SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Capacity Building”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,603 records · Page 89Linked to original sources

PubMed2006

Glycosyldisulfides from dynamic combinatorial libraries as O-glycoside mimetics for plant and endogenous lectins: their reactivities in solid-phase and cell assays and conformational analysis by molecular dynamics simulations.

Dynamic combinatorial library design exploiting the thiol-disulfide exchange readily affords access to glycosyldisulfides. In order to reveal lectin-binding properties of this type of non-hydrolyzable sugar derivative, libraries originating from a mixture of common building blocks of natural glycans and thiocompounds were tested against three plant agglutinins with specificity to galactose, fucose or N-acetylgalactosamine, respectively, in a solid-phase assay. Extent of lectin binding to matrix-immobilized neoglycoprotein presenting the cognate sugar could be reduced, and evidence for dependence on type of carbohydrate was provided by dynamic deconvolution. Glycosyldisulfides also maintained activity in assays of increased physiological relevance, that is, using native tumor cells and also adding to the test panel an endogenous lectin (galectin-3) involved in tumor spread and cardiac dysfunction. N-Acetylgalactosamine was pinpointed as the most important building block of libraries for the human lectin and the digalactoside as most potent compound acting on the toxic mistletoe agglutinin which is closely related to the biohazard ricin. Because this glycosyldisulfide, which even surpasses lactose in inhibitory capacity, rivals thiodigalactoside as inhibitor, their degrees of intramolecular flexibility were comparatively analyzed by computational calculations. Molecular dynamics runs with explicit consideration of water molecules revealed a conspicuously high degree of potential for shape alterations by the disulfide's three-bond system at the interglycosidic linkage. The presented evidence defines glycosyldisulfides as biologically active ligands for lectins.

Binding Sites↗

PubMed1977

Economics of alternative energy sources.

An important part of the oil and natural gas at present consumed in the UK is used for the heating of buildings, a demand which shows large diurnal, day-to-day and annual fluctuations. The replacement of this energy by nuclear-generated electricity, as at present envisaged, would require the construction of some 250 GW of additional capacity by the end of the century, a progamme which does not seem feasible. By incorporating relatively cheap, short term storage in the form of low-grade heat, the generating capacity required to fulfil peak demand could be reduced by more than 50%. As soon as such storage is provided, however, other sources of energy become viable and attractive alternatives, and the UK is well situated to make use of wind, wave, and tidal power. It seems likely that the value of North Sea oil/gas reserves as feedstock to the chemical industry will rise sufficiently to make an early reduction in their consumption as fuel of great economic importance.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Pulmonary disease associated with cafeteria flooding.

An illness among office workers, consisting of cough, fever, chills, muscle aches, and chest tightness was associated with water leaks from a cafeteria. Mean single breath carbon-monoxide diffusing capacity (DLCO) of cases differed significantly from that of non-cases. There was a significant decrease in the percent of predicted DLCO with increasing number of symptoms. Testing for precipitating antibodies to microbial agents found in the building revealed no differences between cases and non-cases. DLCO is an appropriate cross-sectional instrument for field investigations of building-associated respiratory disease.

Breath Tests↗

PubMed2000

Research priorities for tobacco control in developing countries: a regional approach to a global consultative process.

OBJECTIVE: To develop regional tobacco control research agendas for developing countries through a consultative process. METHODS: Research for International Tobacco Control, located at the International Development Research Centre in Ottawa, Canada, convened three regional meetings for Latin America and the Caribbean, South and Southeast Asia, and Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. Participation by researchers, policymakers, and advocates from a wide range of disciplines ensured an accurate representation of regional issues. RESULTS: The four main recurring themes within each regional agenda were: (1) the lack of standardised and comparable data; (2) the absence of a network for communication of information, data, and best practices; (3) a lack of adequate capacity for tobacco control research, especially in non-health related areas such as economics and policy analysis; and (4) a need for concerted mobilisation of human and financial resources in order to implement a comprehensive research agenda, build partnerships, and stimulate comparative research and analysis. Specific research issues included the need for descriptive data with respect to the supply side of the tobacco equation, and analytical data related to tobacco use, production and marketing, and taxation. CONCLUSIONS: There was a uniform perception of tobacco as a multidisciplinary issue. All regional agendas included a balance of health, economic, agricultural, environmental, sociocultural, and international trade concerns. Research data are urgently required to provide a sound basis for the development of tobacco control policies and programmes. As tobacco control takes its rightful place on the global health agenda, it is vital that funding for tobacco control research be increased.

