9,494 research outputs found
Health Disparities in Kidney Transplantation: An Equity Analysis
The growing incidence of end stage renal disease along with advances of the past 40 years that have improved the success rate of kidney transplantation have created an unprecedented demand for kidney transplant. Yet, certain racial and ethnic groups and women consistently have longer waiting times and lower rates of transplantation which makes a review of the kidney procurement and transplantation system in view of its equity imperative. Reasons given for these disparities have varied from cultural attitudes and beliefs on the part of patients and health care providers, socioeconomic status, rates of organ donation, and geographic location. The equity conceptual framework has proven itself to be a useful guide in identifying the symptoms of disparities in the procurement and organ allocation system but further studies are needed to identify the etiology of these disparities and target effective interventions and policies
Fiber optic Raman thermometer for Space Shuttle main engine preburner profiling
The feasibility of combustion gas temperature measurements in the SSME fuel preburner using nonintrusive optical diagnostics was investigated. Temperature profiles are desired in the high pressure, hydrogen-rich preburner stream to evaluate designs to alleviate thermal stressing of the fuel pump turbine blades. Considering the preburner operating conditions and optical access restrictions, a spontaneous Raman backscattering system, implemented with optical fibers to couple to the combustion device, was selected as the most practical for gas temperature probing. A system is described which employs a remotely-located argon-ion laser to excite the molecular hydrogen Raman spectrum. The laser radiation is conveyed to the combustor through an optical fiber and focused through a window into the chamber by an optical head attached to the combustor. The gas temperature is determined from the distribution of rotational populations represented in the Raman spectrum
Teaching Graduate Trainees How to Manage Client Anger: a Comparison of Three Types of Training
The authors examined the effects of three types of training (supervisor-facilitated training, self-training, biblio-training) on 62 graduate student therapists\u27 state anxiety, self-efficacy for dealing with anger, and helping skills (i.e., reflections and immediacy) in response to videotaped vignettes of angry clients. Training overall was rated as very helpful, and trainees increased in self-efficacy for working with client anger. Supervisor-facilitated training was rated as more helpful than, and was preferred to, self-training and biblio-training; it also led to more reflection of feelings in response to clients. Results suggest that vignettes such as these might be a helpful adjunct to training once students have competency in the basic helping skills
A Qualitative Analysis of Client Perceptions of the Effects of Helpful Therapist Self-Disclosure in Long-Term Therapy
Thirteen adult psychotherapy clients currently in long-term therapy were interviewed twice, with semistructured protocols, about their experiences with helpful instances of therapist self-disclosure. Data were analyzed with a qualitative methodology. Results indicated that helpful therapist self-disclosures (a) occurred when these clients were discussing important personal issues, (b) were perceived as being intended by therapists to normalize or reassure the clients, and (c) consisted of a disclosure of personal nonimmediate information about the therapists. The therapist self-disclosures resulted in positive consequences for these clients that included insight or a new perspective from which to make changes, an improved or more equalized therapeutic relationship, normalization, and reassurance. Implications for psychotherapy are discussed
Baseline marine benthic surveys in the Maltese Islands (Central Mediterranean)
Extract from: MEDCOAST 97 : Proceedings of the Third International Conference on the Mediterranean Coastal Environment, Qawra, Malta / E. Ozhan (editor), (1997)During the period 1991 to 1997, extensive baseline studies of the submarine
geomorphology, infralittoral habitats, macrobenthic assemblages, and demersal fish
fauna, were carried out in 14 different sites around the Maltese Islands, using
conventional SCUBA diving techniques. These were made as part of assessments of the
environmental impact of existing or proposed projects, or in order to produce an inventory
of coastal resources. In total, these surveys covered a sea-bed area of ca. 7.55Km² and
a coastline length of ca 24 km, and represent the most extensive biological surveys
of the marine environment carried out to date in the Maltese Islands. The results of these
surveys have been presented as maps showing the type, location, and spatial extent of
these physical and biological features. The Peres & Picard (1964) scheme, as adapted
by Pen~s (1967; 1982) was used to classify and characterize the benthic assemblages
recorded during the surveys.
