Day-Ahead Solar Forecasting Based on Multi-level Solar Measurements

The growing proliferation in solar deployment, especially at distribution level, has made the case for power system operators to develop more accurate solar forecasting models. This paper proposes a solar photovoltaic (PV) generation forecasting model based on multi-level solar measurements and utilizing a nonlinear autoregressive with exogenous input (NARX) model to improve the training and achieve better forecasts. The proposed model consists of four stages of data preparation, establishment of fitting model, model training, and forecasting. The model is tested under different weather conditions. Numerical simulations exhibit the acceptable performance of the model when compared to forecasting results obtained from two-level and single-level studies

Correlation between quality of healthcare and safety culture in Saudi Arabia organizations

Background: The current study aimed to examine the association between hospital nurses’ attitudes about the safety culture and patients’ views about the quality of healthcare services delivered to them during their hospitalization. Methods: This study was cross section study as well as adopted the correlational design. The study used the hospital survey on patient safety culture to assess nurses’ perceptions about the safety culture, and the consumer assessment of healthcare providers and systems survey to assess patients’ experience of care. The current study was conducted in a tertiary healthcare organization in Riyadh city in Saudi Arabia. Results: The response rates for nurses and patients were 79% and 80%, respectively. In nurses’ sample, the majority 92.9% was female and 90.6% was non-Saudi; while 43.5% of patients were male and the majority was Saudi 97.1%. More than half of the nurses 57.2% were married and 35.4% identified themselves as single. On the other hand, the majority of patients 81.5% were married and 48.7% of patients had a diploma or high school or less. Conclusions: The results of canonical correlation analysis showed positive and strong correlations between nurses’ perceptions of safety culture (facilitators and threats to patient safety) and patients’ perceptions of quality of healthcare (interpersonal care communication and technical quality of care). The canonical variates for both root pairs (canonical correlation coefficients = 0.89 and 0.81). This finding clearly proves that in workplaces where staffs have more positive perceptions of patient safety culture, patients have more positive experiences of care

Moral dilemma: is there a moral difference between killing and letting die in healthcare?

The purpose of this paper was to prove that there was no moral difference between killing and letting one die in healthcare. It was important to be aware of the moral equivalence of killing and letting die. The Abrahamic religions; Islam, Christianity and Judaism, all argue for the sanctity of life. The world’s major religions Islam, Christianity and Judaism all have doctrines concerning the sanctity of life and they support the main arguments of this paper that there is no moral difference between killing and letting die. In relation to patient autonomy and the patient's right to die, it is very important to highlight that doctors have a moral and legal responsibility to save lives. In addition, we discussed the distinction centres on the true definition of patient autonomy and who was responsible for defining the quality of life. The intention and foresight were critical points that supported the thesis statement that killing and letting one die were one in the same. The acts and omissions doctrine as described in this paper showed that there were no moral difference to kill a person or to let him die. Finally, we extensively discussed the various viewpoints regarding whether or not there was a moral difference between killing and letting die. There is no doubt that the debate over killing and letting die will continue for years to come. It is critical that the issue be addressed at this particular time in history with the advent of modern medical technology

Evaluate the adequacy of disclosure as a solution to the problem of conflict of interest in medical research

A potential risk of conflict of interest currently exists in research.  The financial considerations play a greater role in the decisions that are necessary in the process of research. Traditional pharmaceutical companies began to invest, not just in the commercial development of biomedical discoveries for the marketplace, but in the research centres that could deliver the discoveries.  Cooperation and interdependence between industry and research institutions is not inherently wrong, but these unions must be regulated and managed through regulatory mechanisms. When a financial relationship is been disclosed, it would be closely evaluated in order to determine the risk of an undue influence leading to bias, or loss of scientific objectivity. To sum up, a conflict of interest is a potential, but not a certain occurrence. Banning funding for university research by industry is unrealistic.  The only effective way to proceed is to implement oversight and regulation that makes both industry funding entities and researchers aware that their activities will be monitored for the benefit of public safety as the more valued concern

Trends of Hospital Admissions Due to Congenital Anomalies in England and Wales between 1999 and 2019: An Ecological Study

Objectives: To investigate the trends in congenital anomalies-related hospital admissions in England and Wales. Methods: This was an ecological study that was conducted using hospital admission data taken from the Hospital Episode Statistics database in England and the Patient Episode Database for Wales. Congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities hospital admissions data were extracted for the period between April 1999 and March 2019. Results: Hospital admission rate increased by 4.9% [from 198.74 (95% CI 197.53–199.94) in 1999 to 208.55 (95% CI 207.39–209.71) in 2019 per 100,000 persons, trend test, p < 0.01]. The most common hospital admissions causes were congenital malformations of the circulatory system, the musculoskeletal system, genital organs, and the digestive system. The most notable increase in hospital admissions rate was observed in congenital malformations of the respiratory system (1.01-fold). The age group below 15 years accounted for 75.1% of the total number of hospital admissions. Males contributed to 57.5% of the whole number of hospital admission. Hospital admission rate between females was increased by 6.4% [from 162.63 (95% CI 161.10–164.16) in 1999 to 173.05 (95% CI 171.57–174.54) in 2019 per 100,000 persons]. Hospital admission rate between males was increased by 3.4% [from 236.61 (95% CI 234.72–238.50) in 1999 to 244.70 (95% CI 242.92–246.49) in 2019 per 100,000 persons]. Conclusions: Males had a higher percentage of hospitalisation compared to females. Further studies to investigate the factors associated with higher hospitalisation rate among males are needed