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Biomedical subjects

A M Williams

Publications and source records attributed to A M Williams.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Body weight and response acquisition with delayed reinforcement.

The relation between body weight and responding established with unsignaled delayed reinforcement was investigated. In three experiments, naive rats were deprived to either 70%, 80%, or 90% of ad libitum weight and were then exposed to tandem variable-interval 15-s differential-reinforcement-of-other-behavior 30-s schedules. The tandem schedule defined a resetting unsignaled delay-of-reinforcement procedure. In the first experiment, speed of magazine training, acquisition of lever pressing, and final rate of lever pressing were related to body weight. In the next experiment, lever pressing was established and maintained in rats that were magazine trained at 70% of ad libitum weight but that were then exposed to the delay procedure at 90% of ad libitum weight. Responding did not change consistently either across or within subjects in subsequent conditions in which body weight was manipulated. In the final experiment, lever pressing was established and maintained with delayed reinforcement in the absence of magazine training for each of 2 rats at 70% and for 1 of 2 rats at 90% of ad libitum weight. The results further illuminate the conditions under which responding can be established in the absence of training and when such responses are reinforced only following an unsignaled delay period.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Student/faculty practice and research in occupational health. Health promotion and outcome evaluation.

Faculty strive to connect theory and practice with real life situations for students. This study evolved from student intervention with small industries as part of their undergraduate community health nursing clinical experience. A pre-experimental static group design was used to explore the impact of health service availability on selected cardiovascular risk factors. Levels of health service: a) no service; b) student service; and c) formal health care service were compared. Chi-square, t-tests and MANOVA analyses supported three hypotheses that student intervention was equally as successful as formal health care service in reducing the selected cardiovascular risk factors of high weight to height ratios, blood pressure readings above 140/90 on three separate measurements, total cholesterol readings above accepted norms, and a health risk profile that identifies risk for cardiovascular disease.

Cardiovascular Diseases↗
PubMed1996

The development of Ontario's Home Care Program: a critical geographical analysis.

In order to gain a greater breadth of understanding medical geographical issues, such as medically underserviced regions, medical geographers are paying more attention to health policy. Using existing evaluations, an historical analysis of home care programs in Canada's largest and most populous province informs how developments in long-term health care policy have contributed to the geographical inequalities that exist in home care services throughout the province. The geographical bias in the testing, planning and implementation of home care programs has influenced their availability, accessibility and quality in the underserviced region of northern Ontario. Exploring the history of long-term care policy in Ontario also sheds light on the contemporary politics of welfare reform taking place in much of the western world. In many western countries, home health care has moved from being a complementary or alternative form of long-term care, to the favored form of long-term care. The most recent long-term care policy reform in Ontario points to the decentralization of long-term care, a strategy that has already been in affect in some western countries.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

A complex four-gene operon containing essential cell division gene pbpB in Bacillus subtilis.

We have cloned and sequenced the promoter-proximal region of the Bacillus subtilis operon containing the pbpB gene, encoding essential penicillin-binding protein PBP2B. The first two genes in the operon, designated yllB and yllC, are significantly similar to genes of unknown function similarly positioned upstream of pbpB in Escherichia coli. Both B. subtilis genes are shown to be nonessential. The third B. subtilis gene, yllD, is essential, as is the correspondingly positioned ftsL gene of E. coli. The predicted product of yllD is similar to FtsL in size and distribution of charged residues but is not significantly related in primary amino acid sequence. The major promoter for the cluster lies upstream of the first gene, yllB, but at least one minor promoter lies within the yllC gene. The operon is transcribed throughout growth at a low level.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Student/faculty practice and research in occupational health: health promotion and outcome evaluation.

Faculty strive to connect theory and practice with real life situations for students. This study evolved from student intervention with small industries as part of their undergraduate community health nursing clinical experience. A pre-experimental static group design was used to explore the impact of health service availability on selected cardiovascular risk factors. Levels of health service: a) no service; b) student service; and c) formal health care service were compared. Chi-square, t-tests and MANOVA analyses supported three hypotheses that student intervention was equally as successful as formal health care service in reducing the selected cardiovascular risk factors of high weight to height ratios, blood pressure readings above 140/90 on three separate measurements, total cholesterol readings above accepted norms and a health risk profile which identifies risk for cardiovascular disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Perceptions of computer literacy among occupational therapy students.

