E864: Experimental Results on Exotic Nuclei and Rare Probes

Experiment 864 at the BNL-AGS was designed to search for exotic states of strange quark matter and other rare composite particles. The experiment was commissioned in 1994 and completed its final run in 1998. Here, we present an overview of the experimental results for the production of light nuclei up to A=7, antiprotons and antideuterons, hypernuclei and production limits on new states of quark matter.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, quark matter 1999 conference proceeding

Sovereign Wealth Funds and Global Justice

Dozens of countries have established Sovereign Wealth Funds in the last decade or so, in the majority of cases employing those funds to manage the large revenues gained from selling resources such as oil and gas on a tide of rapidly rising commodity prices. These funds have raised a series of ethical questions, including just how the money contained in such funds should eventually be spent. This article engages with that question, and specifically seeks to connect debates on SWFs with debates on global justice. Just how good are national claims to the great wealth contained in SWFs in the first place? Using the example of Norway's very large SWF – derived from selling North-Sea petroleum – I show that national claims are at least sometimes very weak, with the implication that the wealth in many such funds is ripe for redistribution in the interests of global justice. I conclude by offering some guidance for how the money contained in such funds could best be spent, with the goal of advancing global justice

Contributing to a “culture of safety” by increasing usage of the drug library on smart infusion pumps: A Quality Improvement Project

Background: Computerized infusion devices called smart infusion pumps or smart pumps are clinical tools capable of decreasing IV medication infusion calculation errors through the use of embedded drug libraries. These devices are now important tools contributing to a “culture of safety” defined by the Joint Commission. Reports from April 2015 indicated a 22% occurrence rate in which the devices were not correctly programmed before infusion. AIM Statement: The global aim of this quality improvement project was to improve usage of the IV pump drug library by ensuring medication is correctly labeled before infusion. The specific aim was to increase the IV pump drug library usage from 78% to 90% by July 24, 2015. Method: Kurt Lewin’s Change Theory was used as the theoretical framework to guide the project and usage of the IV pump drug library on a 30 bed surgical unit. A pre- intervention Likert style survey was conducted to identify barriers to library usage, determine level of confidence with the library, and understand nurses’ ability to find a medication in the library. Meetings with the Unit Practice Council (UPC) and educational huddles were conducted to discuss correct usage of the drug library. Based on pharmacy reports, the menu of drugs displayed in the pump was changed to reflect the top ten most frequently used medications. Post-intervention pharmacy reports were compared to baseline. Results: Data from the pre-intervention survey and staff meetings indicated a knowledge deficit in correct usage of the IV pump drug library and perceptions of time constraints and inability to find medication as barriers to its usage. Data post “pump push” indicated the usage of the drug library was 84.2%. Conclusions: Implementation of educational huddles and a “pump push” was anticipated to increase the percentage of IV pump drug library usage. Implications for the role of the Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) are explored and discussed