Developing Countries↗

PubMed2006

Use of physical properties to predict the effects of tillage practices on organic matter dynamics in three Illinois soils.

This work builds on a previous study of long-term tillage trials that found use of no-tillage (NT) practices increased soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration at Monmouth, IL (silt loam soil) by increasing the soil's protective capacity, but did not alter SOC storage in DeKalb, IL (silty clay loam), where higher clay contents provided a protective capacity not affected by tillage. The least limiting water range (LLWR), a multi-factor index of structural quality, predicted observed soil CO2 efflux patterns. Here we consider whether LLWR can predict sequestration trends at a third site, Perry, IL (silt loam soil) where SOC content is lower and bulk density is higher than in previously considered sites, and determine whether pore size characteristics can help explain the influence use of NT practices has had on SOC sequestration at all three locations. At Perry, LLWR was again related with differences in specific soil organic carbon mineralization rates (RESPsp) (2000-2001). Reduced RESPsp rates explain increases in SOC storage under NT management observed only after 17 yr. Trends in RESPsp suggest use of NT practices only enhance physical protection of SOC where soil bulk density is relatively high (approximately 1.4 g cm(-3)). In those soils (Monmouth and Perry), use of NT management reduced the volume of small macropores (15-150 microm) thought to be important for microbial activity. Physical properties appear to determine whether or not use of NT practices will enhance C storage by increasing physical protection of SOC. By refining the functions used to compute the LLWR and our understanding of the interactions between management, pore structure, and SOC mineralization, we should be able to predict the influence of tillage practices on SOC sequestration.

Agriculture↗

PubMed1993

[Brain injury and brain disease. Need and importance of early rehabilitation].

Early rehabilitation means rehabilitation which begins during the treatment for acute illness or trauma, immediately after the management of life-threatening conditions and stabilization of vital functions. Early rehabilitation is intended to make extensive use of the regenerative capacities of the brain and prepare effortless transition to further training programs. The necessity of early rehabilitation after severe brain injury or vascular brain disease is now recognized. However the means available now, i.e. trained staff, equipment and buildings, are insufficient. In order to estimate the resources needed the epidemiology of head and brain injury and vascular brain disease in Germany was analyzed by Infratest Gesundheitsforschung, Munich. The study was initiated and supported by the Kuratorium ZNS. The data concerning the years spanning 1987 to 1989 and the emerging conclusions will be presented. Also, important and meanwhile accepted suggestions for the founding and equipment of rehabilitative care units will be discussed.

Brain Damage, Chronic↗

PubMed2002

Building the legal foundation for an effective public health system.

Work has been underway nationally since the mid-1990s to equip state and community public health systems with the infrastructure needed to perform essential public health services. Key components of that infrastructure are a competent workforce, information and communication systems, health department and laboratory capacity, and legal authorities. As part of this transformative work, standards and assessment tools have been developed to measure the capacity and actual performance of public health systems. In addition, a number of states have examined the legal foundation for public health services and have revised and updated those authorities to improve their system's capacity in the context of evolving health challenges. Among those states are Nebraska, New Jersey, and Texas, all of which, beginning in 1999, have adopted dynamic new approaches to aligning public health's legal authorities with new missions and expectations for performance and accountability. This article describes the approaches that these three states have taken to strengthen their legal foundation for public health practice, to illuminate the perspectives legislators and health officials bring to the process, and to give decision makers in other states practical insight into the potential benefits of reviewing and restructuring public health's legal authorities. The underlying stimuli for the states' initiatives differed significantly, yet shared an important, common core. What they held in common was concern that outdated elements of the public health system and infrastructure hindrered delivery of essential public health services at the community level. Where they differed was in the type of tools they found most suitable for the job of rejuvenating those structures. The approaches taken, and the policy tools selected, reflect the unique health needs of each state, establish relationships among state and community health authorities and agencies, and provide guidance by elected and appointed policy makers. Each state continues to refine its approach as it gains experience with the new authorities.

Community Health Services↗

PubMed1987

Abrupt loss of dependence of retinopetal neurons on their target cells, as shown by intraocular injections of kainate in chick embryos.

