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Toggle navigation Topics by WorldWideScience.org Home About News Advanced Search Contact Us Site Map Help Sample records for hospital advanced life « 1 2 3 4 5 » 1. Appropriateness of medications prescribed to elderly patients with advanced heart failure and limited life expectancy who died during hospitalization. Science.gov (United States) Barceló, Montserrat; Torres, Olga; Ruiz, Domingo; Casademont, Jordi 2014-07-01 Drug therapy in patients with advanced heart failure and limited life expectancy may be of no benefit or even inappropriate. The aim of this study was to analyze the appropriateness of medication prescribed to patients with advanced heart failure and limited life expectancy, considering as such an expected median survival of less than 6 months. We retrospectively reviewed data on all patients with advanced heart failure who met criteria for limited life expectancy and who died in the geriatric ward of a tertiary hospital over a four-and-a-half-year period. We analyzed treatments prescribed before admission, especially drugs used for prophylaxis or to prolong life. A total of 72 patients were included. The mean age was 85.4 years, and 52.3 % were women. Mean Charlson index was 3.2. Prophylactic medications taken by patients at admission were antiplatelets in 40 patients (55.6 %), oral anticoagulants in 17 (23.6 %), statins in 14 (19.4 %), and osteoporosis medication in nine (12.5 %). Medications taken to prolong survival were angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor antagonists in 29 patients (40.3 %). Other medications were iron supplements in 19 patients (26.4 %), vitamins in two (2.8 %), and acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in two (2.8 %). Our results show that patients with advanced heart failure and limited life expectancy were receiving an excessive number of prophylactic medications, drugs to prolong life, and other inappropriate treatments. These findings emphasize the need to review drug therapy in an individualized manner in elderly patients with advanced stages of heart disease and a poor prognosis. 2. [Pediatric advanced life support]. Science.gov (United States) Muguruma, Takashi 2011-04-01 Important changes or points of emphasis in the recommendations for pediatric advanced life support are as follows. In infants and children with no signs of life, healthcare providers should begin CPR unless they can definitely palpate a pulse within 10 seconds. New evidence documents the important role of ventilations in CPR for infants and children. Rescuers should provide conventional CPR for in-hospital and out-of-hospital pediatric cardiac arrests. The initial defibrillation energy dose of 2 to 4J/kg of either monophasic or biphasic waveform. Both cuffed and uncuffed tracheal tubes are acceptable for infants and children undergoing emergency intubation. Monitoring capnography/capnometry is recommended to confirm proper endotracheal tube position. 3. Impact of advanced cardiac life support training program on the outcome of cardiopulmonary resuscitation in a tertiary care hospital Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Kanwalpreet Sodhi 2011-01-01 Full Text Available Background: Guidelines on performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR have been published from time to time, and formal training programs are conducted based on these guidelines. Very few data are available in world literature highlighting the impact of these trainings on CPR outcome. Aim: The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of the American Heart Association (AHA-certified basic life support (BLS and advanced cardiac life support (ACLS provider course on the outcomes of CPR in our hospital. Materials and Methods : An AHA-certified BLS and ACLS provider training programme was conducted in our hospital in the first week of October 2009, in which all doctors in the code blue team and intensive care units were given training. The retrospective study was performed over an 18-month period. All in-hospital adult cardiac arrest victims in the preBLS/ACLS training period (January 2009 to September 2009 and the post-BLS/ACLS training period (October 2009 to June 2010 were included in the study. We compared the outcomes of CPR between these two study periods. Results: There were a total of 627 in-hospital cardiac arrests, 284 during the pre-BLS/ACLS training period and 343 during the post-BLS/ACLS training period. In the pre-BLS/ACLS training period, 52 patients (18.3% had return of spontaneous circulation, compared with 97 patients (28.3% in the postBLS/ACLS training period (P < 0.005. Survival to hospital discharge was also significantly higher in the post-BLS/ACLS training period (67 patients, 69.1% than in the preBLS/ACLS training period (12 patients, 23.1% (P < 0.0001. Conclusion : Formal certified BLS and ACLS training of healthcare professionals leads to definitive improvement in the outcome of CPR. 4. Patient life in hospital DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Ludvigsen, Mette Spliid Patient life in hospital.A qualitative study of informal relationships between hospitalised patients Introduction Within a patientology framework, this PhD dissertation is about an empirical study on patient life that provides insight into the nature of informal relationships between patients...... in hospitals today. Purpose The purpose was to explore how informal relationships between patients affect their hospital experiences in the hospital. The assumption is that, on the one hand, the impacts on patients' suffering affect the way they act and experience encounters with fellow patients for good....... Methods The study is designed within a phenomenological-hermeneutical philosophic frame of reference and is based on ethnographic fieldwork among hospitalised patients in a Danish university hospital. Data for the study were collected through participant observations over a period of 18 months. Nine males... 5. Advanced life support therapy and on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients: Applying signal processing and pattern recognition methods Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Trygve Eftestøl 2005-10-01 Full Text Available In the US alone, several hundred thousands die of sudden cardiac arrests each year. Basic life support defined as chest compressions and ventilations and early defibrillation are the only factors proven to increase the survival of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, and are key elements in the chain of survival defined by the American Heart Association. The current cardiopulmonary resuscitation guidelines treat all patients the same, but studies show need for more individualiza- tion of treatment. This review will focus on ideas on how to strengthen the weak parts of the chain of survival including the ability to measure the effects of therapy, improve time efficiency, and optimize the sequence and quality of the various components of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. 6. IT for advanced Life Support in English DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Sejerø Pedersen, Birgitte; Jeberg, Kirsten Ann; Koerner, Christian 2009-01-01 In this study we analyzed how IT support can be established for the treatment and documentation of advanced life support (ALS) in a hospital. In close collaboration with clinical researchers, a running prototype of an IT solution to support the clinical decisions in ALS was developed and tried out... 7. Advanced Life Support Project Plan Science.gov (United States) 2002-01-01 Life support systems are an enabling technology and have become integral to the success of living and working in space. As NASA embarks on human exploration and development of space to open the space frontier by exploring, using and enabling the development of space and to expand the human experience into the far reaches of space, it becomes imperative, for considerations of safety, cost, and crew health, to minimize consumables and increase the autonomy of the life support system. Utilizing advanced life support technologies increases this autonomy by reducing mass, power, and volume necessary for human support, thus permitting larger payload allocations for science and exploration. Two basic classes of life support systems must be developed, those directed toward applications on transportation/habitation vehicles (e.g., Space Shuttle, International Space Station (ISS), next generation launch vehicles, crew-tended stations/observatories, planetary transit spacecraft, etc.) and those directed toward applications on the planetary surfaces (e.g., lunar or Martian landing spacecraft, planetary habitats and facilities, etc.). In general, it can be viewed as those systems compatible with microgravity and those compatible with hypogravity environments. Part B of the Appendix defines the technology development 'Roadmap' to be followed in providing the necessary systems for these missions. The purpose of this Project Plan is to define the Project objectives, Project-level requirements, the management organizations responsible for the Project throughout its life cycle, and Project-level resources, schedules and controls. 8. Hospital Costs Of Extracorporeal Life Support Therapy NARCIS (Netherlands) Oude Lansink-Hartgring, Annemieke; van den Hengel, Berber; van der Bij, Wim; Erasmus, Michiel E.; Mariani, Massimo A.; Rienstra, Michiel; Cernak, Vladimir; Vermeulen, Karin M.; van den Bergh, Walter M. 2016-01-01 Objectives: To conduct an exploration of the hospital costs of extracorporeal life support therapy. Extracorporeal life support seems an efficient therapy for acute, potentially reversible cardiac or respiratory failure, when conventional therapy has been inadequate, or as bridge to transplant, but 9. NASA Advanced Exploration Systems: Advancements in Life Support Systems Science.gov (United States) Shull, Sarah A.; Schneider, Walter F. 2016-01-01 The NASA Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems (LSS) project strives to develop reliable, energy-efficient, and low-mass spacecraft systems to provide environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS) critical to enabling long duration human missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Highly reliable, closed-loop life support systems are among the capabilities required for the longer duration human space exploration missions assessed by NASA’s Habitability Architecture Team. 10. Transition from hospital to daily life DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Missel, Malene; Schønau, Mai Nanna; Pedersen, Jesper Holst 2014-01-01 PURPOSE: To assess the effect of nurse-led systematic rehabilitation counseling performed before discharge to prevent concerns in the hospital-to-home gap in rehabilitation of lung cancer patients after surgery. DESIGN AND METHOD: A quasi-experimental intervention study. One hundred twenty patients...... with operable non-small cell lung cancer admitted for surgery participated. Outcome was assessed by a validated self-rating questionnaire. The intervention was performed at the Department of Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Copenhagen, Denmark. RESULTS: Following nurse-led rehabilitation counseling...... in the transition from hospital to daily life. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Despite promising results, there is still a need to improve support for patients with lung cancer requiring rehabilitation.... 11. Modeling Advance Life Support Systems Science.gov (United States) Pitts, Marvin; Sager, John; Loader, Coleen; Drysdale, Alan 1996-01-01 Activities this summer consisted of two projects that involved computer simulation of bioregenerative life support systems for space habitats. Students in the Space Life Science Training Program (SLSTP) used the simulation, space station, to learn about relationships between humans, fish, plants, and microorganisms in a closed environment. One student complete a six week project to modify the simulation by converting the microbes from anaerobic to aerobic, and then balancing the simulation's life support system. A detailed computer simulation of a closed lunar station using bioregenerative life support was attempted, but there was not enough known about system restraints and constants in plant growth, bioreactor design for space habitats and food preparation to develop an integrated model with any confidence. Instead of a completed detailed model with broad assumptions concerning the unknown system parameters, a framework for an integrated model was outlined and work begun on plant and bioreactor simulations. The NASA sponsors and the summer Fell were satisfied with the progress made during the 10 weeks, and we have planned future cooperative work. 12. Advanced cardiac life support training. Science.gov (United States) Despott, Edward J; Schreiber, Florian 2010-01-01 The OMED/ESGE consensus statements of the International Symposium on Sedation in Endoscopy, Athens, September 2009, in keeping with guidelines and position statements published by other societies, underline the need for sedation providers to be adequately trained in dealing with scenarios involving patients in respiratory and/or cardiovascular distress. This training should prepare the sedation provider with the necessary acumen to prevent, recognize and remedy sedation-related emergencies. Life support training that adheres to the International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) guidelines should be a mandatory component of this instruction that should be governed by formal assessment and quality assurance reappraisal. 13. Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator Life Certification Plan Science.gov (United States) Rusick, Jeffrey J.; Zampino, Edward 2013-01-01 An Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) power supply is being developed by the Department of Energy (DOE) in partnership with NASA for potential future deep space science missions. Unlike previous radioisotope power supplies for space exploration, such as the passive MMRTG used recently on the Mars Curiosity rover, the ASRG is an active dynamic power supply with moving Stirling engine mechanical components. Due to the long life requirement of 17 years and the dynamic nature of the Stirling engine, the ASRG project faced some unique challenges trying to establish full confidence that the power supply will function reliably over the mission life. These unique challenges resulted in the development of an overall life certification plan that emphasizes long-term Stirling engine test and inspection when analysis is not practical. The ASRG life certification plan developed is described. 14. Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) and postpartum hemorrhage: A prospective intervention study in Tanzania DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Sorensen, Bjarke Lund; Rasch, Vibeke; Massawe, Siriel 2011-01-01 Objective. To evaluate the impact of Advanced Life Support in Obstetrics (ALSO) training on staff performance and the incidences of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) at a regional hospital in Tanzania. Design. Prospective intervention study. Setting. A regional, referral hospital. Population. A total o... 15. The Life Saving Effects of Hospital Proximity DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Bertoli, Paola; Grembi, Veronica We assess the lifesaving effect of hospital proximity using data on fatality rates of road-traffic accidents. While most of the literature on this topic is based on changes in distance to the nearest hospital triggered by hospital closures and use OLS estimates, our identification comes from the ...... more when the road safety is low; the emergency service is not properly organized, and the nearest hospital has lower quality standards.......We assess the lifesaving effect of hospital proximity using data on fatality rates of road-traffic accidents. While most of the literature on this topic is based on changes in distance to the nearest hospital triggered by hospital closures and use OLS estimates, our identification comes from... 16. Advanced Cardiac Life Support: 2016 Singapore Guidelines. Science.gov (United States) Ching, Chi Keong; Leong, Siew Hon Benjamin; Chua, Siang Jin Terrance; Lim, Swee Han; Heng, Kenneth; Pothiawala, Sohil; Anantharaman, Venkataraman 2017-07-01 The main areas of emphasis in the Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) guidelines are: early recognition of cardiac arrest and call for help; good-quality chest compressions; early defibrillation when applicable; early administration of drugs; appropriate airway management ensuring normoventilation; and delivery of appropriate post-resuscitation care to enhance survival. Of note, it is important to monitor the quality of the various care procedures. The resuscitation team needs to reduce unnecessary interruptions to chest compressions in order to maintain adequate coronary perfusion pressure during the ACLS drill. In addition, the team needs to continually look out for reversible causes of the cardiac arrest. Copyright: © Singapore Medical Association. 17. Advances in through-life engineering services CERN Document Server Roy, Rajkumar; Shaw, Andy 2017-01-01 This edited book offers further advances, new perspectives, and developments from world leaders in the field of through-life engineering services (TES). It builds up on the earlier book by the same authors entitled: “Through-life Engineering Services: Motivation, Theory and Practice.†This compendium introduces and discusses further, the developments in workshop-based and 'in situ' maintenance and support of high-value engineering products, as well as the application of drone technology for autonomous and self-healing product support. The links between ‘integrated planning’ and planned obsolescence, risk and cost modelling are also examined. The role of data, information, and knowledge management relative to component and system degradation and failure is also presented. This is supported by consideration of the effects upon the maintenance and support decision by the presence of 'No Fault Found' error signals within system data. Further to this the role of diagnostics and prognostics is also discusse... 18. The Life Saving Effects of Hospital Proximity DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Bertoli, Paola; Grembi, Veronica the exogenous variation in the proximity to cities that are allowed by law to have a hospital based on their population size. Our instrumental variable results, based on Italian municipalities data from 2000 to 2012, show that an increase by a standard deviation of distance to the nearest hospital (5 km... 19. Nanomaterials for Advanced Life Support in Advanced Life Support in Space systems Science.gov (United States) Allada, Rama Kumar; Moloney, Padraig; Yowell, Leonard 2006-01-01 A viewgraph presentation describing nanomaterial research at NASA Johnson Space Center with a focus on advanced life support in space systems is shown. The topics include: 1) Introduction; 2) Research and accomplishments in Carbon Dioxide Removal; 3) Research and Accomplishments in Water Purification; and 4) Next Steps 20. NASA Advanced Explorations Systems: Advancements in Life Support Systems Science.gov (United States) Shull, Sarah A.; Schneider, Walter F. 2016-01-01 The NASA Advanced Exploration Systems (AES) Life Support Systems (LSS) project strives to develop reliable, energy-efficient, and low-mass spacecraft systems to provide environmental control and life support systems (ECLSS) critical to enabling long duration human missions beyond low Earth orbit (LEO). Highly reliable, closed-loop life support systems are among the capabilities required for the longer duration human space exploration missions assessed by NASA's Habitability Architecture Team (HAT). The LSS project is focused on four areas: architecture and systems engineering for life support systems, environmental monitoring, air revitalization, and wastewater processing and water management. Starting with the international space station (ISS) LSS systems as a point of departure (where applicable), the mission of the LSS project is three-fold: 1. Address discrete LSS technology gaps 2. Improve the reliability of LSS systems 3. Advance LSS systems towards integrated testing on the ISS. This paper summarized the work being done in the four areas listed above to meet these objectives. Details will be given on the following focus areas: Systems Engineering and Architecture- With so many complex systems comprising life support in space, it is important to understand the overall system requirements to define life support system architectures for different space mission classes, ensure that all the components integrate well together and verify that testing is as representative of destination environments as possible. Environmental Monitoring- In an enclosed spacecraft that

