EL PARLAMENT DE CATALUNYA EN CLAU DE FUTUR

The article presents some ideas aimed at making the Parliament of Cataloniaa more central institution in the political process. After analysing the possiblemeaning of the expression "crisis of parliaments” in modern societies,the legal amendments to the new Statute and Regulations of 2005 are setout in terms of modernising parliament. However, in terms of this objective,there are still problems to be resolved and opportunities for action. The authorspropose some measures which may be controversial, which include areduction in the number of deputies, a strengthening of representativescompared to groups, the employment of non-legal professionals, an activecommunication policy and multidisciplinary parliamentary studies

La formación de las Cortes Generales en la legislatura 1977 -1979

El objeto de la tesis es el análisis de la legislatura constituyente y de los documentos jurídicos y prácticas parlamentarias que dieron lugar a la institucionalización por medio de la Constitución de 1978 y los reglamentos de las Cámaras de las Cortes Generales. De este modo, las actuales Cortes pueden considerarse el resultado de un proceso político en el cual sus distintos autores (los grupos parlamentarios) pretenden finalidades distintas, lo que exige la creación de unos modelos abstractos que orienten acerca de cada una de las propuestas y un estudio sobre las distintas alianzas posibles para la obtención de mayorías. Creados estos instrumentos, se aclaran los compromisos y disidencias surgidos en la organización del Parlamento, su control del Ejecutivo y la función legislativa

Bayesian analysis of the ICAT·COVID randomized clinical trial

This communication provides new effect measures in the multiplicative scale from the ICAT·COVID randomized clinical trial, obtained through Bayesian statistics. These could not be calculated using the traditional frequentist statistics included in the original publication because the benefits of icatibant (a competitive antagonist of the bradykinin B2 receptors) on top of standard care in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia were such that there were no events in the active group.1 Additive effect measures (eg, risk differences) are the most appropriate measures for identifying the population groups that will benefit most from interventions in presence of interactions acting as effect modifiers.2 However, an aspect that multiplicative measures provide where additive effect measures cannot, is an indication of how many times interventions or exposures increase or decrease disease risk (eg, risk ratio, hazard ratio). Furthermore, multiplicative measures are more commonly used in epidemiology, and are more appropriate for outcome measures with strictly positive values, such as counts and the numerators of incidence rates

Community-acquired pneumonia management in a short-stay unit: analysis of safety and efficacy

Podeu consultar la versió en castellà a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/119397Background and objective: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a highly prevalent disease that often requires hospital admission. We aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of treating CAP in a short-stay unit as an alternative to conventional hospitalization. Methods: Retrospective comparison of patients admitted to a tertiary care hospital with a diagnosis of CAP between November 2005 and April 2007. We compared outcomes for cases managed in the 2 locations (short-stay unit vs conventional hospital ward), excluding patients who required intensive care. Variables and outcomes analyzed were age, sex, Charlson index, mean weight in the diagnosis-related group, scores on the CURB-65 criteria and the Pneumonia Severity Index (PSI), findings of microbiology, and readmission and mortality rates. Results: A total of 606 patients were studied; 187 were treated in the short-stay unit and 419 were admitted to the conventional ward. The main significant differences between the 2 groups were mean age (77.3 vs 67.9 years, respectively; P<.0001) and mean stay (3.48 vs 7.89 days; P<.0001). These differences were also reflected in the comparison between severity subgroups (by PSI). Mortality rates did not differ. Conclusions: Our experience with the short-stay unit suggests it offers a safe and effective way to manage CAP and leads to a significantly shorter hospital stay in comparison with conventional hospitalization, without increasing readmission and mortality rates

Análisis de la seguridad y la eficacia de una unidad de corta estancia en el tratamiento de la neumonía adquirida en la comunidad