Our results show that, in tenus of spatial extent, the most important
macrobenthic assemblages are the communities of photophilic 'algae on hard substrata,
meadows of the sea-grass Posidonia oceanica and communities of bare well-sorted
sand. For all these, many subtypes and facies exist, depending on the light intensity,
hydrodynamic conditions, microtopography, sediment granulometry and other edaphic
factors, and anthropic influences, including pollution.
Other assemblages with a limited spatial distribution include meadows of the
sea-grass (vmodocea nodosa and of the Lessepsian immigrant Halophila stipu/acea on
sandy bottoms, the assemblages of boulder fields which are complexes of photophilic
and sciaphilic communities, and those of marine caves. Our maps are supplemented by
descriptions of the different habitats and macrobenthjc assemblages, species lists, and
semi-quantitative data on percentage cover for the dominant macroalgae, shoot density
counts for sea-grass meadows, and population density counts for the main macrofaunal
species.
These maps and data-sets are intended to be used (i) for assessing the status of
habitats, species assemblages, and individual species, around the Maltese Islands in
order to recommend appropriate measures for their conservation, including inclusion in
red data lists; (ii) for designation of marine protected areas; and (iii) as baselines against
which future monitoring studies and surveys can be compared.peer-reviewe
The Evolution of Post-Starburst Galaxies from to the Present
Post-starburst galaxies are in the transitional stage between blue,
star-forming galaxies and red, quiescent galaxies, and therefore hold important
clues for our understanding of galaxy evolution. In this paper, we
systematically searched for and identified a large sample of post-starburst
galaxies from the spectroscopic dataset of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)
Data Release 9. In total, we found more than 6000 objects with redshifts
between and , making this the largest sample of
post-starburst galaxies in the literature. We calculated the luminosity
function of the post-starburst galaxies using two uniformly selected
subsamples: the SDSS Main Galaxy Sample and the Baryon Oscillation
Spectroscopic Survey CMASS Sample. The luminosity functions are reasonably fit
by half-Gaussian functions. The peak magnitudes shift as a function of redshift
from at to at . This is
consistent with the downsizing trend, whereby more massive galaxies form
earlier than low-mass galaxies. We compared the mass of the post-starburst
stellar population found in our sample to the decline of the global
star-formation rate and found that only a small amount () of all
star-formation quenching in the redshift range results in
post-starburst galaxies in the luminosity range our sample is sensitive to.
Therefore, luminous post-starburst galaxies are not the place where most of the
decline in star-formation rate of the universe is happening.Comment: 26 pages, 24 figures, 8 tables. Accepted for publication in The
Astrophysical Journa
Can a computerised training paradigm assist people with intellectual disabilities to learn cognitive mediation skills? A randomised experiment
Aims: The aim was to examine whether specific skills required for cognitive behavioural
therapy (CBT) could be taught using a computerised training paradigm with people who have
intellectual disabilities (IDs). Training aimed to improve: a) ability to link pairs of situations
and mediating beliefs to emotions, and b) ability to link pairs of situations and emotions to
mediating beliefs.
Method: Using a single-blind mixed experimental design, sixty-five participants with IDs
were randomised to receive either computerised training or an attention-control condition.
Cognitive mediation skills were assessed before and after training.
Results: Participants who received training were significantly better at selecting appropriate
emotions within situation-beliefs pairs, controlling for baseline scores and IQ. Despite
significant improvements in the ability of those who received training to correctly select
intermediating beliefs for situation-feelings pairings, no between-group differences were
observed at post-test.
Conclusions: The findings indicated that computerised training led to a significant
improvement in some aspects of cognitive mediation for people with IDs, but whether this
has a positive effect upon outcome from therapy is yet to be established
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