52 research outputs found
We know DAAs work, so now what?:Simplifying models of care to enhance the hepatitis C cascade
Globally, some 71 million people are chronically
infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Marginalised populations,
particularly people who inject drugs (PWID), have low testing,
linkage-to-care and treatment rates for HCV. Several models of
care (MoCs) and service delivery interventions have the
potential to improve outcomes across the HCV cascade of care,
but much of the relevant research was carried out when
interferon-based treatment was the standard of care. Often it
was not practical to scale up these earlier models and
interventions because the clinical care needs of patients taking
interferon-based regimens imposed too much of a financial and
human resource burden on health systems. Despite the adoption of
highly effective, all-oral direct-acting antiviral (DAA)
therapies in recent years, approaches to HCV testing and
treatment have evolved slowly and often remain rooted in earlier
paradigms. The effectiveness of DAAs allows for simpler
approaches and has encouraged countries where the drugs are
widely available to set their sights on the ambitious World
Health Organization (WHO) HCV elimination targets. Since a large
proportion of chronically HCV-infected people are not currently
accessing treatment, there is an urgent need to identify and
implement existing simplified MoCs that speak to specific
populations' needs. This article aims to: 1) review the evidence
on MoCs for HCV; and 2) distil the findings into recommendations
for how stakeholders can simplify the path taken by chronically
HCV-infected individuals from testing to cure and subsequent
care and monitoring
The structure and regulation of the Irish equine industries: Links to considerations of equine welfare
The equine industries in Ireland are vibrant and growing. They are broadly classified into two sectors: Thoroughbred racing, and sports and leisure. This paper describes these sectors in terms of governance, education and training in equine welfare, and available data concerning horse numbers, identification, traceability and disposal. Animal welfare, and specifically equine welfare, has received increasing attention internationally. There is general acceptance of concepts such as animal needs and persons' responsibilities toward animals in their care, as expressed in the 'Five Freedoms'. As yet, little has been published on standards of equine welfare pertaining to Ireland, or on measures to address welfare issues here. This paper highlights the central role of horse identification and legal registration of ownership to safeguard the health and welfare of horses
The interaction of music and language in the ontogenesis of human communication: a multimodal parent-infant co-regulation system.
This article presents a hypothetical model on the missing link between music, language and the ontogenesis of human communication. Based on a selected review of specific studies into musical aspects of early vocal communication and their potential links with forms of social-affective, physiological and cognitive co-regulation, we want to sketch a potential function of music and language for human development
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