Rabies-Related Knowledge and Practices Among Persons At Risk of Bat Exposures in Thailand

Rabies is a fatal encephalitis caused by lyssaviruses. Evidence of lyssavirus circulation has recently emerged in Southeast Asian bats. We surveyed persons regularly exposed to bats and bat habitats in Thailand to assess rabies‐related knowledge and practices. Targeted groups included guano miners, bat hunters, game wardens, and residents/personnel at Buddhist temples where mass bat roosting occurs. Of the 106 people interviewed, 11 (10%) identified bats as a source of rabies. History of a bat bite/scratch was reported by 29 (27%), and 38 (36%) expressed either that they would do nothing or that they did not know what they would do in response to a bat bite. Guano miners were less likely than other groups to indicate animal bites as a mechanism of transmission (68% vs. 90%, p=0.03) and were less likely to say they would respond appropriately to a bat bite or scratch (61% vs. 27%, p=0.003). These findings indicate a need for educational outreach in Thailand to raise awareness of bat rabies, promote exposure prevention, and ensure health‐seeking behaviors for bat‐inflicted wounds, particularly among at‐risk groups

Meeting the cultural and service needs of Arabic international students by using QFD

Quality has become an important factor in global competition for many reasons. Intensive global competition and the demand for better quality by customers has led organizations to realize the benefits of providing quality products and services in order to successfully compete and survive. Higher education institutions are one example of these organisations. Higher education institutions work in an intensive competitive environment worldwide driven by increasing demands for learning by local and international students. As a result, the managers of these sectors have realized that improving the quality of services is important for achieving customer satisfaction which can help survival in an internationally competitive market. To do this, it is necessary for organizations to know their customers and identify their requirements. To this end, many higher education institutions have adopted principles of total quality management (TQM) to improve their education quality which leads to better performance through involvement of every department to achieve excellence in business. This chapter considers the importance of measuring quality in order to assist universities to proactively manage the design and improvement of the social and academic experiences of postgraduate international students, and plan management decision-making processes to deliver high-quality services in a globalized business of provision of higher education. Higher education institutions must operate effectively and efficiently and be able to deliver quality programs, by seeking to better understand the needs of their customers to be competitive in this market space

Sensitivity of TAC to detect drug resistance on sputum samples.

<p>Sensitivity of TAC to detect drug resistance on sputum samples.</p

Performance of TAC to detect drug resistance on paired sputum and isolate.

<p>Performance of TAC to detect drug resistance on paired sputum and isolate.</p

Correlation between genotypic and phenotypic drug susceptibility test.

<p>Correlation between genotypic and phenotypic drug susceptibility test.</p

Amplification Ct cut-off.

<p>For each of 71 sputum samples the average SYTO9 Ct value for each of the 11 amplicons is shown. Average Ct are organized according to whether the sputum probe result was wild-type (black -), mutant (black x), or negative. Sputum probe negative results are further stratified into whether the cultured isolate was found to be wild-type (red +), mutant (red -), or to possess an “other” mutation (green X). ROC analysis was performed to examine the optimal Ct whereby SYTO9 to interpret the probe results.</p