hold out the promise of putting convenient and personalised computing power not just in pupils' hands but in teachers' hands too
The effects of interoperable information technology networks on patient safety: a realist synthesis
Background
Interoperable networks connect information technology systems of different organisations, allowing professionals in one organisation to access patient data held in another one. Health policy-makers in many countries believe that they will improve the co-ordination of services and, hence, the quality of services and patient safety. To the best of our knowledge, there have not been any previous systematic reviews of the effects of these networks on patient safety.
Objectives
The aim of the study was to establish how, why and in what circumstances interoperable information technology networks improved patient safety, failed to do so or increased safety risks. The objectives of the study were to (1) identify programme theories and prioritise theories to review; (2) search systematically for evidence to test the theories; (3) undertake quality appraisal, and use included texts to support, refine or reject programme theories; (4) synthesise the findings; and (5) disseminate the findings to a range of audiences.
Design
Realist synthesis, including consultation with stakeholders in nominal groups and semistructured interviews.
Settings and participants
Following a stakeholder prioritisation process, several domains were reviewed: older people living at home requiring co-ordinated care, at-risk children living at home and medicines reconciliation services for any patients living at home. The effects of networks on services in health economies were also investigated.
Intervention
An interoperable network that linked at least two organisations, including a maximum of one hospital, in a city or region.
Outcomes
Increase, reduction or no change in patientsâ risks, such as a change in the risk of taking an inappropriate medication.
Results
We did not find any detailed accounts of the ways in which interoperable networks are intended to work and improve patient safety. Theory fragments were identified and used to develop programme and mid-range theories. There is good evidence that there are problems with the co-ordination of services in each of the domains studied. The implicit hypothesis about interoperable networks is that they help to solve co-ordination problems, but evidence across the domains showed that professionals found interoperable networks difficult to use. There is insufficient evidence about the effectiveness of interoperable networks to allow us to establish how and why they affect patient safety.
Limitations
The lack of evidence about patient-specific measures of effectiveness meant that we were not able to determine âwhat worksâ, nor any variations in what works, when interoperable networks are deployed and used by health and social care professionals.
Conclusions
There is a dearth of evidence about the effects of interoperable networks on patient safety. It is not clear if the networks are associated with safer treatment and care, have no effects or increase clinical risks.
Future work
Possible future research includes primary studies of the effectiveness of interoperable networks, of economies of scope and scale and, more generally, on the value of information infrastructures.
Study registration
This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42017073004.
Funding
This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 8, No. 40. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information
The effects of interoperable information technology networks on patient safety: a realist synthesis
Background
Interoperable networks connect information technology systems of different organisations, allowing professionals in one organisation to access patient data held in another one. Health policy-makers in many countries believe that they will improve the co-ordination of services and, hence, the quality of services and patient safety. To the best of our knowledge, there have not been any previous systematic reviews of the effects of these networks on patient safety.
Objectives
The aim of the study was to establish how, why and in what circumstances interoperable information technology networks improved patient safety, failed to do so or increased safety risks. The objectives of the study were to (1) identify programme theories and prioritise theories to review; (2) search systematically for evidence to test the theories; (3) undertake quality appraisal, and use included texts to support, refine or reject programme theories; (4) synthesise the findings; and (5) disseminate the findings to a range of audiences.
Design
Realist synthesis, including consultation with stakeholders in nominal groups and semistructured interviews.
Settings and participants
Following a stakeholder prioritisation process, several domains were reviewed: older people living at home requiring co-ordinated care, at-risk children living at home and medicines reconciliation services for any patients living at home. The effects of networks on services in health economies were also investigated.
Intervention
An interoperable network that linked at least two organisations, including a maximum of one hospital, in a city or region.
Outcomes
Increase, reduction or no change in patientsâ risks, such as a change in the risk of taking an inappropriate medication.
Results
We did not find any detailed accounts of the ways in which interoperable networks are intended to work and improve patient safety. Theory fragments were identified and used to develop programme and mid-range theories. There is good evidence that there are problems with the co-ordination of services in each of the domains studied. The implicit hypothesis about interoperable networks is that they help to solve co-ordination problems, but evidence across the domains showed that professionals found interoperable networks difficult to use. There is insufficient evidence about the effectiveness of interoperable networks to allow us to establish how and why they affect patient safety.
Limitations
The lack of evidence about patient-specific measures of effectiveness meant that we were not able to determine âwhat worksâ, nor any variations in what works, when interoperable networks are deployed and used by health and social care professionals.
Conclusions
There is a dearth of evidence about the effects of interoperable networks on patient safety. It is not clear if the networks are associated with safer treatment and care, have no effects or increase clinical risks.
Future work
Possible future research includes primary studies of the effectiveness of interoperable networks, of economies of scope and scale and, more generally, on the value of information infrastructures.
Study registration
This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42017073004.
Funding
This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Services and Delivery Research programme and will be published in full in Health Services and Delivery Research; Vol. 8, No. 40. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information
Working together to increase Australian childrenâs liking of vegetables: A position statement by the vegetable intake strategic alliance (VISA)
Children need to be repeatedly and consistently exposed to a variety of vegetables from an early age to achieve an increase in vegetable intake. A focus on enjoyment and learning to like eating vegetables at an early age is critical to forming favourable lifelong eating habits. Coordinated work is needed to ensure vegetables are available and promoted in a range of settings, using evidence-based initiatives, to create an environment that will support childrenâs acceptance of vegetables. This will help to facilitate increased intake, and ultimately realise the associated health benefits. The challenges and evidence base for a new approach are described
The Small Separation A-Star Companion Population: First Results with CHARA/MIRC-X
We present preliminary results from our long-baseline interferometry (LBI)
survey to constrain the multiplicity properties of intermediate-mass A-type
stars within 80pc. Previous multiplicity studies of nearby stars exhibit
orbital separation distributions well-fitted with a log-normal with peaks >
15au, increasing with primary mass. The A-star multiplicity survey of De Rosa
et al. (2014), sensitive beyond 30au but incomplete below 100 au, found a
log-normal peak around 390au. Radial velocity surveys of slowly-rotating,
chemically peculiar Am stars identified a significant number of very close
companions with periods 5 days, ~ 0.1au, a result similar to surveys of
O- and B-type primaries. With the improved performance of LBI techniques, we
can probe these close separations for normal A-type stars where other surveys
are incomplete. Our initial sample consists of 27 A-type primaries with
estimated masses between 1.44-2.49M and ages 10-790Myr, which we
observed with the MIRC-X instrument at the CHARA Array. We use the open source
software CANDID to detect five companions, three of which are new, and derive a
companion frequency of 0.19 over mass ratios 0.25-1.0 and
projected separations 0.288-5.481 au. We find a probability of 10 that
our results are consistent with extrapolations based on previous models of the
A-star companion population, over mass ratios and separations sampled. Our
results show the need to explore these very close separations to inform our
understanding of stellar formation and evolution processes.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal on Nov. 2,
202
- âŠ