Assessing fitness-to-practice of overseas-trained health practitioners by Australian registration & accreditation bodies

Assessment of fitness-to-practice of health professionals trained overseas and who wish to practice in Australia is undertaken by a range of organisations. These organisations conduct assessments using a range of methods. However there is very little published about how these organisations conduct their assessments. The purpose of the current paper is to investigate the methods of assessment used by these organisations and the issues associated with conducting these assessments

African Swine Fever Virus: a new old enemy of Europe

African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious viral disease of swine with a mortality rate approaching 100 percent. African Swine Fever Virus (ASFV) is a double-stranded DNA virus with a complex molecular structure. Its large genome, encoding multiple virulence factors, allows for efficient replication, which takes place predominantly in the cytoplasm of monocytes and macrophages. Also, ASFV has the ability to interfere with cell signalling pathways, which leads to various modulations in the synthesis profiles of interferon and other cytokines. Sustained viremia favours the persistence of virions in blood and tissues of the convalescents, and the extended circulation of ASFV within the herd. ASFV has been spreading in the Caucasus since 2007, and in 2014 reached the eastern territory of the European Union. Outbreaks pose an economical threat to native pig rearing, especially since a single point source may easily develop into an epizootic event. There is currently no effective vaccine nor treatment for ASF, and eradication is possible only by prevention or the slaughter of diseased animals. This review paper summarizes the current state of knowledge about ASFV

Photoimageable thick-film microwave structures up to 18 GHz

The increasing interest in new wireless applications is creating demand for low cost, high performance microwave hybrid circuits. Offering the inherent advantages of thick-film technology such as low manufacturing costs and feasibility for mass production, recent improvements in thick film materials and processing techniques broadens the frequency range where ceramic thick-film circuits can be used and allow current thick-film technology to reach beyond its previous limitations and enter the domain reserved in the past for thin film technology. This paper discusses the advanced thick-film technique called photoimageable thick-film technology that uses photosensitive conductor and dielectric pastes and photoimaging as a method of patterning for manufacturing microwave hybrids operating in the frequency range up to 18 GHz