is constantly operating complex machinery for its own basic functionality as well as science experiments and technology demonstrations, it's possible for the environment to become compromised. While current environmental monitors aboard the ISS will alert crew members and mission control if there is an emergency, long-duration environmental monitoring cannot be done in-orbit as current methodologies « 1 2 3 4 5 » « 1 2 3 4 5 » 21. Life Expectancy after Myocardial Infarction, According to Hospital Performance. Science.gov (United States) Bucholz, Emily M; Butala, Neel M; Ma, Shuangge; Normand, Sharon-Lise T; Krumholz, Harlan M 2016-10-01 Background Thirty-day risk-standardized mortality rates after acute myocardial infarction are commonly used to evaluate and compare hospital performance. However, it is not known whether differences among hospitals in the early survival of patients with acute myocardial infarction are associated with differences in long-term survival. Methods We analyzed data from the Cooperative Cardiovascular Project, a study of Medicare beneficiaries who were hospitalized for acute myocardial infarction between 1994 and 1996 and who had 17 years of follow-up. We grouped hospitals into five strata that were based on case-mix severity. Within each case-mix stratum, we compared life expectancy among patients admitted to high-performing hospitals with life expectancy among patients admitted to low-performing hospitals. Hospital performance was defined by quintiles of 30-day risk-standardized mortality rates. Cox proportional-hazards models were used to calculate life expectancy. Results The study sample included 119,735 patients with acute myocardial infarction who were admitted to 1824 hospitals. Within each case-mix stratum, survival curves of the patients admitted to hospitals in each risk-standardized mortality rate quintile separated within the first 30 days and then remained parallel over 17 years of follow-up. Estimated life expectancy declined as hospital risk-standardized mortality rate quintile increased. On average, patients treated at high-performing hospitals lived between 0.74 and 1.14 years longer, depending on hospital case mix, than patients treated at low-performing hospitals. When 30-day survivors were examined separately, there was no significant difference in unadjusted or adjusted life expectancy across hospital risk-standardized mortality rate quintiles. Conclusions In this study, patients admitted to high-performing hospitals after acute myocardial infarction had longer life expectancies than patients treated in lowperforming hospitals. This survival benefit 22. Hospital Executives’ Perceptions of End-of-Life Care Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Kimberly K. Garner 2015-06-01 Full Text Available Hospital executives are key stakeholders in the hospital setting. However, despite extensive medical and nursing literature on the importance of end-of-life (EOL care in hospitals, little is known about hospital executives’ perceptions of the provision of EOL care in their facilities. The objective of this study was to capture hospital executives’ perceptions of the provision of EOL care in the hospital setting. This descriptive, naturalistic phenomenological, qualitative study utilized in-person interviews to explore executives’ opinions and beliefs. The sample consisted of 14 individuals in the roles of medical center directors, chiefs of staff, chief medical officers, hospital administrators, hospital risk managers, and regional counsel in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. An interview guide was developed and conducted utilizing a global question followed by probes concerning perceptions of EOL care provision. Hospital executives acknowledged that EOL care was a very important issue, and more attention should be paid to it in the hospital setting. Their comments and suggestions for improvement focused on (a current EOL care, (b barriers to changing EOL care, and (c enhancing provision of EOL care in the hospital setting. The findings of this study suggest that hospital executives although key change agents, may have insufficient EOL information to implement steps toward cultural and infrastructural change and should therefore be included in any EOL discussions and education. 23. [Technological advances and hospital-at-home care]. Science.gov (United States) Tibaldi, Vittoria; Aimonino Ricauda, Nicoletta; Rocco, Maurizio; Bertone, Paola; Fanton, Giordano; Isaia, Giancarlo 2013-05-01 Advances in the miniaturization and portability of diagnostic technologies, information technologies, remote monitoring, and long-distance care have increased the viability of homebased care, even for patients with serious conditions. Telemedicine and teleradiology projects are active at the Hospital at Home Service of Torino. 24. ['Advanced trauma life support' in Netherlands]. Science.gov (United States) van Vugt, A B 2000-10-28 Introduction of the principles of advanced trauma life support (ATLS) in the management of accident victims has been in progress in the Netherlands since 1995. The main ATLS principles are that the aid giver treats the most dangerous disorder first and does no further damage. After assessment and, if necessary, treatment of the airways, the respiration, the circulation and any craniocerebral injury, an exploratory examination is carried out. Physicians receive theoretical and practical instructions in this form of management during an intensive two-day course, counselled by a coordinating organization in the USA. Most of those attending are interns in general surgery, traumatology and orthopaedics, gatekeeper doctors of emergency rooms and army medical officers. The standardized way of thinking improves the communication and understanding between the various disciplines involved in trauma care, in part because there exist comparable programmes for ambulance care and emergency care. Other measures improving the quality of trauma care are regionalization of the trauma care, medical helicopter teams and evaluation of the effects of ATLS as an operating procedure. 25. The Effect of Advance Directive Completion on Hospital Care Among Chronically Homeless Persons: a Prospective Cohort Study. Science.gov (United States) Leung, Alexander K; To, Matthew J; Luong, Linh; Vahabi, Zahra Syavash; Gonçalves, Victor L; Song, John; Hwang, Stephen W 2016-12-27 Advance care planning is relevant for homeless individuals because they experience high rates of morbidity and mortality. The impact of advance directive interventions on hospital care of homeless individuals has not been studied. The objective of this study was to determine if homeless individuals who complete an advance directive through a shelter-based intervention are more likely to have information from their advance directive documented and used during subsequent hospitalizations. The advance directive included preferences for life-sustaining treatments, resuscitation, and substitute decision maker(s). A total of 205 homeless men from a homeless shelter for men in Toronto, Canada, were enrolled in the study and offered an opportunity to complete an advance directive with the guidance of a trained counselor from April to June 2013. One hundred and three participants chose to complete an advance directive, and 102 participants chose to not complete an advance directive. Participants were provided copies of their advance directives. In addition, advance directives were electronically stored, and hospitals within a 1.0-mile radius of the shelter were provided access to the database. A prospective cohort study was performed using chart reviews to ascertain the documentation, availability, and use of advance directives, end-of-life care preferences, and medical treatments during hospitalizations over a 1-year follow-up period (April 2013 to June 2014) after the shelter-based advance directive intervention. Chart reviewers were blinded as to whether participants had completed an advance directive. The primary outcome was documentation or use of an advance directive during any hospitalization. The secondary outcome was documentation of end-of-life care preferences, without reference to an advance directive, during any hospitalization. After unblinding, charts were studied to determine whether advance directives were available, hospital care was consistent with 26. Phases management for advanced life support processes NARCIS (Netherlands) Eckhard, F.; Brunink, J.A.J.; Tuinstra, B.; Assink, J.W.; Ten Asbroek, N.; Backx, V.; Klaassen, A.; Waters, G.; Stasiak, M.A.; Dixon, M.; Ordoñez-Inda, L. 2005-01-01 For a planetary base, a reliable life support system including food and water supply, gas generation and waste management is a condition sine qua non. While for a short-term period the life support system may be an open loop, i.e. water, gases and food provided from the Earth, for long-term missions 27. Barriers to work-life balance for hospital nurses. Science.gov (United States) Mullen, Kathleen 2015-03-01 Nurses are loyal to their patients and coworkers. They often put the needs of others before their own and sometimes even before the needs of their families. This concern for others can cause conflicts that manifest as stress. Of the more than 2 million nurses in the United States, more than 62% work in hospitals. Hospitals are known to be both rewarding and stressful places to work. Like most workers, nurses face the challenge of balancing demands and achievements of work with those in their private lives. Hospital leaders can facilitate improved work-life balance (WLB) for hospital nurses by using tools already in place. Equally important, nurses can use their knowledge and resources to nurse the nurse within, which can greatly improve their experience of WLB, independent of the demands of their work environment. © 2015 The Author(s). 28. Limitation to Advanced Life Support in patients admitted to intensive care unit with integrated palliative care Science.gov (United States) Mazutti, Sandra Regina Gonzaga; Nascimento, Andréia de Fátima; Fumis, Renata Rego Lins 2016-01-01 Objective To estimate the incidence of limitations to Advanced Life Support in critically ill patients admitted to an intensive care unit with integrated palliative care. Methods This retrospective cohort study included patients in the palliative care program of the intensive care unit of Hospital Paulistano over 18 years of age from May 1, 2011, to January 31, 2014. The limitations to Advanced Life Support that were analyzed included do-not-resuscitate orders, mechanical ventilation, dialysis and vasoactive drugs. Central tendency measures were calculated for quantitative variables. The chi-squared test was used to compare the characteristics of patients with or without limits to Advanced Life Support, and the Wilcoxon test was used to compare length of stay after Advanced Life Support. Confidence intervals reflecting p ≤ 0.05 were considered for statistical significance. Results A total of 3,487 patients were admitted to the intensive care unit, of whom 342 were included in the palliative care program. It was observed that after entering the palliative care program, it took a median of 2 (1 - 4) days for death to occur in the intensive care unit and 4 (2 - 11) days for hospital death to occur. Many of the limitations to Advanced Life Support (42.7%) took place on the first day of hospitalization. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (96.8%) and ventilatory support (73.6%) were the most adopted limitations. Conclusion The contribution of palliative care integrated into the intensive care unit was important for the practice of orthothanasia, i.e., the non-extension of the life of a critically ill patient by artificial means. PMID:27626949 29. A new data architecture for advancing life cycle assessment Science.gov (United States) IntroductionLife cycle assessment (LCA) has a technical architecture that limits data interoperability, transparency, and automated integration of external data. More advanced information technologies offer promise for increasing the ease with which information can be synthesized... 30. A new data architecture for advancing life cycle assessment Science.gov (United States) IntroductionLife cycle assessment (LCA) has a technical architecture that limits data interoperability, transparency, and automated integration of external data. More advanced information technologies offer promise for increasing the ease with which information can be synthesized... 31. [Quality of life and pain in hospitalized geriatric patients]. Science.gov (United States) Pipam, W; Penz, H; Janig, H; Plank, H; Gatternig, K; Likar, R 2008-02-01 To determine objective and subjective indications of quality of life in hospitalized geriatric patients. Data were collected on 267 items using standardized interviews of 90 patients, including B-L and SF-36. In comparison to the control population, geriatric patients have worse SF-36 values; 91% have pain, and 63% depression and elevated B-L values. Pain therapy is usually with non-opiates and with warm/cold physical therapies. Pain therapy in the geriatric population surveyed does not reach the same standard as is usually offered to hospitalized medical and surgical patients. 32. Biomedical ethics and the withdrawal of advanced life support. Science.gov (United States) Henig, N R; Faul, J L; Raffin, T A 2001-01-01 It is common for health care providers to deal with the complex and difficult issue of withdrawing advanced life support. The patient is always the key source of authority in these decisions. The most important ingredient in end-of-life decision making is effective communication. It is important to try to ascertain what the patient thought about quality-of-life values before surrogate decisions can be made on the patient's behalf. The concepts of beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy, and justice are the foundation of ethical decision making. Numerous legal precedents have laid the groundwork for end-of-life decision making. Most state courts have supported withholding and withdrawing life support from patients who will not regain a reasonable quality of life. The recent Patient Self-Determination Act encourages patients to fill out advance directives that state their desires. When continued intensive care is futile, advanced life support should be withdrawn. However, a narrow definition of futility in this situation is the key, since the concept of futility could lead to inappropriate decisions. It is best to consider a situation futile when the patient is terminally ill, the condition is irreversible, and death is imminent. During the withdrawal of advanced life support, terminal or rapid weaning is preferable to extubation. Combinations of opiates, benzodiazepines, and other agents help provide comfort to patients who are suffering. 33. Inpatient Hospitalization of Oncology Patients: Are We Missing an Opportunity for End-of-Life Care? Science.gov (United States) Rocque, Gabrielle B.; Barnett, Anne E.; Illig, Lisa C.; Eickhoff, Jens C.; Bailey, Howard H.; Campbell, Toby C.; Stewart, James A.; Cleary, James F. 2013-01-01 Introduction: Despite advances in the care of patients with cancer over the last 10 years, cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the United States. Many patients receive aggressive, in-hospital end-of-life care at high cost. There are few data on outcomes after unplanned hospitalization of patients with metastatic cancer. Methods: In 2000 and 2010, data were collected on admissions, interventions, and survival for patients admitted to an academic inpatient medical oncology service. Results: The 2000 survey included 191 admissions of 151 unique patients. The 2010 survey assessed 149 admissions of 119 patients. Lung, GI, and breast cancers were the most common cancer diagnoses. In the 2010 assessment, pain was the most common chief complaint, accounting for 28%. Although symptoms were the dominant reason for admission in 2010, procedures and imaging were common in both surveys. The median survival of patients after discharge was 4.7 months in 2000 and 3.4 months in 2010. Despite poor survival in this patient population, hospice was recommended in only 23% and 24% of patients in 2000 and 2010, respectively. Seventy percent of patients were discharged home without additional services. Conclusion: On the basis of our data, an unscheduled hospitalization for a patient with advanced cancer strongly predicts a median survival of fewer than 6 months. We believe that hospital admission represents an opportunity to commence and/or consolidate appropriate palliative care services and end-of-life care. PMID:23633971 34. Pre-hospital advanced airway management by anaesthesiologists: is there still room for improvement? Science.gov (United States) Sollid, Stephen J M; Heltne, Jon Kenneth; Søreide, Eldar; Lossius, Hans Morten 2008-07-21 Endotracheal intubation is an important part of pre-hospital advanced life support that requires training and experience, and should only be performed by specially trained personnel. In Norway, anaesthesiologists serve as Helicopter Emergency Medical Service HEMS physicians. However, little is known about how they themselves evaluate the quality and safety of pre-hospital advanced airway management. Using a semi-structured questionnaire, we interviewed anaesthesiologists working in the three HEMS programs covering Western Norway. We compared answers from specialists and non-specialists as well as full- and part-time HEMS physicians. Of the 17 available respondents, most (88%) felt that their continuous exposure to intubations was not sufficient. Additional training was mainly acquired through other clinical practice and mannequin- or cadaver-based skills training. Of the respondents, 77% and 35% reported having experienced difficult and failed intubations, respectively. Further, 59% reported knowledge of airway management-related deaths in their HEMS program. Significantly more full- than part-time HEMS physicians had experienced these problems. All respondents had airway back-up equipment in their service, but 29% were not familiar with all the equipment. The majority of anaesthesiologists working as HEMS physicians view pre-hospital advanced airway management as a high-risk procedure. Relevant airway management competencies for HEMS physicians in Norway seem to be insufficiently trained and maintained. A better-defined level of competence with better training methods and systems seems warranted. 35. Pre-hospital advanced airway management by anaesthesiologists: Is there still room for improvement? Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Søreide Eldar 2008-07-01 Full Text Available Abstract Background Endotracheal intubation is an important part of pre-hospital advanced life support that requires training and experience, and should only be performed by specially trained personnel. In Norway, anaesthesiologists serve as Helicopter Emergency Medical Service HEMS physicians. However, little is known about how they themselves evaluate the quality and safety of pre-hospital advanced airway management. Method Using a semi-structured questionnaire, we interviewed anaesthesiologists working in the three HEMS programs covering Western Norway. We compared answers from specialists and non-specialists as well as full- and part-time HEMS physicians. Results Of the 17 available respondents, most (88% felt that their continuous exposure to intubations was not sufficient. Additional training was mainly acquired through other clinical practice and mannequin- or cadaver-based skills training. Of the respondents, 77% and 35% reported having experienced difficult and failed intubations, respectively. Further, 59% reported knowledge of airway management-related deaths in their HEMS program. Significantly more full- than part-time HEMS physicians had experienced these problems. All respondents had airway back-up equipment in their service, but 29% were not familiar with all the equipment. Conclusion The majority of anaesthesiologists working as HEMS physicians view pre-hospital advanced airway management as a high-risk procedure. Relevant airway management competencies for HEMS physicians in Norway seem to be insufficiently trained and maintained. A better-defined level of competence with better training methods and systems seems warranted. 36. Can advanced paramedics in the field diagnose patients and predict hospital admission? LENUS (Irish Health Repository) Cummins, Niamh Maria 2013-02-13 BACKGROUND: Accurate patient diagnosis in the prehospital environment is essential to initiate suitable care pathways. The advanced paramedic (AP) is a relatively recent role in Ireland, and refers to a prehospital practitioner with advanced life-support skills and training. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to compare the diagnostic decisions of APs with emergency medicine (EM) physicians, and to investigate if APs, as currently trained, can predict the requirement for hospital admission. METHODS: A prospective study was initiated, whereby each emergency ambulance call received via the statutory 999 system was recorded by the attending AP. The AP was asked to provide a clinical diagnosis for each patient, and to predict if hospital admission was required. The data was then cross-referenced with the working diagnosis of the receiving emergency physician and the hospital admission records. RESULTS: A total of 17 APs participated in the study, and 1369 emergency calls were recorded over a 6-month period. Cases where a general practitioner attended the scene were excluded from the concordance analysis. Concordance with the receiving emergency physician represents 70% (525\\/748) for all cases of AP diagnosis, and is mirrored with 70% (604\\/859) correct hospital admission predictions. CONCLUSIONS: AP diagnosis and admission prediction for emergency calls is similar to other emergency medical services systems despite the relative recency of the AP programme in Ireland. Recognition of non-concordance case types may identify priorities for AP education, and drive future AP practice in areas such as \\'treat and refer\\'. 37. Human life support for advanced space exploration. Science.gov (United States) Schwartzkopf, S H 1997-01-01 The requirements for a human life support system for long-duration space missions are reviewed. The system design of a controlled ecological life support system is briefly described, followed by a more detailed account of the study of the conceptual design of a Lunar Based CELSS. The latter is to provide a safe, reliable, recycling lunar base life support system based on a hybrid physicochemical/biological representative technology. The most important conclusion reached by this study is that implementation of a completely recycling CELSS approach for a lunar base is not only feasible, but eminently practical. On a cumulative launch mass basis, a 4-person Lunar Base CELSS would pay for itself in approximately 2.6 years relative to a physicochemical air/water recycling system with resupply of food from the Earth. For crew sizes of 30 and 100, the breakeven point would come even sooner, after 2.1 and 1.7 years, respectively, due to the increased mass savings that can be realized with the larger plant growth units. Two other conclusions are particularly important with regard to the orientation of future research and technology development. First, the mass estimates of the Lunar Base CELSS indicate that a primary design objective in implementing this kind of system must be to minimized the mass and power requirement of the food production plant growth units, which greatly surpass those of the other air and water recycling systems. Consequently, substantial research must be directed at identifying ways to produce food more efficiently. On the other hand, detailed studies to identify the best technology options for the other subsystems should not be expected to produce dramatic reductions in either mass or power requirement of a Lunar Base CELSS. The most crucial evaluation criterion must, therefore, be the capability for functional integration of these technologies into the ultimate design of the system. Secondly, this study illustrates that existing or near 38. Advanced Energy Design Guide for Small Hospitals and Healthcare Facilities Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Eric Bonnema 2010-01-01 Full Text Available The Advanced Energy Design Guide for Small Hospitals and Healthcare Facilities (AEDG-SHC was recently completed. It is the sixth document in a series of guides designed to achieve 30% savings over the minimum code requirements of ANSI/ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-1999. The guide [1] is available for print purchase or as a free download from http://www.ashrae.org/aedg and provides user-friendly assistance and recommendations for the building design, construction, and owner communities to achieve energy savings. Included in the guide are prescriptive recommendations for quality assurance and commissioning; design of the building envelope; fenestration; lighting systems (including electric lighting and daylighting; heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC systems; building automation and controls; outside air (OA treatment; and service water heating (SWH. The guide educates, provides practical recommendations for exceeding code minimums, and provides leadership to help design teams and owners produce higher efficiency commercial buildings.