OBJECTIVE: Educational programs for the occupational therapist and the occupational therapy assistant are mandated to include content on technologies in their curricula. Given the increasing use of technology skills among occupational therapists, especially computer technology skills, it seemed judicious to ascertain the current and desired levels of skill of occupational therapy students as well as their opinions about computer technology. METHOD: Program directors from five baccalaureate-level curricula distributed the Computer Opinion Survey and the Computer Knowledge Survey to 109 junior and senior occupational therapy students. The students were instructed to complete and return questionnaires to their program directors who, in turn, forwarded the questionnaires to the principal investigators. RESULTS: Respondents were generally positive about computer technology, and the level of knowledge they desired about computer technology applications in occupational therapy was much greater than their current level of knowledge. Although respondents' positive attitudes were significantly correlated with their current levels of computer knowledge, no significant relationship was established among positive attitudes, current levels of computer knowledge, and number of computer courses completed before entering an occupational therapy curriculum. CONCLUSIONS: Even though the respondents were computer literate (i.e., they had a general working knowledge of the uses, limitations, and impact of computers), no relationship was established between their previous computer course work and their current knowledge of the use of computer technology in occupational therapy. The linkage between generic computer literacy and knowledge of its relationship to the use of computer technology in occupational therapy was not evident to this sample of junior and senior students.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Health services administration education: meeting the challenge of a culturally diverse work force.

Curriculum revision is a continuous and an ongoing process. Health services administration programs must revise course offerings to reflect current demands and changing trends within our society. Given the expected changes in the work force by the year 2000, health services administration programs must consider incorporating cultural diversity issues as they relate to the management of a diverse work force within the health care industry. Labor force and population trends are projected to include a slowly growing work force population, a decline in the pool of young workers, entrance of more females, increased participation of minorities into the labor force, an increased non-white percentage of new entrants and the largest work force increase attributed to increasing numbers of immigrants. In preparation for the diversity within the work force by the 21st century, health administration programs may find the approaches outlined as conducive for teaching students to become sensitive and cognizant of culturally diverse employees. Incorporation of cultural diversity issues may occur in a variety of ways, however, a close examination of the best way to integrate this content lies within each educational program.

Cultural Diversity↗
PubMed1995

Studies on the reactivity of acyl glucuronides--VIII. Generation of an antiserum for the detection of diflunisal-modified proteins in diflunisal-dosed rats.

Acyl glucuronide metabolites of carboxylic drugs such as the salicylate derivative diflunisal (DF) have been shown to react with proteins to produce covalent adducts. To aid in the study of the formation and distribution of these adducts in both humans and rats, we raised an antiserum against human serum albumin modified by covalent attachment of DF via an amide bond, using a carbodiimide reagent. This antiserum had wide reactivity, reacting with all types of DF-modified proteins tested and with free DF (albeit at a lower affinity). It did not cross-react with other salicylates or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The antiserum has been used in immunoblotting to detect proteins covalently modified by DF in the plasma and livers of rats treated with the drug for 7 days. Although some cross-reactivity was apparent on the blots, a series of DF-modified proteins was found in cytosolic, mitochondrial and mixed membrane fractions of hepatocytes, with molecular weights ranging from 28 to 130 kDa.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Listening to the voices of older patients: an existential-phenomenological approach to quality assurance.

The motivation behind this study was a desire to gain access to the experiences of elderly people receiving nursing care in hospital. Previous experience with quantitative approaches to quality assurance had led to dissatisfaction with their neglect of the patient perspective or reliance on patient satisfaction questionnaires. An existential-phenomenological approach was used in an attempt to reconstruct patients' experiences as reported in their own words. Themes which emerged from the data and are reported here focus on 'routine geriatric care', 'care deprivation', 'depersonalization', and 'geriatric segregation'. The findings are discussed against the background of literature about nursing care of elderly people. It is suggested that in the setting studied, limitations posed by past management deficiencies, under-staffing and poor physical environment contributed to the situation reported. Trained nurses felt they worked hard to give the best care they could but, with a high ratio of untrained staff and lack of continuing education, they were aware that their levels of achievement were far from ideal. The study demonstrates that, with an appropriate methodology, it is possible to gain access to how patients' experience their care and in this sense the attempt to 'listen to the voices of patients' was successful and gives pointers to developing more patient-sensitive quality-assurance processes.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Actual and desired computer literacy among allied health students.

