1,980 research outputs found
Hospital-based professional spiritual care: evaluating the utilization, availability, and impact of chaplains.
BACKGROUND: The Affordable Care Act, enacted in 2010, transformed healthcare policy and forced hospitals to reevaluate traditional methods for care delivery. Researcher advocated for patient-centered models of care to reduce costs, address inequitable access to services, and improve service quality. These models prioritize patient values, preferences, and beliefs inclusive of patients’ religious and spiritual needs. Professional chaplains provide religious and spiritual care within many hospital settings. This dissertation explored the characteristics of hospitalized persons using chaplains, the factors associated with a hospital reporting a chaplaincy department, and how those services impacted patient satisfaction. METHODS: The first analysis used a two-part hurdle model to examine characteristics of those hospitalized at one midwestern hospital from 2012 to 2017. The second analysis employed Resource Dependency Theory and Institutional Theory to analyze the American Hospital Association (AHA) and Area Health Resource File (AHRF) through a pooled logistic regression model. The final paper used AHA and AHRF data combined with Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) data to identify if a difference in patient satisfaction scores existed between hospitals with and without chaplaincy departments. Contingency Theory guided the final analysis. FINDINGS: Persons with longer hospitalizations and with poor or fair self-rated health used a chaplain more often and at a higher rate than those with less acute health needs. Larger hospitals, those with increasing percent Medicare days, accredited by the Joint Commission, non-profit, and health system members were more likely to report a chaplaincy department as well as those in more munificent environments. Medium size hospitals had better patient satisfaction and more respondents likely to recommend it when they had a chaplaincy department. CONCLUSIONS: Hospitalized persons with more acute health needs utilize chaplaincy at a greater rate; hospitals with the institutional framework and more munificent environments provide these services. Medium sized hospitals have higher patient satisfaction rates, a metric influential in reimbursement. Although the presence of these services has increased over the past ten years, no standardization of service provision exists. The ability for some hospitals to provide chaplaincy, a service that could impact reimbursement, warrants further standardization by administrators and healthcare policymakers
Inclusion and Equity Committee Recommendations for Diverse Recruitment Report
The UNLV University Libraries Inclusion and Equity Committee (IEC) developed the Diverse Recruitment project in order to fulfill its charge in supporting the Libraries’ commitment to increasing representation and retention of historically underrepresented groups at all levels of staff. These recommendations draw upon a range of best practices, procedures, and programs. Largely informed by Duke University’s February 2018 Task Force for Diversity in Recruitment Report, three task forces each investigated a different aspect of understanding diverse recruitment as it related to the Libraries. These results were synthesized into a series of recommendations for the Libraries’ Leadership Team (LLT) and the Libraries to consider implementing
Veterans and Agent Orange: Update 11 (2018) (2018)
Contents
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS xvii
SUMMARY 1
1 INTRODUCTION 17
Previous Veterans and Agent Orange Reports, 18
Charge to the Committee, 19
Information Gathering, 20
Organization of the Report, 21
2 BACKGROUND 25
The Current Population of Vietnam Veterans,25
Military Use of Herbicides in Vietnam, 27
Exposure of Different Groups of Vietnam Veterans, 30
Characterizing Exposure, 38
Determining Increased Risk in Vietnam Veterans, 4
Facial Mask Use and COVID-19 Protection Measures in Jefferson County, Kentucky: Results from an Observational Survey, November 5−11, 2020
Introduction: The transmission of respiratory infectious diseases such as COVID-19 can significantly decrease by mask-wearing. However, accurate information about the extent and proper use of the facial mask is scarce. This study’s main objective was to observe and analyze mask-wearing behavior and the level of COVID-19 protection measures in indoor public areas (PAs) of Jefferson County, Kentucky.
Methods: For conducting the observational survey study, targets were indoor PAs, and zip codes were defined as surveying clusters. The number of selected PAs in each zip code was proportional to the population and the total number of PAs in that zip code. The PA pool in a zip code was divided into four groups, followed by random selection without replacement from each group.
