Withering the citizen, managing the consumer: complaints in healthcare settings

This paper considers concepts of citizenship and consumerism in light of complaints about healthcare, which have risen since the early1990s, due to a greater willingness by the healthcare user to complain, and also the reforms in complaint systems. The narrow legal model for dealing with complaints has been replaced by a managerial model based on corporate sector practice that views complaint handling as a way of retaining customers and organisational learning. The managerial model has proved difficult to embed into the English NHS and has been superposed with a centralised regulatory system that aims to manage performance while also being responsible for reviewing, complaints and being responsive to complainants. It is argued that this may have positive consequences in terms of improving healthcare quality but more negatively, the promotion of consumerism within complaints processes has led to a loss of the right to due process and public accountability

Deciding Full Branching Time Logic by Program Transformation

We present a method based on logic program transformation, for verifying Computation Tree Logic (CTL*) properties of finite state reactive systems. The finite state systems and the CTL* properties we want to verify, are encoded as logic programs on infinite lists. Our verification method consists of two steps. In the first step we transform the logic program that encodes the given system and the given property, into a monadic ω -program, that is, a stratified program defining nullary or unary predicates on infinite lists. This transformation is performed by applying unfold/fold rules that preserve the perfect model of the initial program. In the second step we verify the property of interest by using a proof method for monadic ω-program

The physiology of polar marine zooplankton

The polar marine environment is characterised by low stable temperatures with seasonal variations ranging from ±3°C at lower latitudes to only ±0.2°C at high latitudes. The Arctic basin is dominated by multi-year ice. whereas the Antarctic is subject to large seasonal changes in the cover by annual sea ice. Primary production is intensely seasonal nearshore but probably less so in offshore waters where significant production is associated with the marginal ice zone. Oxygen consumption in polar zooplankton is low compared with temperate and tropical species. Annual growth rates are generally slow and, especially in herbivores, highly seasonal. It is likely that fast growth rates are possible for polar zooplankton in areas of high food availability such as ice-edge blooms, but these growth rates are not usually achieved in the more oligotrophic open-ocean areas. Lipid stores in polar herbivorous zooplankton are generally high, although some euphausiids and gelatinous zooplankton also rely on degrowth to provide energy over winter. Ice-edge blooms are of great importance to the polar marine food web although the quantitative significance of winter feeding under ice has yet to be resolved. Comparison of data on lipid storage and oxygen consumption for polar zooplankton indicates that there are large differences in the energy requirements of benthos and crustacean zooplankton. This is probably related to the high metabolic cost of staying in the water column. In contrast gelatinous zooplankton (salps, ctenophores. medusae and siphonophores) have a low energy throughput, related to a body composition which renders them essentially neutral in buoyancy and a slow but efficient means of locomotion. Under good feeding conditions many species can therefore grow and reproduce very rapidly. This emphasises the distinct energetic regime of gelatinous zooplankton, now known to be a group of major ecological importance in most waters of the world

Supporting Fathers in Multi-Ethnic Societies: Insights from British Asian Fathers

AbstractThere is concern that current UK policy and intervention aimed at supporting fathers remains primarily informed by dominant White middle-class values and experiences, and therefore fails to respond adequately to the needs of Britain's diverse fathers. This paper contributes to understanding of ethnic diversity in fathering contexts, practices and experiences, by reporting findings from a qualitative study of British Asian fathers, involving in-depth interviews with fifty-nine fathers and thirty-three mothers from Bangladeshi Muslim, Pakistani Muslim, Gujarati Hindu and Punjabi Sikh background, and over eight additional respondents engaged through Key Informant interviews, ethnographic interviews and group discussions. The paper highlights four areas that require greater recognition by policy-makers and practitioners to appropriately meet the needs of fathers from diverse ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. These are: recognising that fathers and mothers do not necessarily constitute an autonomous unit; appreciating diversity in fathers’ understandings of desirable child outcomes; addressing additional obstacles to achieving similar outcomes for children; and understanding that the boundaries and content of fathering are not universally recognised. Policies that are less normative and more responsive to diversity are essential to ensure that all fathers can be effectively supported.</jats:p

