Unemployment Compensation (UC) and the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF): Funding UC Benefits

CRS_March_2005_Unemployment_Compensation_and_the_Unemployment_Trust_Fund.pdf: 743 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

Ecology of Water Relations in Plants

Water is an important resource for plant growth. Availability of water in the soil determines the niche, distribution and competitive interaction of plants in the environment

Canadian Home Total Parenteral Nutrition Registry: Preliminary Data on the Patient Population

BACKGROUND: Long-term administration of home total parenteral nutrition (HTPN) has permitted patients with chronic intestinal failure to survive for prolonged periods of time. However, HTPN is associated with numerous complications, all of which increase morbidity and mortality. In Canada, a comprehensive review of the HTPN population has never been performed. OBJECTIVES: To report on the demographics, current HTPN practice and related complications in the Canadian HTPN population. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study. Five HTPN programs in Canada participated. Patients’ data were entered by the programs’ TPN team into a Web site-based registry. A unique confidential record was created for each patient. Data were then downloaded into a Microsoft Excel (Microsoft Corp, USA) spreadsheet and imported into SPSS (SPSS Inc, USA) for statistical analysis. RESULTS: One hundred fifty patients were entered into the registry (37.9% men and 62.1% women). The mean (± SD) age was 53.0±14 years and the duration requiring HTPN was 70.1±78.1 months. The mean body mass index before the onset of HTPN was 19.8±5.0 kg/m(2). The primary indication for HTPN was short bowel syndrome (60%) secondary to Crohn’s disease (51.1%), followed by mesenteric ischemia (23.9%). Complications: over one year, 62.7% of patients were hospitalized at least once, with 44% of hospitalizations related to TPN. In addition, 28.6% of patients had at least one catheter sepsis (double-lumen more than single-lumen; P=0.025) and 50% had at least one catheter change. Abnormal liver enzymes were documented in 27.4% of patients and metabolic bone disease in 60% of patients, and the mean Karnofsky score was 63. CONCLUSIONS: In the present population sample, the data suggest that HTPN is associated with significant complications and health care utilization. These results support the use of a Canadian HTPN registry to better define the HTPN population, and to monitor complications for quality assurance and future research

Current practice, guideline adherence, and barriers to implementation for Achilles tendinopathy rehabilitation: a survey of physical therapists and people with Achilles tendinopathy.

OBJECTIVE: To explore clinical practice patterns of physical therapists (PTs) who treat people with Achilles tendinopathy (AT), and identify perceived barriers and facilitators for prescribing and engaging with therapeutic exercise among PTs and people with AT. METHODS: Two cross-sectional surveys were electronically distributed between November 2021 and May 2022; one survey was designed for PTs while the second was for people with AT. Survey respondents answered questions regarding their physical therapy training and current practice (PTs), injury history and management (people with AT), and perceived barriers and facilitators (PTs and people with AT). RESULTS: 341 PTs and 74 people with AT completed the surveys. In alignment with clinical practice guidelines, more than 94% of PTs surveyed (97% of whom had some form of advanced musculoskeletal training) prioritise patient education and therapeutic exercise. Patient compliance, patient knowledge, and the slow nature of recovery were barriers to prescribing therapeutic exercise reported by PTs, while time, physical resources, and a perceived lack of short-term treatment effectiveness were barriers for people with AT. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with clinical practice guidelines, PTs with advanced training reported prioritising therapeutic exercise and education for managing AT. However, both PTs and people with AT identified many barriers to prescribing or engaging with therapeutic exercise. By addressing misconceptions about the time burden and ineffectiveness of exercise, and by overcoming access issues to exercise space and equipment, PTs may be able to improve intervention adherence and subsequently outcomes for people with AT

Food insecurity in adults with severe mental illness living in Northern England: A co-produced cross-sectional study

This study aimed to explore food insecurity prevalence and experiences of adults with severe mental illness living in Northern England.MethodsThis mixed-methods cross-sectional study took place between March and October 2022. Participants were adults with self-reported severe mental illness living in Northern England. The survey included demographic, health, and financial questions. Food insecurity was measured using the US Department of Agriculture Adult Food Security measure. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression; and qualitative data using content analysis.ResultsIn total, 135 participants completed the survey, with a mean age of 44.7 years (SD: 14.1, range: 18–75 years). Participants were predominantly male (53.3%), white (88%) and from Yorkshire (50.4%). The food insecurity prevalence was 50.4% (n = 68). There was statistical significance in food insecurity status by region (p = 0.001); impacts of severe mental illness on activities of daily living (p = 0.02); and the Covid pandemic on food access (p < 0.001). The North West had the highest prevalence of food insecurity (73.3%); followed by the Humber and North East regions (66.7%); and Yorkshire (33.8%). In multivariable binary logistic regression, severe mental illness' impact on daily living was the only predictive variable for food insecurity (odds ratio = 4.618, 95% confidence interval: 1.071–19.924, p = 0.04).ConclusionThe prevalence of food insecurity in this study is higher than is reported in similar studies (41%). Mental health practitioners should routinely assess and monitor food insecurity in people living with severe mental illness. Further research should focus on food insecurity interventions in this population