39. QUALITY OF WORKING LIFE IN COMMODITIZED HOSPITALS AND UNIVERSITIES Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Josep M. Blanch 2014-01-01 Full Text Available New Public Management (NPM turns public hospital and university services into market enterprises. The aim of the paper is to analyze and describe the impact of this metamorphosis on the labor subjectivity of the staff employed in such services. Empirical studies in Spanish and Latin American hospitals and universities uncover a paradoxical experience: relative manifest satisfaction with material and technical conditions allowing them to work harder and better, but also latent discomfort with the task overload, and professional and ethical dilemmas posed by new organizational demands, in the face of which staff develop ways of coping ranging from manifest obedience to latent resistance. This supports the reasons for the redesign of these services based on a better balance between commercial and social demands, managerial and professional values, and between business efficiency and quality of working life. 40. Palliative care in advanced cancer patients in a tertiary care hospital in Uttarakhand Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Manisha Bisht 2008-01-01 Full Text Available Aim: Advanced cancer, irrespective of the site of the cancer, is characterized by a number of associated symptoms that impair the quality of life of patients. The management of these symptoms guides palliative care. The present study aims to describe the symptoms and appropriate palliation provided in patients with advanced cancer in a tertiary care hospital in Uttarakhand. Methods: This was an observational study. A total of 100 patients with advanced cancer were included in the study. The data obtained from the patients included symptoms reported by the patients, currently prescribed treatments and the site of cancer. Results: The average number of symptoms reported per patient was 5.33  ± 0.67 (mean ± SE. The most common symptoms were pain, weakness/fatigue, anorexia, insomnia, nausea/vomiting, dyspnea, constipation and cough. Polypharmacy was frequent. Patients consumed approximately 8.7 ± 0.38 (mean ± SE drugs on average during the 2-month period of follow-up. Conclusion: The result gives insight into the varied symptomatology of patients with advanced cancer. Polypharmacy was quite common in patients with advanced cancer, predisposing them to complicated drug interactions and adverse drug reactions. « 1 2 3 4 5 » « 1 2 3 4 5 » 41. Current End-of-Life Care Needs and Care Practices in Acute Care Hospitals Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Amy J. Thurston 2011-01-01 Full Text Available A descriptive-comparative study was undertaken to examine current end-of-life care needs and practices in hospital. A chart review for all 1,018 persons who died from August 1, 2008 through July 31, 2009 in two full-service Canadian hospitals was conducted. Most decedents were elderly (73.8% and urbanite (79.5%, and cancer was the most common diagnosis (36.2%. Only 13.8% had CPR performed at some point during this hospitalization and 8.8% had CPR immediately preceding death, with 87.5% having a DNR order and 30.8% providing an advance directive. Most (97.3% had one or more life-sustaining technologies in use at the time of death. These figures indicate, when compared to those in a similar mid-1990s Canadian study, that impending death is more often openly recognized and addressed. Technologies continue to be routinely but controversially used. The increased rate of end-stage CPR from 2.9% to 8.8% could reflect a 1994+ shift of expected deaths out of hospital. 42. Advancing life cycle economics in the Nordic countries DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Haugbølle, Kim; Hansen, Ernst Jan de Place 2005-01-01 Advancing construction and facilities management requires the ability to estimate and evaluate the economic consequences of decisions in a lifetime perspective. A survey of state-ofthe-art on life cycle economics in the Nordic countries showed that, despite a number of similarities, no strong co... 43. Quality-of-life assessment in advanced cancer. LENUS (Irish Health Repository) Donnelly, S 2000-07-01 In the past 5 years, quality-of-life (QOL) assessment measures such as the McGill, McMaster, Global Visual Analogue Scale, Assessment of QOL at the End of Life, Life Evaluation Questionnaire, and Hospice QOL Index have been devised specifically for patients with advanced cancer. The developers of these instruments have tried to respond to the changing needs of this specific population, taking into account characteristics including poor performance status, difficulty with longitudinal study, rapidly deteriorating physical condition, and change in relevant issues. Emphasis has been placed on patient report, ease and speed of completion, and the existential domain or meaning of life. Novel techniques in QOL measurement have also been adapted for palliative care, such as judgment analysis in the Schedule for the Evaluation of Individual Quality of Life. It is generally agreed that a single tool will not cover all QOL assessment needs. 44. Canadian advanced life support capacities and future directions Science.gov (United States) Bamsey, M.; Graham, T.; Stasiak, M.; Berinstain, A.; Scott, A.; Vuk, T. Rondeau; Dixon, M. 2009-07-01 Canada began research on space-relevant biological life support systems in the early 1990s. Since that time Canadian capabilities have grown tremendously, placing Canada among the emerging leaders in biological life support systems. The rapid growth of Canadian expertise has been the result of several factors including a large and technically sophisticated greenhouse sector which successfully operates under challenging climatic conditions, well planned technology transfer strategies between the academic and industrial sectors, and a strong emphasis on international research collaborations. Recent activities such as Canada's contribution of the Higher Plant Compartment of the European Space Agency's MELiSSA Pilot Plant and the remote operation of the Arthur Clarke Mars Greenhouse in the Canadian High Arctic continue to demonstrate Canadian capabilities with direct applicability to advanced life support systems. There is also a significant latent potential within Canadian institutions and organizations with respect to directly applicable advanced life support technologies. These directly applicable research interests include such areas as horticultural management strategies (for candidate crops), growth media, food processing, water management, atmosphere management, energy management, waste management, imaging, environment sensors, thermal control, lighting systems, robotics, command and data handling, communications systems, structures, in-situ resource utilization, space analogues and mission operations. With this background and in collaboration with the Canadian aerospace industry sector, a roadmap for future life support contributions is presented here. This roadmap targets an objective of at least 50% food closure by 2050 (providing greater closure in oxygen, water recycling and carbon dioxide uptake). The Canadian advanced life support community has chosen to focus on lunar surface infrastructure and not low Earth orbit or transit systems (i.e. microgravity 45. Implementation of Advanced Warehouses in a Hospital Environment - Case study Science.gov (United States) Costa, J.; Sameiro Carvalho, M.; Nobre, A. 2015-05-01 In Portugal, there is an increase of costs in the healthcare sector due to several factors such as the aging of the population, the increased demand for health care services and the increasing investment in new technologies. Thus, there is a need to reduce costs, by presenting the effective and efficient management of logistics supply systems with enormous potential to achieve savings in health care organizations without compromising the quality of the provided service, which is a critical factor, in this type of sector. In this research project the implementation of Advanced Warehouses has been studied, in the Hospital de Braga patient care units, based in a mix of replenishment systems approaches: the par level system, the two bin system and the consignment model. The logistics supply process is supported by information technology (IT), allowing a proactive replacement of products, based on the hospital services consumption records. The case study was developed in two patient care units, in order to study the impact of the operation of the three replenishment systems. Results showed that an important inventory holding costs reduction can be achieved in the patient care unit warehouses while increasing the service level and increasing control of incoming and stored materials with less human resources. The main conclusion of this work illustrates the possibility of operating multiple replenishment models, according to the types of materials that healthcare organizations deal with, so that they are able to provide quality health care services at a reduced cost and economically sustainable. The adoption of adequate IT has been shown critical for the success of the project. 46. End-of-Life Decisions and Advanced Old Age Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Stoyles 2014-07-01 Full Text Available Despite the fact that most people die in advanced old age, little attention is given to cases involving older people in debates about the moral and legal dimensions of end-of-life decision making. The purpose of this paper is to establish some of the ways our discussions should change as we pay attention to important factors influencing end-oflife decisions for people in advanced old age. Focusing on the prevalence of comorbidities and the likelihood that people in advanced old age will experience an extended period of declining function before death, I argue that our debates should be expanded to include greater consideration of how we want to live in the final stages of life. With this, I am arguing against the tendency to think that “end-of-life†decision making concerns only making decisions about when and how it is appropriate to terminate a person’s life. I argue, further, that we should move away from the medicalization of dying. 47. Globular Clusters as Cradles of Life and Advanced Civilizations Science.gov (United States) Di Stefano, Rosanne; Ray, Alak 2016-01-01 Globular clusters are bound groups of about a million stars and stellar remnants. They are old, largely isolated, and very dense. We consider what each of these special features can mean for the development of life, the evolution of intelligent life, and the long-term survival of technological civilizations. We find that, if they house planets, globular clusters provide ideal environments for advanced civilizations that can survive over long times. We therefore propose methods to search for planets in globular clusters. If planets are found and if our arguments are correct, searches for intelligent life are most likely to succeed when directed toward globular clusters. Globular clusters may be the first places in which distant life is identified in our own or in external galaxies. 48. Managing occupations in everyday life for people with advanced cancer living at home. Science.gov (United States) Peoples, Hanne; Brandt, Ã…se; Wæhrens, Eva E; la Cour, Karen 2017-01-01 People with advanced cancer are able to live for extended periods of time. Advanced cancer can cause functional limitations influencing the ability to manage occupations. Although studies have shown that people with advanced cancer experience occupational difficulties, there is only limited research that specifically explores how these occupational difficulties are managed. To describe and explore how people with advanced cancer manage occupations when living at home. A sub-sample of 73 participants from a larger occupational therapy project took part in the study. The participants were consecutively recruited from a Danish university hospital. Qualitative interviews were performed at the homes of the participants. Content analysis was applied to the data. Managing occupations were manifested in two main categories; (1) Conditions influencing occupations in everyday life and (2) Self-developed strategies to manage occupations. The findings suggest that people with advanced cancer should be supported to a greater extent in finding ways to manage familiar as well as new and more personally meaningful occupations to enhance quality of life. 49. Application of NASA's advanced life support technologies in polar regions. Science.gov (United States) Bubenheim, D L; Lewis, C 1997-01-01 NASA's advanced life support technologies are being combined with Arctic science and engineering knowledge in the Advanced Life Systems for Extreme Environments (ALSEE) project. This project addresses treatment and reduction of waste, purification and recycling of water, and production of food in remote communities of Alaska. The project focus is a major issue in the state of Alaska and other areas of the Circumpolar North; the health and welfare of people, their lives and the subsistence lifestyle in remote communities, care for the environment, and economic opportunity through technology transfer. The challenge is to implement the technologies in a manner compatible with the social and economic structures of native communities, the state, and the commercial sector. NASA goals are technology selection, system design and methods development of regenerative life support systems for planetary and Lunar bases and other space exploration missions. The ALSEE project will provide similar advanced technologies to address the multiple problems facing the remote communities of Alaska and provide an extreme environment testbed for future space applications. These technologies have never been assembled for this purpose. They offer an integrated approach to solving pressing problems in remote communities. 50. Effect of ionizing radiation on advanced life support medications Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Sullivan, D.J.; Hubbard, L.B.; Broadbent, M.V.; Stewart, P.; Jaeger, M. 1987-06-01 Advanced life support medications stored in emergency department stretcher areas, diagnostic radiology rooms, and radiotherapy suites are exposed to ionizing radiation. We hypothesized that radiation may decrease the potency and thus the shelf life of medications stored in these areas. Atropine, dopamine, epinephrine, and isoproterenol were exposed to a wide range of ionizing radiation. The potency of the four drugs was unaffected by levels of radiation found in ED stretcher areas and high-volume diagnostic radiograph rooms (eg, chest radiograph, computed tomography, fluoroscopy). The potency of atropine may be reduced by gamma radiation in high-use radiotherapy suites. However, dopamine, epinephrine, and isoproterenol were unaffected by high doses of gamma radiation. Atropine, dopamine, epinephrine, and isoproterenol may be safely kept in ED stretcher areas and diagnostic radiology rooms without loss of potency over the shelf life of the drugs. 51. Anaesthetist-provided pre-hospital advanced airway management in children: a descriptive study. Science.gov (United States) Tarpgaard, Mona; Hansen, Troels Martin; RognÃ¥s, Leif 2015-08-27 Pre-hospital advanced airway management has been named one of the top-five research priorities in physician-provided pre-hospital critical care. Few studies have been made on paediatric pre-hospital advanced airway management. The aim of this study was to investigate pre-hospital endotracheal intubation success rate in children, first-pass success rates and complications related to pre-hospital advanced airway management in patients younger than 16 years of age treated by pre-hospital critical care teams in the Central Denmark Region (1.3 million inhabitants). A prospective descriptive study based on data collected from eight anaesthetist-staffed pre-hospital critical care teams between February 1st 2011 and November 1st 2012. Primary endpoints were 1) pre-hospital endotracheal intubation success rate in children 2) pre-hospital endotracheal intubation first-pass success rate in children and 3) complications related to prehospital advanced airway management in children. The pre-hospital critical care anaesthetists attempted endotracheal intubation in 25 children, 13 of which were less than 2 years old. In one patient, a neonate (600 g birth weight), endotracheal intubation failed. The patient was managed by uneventful bag-mask ventilation. All other 24 children had their tracheas successfully intubated by the pre-hospital critical care anaesthetists resulting in a pre-hospital endotracheal intubation success rate of 96 %. Overall first pass success-rate was 75 %. In the group of patients younger than 2 years old, first pass success-rate was 54 %. The total rate of airway management related complications such as vomiting, aspiration, accidental intubation of the oesophagus or right main stem bronchus, hypoxia (oxygen saturation advanced airway management. Compared with the total population of patients receiving pre-hospital advanced airway management in our system, the overall success rate following pre-hospital endotracheal intubations in children is acceptable but 52. Quality of Life in Emergency Medicine Specialists of Teaching Hospitals Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Afshin Amini 2014-08-01 Full Text Available Introduction: Quality of life (QOL of emergency medicine specialists can be effective in providing services to patients. The aim of the present study was evaluating the lifestyle of emergency medicine practitioners, understanding their problems, and addressing the solutions to enhance and improve their lifestyles, in teaching hospitals in Iran. Method: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on emergency medicine physicians in 10 teaching hospitals of Iran in 2011. Emergency physicians with at least three years of experience who interested in the study, were enrolled in the project. All participants filled out the consent form and QOL questionnaires, then underwent physical examinations and some medical laboratory tests. Categorical variables were reported as percentages, while continuous variables expressed as means and standard deviations. p 36). There was a significant correlation between fatigue as evaluated by the CFQ and quality of sleep and between the CFQ mental fatigue subscale scores and TNF-α level. When fatigue was evaluated using the FACIT-F scale, we observed a significant association between fatigue and anxiety/depression, quality of sleep, mGPS, and hemoglobin levels. Fatigue measured both with the CFQ and FACIT-F scale correlated with poor quality of life according to the EORTC QLQ C-30. In patients with advanced cancer, fatigue is a common symptom associated with the presence of inflammation, poor quality of sleep, depression/anxiety, and poor quality of life. © The Author(s) 2015. 102. WOMEN AND ADVANCEMENT IN NEUROPSYCHOLOGY:REAL-LIFE LESSONS LEARNED Science.gov (United States) Hilsabeck, Robin C.; Martin, Eileen M. 2013-01-01 The number of women in neuropsychology has been increasing over the past 20 years while the number of women in senior and leadership positions within neuropsychology has not. The field of neuropsychology has much to gain by facilitating the advancement of women into leadership roles, including access to some of the brightest and creative minds in the field. The purpose of this article is to offer practical advice about how to overcome barriers and advance within neuropsychology. Suggestions for professional organizations, women, and mentors of women are provided that will likely benefit trainees and junior colleagues regardless of their gender. PMID:18841516 103. Women and advancement in neuropsychology: real-life lessons learned. Science.gov (United States) Hilsabeck, Robin C; Martin, Eileen M 2010-04-01 The number of women in neuropsychology has been increasing over the past 20 years while the number of women in senior and leadership positions within neuropsychology has not. The field of neuropsychology has much to gain by facilitating the advancement of women into leadership roles, including access to some of the brightest and creative minds in the field. The purpose of this article is to offer practical advice about how to overcome barriers and advance within neuropsychology. Suggestions for professional organizations, women, and mentors of women are provided that will likely benefit trainees and junior colleagues regardless of their gender. 104. Advanced physical-chemical life support systems research Science.gov (United States) Evanich, Peggy L. 1988-01-01 A proposed NASA space research and technology development program will provide adequate data for designing closed loop life support systems for long-duration manned space missions. This program, referred to as the Pathfinder Physical-Chemical Closed Loop Life Support Program, is to identify and develop critical chemical engineering technologies for the closure of air and water loops within the spacecraft, surface habitats or mobility devices. Computerized simulation can be used both as a research and management tool. Validated models will guide the selection of the best known applicable processes and in the development of new processes. For the integration of the habitat system, a biological subsystem would be introduced to provide food production and to enhance the physical-chemical life support functions on an ever-increasing basis. 105. Financial Distress and Its Associations With Physical and Emotional Symptoms and Quality of Life Among Advanced Cancer Patients. Science.gov (United States) Delgado-Guay, Marvin; Ferrer, Jeanette; Rieber, Alyssa G; Rhondali, Wadih; Tayjasanant, Supakarn; Ochoa, Jewel; Cantu, Hilda; Chisholm, Gary; Williams, Janet; Frisbee-Hume, Susan; Bruera, Eduardo 2015-09-01 There are limited data on the effects of financial distress (FD) on overall suffering and quality of life (QOL) of patients with advanced cancer (AdCa). In this cross-sectional study, we examined the frequency of FD and its correlates in AdCa. We interviewed 149 patients, 77 at a comprehensive cancer center (CCC) and 72 at a general public hospital (GPH). AdCa completed a self-rated FD (subjective experience of distress attributed to financial problems) numeric rating scale (0 = best, 10 = worst) and validated questionnaires assessing symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment System [ESAS]), psychosocial distress (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale [HADS]), and QOL (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General [FACT-G]). The patients' median age was 60 years (95% confidence interval [CI]: 58.6-61.5 years); 74 (50%) were female; 48 of 77 at CCC (62%) versus 13 of 72 at GPH (18%) were white; 21 of 77 (27%) versus 32 of 72 (38%) at CCC and GPH, respectively, were black; and 7 of 77 (9%) versus 27 of 72 (38%) at CCC and GPH, respectively, were Hispanic (p functioning, social/family distress, and emotional distress by 45 (30%), 46 (31%), 64 (43%), and 55 (37%) AdCa, respectively (all significantly worse for patients at GPH) (p teams to develop interventions to improve financial distress and its impact on quality of life of advanced cancer patients. ©AlphaMed Press. 106. Recent advances in chemical evolution and the origins of life Science.gov (United States) Oro, John; Lazcano, Antonio 1992-01-01 Consideration is given to the ideas of Oparin and Haldane who independently suggested more than 60 years ago that the first forms of life were anaerobic, heterotrophic bacteria that emerged as the result of a long period of chemical abiotic synthesis of organic compounds. It is suggested that at least some requirements for life are met in the Galaxy due to the cosmic abundance of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and other biogenic elements; the existence of extraterrestrial organic compounds; and the processes of stellar and interstellar planetary formation. 