Aerial Survey Estimates of Abundance of the Eastern Chukchi Sea Stock of Beluga Whales (Delphinapterus leucas) in 2012

The eastern Chukchi Sea (ECS) stock of beluga whales is one of three stocks in western Alaska that are co-managed by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Alaska Beluga Whale Committee. Abundance of this stock was estimated as 3710 in 1991 from incomplete data. Analysis of data from satellite-linked time-depth recorders (SDRs) attached to belugas in summer concentration areas of the ECS and Beaufort Sea (BS) stocks provided an overview of beluga distribution and movements and allowed the identification of an area (140˚ W to 157˚ W in the BS) and a time period (19 July – 20 August) in which the distributions of the two stocks do not overlap. Aerial survey data were collected by the Aerial Surveys of Arctic Marine Mammals (ASAMM) project in that region and time period in 2012. We used those data in a line transect analysis that estimated there were 5547 (CV = 0.22) surface-visible belugas in the study area. Data from SDRs were used to develop correction factors to account for animals that were missed because they were either outside of the study area or diving too deep to be seen, resulting in a total abundance estimate of 20 752 (CV = 0.70). The average annual Alaska Native subsistence harvest from the ECS stock (57) is about 0.3% of the population estimate. Without data collected by the ASAMM project and from satellite-linked tags, this analysis would not have been possible. Additional surveys and tagging of ECS belugas are warranted.Le stock de bélugas de l’est de la mer des Tchouktches (EMT) figure parmi les trois stocks de l’ouest de l’Alaska à être gérés conjointement par le National Marine Fisheries Service et l’Alaska Beluga Whale Committee. À partir de données incomplètes, l’abondance de ce stock a été estimée à 3 710 en 1991. L’analyse des données recueillies à l’aide d’enregistreurs de profondeur temporelle satellitaires (SDR) fixés aux bélugas dans les zones de concentration estivales de l’EMT et de la mer de Beaufort (MB) a permis d’obtenir un aperçu de la répartition et du déplacement des bélugas ainsi que de cerner une zone (de 140˚ O à 157˚ O dans la MB) et une période (du 19 juillet au 20 août) pour lesquelles la répartition des deux stocks ne se chevauchent pas. Le projet Aerial Surveys of Arctic Marine Mammals (ASAMM) a permis de recueillir des données à partir de levés aériens pour la région et la période concernées en 2012. Grâce à une analyse de lignes interceptées, ces données ont permis d’estimer qu’il y avait 5 547 (CV = 0,22) bélugas visibles à la surface dans la zone à l’étude. Les données en provenance de SDR ont servi à mettre au point des facteurs de correction pour tenir compte des bélugas qui n’ont pas été captés, soit parce qu’ils se trouvaient en dehors de la zone visée par l’étude, soit parce qu’ils plongeaient trop loin pour être vus, ce qui s’est traduit par une estimation totale d’abondance de 20 752 (CV = 0,70) bélugas. La prise de subsistance annuelle moyenne de stock (57) par les Autochtones de l’Alaska dans l’EMT correspond à environ à 0,3 % de l’estimation de la population. Cette analyse n’aurait pu être possible sans les données prélevées par le projet ASAMM et les SDR. D’autres levés et l’étiquetage des bélugas de l’EMT s’imposent