Podeu consultar la versió en anglès a: http://hdl.handle.net/2445/119414Introducción: La neumonía adquirida en la comunidad (NAC) es una patología de alta prevalencia que a menudo requiere ingreso hospitalario. El objetivo de nuestro estudio es evaluar la eficacia y seguridad en el tratamiento de la NAC de una unidad de corta estancia (UCE) como alternativa a las unidades de hospitalización convencional (UHC). Método: Estudio retrospectivo comparativo de pacientes ingresados en un hospital terciario con diagnóstico al alta de NAC entre noviembre del 2005 y abril del 2007. Se comparan dos grupos: pacientes ingresados en UCE frente a pacientes ingresados en UHC (se excluyen pacientes que requieren terapia intensiva). Variables analizadas: edad y sexo, índice de Charlson, peso según el grupo relacionado de diagnóstico (GRD), CURB 65 y Pneumonia Severity Index (PSI), hallazgos microbiológicos, tasas de readmisión y de mortalidad. Resultados: Un total de 606 pacientes fueron reclutados, 187 ingresados en el UCE (grupo 1) y 419 en UHC (grupo 2 o grupo control). Las diferencias más significativas entre los dos grupos fueron el promedio de edad (77,3 vs 67,9 p < 0,001) y la estancia promedio (3,48 vs 7,89 p < 0,001). Estas diferencias se objetivan en el comparativo general y por subgrupos según la escala de riesgo (PSI). No se observaron diferencias significativas en la tasa de mortalidad ni en la de reingreso entre las dos formas de hospitalización. Conclusiones: La UCE es eficaz y segura en el manejo de los pacientes con NAC, con una estancia media significativamente inferior respecto a las UHC, y sin diferencias en las tasas de mortalidad y reingreso

A multicenter, open-label, randomized, proof-of-concept phase II clinical trial to assess the efficacy and safety of icatibant in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) and admitted to hospital units without invasive mechanical ventilation: study protocol (ICAT-COVID)

Background: COVID-19 has quickly become a global pandemic with a substantial number of deaths and is a considerable burden for healthcare systems worldwide. Although most cases are paucisymptomatic and limited to the viral infection-related symptoms, some patients evolve to a second phase, with an impaired inflammatory response (cytokine storm) that may lead to acute respiratory distress syndrome and death. This is thought to be caused by increased bradykinin synthesis. Methods: ICAT-COVID is a multicenter, randomized, open-label, proof-of-concept phase II clinical trial assessing the clinical efficacy and safety of adding icatibant to the standard of care in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 without invasive mechanical ventilation. Patients hospitalized with a confirmed COVID-19 pneumonia diagnosis (RTPCR or antigen test <= 10 days prior to randomization, and radiographic evidence of pulmonary infiltrates), rated 4 or 5' on the WHO's clinical status scale, are eligible. Patients will be randomized on a 1:1 ratio to either standard of care-plus-icatibant (experimental group) or to standard of care alone (control group). The experimental group will receive 30 mg of icatibant subcutaneously 3 times a day for 3 days (for a total of 9 doses). The expected sample size is 120 patients (60 per group) from 2 sites in Spain. Primary outcomes are the efficacy and safety of Icatibant. The main efficacy outcome is the number of patients reaching grades 2 or 1 on the WHO scale within 10 days of starting treatment. Secondary outcomes include long-term efficacy: number of patients discharged who do not present COVID-19-related relapse or comorbidity up until 28 days after discharge, and mortality. Discussion: Icatibant, a bradykinin type 2 receptor antagonist with proven effectiveness and safety against hereditary angioedema attacks, may be beneficial for COVID-19 patients by inhibiting bradykinin's action on endothelial cells and by inhibiting the SARS-CoV-2 M protease. Our working hypothesis is that treatment with standard of care-plus-icatibant is effective and safe to treat patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 admitted to hospital for pneumonia without invasive mechanical ventilation

Experiencias de lectura académica intensiva con estudiantes de Grado (Ciencias de la Educación, Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades)

Coordinador: Max Turull RubinatPodeu consultar la versió en català a recurs relacionatEste cuaderno presenta, de una manera muy sucinta y precisa, 15 experiencias docentes que se han servido de la lectura de textos académicos de manera intensa y significativa. Todas las experiencias se han desarrollado en nueve grados de ciencias sociales y humanas de la Universidad de Barcelona: Derecho (3), Ciencias Políticas y de la Administración (3), Educación Social (2), Empresa Internacional (1), Filología Catalana (2), Historia (1), Historia del Arte (1), Pedagogía (1) y Sociología (1)

Experiències de lectura acadèmica intensiva amb estudiants de Grau (Ciències de l’Educació, Ciències Socials i Humanitats)

Coordinador: Max Turull RubinatAquest quadern presenta, d’una manera molt succinta i precisa, 15 experiències docents que s’han servit de la lectura de textos acadèmics de manera intensa i significativa. Totes les experiències s’han desenvolupat en nou graus de ciències socials i humanes de la Universitat de Barcelona: Dret (3), Ciències Polítiques i de l’Administració (3), Educació Social (2), Empresa Internacional (1), Filologia Catalana (2), Història (1), Història de l’Art (1), Pedagogia (1) i Sociologia (1)