We have examined the capacity of neurons in the chick isthmo-optic nucleus (ION) to survive when their target neurons in the contralateral retinal are destroyed by intraocular injections of kainate (KA) at different stages in development. The retinal vulnerability to KA builds up progressively from embryonic day 10 (E10) until a plateau is reached at E15 (see accompanying paper); and the effects on the ION increase in parallel, almost all the ION neurons being rapidly lost after the E15 injections. KA injection before E15 lesioned only part of the retina and caused degeneration only in the topographically corresponding region of the ION. Near the end of the natural cell death period in the ION (E17), this initial dependence on the target cells is rapidly lost. Already at E16 the injections kill less ION neurons, and by E19 they kill none of them. The ION neurons have become completely insensitive to the KA injections and appear normal more than 4 months later, although axotomy (by eye removal) at a similar age would by then have killed them. The ectopic ION neurons, scattered outside the ION but projecting to the retina, are never affected by KA injections at any age.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Palliative care in sub-Saharan Africa.

Control of pain and symptoms and terminal care are necessary for quality HIV and cancer care in sub-Saharan Africa. However, what constitutes feasible, accessible, and effective palliative care, and how to develop such services, remains to be resolved. Africa-specific palliative care includes components that carry resource implications. Home and community-based care has been largely successful, but community capacity and the resources and clinical supervision necessary to sustain quality care are lacking. Coverage and referrals must be primary concerns. Simple lay and professional protocols have been developed, but opioid availability remains a major constraint. Areas of good practice, and areas where further success may be achieved include: attention to community needs and capacity; explicit frameworks for service development and palliative-care integration throughout the disease course (including antiretroviral provision); further education and protocols; strengthening and dissemination of diverse referral and care systems; increasing advocacy; and funding and technical skills to build audit and quality assessment.

Africa South of the Sahara↗

PubMed2006

Scaling up post-abortion care in Guatemala: initial successes at national level.

This article describes a programme to scale up post-abortion care services in 22 of the 33 public sector district hospitals in Guatemala from July 2003 to December 2004. The main interventions included strengthening the knowledge and technical capacity of staff, expanding post-abortion care, enhancing related infrastructure, distributing informational materials and instituting an abortion surveillance system. A facilitator supported the work through week-long, monthly visits at each hospital. Attention was also devoted to building institutional consensus in support of post-abortion care at government, district hospital and hospital staff levels. During this period, 13,928 women with incomplete abortions were admitted to the 22 hospitals. Use of manual vacuum aspiration for treatment of incomplete first trimester abortion increased from 38% to 68% of cases (p<0.0001). Provision of family planning counselling also increased, from 31% to 78% of women (p<0.0001), and the proportion of women selecting a contraceptive method before leaving hospital from 20% to 49% (p<0.0001). Infection was associated with 71% of the incomplete abortions, of which 90% were septic. There were nine deaths and 768 women suffered severe complications, the level of which remained unchanged during the study period. Guatemala still has much to do to institutionalise post-abortion care fully and reduce deaths and complications, but our efforts to date will be valuable to others.

Abortion, Incomplete↗

PubMed1991

Changing with the times: reconfiguring a mental health facility in response to changing market conditions.

A 130-bed private mental health hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, was a state-of-the-art, progressive facility when it was built in 1986. Since then, changing reimbursement patterns and the shift from inpatient to outpatient services have led to an organizational and physical reconfiguration of the facility to accommodate both mental health and chemical dependency programs. This paper describes the original design of the building and how it was modified in 1990 to achieve organizational objectives and enhance patient care.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Live on the Internet: surgery.

A Massachusetts hospital uses live surgical scenes, an interactive survey and other measures to build interest in its Web site. It's also using Internet technology for its growing intranet.

Commerce↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Small talk about organ transplants.

Organ and tissue donation is an excellent example of the type of issues in which social work in the small hospital is especially equipped to take a leadership role--whether from an organizational or clinical standpoint. By ensuring that the hospital has appropriate policies and procedures in place and that adequately trained staff are available, the social worker in the small hospital is not only promoting increased organ and tissue donation, but is also building the foundation on which the "specialty" staff at the larger institutions will continue the organ procurement process.

Hospital Bed Capacity, 100 to 299↗

PubMed1980

'Redesign' of hospital shows energy savings.

Computer analysis of a redesign on paper shows that relatively minor but thoughtful changes in a recently completed hospital building can substantially improve its energy usage.

Conservation of Energy Resources↗

PubMed1998

[Contribution of psychiatric departments to restructuring inpatient management: the Saxony-Anhalt example].