107. Level of Knowledge of specialist cardiologists and anesthesiologists in Basic and Advanced Life Support Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Maria Vachla 2013-01-01 Full Text Available Health professionals often witness in-hospital episodes of cardiac arrest. The quality of the Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR depends on the level of theoretical background and practical skills. Purpose: The aim of the present study was to investigate the level of theoretical knowledge of skilled cardiologists and anesthesiologists in the Basic and Advanced Life Support (BLS/ ALS. Material - method: In this study, sample included 240 cardiologists and anesthesiologists, chosen randomly from employers of 17 General Public Hospitals of Athens. For data collection, a questionnaire with 16 theoretical questions was designed, based on the guidelines of the European Resuscitation Council (ERC 2005. Significance level was set at p=≤0,05. The analysis was performed with the Statistical Package IBM SPSS Statistics 19. Results: No statistically significant difference was observed between specialists cardiologists and anesthesiologists in overall performance in theoretical knowledge on the BLS and ALS. Additionally, no statistical significance was observed between the two separate groups of theoretical background. Statistically significant difference was observed among those who had participated in a training seminar in BLS and ALS and those who had not participated (p6meq. USG guided PCN insertion was done in 8 patients, and in those who failed in this procedure, fluoroscopic C-ARM guided PCN insertion done in 17 patients. Post operatively RFT and serum electrolytes were assessed on 3, 7, 15, & 30th day. PCN catheter was changed once in 3 months. RESULTS 8 patients succeeded in USG guided PCN insertion and 17 patients who failed USG PCN insertion, was done under C–Arm guidance. 3 patients received blood transfusion. No deaths were seen during or post procedure in the hospital. Renal functions improved and normalised in most of the 197. Managing occupations in everyday life for people with advanced cancer at home DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Peoples, Hanne; Brandt, Ã…se; Wæhrens, Eva Elisabet Ejlersen; 2016-01-01 in the study. The participants were consecutively recruited from a Danish university hospital. Qualitative interviews were performed at the homes of the participants. Content analysis was applied to the data. Results: Managing occupations were manifested in two main categories; 1) Conditions influencing...... limited research that specifically explores how these occupational difficulties are managed. Objective: To describe and explore how people with advanced cancer manage occupations when living at home. Material and methods: A subsample of 73 participants from a larger occupational therapy project took part... 198. Managing occupations in everyday life for people with advanced cancer at home DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Peoples, Hanne; Brandt, Ã…se; Wæhrens, Eva Elisabet Ejlersen; university hospital. Qualitative interviews were performed in the participant’s homes. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Information on demographic and use of social service was included. Thematic and content analysis were performed. Results: The analysis resulted in a core category......, there are limited research that more specifically explore how these are managed. The objective was to describe and explore how people with advanced cancer manage occupations at home. Material and methods: A qualitative descriptive design was applied. 73 participants were consecutively recruited from a Danish... 199. Advanced services in hospital logistics in the German health service sector National Research Council Canada - National Science Library Kriegel, Johannes; Jehle, Franziska; Dieck, Marcel; Mallory, Patricia 2013-01-01 ...: What are the developmental options to expand the current capabilities of the hospital contract logistics service providers on the basis of the priorities of the decision-makers in the German hospital sector... 200. Meaning and Practice of Palliative Care for Hospitalized Older Adults with Life Limiting Illnesses Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Bethel Ann Powers 2011-01-01 Full Text Available Objective. To illustrate distinctions and intersections of palliative care (PC and end-of-life (EOL services through examples from case-centered data of older adults cared for during a four-year ethnographic study of an acute care hospital palliative care consultation service. Methods. Qualitative narrative and thematic analysis. Results. Description of four practice paradigms (EOL transitions, prognostic uncertainty, discharge planning, and patient/family values and preferences and identification of the underlying structure and communication patterns of PC consultation services common to them. Conclusions. Consistent with reports by other researchers, study data support the need to move beyond equating PC with hospice or EOL care and the notion that EOL is a well-demarcated period of time before death. If professional health care providers assume that PC services are limited to assisting with and helping patients and families prepare for dying, they miss opportunities to provide care considered important to older individuals confronting life-limiting illnesses. « 8 9 10 11 12 » « 9 10 11 12 13 » 201. Physical activity history and end-of-life hospital and long-term care DEFF Research Database (Denmark) von Bonsdorff, Mikaela B; Rantanen, Taina; Leinonen, Raija 2009-01-01 persons aged 66-98 years at death, who, on average 5.8 years prior to death, had participated in an interview about their current and earlier physical activity. Data on the use of care in the last year of life are register-based data and complete. RESULTS: Men needed on average 96 days (SD 7.0) and women...... had been consistently physically active, whereas use of long-term care did not correlate with physical activity history. Among women, the risk for long-term care was higher for those who had been sedentary (IRR 2.03, 95% CI 1.28-3.21) or only occasionally physically active (IRR 1.60, 95% CI 1.......06-2.43), than for those who had been consistently active from midlife onward, whereas use of hospital care did not correlate with physical activity history. CONCLUSION: People who had been physically active since midlife needed less end-of-life inpatient care but patterns differed between men and women.... 202. [The quality of life after chemotherapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients]. Science.gov (United States) SÅ‚owik-Gabryelska, A; Szczepanik, A; Kalicka, A 1999-01-01 The intensity of complains, short survival and great number of patients makes many oncologists to apply chemotherapy in advanced non-small cell lung cancer/NSCLC/. The achieved median duration of life after chemotherapy was 6 to 12 month. From the other hand non small cell lung cancer chemotherapy is a big burden even to healthy persons. It can worsen the quality of life. That was the reason we evaluated the quality of life after chemotherapy in advanced non small cell lung cancer patients. Taking into account, that the evaluation of quality of life, used in most diseases is useless in advanced NSCLC patients, for appreciation the quality of life in these cases the lung cancer symptoms scale/LCSS/was adopted. In 110 non small cell lung cancer patients in stage IIIB and IV, who received combined chemotherapy by Le Chevalier/Vindesine, Cisplatin, Cyclophosphamide, Lomustin/or by Rosell/Mitomycin, Cyclophosphamide, Cisplatin/the quality of life was evaluated. In 20-persons control group all patients received the symptomatic treatment. In observed group of 110 patients, tumor regressions after 4 courses of chemotherapy allowed to resect cancer in 14 cases, to apply radiotherapy in 42 and to continue chemiotherapy in 23 persons. In every person from above mentioned group the quality of life was evaluated on the basis of intensity of cancer symptoms, accordingly to LCSS. The intensity of cancer symptoms was compared before and after treatment. There were compared; the innensity of complains, weakness, appetite, malnutrition, and hematological, neurological, performans state as well as respiratory sufficiency, infections, cardiac disorders and pain. Apart it, the side effects of applied therapy were assessed in 5 degree scale. The level of hemoglobin, the number of leucocytes, thrombocytes, bilirubine and transaminases in peripheral blood, hematurie, proteinurie, bleedings, appetite, nausea, vomitings, diarrhea, mucosal lesions, infections, skin lesions, cardiac lesions 203. Respiratory syncytial virus hospitalization risk in the second year of life by specific congenital heart disease diagnoses Science.gov (United States) Friedman, Deborah; Fryzek, Jon; Jiang, Xiaohui; Bloomfield, Adam; Ambrose, Christopher S.; Wong, Pierre C. 2017-01-01 Children with hemodynamically significant congenital heart disease (CHD) are at elevated risk of morbidity and mortality due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease compared to their healthy peers. Previous studies have demonstrated lower RSV hospitalization risk among all children with CHD at 12–23 months of age versus 0–11 months of age. However, RSV hospitalization risk at 12–23 months of age by specific CHD diagnosis has not been characterized. Both case-control and cohort studies were conducted using data from the US National Inpatient Sample from 1997 to 2013 to characterize relative risk of RSV hospitalization among children 12–23 months of age with CHD. Related CHD diagnoses were combined for analysis. Hospitalizations for RSV and unspecified bronchiolitis were described by length of stay, mechanical ventilation use, mortality, and total charges. Over the 17-year period, 1,168,886 live birth hospitalizations with CHD were identified. Multiple specific CHD conditions had an elevated odds ratio or relative risk of RSV hospitalization. Mean total RSV hospitalization charges were significantly higher among children with CHD relative to those without CHD ($19,650 vs $7,939 in 2015 dollars) for this period. Compared to children without CHD, children with Ebstein’s anomaly, transposition of the great arteries, aortic stenosis, heterotaxia, and aortic arch anomalies had 367-, 344-, 203-, 117- and 47-fold increased risk of inpatient RSV mortality, respectively. Unspecified bronchiolitis hospitalization odds and relative risk across CHD diagnoses were similar to those observed with RSV hospitalization; however, unspecified bronchiolitis hospitalizations were associated with shorter mean days of stay and less frequently associated with mechanical ventilation or mortality. Among children with more severe CHD diagnoses, RSV disease remains an important health risk through the second year of life. These data

can help inform decisions regarding 204. Respiratory syncytial virus hospitalization risk in the second year of life by specific congenital heart disease diagnoses. Science.gov (United States) Friedman, Deborah; Fryzek, Jon; Jiang, Xiaohui; Bloomfield, Adam; Ambrose, Christopher S; Wong, Pierre C 2017-01-01 Children with hemodynamically significant congenital heart disease (CHD) are at elevated risk of morbidity and mortality due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease compared to their healthy peers. Previous studies have demonstrated lower RSV hospitalization risk among all children with CHD at 12-23 months of age versus 0-11 months of age. However, RSV hospitalization risk at 12-23 months of age by specific CHD diagnosis has not been characterized. Both case-control and cohort studies were conducted using data from the US National Inpatient Sample from 1997 to 2013 to characterize relative risk of RSV hospitalization among children 12-23 months of age with CHD. Related CHD diagnoses were combined for analysis. Hospitalizations for RSV and unspecified bronchiolitis were described by length of stay, mechanical ventilation use, mortality, and total charges. Over the 17year period, 1,168,886 live birth hospitalizations with CHD were identified. Multiple specific CHD conditions had an elevated odds ratio or relative risk of RSV hospitalization. Mean total RSV hospitalization charges were significantly higher among children with CHD relative to those without CHD ($19,650 vs $7,939 in 2015 dollars) for this period. Compared to children without CHD, children with Ebstein's anomaly, transposition of the great arteries, aortic stenosis, heterotaxia, and aortic arch anomalies had 367-, 344-, 203-, 117- and 47-fold increased risk of inpatient RSV mortality, respectively. Unspecified bronchiolitis hospitalization odds and relative risk across CHD diagnoses were similar to those observed with RSV hospitalization; however, unspecified bronchiolitis hospitalizations were associated with shorter mean days of stay and less frequently associated with mechanical ventilation or mortality. Among children with more severe CHD diagnoses, RSV disease remains an important health risk through the second year of life. These data can help inform decisions regarding interventions to 205. Calendar Life Studies of Advanced Technology Development Program Gen 1 Lithium Ion Batteries Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Wright, Randy Ben; Motloch, Chester George 2001-03-01 This report presents the test results of a special calendar-life test conducted on 18650-size, prototype, lithium-ion battery cells developed to establish a baseline chemistry and performance for the Advanced Technology Development Program. As part of electrical performance testing, a new calendar-life test protocol was used. The test consisted of a onceper-day discharge and charge pulse designed to have minimal impact on the cell yet establish the performance of the cell over a period of time such that the calendar life of the cell could be determined. The calendar life test matrix included two states of charge (i.e., 60 and 80%) and four temperatures (40, 50, 60, and 70°C). Discharge and regen resistances were calculated from the test data. Results indicate that both discharge and regen resistance increased nonlinearly as a function of the test time. The magnitude of the discharge and regen resistance depended on the temperature and state of charge at which the test was conducted. The calculated discharge and regen resistances were then used to develop empirical models that may be useful to predict the calendar life or the cells. 206. Cycle Life Studies of Advanced Technology Development Program Gen 1 Lithium Ion Batteries Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Wright, Randy Ben; Motloch, Chester George 2001-03-01 This report presents the test results of a special calendar-life test conducted on 18650-size, prototype, lithium-ion battery cells developed to establish a baseline chemistry and performance for the Advanced Technology Development Program. As part of electrical performance testing, a new calendar-life test protocol was used. The test consisted of a onceper-day discharge and charge pulse designed to have minimal impact on the cell yet establish the performance of the cell over a period of time such that the calendar life of the cell could be determined. The calendar life test matrix included two states of charge (i.e., 60 and 80%) and four temperatures (40, 50, 60, and 70°C). Discharge and regen resistances were calculated from the test data. Results indicate that both discharge and regen resistance increased nonlinearly as a function of the test time. The magnitude of the discharge and regen resistance depended on the temperature and state of charge at which the test was conducted. The calculated discharge and regen resistances were then used to develop empirical models that may be useful to predict the calendar life or the cells. 207. Students′ satisfaction to hybrid problem-based learning format for basic life support/advanced cardiac life support teaching Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Geetanjali Chilkoti 2016-01-01 Full Text Available Background and Aims: Students are exposed to basic life support (BLS and advanced cardiac life support (ACLS training in the first semester in some medical colleges. The aim of this study was to compare students′ satisfaction between lecture-based traditional method and hybrid problem-based learning (PBL in BLS/ACLS teaching to undergraduate medical students. Methods: We conducted a questionnaire-based, cross-sectional survey among 118 1 st -year medical students from a university medical college in the city of New Delhi, India. We aimed to assess the students′ satisfaction between lecture-based and hybrid-PBL method in BLS/ACLS teaching. Likert 5-point scale was used to assess students′ satisfaction levels between the two teaching methods. Data were collected and scores regarding the students′ satisfaction levels between these two teaching methods were analysed using a two-sided paired t-test. Results: Most students preferred hybrid-PBL format over traditional lecture-based method in the following four aspects; learning and understanding, interest and motivation, training of personal abilities and being confident and satisfied with the teaching method (P < 0.05. Conclusion: Implementation of hybrid-PBL format along with the lecture-based method in BLS/ACLS teaching provided high satisfaction among undergraduate medical students. 208. The Relation of Work, Family Balance, and Life Quality of Nurses Working at Teaching Hospitals of Kerman-Iran Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Zeynab Sedoughi 2016-08-01 Full Text Available Background: Work and family are the source of tranquility and if the balance between these two is not provided, pleasure, happiness and peace of human being would be lost, which will cause unreturnable loss for him. Regarding the importance of nurses’ role in health system, the present study aimed to study the relation of work-family balance and quality of life of nurses working at selected Iranian teaching hospitals. Methods: Present study is a cross sectional, descriptive-analytical study which was carried out on 306 nurses working at three teaching hospitals of Iran. The sampling method was stratified sampling and questionnaire was the data collection instrument. Data analysis was carried out using inferential statistics through SPSS Ver18. Findings: nurses spent more time to work than family and they had more satisfaction of their family life than their work. This suggests the imbalance of nurses in two dimension of time balance and satisfaction balance, which has resulted a decrease in quality of life of studied nurses. Nurse’s involvement in work and life as the third component of work-life balance concept, was balanced and it did not indicate significant correlation with quality of life. Nurses experiencing less workfamily conflict and more stress in their life, had higher level of quality of life. Conclusion: Nurses will be more exposed to the negative outcomes of work-life imbalance than other groups of employees, so paying attention to managing the demands of work and family aimed at improving the nurses’ quality of life, has specific importance. Hence, designing a plan which defines main components of work-family balance among various groups of hospital staff including nurses, should be put at the top agenda of Iran’s health system policy makers. 209. Estimated costs of advanced lung cancer care in a public reference hospital. Science.gov (United States) Knust, Renata Erthal; Portela, Margareth Crisóstomo; Pereira, Claudia Cristina de Aguiar; Fortes, Guilherme Bastos 2017-08-17 To estimate the direct medical costs of advanced non-small cell lung cancer care. We assessed a cohort of 277 patients treated in the Brazilian National Cancer Institute in 2011. The costs were estimated from the perspective of the hospital as a service provider of reference for the Brazilian Unified Health System. The materials and procedures used were identified and quantified, per patient, and we assigned to them monetary values, consolidated in phases of the assistance defined. The analyses had a descriptive character with costs in Real (R$). Overall, the cohort represented a cost of R$2,473,559.91, being 71.5% related to outpatient care and 28.5% to hospitalizations. In the outpatient care, costs with radiotherapy (34%) and chemotherapy (22%) predominated. The results pointed to lower costs in the initial phase of treatment (7.2%) and very high costs in the maintenance phase (61.6%). Finally, we identified statistically significant differences of average cost by age groups, education levels, physical performance, and histological type. This study provides a current, useful, and relevant picture of the costs of patients with non-small cell lung cancer treated in a public hospital of reference and it provides information on the magnitude of the problem of cancer in the context of public health. The results confirm the importance of radiation treatment and hospitalizations as the main components of the cost of treatment. Despite some losses of follow-up, we assess that, for approximately 80% of the patients included in the study, the estimates presented herein are satisfactory for the care of the disease, from the perspective of a service provider of reference of the Brazilian Unified Health System, as it provides elements for the management of the service, as well as for studies that result in more rational forms of resource allocation. Estimar os custos médicos diretos da assistência ao câncer de pulmão não pequenas células avançado. Foi avaliada uma 210. End-of-life costs of medical care for advanced stage cancer patients Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) KovaÄević Aleksandra 2015-01-01 Full Text Available Background/Aim. Cancer, one of the leading causes of mortality in the world, imposes a substantial economic burden on each society, including Serbia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the major cancer cost drivers in Serbia. Methods. A retrospective, indepth, bottom-up analysis of two combined databases was performed in order to quantify relevant costs. End-of-life data were obtained from patients with cancer, who deceased within the first year of the established diagnose, including basic demographics, diagnosis, tumour histology, medical resource use and related costs, time and cause of death. All costs were allocated to one of the three categories of cancer health care services: primary care (included home care, hospital outpatient and hospital inpatient care. Results. Exactly 114 patients were analyzed, out of whom a high percent (48.25% had distant metastases at the moment of establishing the diagnosis. Malignant neoplasms of respiratory and intrathoracic organs were leading causes of morbidity. The average costs per patient were significantly different according to the diagnosis, with the highest (13,114.10 EUR and the lowest (4.00 EUR ones observed in the breast cancer and melanoma, respectively. The greatest impact on total costs was observed concerning pharmaceuticals, with 42% of share (monoclonal antibodies amounted to 34% of all medicines and 14% of total costs, followed by oncology medical care (21%, radiation therapy and interventional radiology (11%, surgery (9%, imaging diagnostics (9% and laboratory costs (8%. Conclusion. Cancer treatment incurs high costs, especially for end-of-life pharmaceutical expenses, ensued from medical personnel tendency to improve such patients’ quality of life in spite of nearing the end of life. Reimbursement policy on monoclonal antibodies, in particular at end-stage disease, should rely on cost-effectiveness evidence as well as documented clinical efficiency. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke 211. Delay in referring and related factors in patients with advanced breast cancer - Emam Hospital (2000 Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) "Ghaem Maghami F 2002-07-01 Full Text Available Background: The aim of study was to determine the frequency of delay referring and related factors in patients with advanced breast cancer, in Imam Khomeini Hospital in the 2000. Materials and Methods: Successively 200 patients were entered the study if they were consentient. A questionnaire was constructed and information was obtained through interviewing. Results: From the cases, 64 patients (32 percent referred without delay and 136 patients (68 percent referred tardily. The patients who were late in comparison with patients who didn’t late, had significantly higher mean age (P=0.004, lower education level (P=0.002, and lower economic status (P=0.001. The frequency rate of single were lower among them (P=0.001, fewer percent were residual of big cities (P=0.01 and they had less rate of available physician (P=0.004. 