Spectroscopy using the Anisotropic Clover Action

The calculation of the light-hadron spectrum in the quenched approximation to QCD using an anisotropic clover fermion action is presented. The tuning of the parameters of the action is discussed, using the pion and rho dispersion relation. The adoption of an anisotropic lattice provides clear advantages in the determination of the baryonic resonances, and in particular that of the so-called Roper resonance, the lightest radial excitation of the nucleon.Comment: Lattice2002(spectrum), 3 pages, 3 figures, to appear in Proceedings of Lattice 200

Lake and River Ice Investigations in Northern Manitoba Using Airborne SAR Imagery

Multichannel airborne SAR data were collected over northern Manitoba in April 1989 and January 1990. During the week of the SAR flights, several reconnaissance helicopter flights were undertaken, and ground calibration sites were visited to collect ice, snow, and water data. A total of six SAR image passes were flown in April 1989 and seven in January 1990, in order to collect a data set with numerous incidence angle, frequency, polarization, and look direction combinations. The data have been qualitatively assessed, with specific emphasis on C-band horizontally polarized imagery - the proposed SAR configuration for Radarsat. Results of the analysis have shown that airborne SAR can be used to identify various freshwater ice features, such as juxtaposition ice, refrozen slush, river ice runs, and lake ice. Open water leads were also successfully identified. A careful interpretation of the airborne SAR imagery in conjunction with the ground truth data has shown that the unusually bright returns characterizing the Burntwood River and the west portion of Split Lake were caused by a layer of refrozen slush that was generated during the initial formation of the ice cover. Although the results reported here focused exclusively on a qualitative analysis of C-HH data, preliminary analysis of the digital data suggests that changes in frequency and polarization produce measurable differences and can be used to develop classification algorithms for freshwater ice.Key words: synthetic aperture radar, fresh water iceMots clés: radar à antenne synthétique, glace d’eau douc

Demands and Rewards of Working Within Multidisciplinary Teams in Pediatric Oncology: The Experiences of Canadian Health Care Providers

Pediatric oncology care in Canada is delivered by multidisciplinary teams consisting of healthcare providers with different areas of expertise. Limited information is available on how the multidisciplinary team influences jobrelated rewards, demands, and stress in pediatric oncology. A qualitative approach was adopted to learn about healthcare providers’ experiences of working within a multidisciplinary team in pediatric oncology. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 33 healthcare providers (13 oncologists, 9 nurses, 5 social workers, and 6 child-life specialists) from four pediatric oncology centres. Topics explored included: demands and rewards associated with how the multidisciplinary team worked; description of one’s area of expertise; and healthcare provider’s responsibilities. Thematic analysis was used to identify sources of demands and rewards of working in a multidisciplinary team. Healthcare providers described rewards of working within a multidisciplinary team in three areas: sharing expertise and collaboration; giving and receiving social and emotional support; and being valued by and valuing team members. Healthcare providers discussed demands of working within a multidisciplinary team in four areas: interpersonal and communication tensions; conflicting views about providing care; role confusion, overlap and being undervalued; and hospital environment. These findings may inform interventions that alleviate healthcare provider stress and promote strategies that lead to greater job satisfaction

Theology, News and Notes - Vol. 20, No. 03

Theology News & Notes was a theological journal published by Fuller Theological Seminary from 1954 through 2014.https://digitalcommons.fuller.edu/tnn/1047/thumbnail.jp