Results: A total of 191 PAs were surveyed: 50 of them were grocery stores, 56 were convenience stores or pharmacies, 39 were wine and liquor stores, and 46 were other stores. At least one unmasked and one incorrectly masked staff were observed in 26% and 40% of the sampled PAs, respectively. Also, in 29% and 35% of the PAs, at least one unmasked and one incorrectly masked visitor were observed, respectively. The rates varied by PA size and county district. Eighty percent of unmasked staff and 75% of the unmasked visitors were male. The rate of unmasked males varied from 50% to 100% across districts. About 66% of unmasked staff among all Jefferson County districts were young adults. More than one-fourth of all the PAs provided hand sanitizer for visitors’ use, and only 2% of the PAs provided masks to their visitors.
Conclusion: Messaging about mask use and correct usage may need to particularly target the 19-44-year-old male population, as these individuals were the most prevalent among those unmasked and masked incorrectly. Additionally, businesses’ protective measures may depend on their resources to operate in such a manner. Hand sanitizer is easier to offer visitors, while staffing to regularly sanitize carts or funds to provide a sufficient number of wipes, gloves, or masks may present further opportunities for government assistance
Measurement of CP Asymmetries and Branching Fractions in Charmless Two-Body B-Meson Decays to Pions and Kaons
We present improved measurements of CP-violation parameters in the decays
, , and , and of
the branching fractions for and . The
results are obtained with the full data set collected at the
resonance by the BABAR experiment at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy factory
at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, corresponding to
million pairs. We find the CP-violation parameter values and
branching fractions where in each case, the first uncertainties are statistical
and the second are systematic. We observe CP violation with a significance of
6.7 standard deviations for and 6.1 standard deviations for
, including systematic uncertainties. Constraints on the
Unitarity Triangle angle are determined from the isospin relations
among the rates and asymmetries. Considering only the solution
preferred by the Standard Model, we find to be in the range
at the 68% confidence level.Comment: 18 pages, 11 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Recommended from our members
Measurement of B(B-->X_s {\gamma}), the B-->X_s {\gamma} photon energy spectrum, and the direct CP asymmetry in B-->X_{s+d} {\gamma} decays
The photon spectrum in B --> X_s {\gamma} decay, where X_s is any strange
hadronic state, is studied using a data sample of (382.8\pm 4.2) \times 10^6
e^+ e^- --> \Upsilon(4S) --> BBbar events collected by the BABAR experiment at
the PEP-II collider. The spectrum is used to measure the branching fraction B(B
--> X_s \gamma) = (3.21 \pm 0.15 \pm 0.29 \pm 0.08)\times 10^{-4} and the
first, second, and third moments = 2.267 \pm 0.019 \pm 0.032 \pm
0.003 GeV,, )^2> = 0.0484 \pm 0.0053 \pm 0.0077 \pm
0.0005 GeV^2, and )^3> = -0.0048 \pm 0.0011 \pm 0.0011
\pm 0.0004 GeV^3, for the range E_\gamma > 1.8 GeV, where E_{\gamma} is the
photon energy in the B-meson rest frame. Results are also presented for
narrower E_{\gamma} ranges. In addition, the direct CP asymmetry A_{CP}(B -->
X_{s+d} \gamma) is measured to be 0.057 \pm 0.063. The spectrum itself is also
unfolded to the B-meson rest frame; that is the frame in which theoretical
predictions for its shape are made.Comment: 37 pages, 19 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D. No
analysis or results have changed from previous version. Some changes to
improve clarity based on interactions with Phys. Rev. D referees, including
one new Figure (Fig. 13), and some minor wording/punctuation/spelling
mistakes fixe
Improved Limits on decays to invisible final states
We establish improved upper limits on branching fractions for B0 decays to
final States 10 where the decay products are purely invisible (i.e., no
observable final state particles) and for final states where the only visible
