A Review of Papua New Guinea's Red Meat Industry

Livestock Production/Industries,

TRIDENT 1 third stage motor separation system

The third stage engine separation system has shown through test and analysis that it can effectively and reliably perform its function. The weight of the hardware associated with this system is well within the targeted value

On solving trust-region and other regularised subproblems in optimization

The solution of trust-region and regularisation subproblems which arise in unconstrained optimization is considered. Building on the pioneering work of Gay, Mor´e and Sorensen, methods which obtain the solution of a sequence of parametrized linear systems by factorization are used. Enhancements using high-order polynomial approximation and inverse iteration ensure that the resulting method is both globally and asymptotically at least superlinearly convergent in all cases, including in the notorious hard case. Numerical experiments validate the effectiveness of our approach. The resulting software is available as packages TRS and RQS as part of the GALAHAD optimization library, and is especially designed for large-scale problems

Cooperation after War: International Development in Bosnia, 1995 to 1999

This paper discusses how predispositions, incentives, the number and heterogeneity of participants, and leadership (Faerman et al. 2001) jointly influenced the international effort to develop Bosnia and Herzegovina. International coalitions, task forces, and advisory groups are increasingly charged with implementing reforms following civil conflict. This requires a complex web of interorganizational relationships among NGOS, donors and host nations at both global and ‘ground’ levels. To better understand development assistance, attention must be paid to the relationships between these varied players. We find that four factors influenced relationships between policy, donor, and implementing organizations; and those strained relationships, in turn, affected development success. The paper draws on interviews, conducted in Bosnia, with 43 development professionals, observation of development meetings in Tuzla and Sarajevo, and review of related documents from international development programs.international development, interorganizational relationships and cooperation

The Australian experiment: the use of evidence based medicine for the reimbursement of surgical and diagnostic procedures (1998–2004)

BACKGROUND: In 1998 a formal process using the criteria of safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness (evidence based medicine) on the introduction and use of new medical procedures was implemented in Australia. As part of this process an expert panel, the Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC) was set up. This paper examines the effectiveness of this process based on the original criteria, that is, evidence based medicine. METHOD: The data for this analysis was sourced primarily from that made available in the public domain. The MSAC web site provided Minutes from MSAC meetings; Annual Reports; Assessment and Review reports; Progress status; and Archived material. RESULTS: The total number of applications submitted to the MSAC has been relatively low averaging approximately only fourteen per year. Additionally, the source of applications has quickly shifted to the medical devices, equipment and diagnostic industry as being the major source of applications. An overall average time for the processing of an application is eighteen months. Negative recommendations were in most cases based on insufficient clinical evidence rather than clinical evidence that clearly demonstrated a lack of clinical effectiveness. It was rare for a recommendation, either positive or negative, to be based on cost-effectiveness. CONCLUSION: New medical procedures are often the result of a process of experimentation rather than formally conducted research. Affordability and the question of who should pay for the generation, collection and analysis of the clinical evidence is perhaps the most difficult to answer. This is especially the case where the new procedure is the result of a process of experimentation with an old procedure. A cost-effective way needs to be found to collect acceptable levels of evidence proving the clinical effectiveness of these new procedures, otherwise the formal processes of evaluation such as that used by the Australian MSAC since 1998 will continue to run the risk of committing Type II errors, that is, denying access to medical procedures that are beneficial and efficient

Attempting to validate the over/under triage matrix at a level I trauma center.

The Optimal Resources Document (ORD) mandates trauma activation based on injury mechanism, physiologic and anatomic criteria and recommends using the over/undertriage matrix (Matrix) to evaluate the appropriateness of trauma team activation. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the Matrix method by comparing patients appropriately triaged with those undertriaged. We hypothesized that these two groups are different and Matrix does not discriminate the needs or outcomes of these different groups of patients.Trauma registry data, from 1/2013-12/2015, at a Level I trauma center were reviewed. Over and undertriage rates were calculated by Matrix. Patients with ISS ≥16 were classified by activation level (full, limited, consultation), and triage category by Matrix. Patients in the limited activation and consultation groups were compared to patients with full activation by demographics, injuries, initial vital signs, procedures, delays to procedure, ICU admission, length of stay, and mortality.7031 patients met activation criteria. Compliance with ACS tiered activation criteria was 99%. The Matrix overtriage rate was 45% and undertriage was 24%. Of 2282 patients with an ISS ≥16, 1026 were appropriately triaged (full activation), and 1256 were under triaged. Undertriaged patients had better GCS, blood pressure, and BD than patients with full activation. ICU admission, hospital stays, and mortality were lower in the undertriaged group. The under triaged group required fewer operative interventions with fewer delays to procedure.Despite having an ISS ≥ 16, patients with limited activations were dissimilar to patients with full activation. Level of activation and triage are not equivalent. The ACS-COT full and tiered activation criteria are a robust means to have the appropriate personnel present based on available pre-hospital information. Evaluation of the process of care, regardless of level of activation should be used to evaluate trauma center performance.Level III Therapeutic and Care managementThis is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives License 4.0 (CCBY-NC-ND), where it is permissible to download and share the work provided it is properly cited. The work cannot be changed in any way or used commercially without permission from the journal

Strategies to increase parent participation in IEP conferences

This is the publisher's version, also found here: http://sped.org

The Turtle Head Immobilization System (THIS): A Tool for Faster and Safer Handling and Processing of Aggressive Turtle Species

The turtle head immobilization tool (THIS) is an efficient and cost effective tool to aid in the processing of large, aggressive turtles such as the Eastern Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina). THIS aids in the reduction of aggressive behaviors by calming the animal during processing and minimizing injuries to the turtle and handlers. This simple tool also streamlines the processing itself, by allowing researchers to focus on measurements and markings, instead of having to maintain the constant vigilance often needed to work safely around these animals