64,142 research outputs found
Does hospital competition harm equity? Evidence from the English National Health Service
No full textWorking Pape
Measuring change in health care equity using small area administrative data – evidence from the English NHS 2001-8
No full textThis study developed a method for measuring change in socio-economic equity in health care utilisation using small area level administrative data. Our method provides more detailed information on utilisation than survey data but only examines socio-economic differences between neighbourhoods rather than individuals. The context was the English NHS from 2001 to 2008, a period of accelerated expenditure growth and pro-competition reform. Hospital records for all adults receiving non-emergency hospital care in the English NHS from 2001 to 2008 were aggregated to 32,482 English small areas with mean population about 1,500 and combined with other small area administrative data. Regression models of utilisation were used to examine year-on-year change in the small area association between deprivation and utilisation, allowing for population size, age-sex composition and disease prevalence including (from 2003-8) cancer, chronic kidney disease, coronary heart disease, diabetes, epilepsy, hypertension, hypothyroidism, stroke, transient ischaemic attack and (from 2006-8) atrial fibrillation, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, obesity and heart failure. There was no substantial change in small area associations between deprivation and utilisation for outpatient visits, hip replacement, senile cataract, gastroscopy or coronary revascularisation, though overall non-emergency inpatient admissions rose slightly faster in more deprived areas than elsewhere. Associations between deprivation and disease prevalence changed little during the period, indicating that observed need did not grow faster in more deprived areas than elsewhere. We conclude that there was no substantial deterioration in socio-economic equity in health care utilisation in the English NHS from 2001 to 2008, and if anything, there may have been a slight improvement
Myxococcus vastator Chambers & Sparks & Sydney & Livingstone & Cookson & Whitworth 2020, sp. nov.
No full textMyxococcus vastator sp. nov. Myxococcus vastator (vas.ta’tor L. masc. n. vastator the ravager, after its ability to devastate colonies of prey cells). Vegetative cells are Gram-negative bacilli tapering slightly at the ends, measuring 0.6–0.7 m m 3.0–6.0 m m in electron micrographs. Colonies exhibit swarming motility and appear pale brown on VY-2 agar (w/v 0.5% dried baker’s yeast, 0.1% CaCl 2 2H 2 O, and 1.5% agar). Fruiting bodies are irregular spheroids, orange in color. Aerobic growth was observed at 30 C and at pH 8.0–9.0. Growth was unaffected by the addition of 1% NaCl. Hydrolyzes arginine and urea. Assimilates malate. Cells prey with low efficiency upon E. coli TOP 10, Cl. nebraskensis DSM 7483, and U. maydis DSM 14603. DNA GC content is 69.9 mol%. The draft genome sequence of AM301 T is available from GenBank (accession JAAIYB01). The type strain (AM301 T ¼ NCCB 100768 T ¼ NBBC 114352 T) was isolated from soil collected in the parish of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwlll lantysiliogogogoch, UK (gridref 53.22 N 4.19 W).Published as part of Chambers, James, Sparks, Natalie, Sydney, Natashia, Livingstone, Paul G, Cookson, Alan R & Whitworth, David E, 2020, Comparative Genomics and Pan-Genomics of the Myxococcaceae, including a Description of Five Novel Species: Myxococcus eversor sp. nov., Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis sp. nov., Myxococcus vastator sp. nov., Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis sp. nov., and Pyxidicoccus trucidator sp. nov., pp. 2289-2302 in Genome Biology and Evolution 12 (12) on page 2300, DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa212, http://zenodo.org/record/456162
Effects of the Blair/Brown NHS reforms on socioeconomic equity in health care
No full textThe central objectives of the ‘Blair/Brown’ reforms of the English NHS in the 2000s were to reduce hospital waiting times and improve the quality of care. However, critics raised concerns that the choice and competition elements of reform might undermine socioeconomic equity in health care. By contrast, the architects of reform predicted that accelerated growth in NHS spending combined with increased patient choice of hospital would enhance equity for poorer patients. This paper draws together and discusses the findings of three large-scale national studies designed to shed empirical light on this issue. Study one developed methods for monitoring change in neighbourhood level socioeconomic equity in the utilization of health care, and found no substantial change in equity between 2001–02 and 2008–09 for non-emergency hospital admissions, outpatient admissions (from 2004–05) and a basket of specific hospital procedures (hip replacement, senile cataract, gastroscopy and coronary revascularization). Study two found that increased competition between 2003–04 and 2008–09 had no substantial effect on socioeconomic equity in health care. Study three found that potential incentives for public hospitals to select against socioeconomically-disadvantaged hip replacement patients were small, compared with incentives to select against elderly and co-morbid patients. Taken together, these findings suggest that the Blair/Brown reforms had little effect on socioeconomic equity in health care. This may be because the ‘dose’ of competition was small and most hospital services continued to be provided by public hospitals which did not face strong incentives to select against socioeconomically-disadvantaged patients
Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis Chambers, Sparks, Sydney, Livingstone, Cookson & Whitworth, 2020, sp. nov.
