826 research outputs found
Community pharmacy-based medication therapy management services: financial impact for patients
This is the published version. Copyright 2012 Centro de Investigaciones y Publicaciones Farmaceuticas.Objective: To determine the direct financial impact
for patients resulting from Medication Therapy
Management (MTM) interventions made by
community pharmacists. Secondary objectives
include evaluating the patient and physician
acceptance rates of the community pharmacists’
recommended MTM interventions.
Methods: This was a retrospective observational
study conducted at 20 Price Chopper and Hen
House grocery store chain pharmacies in the
Kansas City metro area from January 1, 2010 to
December 31, 2010. Study patients were Medicare
Part D beneficiaries eligible for MTM services. The
primary outcome was the change in patient out-ofpocket
prescription medication expense as a result
of MTM services.
Results: Of 128 patients included in this study, 68%
experienced no out-of-pocket financial impact on
their medication expenses as a result of MTM
services. A total of 27% of the patients realized a
cost-savings (USD440.50 per year, (SD=289.69))
while another 5% of patients saw a cost increase in
out-of-pocket expense (USD255.66 per year,
(SD=324.48)). The net financial impact for all 128
patients who participated in MTM services was an
average savings of USD102.83 per patient per year
(SD=269.18, p<0.0001). Pharmacists attempted a
total of 732 recommendations; 391 (53%) were
accepted by both the patient and their prescriber. A
total of 341 (47%) recommendations were not
accepted because of patient refusal (290, 85%) or
prescriber refusal (51, 15%).
Conclusions: Patient participation in MTM services
reduces patient out-of-pocket medication expense.
However, this savings is driven by only 32% of
subjects who are experiencing a financial impact on
out-of-pocket medication expense. Additionally, the
majority of the pharmacists’ recommended
interventions (53%) were accepted by patients and
prescribers
Primate Energy eExpenditure and Life History
Humans and other primates are distinct among placental mammals in having exceptionally slow rates of growth, reproduction, and aging. Primates’ slow life history schedules are generally thought to reflect an evolved strategy of allocating energy away from growth and reproduction and toward somatic investment, particularly to the development and maintenance of large brains. Here we examine an alternative explanation: that primates’ slow life histories reflect low total energy expenditure (TEE) (kilocalories per day) relative to other placental mammals. We compared doubly labeled water measurements of TEE among 17 primate species with similar measures for other placental mammals. We found that primates use remarkably little energy each day, expending on average only 50% of the energy expected for a placental mammal of similar mass. Such large differences in TEE are not easily explained by differences in physical activity, and instead appear to reflect systemic metabolic adaptation for low energy expenditures in primates. Indeed, comparisons of wild and captive primate populations indicate similar levels of energy expenditure. Broad interspecific comparisons of growth, reproduction, and maximum life span indicate that primates’ slow metabolic rates contribute to their characteristically slow life histories
Leveraging a Rapid, Round-the-Clock HIV Testing System to Screen for Acute HIV Infection in a Large Urban Public Medical Center
Methods The hospital laboratory performed round-the-clock rapid HIV antibody testing on venipuncture specimens from patients undergoing HIV testing in hospital and community clinics, inpatient settings, and the emergency department. For patients with negative results, a public health laboratory conducted pooled HIV RNA testing for acute HIV infection. The laboratories communicated positive results from the hospital campus to a linkage team. Linkage was defined as one outpatient HIV-related visit. Results Among 7,927 patients, 8,550 rapid tests resulted in 137 cases of HIV infection (1.7%, 95% CI 1.5%–2.0%), of whom 46 were new HIV diagnoses (0.58%, 95% CI 0.43%–0.77%). Pooled HIV RNA testing of 6,704 specimens (78.4%) resulted in 3 cases of acute HIV infection (0.05%, 95% CI 0.01%–0.14) and increased HIV case detection by 3.5%. Half of new HIV diagnoses and 2/3 of acute infections were detected in the emergency department and urgent care clinic. Rapid test sensitivity was 98.9% (95% CI 93.8%– 99.8%); specificity was 99.9% (95% CI 99.7%–99.9%). Over 95% of newly diagnosed and out-of-care HIV-infected patients were linked to care. Conclusions Patients undergoing HIV testing in emergency departments and urgent care clinics may benefit from being simultaneously screened for acute HIV infection
MAXI and NuSTAR observations of the faint X-ray transient MAXI J1848-015 in the GLIMPSE-C01 Cluster