product is a photon. Within the Standard Model, these decays have branching
fractions that are below the current experimental sensitivity, but various
models of physics beyond the Standard Model predict significant contributions
for these channels. Using 471 million BB pairs collected at the Y(4S) resonance
by the BABAR experiment at the PEP-II e+e- storage ring at the SLAC National
Accelerator Laboratory, we establish upper limits at the 90% confidence level
of 2.4x10^-5 for the branching fraction of B0-->Invisible and 1.7x10^-5 for the
branching fraction of B0-->Invisible+gammaComment: 8 pages, 3 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. D (Rapid
Communications
Recommended from our members
Precise Measurement of the e+ e- --> pi+ pi- (gamma) Cross Section with the Initial-State Radiation Method at BABAR
A precise measurement of the cross section of the process
from threshold to an energy of 3GeV is obtained
with the initial-state radiation (ISR) method using 232fb of data
collected with the BaBar detector at center-of-mass energies near
10.6GeV. The ISR luminosity is determined from a study of the leptonic process
, which is found to agree with the
next-to-leading-order QED prediction to within 1.1%. The cross section for the
process is obtained with a systematic uncertainty
of 0.5% in the dominant resonance region. The leading-order hadronic
contribution to the muon magnetic anomaly calculated using the measured
cross section from threshold to 1.8GeV is .Comment: 58 pages, 56 figures, to be submitted to Phys. Rev.
Measurement of Branching Fractions and Rate Asymmetries in the Rare Decays B -> K(*) l+ l-
In a sample of 471 million BB events collected with the BABAR detector at the
PEP-II e+e- collider we study the rare decays B -> K(*) l+ l-, where l+ l- is
either e+e- or mu+mu-. We report results on partial branching fractions and
isospin asymmetries in seven bins of di-lepton mass-squared. We further present
CP and lepton-flavor asymmetries for di-lepton masses below and above the J/psi
resonance. We find no evidence for CP or lepton-flavor violation. The partial
branching fractions and isospin asymmetries are consistent with the Standard
Model predictions and with results from other experiments.Comment: 16 pages, 14 figures, accepted by Phys. Rev.
Branching fraction and form-factor shape measurements of exclusive charmless semileptonic B decays, and determination of |V_{ub}|
We report the results of a study of the exclusive charmless semileptonic
decays, B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu, B^+ --> pi^0 l^+ nu, B^+ --> omega l^+ nu, B^+ -->
eta l^+ nu and B^+ --> eta^' l^+ nu, (l = e or mu) undertaken with
approximately 462x10^6 B\bar{B} pairs collected at the Upsilon(4S) resonance
with the BABAR detector. The analysis uses events in which the signal B decays
are reconstructed with a loose neutrino reconstruction technique. We obtain
partial branching fractions in several bins of q^2, the square of the momentum
transferred to the lepton-neutrino pair, for B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu, B^+ --> pi^0
l^+ nu, B^+ --> omega l^+ nu and B^+ --> eta l^+ nu. From these distributions,
we extract the form-factor shapes f_+(q^2) and the total branching fractions
BF(B^0 --> pi^- l^+ nu) = (1.45 +/- 0.04_{stat} +/- 0.06_{syst})x10^-4
(combined pi^- and pi^0 decay channels assuming isospin symmetry), BF(B^+ -->
omega l^+ nu) = (1.19 +/- 0.16_{stat} +/- 0.09_{syst})x10^-4 and BF(B^+ --> eta
l^+ nu) = (0.38 +/- 0.05_{stat} +/- 0.05_{syst})x10^-4. We also measure BF(B^+
--> eta^' l^+ nu) = (0.24 +/- 0.08_{stat} +/- 0.03_{syst})x10^-4. We obtain
values for the magnitude of the CKM matrix element V_{ub} by direct comparison
with three different QCD calculations in restricted q^2 ranges of B --> pi l^+
nu decays. From a simultaneous fit to the experimental data over the full q^2
range and the FNAL/MILC lattice QCD predictions, we obtain |V_{ub}| = (3.25 +/-
0.31)x10^-3, where the error is the combined experimental and theoretical
uncertainty.Comment: 35 pages, 14 figures, submitted to PR
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