Pathways to Disability Income among Persons with Severe, Persistent Psychiatric Disorders

[Excerpt] Harsh skepticism pervades current public debate about who deserves public support and on what basis, particularly regarding the claims of individuals with disabling illness and injury. Heretofore, these claims were accepted, even reservedly, and the needs of such individuals were considered to be legitimate even when they were monitored closely. The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) programs and their recipients have been among the most visible and vulnerable targets of increased scrutiny and shrinking public beneficence. In 1997, congressional legislation redefined SSI eligibility for children, sparked largely by concerns that children have been deployed to engage in a type of public begging by acting crazy in order to secure benefits for their families. Maladaptive behaviors was removed from the mental disorder listings, and the Social Security Administration (SSA) estimates that 135,000 children will lose their benefits after review. In March 1996, Congress eliminated SSI, SSDI, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits for persons whose drug addiction or alcoholism is a prominent cause of disability, and as a result 141,000 recipients have been terminated. The SSA also was ordered to begin another sweeping review of all recipients of disability income. SSA officials reportedly expect this process to produce a termination rate of 14 percent, resulting in an estimated 196,000 additional individuals who would cease to receive SSI and SSDI

Novel critical point drying (CPD) based preparation and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging of protein specific molecularly imprinted polymers (HydroMIPs)

We report the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging of a hydrogel-based molecularly imprinted polymer (HydroMIP) specific to the template molecule bovine haemoglobin (BHb). A novel critical point drying based sample preparation technique was employed to prepare the molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) samples in a manner that would facilitate the use of TEM to image the imprinted cavities, and provide an appropriate degree of both magnification and resolution to image polymer architecture in the <10 nm range. For the first time, polymer structure has been detailed that clearly displays molecularly imprinted cavities, ranging from 5-50 nm in size, that correlate (in terms of size) with the protein molecule employed as the imprinting template. The modified critical point drying sample preparation technique used may potentially play a key role in the imaging of all molecularly imprinted polymers, particularly those prepared in the aqueous phase

Modelling ground vibrations induced by harmonic loads

A finite-element model combining the frequency domain thin-layer method with paraxial boundary conditions to simulate the semi-infinite extent of a soil medium is presented in this paper. The combined numerical model is used to deal with harmonic vibrations of surface rigid foundations on non-horizontal soil profiles. The model can deal with soil media over rigid bedrock or significant depths of half-space. Structured finite elements are used to mesh simple geometry soil domains, whereas unstructured triangular mesh grids are employed to deal with complex geometry problems. Dynamic responses of homogeneous as well as layered soil profiles are simulated and validated against analytical and approximate solutions. Finally, the model is used to deal with surface ground vibration reduction, in which it is first validated against published results and then followed by an example involving a bridge

Directions for Future Patient-Centered and Comparative Effectiveness Research for People With Serious Mental Illness in a Learning Mental Health Care System

This supplement, while ambitious in scope, presents its major concepts with elegance and clarity. In this critical appraisal of mental health services treatment and outcomes, the authors have extended the utility of research findings by systematically gathering data on the experiences and preferences of numerous stakeholders. Key among the report’s conclusions is the need for patient-centered, patient-developed measures that can be used at all levels of a learning system to assess service provision approaches, compare treatment interventions, and improve outcomes

The Skeletal Organic Matrix from Mediterranean Coral Balanophyllia europaea Influences Calcium Carbonate Precipitation

Scleractinian coral skeletons are made mainly of calcium carbonate in the form of aragonite. The mineral deposition occurs in a biological confined environment, but it is still a theme of discussion to what extent the calcification occurs under biological or environmental control. Hence, the shape, size and organization of skeletal crystals from the cellular level through the colony architecture, were attributed to factors as diverse as mineral supersaturation levels and organic mediation of crystal growth. The skeleton contains an intra-skeletal organic matrix (OM) of which only the water soluble component was chemically and physically characterized. In this work that OM from the skeleton of the Balanophyllia europaea, a solitary scleractinian coral endemic to the Mediterranean Sea, is studied in vitro with the aim of understanding its role in the mineralization of calcium carbonate. Mineralization of calcium carbonate was conducted by overgrowth experiments on coral skeleton and in calcium chloride solutions containing different ratios of water soluble and/or insoluble OM and of magnesium ions. The precipitates were characterized by diffractometric, spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. The results showed that both soluble and insoluble OM components influence calcium carbonate precipitation and that the effect is enhanced by their co-presence. The role of magnesium ions is also affected by the presence of the OM components. Thus, in vitro, OM influences calcium carbonate crystal morphology, aggregation and polymorphism as a function of its composition and of the content of magnesium ions in the precipitation media. This research, although does not resolve the controversy between environmental or biological control on the deposition of calcium carbonate in corals, sheds a light on the role of OM, which appears mediated by the presence of magnesium ions

Comprehensive Versus Usual Community Care for First-Episode Psychosis: 2-Year Outcomes From the NIMH RAISE Early Treatment Program

The primary aim was to compare the impact of NAVIGATE, a comprehensive, multidisciplinary, team-based treatment approach for first episode psychosis designed for implementation in the U.S. healthcare system, to Community Care on quality of life

Tuning hardness in calcite by incorporation of amino acids

Structural biominerals are inorganic/organic composites that exhibit remarkable mechanical properties. However, the structure–property relationships of even the simplest building unit—mineral single crystals containing embedded macromolecules—remain poorly understood. Here, by means of a model biomineral made from calcite single crystals containing glycine (0–7 mol%) or aspartic acid (0–4 mol%), we elucidate the origin of the superior hardness of biogenic calcite. We analysed lattice distortions in these model crystals by using X-ray diffraction and molecular dynamics simulations, and by means of solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance show that the amino acids are incorporated as individual molecules. We also demonstrate that nanoindentation hardness increased with amino acid content, reaching values equivalent to their biogenic counterparts. A dislocation pinning model reveals that the enhanced hardness is determined by the force required to cut covalent bonds in the molecules

Cationic Amino Acids Specific Biomimetic Silicification in Ionic Liquid: A Quest to Understand the Formation of 3-D Structures in Diatoms

The intricate, hierarchical, highly reproducible, and exquisite biosilica structures formed by diatoms have generated great interest to understand biosilicification processes in nature. This curiosity is driven by the quest of researchers to understand nature's complexity, which might enable reproducing these elegant natural diatomaceous structures in our laboratories via biomimetics, which is currently beyond the capabilities of material scientists. To this end, significant understanding of the biomolecules involved in biosilicification has been gained, wherein cationic peptides and proteins are found to play a key role in the formation of these exquisite structures. Although biochemical factors responsible for silica formation in diatoms have been studied for decades, the challenge to mimic biosilica structures similar to those synthesized by diatoms in their natural habitats has not hitherto been successful. This has led to an increasingly interesting debate that physico-chemical environment surrounding diatoms might play an additional critical role towards the control of diatom morphologies. The current study demonstrates this proof of concept by using cationic amino acids as catalyst/template/scaffold towards attaining diatom-like silica morphologies under biomimetic conditions in ionic liquids