No full textMyxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis sp. nov. Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis, (llan.fair.pwll.gwyn.gyll.gog.er.ych.wyrn.dro.bwllll.ant.ysil.iog.ogogoch.en’sis. N.L. masc. adj. llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogo chensis, pertaining to llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, reflecting its isolation from soil collected in that parish [gridref 53.22 N 4.19 W]). Vegetative cells are Gram-negative bacilli tapering slightly at the ends, measuring 0.4–0.6 m m 4.0–7.0 m m in electron micrographs. Colonies exhibit swarming motility and appear pale brown on VY-2 agar (w/v 0.5% dried baker’s yeast, 0.1% CaCl 2 2H 2 O, and 1.5% agar). Fruiting bodies are irregular spheroids, orange in color. Aerobic growth was observed at 30 and 35 C and at pH 5.0–9.0. Growth was unaffected by the addition of 1–4% NaCl. Hydrolyzes esculin, gelatin, p -nitrophenyl- B -D- galactopyranoside, and urea. Assimilates N -acetyl-glucosamine, adipate, arabinose, glucose, malate, maltose, mannitol, mannose, and phenyl acetate. Cells prey with low efficiency upon E. coli TOP 10, Cl. nebraskensis DSM 7483, and U. maydis. DNA GC content is 68.7 mol%. The draft genome sequence of AM 401 T is available from GenBank (accession VIFM 01). The type strain (AM401 T ¼ NBRC 114351 T ¼ NBBC 100770 T) was isolated from soil collected in the parish of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgo gerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, UK (gridref 53.22 N 4.19 W).Published as part of Chambers, James, Sparks, Natalie, Sydney, Natashia, Livingstone, Paul G, Cookson, Alan R & Whitworth, David E, 2020, Comparative Genomics and Pan-Genomics of the Myxococcaceae, including a Description of Five Novel Species: Myxococcus eversor sp. nov., Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis sp. nov., Myxococcus vastator sp. nov., Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis sp. nov., and Pyxidicoccus trucidator sp. nov., pp. 2289-2302 in Genome Biology and Evolution 12 (12) on page 2300, DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa212, http://zenodo.org/record/456162
Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis Chambers & Sparks & Sydney & Livingstone & Cookson & Whitworth 2020, sp. nov.
No full textPyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis sp. nov. Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis (caer.fyrdd.in.en’sis N.L. masc. adj. caerfyrddinensis from Caerfyrddin, reflecting its isolation from soil sampled near Carmarthen [the Anglicized name for Caerfyrddin], Wales [51.86 N 4.31 W]). Vegetative cells are Gram-negative bacilli tapering slightly at the ends, measuring 0.7–0.8 m m 3.0–8.0 m m in electron micrographs. Colonies exhibit swarming motility and appear pale brown on VY-2 agar (w/v 0.5% dried baker’s yeast, 0.1% CaCl 2 2H 2 O, and 1.5% agar). Fruiting bodies are irregular spheroids, orange in color. Aerobic growth was observed at 30–40 C and at pH 6.0–9.0. Growth was unaffected by the addition of 1–3% NaCl. Hydrolyzes arginine, esculin, gelatin, p -nitrophenyl- B - D- galactopyranoside, and urea. Cells prey efficiently on Cl. nebraskensis DSM 7483, and with low efficiency upon E. coli TOP 10 and U. maydis DSM 14603. DNA GC content is 70.2 mol%. The draft genome sequence of CA032 A T is available from GenBank (accession JAAIYA01). The type strain (CA032 A T ¼ NCCB 100776 T ¼ NBBC 114353 T) was isolated from soil collected in Carmarthen, UK (gridref 51.86 N 4.31 W).Published as part of Chambers, James, Sparks, Natalie, Sydney, Natashia, Livingstone, Paul G, Cookson, Alan R & Whitworth, David E, 2020, Comparative Genomics and Pan-Genomics of the Myxococcaceae, including a Description of Five Novel Species: Myxococcus eversor sp. nov., Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis sp. nov., Myxococcus vastator sp. nov., Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis sp. nov., and Pyxidicoccus trucidator sp. nov., pp. 2289-2302 in Genome Biology and Evolution 12 (12) on page 2301, DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa212, http://zenodo.org/record/456162
The influence of season, agricultural management, and soil properties on gross nitrogen transformations and bacterial community structure
No full textThe aim of this study was to assess the influence of season, farm management (organic, biodynamic, integrated, and conventional), and soil chemical, physical, and biological properties on gross nitrogen (N) fluxes and bacterial community structure in the semi-arid region of Western Australia. Moisture availability was the dominant factor mediating microbial activity and carbon (C) and N cycling under this climate. In general, microbial biomass N, dissolved organic N, and potentially mineralisable N were greater in organic and biodynamic than integrated and conventional soil. Our results indicate that greater silt and clay content in organic and biodynamic soil may also partly explain these differences in soil N pools, rather than management alone. Although plant-available N (NH4+ + NO3–) was greater in conventional soil, this was largely the result of higher NO3– production. Multiple linear modelling indicated that soil temperature, moisture, soil textural classes, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and C and N pools were important in predicting gross N fluxes. Redundancy analysis revealed that bacterial community structure, assessed by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of 16S rDNA, was correlated with C and N pools and fluxes, confirming links between bacterial structure and function. Bacterial community structure was also correlated with soil textural classes and soil temperature but not soil moisture. These results indicate that across this semi-arid landscape, soil bacterial communities are relatively resistant to water stress.W. R. Cookson, P. Marschner, I. M. Clark, N. Milton, M. N. Smirk, D. V. Murphy, M. Osman, E. A. Stockdale and P. R. Hirsc
Myxococcus eversor Chambers & Sparks & Sydney & Livingstone & Cookson & Whitworth 2020, sp. nov.
