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Novel rhodanine based molecular acceptor for organic solar cells
Get PDFThis is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.A dirhodanine-substituted benzothiadiazole compound has been synthesised using Knoevenagel condensation of a dialdehyde-substituted benzothiadiazole and rhodanine. The resulting compound was deep orange red in colour and shows a HOMO and LUMO levels of −5.61 and −3.85 eV respectively, which makes it suitable for applications such as acceptor for organic solar cells
Direct deposition of silver nanoplates on quartz surface by sequence pre-treatment hydroxylation and silanisation
Get PDFThis is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by/4.0/).Silver nanoparticles deposited on quartz substrates are widely used as SERS substrates. The nanoparticles can be deposited directly from colloidal solution by dipping technique. However, the adhesion of the particles on the quartz surface is very poor. Normally the substrate is pre-treated with hydroxylation or silanisation process. In this paper, we have demonstrated that the application of the sequence pre-treatment hydroxylation and silanisation have improved the density of silver nanoplates desposited on the quartz surface.
• Sequence hydroxylation and silanisation pre-treatment assists the deposition of the nanoplate on the surface.
• Various immersion times of the quartz surface into the colloidal nanoplates determined size distributions and density surface of the nanoplates on the surface.
Method name
Direct deposition of colloidal silver nanoplates on quartz surface using a self–assembly techniqu
Any changes in recent massive transfusion practices in a tertiary level institution?
Get PDFThis manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
This author accepted manuscript is made available following 12 month embargo from date of publication (June 2017) in accordance with the publisher’s archiving policyBackground & objectives
A previous review of transfusion practices in our institution between 1998 and 2008 showed a trend of high ratios of red cells (RC) to plasma (FFP) and platelets to RC towards the later years of review period. The aim of the study was to further evaluate transfusion practices in the form of blood product usage and outcomes following massive transfusion (MT)
Methods
All adult patients with critical bleeding who received a MT (defined as ≥10 units of RC in 24 h) in 2008 and between January 2010 and December 2014 were identified. Blood and blood products transfused, in-hospital mortality, 24 h and 90-day mortality were analysed for the period 2010–2014. Blood and blood product usage, massive transfusion protocol (MTP) activation and use of ROTEM between 2008 and 2014 were compared.
Results
A total of 190 MT including surgical (52.1%), gastro-intestinal bleeding (25.3%), trauma (11.6%) and obstetric haemorrhage (5.8%) episodes were identified between 2010 and 2014. The overall in-hospital mortality was 26.7% with a significant difference in 24 h (p = 0.04) and 90-day mortality (p = 0.02) between diagnostic groups. Comparing 2008 (n = 33) and 2014 (n = 23), there was no significant difference in median RC, FFP and platelet units, cryoprecipitate doses and RC:FFP ratio; however there was an increase in number of patients who used cryoprecipitate (54.5% vs 87%, p = 0.01).
