We Don’t Have to Be the Building

A collection of art work from Sian Torrington exploring diverse community stories about sexuality and activism. &nbsp

The preponderance of chronic medical diseases and the value of continuing socio-medical care

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The Effects of Private Walls on Relationships Across Class and Race in the New South Africa

This thesis seeks to understand the intended and unintended effects of the proliferation of private walls around homes in South Africa, specifically in the context of apartheid and post-apartheid history. I argue that walls around private homes produce a variety of effects. Firstly, they visually, physically, and mentally separate individuals, resulting in decreased interactions between residents and passersby as well as between neighbors and greater ignorance between these groups. Secondly, walls preclude the formation of positive relationships between strangers of different classes and races, and they catalyze the formation of unequal relationships of power. This imbalance is compounded by existing economic and social inequality in contemporary South Africa. Thirdly, walls encourage the adoption of inherently oppositional identities based around status and security, resulting in the creation of Us/Them divisions between those on the inside and those on the outside

The adsorption of vinyl chloride and vinylidene chloride monomers on their polymers

Following semi-quantitative investigations of the kinetics and equilibria of:- (a) Vinyl chloride monomer vapour adsorbed on polyvinyl chloride; (b) Vinylidene chloride monomer vapour adsorbed on polyvinyl chloride; (c) Vinylidene chloride monomer vapour adsorbed on polyvinylidene chloride; it became evident that, for a number of reasons detailed in the text, it would be worthwhile to study system (a) in detail. Thorough investigations were therefore made at the two temperatures, 25⁰ C and 42.6⁰ C, and in the pressure range 20 torr to 600 torr, with the following results: (i) Attainment of equilibrium, especially at the higher pressures, was very slow and as a result only approximate isotherms could be obtained. These isotherms were shown to exhibit hysteresis. Comparison of the amount of monomer adsorbed at the higher pressures within the above limits, with the amount of krypton required to cover the surface with a monolayer, indicated that multimolecular adsorption occurred. The ascending branches of the isotherms appeared to obey the Freundlich isotherm and the approximate isosteric heats of adsorption calculated from the equilibrium data fell off linearly as the logarithm of the amount of monomer adsorbed increased; as would be expected if the Freundlich isotherm were obeyed. The values of the heats of adsorption found were such that comparison between them and the latent heat of vapourisation of the monomer made it difficult to decide whether the first layer on the surface was chemisorbed or physically adsorbed. (ii) The kinetic data showed that there was always an initial instantaneous adsorption which was reversible towards pressure, followed by a very much slower uptake of monomer. The kinetics of the slow uptake of monomer was studied, at the two temperatures, under both constant pressure and constant volume conditions and was shown to consist of two processes

Quality of life and building design in residential and nursing homes for older people

Older people living in residential and nursing care homes spend a large proportion of their time within the boundaries of the home, and may depend on the environment to compensate for their physical or cognitive frailties. Regulations and guidelines on the design of care buildings have accumulated over time with little knowledge of their impact on the quality of life of building users. The Design in Caring Environments Study (DICE) collected cross-sectional data on building design and quality of life in 38 care homes in and near Sheffield, Yorkshire. Quality of life was assessed using methods which included all residents regardless of their frailty, and staff morale was also assessed. The physical environment was measured on 11 user-related domains using a new tool, the Sheffield Care Environment Assessment Matrix (SCEAM). Significant positive associations were found between several aspects of the built environment and the residents' quality of life. There was evidence that a focus on safety and health requirements could be creating risk-averse environments which act against quality of life, particularly for the least frail residents. Staff morale was associated with attributes of a non-institutional environment for residents rather than with the facilities provided for the staff. The new tool for assessing building design has potential applications in further research and for care providers

Founder effect in 20 Afrikaner kindreds with pseudoxanthoma elasticum

The pedigrees of 20 families with pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) were investigated. The analyses involved 13 generations up to and including the initial settlers, who arrived in the Cape before 1660. Four settler surnames predominate in these pedigrees. Because of the marriage patterns of the settlers' descendants it was necessary to classify the four surnames Into two groups. It is suggested that these two groups are the founder groups of present-day PXE patients. Similar genealogical studies have been performed on kindreds with familial polyposis, familial heart block and familial hyper. cholesterolaemia, among other disorders. Due to geographical isolation, political developments and cultural factors in the Afrikaner, these investigations are feasible and often lead to the identification of founder origin

Progressive familial heart block, two types

CITATION: Brink A. J. & Torrington, M. 1977. Progressive familial heart block, two types. South African Medical Journal, 52(2):53-59.The original publication is available at http://www.samj.org.zaTwo types of heart block which occur extensively in families in the Republic of South Africa are reported. A type I heart block tends to have the pattern of a right bundle-branch block and/or left anterior hemiblock occurring individually or together, and manifested clinically when complete heart block supervenes, either with syncopal episodes, Stokes-Adams seizures or sudden death. The condition is inherited r356w1++3.3.1 as an autosomal dominant gene and appears to be progressive in nature; the risk to life appears to be greatest at 3 particular periods: at or soon after birth, during puberty and the early 20s, and again towards middle age. The type II condition also appears to be progressive and is inherited as an autosomal dominant gene. The pattern, however, tends to develop along the lines of a sinus bradycardia with a left posterior hemiblock, again presenting clinically as syncopal episodes, Stokes-Adams seizures or sudden death when complete heart block supervenes. Both conditions are likely to be widely prevalent throughout the Republic of South Africa. The pathogenesis is discussed in relation to the patterns of the conduction disturbances.Publisher’s versio

Selective review and commentary on emerging pharmacotherapies for opioid addiction.

Pharmacotherapies for opioid addiction under active development in the US include lofexidine (primarily for managing withdrawal symptoms) and Probuphine®, a distinctive mode of delivering buprenorphine for six months, thus relieving patients, clinicians, and regulatory personnel from most concerns about diversion, misuse, and unintended exposure in children. In addition, two recently approved formulations of previously proven medications are in early phases of implementation. The sublingual film form of buprenorphine + naloxone (Suboxone®) provides a less divertible, more quickly administered, more child-proof version than the buprenorphine + naloxone sublingual tablet. The injectable depot form of naltrexone (Vivitrol®) ensures consistent opioid receptor blockade for one month between administrations, removing concerns about medication compliance. The clinical implications of these developments have attracted increasing attention from clinicians and policymakers in the US and around the world, especially given that human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and other infectious diseases are recognized as companions to opioid addiction, commanding more efforts to reduce opioid addiction. While research and practice improvement efforts continue, reluctance to adopt new medications and procedures can be expected, especially considerations in the regulatory process and in the course of implementation. Best practices and improved outcomes will ultimately emerge from continued development efforts that reflect input from many quarters

A prospective interracial study of hypertensive toxaemia of pregnancy

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Realizing the Latent Potential in the Part-time Student Workforce

The purpose of this article is to challenge employers to make the best use of the latent potential of their part-time student workforce and to retain this talent postgraduation. The authors report research which shows that increasing numbers of university students are working part-time alongside their degree studies, while at the same time businesses are becoming more explicit about their requirements for graduate entrants, specifying a range of traits, behaviours and soft skills. The authors argue that this developing scenario affords an opportunity for university students working part-time to develop skills and business-related knowledge that are desirable to their respective employers in the longer term. However, the desire to nurture and retain those individuals on graduation appears to be lacking. This article concludes by challenging both employers and students to embrace a longer term perspective for their mutual benefit