24.3 percent of delay referring patients and 53.1 percent of patients without delay has a positive family history of breast cancer (P=0.001. 62.5 percent of delay referring patients and 85 percent of patients without delay were aware about importance of Self Breast Examination (S.B.E (P=0.002 and respectively 84.4 percent and 98.4 percent were award about symptoms of breast cancer (P=0.01. 23.5 percent and 33 percent of patients with and without delay Knew the method of B.S.E respectively. It wasn’t a significant difference. Conclusion: Lack of awareness about necessity of medical consultation, fear, carelessly, unavailable physician and poverty were the major causes of delay in patients who referred late. 212. Effect of prehospital advanced airway management for pediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Science.gov (United States) Ohashi-Fukuda, Naoko; Fukuda, Tatsuma; Doi, Kent; Morimura, Naoto 2017-05-01 Respiratory care may be important in pediatric out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) due to the asphyxial nature of the majority of events. However, evidence of the effect of prehospital advanced airway management (AAM) for pediatric OHCA is scarce. This was a nationwide population-based study of pediatric OHCA in Japan from 2011 to 2012 based on data from the All-Japan Utstein Registry. We included pediatric OHCA patients aged between 1 and 17 years old. The primary outcome was one-month neurologically favorable survival defined as a Glasgow-Pittsburgh cerebral performance category (CPC) score of 1-2 (corresponding to a Pediatric CPC score of 1-3). A total of 2157 patients were included in the final cohort; 365 received AAM and 1792 received bag-valve-mask (BVM) ventilation only. Among the 2157 patients, 213 (9.9%) survived with favorable neurological outcomes (CPC of 1-2) one month after OHCA. There were no significant differences in neurologically favorable survival between the AAM and BVM groups after adjusting for potential confounders, although there was a tendency favoring BVM ventilation: propensity score matching, OR 0.74 (95%CI 0.35-1.59), and multivariable logistic regression modeling, ORadjusted 0.55 (95%CI 0.24-1.14). Subgroup analyses demonstrated that there were no subgroups in which AAM was associated with neurologically favorable survival, including the non-cardiac (primarily asphyxial) etiology group. In pediatric OHCA, prehospital AAM was not associated with an increased chance of neurologically favorable survival compared with BVM-only ventilation. However, careful consideration is required to interpret the findings, as there may be unmeasured residual confounders and selection bias. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 213. Assessment of quality of life in patients with advanced non-small cell lung carcinoma treated with a combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Camila Uanne Resende Avelino 2015-04-01 Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC is the most common type of lung cancer. Most patients are diagnosed at an advanced stage, palliative chemotherapy therefore being the only treatment option. This study was aimed at evaluating the health-related quality of life (HRQoL of advanced-stage NSCLC patients receiving palliative chemotherapy with carboplatin and paclitaxel. METHODS: This was a multiple case study of advanced-stage NSCLC outpatients receiving chemotherapy at a public hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Quality of Life Questionnaire was used in conjunction with its supplemental lung cancer-specific module in order to assess HRQoL. RESULTS: Physical and cognitive functioning scale scores differed significantly among chemotherapy cycles, indicating improved and worsened HRQoL, respectively. The differences regarding the scores for pain, loss of appetite, chest pain, and arm/shoulder pain indicated improved HRQoL. CONCLUSIONS: Chemotherapy was found to improve certain aspects of HRQoL in patients with advanced-stage NSCLC. 214. Experimental Creep Life Assessment for the Advanced Stirling Convertor Heater Head Science.gov (United States) Krause, David L.; Kalluri, Sreeramesh; Shah, Ashwin R.; Korovaichuk, Igor 2010-01-01 The United States Department of Energy is planning to develop the Advanced Stirling Radioisotope Generator (ASRG) for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for potential use on future space missions. The ASRG provides substantial efficiency and specific power improvements over radioisotope power systems of heritage designs. The ASRG would use General Purpose Heat Source modules as energy sources and the free-piston Advanced Stirling Convertor (ASC) to convert heat into electrical energy. Lockheed Martin Corporation of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is integrating the ASRG systems, and Sunpower, Inc., of Athens, Ohio, is designing and building the ASC. NASA Glenn Research Center of Cleveland, Ohio, manages the Sunpower contract and provides technology development in several areas for the ASC. One area is reliability assessment for the ASC heater head, a critical pressure vessel within which heat is converted into mechanical oscillation of a displacer piston. For high system efficiency, the ASC heater head operates at very high temperature (850 C) and therefore is fabricated from an advanced heat-resistant nickel-based superalloy Microcast MarM-247. Since use of MarM247 in a thin-walled pressure vessel is atypical, much effort is required to assure that the system will operate reliably for its design life of 17 years. One life-limiting structural response for this application is creep; creep deformation is the accumulation of time-dependent inelastic strain under sustained loading over time. If allowed to progress, the deformation eventually results in creep rupture. Since creep material properties are not available in the open literature, a detailed creep life assessment of the ASC heater head effort is underway. This paper presents an overview of that creep life assessment approach, including the reliability-based creep criteria developed from coupon testing, and the associated heater head deterministic and probabilistic analyses. The approach also 215. Physical sciences and engineering advances in life sciences and oncology a WTEC global assessment CERN Document Server Fletcher, Daniel; Gerecht, Sharon; Levine, Ross; Mallick, Parag; McCarty, Owen; Munn, Lance; Reinhart-King, Cynthia 2016-01-01 This book presents an Assessment of Physical Sciences and Engineering Advances in Life Sciences and Oncology (APHELION) by a panel of experts. It covers the status and trends of applying physical sciences and engineering principles to oncology research in leading laboratories and organizations in Europe and Asia. The book elaborates on the six topics identified by the panel that have the greatest potential to advance understanding and treatment of cancer, each covered by a chapter in the book. The study was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) at the National Institute of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering at the NIH in the US under a cooperative agreement with the World Technology Evaluation Center (WTEC). 216. Poststroke anxiety disorders in a Nigerian hospital: Prevalence, associated factors, and impacts on quality of life Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Osunwale Dahunsi Oni 2017-01-01 Full Text Available Background and Purpose: Anxiety disorders impact negatively on morbidity and mortality poststroke. Few studies have, however, been done on poststroke anxiety disorders (PSAD, particularly in Africa. The study aims to determine the prevalence, associated clinicodemographic factors, and impact of PSAD on quality of life (QoL among outpatients at a tertiary hospital in Nigeria. Methods: Seventy stroke survivors attending Outpatient Clinics at Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria, were recruited into the study. Participants were assessed using sociodemographic/clinical questionnaire, the modified Mini–Mental State Examination, the Modified Rankin Scale, the Schedule for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry, and the World Health Organization-QoL-Bref. Data collection took 5 months and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS® software version 17.0. Results: The mean age of respondents was 57.43 (±9.67 years and 38 respondents (54% were male. Majority of the stroke survivors had infarctive stroke 55 (78.6%, right hemispheric lesions 37 (52.9%, and significant poststroke disabilities 57 (81.4%. The prevalence of PSAD was 10% and agoraphobia with panic attacks was elicited in 42.8% of those diagnosed with PSAD. Participants with PSAD were significantly more likely to be unemployed (P = 0.01 and pay more than ₦10,000 ($62.50 at December 2013 monthly for health care. The mean QoL scores were lower in participants with PSAD across all QoL spheres, and significantly so for overall health (P = 0.04, health satisfaction (P = 0.02, and physical health (P = 0.01 domains. Conclusion: PSAD, especially agoraphobia in association with unemployment and high health-care costs correlated with poor well-being among stroke survivors. Proactive measures to ensure prompt identification and management may potentially improve outcome and QoL after stroke. 217. The importance of older patients ’ experiences with care delivery for their quality of life after hospitalization NARCIS (Netherlands) J.M. Hartgerink (Jacqueline); J.M. Cramm (Jane); T.J.E.M. Bakker (Ton); J.P. Mackenbach (Johan); A.P. Nieboer (Anna) 2015-01-01 markdownabstractAbstract Background:Older patients’experiences with care delivery may be important for their quality of life over time.Evidence is however lacking. Therefore, this study aims to identify the longitudinal relationship between older patients’experiences with hospital care, perceived 218. Assessment of Advanced Life Support competence when combining different test methods--reliability and validity DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Ringsted, C; Lippert, F; Hesselfeldt, R 2007-01-01 Summary Robust assessment of Advanced Life Support (ALS) competence is paramount to the credibility of ALS-provider certification and for estimating the learning outcome and retention of ALS competence following the courses. The Euro- pean Resuscitation Council (ERC) provides two sets of MCQs and...... Correlation Coefficients between 0.766 and 0.977. Inter-rater agreements on pass/fail decisions were not perfect. The one MCQ test was significantly more difficult than the other. There were no significant differences between CASTests.... 219. Advanced Trauma Life Support. ABCDE from a radiological point of view. Science.gov (United States) Kool, Digna R; Blickman, Johan G 2007-07-01 Accidents are the primary cause of death in patients aged 45 years or younger. In many countries, Advanced Trauma Life Support(R) (ATLS) is the foundation on which trauma care is based. We will summarize the principles and the radiological aspects of the ATLS, and we will discuss discrepancies with day to day practice and the radiological literature. Because the ATLS is neither thorough nor up-to-date concerning several parts of radiology in trauma, it should not be adopted without serious attention to defining the indications and limitations pertaining to diagnostic imaging. 220. Advanced Trauma Life Support®. ABCDE from a radiological point of view OpenAIRE 2007-01-01 Accidents are the primary cause of death in patients aged 45 years or younger. In many countries, Advanced Trauma Life Support® (ATLS®) is the foundation on which trauma care is based. We will summarize the principles and the radiological aspects of the ATLS®, and we will discuss discrepancies with day to day practice and the radiological literature. Because the ATLS® is neither thorough nor up-to-date concerning several parts of radiology in trauma, it should not be adopted without serious a... « 9 10 11 12 13 » « 10 11 12 13 14 » 221. Considerations in miniaturizing simplified agro-ecosystems for advanced life support

Science.gov (United States) Volk, T. 1996-01-01 Miniaturizing the Earth's biogeochemical cycles to support human life during future space missions is the goal of the NASA research and engineering program in advanced life support. Mission requirements to reduce mass, volume, and power have focused efforts on (1) a maximally simplified agro-ecosystem of humans, food crops, and microbes; and, (2) a design for optimized productivity of food crops with high light levels over long days, with hydroponics, with elevated carbon dioxide and other controlled environmental factors, as well as with genetic selection for desirable crop properties. Mathematical modeling contributes to the goals by establishing trade-offs, by analyzing the growth and development of experimental crops, and by pointing to the possibilities of directed phasic control using modified field crop models to increase the harvest index. 222. Demonstration of Advanced Technologies for Multi-Load Washers in Hospitality and Healthcare -- Wastewater Recycling Technology Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Boyd, Brian K. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Parker, Graham B. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Petersen, Joseph M. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Sullivan, Greg [Efficiency Solutions, LLC (United States); Goetzler, W. [Navigant Consulting, Inc. (United States); Foley, K. J. [Navigant Consulting, Inc. (United States); Sutherland, T. A. [Navigant Consulting, Inc. (United States) 2014-08-14 The objective of this demonstration project was to evaluate market-ready retrofit technologies for reducing the energy and water use of multi-load washers in healthcare and hospitality facilities. Specifically, this project evaluated laundry wastewater recycling technology in the hospitality sector and ozone laundry technology in both the healthcare and hospitality sectors. This report documents the demonstration of a wastewater recycling system installed in the Grand Hyatt Seattle. 223. Effort-reward imbalance and quality of life of healthcare workers in military hospitals: a cross-sectional study Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Tzeng Dong-Sheng 2012-09-01 Full Text Available Abstract Background Taiwan’s National Defense Bureau has been merging its hospitals and adjusting hospital accreditation levels since the beginning of 2006. These changes have introduced many stressors to the healthcare workers in these hospitals. This study investigates the association between job stress, psychological morbidity and quality of life in healthcare workers in three military hospitals. Methods We posted surveys to 1269 healthcare workers in three military hospitals located in southern Taiwan. The surveys included the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ, the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF, and the Effort-Reward Imbalance (ERI Questionnaire. High effort-reward (ER ratio and overcommitment were defined when scores fell into the upper tertile of the total distribution. Results The survey was completed by 791 healthcare workers. On average, women reported a higher ERI than men. High ERI was associated with younger age, higher psychological morbidity, and poor physical and psychological QOL domains in this population. High ER ratio and high overcommitment were associated with psychological morbidity and poor QOL in both sexes. However, high ER ratio was not significantly associated with the social QOL domain in either sexes or the physical QOL domain in males. Conclusions There was a clear association between ERI and QOL in the healthcare workers in the military hospitals under reorganization and accreditation in this study. We found ER ratio and overcommitment to be suitable indicators of job stress. 224. Effort-reward imbalance and quality of life of healthcare workers in military hospitals: a cross-sectional study. Science.gov (United States) Tzeng, Dong-Sheng; Chung, Wei-Ching; Lin, Chi-Hung; Yang, Chun-Yuh 2012-09-08 Taiwan's National Defense Bureau has been merging its hospitals and adjusting hospital accreditation levels since the beginning of 2006. These changes have introduced many stressors to the healthcare workers in these hospitals. This study investigates the association between job stress, psychological morbidity and quality of life in healthcare workers in three military hospitals. We posted surveys to 1269 healthcare workers in three military hospitals located in southern Taiwan. The surveys included the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-BREF), and the Effort-Reward Imbalance (ERI) Questionnaire. High effort-reward (ER) ratio and overcommitment were defined when scores fell into the upper tertile of the total distribution. The survey was completed by 791 healthcare workers. On average, women reported a higher ERI than men. High ERI was associated with younger age, higher psychological morbidity, and poor physical and psychological QOL domains in this population. High ER ratio and high overcommitment were associated with psychological morbidity and poor QOL in both sexes. However, high ER ratio was not significantly associated with the social QOL domain in either sexes or the physical QOL domain in males. There was a clear association between ERI and QOL in the healthcare workers in the military hospitals under reorganization and accreditation in this study. We found ER ratio and overcommitment to be suitable indicators of job stress. 225. Crop Production for Advanced Life Support Systems - Observations From the Kennedy Space Center Breadboard Project Science.gov (United States) Wheeler, R. M.; Sager, J. C.; Prince, R. P.; Knott, W. M.; Mackowiak, C. L.; Stutte, G. W.; Yorio, N. C.; Ruffe, L. M.; Peterson, B. V.; Goins, G. D. 2003-01-01 The use of plants for bioregenerative life support for space missions was first studied by the US Air Force in the 1950s and 1960s. Extensive testing was also conducted from the 1960s through the 1980s by Russian researchers located at the Institute of Biophysics in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, and the Institute for Biomedical Problems in Moscow. NASA initiated bioregenerative research in the 1960s (e.g., Hydrogenomonas) but this research did not include testing with plants until about 1980, with the start of the Controlled Ecological Life Support System (CELSS) Program. The NASA CELSS research was carried out at universities, private corporations, and NASA field centers, including Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The project at KSC began in 1985 and was called the CELSS Breadboard Project to indicate the capability for plugging in and testing various life support technologies; this name has since been dropped but bioregenerative testing at KSC has continued to the present under the NASA s Advanced Life Support (ALS) Program. A primary objective of the KSC testing was to conduct pre-integration tests with plants (crops) in a large, atmospherically closed test chamber called the Biomass Production Chamber (BPC). Test protocols for the BPC were based on observations and growing procedures developed by university investigators, as well as procedures developed in plant growth chamber studies at KSC. Growth chamber studies to support BPC testing focused on plant responses to different carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations, different spectral qualities from various electric lamps, and nutrient film hydroponic culture techniques. 226. Influence of comorbidity on survival, toxicity and health-related quality of life in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer receiving platinum-doublet chemotherapy DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Grønberg, Bjørn H; Sundstrøm, Stein; Kaasa, Stein; 2010-01-01 AIM OF THE STUDY: To investigate whether patients with severe comorbidity receiving platinum-based chemotherapy for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have a shorter overall survival, experience more toxicity or more deterioration of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) than other....... Comorbidity was assessed from hospital medical records using the Cumulative Illness Rating Scale for Geriatrics (CIRS-G). Toxicity was graded using the CTCAE v3.0 and the patients reported HRQoL on the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ)-C30...... neutropenic fevers (12% versus 5%; p=.012) and deaths from neutropenic infections (3% versus 0%; p=.027). They had more thrombocytopenia (46% versus 36%; p=.03), but not more thrombocytopenic bleedings (3% versus 4%; p=.65). In general, the patients with severe comorbidity reported poorer HRQoL... 227. Relationship between Quality of Work-Life and Job Satisfaction of the Employees in Public Hospitals in Rasht Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Mehrdad Goudarznand-Chegini 2012-04-01 Full Text Available Background: The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between quality of work-life and job satisfaction regarding their educational level of hospital employees in Rasht, Gilan.Materials and Method: Statistical society included 2,800 staffs of governmental hospitals in Rasht, in which 338 persons were selected by categorized sampling. Using a standard questionnaire, we collected necessary data and analyzed them using Pearson correlation, correlation coefficient and regression analysis.Results: Our findings showed that between each component of the quality of working life and job satisfaction of employees with 99% confidence level and 1% alpha according to the correlation coefficient (R and a significant positive relationship.Conclusion: Overall results expression and a significant positive correlation between the components of quality of work life and job satisfaction and variable reduction effect on the severity of education relationship between dependent and independent variables 228. The Study of Life Change Unit as Stressor Agents among Tehran University of Medical Sciences Hospitals' Employees Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Hossein Dargahi 2010-08-01 Full Text Available Life crises as stressor agents can disrupt the best stress management regime. Different life crises have different impacts. A standard scale to rate change and its related stress impact has been developed commonly referred to as LCU (Life Change Unit Rating. This allocates a number of Life Crisis Units or Life Change Units (LCUs to different event and then evaluates them and takes action accordingly. This idea behind this approach of is to rundown the LCU table, totaling the LCUs for life crisis that have occurred in the previous one year. A Cross - sectional, descriptive and analytical study was conducted among 900 Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS Employees by a Holms and Rahe LCU questionnaire at 15 hospitals. The respondents were asked to determine their demographic information, list of stress symptoms which suffered from these diseases in the previous one year and finally, responded to 45 Life Change Unit as stressful life events and the value of each in "stress units" which occurred in the previous one year. The results showed that there is significant correlation between the employees LCU rating by sex, educational degree and size of hospital. Also we found that there are significant correlations between the employees stress symptoms with their LCU rating. Totally, 40% of the employees have less than 150 LCU rating (normal range and 60% of them have 150300 or more than 300 LCU rating (abnormal range. In conclusion most of TUMS hospitals' employees who had stress symptoms have more LCU rating. One third of these employees are not in danger of suffering the illness effect, while two third of them are in danger. 