Cost-effectiveness analysis of a European primary-care physician training in smoking cessation counseling.

BACKGROUND: Physician training in smoking cessation counseling has been shown to be effective as a means to increase quit success. We assessed the cost-effectiveness ratio of a smoking cessation counseling training programme. Its effectiveness was previously demonstrated in a cluster randomized, control trial performed in two Swiss university outpatients clinics, in which residents were randomized to receive training in smoking interventions or a control educational intervention. DESIGN AND METHODS: We used a Markov simulation model for effectiveness analysis. This model incorporates the intervention efficacy, the natural quit rate, and the lifetime probability of relapse after 1-year abstinence. We used previously published results in addition to hospital service and outpatient clinic cost data. The time horizon was 1 year, and we opted for a third-party payer perspective. RESULTS: The incremental cost of the intervention amounted to US$2.58 per consultation by a smoker, translating into a cost per life-year saved of US$25.4 for men and 35.2 for women. One-way sensitivity analyses yielded a range of US$4.0-107.1 in men and US$9.7-148.6 in women. Variations in the quit rate of the control intervention, the length of training effectiveness, and the discount rate yielded moderately large effects on the outcome. Variations in the natural cessation rate, the lifetime probability of relapse, the cost of physician training, the counseling time, the cost per hour of physician time, and the cost of the booklets had little effect on the cost-effectiveness ratio. CONCLUSIONS: Training residents in smoking cessation counseling is a very cost-effective intervention and may be more efficient than currently accepted tobacco control interventions.

Suomalainen oikeisto ja "kansankoti" : Kansallisen kokoomuksen suhtautuminen pohjoismaiseen hyvinvointivaltiomalliin jälleenrakennuskaudelta konsensusajan alkuun

Väitöskirja, Turun yliopisto

E-tools for civic education : experiences from the election campaign in Switzerland 2007

Political participation is often very low in Switzerland especially among students and young citizens. In the run-up to the Swiss parliamentary election in October 2007 several online tools and campaigns were developed with the aim to increase not only the level of information about the political programs of parties and candidates, but also the electoral participation of younger citizens. From a practical point of view this paper will describe the development, marketing efforts and the distribution as well as the use of two of these tools : the so-called "Parteienkompass" (party compass) and the "myVote"-tool - an online voting assistance tool based on an issue-matching system comparing policy preferences between voters and candidates on an individual level. We also havea look at similar tools stemming from Voting Advice Applications (VAA) in other countries in Western Europe. The paper closes with the results of an evaluation and an outlook to further developments and on-going projects in the near future in Switzerland.

Europa en la prensa española

En nuestro sistema político, los medios de comunicación no son agentes neutros, sino que desempeñan un papel central en la legitimación de las instituciones políticas. La consolidación de la UE ha significado el surgimiento de un entramado institucional supranacional con nuevos actores e instituciones que muchas veces son cuestionadas por su falta de legitimidad democrática. Todas estas cuestiones llevan a preguntarnos cuál es el papel que desempeñan los medios de comunicación en el proceso de construcción europea, cómo se da cuenta del proceso a la ciudadanía y cuáles de sus elementos entran en la agenda mediática. Este artículo intenta aproximarse a esta cuestión analizando la cobertura mediática que recibe el proceso de integración europea en la prensa española. Para hacerlo, se analizan cinco casos de procesos legislativos y diplomáticos del ámbito de la UE. La enorme diferencia en la cobertura de los distintos casos permite concluir que, en el caso de la prensa española analizada, las cuestiones europeas están vinculadas a la agenda mediática nacional y sirven como elemento legitimador o deslegitimador de posturas políticas de la clase política nacional.

La teoría de los clivajes y el conflicto social moderno

This article was delivered as an area-paper to the Critical Political Science Meeting of Bilbao, November the 15th 2008, which was organized by the Political Science Department of the UPV (University of the Basque Country). The paper introduces an updated and synthetic version of the model designed by S.M. Lipset and S. Rokkan in 1967 in order to identify the confrontational divides distinctive of European modernization and, in this way, trace the origins of modern party systems. The expanded model proposed is applied, on the one hand, to a variety of empirical cases, prominently the postransitional Spanish case; and on the other, shows its usefulness in order to better understand the distinctive structure of the social conflict of the globalization era.

Differential role of naïve and memory CD4 T-cell subsets in primary alloresponses.

The T cell response to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) alloantigens occurs via two main pathways. The direct pathway involves the recognition of intact allogeneic MHC:peptide complexes on donor cells and provokes uniquely high frequencies of responsive T cells. The indirect response results from alloantigens being processed like any other protein antigen and presented as peptide by autologous antigen-presenting cells. The frequencies of T cells with indirect allospecificity are orders of magnitude lower and comparable to other peptide-specific responses. In this study, we explored the contributions of naïve and memory CD4(+) T cells to these two pathways. Using an adoptive transfer and skin transplantation model we found that naive and memory CD4(+) T cells, both naturally occurring and induced by sensitization with multiple third-party alloantigens, contributed equally to graft rejection when only the direct pathway was operative. In contrast, the indirect response was predominantly mediated by the naïve subset. Elimination of regulatory CD4(+)CD25(+) T cells enabled memory cells to reject grafts through the indirect pathway, but at a much slower tempo than for naïve cells. These findings have implications for better targeting of immunosuppression to inhibit immediate and later forms of alloimmunity.