Conclusion
Aligned with haemostatic resuscitation, the trend continues in the form of increased use of plasma and higher RC:FFP transfusion ratios including an increase in number of patients receiving cryoprecipitate
Recession, Recovery, Regeneration and Resilience: Newport and the creation of movement cultures
Get PDFThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.This article aligns theories of city imaging and physical cultural studies to probe the city of Newport. This ‘new’ city shares many cultural and economic characteristics with the rest of Wales, but also reveals some significant differences. We focus on and probe the movement policies and cultures in the city , understanding the relationship between bodies and economics, cities and health. Through this discussion, we weave analyses of resilience through the paper, recognising that regeneration focuses on constructing and renovating buildings. We investigate how regeneration and resilience disconnect, with particular consequences for health. P art of this challenge emerges because of the inability to align sport and event tourism with the promotion of walking programmes for residents. Regeneration and resilience connect once more. Creating movement cultures is difficult. The ambivalent success of Newport's policies and initiatives offers both insights and warnings to other small cities
Blending Formative and Summative Assessment in a Capstone Subject: ‘It’s not your tools, it’s how you use them
Get PDFJournal of University Teaching & Learning Practice is an Open Access publicationDiscussions about the relationships between formative and summative assessment have come full circle after decades of debate. For some time formative assessment with its emphasis on feedback to students was promoted as better practice than traditional summative assessment. Summative assessment practices were broadly criticised as distanced from the learning process. More recently discussions have refocused on the potential complementary characteristics of formative and summative purposes of assessment. However studies on practical designs to link formative and summative assessment in constructive ways are rare. In paramedic education, like many other professional disciplines, strong traditions of summative assessment - assessment ‘of’ learning - have long dominated. Communities require that a graduate has been judged fit to practice. The assessment redesign described and evaluated in this paper sought to rebalance assessment relationships in a capstone paramedic subject to integrate formative assessment for learning with summative assessment of learning. Assessment was repositioned as a communication process about learning. Through a variety of frequent assessment events, judgement of student performance is accompanied with rich feedback. Each assessment event provides information about learning, unique to each student’s needs. Each assessment event shaped subsequent assessment events. Student participants in the formal evaluation of the subject indicated high levels of perceived value and effectiveness on learning across each of the assessment events, with broad agreement also demonstrated relating to student perceptions for preparedness: ‘readiness to practice’. Our approach focused on linking assessment events, resulted in assessments providing formative communication to students and summative outcome information to others simultaneously. The formative-summative dichotomy disappeared: all assessment became part of communication about learning
Association between Malnutrition and 28-Day Mortality and Intensive Care Length-of-Stay in the Critically ill: A Prospective Cohort Study
Get PDFLicensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).There is limited evidence for the association between malnutrition and mortality as well as Intensive Care Unit length-of-stay (ICU-LOS) in critically ill patients. We aimed to examine the aforementioned associations by conducting a prospective cohort study in an ICU of a Singapore tertiary hospital. Between August 2015 and October 2016, all adult patients with ≥ 24 h of ICU-LOS were included. The 7-point Subjective Global Assessment (7-point SGA) was used to determine patients’ nutritional status within 48 h of ICU admission. Multivariable regressions were conducted in two ways: (1) presence versus absence of malnutrition, and (2) dose-dependent association for each 1-point decrease in the 7-point SGA. There were 439 patients of which 28.0% were malnourished, and the 28-day mortality rate was 28.0%. Malnutrition was associated with an increased risk of 28-day mortality (adjusted Relative Risk 1.33 (95% Confidence Interval: 1.05–1.69)), and this risk increased with a greater degree of malnutrition (adjusted Relative Risk 1.08 (95% Confidence Interval: 1.00–1.16) for each 1-point decrease in the 7-point SGA). No significant association was found between malnutrition and ICU-LOS. The results of this study indicated a clear association between malnutrition and higher 28-day mortality in critically ill patients. The association between malnutrition and ICU-LOS could not be replicated and hence requires further evaluation. View Full-Tex
Upper Gastrointestinal Function in Morbidly Obese Adolescents before and Six Months after Gastric Banding
Get PDF“This is a pre-print of an article published in Obesity Surgery. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11695-017-3000-3”.
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2017
This author accepted manuscript is made available following 12 month embargo from date of publication (Nov 2017) in accordance with the publisher’s archiving policyBackground
The effects of laparoscopic adjustable gastric band (LAGB) placement on upper gastrointestinal tract function in obese adolescents are unknown. Therefore, our aim was to determine the short-term effects of LAGB on esophageal motility, gastroesophageal reflux, gastric emptying, appetite-regulatory hormones, and perceptions of post-prandial hunger and fullness.
Methods
This study was part of a prospective cohort study (March 2009–December 2015) in one tertiary referral hospital. The study included obese adolescents (14–18 years) with a body mass index (BMI) > 40 (or ≥ 35 with comorbidities). Gastric emptying was assessed by 13C-octanoic acid breath test, pharyngeal, and esophageal motor function by high-resolution manometry with impedance (HRIM), and appetite and other perceptions using 100-mm visual analogue scales. Dysphagia symptoms were scored using a Dakkak questionnaire. Data were compared pre- and post-LAGB placement and at a 6-month follow-up.
