Experiences with Grid Marketing - Summary of Chariton Valley Beef Sales for Year 2000

Producers in the Chariton Valley Beef organization have marketed more than 10,000 head of cattle into grid markets over the past three years. Data from 134 lots were summarized, with 3,791 head of cattle marketed into four grid markets. Producers averaged $26.05 per head premiums. Premiums and discounts ranged from a positive $79.01 to a negative $40.44 on tots delivered.

'Saying it without words': a qualitative study of oncology staff's experiences with speaking up about safety concerns.

OBJECTIVES To explore the experiences of oncology staff with communicating safety concerns and to examine situational factors and motivations surrounding the decision whether and how to speak up using semistructured interviews. SETTING 7 oncology departments of six hospitals in Switzerland. PARTICIPANTS Diverse sample of 32 experienced oncology healthcare professionals. RESULTS Nurses and doctors commonly experience situations which raise their concerns and require questioning, clarifying and correcting. Participants often used non-verbal communication to signal safety concerns. Speaking-up behaviour was strongly related to a clinical safety issue. Most episodes of 'silence' were connected to hygiene, isolation and invasive procedures. In contrast, there seemed to exist a strong culture to communicate questions, doubts and concerns relating to medication. Nearly all interviewees were concerned with 'how' to say it and in particular those of lower hierarchical status reflected on deliberate 'voicing tactics'. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate a widely accepted culture to discuss any concerns relating to medication safety while other issues are more difficult to voice. Clinicians devote considerable efforts to evaluate the situation and sensitively decide whether and how to speak up. Our results can serve as a starting point to develop a shared understanding of risks and appropriate communication of safety concerns among staff in oncology.

Doppler sonography of the medial arterial blood supply to the coxofemoral joints of 36 medium to large breed dogs and its relationship with radiographic signs of joint disease.

The medial arterial supply to 68 of the 72 coxofemoral joints of 36 medium to large breed dogs was examined ultrasonographically. The medial circumflex femoral artery and three branches were identified; the artery and its transverse branch were identified in all 68 joints, and the deep branch was identified in 61 joints, and the ascending branch was identified in 63. However, the acetabular and obturator branches were not identified. The pulsatility index, the mean velocity and the peak systolic velocity of the medial circumflex femoral artery were determined and associated with a radiographic score of degenerative coxofemoral joint disease and a lath distraction index (LDI). In joints with a LDI greater than 0.35, the pulsatility index was significantly lower (P=0.023) and its mean velocity was higher (P=0.005). However, no significant associations were observed in individual dogs when the measurements in both joints were taken into account.

Out-of-Body Experiences and Other Complex Dissociation Experiences in a Patient with Unilateral Peripheral Vestibular Damage and Deficient Multisensory Integration

Out-of-body experiences (OBEs) are illusory perceptions of one's body from an elevated disembodied perspective. Recent theories postulate a double disintegration process in the personal (visual, proprioceptive and tactile disintegration) and extrapersonal (visual and vestibular disintegration) space as the basis of OBEs. Here we describe a case which corroborates and extends this hypothesis. The patient suffered from peripheral vestibular damage and presented with OBEs and lucid dreams. Analysis of the patient's behaviour revealed a failure of visuo-vestibular integration and abnormal sensitivity to visuo-tactile conflicts that have previously been shown to experimentally induce out-of-body illusions (in healthy subjects). In light of these experimental findings and the patient's symptomatology we extend an earlier model of the role of vestibular signals in OBEs. Our results advocate the involvement of subcortical bodily mechanisms in the occurrence of OBEs.

Experiences with a voluntary surveillance system for early detection of equine diseases in Switzerland

Clinical observations made by practitioners and reported using web- and mobile-based technologies may benefit disease surveillance by improving the timeliness of outbreak detection. Equinella is a voluntary electronic reporting and information system established for the early detection of infectious equine diseases in Switzerland. Sentinel veterinary practitioners have been able to report cases of non-notifiable diseases and clinical symptoms to an internet-based platform since November 2013. Telephone interviews were carried out during the first year to understand the motivating and constraining factors affecting voluntary reporting and the use of mobile devices in a sentinel network. We found that non-monetary incentives attract sentinel practitioners; however, insufficient understanding of the reporting system and of its relevance, as well as concerns over the electronic dissemination of health data were identified as potential challenges to sustainable reporting. Many practitioners are not yet aware of the advantages of mobile-based surveillance and may require some time to become accustomed to novel reporting methods. Finally, our study highlights the need for continued information feedback loops within voluntary sentinel networks.