No full text<p> <i>Myxococcus eversor</i> sp. nov.</p> <p> <i>Myxococcus eversor</i> (e.ver’sor L. masc. n. <i>eversor</i> the destroyer, reflecting its destruction of prey cells).</p> <p> Vegetative cells are Gram-negative bacilli tapering slightly at the ends, measuring 0.6–0.7 <b>m</b> m 3.0–8.0 <b>m</b> m in electron micrographs. Colonies exhibit swarming motility and appear pale brown on VY-2 agar (w/v 0.5% dried baker’s yeast, 0.1% CaCl 2 2H 2 O, and 1.5% agar). Fruiting bodies are irregular spheroids, orange in color. Aerobic growth was observed at 30–40 C, at pH 5.0–9.0, and with the addition of 1–4% NaCl. Hydrolyzes arginine, esculin, gelatin, <i>p</i> -nitrophenyl- <i>B</i> -D-galactopyranoside, and urea. Assimilates <i>N</i> -acetyl-glucosamine, adipate, arabinose, caprate, citrate, gluconate, glucose, malate, maltose, mannitol, mannose, and phenyl acetate. Cells prey with low efficiency upon <i>E. coli</i> TOP 10, <i>Cl. nebraskensis</i> DSM 7483, and <i>U. maydis</i> DSM 14603.</p> <p> DNA GC content is 68.9 mol%. The draft genome sequence of AB053B T is available from GenBank (accession JAAIXY01). The type strain (AB053B T <b>¼</b> NCCB 100767 T <b>¼</b> T NBRC 114350) was isolated from soil collected from Aberystwyth University, UK (gridref 52.41 N 4.08 W).</p>Published as part of <i>Chambers, James, Sparks, Natalie, Sydney, Natashia, Livingstone, Paul G, Cookson, Alan R & Whitworth, David E, 2020, Comparative Genomics and Pan-Genomics of the Myxococcaceae, including a Description of Five Novel Species: Myxococcus eversor sp. nov., Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis sp. nov., Myxococcus vastator sp. nov., Pyxidicoccus caerfyrddinensis sp. nov., and Pyxidicoccus trucidator sp. nov., pp. 2289-2302 in Genome Biology and Evolution 12 (12)</i> on page 2300, DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evaa212, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/4561628">http://zenodo.org/record/4561628</a>
Clues to the kludonometer
No full textMaria-Theresia Walach, Melanie Cookson-Carter and Rachel Roberts discuss the life work of Captain William Nelson Greenwood, whose legacy includes a mysterious tide calculato
Thermal expansion anomalies of R(Fe, M)(12) (R=Y, Nd; M=Mo and Si)
No full textStructural and thermal-expansion anomaly studies on R(Fe,M)(12) (R=Nd and and Y, M=Mo and Si) compounds were performed by x-ray diffraction. Mo atoms occupy the 8i site. While Si atoms occupy the 8f and 8j sites but not the 8i site. Thermal-expansion anomaly shows only in ab plane in the Mo compounds, while becomes very weak and along with only the c axis in the Si compounds. The anomaly was attributed to the contribution of the interactions of short Fe-Fe distances similar to the previous explanation on other R-Fe intermetallics and that of other strongly positive interactions such as 8j-8j. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000230168300025&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Physics, AppliedSCI(E)EICPCI-S(ISTP)
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