Uncertainty of Forest Biomass Estimates in North Temperate Forests Due to Allometry: Implications for Remote Sensing

Estimates of above ground biomass density in forests are crucial for refining global climate models and understanding climate change. Although data from field studies can be aggregated to estimate carbon stocks on global scales, the sparsity of such field data, temporal heterogeneity and methodological variations introduce large errors. Remote sensing measurements from spaceborne sensors are a realistic alternative for global carbon accounting; however, the uncertainty of such measurements is not well known and remains an active area of research. This article describes an effort to collect field data at the Harvard and Howland Forest sites, set in the temperate forests of the Northeastern United States in an attempt to establish ground truth forest biomass for calibration of remote sensing measurements. We present an assessment of the quality of ground truth biomass estimates derived from three different sets of diameter-based allometric equations over the Harvard and Howland Forests to establish the contribution of errors in ground truth data to the error in biomass estimates from remote sensing measurements

Automatic Extrinsic Calibration of Vision and Lidar by Maximizing Mutual Information

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/112212/1/rob21542.pd

Identification of key residues essential for the structural fold and receptor selectivity within the A-chain of human gene-2 (H2) relaxin

Human gene-2 (H2) relaxin is currently in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of acute heart failure. It is a 53-amino acid insulin-like peptide comprising two chains and three disulfide bonds. It interacts with two of the relaxin family peptide (RXFP) receptors. Although its cognate receptor is RXFP1, it is also able to cross-react with RXFP2, the native receptor for a related peptide, insulin-like peptide 3. In order to understand the basis of this cross-reactivity, it is important to elucidate both binding and activation mechanisms of this peptide. The primary binding mechanism of this hormone has been extensively studied and well defined.H2relaxin binds to the leucine-rich repeats of RXFP1 and RXFP2 using B-chain-specific residues. However, little is known about the secondary interaction that involves the A-chain of H2 relaxin and transmembrane exoloops of the receptors. We demonstrate here through extensive mutation of the A-chain that the secondary interaction between H2 relaxin and RXFP1 is not driven by any single amino acid, although residues Tyr-3, Leu-20, and Phe-23 appear to contribute. Interestingly, these same three residues are important drivers of the affinity and activity of H2 relaxin for RXFP2 with additional minor contributions from Lys-9, His-12, Lys-17, Arg-18, and Arg-22. Our results provide new insights into the mechanism of secondary activation interaction of RXFP1 and RXFP2 by H2 relaxin, leading to a potent and RXFP1-selective analog, H2:A(4–24)(F23A), which was tested in vitro and in vivo and found to significantly inhibit collagen deposition similar to native H2 relaxin

The Lantern Vol. 41, No. 1, Fall 1974

• The Fable • Landscape - Clear Weather in the Valley • Josephine Palooka • Don\u27t Bark Twice - It\u27s All Right • Masks • Suicide Note From a Lemming • The Death of Dame Sexton • Come September • Leaves • Spruce Grove • The Class of \u2775 • The Promise • Images • Sixth Station • Borealis • To Gemhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/lantern/1105/thumbnail.jp

Food insecurity in adults with severe mental illness living in Northern England: A co-produced cross-sectional study

\ua9 2024 The Authors. Nutrition & Dietetics published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Dietitians Australia.Aim: This study aimed to explore food insecurity prevalence and experiences of adults with severe mental illness living in Northern England. Methods: This mixed-methods cross-sectional study took place between March and October 2022. Participants were adults with self-reported severe mental illness living in Northern England. The survey included demographic, health, and financial questions. Food insecurity was measured using the US Department of Agriculture Adult Food Security measure. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression; and qualitative data using content analysis. Results: In total, 135 participants completed the survey, with a mean age of 44.7 years (SD: 14.1, range: 18–75 years). Participants were predominantly male (53.3%), white (88%) and from Yorkshire (50.4%). The food insecurity prevalence was 50.4% (n = 68). There was statistical significance in food insecurity status by region (p = 0.001); impacts of severe mental illness on activities of daily living (p = 0.02); and the Covid pandemic on food access (p < 0.001). The North West had the highest prevalence of food insecurity (73.3%); followed by the Humber and North East regions (66.7%); and Yorkshire (33.8%). In multivariable binary logistic regression, severe mental illness\u27 impact on daily living was the only predictive variable for food insecurity (odds ratio = 4.618, 95% confidence interval: 1.071–19.924, p = 0.04). Conclusion: The prevalence of food insecurity in this study is higher than is reported in similar studies (41%). Mental health practitioners should routinely assess and monitor food insecurity in people living with severe mental illness. Further research should focus on food insecurity interventions in this population