229. The study of life change unit as stressor agents among Tehran University of Medical Sciences Hospitals' employees. Science.gov (United States) Dargahi, Hossein; Sharifiy Yazdi, Mohammad Kazem 2010-01-01 Life crises as stressor agents can disrupt the best stress management regime. Different life crises have different impacts. A standard scale to rate change and its related stress impact has been developed commonly referred to as LCU (life change unit) rating. This allocates a number of life crisis units or life change units (LCUs) to different event and then evaluates them and takes action accordingly. This idea behind this approach of is to rundown the LCU table, totaling the LCUs for life crisis that have occurred in the previous one year. A cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study was conducted among 900 Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS) employees by a Holms and Rahe LCU questionnaire at 15 hospitals. The respondents were asked to determine their demographic information, list of stress symptoms which suffered from these diseases in the previous one year and finally, responded to 45 Life Change Unit as stressful life events and the value of each in "stress units" which occurred in the previous one year. The results showed that there is significant correlation between the employees LCU rating by sex, educational degree and size of hospital. Also we found that there are significant correlations between the employees stress symptoms with their LCU rating. Totally, 40% of the employees have less than 150 LCU rating (normal range) and 60% of them have 150-300 or more than 300 LCU rating (abnormal range). In conclusion most of TUMS hospitals' employees who had stress symptoms have more LCU rating. One third of these employees are not in danger of suffering the illness effect, while two third of them are in danger. 230. The Study of Life Change Unit as Stressor Agents among Tehran University of Medical Sciences Hospitals' Employees Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Hossein Dargahi 2010-07-01 Full Text Available "nLife crises as stressor agents can disrupt the best stress management regime. Different life crises have different impacts. A standard scale to rate change and its related stress impact has been developed commonly referred to as LCU (Life Change Unit Rating. This allocates a number of Life Crisis Units or Life Change Units (LCUs to different event and then evaluates them and takes action accordingly. This idea behind this approach of is to rundown the LCU table, totaling the LCUs for life crisis that have occurred in the previous one year. A Cross - sectional, descriptive and analytical study was conducted among 900 Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS Employees by a Holms and Rahe LCU questionnaire at 15 hospitals. The respondents were asked to determine their demographic information, list of stress symptoms which suffered from these diseases in the previous one year and finally, responded to 45 Life Change Unit as stressful life events and the value of each in "stress units" which occurred in the previous one year. The results showed that there is significant correlation between the employees LCU rating by sex, educational degree and size of hospital. Also we found that there are significant correlations between the employees stress symptoms with their LCU rating. Totally, 40% of the employees have less than 150 LCU rating (normal range and 60% of them have 150300 or more than 300 LCU rating (abnormal range. In conclusion most of TUMS hospitals' employees who had stress symptoms have more LCU rating. One third of these employees are not in danger of suffering the illness effect, while two third of them are in danger. 231. Does hospital need more hospice beds? Hospital charges and length of stays by lung cancer inpatients at their end of life: A retrospective cohort design of 2002-2012. Science.gov (United States) Kim, Sun Jung; Han, Kyu-Tae; Kim, Tae Hyun; Park, Eun-Cheol 2015-10-01 Previous studies found that hospice and palliative care reduces healthcare costs for end-of-life cancer patients. To investigate hospital inpatient charges and length-of-stay differences by availability of hospice care beds within hospitals using nationwide data from end-of-life inpatients with lung cancer. A retrospective cohort study was performed using nationwide lung cancer health insurance claims from 2002 to 2012 in Korea. Descriptive and multi-level (patient-level and hospital-level) mixed models were used to compare inpatient charges and lengths of stay. Using 673,122 inpatient health insurance claims, we obtained aggregated hospital inpatient charges and lengths of stay from a total of 114,828 inpatients and 866 hospital records. Hospital inpatient charges and length of stay drastically increased as patients approached death; a significant portion of hospital inpatient charges and lengths of stay occurred during the end-of-life period. According to our multi-level analysis, hospitals with hospice care beds tend to have significantly lower end-of-life hospital inpatient charges; however, length of stay did not differ. Hospitals with more hospice care beds were associated with reduction in hospital inpatient charges within 3 months before death. Higher end-of-life healthcare hospital charges were found for lung cancer inpatients who were admitted to hospitals without hospice care beds. This study suggests that health policy-makers and the National Health Insurance program need to consider expanding the use of hospice care beds within hospitals and hospice care facilities for end-of-life patients with lung cancer in South Korea, where very limited numbers of resources are currently available. © The Author(s) 2015. 232. Weighing environmental advantages and disadvantages of advanced wastewater treatment of micro-pollutants using environmental life cycle assessment DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Wenzel, Henrik; Larsen, Henrik Fred; Clauson-Kaas, Jes 2008-01-01 -off was investigated using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology and based on a literature review of advanced treatment performance. The LCA evaluation comprised sand filtration, ozonation and MBRs and assessed the effect of extending existing tertiary treatment with these technologies on a variety of micro......; life cycle assessment; MBR; micropollutants; ozonation; sand filtration.... 233. Advanced airway management does not improve outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Science.gov (United States) Hanif, M Arslan; Kaji, Amy H; Niemann, James T 2010-09-01 The goal of out-of-hospital endotracheal intubation (ETI) is to reduce mortality and morbidity for patients with airway and ventilatory compromise. Yet several studies, mostly involving trauma patients, have demonstrated similar or worse neurologic outcomes and survival-to-hospital discharge rates after out-of-hospital ETI. To date, there is no study comparing out-of-hospital ETI to bag-valve-mask (BVM) ventilation for the outcome of survival to hospital discharge among nontraumatic adult out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OOHCA) patients. The objective was to compare survival to hospital discharge among adult OOHCA patients receiving ETI to those managed with BVM. In this retrospective cohort study, the records of all OOHCA patients presenting to a municipal teaching hospital from November 1, 1994, through June 30, 2008, were reviewed. The type of field airway provided, age, sex, race, rhythm on paramedic arrival, presence of bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), whether the arrest was witnessed, site of arrest, return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC), survival to hospital admission, comorbid illnesses, and survival to hospital discharge were noted. A univariate odds ratio (OR) was first computed to describe the association between the type of airway and survival to hospital discharge. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed, adjusting for rhythm, bystander CPR, and whether the arrest was witnessed. A cohort of 1,294 arrests was evaluated. A total of 1,027 (79.4%) received ETI, while 131 (10.1%) had BVM, 131 (10.1%) had either a Combitube or an esophageal obturator airway, and five (0.4%) had incomplete prehospital records. Fifty-five of 1,294 (4.3%) survived to hospital discharge; there were no survivors in the Combitube/esophageal obturator airway cohort. Even after multivariable adjustment for age, sex, site of arrest, bystander CPR, witnessed arrest, and rhythm on paramedic arrival, the OR for survival to hospital discharge for BVM 234. Intraduodenal levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel infusion improves both motor performance and quality of life in advanced Parkinson's disease. Science.gov (United States) Chang, Florence C F; Kwan, Vu; van der Poorten, David; Mahant, Neil; Wolfe, Nigel; Ha, Ainhi D; Griffith, Jane M; Tsui, David; Kim, Samuel D; Fung, Victor S C 2016-03-01 We report the efficacy and adverse effect profile of intraduodenal levodopa-carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG) infusion from patients treated in a single Australian movement disorder centre. We conducted an open-label, 12 month prospective study of treatment with LCIG in patients with advanced Parkinson's disease in a single tertiary referral hospital unit specialising in movement disorders. Patients with levodopa-responsive, advanced Parkinson's disease with motor fluctuations despite optimal pharmacological treatment were enrolled and underwent a 16 hour daily infusion of LCIG for 12 months. Fifteen participants completed the trial. The mean (± standard deviation) improvement in Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part III was 37 ± 11%, mean daily "off" period reduced from 6.3 ± 2 to 1.9 ± 2 hours, total daily "on" time increased from 10.2 ± 3 to 13.7 ± 2 hours, "on" period without dyskinesia increased from 4.5 ± 3 to 7.5 ± 5 hours, and 39-item Parkinson's Disease Questionnaire Summary Index score improved by 32.5 ± 35%. The most common adverse event was reversible peripheral neuropathy secondary to vitamin B12 ± B6 deficiency (40%), local tube problems (40%), and impulse control disorder (ICD) (27%). No patient had stoma bleeding or peritonitis. All patients with ICD had a past psychiatric diagnosis of depression with or without anxiety and a higher daily levodopa intake at 6 and 12 months of LCIG infusion. Intraduodenal LCIG improves motor performance, quality of life and daily "on" period. Prior to and during duodenal LCIG infusion, clinicians should monitor for peripheral neuropathy and vitamin B12 and B6 deficiency, as supplementation can reverse peripheral neuropathy. This trial is registered at Clinicaltrials.gov as CT00335153. 235. Hospitals DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Mullins, Michael 2013-01-01 focus. It is not enough to consider only the factors of function within architecture, hygiene, economy and logistics. We also need to look at aspects of aesthetics, bringing nature into the building, art, color, acoustics, volume and space as we perceive them. Contemporary methods and advances...... in treating disease can be supported by architecture which is sensitive to the contextual conditions of healing in health facilities. It is not the intention to supplant technology, but a question of supplementing the incredible advances that have been made in medicine in recent decades. The central premise...... hour rhythm of sleep, depression, admission length and mortality etc. Sound, in order to keep decibel levels at 40db as recommended, reverberation times, type and quantity of equipment in terms of its noise and how it affects stress levels, acoustic screening to allow privacy and single wards... 236. Improving advanced cardiovascular life support skills in medical students: simulation-based education approach Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Hamidreza Reihani 2015-01-01 Full Text Available Objective: In this trial, we intend to assess the effect of simulation-based education approach on advanced cardiovascular life support skills among medical students. Methods: Through convenient sampling method, 40 interns of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences in their emergency medicine rotation (from September to December 2012 participated in this study. Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS workshops with pretest and post-test exams were performed. Workshops and checklists for pretest and post-test exams were designed according to the latest American Heart Association (AHA guidelines. Results: The total score of the students increased significantly after workshops (24.6 out of 100 to 78.6 out of 100. This demonstrates 53.9% improvement in the skills after the simulation-based education (P< 0.001. Also the mean score of each station had a significant improvement (P< 0.001. Conclusion: Pretests showed that interns had poor performance in practical clinical matters while their scientific knowledge, such as ECG interpretation was acceptable. The overall results of the study highlights that Simulation based-education approach is highly effective in Improving ACLS skills among medical students. 237. Technology assessment for the advanced life detector. Final technical report, May 1987-January 1988 Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Burrows, W.D.; George, D.T. 1988-01-29 This report summarizes an assessment of technology available to develop a noninvasive life detector for use on the battlefield. The detectors determine if casualties wearing chemical protective overgarments are alive or dead without further exposing either the casualties or the aidmen to the contaminated environment. Seven technology approaches sponsored by the Department of Defense (comprising 11 devices), four technologies identified in a market survey, and one device described in a Broad Agency Announcement proposal were examined as candidate Advanced Life Detectors. The technologies and instruments surveyed included three transmitter-receiver technologies, an electrocardiogram (ECG) technology, pacemaker-transmitter/receiver, dry electrode heart rate monitor, five microwave technologies, flash reflectance oximetry, an ultrasound technology, a streaming potential technology, a dry electrode ECG monitor coupled to a microphone, a statometric technique for determining heart rate and blood pressure, and a vital-signs monitor that determines heart rate and blood pressure using blood pressure cuff and microphones incorporated into the cuff. Analysis of the state-of-the-art of each device indicates that none of them are advanced enough to fulfill all the requirements of the draft Joint Services Operational Requirement. Three of the devices identified are recommended for further evaluation. 238. A consensus-based template for uniform reporting of data from pre-hospital advanced airway management. Science.gov (United States) Sollid, Stephen J M; Lockey, David; Lossius, Hans Morten 2009-11-20 Advanced airway management is a critical intervention that can harm the patient if performed poorly. The available literature on this subject is rich, but it is difficult to interpret due to a huge variability and poor definitions. Several initiatives from large organisations concerned with airway management have recently propagated the need for guidelines and standards in pre-hospital airway management. Following the path of other initiatives to establish templates for uniform data reporting, like the many Utstein-style templates, we initiated and carried out a structured consensus process with international experts to establish a set of core data points to be documented and reported in cases of advanced pre-hospital airway management. A four-step modified nominal group technique process was employed. The inclusion criterion for the template was defined as any patient for whom the insertion of an advanced airway device or ventilation was attempted. The data points were divided into three groups based on their relationship to the intervention, including system-, patient-, and post-intervention variables, and the expert group agreed on a total of 23 core data points. Additionally, the group defined 19 optional variables for which a consensus could not be achieved or the data were considered as valuable but not essential. We successfully developed an Utstein-style template for documenting and reporting pre-hospital airway management. The core dataset for this template should be included in future studies on pre-hospital airway management to produce comparable data across systems and patient populations and will be implemented in systems that are influenced by the expert panel.

239. A consensus-based template for uniform reporting of data from pre-hospital advanced airway management Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Lockey David 2009-11-01 Full Text Available Abstract Background Advanced airway management is a critical intervention that can harm the patient if performed poorly. The available literature on this subject is rich, but it is difficult to interpret due to a huge variability and poor definitions. Several initiatives from large organisations concerned with airway management have recently propagated the need for guidelines and standards in pre-hospital airway management. Following the path of other initiatives to establish templates for uniform data reporting, like the many Utstein-style templates, we initiated and carried out a structured consensus process with international experts to establish a set of core data points to be documented and reported in cases of advanced pre-hospital airway management. Methods A four-step modified nominal group technique process was employed. Results The inclusion criterion for the template was defined as any patient for whom the insertion of an advanced airway device or ventilation was attempted. The data points were divided into three groups based on their relationship to the intervention, including system-, patient-, and post-intervention variables, and the expert group agreed on a total of 23 core data points. Additionally, the group defined 19 optional variables for which a consensus could not be achieved or the data were considered as valuable but not essential. Conclusion We successfully developed an Utstein-style template for documenting and reporting pre-hospital airway management. The core dataset for this template should be included in future studies on pre-hospital airway management to produce comparable data across systems and patient populations and will be implemented in systems that are influenced by the expert panel. 240. Health behaviors and quality of life predictors for risk of hospitalization in an electronic health record-linked biobank Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Takahashi PY 2015-08-01 Full Text Available Paul Y Takahashi,1,2 Euijung Ryu,3 Janet E Olson,3 Erin M Winkler,4 Matthew A Hathcock,3 Ruchi Gupta,3 Jeff A Sloan,3 Jyotishman Pathak,3 Suzette J Bielinski,3 James R Cerhan3 1Division of Primary Care Internal Medicine, 2Department of Internal Medicine, 3Department of Health Sciences Research, 4Center for Individualized Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA Background: Hospital risk stratification models using electronic health records (EHRs often use age and comorbid health burden. Our primary aim was to determine if quality of life or health behaviors captured in an EHR-linked biobank can predict future risk of hospitalization. Methods: Participants in the Mayo Clinic Biobank completed self-administered questionnaires at enrollment that included quality of life and health behaviors. Participants enrolled as of December 31, 2010 were followed for one year to ascertain hospitalization. Data on comorbidities and hospitalization were derived from the Mayo Clinic EHR. Hazard ratios (HR and 95% confidence interval (CI were used, adjusted for age and sex. We used gradient boosting machines models to integrate multiple factors. Different models were compared using C-statistic. Results: Of the 8,927 eligible Mayo Clinic Biobank participants, 834 (9.3% were hospitalized. Self-perceived health status and alcohol use had the strongest associations with risk of hospitalization. Compared to participants with excellent self-perceived health, those reporting poor/fair health had higher risk of hospitalization (HR =3.66, 95% CI 2.74–4.88. Alcohol use was inversely associated with hospitalization (HR =0.57 95% CI 0.45–0.72. The gradient boosting machines model estimated self-perceived health as the most influential factor (relative influence =16%. The predictive ability of the model based on comorbidities was slightly higher than the one based on the self-perceived health (C-statistic =0.67 vs 0.65. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that self « 10 11 12 13 14 » « 11 12 13 14 15 » 241. Health-related quality of life among patients with advanced cancer: an integrative review Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Maria Eliane Moreira Freire 2014-04-01 Full Text Available This integrative literature review aimed to characterize scientific articles on health-related quality of life – HRQoL – among patients with advanced cancer from national and international literature, and summarize those factors evidenced in the literature that contributed to the improvement or worsening of HRQoL among patients with advanced cancer. The search for materials was conducted in the following databases: CINAHL, EMBASE, PubMed, SciELO and LILACS. Among the 21 articles in the sample, 13 showed an improvement of HRQoL among patients with advanced cancer related to the development of physical, emotional and spiritual interventions. In eight studies, we identified predictive symptoms of low HRQoL, such as pain, fatigue, sleep disorders, depression, nutritional changes, and others. The results showed that clinical manifestations, which many times were inherent in cancer, such as factors that can lower patients’ HRQoL, while physical, psychological and spiritual benefits resulting from therapeutic interventions may promote its improvement. 242. QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH PSORIASIS AT A TERTIARY CARE TEACHING HOSPITAL and ndash;A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Preksha A Barot 2015-06-01 Full Text Available Background: Psoriasis is linked with social stigmatization, pain, discomfort, physical disability and psychological distress. It has a significant negative impact on quality of life. Since there is paucity of the data related to quality of life assessment in Indian psoriatic patients, this study was an earnest attempt in this direction The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of psoriasis on the quality of life in patients with psoriasis. