Access to information in Switzerland : From secrecy to transparency

Access to information legislations are now present in over 50 countries world-wide. Lagging behind some of its own Cantons, the Swiss Federal government was until recently one of the few hold outs in Europe. But, in December 2004, the Confederation voted the 'Loi sur la Transparence de l'administration' or Law on Transparency (LTrans) a Law that came into effect in July 2006. This paper presents an overview of the new Law and underlines the main institutional challenges to its introduction in Switzerland.

Barriers to health - Migrant health and wellbeing in Belfast

Over the last decade Belfast has experienced significant political, economic and social change. As a consequence, the population of greater Belfast has increased substantially over the past decade. This has been as a result of both natural change and net migration gain. This report covers the following issues legislation on immigration, work, health & social services and social security entitlements; health issues; migrant health priorities identified at the Stakeholder Workshop held in April 2010.

A New Twist on Radiation Oncology: Low-Dose Irradiation Elicits Immunostimulatory Macrophages that Unlock Barriers to Tumor Immunotherapy.

Tumor-infiltrating macrophages typically promote angiogenesis while suppressing antitumoral T cell responses. In this issue of Cancer Cell, Klug and colleagues report that clinically-feasible, low-dose irradiation redirects macrophage differentiation from a tumor-promoting/immunosuppressive state to one that enables cytotoxic T cells to infiltrate tumors and kill cancer cells, rendering immunotherapy successful in mice.

"I'll look it up on the Web first": barriers and overcoming barriers to consult for sexual dysfunction among young men.

QUESTIONS UNDER STUDY: Our aim was to identify the barriers young men face to consult a health professional when they encounter sexual dysfunctions and where they turn to, if so, for answers. METHODS: We conducted an exploratory qualitative research including 12 young men aged 16-20 years old seen in two focus groups. Discussions were triggered through vignettes about sexual dysfunction. RESULTS: Young men preferred not to talk about sexual dysfunction problems with anyone and to solve them alone as it is considered an intimate and embarrassing subject which can negatively impact their masculinity. Confidentiality appeared to be the most important criterion in disclosing an intimate subject to a health professional. Participants raised the problem of males' accessibility to services and lack of reason to consult. Two criteria to address the problem were if it was long-lasting or considered as physical. The Internet was unanimously considered as an initial solution to solve a problem, which could guide them to a face-to-face consultation if necessary. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that Internet-based tools should be developed to become an easy access door to sexual health services for young men. Wherever they consult and for whatever problem, sexual health must be on the agenda.

From Opacity to Transparency? The Place of Organized Interests within the European Institutions

Regulació dels Grup d'interès en la governança europea és crucial per a una comprensió completa de com s'exerceix el poder a la Unió Europea (UE) i per a una descripció més precisa de com funciona el sistema polític de la UE (i dels seus principis subjacents). Un dels temes principals aquí és com els interessos privats o particulars comprometre amb un interès general o públic encarnat en una forma o altra per aquells que actuen per a la UE. Donada la varietat de temes sensibles en joc, no és d'estranyar que la qüestió de la regulació es troba amb una resistència considerable, sobre tot en la Comissió. No obstant això, els recents obstacles a la integració europea han tingut l'efecte de rellançar un debat que fa que l'ètica i la transparència de les peces centrals de l'agenda. Dinàmiques polítiques actuals semblen donar testimoni d'una creixent receptivitat de la UE a les reivindicacions del moviment ALTER-EU que busca un entorn molt més regulat per cabilderos i funcionaris comunitaris.

Tariff Equivalent of Technical Barriers to Trade with Imperfect Substitution and Trade Costs, November 2005

The price-wedge method yields a tariff-equivalent estimate of technical barriers to trade (TBT). An extension of this method accounts for imperfect substitution between domestic and imported goods and incorporates recent findings on trade costs. We explore the sensitivity of this revamped TBT estimate to its key determinants (substitution elasticity, preference for home good, and trade cost). We use the augmented approach to investigate the ongoing US-Japan apple trade dispute and find that removing the Japanese TBT would yield limited export gains to the United States. We then draw policy implications of our findings.

Barriers to Employment, March 2001

During the last five years, Iowa has experienced a shortage of workers and will continue to feel the impact of a short labor supply. As the state prepares to reverse this trend of a declining population, attracting immigrants and refugees has great potential. In addition, released preliminary reports from the 2000 Census are reporting growth of the Latino population in several Iowa counties. This survey was conducted as a way to supplement the information collected about the Latino population by the State Public Policy Group in 1999, Snapshot in Time: A clear view of the importance, value and impacts of the Latino population in central Iowa. (Una Foto Actual de la Comunicad Latina: Un panoramaclaro de la importancia, del valor, y de los impactos de la población Latina en el área central de Iowa.) Although this survey was enlightening, it was broad in scope. It was the goal of the agency to collect more specific data regarding workforce needs and barriers that the Latino population encounter in the State of Iowa. Although it was the desire to broaden the scope of the previous survey, it should be noted that the survey samples were not identical. But it is recognized that because the Latino population within the state is small, some of the respondents could have participated in both surveys. We were also hoping to benefit from the extensive work conducted by SPPG within the community as a way to increase the response rate for this survey. This executive summary highlights some of the most significant findings from the survey of Latinos residing in Central Iowa. This analysis centers on the impact the Latino population can have in filling the labor shortages and how Iowa can best embrace the new Iowan. In addition, some of the key findings could offer insight into removing unnecessary barriers that prevent immigrants from utilizing valuable work skills as they integrate into the workforce. This information may be insightful to community leaders and employers who want to welcome new immigrants into their community. The following diagram collected from the 2000 Census illustrates the percentage of Latinos residing in the state.