In 1996, the available number of hospital beds for inpatients care in psychiatry, psychotherapy and psychogeriatrics in Sachsen-Anhalt amounted to approximately 0.4 beds per 1,000 inhabitants. As compared to 1992, when most beds were still concentrated in four large psychiatric hospitals, some decentralisation had been achieved. Now, 13 of 23 catchment areas have clinical facilities of their own, five of which were newly founded. About 800 of 1,346 beds and 245 of 299 day hospital places are now located outside the former large institutions. Some of the recently established facilities, however, are not yet sufficiently equipped to serve their catchment areas, with regard to appropriate size, room, staffing, internal specialisation and authorization to cope with compulsory admissions. Even in general hospitals, psychiatric departments are often separated from the main building, with the spatial distance providing some obstacle to the desired cooperation of psychiatry with other medical specialties.

Deinstitutionalization↗

PubMed1991

Backbone modified oligodeoxynucleotides: stereoselective synthesis of methylphosphonates and HIV inhibitory capacity of phosphorothioates.

Oligonucleotides bearing phosphorothioate linkages of the HIV tatIII splice acceptor site were synthesized by automated solid phase synthesis. Especially 5'- and 3'-end capped thioates of the sequence 5'-ACACCCAATTCTGAAAATGG-3' show microM inhibition of HIV replication. ODN-methylphosphonates of defined stereochemistry were obtained with suitably modified proline phosphonamidite derivatives as monomeric building blocks. Asymmetric induction for nucleosidephosphonamidates up to 5:1 (Rp:Sp rsp. Sp:Rp depending on configuration of proline-moiety) could be reached. The intermediate phosphonamidite can be further reacted to dinucleoside methylphosphonates of enriched diastereomeric excess.

Antiviral Agents↗

PubMed2006

Long-term corrosion-induced copper runoff from natural and artificial patina and its environmental impact.

The overall objective of this paper is to present an extensive set of data for corrosion-induced copper dispersion and its environmental interaction with solid surfaces in the near vicinity of buildings. Copper dispersion is discussed in terms of total copper flows, copper speciation and bioavailability at the immediate release situation, and its changes during transport from source to recipient. Presented results are based on extensive field exposures (eight years) at an urban site, laboratory investigations of the runoff process, published field data, generated predictive site-specific runoff rate models, and reactivity investigations toward various natural and manmade surfaces, such as those in soil, limestone, and concrete. Emphasis is placed on the interaction of copper-containing runoff water with different soil systems through long-term laboratory column investigations. The fate of copper is discussed in terms of copper retention, copper chemical speciation, breakthrough capacities, and future mobilization based on changes in copper concentrations in the percolate water, computer modeling using the Windermere Humic Aqueous Model, and sequential extractions. The results illustrate that, for scenarios where copper comes in extensive contact with solid surfaces, such as soil and limestone, a large fraction of released copper is retained already in the immediate vicinity of the building. In all, both the total copper concentration in runoff water and its bioavailable part undergo a significant and rapid reduction.

Copper↗

PubMed2003

Strategies for addressing the evolving nursing crisis.

BACKGROUND: The shortage of registered nurses, which is already having ill effects on the U.S. health care delivery system, is burgeoning at a time when patient acuity is high, care is complex, and demand for services often exceeds capacity. This is a prescription for danger. CREATE A CULTURE OF RETENTION: Some hospitals fare better in recruiting and retaining nurses than others. Top-level managers who provide nurses with delegated authority, adequate staffing, competitive compensation, and a collaborative culture have a built-in resistance to cyclical nursing shortages--theirs is too good a place to work to leave. BOLSTER THE NURSING EDUCATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE: The shortage of nurses is mirrored by a corresponding shortage of nursing faculty. As nursing educator attrition continues, it is unclear where the future nursing school faculty will come from. Federal funding of nursing education is modest. Structured postgraduate training programs for nurses could provide an opportunity for skill building in real clinical settings. ESTABLISH FINANCIAL INCENTIVES FOR INVESTING IN NURSING: Although there is clearly a business case for creating a culture of nursing staff retention-based on lower turnover, lower costs, higher profitability, and better outcomes--there is just as clear a need for the investment of new dollars in hospitals to establish a new base of response capacity. For hospitals to be truly able to invest in nursing and to resolve the problems that have led to the impending nurse staffing crisis, new federal monies specifically targeted for nursing need to be made available.

Career Choice↗