Should We Screen for Depression in the Emergency Department?

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73525/1/j.1553-2712.2004.tb01430.x.pd

Actionable Insights on Philadelphia Crime Hot-Spots: Clustering and Statistical Analysis to Inform Future Crime Legislation

Philadelphia's problem with high crime rates continues to be exacerbated as Philadelphia's residents, community leaders, and law enforcement officials struggle to address the root causes of the problem and make the city safer for all. In this work, we deeply understand crime in Philadelphia and offer novel insights for crime mitigation within the city. Open source crime data from 2012-2022 was obtained from OpenDataPhilly. Density-Based Spatial Clustering of Applications with Noise (DBSCAN) was used to cluster geographic locations of crimes. Clustering of crimes within each of 21 police districts was performed, and temporal changes in cluster distributions were analyzed to develop a Non-Systemic Index (NSI). Home Owners' Loan Corporation (HOLC) grades were tested for associations with clusters in police districts labeled `systemic.' Crimes within each district were highly clusterable, according to Hopkins' Mean Statistics. NSI proved to be a good measure of differentiating systemic ($<$ 0.06) and non-systemic ($\geq$ 0.06) districts. Two systemic districts, 19 and 25, were found to be significantly correlated with HOLC grade (p $=2.02 \times 10^{-19}$, p $=1.52 \times 10^{-13}$). Philadelphia crime data shows a high level of heterogeneity between districts. Classification of districts with NSI allows for targeted crime mitigation strategies. Policymakers can interpret this work as a guide to interventions

Resident Perceptions of Medical Errors in the Emergency Department

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73541/1/S1069-6563_03_00559-1.pd

Knowledge Translation Consensus Conference: Research Methods

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72708/1/j.1553-2712.2007.tb02378.x.pd

Inhibitory effect of antibodies against human chorionic gonadotropin on the growth of colorectal tumour cells

92-96Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) was initially believed to be secreted exclusively by the embryo with its primary function being “rescue” of the corpus luteum. However, recently it has been found that the hormone (or its individual subunits) is also secreted by many cancers and that in many cases secretion is associated with poor patient prognosis. In this study, we assessed the presence of hCG in colorectal cancer cells (CCL-253) and evaluated the anti-tumour effects of anti-hCG antibodies in vitro and in vivo. Anti-hCG antibodies were reactive with CCL-253, as revealed by confocal immunoflourescence microscopy; both cell surface and intracellular expression were observed. Western blot analysis showed that antibodies appeared to interact with several moieties, indicating a level of cross-reactivity. Anti-hCG antiserum specifically reduced the viability of tumor cells and the addition of complement increased in vitro anti-tumor effects. In nude mice implanted with CCL-253 cells, administration of anti-hCG antiserum caused a significant reduction in tumor volume; all treated animals survived, while mortality was observed in control animals. Results suggest that anti-hCG antibodies can mediate significant anti-tumor activity both in vitro and in vivo and lend support to the rationale of anti-hCG immunization in the therapy of gonadotropin- sensitive cancers

Minimizing Transfer Time to an ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction-Receiving Center

Of patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), approximately two thirds present to a hospital not capable of percutaneous coronary intervention. Transfer to a STEMI-receiving center delays time to reperfusion in patients with STEMI, but factors that affect this delay have not been well studied. We performed a 3-round modified Delphi study to identify system practices that minimize transfer time to a STEMI-receiving center. A comprehensive literature review was used to identify candidate system practices. Emergency medical services, emergency medicine, and cardiology experts were invited to participate. Consensus was defined as 80% agreement that a variable was "very important (5)" or "important (4)" with a mean score ≥ 4.25 or 80% agreement that a variable was "not important (1)" or "somewhat important (2)" with a mean score ≤ 1.75. In round 1, participants rated the candidate items and suggested additional items. Individual feedback was provided, and participants discussed items via conference calls before rating them again in round 2. In round 3, participants ranked the consensus items from rounds 1-2 from most to least important, and the mean score for each item was calculated. Of the 98 experts invited, 29 participated in round 1, 22 in round 2, and 14 in round 3. Participants identified 18 system practices that they agree are critical in minimizing transfer time to STEMI-receiving centers, with the most important being performance of a prehospital electrocardiogram and having established transfer protocols. These factors should be considered in the development of STEMI systems of care