Ideologisk förändring och stabilitet i Finland. En jämförande studie av sex partiideologier

Abstract: Ideological stability and change in Finland : an analysis of party programmes

Long-Life Concrete: How Long Will My Concrete Last? A Synthesis of Knowledge of Potential Durability of Concrete, TPF-5(159), 2013

There is an ongoing discussion about moving toward performance-based specifications for concrete pavements. This document seeks to move the discussion forward by outlining the needs and the challenges, and proposing some immediate actions. However, this approach may increase risk for all parties until performance requirements are agreed upon and, more importantly, how the requirements can be measured. A fundamental issue behind pavement construction activities is that the owner/designer needs to be assured that the concrete in place will survive for the intended period (assuming there are no changes in the environment or loading) and, therefore, that full payment should be made. At the same time, each party along the supply chain needs to be assured that the material being supplied to them is able to meet the required performance, as is the product/system they are delivering. The focus of this document is a discussion of the issues behind this need, and the technologies that are available, or still needed, to meet this need, particularly from the point of view of potential durability

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, 2010

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, published by the Iowa State Capitol Tour Guides weekly during the legislative session, features historical facts about Iowa, the Capitol, and the early workings of state government. All historical publications are reproduced here with the actual spelling, punctuation, and grammar retained. THIS WEEK: Iowa legislative party affiliations over the years

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, January 11, 2012

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, published by the Iowa State Capitol Tour Guides weekly during the legislative session, features historical facts about Iowa, the Capitol, and the early workings of state government. All historical publications are reproduced here with the actual spelling, punctuation, and grammar retained. January 11, 2012 THIS WEEK: PROFESSORSHIPS AND STUDENT ENROLLMENT AT THE STATE UNIVERSITY BACKGROUND: The Ninth General Assembly convened January 13, 1862, and adjourned April 8, 1862—an 86-day session. The Brick Capitol in Des Moines had been the seat of government for four years. John R. Needham was the Lt. Governor presiding in the Senate, and Rush Clark was the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The Republican Party had the majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. The legislature had 140 members. Samuel Kirkwood was the governor, serving his second term. Governor Kirkwood was the first governor of Iowa to be re-elected to a second term and the first governor to serve nonconsecutive terms. He was 46 at the time of his first Inaugural on January 11, 1860. The 1860 census showed Iowa’s population at 674,913.

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, March 13, 2013

Pieces of Iowa’s Past, published by the Iowa State Capitol Tour Guides weekly during the legislative session, features historical facts about Iowa, the Capitol, and the early workings of state government. All historical publications are reproduced here with the actual spelling, punctuation, and grammar retained. THIS WEEK: Judge Reuben Noble Praises the Iowa State Building at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition BACKGROUND: REUBEN NOBLE REUBEN NOBLE was born on the 14th of April, 1821, in Ada County, Mississippi, where his father was a farmer. When he was eighteen years of age, Noble began to study law and was admitted to the bar at twenty-one. In 1843, he came to Iowa, making his home at Garnavillo, in Clayton County. In 1854, Noble was elected to the legislature as a free soil Whig and upon the organization of the House was chosen Speaker, serving in the regular session of 1854 and extraordinary session of 1855. At the first Republican State Convention of 1856, he was placed at the head of the ticket for presidential elector. Four years later, he was a delegate to the National Convention that nominated Abraham Lincoln for president. Up to the time of the attempt of the Republicans to remove President Johnson by impeachment, Noble had been a prominent leader of that party. But approving of the policies of the President, he left the Republicans and from that time became a Democrat. In 1866, Noble was nominated by the Democrats for Representative in Congress but was defeated by William B. Allison. In 1886, he was one of the organizers of the Pioneer Lawmakers’ Association and was its first president, never missing a session during the remainder of his life. Noble was the leader of the bar of northeastern Iowa beginning in 1850. As a compliment to his high standing and eminent qualifications as a jurist, the citizens of the Tenth Judicial District elected him to tthe office of district judge in the fall of 1874. (History of Iowa from the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century/Volume 4)

Hallituksen toimintaan ja puoluejohdon taitavuuteen kohdistuva arviointi puoluekannatuksen selittäjänä

Abstract: Evaluation of government performance and party leadership as a determinant of party selection

The views of rich Europeans are more likely to be reflected by political parties than those of poorer citizens

How does income inequality affect political representation? Jan Rosset, Nathalie Giger and Julian Bernauer examine whether politicians represent the views of poorer and richer citizens equally. They find that in 43 out of the 49 elections included in their analysis, the preferences of low-income citizens are located further away from the policy positions of the closest political party than those with mid-range incomes. This suggests that income inequality may spill-over into political inequalities, although it is less clear whether this effect is likely to get better or worse as a result of the Eurozone crisis.

Typologien und Wandel : Die kantonalen Parteiensysteme im letzten Drittel des 20. Jahrhunderts

Die bisherigen Versuche die kantonalen Parteiensysteme zu typologisieren kommen zu ganz unterschiedlichen Ergebnissen. Der Grund dafür liegt darin, dass sie sich auf nur wenige und unterschiedliche Parteiensystemmerkmale abstützten. Vernachlässigt wird dabei zudem der Aspekt eines allfälligen Wandels der Parteiensysteme. Ziel dieses Artikels ist es, ausgehend von einer Typologisierung, welche möglichst alle wichtigen Eigenheiten der kantonalen Parteiensysteme berücksichtigt, den Wandel der Parteiensysteme zu analysieren und mögliche Entwicklungen aufzuzeigen. Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass bei gewissen Systemmerkmalen trotz einer Annäherung in nächster Zeit nicht davon auszugehen ist, dass die kantonalen Parteiensysteme auf das nationale Parteiensystem hin konvergieren.

Miten äänestäjät valitsevat puolueen?

Abstract: How electors choose thier party in general elections