Simulation study of joint transition and Weibull survival model with shared parameters

This study investigates a theoretical model where a longitudinal process, that is a stationary Markov-Chain, and a Weibull survival process share a bivariate random effect. Furthermore, a Quality-of-Life adjusted survival is calculated as the weighted sum of survival time. Theoretical values of population mean adjusted survival of the described model are computed numerically. The parameters of the bivariate random effect do significantly affect theoretical values of population mean. Maximum-Likelihood and Bayesian methods are applied on simulated data to estimate the model parameters. Based on the parameter estimates, predicated population mean adjusted survival can then be calculated numerically and compared with the theoretical values. Bayesian method and Maximum-Likelihood method provide parameter estimations and population mean prediction with comparable accuracy; however Bayesian method suffers from poor convergence due to autocorrelation and inter-variable correlation. ^

Women’s experiences with the use of medical abortion in a legally restricted context: the case of Argentina

This article presents the findings of a qualitative study exploring the experiences of women living in Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area, Argentina, with the use of misoprostol for inducing an abortion. We asked women about the range of decisions they had to make, their emotions, the physical experience, strategies they needed to use, including seeking health care advice and in dealing with a clandestine medical abortion, and their overall evaluation of the experience. An in-depth interview schedule was used. The women had either used misoprostol and sought counselling or care at a public hospital (n=24) or had used misoprostol based on the advice of a local hotline, information from the internet or from other women (n=21). Four stages in the women’s experiences were identified: how the decision to terminate the pregnancy was taken, how the medication was obtained, how the tablets were used, and reflections on the outcome whether or not they sought medical advice. Safety and privacy were key in deciding to use medical abortion. Access to the medication was the main obstacle, requiring a prescription or a friendly drugstore. Correct information about the number of pills to use and dosage intervals was the least easy to obtain and caused concerns. The possibility of choosing a time of privacy and having the company of a close one was highlighted as a unique advantage of medical abortion. Efforts to improve abortion law, policy and service provision in Argentina in order to ensure the best possible conditions for use of medical abortion by women should be redoubled.

Expression profiling and sequence diversity of novel DREB genes from common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and their association with drought-related traits

Common bean is a major dietary component in several countries, but its productivity is negatively affected by abiotic stresses. Dissecting candidate genes involved in abiotic stress tolerance is a paramount step toward the improvement of common bean performance under such constraints. Thereby, this thesis presents a systematic analysis of the DEHYDRATION RESPONSIVE ELEMENT-BINDING (DREB) gene subfamily, which encompasses genes that regulate several processes during stress responses, but with limited information for common bean. First, a series of in silico analyses with sequences retrieved from the P. vulgaris genome on Phytozome supported the categorization of 54 putative PvDREB genes distributed within six phylogenetic subgroups (A-1 to A-6), along the 11 chromosomes. Second, we cloned four novel PvDREB genes and determined their inducibility-factors, including the dehydration-, salinity- and cold-inducible genes PvDREB1F and PvDREB5A, and the dehydration- and cold-inducible genes PvDREB2A and PvDREB6B. Afterwards, nucleotide polymorphisms were searched through Sanger sequencing along those genes, revealing a high number of single nucleotide polymorphisms within PvDREB6B by the comparison of Mesoamerican and Andean genotypes. The nomenclature of PvDREB6B is discussed in details. Furthermore, we used the BARCBean6K_3 SNP platform to identify and genotype the closest SNP to each one of the 54 PvDREB genes. We selected PvDREB6B for a broader study encompassing a collection of wild common bean accessions of Mesoamerican origin. The population structure of the wild beans was accessed using sequence polymorphisms of PvDREB6B. The genetic clusters were partially associated with variation in latitude, altitude, precipitation and temperature throughout the areas such beans are distributed. With an emphasis on drought stress, an adapted tube-screening method in greenhouse conditions enabled the phenotyping of several drought-related traits in the wild collection. Interestingly, our data revealed a correlation between root depth, plant height and biomass and the environmental data of the location of the accessions. Correlation was also observed between the population structure determined through PvDREB6B and the environmental data. An association study combining data from the SNP array and DREB polymorphisms enabled the detection of SNP associated with drought-related traits through a compressed mixed linear model (CMLM) analysis. This thesis highlighted important features of DREB genes in common bean, revealing candidates for further strategies aimed at improvement of abiotic stress tolerance, with emphasis on drought tolerance

Influence of tree hollow characteristics on the diversity of saproxylic insect guilds in Iberian Mediterranean woodlands

Saproxylic diversity assessment is a major goal for conservation strategies in woodlands and it should consider woodland composition and configuration at site and tree level as key modelling factors. However, in Mediterranean woodlands little is known about the relation with the environmental factors that structure their assemblages, especially those linked to tree hollow microhabitats. We assessed the diversity of Syrphidae (Diptera) and Coleoptera saproxylic guilds that co-occurred in tree hollows located in three different Iberian Mediterranean woodlands in the Cabañeros National Park (Spain). Furthermore, we evaluated how differences in tree hollow microenvironmental variables (understood as the physical and biotic characteristics of a hollow and tree individual) influenced saproxylic guild diversity both within and among woodland sites. We found that woodland sites that provided greater heterogeneity of trees and hollow microhabitats determined higher saproxylic guild diversity. Nevertheless, certain species or even complete guilds can be favoured in woodlands where some hollow microhabitats predominate as a consequence of historical tree management. In general, hollow volume was the main determining factor for saproxylic guild richness and abundance in woodland sites, and large hollow volume was usually related to higher diversity, which highlighted the importance of multi-habitat hollow trees. Moreover, saproxylic guilds also responded to other different microenvironmental variables, which indicated different ecological preferences among guilds. The conservation of saproxylic insects in Iberian Mediterranean areas must be addressed to protect woodland sites that provide high diversity and large numbers of tree hollow microhabitats, and practices to enhance microhabitat heterogeneity should even be encouraged.

Report of Joint committee on economy in the public service with survey reports on administrative agencies ...

Mode of access: Internet.