The purpose of this study was to examine the level of computer literacy among allied health students, with specific focus on physical therapy, occupational therapy, and respiratory therapy students, and to investigate the perceived differences between actual computer literacy and desired computer literacy. Two established measurement instruments were used to collect data from a sample of 377 allied health students. T-tests and Pearson product-moment correlations were conducted to analyze the data. Results show that allied health students take very few computer courses, but they are generally aware of the applications of computers in the practice of allied health and they desire a higher level of computer literacy than they currently have.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Studies on the reactivity of acyl glucuronides--VI. Modulation of reversible and covalent interaction of diflunisal acyl glucuronide and its isomers with human plasma protein in vitro.

Acyl glucuronide conjugates are chemically reactive metabolites which can undergo hydrolysis, rearrangement (isomerization via acyl migration) and covalent binding reactions with protein. The present study was undertaken to identify factors modulating the reactivity of diflunisal acyl glucuronide (DAG) with human serum albumin (HSA) in vitro, by comprehensively evaluating the interplay of the three pathways above when DAG and a mixture of its 2-, 3- and 4-isomers (iso-DAG) were incubated with protein. Buffer, plasma, fraction V HSA, fatty acid-free HSA, globulin-free HSA and fatty acid- and globulin-free HSA were investigated at pH 7.4 and 37 degrees, each in the absence and presence of warfarin, diazepam and diflunisal (DF) as reversible binding competitors. DAG and iso-DAG were highly reversibly bound (ca. 98-99.5%) in plasma and HSA solutions. The binding was primarily at the benzodiazepine site, since displacement occurred in the presence of diazepam and fatty acids but not warfarin. DAG degradation, via rearrangement, hydrolysis and covalent adduct formation (in that order of quantitative importance), was retarded in plasma and HSA solutions compared to buffer. The protective effect of protein was afforded by the high reversible binding to the (non-catalytic) benzodiazepine site. The warfarin site appeared to be catalytic for DAG hydrolysis, whereas rearrangement appeared to be hydroxide ion-catalysed only. In contrast to DAG, iso-DAG degradation was greatly accelerated in the presence of protein, through both covalent binding and catalysis of hydrolysis. Covalent binding via DAG was increased in the presence of warfarin but decreased in the presence of diazepam, DF and fatty acids. The opposite effects were found for covalent binding via iso-DAG. The data suggest that covalent binding of DF to HSA via DAG and iso-DAG occurs by different mechanisms (presumably transacylation and glycation, respectively) at different sites (benzodiazepine and warfarin, respectively) whereas reversible binding occurs primarily at the same site (benzodiazepine).

Diflunisal↗
PubMed1994

Appraisal of the clinical competence of registered nurses in relation to their designated levels in the Western Australian nursing career structure.

This cross-sectional survey examined the relationship of the competence of 529 nurses to their designated career structure levels. The extent of the relationships between nursing education and experience with clinical competence was determined, and attitudes of nurses toward their work environment were measured. Results indicated a wide dispersion in clinical nursing skills and that nurses' designation in the Western Australian Career Structure did not reflect their clinical competence. Clinical experience and education independently exerted a significant effect on competence, but there was no interaction between these variables on increasing competence. Attitudes of the nurses were found to be affected by their work environment.

Career Mobility↗
PubMed1994

Visual search strategies in experienced and inexperienced soccer players.