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in 60 patients at Dermatology outpatient department of a tertiary care teaching hospital. The quality of life assessment was done by DLQI questionnaire in patients above the age of 16 years. Results: The Health related Quality of Life was assessed by DLQI questionnaire in 60 patients at Dermatology outpatient department. The M: F ratio was 2.16:1. The mean DLQI score was 8.95 +/8.48 (Mean +/- SD and 66.7% of the patients had moderate to extremely large impact on the quality of life. Highest DLQI Mean score 15.21 was noted in younger (20-29 yrs age group. Conclusion: Psoriasis is chronic recurring disease and has significant negative impact on patients quality of life. These findings provide significant new insights into factors that affect the life quality of patients with psoriasis. [Natl J Med Res 2015; 5(2.000: 93-97 243. [Health-related quality of life in children with epilepsy in a Mexican hospital]. Science.gov (United States) Dávila-Ãvila, Ned M; Delgado-De la Mora, Jesús; Candia-Plata, M Carmen; Alvarez-Hernández, Gerardo 2014-07-16 Introduccion. La epilepsia es un sindrome neurologico cronico que cursa con descargas anormales, sincronicas y exageradas de la corteza cerebral. La epilepsia se relaciona inversamente con la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud de los pacientes (CVRS); sin embargo, esta relacion se ha documentado poco en niños de Latinoamerica. Objetivo. Examinar la relacion entre epilepsia y la CVRS en un grupo de niños escolares de 8-12 años atendidos en un hospital pediatrico de Sonora, Mexico. Pacientes y metodos. Se comparo transversalmente la CVRS de niños con diagnostico de epilepsia con respecto a la CVRS de dos grupos control. Se utilizo el cuestionario validado Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory para evaluar la CVRS. Las diferencias se examinaron mediante la prueba de ANOVA, y la asociacion entre epilepsia y CVRS se modelo mediante regresion logistica multiple. Resultados. Los niños con epilepsia mostraron la menor puntuacion de CVRS (62,4 ± 14,8) entre los sujetos estudiados, y tuvieron 5,2 veces mas riesgo de deterioro de su CVRS (intervalo de confianza al 95% = 2,43-11,06) en comparacion con el de niños sanos. El deterioro fue mayor en las escalas cognitiva (54,6 ± 15,0) y emocional (55,9  ± 23,6). La polifarmacia –ingestion concomitante de tres o mas farmacos– (p epilepsia. Conclusiones. La epilepsia provoca un deterioro global en la CVRS de los niños, especificamente en las esferas cognitiva y emocional, lo que se relaciona con la progresion cronologica de la enfermedad y la polifarmacia. 244. Improving the efficiency of advanced life support training: a randomized, controlled trial. Science.gov (United States) Perkins, Gavin D; Kimani, Peter K; Bullock, Ian; Clutton-Brock, Tom; Davies, Robin P; Gale, Mike; Lam, Jenny; Lockey, Andrew; Stallard, Nigel 2012-07-03 Each year, more than 1.5 million health care professionals receive advanced life support (ALS) training. To determine whether a blended approach to ALS training that includes electronic learning (e-learning) produces outcomes similar to those of conventional, instructor-led ALS training. Open-label, noninferiority, randomized trial. Randomization, stratified by site, was generated by Sealed Envelope (Sealed Envelope, London, United Kingdom). (International Standardized Randomized Controlled Trial Number Register: ISCRTN86380392) 31 ALS centers in the United Kingdom and Australia. 3732 health care professionals recruited between December 2008 and October 2010. A 1-day course supplemented with e-learning versus a conventional 2-day course. The primary outcome was performance in a cardiac arrest simulation test at the end of the course. Secondary outcomes comprised knowledge- and skill-based assessments, repeated assessment after remediation training, and resource use. 440 of the 1843 participants randomly assigned to the blended course and 444 of the 1889 participants randomly assigned to conventional training did not attend the courses. Performance in the cardiac arrest simulation test after course attendance was lower in the electronic advanced life support (e-ALS) group compared with the conventional advanced life support (c-ALS) group; 1033 persons (74.5%) in the eALS group and 1146 persons (80.2%) in the c-ALS group passed (mean difference, -5.7% [95% CI, -8.8% to -2.7%]). Knowledge- and skill-based assessments were similar between groups, as was the final pass rate after remedial teaching, which was 94.2% in the e-ALS group and 96.7% in the c-ALS group (mean difference, -2.6% [CI, -4.1% to 1.2%]). Faculty, catering, and facility costs were $438 per participant for electronic ALS training and $935 for conventional ALS training. Many professionals (24%) did not attend the courses. The effect on patient outcomes was not evaluated. Compared with conventional ALS 245. Next Generation Life Support Project: Development of Advanced Technologies for Human Exploration Missions Science.gov (United States) Barta, Daniel J. 2012-01-01 Next Generation Life Support (NGLS) is one of several technology development projects sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration s Game Changing Development Program. NGLS is developing life support technologies (including water recovery, and space suit life support technologies) needed for humans to live and work productively in space. NGLS has three project tasks: Variable Oxygen Regulator (VOR), Rapid Cycle Amine (RCA) swing bed, and Alternative Water Processing. The selected technologies within each of these areas are focused on increasing affordability, reliability, and vehicle self sufficiency while decreasing mass and enabling long duration exploration. The RCA and VOR tasks are directed at key technology needs for the Portable Life Support System (PLSS) for an Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU), with focus on prototyping and integrated testing. The focus of the Rapid Cycle Amine (RCA) swing-bed ventilation task is to provide integrated carbon dioxide removal and humidity control that can be regenerated in real time during an EVA. The Variable Oxygen Regulator technology will significantly increase the number of pressure settings available to the space suit. Current spacesuit pressure regulators are limited to only two settings while the adjustability of the advanced regulator will be nearly continuous. The Alternative Water Processor efforts will result in the development of a system capable of recycling wastewater from sources expected in future exploration missions, including hygiene and laundry water, based on natural biological processes and membrane-based post treatment. The technologies will support a capability-driven architecture for extending human presence beyond low Earth orbit to potential destinations such as the Moon, near Earth asteroids and Mars. 246. Assessment of quality of life in children with nephrotic syndrome at a teaching hospital in South India OpenAIRE Sonia Agrawal; Sriram Krishnamurthy; Bijaya Nanda Naik 2017-01-01 This study was conducted to assess the quality of life (QOL) in children between 2 and 18 years of age with primary idiopathic nephrotic syndrome (NS) using Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL 4.0 Generic Core Scales). This cross-sectional comparative study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in South India between December 2014 and February 2015. In this questionnaire-based study, 50 children with primary idiopathic NS and an equal number of age-matched controls with other chro... 247. Advancing Translational Research through Facility Design in Non-AMC Hospitals. Science.gov (United States) Pati, Debajyoti; Pietrzak, Michael P; Harvey, Thomas E; Armstrong, Walter B; Clarke, Robert; Weissman, Neil J; Rapp, Paul E; Smith, Mark S; Fairbanks, Rollin J; Collins, Jeffreyg M 2013-01-01 This article aims to explore the future of translational research and its physical design implications for community hospitals and hospitals not attached to large centralized research platforms. With a shift in medical services delivery focus to community wellness, continuum of care, and comparative effectiveness research, healthcare research will witness increasing pressure to include community-based practitioners. The roundtable discussion group, comprising 14 invited experts from 10 institutions representing the fields of biomedical research, research administration, facility planning and design, facility management, finance, and environmental design research, examined the issue in a structured manner. The discussion was conducted at the Washington Hospital Center, MedStar Health, Washington, D.C. Institutions outside the AMCs will be increasingly targeted for future research. Three factors are crucial for successful research in non-AMC hospitals: operational culture, financial culture, and information culture. An operating culture geared towards creation, preservation, and protection of spaces needed for research; creative management of spaces for financial accountability; and a flexible information infrastructure at the system level that enables complete link of key programmatic areas to academic IT research infrastructure are critical to success of research endeavors. Hospital, interdisciplinary, leadership, planning, work environment. 248. Are advance directives helpful for good end of life decision making: a cross sectional survey of health professionals. Science.gov (United States) Peicius, Eimantas; Blazeviciene, Aurelija; Kaminskas, Raimondas 2017-06-05 This paper joins the debate over changes in the role of health professionals when applying advance directives to manage the decision-making process at the end of life care. Issues in relation to advance directives occur in clinical units in Lithuania; however, it remains one of the few countries in the European Union (EU) where the discussion on advance directives is not included in the health-care policy-making agenda. To encourage the discussion of advance directives, a study was designed to examine health professionals' understanding and preferences related to advance directives. In addition, the study sought to explore the views of health care professionals of the application of Advance Directives (AD) in clinical practice in Lithuania. A cross-sectional survey was conducted by interviewing 478 health professionals based at major health care centers in Kaunas district, Lithuania. The design of the study included the use of a questionnaire developed for this study and validated by a pilot study. The collected data were analyzed using standard descriptive statistical methods. The analysis of knowledge about AD revealed some statistically significant differences when comparing the respondents' profession and gender. The analysis also indicated key emerging themes among respondents including tranquility of mind, the longest possible life expectancy and freedom of choice. Further, the study findings revealed that more than half of the study participants preferred to express their will while alive by using advance directives. The study findings revealed a low level of knowledge on advance directives among health professionals. Most health professionals agreed that AD's improved end-of-life decision making while the majority of physicians appreciated AD as the best tool for sharing responsibilities in clinical practice in Lithuania. More physicians than nurses preferred the presence of advance directives to support their decision making in end-of-life situations. 249. Development of expanded extrusion food products for an Advanced Life Support system. Science.gov (United States) Zasypkin, D V; Lee, T C 1999-01-01 Extrusion processing was proposed to provide texture and to expand the variety of cereal food products in an isolated Advanced Life Support (ALS) system. Rice, wheat, and soy are the baseline crops selected for growing during long-term manned space missions. A Brabender single-screw laboratory extruder (model 2003, L/D 20:1), equipped with round nozzles of various lengths, was used as a prototype of a small-size extruder. Several concepts were tested to extend the variety and improve the quality of the products, to decrease environmental loads, and to promote processing stability. These concepts include: the blending of wheat and soybean flour, the extrusion of a coarser rice flour, separation of wheat bran, and optimization of the extruder nozzle design. An optimal nozzle length has been established for the extrusion of rice flour. Bran separating was necessary to improve the quality of wheat extrudates. 250. Impact of an Advanced Cardiac Life Support Simulation Laboratory Experience on Pharmacy Student Confidence and Knowledge. Science.gov (United States) Maxwell, Whitney D; Mohorn, Phillip L; Haney, Jason S; Phillips, Cynthia M; Lu, Z Kevin; Clark, Kimberly; Corboy, Alex; Ragucci, Kelly R 2016-10-25 Objective. To assess the impact of an advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) simulation on pharmacy student confidence and knowledge. Design. Third-year pharmacy students participated in a simulation experience that consisted of team roles training, high-fidelity ACLS simulations, and debriefing. Students completed a pre/postsimulation confidence and knowledge assessment. Assessment. Overall, student knowledge assessment scores and student confidence scores improved significantly. Student confidence and knowledge changes from baseline were not significantly correlated. Conversely, a significant, weak positive correlation between presimulation studying and both presimulation confidence and presimulation knowledge was discovered. Conclusions. Overall, student confidence and knowledge assessment scores in ACLS significantly improved from baseline; however, student confidence and knowledge were not significantly correlated. 251. Advanced Spacesuit Portable Life Support System Packaging Concept Mock-Up Design & Development Science.gov (United States) O''Connell, Mary K.; Slade, Howard G.; Stinson, Richard G. 1998-01-01 A concentrated development effort was begun at NASA Johnson Space Center to create an advanced Portable Life Support System (PLSS) packaging concept. Ease of maintenance, technological flexibility, low weight, and minimal volume are targeted in the design of future micro-gravity and planetary PLSS configurations. Three main design concepts emerged from conceptual design techniques and were carried forth into detailed design, then full scale mock-up creation. "Foam", "Motherboard", and "LEGOtm" packaging design concepts are described in detail. Results of the evaluation process targeted maintenance, robustness, mass properties, and flexibility as key aspects to a new PLSS packaging configuration. The various design tools used to evolve concepts into high fidelity mock ups revealed that no single tool was all encompassing, several combinations were complimentary, the devil is in the details, and, despite efforts, many lessons were learned only after working with hardware. 252. Solid Waste Management Requirements Definition for Advanced Life Support Missions: Results Science.gov (United States) Alazraki, Michael P.; Hogan, John; Levri, Julie; Fisher, John; Drysdale, Alan 2002-01-01 Prior to determining what Solid Waste Management (SWM) technologies should be researched and developed by the Advanced Life Support (ALS) Project for future missions, there is a need to define SWM requirements. Because future waste streams will be highly mission-dependent, missions need to be defined prior to developing SWM requirements. The SWM Working Group has used the mission architecture outlined in the System Integration, Modeling and Analysis (SIMA) Element Reference Missions Document (RMD) as a starting point in the requirement development process. The missions examined include the International Space Station (ISS), a Mars Dual Lander mission, and a Mars Base. The SWM Element has also identified common SWM functionalities needed for future missions. These functionalities include: acceptance, transport, processing, storage, monitoring and control, and disposal. Requirements in each of these six areas are currently being developed for the selected missions. This paper reviews the results of this ongoing effort and identifies mission-dependent resource recovery requirements. 253. Advanced medical life support procedures in vitally compromised children by a helicopter emergency medical service Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Scheffer Gert J 2010-03-01 Full Text Available Abstract Background To determine the advanced life support procedures provided by an Emergency Medical Service (EMS and a Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS for vitally compromised children. Incidence and success rate of several procedures were studied, with a distinction made between procedures restricted to the HEMS-physician and procedures for which the HEMS is more experienced than the EMS. Methods Prospective study of a consecutive group of children examined and treated by the HEMS of the eastern region of the Netherlands. Data regarding type of emergency, physiological parameters, NACA scores, treatment, and 24-hour survival were collected and subsequently analysed. Results Of the 558 children examined and treated by the HEMS on scene, 79% had a NACA score of IV-VII. 65% of the children had one or more advanced life support procedures restricted to the HEMS and 78% of the children had one or more procedures for which the HEMS is more experienced than the EMS. The HEMS intubated 38% of all children, and 23% of the children intubated and ventilated by the EMS needed emergency correction because of potentially lethal complications. The HEMS provided the greater part of intraosseous access, as the EMS paramedics almost exclusively reserved this procedure for children in cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The EMS provided pain management only to children older than four years of age, but a larger group was in need of analgesia upon arrival of the HEMS, and was subsequently treated by the HEMS. Conclusions The Helicopter Emergency Medical Service of the eastern region of the Netherlands brings essential medical expertise in the field not provided by the emergency medical service. The Emergency Medical Service does not provide a significant quantity of procedures obviously needed by the paediatric patient. 254. Comparison of three shortened questionnaires for assessment of quality of life in advanced cancer. Science.gov (United States) Chiu, Leonard; Chiu, Nicholas; Chow, Edward; Cella, David; Beaumont, Jennifer L; Lam, Henry; Popovic, Marko; Bedard, Gillian; Poon, Michael; Wong, Erin; Zeng, Liang; Bottomley, Andrew 2014-08-01 Quality of life (QoL) assessment questionnaires can be burdensome to advanced cancer patients, thus necessitating the need for shorter assessment instruments than traditionally available. We compare three shortened QoL questionnaires in regards to their characteristics, validity, and reliability. A literature search was conducted to identify studies that employed or discussed three abridged QoL questionnaires: the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Core 15-Palliative Care (EORTC QLQC15-PAL), the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General-7 (FACT-G7), and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Palliative Care-14 (FACIT-PAL-14). Articles that discussed questionnaire length, intended use, scoring procedure, and validation were included. The 7-item FACT-G7 is the shortest instrument, whereas the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACIT-PAL-14 contain 14 and 15 items, respectively. All three questionnaires have similar recall period, item organization, and subscale components. Designed as core questionnaires, all three maintain content and concurrent validity of their unabridged original questionnaires. Both the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACT-G7 demonstrate good internal consistency and reliability, with Cronbach's α ≥0.7 deemed acceptable. The developmental study for the FACIT-PAL-14 was published in 2013 and subsequent validation studies are not yet available. The EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL and the FACT-G7 were found to be reliable and appropriate for assessing health-related QoL issues-the former for palliative cancer patients and the latter for advanced cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Conceptually, the FACIT-PAL-14 holds promise to cover social and emotional support issues that are not completely addressed by the other two questionnaires; however, further validation is needed. 255. Predictors of Physical Restraint Use in Hospitalized Veterans at End of Life: An Analysis of Data from the BEACON Trial. Science.gov (United States) Kvale, Elizabeth; Dionne-Odom, J Nicholas; Redden, David T; Bailey, F Amos; Bakitas, Marie; Goode, Patricia S; Williams, Beverly R; Haddock, Kathlyn Sue; Burgio, Kathryn L

2015-06-01 The use of physical restraints in dying patients may be a source of suffering and loss of dignity. Little is known about the prevalence or predictors for restraint use at end of life in the hospital setting. The objective was to determine the prevalence and predictors of physical restraint use at the time of death in hospitalized adults. Secondary analysis was performed on data from the "Best Practices for End-of-Life Care for Our Nation's Veterans" (BEACON) trial conducted between 2005 and 2011. Medical record data were abstracted from six Veterans Administration Medical Centers (VAMCs). Data on processes of care in the last seven days of life were abstracted from the medical records of 5476 who died in the six VAMCs. We prospectively identified potential risk factors for restraint use at the time of death from among the variables measured in the parent trial, including location of death, medications administered, nasogastric tube, intravenous (IV) fluids, family presence, and receipt of a palliative care consultation. Physical restraint use at time of death was documented in 890 decedents (16.3%). Restraint use varied by location of death, with patients in intensive settings being at higher risk. Restraint use was significantly more likely in patients with a nasogastric tube and those receiving IV fluids, benzodiazepines, or antipsychotics. This is the first study to document that one in six hospitalized veterans were restrained at the time of death and to identify predictors of restraint use. Further research is needed to identify intervention opportunities. 256. Role of demographic and job-related variables in determining work-related quality of life of hospital employees. Science.gov (United States) Shukla, K; Shahane, S; D'Souza, W 2017-01-01 Considering a huge working population in health sector faced with stressful work life, limited autonomy in work and declining work contentment calls for an overemphasis on evaluating and monitoring their satisfaction associated with work-related quality of life (WRQoL). This study evaluates WRQoL of hospital employees and validates the bilingual (English and Marathi) version of WRQoL scale. The study was conducted during March-April'2014 on employees of a corporate hospital of Pune, India after ethical approval and informed consent from employees. The bilingual WRQoL scale has been tested for reliability and validity, and WRQoL scores have been reported. A total of 132 hospital employees (mean age 31 [±8] years, 55% males) who participated in the study reported overall moderate WRQoL scores. The scale showed high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.82, P Stress at work" score of WRQoL increased with age of employees. Higher work experience, employment at higher positions and those working in clinical and diagnostic departments reported a higher WRQoL. WRQoL scale is a reliable and valid instrument. Better WRQoL in employees placed in higher organizational positions indicates a need for focused measures to enhance WRQoL of employees in lower hierarchical levels, especially in control at work and home life interface domains. WRQoL needs regular monitoring for employees in lower positions and aging employees. 257. Impact of Duodopa on Quality of Life in Advanced Parkinson's Disease: A UK Case Series Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) T. Foltynie 2013-01-01 Full Text Available Treatment options in advanced Parkinson’s disease (PD include subcutaneous apomorphine, pallidal or subthalamic nucleus Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS, or levodopa/carbidopa intestinal gel (LCIG/Duodopa. In this study, we describe the outcome of 12 PD patients with PD related complications started on LCIG, with respect to their quality of life measured by a disease specific validated scale—the PDQ39, together with diaries recording time spent “On,†“Off,†“Dyskinetic,†or “Asleep.†At the time of latest follow up, improvements were observed in both the PDQ39 Summary index as well as diary reports of PD symptom control following introduction of LCIG, supporting its use in well selected patients. The use of a trial period of LCIG via naso-jejunal administration allows objective evaluation of improvement in PD symptom control in advance of the placement of the more invasive percutaneous jejunostomy procedure. The decision to embark on LCIG, apomorphine or DBS should be supported by input from centres with experience of all 3 approaches. Since LCIG is an expensive option, development of the most appropriate future commissioning of this therapy in the absence of Class 1 evidence requires careful scrutiny of the outcomes of its use in a broad range of published series. 