Results
Based upon analysis of 15 adolescents, at the 6-month follow-up, LAGB placement: (i) led to a significant reduction in weight and BMI; (ii) increased fullness and decreased hunger post-meal; (iii) increased symptoms of dysphagia after solid food; and, despite these effects, (iv) caused little or no changes to appetite hormones, while (v) effects on gastric emptying, esophageal motility, esophageal bolus transport, and esophageal emptying were not significant.
Conclusion
In adolescents, LAGB improved BMI and altered the sensitivity to nutrients without significant effects on upper gastrointestinal tract physiology at the 6-month follow-up
Biomechanical Quantification of Mendelsohn Maneuver and Effortful Swallowing on Pharyngoesophageal Function
Get PDFCopyright © 2018 by Official journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation. Reprinted by permission of SAGE PublicationsObjective: To quantify the effects of 2 swallowing maneuvers used in dysphagia rehabilitation—the Mendelsohn maneuver and effortful swallowing—on pharyngoesophageal function with novel, objective pressure-flow analysis.
Study Design: Evaluation of intervention effects in a healthy control cohort.
Setting: A pharyngoesophageal motility research laboratory in a tertiary education facility.
Subjects: Twelve young healthy subjects (9 women, 28.6 ± 7.9 years) from the general public, without swallowing impairment, volunteered to participate in this study.
Methods: Surface electromyography from the floor-of-mouth musculature and high-resolution impedance manometry–based pressure flow analysis were used to assess floor-of-mouth activation and pharyngoesophageal motility, respectively. Subjects each performed 10 noneffortful control swallows, Mendelsohn maneuver swallows, and effortful swallows, with a 5-mL viscous bolus. Repeated measures analyses of variance was used to compare outcome measures across conditions.
Results: Effortful and Mendelsohn swallows generated greater floor-of-mouth contraction (P = .001) and pharyngeal pressure (P < .0001) when compared with control swallows. There were no changes at the level of the upper esophageal sphincter, except for a faster opening to maximal diameter during maneuver swallows (P = .01). The proximal esophageal contractile integral was reduced during Mendelsohn swallows (P = .001).
Conclusion: Effortful and Mendelsohn maneuver swallows significantly alter the pharyngoesophageal pressure profile. Faster opening of the upper esophageal sphincter may facilitate bolus transfer during maneuver swallows; however, reduced proximal esophageal contractility during Mendelsohn maneuver swallows may impair bolus flow and aggravate dysphagic symptoms
Assessing the health impact of transnational corporations: a case study on McDonald’s Australia
Get PDFThis article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were mad
Primary health care reform, dilemmatic space and risk of burnout among health workers
No full textHealth system changes may increase primary health care workers’ dilemmatic space, created when reforms contravene professional values. Dilemmatic space may be a risk factor for burnout. This study partnered with six Australian primary health care services (in South Australia: four state government–managed services including one Aboriginal health team and one non-government organisation and in Northern Territory: one Aboriginal community–controlled service) during a period of change and examined workers’ dilemmatic space and incidence of burnout. Dilemmatic space and burnout were assessed in a survey of 130 staff across the six services (58% response rate). Additionally, 63 interviews were conducted with practitioners, managers, regional executives and health department staff. Dilemmatic space occurred across all services and was associated with higher rates of self-reported burnout. Three conditions associated with dilemmatic space were (1) conditions inherent in comprehensive primary health care, (2) stemming from service provision for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and (3) changes wrought by reorientation to selective primary health care in South Australia. Responses to dilemmatic space included ignoring directives or doing work ‘under the radar’, undertaking alternative work congruent with primary health care values outside of hours, or leaving the organisation. The findings show that comprehensive primary health care was contested and political. Future health reform processes would benefit from considering alignment of changes with staff values to reduce negative effects of the reform and safeguard worker wellbeing