This study investigated skill-based differences in anticipation and visual search strategy within open-play situations in soccer. Experienced (n = 15) and inexperienced (n = 15) subjects were required to anticipate pass destination from filmed soccer sequences viewed on a large 3-m x 3-m video projection screen. MANCOVA showed that experienced soccer players demonstrated superior anticipatory performance. Univariate analyses revealed between-group differences in speed of response but not in response accuracy. Also, inexperienced players fixated more frequently on the ball and the player passing the ball, whereas experienced players fixated on peripheral aspects of the display, such as the positions and movements of other players. The experienced group fixated on significantly more locations than their inexperienced counterparts. Further differences were noted in search rate, with experienced players exhibiting more fixations of shorter duration. The experienced group's higher search rate contradicted previous research. However, this resulted from using 11 on 11 film sequences, which were never previously used in visual search research. The increased frequency of eye fixations was regarded as being more advantageous for anticipating pass destination during open play in soccer. Finally, a number of practical implications were highlighted.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Validity of a perceived exertion scale for children: a pilot study.

The purpose of this study was to examine the validity of a recently developed rating scale of perceived exertion, the Children's Effort Rating Table (CERT), for controlling exercise intensity in young children. 16 children (M age = 9.9 yr., SD = 1.2) performed three separate exercise tests on a mechanically braked cycle ergometer. Stage I (response protocol) consisted of a graded test with heart rate and perceived effort rating recorded in response to specified steady-state work outputs. Stage II (production protocol) examined subjects' ability to produce work outputs corresponding to levels 5, 7, and 9 of the CERT. This protocol was repeated on a further occasion (Stage III) to assess the reliability of the findings. Pearson correlations between ratings and heart rate (0.76) and ratings and work output (0.75) highlight the potential of the scale as a valid measure of exercise intensity. Also, the work rates produced by subjects in Stage II correlated 0.89 with those predicted from Stage I; however, analysis of variance showed that work output was significantly lower in Stage II than predicted. Finally, an intraclass correlation of 0.91 between Stages II and III suggests that the scale gave a reliable estimate of exercise intensity of children. The findings from this pilot study suggest that children's perceptions of effort might be used to guide intensity of exercise during structured activity classes.

Attitude↗
PubMed1994

An osteopathic cardiologist's review of hypertension: beyond the Fifth Report of the Joint National Committee on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure.

Although hypertension was defined more than 100 years ago, it remains the leading cause of office visits and use of prescription drugs. Because hypertension is one of the major risk factors for premature death and disability, the medical community continues to strive toward more aggressive detection, follow-up, and treatment. The Fifth Report of the Joint National Committee on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure provides an excellent guide for all health practitioners. This publication, along with several recent articles, have provided a comprehensive approach to the hypertensive patient. Although cerebrovascular events have been dramatically reduced by the treatment of hypertension, results regarding cardiac morbidity and mortality have been disappointing. Therefore, from a cardiologists' standpoint, the concept of cardioprotection has evolved into an important component in the treatment of the hypertensive patient.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

A region of the C-terminal portion of the human transferrin receptor contains an asparagine-linked glycosylation site critical for receptor structure and function.

The transferrin receptor is a cell surface protein and is responsible for the uptake of iron into many eukaryotic cells. In its mature form, the receptor possesses three asparagine-linked oligosaccharides. The effect of asparagine-linked glycosylation on the processing and cell surface localization of the human transferrin receptor is examined here by site-directed mutagenesis. Each of the extracellular consensus sequences (Asn-X-Ser/Thr) for asparagine-linked glycosylation was mutated individually and in all possible combinations. The constructs were transfected stably into NIH-3T3 cells and a Chinese hamster ovary cell line lacking endogenous transferrin receptors. Of the seven possible combinations of glycosylation sites, single mutations eliminating glycosylation at either Asn251 or Asn317 do not affect the processing and surface localization of the receptor. Eliminating both of these sites together has a small effect on the behavior of the receptor. However, mutation of the C-terminal glycosylation site (Asn727) has the most profound negative effect on the appearance of the receptor at the cell surface. The mutants lacking glycosylation at Asn727 appear to be retained in the endoplasmic reticulum as an increased association with binding immunoglobulin protein (BiP) is observed. Addition of a new glycosylation site in the C-terminal region of the unglycosylated mutated transferrin receptor restores the cell surface localization and the transferrin binding of the transferrin receptor, indicating that glycosylation in this region is critical for the correct transport of this receptor to the cell surface.

3T3 Cells↗