258. Success Rate of Pre-hospital Emergency Medical Service Personnel in Implementing Pre Hospital Trauma Life Support Guidelines on Traffic Accident Victims. Science.gov (United States) Gholipour, Changiz; Vahdati, Samad Shams; Notash, Mehdi; Miri, Seyed Hassan; Ghafouri, Rouzbeh Rajaei 2014-06-01 Road traffic injuries are responsible for a vast number of trauma-related deaths in middle- and low-income countries. Pre-hospital emergency medical service (PHEMS) provides care and transports the injured patients from the scene of accident to the destined hospital. The PHEMS providers and paramedics were recently trained in the Pre Hospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) guidelines to improve the outcome of trauma patients in developing countries. We decided to carry out a study on the success rate of PHEMS personnel in implementing PHTLS guidelines at the scene of trauma. Severe trauma patients who had been transferred to the emergency department were included in the study. Evaluations included transfer time, airway management, spinal immobilization, external bleeding management, intravenous (IV) line access, and fluid therapy. All evaluations were performed by an expert emergency physician in the emergency department. The mean response time was 17.87±9.1 minutes. The PHEMS personnel immobilized cervical spine in 60.4% of patients, out of whom 16.7% were not properly immobilized. Out of 99 (98%) cases of established IV line access by the PHEMS providers, 57% were satisfactory. Fluid therapy, which was carried out in 99 (98%) patients by the PHEMS personnel, was appropriate in 92% of the cases. PHEMS personnel need more education and supervising to provide services according to PHTLS guidelines. 259. Study for requirement of advanced long life small modular fast reactor Science.gov (United States) Tak, Taewoo; Choe, Jiwon; Jeong, Yongjin; Lee, Deokjung; Kim, T. K. 2016-01-01 To develop an advanced long-life SMR core concept, the feasibility of the long-life breed-and-burn core concept has been assessed and the preliminary selection on the reactor design requirement such as fuel form, coolant material has been performed. With the simplified cigar-type geometry of 8m-tall CANDLE reactor concept, it has demonstrated the strengths of breed-and-burn strategy. There is a saturation region in the graph for the multiplication factors, which means that a steady breeding is being proceeded along the axial direction. The propagation behavior of the CANDLE core can be also confirmed through the evolution of the axial power profile. Coolant material is expected to have low melting point, density, viscosity and absorption cross section and a high boiling point, specific heat, and thermal conductivity. In this respect, sodium is preferable material for a coolant of this nuclear power plant system. The metallic fuel has harder spectrum compared to the oxide and carbide fuel, which is favorable to increase the breeding and extend the cycle length. 260. Hydroponics Database and Handbook for the Advanced Life Support Test Bed Science.gov (United States) Nash, Allen J. 1999-01-01 During the summer 1998, I did student assistance to Dr. Daniel J. Barta, chief plant growth expert at Johnson Space Center - NASA. We established the preliminary stages of a hydroponic crop growth database for the Advanced Life Support Systems Integration Test Bed, otherwise referred to as BIO-Plex (Biological Planetary Life Support Systems Test Complex). The database summarizes information from published technical papers by plant growth experts, and it includes bibliographical, environmental and harvest information based on plant growth under varying environmental conditions. I collected 84 lettuce entries, 14 soybean, 49 sweet potato, 16 wheat, 237 white potato, and 26 mix crop entries. The list will grow with the publication of new research. This database will be integrated with a search and systems analysis computer program that will cross-reference multiple parameters to determine optimum edible yield under varying parameters. Also, we have made preliminary effort to put together a crop handbook for BIO-Plex plant growth management. It will be a collection of information obtained from experts who provided recommendations on a particular crop's growing conditions. It includes bibliographic, environmental, nutrient solution, potential yield, harvest nutritional, and propagation procedure information. This handbook will stand as the baseline growth conditions for the first set of experiments in the BIO-Plex facility. « 11 12 13 14 15 » « 12 13 14 15 16 » 261. Requirements Development Issues for Advanced Life Support Systems: Solid Waste Management Science.gov (United States) Levri, Julie A.; Fisher, John W.; Alazraki, Michael P.; Hogan, John A. 2002-01-01 Long duration missions pose substantial new challenges for solid waste management in Advanced Life Support (ALS) systems. These possibly include storing large volumes of waste material in a safe manner, rendering wastes stable or sterilized for extended periods of time, and/or processing wastes for recovery of vital resources. This is further complicated because future missions remain ill-defined with respect to waste stream quantity, composition and generation schedule. Without definitive knowledge of this information, development of requirements is hampered. Additionally, even if waste streams were well characterized, other operational and processing needs require clarification (e.g. resource recovery requirements, planetary protection constraints). Therefore, the development of solid waste management (SWM) subsystem requirements for long duration space missions is an inherently uncertain, complex and iterative process. The intent of this paper is to address some of the difficulties in writing requirements for missions that are not completely defined. This paper discusses an approach and motivation for ALS SWM requirements development, the characteristics of effective requirements, and the presence of those characteristics in requirements that are developed for uncertain missions. Associated drivers for life support system technological capability are also presented. A general means of requirements forecasting is discussed, including successive modification of requirements and the need to consider requirements integration among subsystems. 262. Study for requirement of advanced long life small modular fast reactor Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Tak, Taewoo, E-mail: [email protected]; Choe, Jiwon, E-mail: [email protected]; Jeong, Yongjin, E-mail: [email protected]; Lee, Deokjung, E-mail: [email protected] [Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, 50, UNIST-gil, Eonyang-eup, Ulju-gun, Ulsan, 689-798 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, T. K., E-mail: [email protected] [Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60564 (United States) 2016-01-22 To develop an advanced long-life SMR core concept, the feasibility of the long-life breed-and-burn core concept has been assessed and the preliminary selection on the reactor design requirement such as fuel form, coolant material has been performed. With the simplified cigar-type geometry of 8m-tall CANDLE reactor concept, it has demonstrated the strengths of breed-and-burn strategy. There is a saturation region in the graph for the multiplication factors, which means that a steady breeding is being proceeded along the axial direction. The propagation behavior of the CANDLE core can be also confirmed through the evolution of the axial power profile. Coolant material is expected to have low melting point, density, viscosity and absorption cross section and a high boiling point, specific heat, and thermal conductivity. In this respect, sodium is preferable material for a coolant of this nuclear power plant system. The metallic fuel has harder spectrum compared to the oxide and carbide fuel, which is favorable to increase the breeding and extend the cycle length. 263. Insurance Status and Hospital Payer Mix Are Linked With Variation in Metastatic Site Resection in Patients With Advanced Colorectal Cancers. Science.gov (United States) Healy, Mark A; Pradarelli, Jason C; Krell, Robert W; Regenbogen, Scott E; Suwanabol, Pasithorn A 2016-11-01 Despite substantially improved survival with metastatic site resection in colorectal cancers, uptake of aggressive surgical approaches remains low among certain patients. It is unknown whether financial determinants of care, such as insurance status, play a role in this treatment gap. We sought to evaluate the effect of insurance status on metastasectomy in patients with advanced colorectal cancers. This was a retrospective cohort study. Using the National Cancer Data Base Participant User File, incident cases of colorectal cancer metastatic to the lung and/or liver with diagnosis from 2010 to 2013 were identified. We identified 42,300 patients in our cohort with a mean age 64 years. Controlling for patient, tumor, and hospital characteristics, hierarchical regression was used to examine associations between hospital payer mix and metastatic site resection. Metastatic site resection occurred in 12.3% of all patients. Adjusting for patient and hospital fixed effects, we found that patients who were uninsured or on Medicaid were 38% less likely to undergo metastasectomy (OR = 0.62 (95% CI, 0.56-0.66)). Patients in hospitals with staff treating a high percentage of uninsured patients or patients with Medicaid were less likely to undergo metastasectomy, even after controlling for individual patient insurance status. The study was limited by its retrospective design and the granularity and accuracy of the National Cancer Data Base. Differences in insurance status and hospital payer mix are associated with differences in rates of metastatic site resection in patients with colorectal cancer that is metastatic to the lung and/or liver. There is a need for improved access to metastatic site resection for individual patients who are uninsured or who have Medicaid insurance, as well as for all patients who seek care at hospitals treating a large proportion of patients who are uninsured or on Medicaid. Remedies for individual patients could include improved access to private 264. Impact of nutritional status on the quality of life of advanced cancer patients in hospice home care. Science.gov (United States) Shahmoradi, Negar; Kandiah, Mirnalini; Peng, Loh Su 2009-01-01 Cancer patients frequently experience malnutrition and this is an important factor in impaired quality of life. This cross-sectional study examined the association between global quality of life and its various subscales with nutritional status among 61 (33 females and 28 males) advanced cancer patients cared for by selected hospices in peninsular Malaysia. The Patient Generated-Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and the Hospice Quality of Life Index (HQLI) were used to assess nutritional status and quality of life, respectively. Nine (14.7%) patients were well-nourished, 32 (52.5%) were moderately or suspected of being malnourished while 20 (32.8%) of them were severely malnourished. The total HQLI mean score for these patients was 189.9-/+51.7, with possible scores ranging from 0 to 280. The most problem areas in these patients were in the domain of functional well-being and the least problems were found in the social/spiritual domain. PG-SGA scores significantly correlated with total quality of life scores (r2= 0.38, pnutritional status exhibited a lower quality of life. Advanced cancer patients with poor nutritional status have a diminished quality of life. These findings suggest that there is a need for a comprehensive nutritional intervention for improving nutritional status and quality of life in terminally ill cancer patients under hospice care. 265. Advanced air distribution method combined with deodorant material for exposure reduction to bioeffluents contaminants in hospitals DEFF Research Database (Denmark) Bivolarova, Mariya Petrova; Mizutani, Chiyomi; Melikov, Arsen Krikor 2015-01-01 -bed hospital patient room at reduced background ventilation rare of 1.6 air changes per hour. The bed of the patient was equipped with the ventilated mattress (VM) having an exhaust opening from which bioeffluents generated from human body were sucked and discharged from the room. To enhance the pollutant......The separate and combined effect of a ventilated mattress and acid-treated activated carbon fibre (ACF) fabric on reducing the exposure to body generated gaseous pollutants in hospital environment was studied. Full-scale experiments were performed in a climate chamber furnished as a single...... removal, acid-treated activated carbon fibre material was used in some of the experiments in the form of patient’s cover. The simulated pollution source was ammonia gas released from the patient’s groins. The results show that when using the ventilated mattress the ammonia gas concentration in the room... 266. Scoping Report: Advanced Technologies for Multi-Load Washers in Hospitality and Healthcare Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Parker, Graham B.; Boyd, Brian K.; Petersen, Joseph M.; Goetzler, W.; Foley, K. J.; Sutherland, T. A. 2013-03-27 The purpose of this demonstration project is to quantify the energy savings and water efficiency potential of commercial laundry wastewater recycling systems and low-temperature detergent supply systems to help promote the adoption of these technologies in the commercial sector. This project will create a set of technical specifications for efficient multi-load laundry systems (both new and retrofit) tailored for specific applications and/or sectors (e.g., hospitality, health care). The specifications will be vetted with the appropriate Better Buildings Alliance (BBA) members (e.g., Commercial Real Estate Energy Alliance, Hospital Energy Alliance), finalized, published, and disseminated to enable widespread technology transfer in the industry and specifically among BBA partners. 267. An advanced control strategy of an electrical--powered hospital bed. Science.gov (United States) Nguyen, Huy Hoang; Nguyen, Tuan Nghia; Clout, Raymont; Nguyen, Hung T 2014-01-01 This paper develops a multivariable control technique for low-level control of an intelligent hospital bed. First, multivariable hospital bed models, nominal, upper bounded and lower bounded models, are obtained via an experimental identification procedure. Based on the obtained nominal model, the triangular diagonal dominance (TDD) decoupling technique is applied to reduce a complex multivariable system into a series of scalar systems. For each scalar system, an online adaptive control strategy is then developed to cope with system uncertainties. Compared to the conventional control method, real-time experimental results showed that our proposed multivariable control technique achieved better performance. Experimental results also confirmed that desirable system performance was guaranteed under system uncertainty conditions. 268. Sofosbuvir plus simeprevir for the treatment of HCV genotype 4 patients with advanced fibrosis or compensated cirrhosis is highly efficacious in real life. Science.gov (United States) Willemse, S B; Baak, L C; Kuiken, S D; van der Sluys Veer, A; Lettinga, K D; van der Meer, J T M; Depla, A C T M; Tuynman, H; van Nieuwkerk, C M J; Schinkel, C J; Kwa, D; Reesink, H W; van der Valk, M 2016-12-01 Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of chronic liver disease and liver-related death. Recently, multiple regimens of different direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) have been registered. Although treatment with sofosbuvir (SOF) and simeprevir (SMV) is registered for the treatment of genotype 4 patients in some countries, data on efficacy of this combination are lacking. We aimed to assess the efficacy of SOF and SMV with or without RBV during 12 weeks in a real-life cohort of genotype 4 HCV patients. A retrospective multicentre observational study was conducted in 4 hospitals in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, including patients with advanced liver fibrosis or liver cirrhosis treated with SOF plus SMV with or without RBV during 12 weeks for a genotype 4 chronic HCV infection from 1 January 2015 to 1 August 2015. Sustained viral response (SVR) was established at week 12 after end of treatment. A total of 53 patients with genotype 4 HCV infection, treatment naïve and experienced, were included. SVR was achieved in 49 of 53 patients (92%). The four failures all had a virological relapse and did not receive ribavirin. Three were nonresponder to earlier interferon-based treatment, and one was treatment naive. In this real-life cohort of patients with HCV genotype 4 infection and advanced liver fibrosis/cirrhosis, we show that treatment with SOF and SMV is effective. The addition of RBV could be considered in treatment-experienced patients as recommended in guidelines. 269. Practice development using video-reflexive ethnography: promoting safe space(s towards the end of life in hospital Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Aileen Collier 2016-05-01 Full Text Available Background: There is international consensus of the need for improved palliative and end-of-life care in hospital settings. What is less clear is how such improvements might be realised in practice. Research and practice improvement methodologies need to acknowledge the relational, spiritual, moral and ethical as well as physical dimensions of death and dying if improvements in care are to be achieved. Aims and objectives: The aim of this article is to explore the potential of video-reflexive ethnography as a practice development methodology to improve care of people with a life-limiting illness in the hospital setting. Methods: The study used video-reflexive ethnography and was underpinned by an indigenous research ethical framework. Findings: Study findings highlight the potential of video-reflexive ethnography as a practice development methodology. The reach of video extended internally and externally beyond immediate practice research sites to make hospital dying tangible. The research acted as a disruptive innovation, foregrounding peoples’ (patients and families expertise as well as that of healthcare workers. For some patient and family participants, the research offered a visual legacy. Conclusions: The theories underpinning video-reflexive ethnography and practice development are closely aligned; the former has potential as a practice development methodology to promote person-centred palliative and end-of-life care. The underpinning philosophical, ethical and values framework through which it is applied, along with the skills and aptitude of facilitation, are critical if its potential is to be realised. Implications for practice development: The delivery of person-centred end-of-life care may be facilitated by: Healthcare workers seeing themselves and those they care for differently Healthcare organisations seeing their employees as well as patients and families differently Researchers also being prepared to see themselves differently 270. The experience of daily life of acutely admitted frail elderly patients one week after discharge from the hospital Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden) Jane Andreasen 2015-06-01 Full Text Available Introduction: Frail elderly are at higher risk of negative outcomes such as disability, low quality of life, and hospital admissions. Furthermore, a peak in readmission of acutely admitted elderly patients is seen shortly after discharge. An investigation into the daily life experiences of the frail elderly shortly after discharge seems important to address these issues. The aim of this study was to explore how frail elderly patients experience daily life 1 week after discharge from an acute admission. Methods: The qualitative methodological approach was interpretive description. Data were gathered using individual interviews. The participants were frail elderly patients over 65 years of age, who were interviewed at their home 1 week after discharge from an acute admission to a medical ward. Results: Four main categories were identified: “The system,†⠀œKeeping a social life,†“Being in everyday life,†and “Handling everyday life.†These categories affected the way the frail elderly experienced daily life and these elements resulted in a general feeling of well-being or non-well-being. The transition to home was experienced as unsafe and troublesome especially for the more frail participants, whereas the less frail experienced this less. Conclusion and discussion: Several elements and stressors were affecting the well-being of the participants in daily life 1 week after discharge. In particular, contact with the health care system created frustrations and worries, but also physical disability, loneliness, and inactivity were issues of concern. These elements should be addressed by health professionals in relation to the transition phase. Future interventions should incorporate a multidimensional and bio-psycho-social perspective when acutely admitted frail elderly are discharged. Stakeholders should evaluate present practice to seek to improve care across health care sectors. 271. The Quality-of-Life Effects of Neoadjuvant Chemoradiation in Locally Advanced Rectal Cancer Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB) Herman, Joseph M., E-mail: [email protected] [Department of Radiation Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Narang, Amol K. [Department of Radiation Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Griffith, Kent A. [Department of Biostatistics, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan (United States); Zalupski, Mark M. [Department of Hematology Oncology, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan (United States); Reese, Jennifer B. [Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Gearhart, Susan L. [Department of Medical Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Department of Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Azad, Nolifer S. [Department of Medical Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Chan, June; Olsen, Leah [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan (United States); Efron, Jonathan E. [Department of Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland (United States); Lawrence, Theodore S.; Ben-Josef, Edgar [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan (United States) 2013-01-01

Purpose: Existing studies that examine the effect of neoadjuvant chemoradiation (CRT) for locally advanced rectal cancer on patient quality of life (QOL) are limited. Our goals were to prospectively explore acute changes in patient-reported QOL endpoints during and after treatment and to establish a distribution of scores that could be used for comparison as new treatment modalities emerge. Methods and Materials: Fifty patients with locally advanced rectal cancer were prospectively enrolled at 2 institutions. Validated cancer-specific European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC QLQ-CR30) and colorectal cancer-specific (EORTC QLQ-CR38 and EORTC QLQ-CR 29) QOL questionnaires were administered to patients 1 month before they began CRT, at week 4 of CRT, and 1 month after they had finished CRT. The questionnaires included multiple symptom scales, functional domains, and a composite global QOL score. Additionally, a toxicity scale was completed by providers 1 month before the beginning of CRT, weekly during treatment, and 1 month after the end of CRT. Results: Global QOL showed a statistically significant and borderline clinically significant decrease during CRT (-9.50, P=.0024) but returned to baseline 1 month after the end of treatment (-0.33, P=.9205). Symptoms during treatment were mostly gastrointestinal (nausea/vomiting +9.94, P