A Denotational Semantics for First-Order Logic

In Apt and Bezem [AB99] (see cs.LO/9811017) we provided a computational interpretation of first-order formulas over arbitrary interpretations. Here we complement this work by introducing a denotational semantics for first-order logic. Additionally, by allowing an assignment of a non-ground term to a variable we introduce in this framework logical variables. The semantics combines a number of well-known ideas from the areas of semantics of imperative programming languages and logic programming. In the resulting computational view conjunction corresponds to sequential composition, disjunction to ``don't know'' nondeterminism, existential quantification to declaration of a local variable, and negation to the ``negation as finite failure'' rule. The soundness result shows correctness of the semantics with respect to the notion of truth. The proof resembles in some aspects the proof of the soundness of the SLDNF-resolution.Comment: 17 pages. Invited talk at the Computational Logic Conference (CL 2000). To appear in Springer-Verlag Lecture Notes in Computer Scienc

Note and Comment

Effect of Taking Possession of Mortgaged Property Under a Chattel Mortgage as Against a Junior Mortgagee; The Effect of the Reunion of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church With the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America Upon the Property of the Former; The Exclusive Use of Part of Railroad Station Grounds by Hackmen; Conflict of Jurisdiction in Bankruptcy Cases Between Federal and State Courts; Right of the Legislature to Amend Corporate Charters Under the Reserved Power; Can A Purchaser From a Tenant Acquire Title by Adverse Possession?; Can a Mortgagor After the Execution of the Mortgage Create an Easement in the Mortgage Security?; The Ohio Bulk Sales Law

The London childcare market

This report investigates the London Childcare Market. It was written for the London Development Agency by a team comprised of Roger Tym & Partners, Laing Buisson and the University of East London. 2. The LDA is concerned that there may be market failures operating in London which cause problems in the provision of childcare services. The hypothesis is that if these failures were corrected, then childcare in London might be more available and affordable. If this were the case, goes the logic, then parents would be able to return to the labour market, raising output and lifting more children out of poverty. 3. This report concentrates on paid for (formal) childcare provided for early years (0-5 years) children by OFSTED-registered establishments and individuals. In less detail, we also cover childcare for children aged 5, 6 and 7 years provided in OFSTED registered childcare settings such as out of school clubs and by OFSTED registered individuals such as childminders

The crime drop and the security hypothesis

Major crime drops were experienced in the United States and most other industrialised countries for a decade from the early to mid-1990s. Yet there is little agreement over explanation or lessons for policy. Here it is proposed that change in the quantity and quality of security was a key driver of the crime drop. From evidence relating to vehicle theft in two countries it is concluded that electronic immobilisers and central locking were particularly effective. It is suggested that reduced car theft may have induced drops in other crime including violence. From this platform a broader security hypothesis, linked to routine activity and opportunity theory, is outlined

Limpet feeding rate and the consistency of physiological response to temperature

Thermal reaction norms are fundamental relationships for geographic comparisons of organism response to temperature. They are shaped by an organism’s environmental history and provide insights into both the global patterns of thermal sensitivity and the physiological mechanisms underlying temperature response. In this study we conducted the first measure of the thermal reaction norm for feeding, comparing the radula rasping rate of two tropical and one polar limpet species. The consistency of thermal response was tested through comparisons with limpet duration tenacity. Feeding and duration tenacity of limpets are ecologically important muscular mechanisms that rely on very different aspects of muscle physiology, repeated concentric (shortening) and isometric (fixed length) contraction of muscles, respectively. In these limpets the thermal reaction norms of feeding limpets were best described by a single break point at a maximum temperature with linear declines at higher (Siphonaria atra) or lower temperatures (Nacella concinna and Cellana radiata) rather than a bell-shaped curve. The thermal reaction norms for duration tenacity were similar in the two tropical limpets. However, the rasping rate in Antarctic N. concinna increased linearly with temperature up to a maximum at 12.3 °C (maximal range 8.5–12.3 °C) when feeding stopped. In contrast, duration tenacity in N. concinna was maximal at 1.0 °C (−0.6 to 3.8 °C) and linearly decreased with increasing temperature. The thermal reaction norms of muscular activity were, therefore, inconsistent within and between species, indicating that different mechanisms likely underlie different aspects of species sensitivities to temperature