We present the results of MAXI monitoring and two NuSTAR observations of the
recently discovered faint X-ray transient MAXI J1848-015. Analysis of the MAXI
light-curve shows that the source underwent a rapid flux increase beginning on
2020 December 20, followed by a rapid decrease in flux after only days.
NuSTAR observations reveal that the source transitioned from a bright soft
state with unabsorbed, bolometric (- keV) flux , to a low hard state with flux . Given a distance of
kpc, inferred via association of the source with the GLIMPSE-C01 cluster,
these fluxes correspond to an Eddington fraction of order for an
accreting neutron star of mass , or even lower for a more massive
accretor. However, the source spectra exhibit strong relativistic reflection
features, indicating the presence of an accretion disk which extends close to
the accretor, for which we measure a high spin, . In addition
to a change in flux and spectral shape, we find evidence for other changes
between the soft and hard states, including moderate disk truncation with the
inner disk radius increasing from to
, narrow Fe emission whose centroid
decreases from keV to keV, and an increase in
low-frequency (- Hz) variability. Due to the high spin we
conclude that the source is likely to be a black hole rather than a neutron
star, and we discuss physical interpretations of the low apparent luminosity as
well as the narrow Fe emission.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in Ap
Differences in the Cognitive Skills of Bonobos and Chimpanzees
While bonobos and chimpanzees are both genetically and behaviorally very similar, they also differ in significant ways. Bonobos are more cautious and socially tolerant while chimpanzees are more dependent on extractive foraging, which requires tools. The similarities suggest the two species should be cognitively similar while the behavioral differences predict where the two species should differ cognitively. We compared both species on a wide range of cognitive problems testing their understanding of the physical and social world. Bonobos were more skilled at solving tasks related to theory of mind or an understanding of social causality, while chimpanzees were more skilled at tasks requiring the use of tools and an understanding of physical causality. These species differences support the role of ecological and socio-ecological pressures in shaping cognitive skills over relatively short periods of evolutionary time
A13K-0336: Airborne Multi-Wavelength High Spectral Resolution Lidar for Process Studies and Assessment of Future Satellite Remote Sensing Concepts
NASA Langley recently developed the world's first airborne multi-wavelength high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL). This lidar employs the HSRL technique at 355 and 532 nm to make independent, unambiguous retrievals of aerosol extinction and backscatter. It also employs the standard backscatter technique at 1064 nm and is polarization-sensitive at all three wavelengths. This instrument, dubbed HSRL-2 (the secondgeneration HSRL developed by NASA Langley), is a prototype for the lidar on NASA's planned Aerosols- Clouds-Ecosystems (ACE) mission. HSRL-2 completed its first science mission in July 2012, the Two-Column Aerosol Project (TCAP) conducted by the Department of Energy (DOE) in Hyannis, MA. TCAP presents an excellent opportunity to assess some of the remote sensing concepts planned for ACE: HSRL-2 was deployed on the Langley King Air aircraft with another ACE-relevant instrument, the NASA GISS Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP), and flights were closely coordinated with the DOE's Gulfstream-1 aircraft, which deployed a variety of in situ aerosol and trace gas instruments and the new Spectrometer for Sky-Scanning, Sun-Tracking Atmospheric Research (4STAR). The DOE also deployed their Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Mobile Facility and their Mobile Aerosol Observing System at a ground site located on the northeastern coast of Cape Cod for this mission. In this presentation we focus on the capabilities, data products, and applications of the new HSRL-2 instrument. Data products include aerosol extinction, backscatter, depolarization, and optical depth; aerosol type identification; mixed layer depth; and rangeresolved aerosol microphysical parameters (e.g., effective radius, index of refraction, single scatter albedo, and concentration). Applications include radiative closure studies, studies of aerosol direct and indirect effects, investigations of aerosol-cloud interactions, assessment of chemical transport models, air quality studies, present (e.g., CALIPSO) and future (e.g., EarthCARE) satellite calibration/validation, and development/assessment of advanced retrieval techniques for future satellite applications (e.g., lidar+polarimeter retrievals of aerosol and cloud properties). We will also discuss the relevance of HSRL-2 measurement capabilities to the ACE remote sensing concept
Association of radial artery graft vs saphenous vein graft with long-term cardiovascular outcomes among patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting:a systematic review and meta-analysis
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