Impacting the TDAP Acceptance Rate Among Postpartum Women

Pertussis, also known as Whooping Cough, is a contagious disease that affects children more than adults, especially children under the age of 12 months. In the United States in 2009, there were more than 16,000 cases of pertussis in infants less than 6 month of age (National Network for Immunizations and Information, 2011). At a local Midwestern community hospital, a revised Tdap policy that consisted of an education component and standardization of when the vaccine was administered was implemented to increase the acceptance rate of Tdap vaccines among postpartum mothers due to their significantly low Tdap acceptance rate. The purpose of this project was to determine if implementation of a Tdap postpartum policy that includes a patient education component, and standardization of when the vaccine is given affects the Tdap vaccine acceptance rate among postpartum women, using the John Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice Model to guide the study. A retrospective chart review was conducted three months prior to implementation of the Tdap practice change and the data were compared with the information collected three months post implementation of the project. There was a significant difference in tdap acceptance rate among postpartum mothers, a chi squared statistical analysis was performed on the pre and post group to determine overall acceptance rate of the vaccine. Documentation of patient education on the Tdap vaccine increased from 0 to 13.2% over the three month period. Revising the Tdap policy, standardization of the vaccine and educating the nurses and patients on the Tdap vaccine increased the overall Tdap acceptance among postpartum mothers

Atrapanieblas - fog as a drinking water resource

Atrapanieblas, auch Nebelfänger genannt, stellen eine Möglichkeit dar, Wasser aus Nebel zu gewinnen. Im Grunde bestehen sie aus einem Netz, welches vertikal zwischen Pfosten aufgespannt wird und die Nebeltropfen aus der Luft auffängt. Diese tropfen in eine Regenrinne ab, welche entlang der Unterkante des Netzes verläuft. Monatliche Messungen haben ergeben, dass ein durchschnittlicher täglicher Ertrag von über 40 Liter pro Quadratmeter Netzfläche möglich ist. Diese Technik stellt also eine sehr effiziente Methode dar, um atmosphärisches Wasser zu sammeln, die zudem einfach zu bauen und instand zu halten ist. Ideale klimatische Bedingungen sind auf der ganzen Welt anzutreffen, insbesondere entlang der Küsten der trockensten Regionen der Erde auf Grund von Passatinversionen und Monsun. Forschung in Alto Patache, Chile hat gezeigt, dass das Wasser, welches in dieser Region mit Atrapanieblas gesammelt wurde, keine Trinkwasserqualität nach WHO Standards hat. Gründe hierfür sind möglicherweise die Ablagerung von Wüstenstaub in den Netzen, anthropogene Einflüsse und Emissionen von Dimethylsulfid des Pazifischen Ozeans. Die Behandlung mit Calciumcarbonat (CaCO3) führte zu einem raschen Anstieg des pH-Werts auf über 6,5 und einer Abnahme der Arsenkonzentration. Die Einführung eines “First Flush” Systems könnte ebenfalls zu einer Minderung der erhöhten Schwermetallkonzentrationen im gesammelten Wasser führen.Atrapanieblas, also known as fog collectors, present a technique for collecting water out of fog. Basically they consist of a mesh, suspended vertically between posts, which collects fog droplets out of the air and diverts the water to a drip rail running along the bottom of the mesh. Monthly measurements showed, that average daily amounts of over 40 liters water per squaremeter mesh have been collected by atrapanieblas. This technique is a very efficient method for collecting atmospheric water, it is easy to construct and to maintain. Ideal climatic conditions for atrapanieblas can be found all around the world, in particular at the coastlines of the driest regions of the world due to trade inversions and monsoons existing in these regions. Research in Alto Patache, Chile showed, that the water collected in this region by atrapanieblas has no drinking water quality as given by the WHO standards. The reasons for this could be deposition of desert dust in the mesh, anthropogenic influence, and dimethylsulfide emissions of the Pacific Ocean. Through the treatment with calcium carbonate (CaCO3) the pH in the collected water can be easily raised above 6.5 and the arsenic concentration can be reduced. The implementation of a first flush system could also lower the concentrations of heavy metals in the collected water