Effectiveness of nurse home-visiting for disadvantaged families: results of a natural experiment

Extent: 9p.Objective: To evaluate the effects of a postnatal home-visiting programme delivered by community health nurses to socially disadvantaged mothers in South Australia. Design: The intervention group of 428 mothers lived in metropolitan Adelaide and the comparison group of 239 mothers lived in regional towns where the programme was not yet available. All participating mothers met health service eligibility criteria for enrolment in the home-visiting programme. Participants in both groups were assessed at baseline (mean child age=14.4 weeks SD=2.3), prior to programme enrolment, and again when the children were aged 9, 18 and 24 months. Setting: State-wide community child health service. Participants: 667 socially disadvantaged mothers enrolled consecutively. 487 mothers (73%) completed the 24-month assessment. Intervention: Two-year postnatal home-visiting programme based on the Family Partnership Model. Primary outcome measures: Parent Stress Index (PSI), Kessler Psychological Distress Scale and the Ages and Stages Questionnaire. Results: Mixed models adjusting for baseline differences were used to compare outcomes in the two groups. The mothers in the home-visiting group reported greater improvement on the PSI subscales assessing a mother's perceptions on the quality of their relationship with their child (1.10, 95% CI 0.06 to 2.14) and satisfaction with their role as parents (0.46, 95% CI −0.15 to 1.07) than mothers in the comparison group. With the exception of childhood sleeping problems, there were no other significant differences in the outcomes across the two groups. Conclusions: The findings suggest that home-visiting programmes delivered by community health nurses as part of routine clinical practice have the potential to improve maternal–child relationships and help mothers adjust to their role as parents.Michael Gifford Sawyer, Linda Frost, Kerrie Bowering, John Lync

ScotPID - a model of collaboration

ScotPID is a national personal development initiative in Scotland, with thirteen higher education institutions taking part in the development of case studies which enhance personal development planning for students. As a model of collaboration, ScotPID involves all stakeholders: each core project group is composed of an academic, IT support manager, careers service adviser and undergraduate student, with support from QAA Scotland. The case study is developed by the contribution of all of the members of the team. The strength of the ScotPID collaboration is the varied background of the team members. However, collaboration between the ScotPID teams should also be encouraged, to strengthen the inter-institutional approach further

A model of the near-earth plasma environment and application to the ISEE-A and -B orbit

A model of the near-earth environment to obtain a best estimate of the average flux of protons and electrons in the energy range from 0.1 to 100 keV for the International Sun-Earth Explorer (ISEE)-A and -B spacecraft. The possible radiation damage to the thermal coating on these spinning spacecraft is also studied. Applications of the model to other high-altitude satellites can be obtained with the appropriate orbit averaging. This study is the first attempt to synthesize an overall quantitative environment of low-energy particles for high altitude spacecraft, using data from in situ measurements

A new quantity for studies of dijet azimuthal decorrelations

We introduce a new measurable quantity, $R_{\Delta \phi}$, for studies of the rapidity and transverse momentum dependence of dijet azimuthal decorrelations in hadron-hadron collisions. In pQCD, $R_{\Delta \phi}$ is computed as a ratio of three-jet and dijet cross sections in which the parton distribution functions cancel to a large extent. At the leading order, $R_{\Delta \phi}$ is proportional to $\alpha_s$, and the transverse momentum dependence of can therefore be exploited to determine $\alpha_s$. We compute the NLO pQCD theory predictions and non-perturbative corrections for $R_{\Delta \phi}$ at the LHC and the Tevatron and investigate the corresponding uncertainties. From this, we estimate the theory uncertainties for $\alpha_s$ determinations based on $R_{\Delta \phi}$ at both colliders. The potential of $R_{\Delta \phi}$ measurements for tuning Monte Carlo event generators is also demonstrated.Comment: 20 pages, 11 figures, 1 table, submitted to JHE

Electronic books: their definition, usage and role in libraries

This review examines the literature to establish a definition of electronic books and discovers this is currently related more to hardware and software (viewing technology) than content. It also reports the potential advantages and disadvantages of this format compared to print. It outlines what is currently known about the use of different types of electronic books by users, examining who the most likely users are, detailing what studies reveal about the use and usability of electronic books and the features users want; as well as what factors are inhibiting their use. Additionally the review details what is known about the opportunities and issues arising from the inclusion of electronic books in library collections. It addresses questions regarding the existing models for the use of e-books in libraries, what studies reveal about the realities of their use and what strategies and policies need to be adopted by libraries for their implementation. Finally it examines the degree of take-up of e-books by individuals and libraries and what trends and predictions for the future are emerging with respect to viewing technology, content and role in libraries

Development of a polysilicon process based on chemical vapor deposition, phase 1

The development of a dichlorosilane-based reductive chemical vapor deposition process for the production of polycrystalline silicon is discussed. Experimental data indicate that the ease of ignition and explosion severity of dichlorosilane (DCS)/air mixtures is substantially attenuated if the DCS is diluted with hydrogen. Redesign of the process development unit to accommodate safety related information is described. Several different sources of trichlorosilane were used to generate a mixture of redistributed chlorosilanes via Dowex ion exchange resin. The unseparated mixtures were then fed to an experimental reactor in which silicon was deposited and the deposited silicon analyzed for electrically active impurities. At least one trichlorosilane source provided material of requisite purity. Silicon grown in the experimental reactor was converted to single crystal material and solar cells fabricated and tested

Experiment K-6-17. Structural changes and cell turnover in the rats small intestine induced by spaceflight

The purpose of this project was to test the hypothesis that the generalized, whole body decrease in synthetic activity associated with microgravity conditions of space flight as evidenced by negative nitrogen balance and muscle atrophy (Nicogossian and Parker, 1982; Oganov, 1981), as well as inhibited lymphocyte proliferation (Bechler and Cogoli, 1986), would be evident in cells characterized by a rapid rate of turnover. As a model, researchers chose to study the turnover of mucosal cells lining the jejunum of the small intestine, since these cells are among the most rapidly proliferating in the body. Under normal conditions, epithelial cells that line the small intestine are continually produced in the crypts of Lieberkuhn. These cells migrate out of the crypts onto intestinal villi, are progressively pushed up the villus as new crypt cells are formed, and ultimately reach the tip of villi where they are then descquamated. In rats, the entire process, from initial proliferation in crypts to desquamation, takes approximately 2 days (Cairnie et al., 1965; Lipkin, 1973). In this study, researchers determined the mitotic index for mucosal cells lining the proximal, middle, and distal regions of the jejunum in rats from three treatment groups (synchronous control, vivarium control and flight), and measured the depth of the crypts of Lieberkuhn and the length of villi present in each of the three jejunal regions sampled

Accused’s Right to Document Translation...

Specifically addressing what the rights are of the accused to the translation of documents (in his or her own language and/or in the language of his or her counsel) and the concomitant obligations of the parties. Also, the issues were examined with reference to the 20 February 2009 Pre-Trial Chamber decision in Khieu Samphan’s appeal

Mechanical behavior of tantalum-base T-111 alloy at elevated temperature

Mechanical behavior of tantalum T-111 alloy at high temperatures and ultrahigh vacuu