Phylogeographical structure, postglacial recolonization and barriers to gene flow in the distinctive Valais chromosome race of the common shrew (Sorex araneus).

Using one male-inherited and eight biparentally inherited microsatellite markers, we investigate the population genetic structure of the Valais chromosome race of the common shrew (Sorex araneus) in the Central Alps of Europe. Unexpectedly, the Y-chromosome microsatellite suggests nearly complete absence of male gene flow among populations from the St-Bernard and Simplon regions (Switzerland). Autosomal markers also show significant genetic structuring among these two geographical areas. Isolation by distance is significant and possible barriers to gene flow exist in the study area. Two different approaches are used to better understand the geographical patterns and the causes of this structuring. Using a principal component analysis for which testing procedure exists, and partial Mantel tests, we show that the St-Bernard pass does not represent a significant barrier to gene flow although it culminates at 2469 m, close to the highest altitudinal record for this species. Similar results are found for the Simplon pass, indicating that both passes represented potential postglacial recolonization routes into Switzerland from Italian refugia after the last Pleistocene glaciations. In contrast with the weak effect of these mountain passes, the Rhône valley lowlands significantly reduce gene flow in this species. Natural obstacles (the large Rhône river) and unsuitable habitats (dry slopes) are both present in the valley. Moreover, anthropogenic changes to landscape structures are likely to have strongly reduced available habitats for this shrew in the lowlands, thereby promoting genetic differentiation of populations found on opposite sides of the Rhône valley.

Start-up costs and pecuniary externalities as barriers to economic development

We use a dynamic monopolistic competition model to show that an economythat inherits a small range of specialized inputs can be trapped into alower stage of development. The limited availability of specialized inputsforces the final goods producers to use a labor intensive technology, whichin turn implies a small inducement to introduce new intermediate inputs. Thestart--up costs, which make the intermediate inputs producers subject todynamic increasing returns, and pecuniary externalities that result from thefactor substitution in the final goods sector, play essential roles in themodel.

How can we teach EBM in clinical practice? : an analysis of barriers to implementation of on-the-job EBM teaching and learning.

Introduction: Evidence-based medicine (EBM) improves the quality of health care. Courses on how to teach EBM in practice are available, but knowledge does not automatically imply its application in teaching. We aimed to identify and compare barriers and facilitators for teaching EBM in clinical practice in various European countries. Methods: A questionnaire was constructed listing potential barriers and facilitators for EBM teaching in clinical practice. Answers were reported on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from not at all being a barrier to being an insurmountable barrier. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 120 clinical EBM teachers from 11 countries. Lack of time was the strongest barrier for teaching EBM in practice (median 5). Moderate barriers were the lack of requirements for EBM skills and a pyramid hierarchy in health care management structure (median 4). In Germany, Hungary and Poland, reading and understanding articles in English was a higher barrier than in the other countries. Conclusion: Incorporation of teaching EBM in practice faces several barriers to implementation. Teaching EBM in clinical settings is most successful where EBM principles are culturally embedded and form part and parcel of everyday clinical decisions and medical practice.

2010 Iowa Medicaid – Birth Certificate – Barriers to Prenatal Care Project Match Report Summary of Findings for Medicaid Reimbursed Births

The purpose of the fact sheet is to summarize the Iowa Barriers to Prenatal Care Project’s survey results for women with Medicaid reimbursed births during 2010. This information will be used to guide decision makers in implementing programs that improve the health outcomes of the women and infants who rely on Medicaid coverage.

Iowa's Barriers to Prenatal Care Project, August 2013

The findings in this summary are based on the Iowa Barriers to Prenatal Care project. Ongoing since 1991, the purpose of this project is to obtain brief, accurate information about women delivering babies in Iowa hospitals. Specifically, the project seeks to learn about women’s experiences getting prenatal or delivery care during their current pregnancy. Other information is included which may be pertinent to health planners or those concerned with the systematic development of health care services. This project is a cooperative venture of all of Iowa’s maternity hospitals, the University of Northern Iowa Center for Social and Behavioral Research, and the Iowa Department of Public Health. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded the first three years of this project. The current funding is provided by the Iowa Department of Public Health. The Director is Dr. Mary Losch, University of Northern Iowa Center for Social and Behavioral Research. The Coordinator for the project is Rodney Muilenburg. The questionnaire is distributed to nearly ninety maternity hospitals across the state of Iowa. Nursing staff or those responsible for obtaining birth certificate information in the obstetrics unit are responsible for approaching all birth mothers prior to dismissal and requesting their participation in the study. The questionnaire takes approximately ten minutes to complete. Completed questionnaires are returned to the University of Northern Iowa Center for Social and Behavioral Research for data entry and analysis. Returns are made monthly, weekly, or biweekly depending on the number of births per week in a given hospital. Except in the case of a mother who is too ill to complete the questionnaire, all mothers are eligible to be recruited for participation. The present yearly report includes an analysis of large Iowa cities, African American mothers, and a trend analysis of the last ten years. Also presented in this report is a frequency analysis of all variables included in the 2012 questionnaire. Unless otherwise noted, all entries reflect percentages. Please note that because percentages were rounded, total values may not equal 100%. Data presented are based upon 2012 questionnaires received to date (n = 23,674). All analyses reflect unweighted percentages of those responding.