Synchnonization, zero-resistance states and rotating Wigner crystal

We show that rotational angles of electrons moving in two dimensions (2D) in a perpendicular magnetic field can be synchronized by an external microwave field which frequency is close to the Larmor frequency. The synchronization eliminates collisions between electrons and thus creates a regime with zero diffusion corresponding to the zero-resistance states observed in experiments with high mobility 2D electron gas (2DEG). For long range Coulomb interactions electrons form a rotating hexagonal Wigner crystal. Possible relevance of this effect for planetary rings is discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 4 fig

Challenges and Opportunities: What Can We Learn from Patients Living with Chronic Musculoskeletal Conditions, Health Professionals and Carers about the Concept of Health Literacy Using Qualitative Methods of Inquiry?

The field of health literacy continues to evolve and concern public health researchers and yet remains a largely overlooked concept elsewhere in the healthcare system. We conducted focus group discussions in England UK, about the concept of health literacy with older patients with chronic musculoskeletal conditions (mean age = 73.4 years), carers and health professionals. Our research posed methodological, intellectual and practical challenges. Gaps in conceptualisation and expectations were revealed, reiterating deficiencies in predominant models for understanding health literacy and methodological shortcomings of using focus groups in qualitative research for this topic. Building on this unique insight into what the concept of health literacy meant to participants, we present analysis of our findings on factors perceived to foster and inhibit health literacy and on the issue of responsibility in health literacy. Patients saw health literacy as a result of an inconsistent interactive process and the implications as wide ranging; healthcare professionals had more heterogeneous views. All focus group discussants agreed that health literacy most benefited from good inter-personal communication and partnership. By proposing a needs-based approach to health literacy we offer an alternative way of conceptualising health literacy to help improve the health of older people with chronic conditions

Disparities in Potentially Preventable Hospitalizations: Near-National Estimates for Hispanics

© Health Research and Educational Trust Objective: To obtain near-national rates of potentially preventable hospitalization (PPH)—a marker of barriers to outpatient care access—for Hispanics; to examine their differences from other race-ethnic groups and by Hispanic national origin; and to identify key mediating factors. Data Sources/Study Setting: Data from all-payer inpatient discharge databases for 15 states accounting for 85 percent of Hispanics nationally. Study Design: Combining counts of inpatient discharges with census population for adults aged 18 and older, we estimated age-sex-adjusted PPH rates. We examined county-level variation in race-ethnic disparities in these rates to identify the mediating role of area-level indicators of chronic condition prevalence, socioeconomic status (SES), health care access, acculturation, and provider availability. Principal Findings: Age-sex-adjusted PPH rates were 13 percent higher among Hispanics (1,375 per 100,000 adults) and 111 percent higher among blacks (2,578) compared to whites (1,221). Among Hispanics, these rates were relatively higher in areas with predominantly Puerto Rican and Cuban Americans than in areas with Hispanics of other nationalities. Small area variation in chronic condition prevalence and SES fully accounted for the higher rates among Hispanics, but only partially among blacks. Conclusions: Hispanics and blacks face higher barriers to outpatient care access; the higher barriers among Hispanics (but not blacks) seem mediated by SES, lack of insurance, cost barriers, and limited provider availability

The electronic medication complete communication (EMC2) study: Rationale and methods for a randomized controlled trial of a strategy to promote medication safety in ambulatory care

AbstractBackgroundAdverse drug events (ADEs) affect millions of patients annually and place a significant burden on the healthcare system. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has developed patient safety information for high-risk medications that pose serious public health concerns. However, there are currently few assurances that patients receive this information or are able to identify or respond correctly to ADEs.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effectiveness of the Electronic Medication Complete Communication (EMC2) Strategy to promote safe medication use and reporting of ADEs in comparison to usual care.MethodsThe automated EMC2 Strategy consists of: 1) provider alerts to counsel patients on medication risks, 2) the delivery of patient-friendly medication information via the electronic health record, and 3) an automated telephone assessment to identify potential medication concerns or ADEs. The study will take place in two community health centers in Chicago, IL. Adult, English or Spanish-speaking patients (N=1200) who have been prescribed a high-risk medication will be enrolled and randomized to the intervention arm or usual care based upon practice location. The primary outcomes of the study are medication knowledge, proper medication use, and reporting of ADEs; these will be measured at baseline, 4weeks, and three months. Intervention fidelity as well as barriers and costs of implementation will be evaluated.ConclusionsThe EMC2 Strategy automates a patient-friendly risk communication and surveillance process to promote safe medication use while minimizing clinic burden. This trial seeks to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of this strategy in comparison to usual care

Iron, silicate, and light co-limitation of three Southern Ocean diatom species

The effect of combined iron, silicate, and light co-limitation was investigated in the three diatom species Actinocyclus sp. Ehrenberg, Chaetoceros dichaeta Ehrenberg, and Chaetoceros debilis Cleve, isolated from the Southern Ocean (SO). Growth of all species was co-limited by iron and silicate, reflected in a significant increase in the number of cell divisions compared to the control. Lowest relative Si uptake and drastic frustule malformation was found under iron and silicate co-limitation in C. dichaeta, while Si limitation in general caused cell elongation in both Chaetoceros species. Higher light intensities similar to SO surface conditions showed a negative impact on growth of C. dichaeta and Actinocyclus sp. and no effect on C. debilis. This is in contrast to the assumed light limitation of SO diatoms due to deep wind driven mixing. Our results suggest that growth and species composition of Southern Ocean diatoms is influenced by a sensitive interaction of the abiotic factors, iron, silicate, and light