No. 2: The Brain Drain of Health Professionals from Sub-Saharan Africa to Canada

Significant numbers of African-trained health workers migrate every year to developed countries including Canada. They leave severely crippled health systems in a region where life expectancy is only 50 years of age, 16 per cent of children die before their fifth birthday and the HIV/AIDS crisis continues to burgeon. The population of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) totals over 660 million, with a ratio of fewer than 13 physicians per 100,000. SSA has seen a resurgence of various diseases that were thought to be receding, while public health systems remain inadequately staffed. According to one report, the region needs approximately 700,000 physicians to meet the Millennium Development Goals. Understaffing results in stress and increased workloads. Many of the remaining health professionals are ill-motivated, not only because of their workload, but also because they are poorly paid, poorly equipped and have limited career opportunities. These, in turn, lead to a downward spiral where workers migrate, crippling the system, placing greater strain on the remaining workers who themselves seek to migrate out of the poor working conditions. The ultimate result is an incontestable crisis in health human resources throughout SSA, the region suffering most from the brain drain of health care professionals. The situation in SSA has become severe enough that the final report of the Joint Learning Initiative on Human Resources for Health – a two-year global initiative sponsored by a number of donors studying various aspects of human resources for health performance – has concluded that the future of global health and development in the 21st century lies in the management of the crisis in human resources for health. There is a considerable body of literature attesting to the fact that the migration of skilled professionals from developing to developed countries is large and increasing dramatically. While different experts espouse different reasons for the increase, all agree that it is happening. Developing countries are hit hardest by the brain drain as they lose sometimes staggering portions of their college-educated workers to wealthy countries which can better weather their relatively smaller losses of skilled workers. Highly skilled professionals account for 65 per cent of migrants moving to industrialized countries. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that about 20,000 Africans leave Africa every year to take up employment in industrialized countries. We do not know how many of these are health care professionals (largely because of inadequate systems for gathering such statistics in African countries).11 The World Health Organization (WHO), however, found that a quarter to two-thirds of health workers interviewed in a recent study expressed an intention to migrate. Historically, and specific to the SSA context, the brain drain has meant not only the exodus of human capital but financial resources as well, as African health care professionals left countries with their savings and reinvested very little of their foreign earnings back into the region. There is only recent evidence suggesting that, while the numbers of professionals leaving continue to increase, émigrés are slowly reinvesting some of their earnings back into their countries. Other research raises doubts about the value of such reinvestments, however, particularly when they are in the form of remittances that are generally private welfare transfers back to family members and are often used for consumption rather than for savings. In recognition of the enormous challenge posed by the international migration of health personnel to health systems in developing countries, the World Health Organization has proclaimed 2005-2015 the decade on human resources for health (HRH)

Do health care institutions value research? A mixed methods study of barriers and facilitators to methodological rigor in pediatric randomized trials

BACKGROUND: Pediatric randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are susceptible to a high risk of bias. We examined the barriers and facilitators that pediatric trialists face in the design and conduct of unbiased trials. METHODS: We used a mixed methods design, with semi-structured interviews building upon the results of a quantitative survey. We surveyed Canadian (n=253) and international (n=600) pediatric trialists regarding their knowledge and awareness of bias and their perceived barriers and facilitators in conducting clinical trials. We then interviewed 13 participants from different subspecialties and geographic locations to gain a more detailed description of how their experiences and attitudes towards research interacted with trial design and conduct. RESULTS: The survey response rate was 23.0% (186/807). 68.1% of respondents agreed that bias is a problem in pediatric RCTs and 72.0% felt that there is sufficient evidence to support changing some aspects of how trials are conducted. Knowledge related to bias was variable, with inconsistent awareness of study design features that may introduce bias into a study. Interview participants highlighted a lack of formal training in research methods, a negative research culture, and the pragmatics of trial conduct as barriers. Facilitators included contact with knowledgeable and supportive colleagues and infrastructure for research. CONCLUSIONS: A lack of awareness of bias and negative attitudes towards research present significant barriers in terms of conducting methodologically rigorous pediatric RCTs. Knowledge translation efforts must focus on these issues to ensure the relevance and validity of trial results

A descriptive analysis of child-relevant systematic reviews in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Systematic reviews (SRs) are considered an important tool for decision-making. There has been no recent comprehensive identification or description of child-relevant SRs. A description of existing child-relevant SRs would help to identify the extent of available child-relevant evidence available in SRs and gaps in the evidence base where SRs are required. The objective of this study was to describe child-relevant SRs from the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR, Issue 2, 2009).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>SRs were assessed for relevance using pre-defined criteria. Data were extracted and entered into an electronic form. Univariate analyses were performed to describe the SRs overall and by topic area.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The search yielded 1666 SRs; 793 met the inclusion criteria. 38% of SRs were last assessed as up-to-date prior to 2007. Corresponding authors were most often from the UK (41%). Most SRs (59%) examined pharmacological interventions. 53% had at least one external source of funding. SRs included a median of 7 studies (IQR 3, 15) and 679 participants (IQR 179, 2833). Of all studies, 48% included only children, and 27% only adults. 94% of studies were published in peer-reviewed journals. Primary outcomes were specified in 72% of SRs. Allocation concealment and the Jadad scale were used in 97% and 25% of SRs, respectively. Adults and children were analyzed separately in 12% of SRs and as a subgroup analysis in 14%. Publication bias was assessed in only 14% of SRs. A meta-analysis was conducted in 68% of SRs with a median of 5 trials (IQR 3, 9) each. Variations in these characteristics were observed across topic areas.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We described the methodological characteristics and rigour of child-relevant reviews in the CDSR. Many SRs are not up-to-date according to Cochrane criteria. Our study describes variation in conduct and reporting across SRs and reveals clinicians' ability to access child-specific data.</p